The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed fake, adulterated, and unregistered foods, drugs, and cosmetic products worth approximately N1,367,000,000 seized in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The products were destroyed at the Kuje dumpsite in the territory.
According to the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, the destruction exercise is a crucial and routine operation that the agency conducts across all zones of the federation. “We carry out these exercises at least once a year in each zone, depending on the volume of seizures made by the agency,” she said.
The destroyed products included *drugs* such as psychoactive and controlled substances, antibiotics, antihypertensives, and antimalarials; *food products* like cookies, vegetable oil, and non-alcoholic beverages; and *cosmetics* including creams, lotions, and skin-lightening products.
NAFDAC has significantly increased its post-marketing surveillance and enforcement activities to counter the threats posed by counterfeit medicines and foods to national security. The agency is also engaging with political, traditional, and faith-based leaders, as well as journalists and the general public, to galvanize support in the fight against substandard and falsified products.
The Director General of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Dr Ifeanyi Okeke, commended NAFDAC for the destruction of the products and warned manufacturers, importers, and related parties that non-compliance with regulations would not be tolerated.
