NAFDAC’s Director-General, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, insisted that the ban was for the benefit of Nigerians and to save lives.

Adeyeye’s announcement on January 31 that NAFDAC would begin the enforcement of the ban on alcoholic beverages in sachets had generated repeated protests by distillers and labour unions, who said the move would cost 500,000 workers their jobs.

Asked on Monday whether NAFDAC would review the ban in view of the growing protests,  the Head of Public Relations Office, NAFDAC, Christiana Obiazikwor, said that the ban remained.

Obiazikwor clarified that NAFDAC  did not ban alcohol production in bigger bottles but alcohol in containers or packing that a child can easily conceal.

“The alcoholic content in sachet or PET bottles less than 200ml is 30 per cent. Beer has four to eight per cent alcohol. The Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers, and Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria signed an agreement with the Ministry of Health and NAFDAC in December 2018 that they will phase out production of alcohol in sachet and PET bottles less than 200 ml by January 31, 2024. The agreement document is available.  A five-year phase-out notice should be sufficient.

“They say it’s going to lead to loss of jobs, but it can lead to loss of lives as well. So, which is more important? We are not going back (on the ban). We are doing this to save the lives of Nigerians, and commuters.

A statement by the agency today January 24, says investigations by the TG Arla Dairy Product Enterprise company (Holder of Certificate of Registration) discovered that the counterfeited products were displayed openly in the market.

NAFDAC added that its zonal directors and state coordinators have been directed to conduct surveillance and mop up the counterfeited Arla Dano 14g full cream Milk Powder across the states in Nigeria.

‘’NAFDAC implores distributors, retailers, and consumers to exercise caution and vigilance to avoid consuming, selling, or distributing counterfeit products. The products’ authenticity and physical condition should be carefully checked.Anyone possessing the counterfeit Arla Dano 14g full cream Milk Powder is advised to submit stock to the nearest NAFDAC office. Suppose you, or someone you know, have consumed this product or suffered any adverse reaction/event after consumption. In that case, you are advised to seek immediate medical advice from a qualified healthcare professional. Members of the public are encouraged to report any suspicion of distribution and sale of counterfeit or unwholesome packaged food products to the nearest NAFDAC office, NAFDAC on 0800-162-3322 or via email: sf.alert@nafdac.gov.ng”

In the statement released, the agency said following an intelligent tip off, NAFDAC carried out several weeks of intelligence gathering and collation of data on the activities of this merchants of death. The agency stated that in collaboration with other security agencies, NAFDAC carried out a sting operation in the market to burst the criminal operations taking place there. It is worthy of note that this dastard activity has been going on for a long time and they operate like a cartel threatening anyone who dares challenge them.

‘’Some of the nefarious activities of the counterfeiters included the manufacturing of all kinds of adulterated products especially different kinds of wine from a wide variety of brands ranging from Seaman Schnapps, Henessy, Four Cousins, Carlo Rossi, Jenney, Chelsea London Dry Gin, Schnapp Dry Gin, McDowells, Black Labels, Gordons, Martell, Campari, Smirnoff ice, Eva Non-Alcoholic Drink, Evra Non-Alcoholic Drink, Cartel, and others. There is also date revalidation for expired products like Peak milk, Powdered milk, Ketchups, Yoghurt, Coca Cola products, packaging of fake and substandard products, which are later sold to unsuspecting members of the public for consumption. Because of the extensive operation, the agency raided over 240 shops- turned factories where the harmful products were being produced and marketed.”

The statement added that the shops-turned factories are ‘’very filthy, using water from very unhygienic sources, harmful chemicals, saccharin, colouring, dirty recycled bottles, and cloned packaging materials of other brands.”.

‘’The adulteration of alcoholic beverages by criminal elements in the country is done by mixing of cheaper sources of sugar and starch besides grapes or fruit, among other harmful chemicals unsuitable for human consumption. Over 1500 cartons of the fake and substandard products were destroyed during the operation while 300 hundred cartons were evacuated to NAFDAC warehouse. The street value of the confiscated and destroyed fake products is estimated at over seven hundred and fifty million naira only. (N750,000,000).”

The statement added that ten people were arrested on arrival at the scene of the crime and will be charged to court after thorough investigation.

The anti-drug agency further stated that due to the sheer magnitude of illegality going on in the section of the market, NAFDAC had to shut the entire market down for thorough regulatory activity until an agreement was reached with all stakeholders in the market and undertaken signed that the market will never be used for such nefarious activities anymore.

‘’Drinking adulterated alcohol can cause nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, drowsiness, and dizziness, blue tinged or pale skin, irregular or slow breathing, low body temperature, unconsciousness or passing out. It can also lead to kidney and liver failure or even DEATH. Methanol, a substance which can be used in fake vodka, may cause permanent blindness. WHO in their Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health estimated that more than three million people died all over the world as a result of alcohol poisoning. Furthermore, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) ascertained that one of every 10 cancer cases in Nigeria can be traced to Alcohol and 4.7 percent of overall cancer cases in Nigeria in 2019 can be attributed to consumption of adulterated alcohol.

While urging Nigerians to remain vigilant, the agency is also tasking consumers to always scrutinize branded drinks to distinguish them from counterfeits before consuming them. NAFDAC wishes to advice that the members of the public should shine their eyes during this yuletide season and think about the “4 Ps” before buying of alcohol:

Place: Only buy only NAFDAC registered drinks from reputable and licenced retailers, bars and supermarkets.

Price: If the product is being sold well below its normal price, or doesn’t seem to include normal taxes on liquors, then it is probably fake.

Packaging: Check for poor quality packaging, spelling mistakes and unusually shaped bottles. Look for the contact information and address of the manufacturer. If it is missing, the alcohol is fake.  Inspect the seal on the bottle. If the seal is broken or damaged, then the contents might have been interfered with and are not safe to drink. Check for fake bar codes. If you have an app on your mobile that scans bar codes, scan it and see if it’s listed as the correct product.

Product: Beware of bad smells! If it smells like paint stripper or nail polish remover, then it probably is!

NAFDAC will continue to ensure that the level of counterfeit products nationwide is brought to the nearest minimum so that our people will continue to consume only healthy and safe products. We wish to reiterate that in line with our mandate to rid the county of fake and substandard products, we shall be on the trail of these evil counterfeiters, and bring them to book. The public is enjoined to report any suspicious activity of illegal producers of adulterated products or similar activities to the nearest NAFDAC office nationwide.”

According to the DG, “NAFDAC did not ban Indomie Instant Noodles produced in Nigeria. NAFDAC has registered several local manufacturers and the Indomie noodles have been certified safe for consumption. The Taiwan and Malaysia noodles have nothing to do with our local producers.” 

The statement offers assurance to consumers who have been exposed to a series of misleading publications that the product was banned by the regulator. The flood of local publications came up after the alleged detection of ethylene oxide, a cancer-causing substance found in Indomie’s “special chicken” flavour in Taiwan, and Malaysia by health officials in both countries.

Speaking on the issue, the Group Corporate Communications and Event Manager, Dufil Prima Foods Limited, Tope Ashiwaju, said, “We would like to assure our valued customers in Nigeria that all packs of Indomie Instant Noodles consumed in Nigeria are produced locally under strict international best manufacturing procedures with ISO certified standards.

Our commitment to international good manufacturing processes is unwavering and the quality in every pack of instant noodles produced in all our factories in Nigeria is non-negotiable.”

“We adhere strictly to the standard procedures set by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) in all our manufacturing processes. “We use only the finest ingredients, sourced from reputable suppliers, and our production facilities are regularly inspected and audited to ensure that they meet the highest standards,” he said.

The Indomie Instant Noodles consumed in Nigeria is produced locally by Dufil Prima Foods Limited and had produced Indomie Instant Noodle in Nigeria for almost 3 decades.

NAFDAC also said the importation of Indomie noodles into Nigeria had been banned for many years and the products were on the prohibition list.

This is following the detection of a compound called ethylene oxide, a potentially cancer-causing substance in Indomie’s “special chicken” flavour noodles by health officials in Malaysia and Taiwan.

Both Malaysia and Taiwan have recalled the product.

Meanwhile, the makers of Indomie noodles, Indofod, defended the safety of its products, saying all instant noodles produced by the ICBP in Indonesia were processed in compliance with the food safety standards from the Codex Standard for Instant Noodles and standards set by the Indonesian National Agency for Drug and Food Control.

“ICBP has exported instant noodles to various countries around the world for more than 30 years.

The company continuously ensures that all of its products are in compliance with the applicable food safety regulations and guidelines in Indonesia as well as other countries where the ICBP’s instant noodles are marketed,” a press statement by Indofood read in part.

According to the National Cancer Institute, ethylene oxide is a flammable colourless gas with a sweet odour at room temperature.

It is used primarily to produce other chemicals, including antifreeze. In smaller amounts, ethylene oxide is used as a pesticide and a sterilising agent. The ability of ethylene oxide to damage DNA makes it an effective sterilising agent but also accounts for its cancer-causing activity,” the institute said.

Indomie is a brand of instant noodles produced by the Indonesian company, Indofood and Nigeria is one of the biggest consumers of instant noodles.

Indomie is also exported to more than 90 countries around the world.

Meanwhile, the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye told The PUNCH on Monday that the agency has started investigating and responding immediately to the news of the recalled Indomie noodles by Taiwan and Malaysia authorities.

Prof Adeyeye said, “Tomorrow, (Tuesday) May 2, 2023, NAFDAC’s Food Safety and Applied Nutrition Directorate will randomly sample Indomie noodles (including the seasoning) from the production facilities while Post Marketing Surveillance Directorate samples from the markets. The compound of interest is ethylene oxide, so the Director, Food Lab Services Directorate has been engaged. He is working on the methodology for the analysis.

“It should be noted that Indomie noodles have been banned from being imported into the country for many years. It is one of the foods on the government prohibition list. It is not allowed in Nigeria, and therefore not registered by NAFDAC.

What we are doing is an extra caution to ensure that the product is not smuggled in and if so, our post-marketing surveillance would detect it. We also want to be sure that the spices used for the Indomie and other noodles in Nigeria are tested. That is what NAFDAC Food Safety and Applied Nutrition and Post Marketing Surveillance are doing this week at the production facilities and in the market respectively.”

Adeyeye added that the public will be duly updated with the outcomes of the investigation.

The Chief Laboratory Technologist of the agency, Usman Amen, who led the investigation and enforcement the directorate team from Lagos, said the sexual store was discovered for selling unregistered and expired drugs. Amen gave the names of the sexual enhancement drugs as Delay viagra, Afrofranil, Breast enhancement, Ass enhancement, Rocket in pocket men gel, Tramadol, among others.

He said, “We came from Lagos based on a tip-off before we arrived here, the owner of this sexual enhancement drugs abandoned his store and ran away.

“In view of all things, we had to break the store and entered. On entering the store, we saw some expired drugs like tramadol, breast enhancer and sexual enhancemen drugs.”

Adeyeye who said this on Monday while fielding questions from journalists in Abuja noted that using substandard, unwholesome products can also lead to kidney failure and death.

Kidney failure happens after your kidneys can no longer properly filter your blood. This causes toxins to accumulate in your body.

According to the President of the Nigerian Association of Nephrology, Dr Adanze Asinobi, about 869 million people globally are suffering from kidney disease and in Nigeria, there is an increasing prevalence of the disease.

Meanwhile, the NAFDAC DG said “We are a very religious country – Muslims and Christians, we fast a lot and it is part of the kidney problem. Your body has to have homeostatic balance, meaning the water level in your body must be enough to make your organs function.

Some people will fast for 20 days or 10 days without drinking even a little bit of water and the kidney is being punished and it can damage your kidney because the kidney does not have water to dilute and filter, that is what some of us do.

“I fast but I fast with common sense. You have to fast with common sense or else you pay with your kidney.”

The NAFDAC boss also warned against patronising hawkers and corner stores for medicines.

“Do not buy medicines from hawkers, do not buy medicines from corner stores, buy medicines from pharmacies.”

The anti-drug agency raised the alarm in a NAFDAC public alert released to newsmen on Sunday in Abuja.

According to the agency, the counterfeit BTNX Incorporated COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits were communicated to NAFDAC by Health Canada. NAFDAC quoted Health Canada as saying that the fake test kits were sold online in 25-pack boxes by a distributor called Healthful Plus which had no required licence.

NAFDAC said the packaging of the counterfeit kits resembles the authentic BTNX Inc. products in colour and typeface and uses the BTNX Incorporated. It said that the device identifier has “COV-19C25”, but also has several key differences, adding that it was labelled as manufactured by “Health Advance Inc.” instead of BTNX Inc.

The agency stated that on the packaging Health Advance was identified as the “Official Canadian Distributor of the counterfeit products”. It pointed out that the products had a claim of endorsement by government authorities, such as Health Canada.

The agency advised wholesalers, distributors, pharmacies and consumers to ensure that their products are obtained from authentic and reliable sources. It also encouraged healthcare providers to Increase vigilance within the supply chain to avoid the importation, distribution, sale or use of counterfeit COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits.

It advised healthcare providers to prevent the administration of the product to unsuspecting patients, adding that the products’ authenticity and physical condition should be carefully checked.

NAFDAC said that anybody in possession of the counterfeit product should immediately discontinue sale or use and submit stock to the nearest agency office.

NAFDAC advised the public to report adverse effects via pharmacovigilance@nafdac.gov.ng, and e-reporting platforms www.nafdac.gov.ng or via the Med- safety application for download. It also advised Healthcare providers and consumers to report suspected counterfeit health products to NAFDAC on 0800-162-3322 or email: sf.alert@nafdac.gov.ng.

The agency made this known in a press statement signed by its Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, and made available by the agency’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, on Sunday.

There have been reports on some media platforms stating that multi-dose vaccines containing 40 per cent mercury, banned about 30 years ago in Europe and over 20 years ago in America, are still being applied to Nigerian children’s bodies.

NAFDAC, however, said mercury is a metal and it is not used as an element or as a component of vaccines.

The statement read in part, “Thimerosal, a mercuric compound which is a preservative used in multi-dose vaccines, contains a different form of mercury called ethyl mercury.

“As a vaccine preservative, thimerosal is used in concentrations of 0.003 per cent to 0.01 per cent (for example, thimerosal content allowed in vaccines is between 30 parts and a maximum of 100 parts out of million parts of the vaccine formula). Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative that has been used for decades in the United States in multi-dose vials (vials containing more than one dose) of medicines and vaccines.

“There is no evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines, except for minor reactions like redness and swelling at the injection site. However, in July 1999, the Public Health Service agencies, the American Academy of Paediatrics, and vaccine manufacturers agreed that thimerosal should be reduced or eliminated in vaccines as a precautionary measure.

Nigeria still receives some multi-dose vaccines which contain thimerosal but at an accepted concentration.

“However, the World Health Organisation has not proscribed the use of thimerosal as an inactivating agent and preservative in vaccines as there is a lack of evidence that thimerosal presents a risk to human health.”

The health agency in a statement released on Monday October 24, said the falsified antibiotic has the batch number 562626, a manufacturing date of April 2021 and expiry date of April 2024

The product also has a fake NAFDAC registration number of 04-1928. The statement read; “No inscription “manufactured by” is written on the label, only the address. Manufacturing and Expiry dates do not meet the acceptable format. No MAS scratch number for verification. The logo “gsk” is not properly positioned as on the original.Please note that the genuine Augmentin 625mg has legible product labeling information including date markings – expiration and manufactured dates, batch number and NAFDAC registration number.NAFDAC’s advice to wholesalers, distributors and pharmacies is that medicines should be obtained from authorised/licensed suppliers, increased vigilance is hereby encouraged within the supply chain to avoid infiltration of the falsified product. The products’ authenticity, physical condition and labels should be carefully checked. NAFDAC implores healthcare providers to ensure vigilance to prevent the administration of the falsified products on unsuspecting patients. Members of the public in possession of the above suspected counterfeit product are advised to discontinue sale or use and submit stock to the nearest NAFDAC office.Healthcare providers and the public should notify the nearest NAFDAC office of any information concerning the distribution, sale, and use of the falsified version of the Augmentin product.”