REGULATION

Nigerian food and drug regulators shut outlets for ‘flagrant violations’

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2025

Stores targeted over unregistered and incorrectly labelled food items, and for illegally prescribing and selling harmful health products.

Nigeria’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has shut down eight retail outlets in the city of Abuja for what it calls “flagrant violations” of laws that govern the sale, distribution and labelling of regulated products.

According to local media reports, the outlets are two Chinese-owned supermarkets in the Jabi District and eight cosmetics shops at Wuse Market.

An official seals a supermarket door in Abuja. Photo: NAFDAC

“Acting on the directive of the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, the enforcement team confiscated and evacuated offending products worth over N170-million (approximately US$116,000),” the agency said in a press release.

“The supermarkets, situated on Mike Akhigbe Way and Ebitu Ukiwe Street in Jabi District, Abuja, were sealed following credible consumer complaints and subsequent surveillance by the NAFDAC Enforcement Team, which revealed that the operators were engaged in the sale of unregistered food items and products labelled exclusively in the Chinese language, contrary to NAFDAC’s mandatory labelling policy requiring English translations for the Nigerian market and regulatory understanding.”

Investigators were told by a “foreign national” at one of the supermarkets that the business was not yet in operation. However, the enforcement team confirmed that the outlet was in full operation and selling unregistered regulated products.

NAFDAC’s enforcement team was supported by officials from the Federal Task Force on Counterfeit and Substandard Medicines and Unwholesome Processed Foods

In a related operation, eight cosmetics shops within Wuse Market were also sealed for the sale of banned, expired and unregistered cosmetics, aphrodisiacs and aesthetic medicines.

“Investigations revealed that certain individuals had been illegally presenting themselves as dermatologists and pharmacists, prescribing and selling harmful products to unsuspecting consumers under the guise of body enhancement, skin whitening, aesthetic improvement for women, and manpower for men,” the press release stated.

“The agency hereby reaffirms its commitment to enforcing compliance with NAFDAC regulations and advises Nigerian consumers to patronise only products duly registered by NAFDAC.”

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