The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed seized fake and substandard products valued at N2.6bn in Rivers State, warning that more confiscated goods would be destroyed as part of efforts to rid the country of unsafe products.
The products, which included medicines, expired tomatoes, cookies and chemicals, were intercepted and seized by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) at the Onne Port between 2025 and 2026.
The Chairman of the Federal Task Force on Counterfeit, Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods in Nigeria, Dr Martins Iluyomade, disclosed this on Friday at the destruction site in Port Harcourt, on behalf of NAFDAC’s Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye.
Iluyomade, who is also the agency’s Director of Investigation and Enforcement, described the exercise as a demonstration of NAFDAC’s commitment to protecting public health and eliminating counterfeit medicines and other unwholesome products from the Nigerian market.
He said the destruction marked the first phase of the exercise, adding that more seized products would be destroyed in the coming days.
The NAFDAC official commended the collaboration between the agency and the NCS, noting that cooperation between the two organisations had been instrumental in ensuring the safe disposal of the seized goods.
According to him, the process leading to the destruction began in 2025, following collaboration between the agencies, which had signed memoranda of understanding to strengthen their joint efforts against the importation of prohibited and substandard products.
He, however, acknowledged that the process had encountered some challenges but said the commitment of personnel from both agencies had helped overcome the obstacles.
“This gesture corroborates the existing good relationship we have between NAFDAC and Nigeria Customs Service. We have an MoU signed, but we have people who have to work behind the scenes to make sure that the MoU works.
“The willingness of the officers of the two agencies to make the MoU work is what has led to what we are doing today,” he said.
Iluyomade also commended the Comptroller-General of Customs for facilitating the collaboration that culminated in the handover and destruction of the seized products.
“On this note, I want to thank the Comptroller-General of Customs, who made it a point of duty for us to come together, personally, to come and hand over this container,” he said.
He explained that the seized items included expired food products, medicines and chemicals considered unsuitable for human consumption or use.
While describing the destruction as a significant step in the fight against counterfeit and substandard products, the exercise also raises questions about how such consignments entered the country and the measures being taken to prevent similar seizures in the future. The planned destruction of additional confiscated goods is expected to form part of the agencies’ continued enforcement efforts.
However, beyond destroying seized products, sustained surveillance at ports of entry, stricter screening of imported goods, improved intelligence-sharing between regulatory and security agencies, and prosecution of those responsible for importing prohibited products remain critical to addressing the problem.
The effectiveness of the exercise will ultimately depend on whether the joint efforts of NAFDAC and the Customs Service can prevent dangerous products from reaching markets, pharmacies and households.