Abuja — December 6, 2025 | Dalena Reporters
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has issued a public notice and enforcement directive alerting Nigerians to a disturbing uptick in the circulation of prohibited food items including pasta, noodles, sugar and tomato paste in local markets across the country.
In a statement signed by NAFDAC’s Director-General, Mojisola Adeyeye, the agency noted that these items are on the Federal Government’s Customs Prohibition List and are not allowed for importation into Nigeria. As such, none of the affected products have undergone the mandatory safety evaluation and quality-control checks that NAFDAC requires before approval for sale.
NAFDAC declared that the continued smuggling, sale, and distribution of these prohibited items violates national trade laws, undermines the integrity of Nigeria’s food-control system, and poses serious risks to public health. It called on importers, supermarket operators, open-market traders and all participants in the food supply chain to immediately halt distribution and to report any suspicious products or sources.
The warning comes on the heels of a number of high-profile seizures earlier this year, including the interception of substandard tomato paste and fake drugs, reportedly worth billions of naira, as part of NAFDAC’s intensified enforcement efforts in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service.
NAFDAC has pledged to apply “zero tolerance” against purveyors of prohibited or substandard food and drug products — with seizures, licence revocations, destruction of offenders' stocks, and prosecution under the law for anyone found in breach.