* Take protest to NAFDAC Lagos office Tuesday
Members of the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria (DBAN) plan to embark on a protest Tuesday against the ban on the manufacture, distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets and PET bottles.
They said they would storm the office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in Lagos to demonstrate against the ban.
The planned protest is in reaction to the announcement by the Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye on Monday, that the agency has begun to enforce the ban on alcoholic beverages in sachets, PET, and glass bottles of 200ml and below.
Adeyeye had said: “As of January 31, 2024, there is no alcoholic beverage in these categories that are registered by NAFDAC. I also want to inform you that the agency has started enforcement actions to enforce the implementation of this policy. The window period given to manufacturers by NAFDAC to sell off all alcoholic drinks in this category elapsed on January 31, 2024.
“To this end on the first day, after the elapse of the window period, the agency commenced nationwide enforcement actions on February 1, 2024 to enforce the implementation of the new policy”.
The NAFDAC boss also said it is unacceptable that some manufacturers still have stacks of alcoholic products in the banned packages.
She said: “This situation is of course not acceptable, and the agency views this as flagrant disobedience to the laws of Nigeria. NAFDAC views this matter seriously and will engage all statutory means, which may include prosecution, to deal with the matter.
“I want to use this medium to ask all holders of alcohol in sachets, PET and glass bottles, empty sachets, PET bottles, empty glass bottles, and other packaging materials of these banned products to immediately report to the Investigation and Enforcement Directorate of NAFDAC for hand-over of same to NAFDAC for destruction, to prevent sterner measures including prosecution.”
NAFDAC had, since January 2022, stopped the registration of alcoholic beverages in sachet and small volume PET and glass bottles below 200ml based on the recommendation of a committee consisting of the Federal Ministry of Health and NAFDAC, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, and the Association of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Employers, Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria. The producers of alcohol in small volume had then resolved to o gradually phase it out by January 31, 2024.