Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has commenced a mop-up of sachet alcoholic drinks and alcoholic beverages below 200ml from shops across Edo State, carrying out enforcement operations in Benin City on Friday, September 25, 2026, as part of a nationwide effort to remove the banned products from circulation. The exercise was carried out at Mission Road and New Benin Market, where the agency seized the affected products. Speaking during the operation, the squad leader, Mr Ugwu Agu, Deputy Director, Investigation and Enforcement, South-South/South-East Zone, Asaba, said the agency acted on credible intelligence. He said he represented Dr Martins Iluyomade, Director of Investigation and Enforcement and Chairman of the Federal Task Force on Counterfeit and Fake Drugs and Unwholesome Processed Foods at NAFDAC Nigeria. "We had credible intelligence that these alcohol products are in this place. So we came here, we saw it, and we are mopping it up," Agu said. He said the exercise was intended to sound a note of warning that the sale of such products was no longer tolerable under existing regulations. Agu said the products had negatively affected youths and children who could easily purchase them and conceal them in their pockets because of their small sizes. According to him, limiting access to alcohol, especially for persons below 18 years, is in line with resolutions signed by NAFDAC and the World Health Assembly. "We are trying to mop it up. Wherever we see it in any market, we will mop it up and take it away from circulation. That is what the law says," he said.
The Edo State operation follows the Federal Government's ban on the production, importation and sale of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and polyethylene terephthalate bottles below 200ml, which took effect on January 1, 2026. The ban was introduced as a public health measure aimed at reducing underage drinking and harmful alcohol consumption among children and young people. NAFDAC's own survey found that 47.2 per cent of minors who buy their own drinks obtain them in sachets, underscoring the accessibility of the packaging format to underage consumers. The agency has consistently clarified that the enforcement is not targeted at compliant manufacturers operating within approved pack-size thresholds but at eliminating products that pose significant public health risks.
The mop-up in Edo forms part of a nationwide enforcement operation covering all six geopolitical zones. NAFDAC said the exercise followed the closure of manufacturing facilities found to be violating the ban, with enforcement teams conducting coordinated operations in markets, motor parks, retail outlets, bars and other distribution channels to identify, seize and destroy the affected products. The agency warned manufacturers, importers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, hawkers and transporters to voluntarily surrender any remaining stock, noting that continued possession or sale of the banned products could attract seizure, regulatory sanctions and prosecution. "This mop-up is not a one-off exercise but part of a sustained enforcement and public education campaign to rid Nigeria of harmful alcohol products, protect children and adolescents, and promote a culture of responsible consumption among adults," NAFDAC stated. The agency urged Nigerians to support the exercise by reporting anyone producing, stocking or selling the banned products, and advised the public to avoid patronising such products, describing them as unregistered, unsafe and illegal.
The enforcement in Edo State has been preceded by a period of grace for dealers. On August 31, 2026, the Edo State Consumer Protection Committee directed all sellers, dealers and manufacturers to withdraw and dispose of all sachet alcohol in the state within seven days or face strict sanctions. The committee subsequently granted a two-week extension to the State Sachet Alcohol Beverages Distributors Association to dispose of sachet gin in their possession, setting a deadline of September 20, 2026, for dealers to return all sachet gin products in their custody to their brewers. Full-scale enforcement and compliance operations were scheduled to commence on September 21 across the 18 local government areas of Edo State. The enforcement operations that began on Tuesday, September 22, were led by Osaro Culture Iyamu, chairman of the Edo State Consumer Protection Committee, and covered Mission Road, Ekiosa Market and St Saviour in Benin metropolis. Iyamu said the aim was to protect consumers, especially children who can easily buy alcohol in small packs that are simple to hide, and to remove fake, adulterated and harmful products from circulation.
The enforcement has not been without friction. Some traders resisted the seizures, citing heavy losses. Some also said manufacturers had declined to take back sachet products already in their hands. Iyamu told affected traders to approach the committee formally, saying it would engage manufacturers and seek a resolution where the products are genuine. The dispute illustrates a recurring challenge in enforcing product bans in Nigeria: the ban cannot be enforced at the shop counter alone. Manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and retailers all have to act, and when the supply chain is fragmented and informal, enforcement becomes a complex logistical exercise that can leave small-scale traders bearing the cost of a policy they had little role in shaping.
The ban has also generated broader debate. Some consumer-rights advocates have objected to the prohibition, citing its impact on jobs and livelihoods in the sachet alcohol value chain. Industry associations DIBAN and AFBTE signed an Irrevocable Enforcement Undertaking in August 2026, agreeing to recall banned products, which are inventoried and destroyed under NAFDAC supervision at the manufacturers' cost. NAFDAC has framed the ban as a packaging regulation rather than a prohibition on alcohol production in general, and has pointed to the public health rationale of limiting the accessibility of alcohol to minors. The agency's position is that the small pack sizes make it easy for children and adolescents to purchase and conceal alcohol, contributing to underage drinking and its associated harms.
For NAFDAC, the mop-up in Edo is part of a sustained campaign that will continue across the country. The agency has said it will not relent until the banned products are removed from circulation, and it has urged the public to support the effort by reporting violators. For the traders in Benin City who watched their stock being seized, the operation represents a direct hit to their livelihoods, and many are seeking engagement with the committee over compensation or the return of genuine products. For the children and adolescents the policy is designed to protect, the removal of sachet alcohol from the market is a tangible intervention aimed at reducing their access to a product that health experts say poses significant risks to their development. The coming weeks will determine how effectively the enforcement is sustained and whether the supply chain adjusts to a ban that, for now, remains contested at the point of sale.
Note on verification: The specific quantity and value of products seized in Friday's operation were not disclosed in the available reports. The identity and number of traders affected were also not specified.
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