By Deborah Nnamdi
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has sealed two Chinese-owned supermarkets in Jabi District and eight cosmetics shops in Wuse Market, Abuja, for selling unregistered and improperly labeled products.
The enforcement exercise, carried out under the directive of NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, was led by Mr. Musa Embugushiki. Goods worth more than N170 million were confiscated during the operation.
The supermarkets, located on Mike Akhigbe Way and Ebitu Ukiwe Street, were shut after consumer complaints and surveillance revealed that they stocked unregistered food items labeled only in Chinese. NAFDAC regulations mandate that all products must carry English labels for the safety of Nigerian consumers.
Although the operator of the Ebitu Ukiwe Street store denied wrongdoing, officials confirmed that the supermarket was fully operational and selling unregistered goods at the time of the raid.
In a related crackdown, eight cosmetics shops in Wuse Market were sealed for distributing banned, expired, and unregistered cosmetic products, aphrodisiacs, and aesthetic medicines. Investigations also uncovered individuals posing as dermatologists and pharmacists who marketed harmful products for body enhancement, skin whitening, and other uses.
Among the seized items were Wenicks Capsules, Maxman Capsules, Boobs Enlargement supplements, Curvy Weight Gain products, and Skin Whitening Vitamin Gummies.
Prof. Adeyeye warned that such substances pose serious health risks, including skin cancer, kidney damage, irritability, and memory loss. She urged Nigerians to patronize only NAFDAC-registered products and cautioned foreign business operators to comply with local regulations.
She also encouraged the public to report suspicious outlets to the agency to help protect citizens from harmful products.
