NAFDAC destroys N1.5trn fake Products, secures 64 convictions

… Says 47,830 facilities under surveillance

… 137 truckloads seized in Lagos, Onitsha, Aba

… 3 firms caught refilling branded 19-litre water bottles

… Fake drinks account for over 50% of court victories

By Chioma Obinna

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has intensified its crackdown on counterfeit and substandard regulated products, destroying fake goods worth more than N1.5 trillion and securing 64 convictions against offenders between June 2025 and June 2026.

The agency also disclosed that 47,830 facilities are currently under surveillance as part of its efforts to detect, intercept and prevent the circulation of fake, falsified, substandard and otherwise non-compliant products across the country.

Disclosing these in Lagos while briefing journalists on the agency’s enforcement activities and continuing campaign against counterfeit products, Director-General of NAFDAC, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said the convictions represented a significant shift from merely seizing fake products to ensuring that those behind their production and distribution faced the full weight of the law.

According to her, the 64 convictions secured during the period involved various offences relating to counterfeit and unregistered regulated products, with offenders receiving prison sentences ranging from one to seven years without the option of a fine.

Among the cases were offenders sentenced to five years for counterfeiting Global Fund Artemether and another five years for producing a cough and cold syrup containing codeine.

Others received 12-month sentences for offences involving fake ointments and condoms, while an offender convicted for producing fake antibiotics was sentenced to seven years. A woman involved in pharmaceutical counterfeiting also received a seven-year jail term.

Adeyeye said the agency’s enforcement operations had resulted in the seizure and destruction of counterfeit and substandard products on an unprecedented scale.

She cited coordinated raids conducted at Idumota in Lagos, Onitsha and Ariaria International Market in Aba between February and March 2025, during which more than 137 40-foot truckloads of counterfeit and substandard products valued at over N1.5 trillion were seized and destroyed.

“Our enforcement activities are not limited to seizures. We are ensuring that offenders are investigated and prosecuted and, where found guilty, they face the consequences of their actions.”

She said the agency would continue to pursue the networks responsible for manufacturing, distributing and selling fake regulated products.

Beyond seizures and prosecutions, NAFDAC said it had stepped up its post-market surveillance activities, with 47,830 facilities under scrutiny nationwide.

Adeyeye said about 80 per cent of the agency’s post-market surveillance activities were focused on detecting and curbing fake, falsified, substandard and non-compliant products.

She explained that the surveillance involved facilities operating across the food, water, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, medical devices, and other regulated sectors.

According to the Director General, routine nationwide surveillance conducted between May and July 2026 covered all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

The exercise involved thousands of facility inspections and the removal of thousands of non-compliant products from circulation.

She said its Post-Market Surveillance Directorate visited 6,233 facilities and mopped up 7,210 brands and products during the period.

Food and water accounted for the largest number of products removed, with 3,633 products recovered from 1,808 facilities, while the Drugs and Herbals category recorded 2,084 facilities visited and 2,459 products mopped up.

Adeyeye said the scale of the problem required continuous surveillance because counterfeiters were operating within communities rather than in locations that were necessarily easy to identify.

“Fakers are not ghosts; they exist within our communities, neighbourhoods, and business premises.”

She said this was why the agency was expanding its intelligence gathering and enforcement operations.

One of the discoveries made during the surveillance operations was the alleged illegal refilling of branded 19-litre dispenser water bottles.

Adeyeye disclosed that three companies were found collecting empty 19-litre bottles bearing the identity and branding of a registered water company, refilling them with water from unapproved sources and introducing the products into the market.

She said the illegally refilled bottles were allegedly supplied to major hotels and supermarkets.

Adeyeye said the discovery demonstrated the lengths to which counterfeiters were prepared to go in order to deceive consumers and profit from established brands.

“They collected the empty bottles, refilled them with water from unapproved sources and supplied them to major hotels and supermarkets.”

NAFDAC said the practice was particularly concerning because consumers could be deceived into believing that the water had been produced and packaged by the registered company whose identity appeared on the bottles.

The operators were heavily sanctioned.

The agency also disclosed that fake alcoholic drinks had become a major focus of its enforcement activities, with more than half of its recent court victories involving counterfeit drinks.

NAFDAC’s Investigation and Enforcement Directorate Mr Martins Ilyumade said counterfeit drinks were being produced in factories and concealed locations in Lagos, including shops and other business premises.

He said: “As I speak right now, the cases that we mentioned that we won in court, more than 50% of them are from fake drinks.”

The official said the agency was working with market associations and other stakeholders to identify operators involved in the production and distribution of fake beverages.

He added: “These people are not operating in isolation. They are within the markets and communities, which is why collaboration with market associations and members of the public is very important.”

NAFDAC said the increasing sophistication of counterfeiters meant that enforcement agencies needed stronger intelligence, surveillance and cooperation from members of the public.

The crackdown has also extended to counterfeit medicines, cosmetics, foods and other regulated products.

In February 2026, NAFDAC said it seized more than 10 million doses of counterfeit malaria medicines and cosmetics worth about N3 billion at the Lagos Trade Fair Market.

The products were reportedly concealed in a three-storey building disguised as a spare-parts warehouse, leading to the arrest of four suspects.

In Nasarawa State, the agency also said it uncovered a factory allegedly involved in packaging counterfeit rice and confiscated more than 1,600 bags of the product valued at about N5 billion.

Other enforcement operations resulted in the seizure and destruction of counterfeit medicines, banned alcoholic products, fake cosmetics, substandard foods and other unregistered regulated products.

Adeyeye said: “The fight against fake and substandard products is a continuous one. As long as there are people willing to compromise public health for profit, regulatory agencies must remain vigilant.”

She said seizures alone were not sufficient to end the counterfeit trade, stressing the importance of prosecution and convictions.

The agency, however, cautioned Nigerians against relying solely on claims circulated on social media when determining whether a product was fake or unsafe.

Adeyeye said scientific evaluation, laboratory analysis and regulatory investigation were necessary to establish whether a product was counterfeit, adulterated, substandard, or otherwise unsafe.

She said: “We cannot declare a product fake simply because somebody says so on social media. There has to be scientific evaluation, laboratory analysis and regulatory investigation before such a conclusion can be reached.”

The NAFDAC boss explained that the agency’s mandate included establishment inspection, product sampling and laboratory analysis, product registration, compliance monitoring, post-market surveillance, investigation of complaints, product verification, withdrawal and recall, as well as enforcement.

She said NAFDAC could not completely eliminate criminal activities through regulation alone, urging Nigerians to support its efforts by reporting suspicious products and activities.

“No law can create a society completely free of criminals or criminal-minded individuals. What we can do is strengthen our systems, enforce the law and work with the public to identify and stop them.”

Adeyeye disclosed that NAFDAC’s 24-hour call centre receives an average of 220 calls monthly, with more than 95 per cent of complaints treated and closed.

Members of the public can contact the agency on 0700-1-NAFDAC (0700-1-623322) for enquiries and 0800-1-NAFDAC (0800-1-623322) to lodge complaints.

Adeyeye urged consumers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, market associations and other stakeholders to work with the agency to prevent fake and unsafe products from reaching Nigerians.

She maintained that sustained surveillance, intelligence gathering, enforcement, prosecution and public cooperation remained critical to winning the war against counterfeit products and protecting the health and safety of consumers.