The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has intensified its anti-smuggling operations, intercepting suspected smuggled vegetable oil and banned imported soaps valued at over N500 million along Nigeria’s border corridors.
Speaking during an inspection of the seized products, the agency’s Director of Investigation and chairman of the Federal Task Force on Fake and Counterfeit Products, Dr. Martin Iluyomade, said the operation was part of ongoing efforts to curb the influx of prohibited goods and protect consumers from uncertified products.
According to him, NAFDAC operatives recently intercepted four tanker trucks suspected to be transporting vegetable oil smuggled into the country through unauthorized border routes.
“Last night, we trailed these trailers until about 10 p.m. We discovered that they were coming from Ghana and had covered their number plates to conceal their identity. They claimed to be carrying vegetable oil, but importation of vegetable oil through land borders is prohibited, which raised our suspicion,” Iluyomade said.
He explained that the trucks, each carrying approximately 66,000 litres of vegetable oil, had been impounded and taken to a NAFDAC facility for further investigation to determine the exact contents of the consignments.
The agency also confiscated a truckload of more than 4,000 cartons of imported soaps, which are among products prohibited from entering Nigeria through land borders.
“The total value of the soaps alone is over N500 million. The vegetable oil tankers are carrying approximately 66,000 litres each, and their combined value runs into several hundreds of millions of naira,” Iluyomade stated.
He noted that the seizures underscored NAFDAC’s resolve to sanitize the market and prevent uncertified products from reaching consumers.
Warning smugglers to desist from illegal importation, Iluyomade said the agency had stepped up surveillance across border corridors and would continue to track and intercept prohibited goods.
“It will no longer be business as usual. Many of these products do not pass through NAFDAC certification, meaning we cannot guarantee their safety or quality. Nigerians should patronise locally manufactured products that have been certified and approved,” he said.
Iluyomade further disclosed that five suspects had been arrested in connection with the seizures. Most of the suspects, he said, are Ghanaian nationals who were apprehended after the products entered Nigeria through routes believed to be within the Seme border axis.
On compliance with regulations governing the transportation of edible oils, he said operators were increasingly adhering to NAFDAC’s directive requiring dedicated and properly marked trucks for transporting edible oils.
He, however, warned that enforcement would be intensified and that any truck found violating the directive would be impounded.
NAFDAC reiterated its commitment to safeguarding public health and supporting local industries by preventing the entry of prohibited and potentially harmful products into the Nigerian market.
