The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) says it removed 7,210 fake, falsified, substandard and non-compliant products from circulation between May and July 2026 as part of intensified nationwide post-market surveillance.
The agency disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday, September 7, 2026, in response to reports and social media discussions over alleged counterfeit and adulterated food products in the country.
NAFDAC said its Post-Market Surveillance (PMS) Directorate visited 6,233 facilities across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory during the three months.
According to the agency, about 80 per cent of its post-market surveillance activities are focused on detecting and removing fake, falsified, substandard and non-compliant products from circulation.
Food and water products accounted for the largest number of products removed during the period, with 3,633 products taken off the market. Drugs and herbals followed with 2,459, while cosmetics accounted for 911.
Medical devices recorded 183 products removed, chemicals 21 and vaccines and biologics three.
In terms of facilities inspected, drugs and herbals recorded the highest number at 2,084, followed by food and water with 1,808. Medical devices accounted for 1,077 facilities, cosmetics 821, vaccines and biologics 268, while chemicals accounted for 175.
The agency said the continued presence of counterfeit products in the market should not be interpreted as an absence of regulatory surveillance, noting that product counterfeiting is complex and requires continuous intelligence gathering, laboratory verification, enforcement and public engagement.
NAFDAC said it has intensified coordinated raids, arrests, prosecutions and large-scale destruction exercises across the country.
Among its recent enforcement activities, the agency said it shut 150 shops in Aba in December 2023 and destroyed counterfeit beverages, spirits and re-validated foods worth about ₦5 billion.
In Kano, more than 1,300 open drug marketers were relocated to the Coordinated Wholesale Centre at Kanawa in February 2024 following a valid court order.
The agency also reported the destruction of expired and unregistered drugs worth ₦11 billion in Ibadan in December 2024, while 250 shops were shut in Aba during the same month and counterfeit products valued at ₦7 billion destroyed.
NAFDAC said products with a street market value exceeding ₦120 billion were seized and destroyed nationwide in 2024.
In February 2026, the agency destroyed fake, expired, counterfeit and banned medicines worth more than ₦15 billion in Ibadan, including Analgin, codeine syrups, Tramadol and expired vaccines.
It also seized more than 10 million doses of counterfeit malaria medicines and cosmetics worth approximately ₦3 billion in Lagos, leading to the arrest of four persons.
Between February and March 2025, coordinated raids in Idumota, Onitsha and Aba resulted in the seizure and destruction of more than 137 forty-foot truckloads of counterfeit and substandard products valued at over ₦1.5 trillion, according to the agency.
More recently, NAFDAC said it uncovered a counterfeit rice factory in Nasarawa in June 2026, where more than 1,600 bags of rice valued at about ₦5 billion were confiscated.
The agency also arrested five persons in Abuja in June for allegedly selling counterfeit cosmetics valued at ₦35 million.
64 convictions secured
On prosecution, NAFDAC said it has secured 64 convictions for counterfeiting-related offences across the country, with prison sentences ranging from one to seven years without the option of a fine.
The agency cited seven-year sentences for fake antibiotics, five years for falsified antimalarials and another five years for codeine-containing cough syrups.
The latest statement followed a September 5, 2026, publication in a national daily and subsequent social media discussion concerning alleged counterfeit and adulterated food products, including yoghurt, palm oil, apples, soy sauce, olive oil, chicken, fish, water and beverages.
NAFDAC said while the concerns raised by the public were legitimate, some of the social media claims cited in the publication had not been independently verified.
The agency stressed that social media allegations alone do not establish that a product is counterfeit, adulterated or unsafe, adding that regulatory action is taken when violations are established through credible investigation.
Agency clarifies regulatory mandate
NAFDAC also clarified that its regulatory mandate covers processed and packaged food products and does not extend to every food item in circulation.
It said unbranded and unpackaged products, including palm oil and fufu sold in open markets, fall outside its direct regulatory oversight, with sub-national authorities having primary responsibility for such products.
Imported fresh produce such as apples, grapes and oranges, meanwhile, falls under the quarantine mandate of the Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS).
On specific food safety concerns, NAFDAC said it has been combating the use of calcium carbide for artificial fruit ripening since 2018 through import and clearance controls, stakeholder engagement and public enlightenment.
The agency also raised concerns over the adulteration of palm oil with azo dyes and hazardous chemicals, as well as the use of bleach in the production of fufu.
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