No fewer than 18 warehouses in Bida, Niger State, have been sealed by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control over expired products.
The warehouses were sealed after the discovery of large quantities of expired food and beverage products valued at over N100 million.
In a statement on Thursday, NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, said the warehouses were located around Ndazabo White House along Minna Road and behind Bida Modern Market.
“Items recovered during the raid included expired non-alcoholic beverages, dairy milk, candies, bottled water, and pasta, some of which were already packaged for distribution.
“About 80,000 packets of expired non-alcoholic drinks, 5,000 packets of dairy milk, 16,000 packets of bottled water, 28 cartons of pasta and other assorted expired products were uncovered during the operation,” the statement read.
The agency explained that managers of the affected warehouses were arrested for interrogation, during which preliminary findings linked the facilities to a company identified as BY Ventures.
This, the agency said, prompted NAFDAC officials to extend their operation to supermarkets owned by the company in Minna, where additional expired products and counterfeit Goya oil were allegedly found.
“Both supermarkets were subsequently sealed, while the Managing Director of the company, Alhaji Yusuf Nadabo, was invited for further questioning,” the statement added.
The agency said Nadabo admitted ownership of the expired products during interrogation.
“Investigations are ongoing and appropriate regulatory sanctions would be imposed at the conclusion of the process to serve as a deterrent to others,” NAFDAC added.
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