The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, has stated that the decision to ban the production of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small-volume PET and glass bottles below 200 mls started in 2019.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, Adeyeye reaffirmed this decision in a statement she signed on Thursday in Abuja, adding that it is in line with the five-year phase-out plan of the affected presentations of alcoholic beverages, which started in January 2019 and ended on January 31, 2024.
She explained that the ban was a collective recommendation of a committee and listed representatives in the committee as the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
Other representatives she mentioned include the Association of Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Employers and the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria.
The NAFDAC boss pointed out that the recommendation to ban these categories of alcohol was not hasty, as it had been a five-year phase-out plan.
She said, “it is also important to clarify that the implementation of the ban on alcohol in sachets and small-volume PET and glass bottles was not hasty.
“It is in line with the five-year phase-out plan of the affected presentations of alcoholic beverages, which started in January 2019 and ended on January 31, 2024.
“The five-year period granted to the industry stakeholders was a practical, reasonable, and sufficient time for full compliance with the phase-out of the production of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small volume PET and glass bottles below 200 ml.
“For the avoidance of doubt, it is important to emphasise that the ban only affects alcoholic beverages in sachets and small-volume PET and glass bottles below 200 ml.
“Other presentations of alcoholic beverages are not affected by the ban and therefore are still permitted for manufacture, importation, distribution, sale, and use in Nigeria.”
Adeyeye made it clear that NAFDAC remained fully alive to her responsibilities and committed to prioritize the health of Nigerians at the forefront of regulatory actions, as the population’s health was the wealth of the nation.
She stated further that the primary focus of the ban was the accessibility, affordability, and portable presentation of high-content alcohol in sachets and small-volume PET and glass bottles below 200 ml.
Adeyeye equally noted that the ban is in the best interest of the health of the underage, vulnerable children, and the larger society beyond the negative health consequences.
She stressed that the ban is also to address the increasing vices attributable to the harmful use of alcohol.
She then called for continued support, cooperation, and collaboration among Nigerians in a bid to safeguard the health of the nation.
