The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has closed three significant warehouses dealing in assorted raw food in Ado Ekiti, the capital of Ekiti State, due to alleged rebagging of rice.
According to the NAFDAC Coordinator for Ekiti State, Stella Dosumu, the closures were prompted by various violations aimed at deceiving unsuspecting consumers.
Naijaonpoint reports that this action coincides with a warning from the agency’s Director General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, who stated that there will be no refuge for individuals she referred to as ‘merchants of death’ in the country, particularly those engaging in the illegal trade of regulated products.
In a statement released in Ado Ekiti on Friday, Dosumu noted that the NAFDAC DG is committed to eliminating fake, counterfeit, and substandard medicinal and food products from society, which led to the closure of the three major food warehouses in Ado Ekiti.
The closures, she said, occurred on Wednesday, March 11, 2025, due to significant violations of the Agency’s regulations.
“The action, followed a tip-off by a concerned citizen that illegal re-bagging of rice was being done in some warehouses, after which the NAFDAC team conducted surveillance activities at the implicated warehouses.
“At the time of visit, the team confirmed the information, given by the whistleblower. The highlights of findings revealed that several bales of empty bags of popular local and foreign rice were in the warehouses, while already bagged different brands of rice, including sewing and sealing machines, were found in the warehouses,” the statement noted.
It added that the managers at the warehouses refused to disclose the source of the rice that was being rebagged, and hence, the status of the rice cannot be ascertained.
“It is a dangerous trend that is capable of compromising the health of the consumers, as well as misleading labelling information.
“In the interim, the bails of the empty bags of the different brands, found in the warehouses, were mopped, samples of the rebagged rice were taken for laboratory analysis, and the warehouses have been closed down, pending the outcome of the laboratory reports, before further regulatory actions can be determined.
“The public is hereby reassured that the agency will continue to pursue her mandate of safeguarding the health of the citizens, by ensuring both drug and food safety in Nigeria,” the statement added.