By Tochukwu Bliss, Abuja
Amid growing criticisms, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), yesterday, defended that the ban on the production of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small volume PET and glass bottles below 200mls was a collective decision.
The House of Representatives had earlier resolved to probe NAFDAC’s decision to ban on sachet alcohol drinks.
In a statement, the Director-General, Mojisola Adeyeye, said the decision to ban these categories of alcohol was not hasty, but a five-year phase-out plan.
Ms Adeyeye explained that this was a collective recommendation of a committee, comprising representatives of the Federal Ministry of Health, NAFDAC, and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), the Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers (AFBTE), and the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria (DIBAN).
She said: “the ban 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 200mls.
“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.”
She reiterated that NAFDAC remained fully alive to her responsibilities and committed to putting the health of Nigerians in the forefront of regulatory actions, as the population’s health was the nation’s wealth.
She also explained that the primary focus of the ban is accessibility, affordability, and portable presentation of high-content alcohol in sachets and small-volume PET and glass bottles below 200mls.
She added that the ban is in the interest of the health of the under-aged, vulnerable children and the larger society beyond the negative health consequences as well as to curb increasing vices attributable to the harmful use of alcohol.
She, therefore, called for continued support, cooperation and collaboration of Nigerians in safeguarding the nation’s health.
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 200mls.
Legislative probe
The House, following a motion moved by Paschal Agbodike on Wednesday, resolved to investigate the rationale behind the ban.
Mr Agbodike had argued that the ban is against the spirit of the 1999 Constitution and the economic recovery plan of the current administration and could trigger unscrupulous elements to commence production of such drinks without recourse to NAFDAC.
He said: “The decision to ban the registration of beverages in small sachets and bottles runs counter to the spirit and letter of the Constitution and runs against the Economic Recovery Plan of the current administration.
“Given the numerous economic challenges confronting poor Nigerians, the ban on the production of the said beverages will cause more havoc and cause job losses for over 50 per cent of the workers in Nigeria.”
Mr Agbodike therefore called for the suspension of the ban pending an investigation by the House.
However, opposing the motion, another lawmaker, Olamide Osoba, said the ban is not only within the mandate of NAFDAC, which is empowered to regulate food and drugs in the country, but also in line with global best practices.
He noted that there is nowhere in the world where alcoholic drinks are sold in sachets and small bottles and should not be encouraged in Nigeria.
Mr Osoba argued that alcoholic beverages in small sachets can be easily abused by teenagers who have not attained the age to take alcohol.
The Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen, thereafter, mandated the Committee on NAFDAC to investigate the matter and report back to the House in four weeks for further legislative action.
