The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has ordered manufacturers of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachets and PET/plastic bottles below 200ml to immediately recall the products nationwide or risk the closure of their facilities.

NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said the agency would fully enforce the Federal Government’s ban on the production, importation, distribution, sale and use of alcoholic drinks in the prohibited package sizes.

Speaking at a press briefing in Lagos on Monday, Adeyeye warned manufacturers, importers, distributors, wholesalers, retailers, transporters and other stakeholders to surrender all remaining stocks of the banned products.

She said affected manufacturers must commence nationwide recalls from distributors, warehouses and other points within the supply chain and submit periodic compliance reports to NAFDAC.

According to her, companies found violating the directive would face investigative charges and other regulatory sanctions.

She added that all recalled products would be verified, inventoried and destroyed under NAFDAC’s supervision, with defaulting manufacturers bearing the cost of destruction.

Adeyeye further warned that any facility shut down for producing the prohibited alcoholic beverages would not be reopened until NAFDAC was satisfied that the relevant production lines had been dismantled, permanently disabled or reconfigured to prevent further production.

She said reopening would also depend on full compliance with the recall directive, payment of applicable charges and fees, and successful destruction of the recalled products.

Companies that fail to comply, she warned, could face continued closure, placement on NAFDAC’s Regulatory Watchlist, suspension or revocation of product registrations, criminal prosecution and other sanctions permitted by law.

NAFDAC said the enforcement followed years of consultations with industry stakeholders. According to Adeyeye, the process began in 2018, when the agency and manufacturers signed a Memorandum of Understanding on phasing out sachet alcohol and small-volume alcoholic beverages.

Manufacturers were initially given until January 31, 2024, to reconfigure their production lines and transition to larger packaging. Following resistance from industry stakeholders and intervention by the National Assembly, the Federal Government extended the deadline to December 31, 2025.

Adeyeye said the ban officially took effect on January 1, 2026.

She disclosed that during nationwide mop-up operations conducted in July 2026, NAFDAC discovered that banned pack sizes were still being stocked at distribution centres, leading to the closure of some factories and the arrest of workers allegedly involved in continued production.

The NAFDAC boss said the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria and the Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers were required to sign Irrevocable Enforcement Undertakings on behalf of their members before affected facilities could be reopened.

Adeyeye maintained that the objective of the ban was to reduce underage drinking, alcohol abuse and easy access to highly concentrated alcoholic beverages.

She cited research indicating significant use of sachet and small-volume alcoholic products among minors and underage drinkers.

While some distillers have opposed the crackdown, warning that the ban could lead to job losses, NAFDAC insisted that public health considerations remained paramount.

The agency urged Nigerians to stop purchasing the banned products and report anyone involved in their production, distribution or sale to the nearest NAFDAC office or through its dedicated hotline.