Protest erupts at NAFDAC office over planned enforcement on sachet alcohol

A coalition of consumer rights advocates on Monday staged a protest at the Lagos office of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) over the agency’s proposed enforcement of a ban on sachet alcoholic beverages.

The protest, led by Comrade Olufemi Lawson under the banner of the Coalition for the Protection of Consumers’ Rights, followed a press conference by NAFDAC in which the agency’s Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, was reported to have announced the commencement of enforcement actions against sachet alcohol products.

Addressing protesters and journalists at the scene, Lawson described the planned enforcement as “draconian, economically insensitive and poorly thought out”, arguing that it contradicts the federal government’s efforts to tackle unemployment and economic hardship.

According to the coalition, the proposed enforcement would unfairly punish manufacturers, distributors and consumers, while exposing what it described as regulatory inconsistencies within NAFDAC.

Lawson alleged that sachet alcoholic beverages currently in the market were duly tested, registered and approved by the agency, questioning why the same products are now being classified as dangerous.

“The issue of underage drinking is a regulatory and enforcement failure, not a product crime,” Lawson said. “These products are clearly labelled ‘not for sale to persons under 18’. If minors still access them, then enforcement at the retail level has failed.”

The coalition also disputed claims that sachet alcohol products contain excessively high alcohol content, stating that licensed distilleries in Nigeria operate within internationally accepted alcohol-by-volume standards. It further dismissed environmental pollution arguments, noting that sachet packaging is widely used across other consumer goods sectors such as water and detergents.

Protesters carried placards with inscriptions such as “Suspend the Sachet Alcohol Ban”, “Save Jobs, Save Livelihoods” and “Regulation, Not Prohibition”. They warned that a sustained ban could lead to massive job losses across the distillery value chain, including factory workers, distributors, transporters and retailers.

As part of its demands, the coalition called for the immediate suspension of the enforcement, the reopening of sealed factories, and the initiation of dialogue and stakeholder engagement to develop data-driven and inclusive regulatory solutions.

The group also appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Assembly to intervene, warning that failure to do so could trigger nationwide protests across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

NAFDAC officials at the Lagos office did not address the protesters directly, and the agency had yet to issue an official response to the demonstration as at the time of filing this report.