NAFDAC: No Going Back on Sachet, Small Bottle Alcohol Ban

• NECA: renewed ban enforcement serious regulatory misstep

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja and Dike Onwuamaeze

National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has said the ban on the packaging and sale of alcohol in sachet and small bottles in the country is still in force.

A statement signed by Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, said the agency had resumed its enforcement to ban the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small-volume PET/glass bottles (below 200ml).

Adeyeye said the measure was in line with the recent directive of Senate.

However, Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) described NAFDAC’s renewed enforcement of the ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small PET “as a serious regulatory misstep with far-reaching economic and governance implications”.

NECA stated that Nigeria deserved an industry regulation that “protects public health while preserving jobs, investment, and respect for the rule of law”.

According to the director-general of NAFDAC, “This decisive action, ordered by the Nigerian Senate and backed by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, underscores the agency’s statutory mandate to safeguard public health and protect vulnerable populations—particularly children, adolescents, and young adults—from the harmful use of alcohol.”

Adeyeye said the proliferation of high-alcohol-content beverages in sachets and small containers less than 200 ml had made such products easily accessible, affordable, and concealable, leading to widespread misuse and resultant addiction among minors and some commercial drivers.

According to her, this public health menace has been linked to increased incidences of domestic violence, road accidents, school dropouts, and social vices across communities.

She also said placing a label to read “not for children” on the sachets and the small containers will not work, adding that it cannot be enforced because of the peculiarity of the society.

Adeyeye stated, “The ban on sachet packaging and PET bottles less than 200 ml is to make it difficult for children to get to alcohol and its consumption. NAFDAC approves alcohol in bigger pack sizes.

“The small size of the sachet makes it easier for underage to conceal from parents and teachers.  Report from schools show that children conceal the sachets.”

According to Adeyeye, “This ban is not punitive; it is protective. It is aimed at safeguarding the health and future of our children and youth by not allowing alcohol in small pack sizes.

“The decision is rooted in scientific evidence and public health considerations. We cannot continue to sacrifice the wellbeing of Nigerians for economic gain. The health of a nation is its true wealth.

“NAFDAC reiterates that only two packages of alcoholic beverages are affected by this regulation – spirit drinks packaged in sachets and small-volume PET/glass bottles below 200ml.”

But NECA warned, “Policies that disregard science, economic realities, and regulatory coherence risk doing more harm than good.”

Those views were expressed yesterday by Director-General of NECA, Mr. Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, in a public statement, titled, “NECA Calls for Evidence Based Regulation and Respect for Due Process on Sachet Alcohol Ban.”

Oyerinde said the “continued enforcement is already disrupting legitimate businesses, unsettling ongoing investments, placing thousands of jobs at risk, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s regulatory stability at a time when investor trust is critically important”.

He emphasised that the economic consequences of the ban were significant.

According to him, the wines and spirits value chain supports large numbers of direct and indirect jobs across manufacturing, packaging, distribution, transportation, retail, and agriculture.

He stated, “At a time when businesses are grappling with high operating costs, currency pressures, and weak consumer purchasing power, sudden regulatory shocks of this nature threaten livelihoods, reduce government revenue, and undermine investor confidence in the predictability of Nigeria’s policy environment.”

He stated that regulation must be rooted in evidence, proportionality, and the rule of law.

According to Oyerinde, “it is unacceptable to punish compliance or criminalise products that passed established regulatory approval processes while ignoring clear gaps in retail enforcement and the spread of far more dangerous unregulated substances.”

He stressed that Nigeria “needs smarter, data driven enforcement, not blanket bans that destroy jobs, discourage investment, and fail to solve the underlying problem”.

The NECA director-general stated that the alcoholic products now being targeted were tested, registered, and periodically revalidated under NAFDAC’s own scientific and technical procedures.

He said, “Alcohol strength is measured globally using Alcohol by Volume (ABV), and the products in question fall within internationally recognised ranges for spirits.

“Their alcohol content is clearly printed on labels and was approved within Nigeria’s regulatory framework.”

He stated that abruptly portraying such products as inherently dangerous, without the presentation of new, transparent scientific evidence, raises serious questions about NAFDAC’s regulatory consistency and fairness.

He explained that sachet and small pack formats were an affordability response within Nigeria’s economic structure, where many adult consumers made low value, daily purchases.

According to him, “Eliminating these formats will not eliminate demand. Instead, it risks pushing consumers toward informal and unregulated alternatives, increasing public health risks while shrinking the formal economy.”

Oyerinde also expressed concern that the country was concentrating enforcement pressure on the regulated beverage industry at a time Nigeria was faced with the spread of more dangerous substances among young people, including illicit narcotics and abused pharmaceuticals.

He pointed out that NAFDAC’s action directly contradicted the directive of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, dated December 15, 2025, suspending the ban, as well as the resolution of the House of Representatives of March 14, 2024, which called for restraint and broader stakeholder engagement.

NECA stated its unequivocally support for the protection of minors, the removal of unsafe products from the market, and the pursuit of strong public health outcomes.

But it stated, “The current approach is misdirected. It disproportionately targets compliant and regulated manufacturers while failing to address the real drivers of underage access and the growing challenge of illicit substance abuse across the country.”

Oyerinde emphasised that access of the underage to alcohol was fundamentally an enforcement matter and not a packaging matter.

He stated, “Alcoholic beverages already carry clear warnings indicating they are not for persons under 18 and should be consumed responsibly.

“Where minors gain access, he said, the failure lies in weak monitoring of retail outlets and poor enforcement of age restrictions.

“Addressing this requires stricter licensing, compliance checks, and sanctions for erring retailers, not the elimination of packaging formats that serve adult consumers lawfully.”

Oyerinde added that environmental concerns linked to plastic waste should be addressed through improved waste management systems, recycling frameworks, and extended producer responsibility mechanisms that apply across sectors.

He warned that using environmental shortcomings as a basis for selective product bans confused waste management policy with product safety regulation.

He reiterated that the organised private sector was not opposed to regulation.

Oyerinde stated, “On the contrary, NECA supports strong, science-based rules that protect consumers and ensure product quality.

“What employers reject is regulatory action driven by sentiment, selective enforcement, and disregard for economic consequences and due process.

“NECA, therefore, calls for the immediate suspension of the ongoing enforcement actions in line with the federal government’s earlier directive and urges a return to structured, evidence-based dialogue involving regulators, industry, public health experts, and consumer representatives.”

He said, “The focus should be on strengthening retail level enforcement to prevent underage access, expanding public education on responsible consumption, intensifying action against illicit drugs and unregistered alcohol, and developing practical environmental solutions through collaboration rather than prohibition.”