The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has threatened to seal any erring packaged water producers that do not comply with its regulatory requirements.
The agency disclosed that the development was in line with Good Manufacturing Practice to sanitize the packaged water sector of the economy.
Speaking at a virtual stakeholder meeting with packaged water producers in Nigeria, NAFDAC Director-General, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye appealed to the 412 water producers to always ensure compliance with the agency regulations at all times.
In attendance were members of both the Association of Table Water Producers and the Water Producers Association of Nigeria.
Adeyeye expressed concerns that many of the over 16,000 registered producers of packaged water across the country tend to lower standards after procuring registration approval.
Continuing, the NAFDAC boss noted that she had further observed most of the packaged water for the consuming public are produced under despicable conditions, which inevitably put the health of Nigerians at risk.
‘’Today we gathered on this platform as producers of packaged water and we all know that the situation in Nigeria today is such that the entire Nigerian populace (including the healthy, elderly, pregnant women, children and the weak with low immunity) depend on packaged water for sustenance.
“Water is life. But many believe falsely or rightly that the municipal water, where available, may hardly be safe for drinking,” she said.
While describing the product as an essential commodity with no alternative, the pharmacist emphasized that everybody needs water or water-based product for hydration, proper digestion of food, drugs and other human needs to sustain life.
She reiterated that NAFDAC was established by the Federal Government with the mandate to safeguard public health through the regulation and control of the above Products, which impact on human health.
“You are in the noble business of providing Nigerians with safe drinking water; but if you engage in activities that fall short of standards and regulatory requirements, you may be responsible for illness and even death of innocent Nigerians.
“Your associations have the structure to reach and locate both legal and illegal producers of packaged water across the country, which could help regulators in weeding out those giving operators in the sector a bad name,” she warns.
Adeyeye insisted that packaged water must meet the requirements of NAFDAC regulations and provisions of the Nigerian Industrial Standards for Packaged water, noting that the agency would intensify its routine monitoring to ensure consistent compliance with GMP and apply appropriate sanctions on defaulters where necessary.
“Let me remind you that operating with an expired license, producing without approval, relocation of factory site without approval, leasing of registered premises without approval, unauthorized contract manufacturing, distribution of expired or products without date markings, submission of fake documents and poor GMP all attract very severe sanctions,” she warns.
