Producers of energy drinks have called on the Federal Government to protect over 2,000 Nigerians directly employed in the manufacturing industry by preventing the inflow of substandard foreign beverages into the country.

They also advised the government to prioritise the health of citizens by discouraging the influx of foreign products that pose harm to consumers.

According to them, most of the imported beverages could not withstand Nigeria’s temperature during storage, hence they burst and constitute health risks in the open market.

Speaking at the weekend in a press statement, Director-General, Africa Brands Group, Ayodele Joseph, said: “There is a need to prevent the dumping of cheap foreign goods in Nigeria.”

He said banning the importation of energy drinks would lead to more investments in local production, higher capacity utilisation and foreign exchange through exports.

“We need to stem the tide of Nigerian companies relocating to neighboring countries due to the seemingly hostile production environment. Nigeria needs to protect high investment and employment opportunities in all associated companies,” Joseph added.

The producers sought urgent actions to prevent the sudden collapse of the over $500 million investments in the local industries involved in the production of energy/ health drinks.

“We hereby request urgent addition of energy or health drinks to the Nigerian import prohibition list,” they appealed.
The entrepreneurs noted that the unexpected decline in the local manufacturing of energy drinks was already affecting investments in the related industries.

They added: “Nigeria’s external reserves need to be preserved for only essential imports. From the time of the last review of the import prohibition list, over 10 brands have invested in the local production of energy or health drinks. As of date, the total investment is over $500 million.”