The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has mandated a total ban on the production and sale of alcoholic beverages in sachets and small-volume PET or glass bottles (below 200ml), effective December 2025.
Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers have been urged to comply fully with the deadline, as no extensions will be granted.
The directive follows a resolution by the Nigerian Senate, instructing NAFDAC to enforce the ban to safeguard public health, particularly protecting children, adolescents, and young adults from the harmful effects of alcohol misuse.
Speaking in Abuja, NAFDAC Director-General Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye said the widespread availability of high-alcohol-content beverages in small containers has made them cheap, accessible, and easy to conceal, contributing to addiction, road accidents, domestic violence, school dropouts, and other social vices.
Adeyeye emphasized the broader national security implications, noting, “Children exposed to alcohol at an early age are more likely to progress to hard drugs. This has long-term consequences on workforce productivity and contributes to social vices such as banditry and kidnapping.”
The DG recalled that in December 2018, NAFDAC, the Federal Ministry of Health, and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Association of Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Employers (AFBTE) and the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria (DIBAN) to phase out sachet and small-volume alcohol packaging by January 31, 2024.
The deadline was later extended to December 2025 to allow industry operators to exhaust old stock and reconfigure production lines.
“This ban is not punitive; it is protective. It is aimed at safeguarding the health and future of our children and youth. The decision is rooted in scientific evidence and public health considerations,” Adeyeye said.
The regulation affects only spirit drinks packaged in sachets and bottles below 200ml.
NAFDAC said it will collaborate with the Federal Ministry of Health, FCCPC, and the National Orientation Agency (NOA) to run nationwide awareness campaigns on the dangers of alcohol misuse, ensuring that only safe, properly regulated products are available to Nigerians.
The Senate, last Friday, drew a firm line against sachet alcohol, directing the NAFDAC to end its production and sale by December 2025.
The lawmakers warned that the cheap, high-alcohol beverages, sold in sachets and small bottles, are wreaking havoc on young Nigerians, fuelling addiction, violence, and road accidents across the federation.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong (Cross River South), who urged the upper legislative chamber to halt any further delay in enforcing the ban.
Ekpenyong lamented that despite repeated promises, NAFDAC had shifted the phase-out deadline several times under pressure from manufacturers.
He said any further extension would “betray public trust” and undermine Nigeria’s obligations to protect public health.
