Senate Orders NAFDAC to Enforce Sachet Alcohol Ban from December 2025

The Senate has directed the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other relevant regulatory bodies to strictly enforce the ban on the packaging of high-strength alcoholic beverages in sachet formats starting from December 2025.

Lawmakers further resolved that no additional extension should be granted beyond the current moratorium period, emphasizing the need to uphold regulatory authority and protect public health.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpeyong, which called for an end to any further extension of the phase-out of alcoholic beverages packaged in sachet formats.

In his lead debate, Senator Ekpeyong reminded the Senate that NAFDAC, in line with international best practices and after extensive consultations with industry stakeholders, had announced a phased ban on the importation, manufacture, and distribution of alcohol packaged in sachets.

He explained that in 2018, stakeholders — including the Federal Ministry of Health, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), NAFDAC, and industry groups such as the Association of Food, Beverage & Tobacco Employers (AFBTE) and the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria (DIBAN) — voluntarily signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

NAFDAC Urged to Enforce Ban as Senate Warns Against Further Extension

The MoU committed all parties to gradually phase out such products, citing growing health and social concerns over their affordability, portability, and accessibility, particularly among children, adolescents, commercial drivers, and other vulnerable groups.

Senator Ekpeyong recalled that despite the initial deadline, the Federal Government granted manufacturers an additional one-year moratorium in 2024 to enable them to exhaust existing stock and transition to compliant packaging alternatives, effectively extending the phase-out until December 2025.

However, he expressed concern that as the new deadline approaches, some manufacturers continue to lobby for another extension — a move he said undermines regulatory authority, endangers public health, and distorts fair competition within the industry.

The lawmaker warned that the continued production of high-strength alcoholic beverages in sachet formats contributes to social problems such as youth addiction, road accidents, school dropouts, domestic violence, and other vices.

Following brief deliberations, the Senate also directed the Federal Ministry of Health to remove any obstacles hindering NAFDAC from carrying out its enforcement duties effectively.

Additionally, lawmakers urged the Ministry of Health to expedite the release of the National Alcohol Policy, which is expected to clearly prohibit the sachet packaging of high-strength alcoholic beverages and support coordinated public sensitization campaigns to discourage alcohol abuse.