Director-General National Agency for Food and Drug Administration Control ( NAFDAC) Professor Mojisola Adeyeye has debunked viral social-media videos alleging widespread fake and substandard foods as exaggerated and often untrue, acknowledging the agency lacks the manpower to police the country’s vast food supply alone.
Speaking at the Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (NIFST)’s 50th conference in Lagos, she said “Nigerians have to be careful regarding what they see posted on social media.”
She said many online videos accusing businesses of selling unsafe products were taken out of context or lacked evidence.
“Many of those videos seen on social media are untrue,” adding that “Nigerians have to be careful regarding what they see posted on social media.”
Adeyeye sought to clarify the agency’s remit, saying NAFDAC regulates semi-processed and fully processed foods, not traditional staples such as amala, pounded yam or fufu.
She said responsibility for fresh produce and earlier stages of the food chain rests with other bodies, including the Ministry of Agriculture and the Nigerian Quarantine Service.
“From farm to fork, there are many players in the food chain,” she said, adding that “No single agency can do it all”.
She also pointed to compliance failures among manufacturers.
In one example, she said a company in Abuja received approval for three products but used the same NAFDAC registration numbers for six items.
“Nigerians are the ones making bad food and products for ourselves and we start calling NAFDAC after,” she stated.
She said the regulator’s capacity constraints have become a recurring theme.
NAFDAC, Adeyeye said, has roughly 2,000 employees overseeing regulated products for a population of about 240 million, a ratio she has repeatedly described as inadequate.
She urged consumers to report suspected violations directly to the agency’s call center rather than relying on social-media posts, framing food safety as a shared responsibility among regulators, producers and the public.
“If you see anyone doing something questionable, call us,” she said.
Adeyeye also used the conference to warn against excessive oil, salt, sugar and additives in Nigerian diets, saying heavy use of oil in soups can contribute to cardiovascular problems over time.
She described Nigerian foods as potentially beneficial but said preparation habits need to change.
“Of the agency’s inspection and laboratory work, we are dealing with life and death,” she said. “ That is how we approach Nigerians’ health and safety”, she added.
