NIGERIA – The Nigerian National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has taken stringent actions against Jaff Foods Limited, a rice processing factory in Niger State, due to unhygienic processing methods.
The enforcement occurred on May 27 during a routine inspection led by Shaba Mohammed, the Director of NAFDAC’s North Central Zone.
Shaba ordered the facility sealed, explaining that although the facility was registered with the agency, the production environment was unhygienic without good production manufacturing practices and was not adhering to good manufacturing practices.
“The rice processing facility has been sealed and given compliance directives for not complying with the instant regulations for which they were given to produce and certification,” Mohammed stated. “
“The place is unhygienic, and they are not producing according to good manufacturing practices.”
Additionally, NAFDAC identified a significant lack of expertise among the company’s key personnel, noting that many were not knowledgeable about production processes.
Ensuring compliance with NAFDAC regulations for improved market access
To address these issues and prevent future occurrences, NAFDAC organized a one-day workshop for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
James Kigbu, the NAFDAC coordinator for Niger State, opened the workshop, reiterating its purpose to sensitize SMEs about the NAPAMS portal and enhance the ease of doing business with NAFDAC.
The workshop aimed to educate clients and stakeholders on the Automated Product Administration and Monitoring Systems (NAPAMS), an e-registration and data capture system designed to streamline product registration with NAFDAC.
Shaba explained that NAPAMS was an e-registration and data capture system that provides an online electronic medium for the application for product registration with NAFDAC.
He advised MSMEs to take advantage of Napams’s ease of interface with the agency and called on the general public to report anything that would endanger the lives of the people to the agency.
“This is a call to the general public to report to us anything they noticed that is being consumed that will endanger the lives of the people.
“Also, people should always check the expiry dates of anything or products they are buying before purchasing them, if you suspect an expiry date on a product, report to us in NAFDAC” he added.
During the workshop, Mrs Igwe Lilian, made presentations on Requirement for Registration and Renewal of Licence for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME’s).
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