Nigerians have been warned to stay away from herbal drinks and concoctions hawked at motor parks, in cars and on wheelbarrows, with NAFDAC raising the alarm that some could be “nicely packed poisons” capable of causing organ failure.
The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, issued the warning amid growing concerns over the unregulated production and sale of herbal products across the country.
The alarm comes against the backdrop of the outbreak of illnesses and deaths linked to locally prepared alcoholic and herbal concoctions in Ondo State.
NAFDAC said 48 people had died out of 182 reported cases in the state as of September 17, 2026.
Adeyeye warned that Nigerians should not assume that herbal products are safe simply because they are traditional, popular or readily available.
“Herbal medicines/concoctions often displayed and hawked on shoulders, cars, wheelbarrows, around motor parks are nicely packed poisons that can lead to organ failure,” she said.
She particularly cautioned against alcoholic herbal concoctions produced outside regulated manufacturing facilities, saying such products could contain undeclared substances capable of harming consumers.
The NAFDAC boss also warned against buying herbal products without verifiable registration numbers, proper labels, ingredient lists, batch numbers and expiry dates.
She said products packaged in reused bottles, unlabelled containers or improvised sachets should not be consumed.
According to Adeyeye, consumers can check the registration status of packaged herbal products through NAFDAC’s public database before buying them.
“Do not equate availability with approval,” NAFDAC warned, stressing that the fact that a product is sold in roadside shops, markets or online does not mean it has been approved.
The agency also dismissed the belief that anything labelled herbal is automatically harmless, warning that such products can trigger adverse reactions or interact dangerously with conventional medicines.
“Do not accept claims that ‘herbal means harmless,’” Adeyeye said, warning that poor manufacturing practices could expose consumers to chemical and microbial contaminants.
She further cautioned Nigerians against herbal products aggressively promoted on social media with promises of curing diseases.
“Herbal medicines aggressively promoted with exaggerated or bogus claims on social media and online platforms are often nothing more than rip-offs,” she said.
Adeyeye advised Nigerians who encounter suspicious herbal products or unhygienic production premises to report them to NAFDAC instead of confronting producers.
She urged complainants to provide useful details, including product names, locations and vendor information, and to take photographs where it is safe to do so.
NAFDAC said its call centre, launched on March 28, 2026, is available for complaints on 0800-1-623322 and enquiries on 0700-1-623322.
Adeyeye said the agency would continue market surveillance, mop-up operations, public alerts and consumer-awareness campaigns to remove unsafe products from circulation.
She urged Nigerians to report suspected fake or unregistered herbal products before they cause further harm.
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