By: Johnkennedy Uzoma – Owerri
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Friday stormed Owerri, the capital of Imo State where they sealed a sachets water production factory in the Owerri West council area of the state.
The sachet water factory identifued as Aranatha Table Water with a NAFDAC Registration number B 1-08941L, is situated at Ndubuisi Adioha drive, in Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State.
The agency also arrested one person involved in illegal sachet water production.
The NAFDAC’s Chief Laboratory Technologist, Mr . Usman Ameh, led the operation with a team of NAFDAC officials from the Agency’s Investigation and Enforcement department, Apapa , Lagos to the State.
The team leader said the agency found that the sealed factory was packaging water directly from boreholes without any form of treatment for the public, thus constituting water poisoning and contravening various production laws.
He said: “We carried out the operation after receiving credible intelligence that the factory was producing water that is not potable and could constitute poison”.
He said that before the sealing of the factory, a team of NAFDAC officials from the state had visited the place and instructed the authorities of this factory to put every production process on hold but they ignored it and still continued their illegal activities.
Ameh called on other sachet water producers still involved in illegal packing under unhygienic conditions to put a stop to such unwholesome practice or be ready to go to jail.
He said NAFDAC would not relent in its mandate of safeguarding the health of the nation and ensuring that only registered wholesome water and other regulated products were produced and sold to the public.
The NAFDAC team leader also appealed to members of the public to always avail NAFDAC of information regarding illegal producers of regulated products.
The agency had instructed sealed Sachet Water Factory to stay out of production until it could meet the requirements to recommence production.
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