The discovery of fake Cerelac products in Lagos has raised fresh concerns about how expired and potentially unsafe baby food is finding its way onto store shelves.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control said the products, Cerelac Mixed Fruits and Wheat, were identified as counterfeit and unregistered after a complaint was received by Nestlé Nigeria Plc, the authorised marketing holder.

According to the agency, the product in question was labelled as manufactured by Nestlé Spain and carried the Batch Code 308002910. What raised immediate concern was the condition of the product. The complainant reported that it had an odour suggestive of possible contact with fuel.

A preliminary assessment by Nestlé Nigeria uncovered a more serious issue. The product had already expired, despite carrying an expiry date of October 2026. This suggests that the date marking had been altered, a practice known as revalidation, often associated with the circulation of expired goods disguised as safe for consumption.

NAFDAC said its Post Marketing Surveillance team traced the product to a retail outlet at Maxland Shopping Centre in Okota, Lagos, where the items were found on sale and subsequently removed.

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Further checks revealed subtle but important differences in packaging. While the registered product uses a slash to separate the day from the year, the unregistered version uses a hyphen, a detail that can easily be overlooked by buyers.

“It is important to note that Nestlé Nigeria is not aware of the channels through which the products are supplied into the country,” the agency said, pointing to uncertainty around how the products entered the market.

The health implications are significant, particularly because the product is intended for infants. NAFDAC warned that fake Cerelac food may lack essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals needed for proper growth and development. In some cases, such products may also contain harmful contaminants that could lead to serious illness or even death.

The agency has directed its zonal directors and state coordinators to intensify surveillance and remove any remaining stock of the affected products.

It also urged healthcare professionals and consumers to report any suspected cases of falsified or substandard products through its official reporting channels.

Beyond the immediate warning, the incident highlights a recurring problem in Nigeria’s consumer market, where counterfeit and revalidated products continue to circulate, sometimes in categories as sensitive as infant nutrition.

NAFDAC said it will continue its surveillance activities to ensure that only safe and properly registered products remain in circulation.

Meiza Nigeria