The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has alerted the public over distribution and sale of unregistered hand sanitizers in various parts of the country.

According to NAFDAC in a statement on Tuesday, the unregistered sanitizers are illegally distributed and sold under various names including: Mighti Shield Instant Hand Sanitizer; Assured Instant Hand Sanitizer; One Step Hand Sanitizer; Shield Germ Hand Sanitizer.

Others are Lima Hand Sanitizer; Senarita Hand Sanitizer, AUS-B Hand Sanitizer;

Bakson Hand Sanitizer and Peru Hand Sanitizer.

The agency said package labels of affected unregistered hand sanitizers have no NAFDAC registration numbers, no batch numbers, no manufacturing and expiry dates; no names and full location addresses of manufacturers.

“The quality and safety of the unregistered hand sanitizers are not guaranteed because they are not evaluated and registered by NAFDAC.

“Members of the public are advised to use genuine NAFDAC registered hand sanitizers. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency had recently given expedited review to many businesses that are capable of producing sanitizers.

“For sanitizers approved by NAFDAC, we appealed to the public not to hike prices suggested by manufacturers to the point that the public cannot afford. Sanitizer is needed to prevent spreading of COVID-19 infection and if sold at exorbitant price, somebody who could not afford to purchase may be exposed to the risk of infection.

“NAFDAC has heightened surveillance in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja to prevent distribution and sale of unregistered Hand sanitizers,” it said. (Nigerian Tribune)

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