On a humid Lagos morning, Adenike Ruth lay curled on her bed, too weak to stand, her body still reeling from hours of vomiting and stomach cramps.

The Lagos-based creative entrepreneur and founder of ‘Book A Creative’ said she had done nothing out of the ordinary. Like many young professionals juggling work, school, and deadlines, she had ordered food online, the previous day, a routine act that has become second nature in Nigeria’s fast-growing digital convenience economy.

“I had to take about two days off work. I was purging badly. I almost got hospitalised,” she told BusinessDay.

Ruth said the meal was ordered from a restaurant listed on the Glovo platform bearing the name Corporate Ewa, a popular Lagos food brand she had trusted for years.

The familiarity of the brand name gave her no reason for concern. She had ordered and eaten food from Corporate Ewa and expected the same quality and hygiene.

After eating the meal, she began to feel unwell. She rushed home from work, took a bath, and went straight to bed, hoping the discomfort would pass. By the following morning, her condition had worsened. What began as mild unease escalated into severe stomach cramps and persistent vomiting, leaving her unable to work or carry out her daily activities.

“At first, I didn’t even suspect the food. It didn’t cross my mind that something I ordered from a brand I trusted could make me that sick,” she said.

It was only later, after seeing online conversations and complaints about unauthorised listings on food delivery platforms, that she began to question whether the meal had truly come from the restaurant she believed she was ordering from. “I ordered because I trusted the name. Now I am not even sure where that food actually came from,” Ruth said.

‘There was blood on the chicken’

Ruth’s story is far from isolated. A consumer identified simply as Diane told BusinessDay she ordered fried rice and chicken via Glovo in 2023, only to discover something deeply disturbing.

“There was blood on the chicken,” she said.

Despite noticing the contamination, she washed it and ate it. “I couldn’t let go because of the money I spent.

“Few days later, I fell sick. The doctor told me that it was food poisoning. The only thing that came to my mind was the food that I ordered from Glovo platform,” she explained.

Another user, O’Neal Ombu, described what he said was a mismatch between what he ordered and what was delivered. “I ordered food expecting Chicken Republic. What was delivered was completely different. It didn’t taste like it at all,” he said.

Ombu said he suspected the food may not have come from the brand listed on the Glovo app, though he could not independently verify its source. “I didn’t get a refund. I had to throw the food away. I deleted the app and switched,” he said.

A booming market, fragile safeguards

The controversy is unfolding against the backdrop of Nigeria’s rapidly expanding online food and grocery delivery market, which has become deeply embedded in urban life.

Industry estimates put the value of Nigeria’s online food delivery market at approximately $1.04 billion in 2024, with projections exceeding $2.49 billion by 2033, underscoring the scale of consumer reliance on digital platforms.

Growth has been driven by Nigeria’s young population, worsening urban congestion, particularly in Lagos, rising smartphone and internet penetration, increased adoption of digital payments, and changing lifestyles that prioritise convenience.

For delivery platforms, Nigeria represents a high-growth frontier. Glovo has previously described the country as its biggest African market, citing strong uptake across food and grocery categories. In 2024, the company recorded a 76 percent year-on-year increase in quick-commerce Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) in Nigeria, reflecting rapid vendor onboarding and user growth.

But analysts caution that rapid scale without commensurate safeguards can amplify risk. “As platforms grow faster than their verification and compliance systems, the consequences of lapses multiply. When millions rely on digital food delivery daily, failures stop being isolated,” Jide Awe, an tech analyst told BusinessDay.

Inside the alleged supply gap

Wilfred Nwabueze, another Glovo user, said he believes the problem may extend beyond isolated errors.

“I pity people still ordering food on Glovo,” he said.

Nwabueze, who said he is personally acquainted with several delivery riders, alleged that delivery pressure sometimes leads to substitutions, a claim he said reflects his observations but which he could not independently verify.

“When there is pressure to deliver fast, the food may be sourced from any nearby restaurant and delivered to the customer,” he said.

If accurate, experts note that such practices would raise serious concerns about traceability and vendor verification, particularly where customers believe they are ordering from established brands.

The video that Intensified scrutiny

Public attention intensified after Corporate Ewa, a Lagos-based food brand, accused Glovo of hosting unauthorised listings using its name, images, and branding.

In a widely shared Instagram video, the restaurant’s owner, Adéola, said Corporate Ewa has never registered, partnered with, or operated on Glovo, despite receiving repeated customer complaints linked to meals ordered under its name on the app.

According to her, customers had complained for over a year that food ordered through Glovo in Corporate Ewa’s name was poor in quality, incorrect, or unsafe. Initially dismissed as confusion, the complaints escalated in 2023, prompting her to investigate.

She said her findings revealed an active listing on Glovo impersonating her brand. When she placed an order herself, she said the food did not originate from her kitchen. According to her account, the delivery rider disclosed that the food was picked up from Ojuelegba, Lagos.

The owner said she documented the evidence and sought legal advice. Her lawyer formally wrote to Glovo in October requesting the removal of the alleged impersonating listing, following earlier complaints in August that she said were unresolved.

While Glovo later indicated it had reviewed the complaint and taken down the listing, the owner said subsequent checks showed the listing remained active, with unchanged branding and images. She added that the listing had amassed over 1,000 reviews, with some customers reporting illness, resulting in reputational damage and declining sales.

She stressed that she is not seeking compensation but accountability. “This is about food safety and trust,” she said.

Following the video, Nigerians across X, Instagram, and TikTok shared personal experiences and concerns, reflecting growing public anxiety around food safety on delivery platforms.

A platform under scrutiny

As criticism mounted, legal commentators began weighing in.

Corporate lawyer, Akpor Ikogbo noted that even without formal trademark registration, a business with established goodwill could still be protected under Nigeria’s passing-off doctrine.

“If a platform allows unauthorised entities to trade on another brand’s reputation, that raises serious liability issues,” he said.

Osi Suave, programme director at The Beat 99.9fm, described the controversy as a sign of weak KYC and internal compliance.

As of December 31, 2025, Glovo had not issued a public response to the specific allegations. Multiple attempts by BusinessDay to obtain comment from the company were unsuccessful. A source familiar with the matter said a statement was being prepared.

Beyond brand impersonation lies a deeper concern, which is food safety.

A groundbreaking study led by Professor Stella Ifeanyi Smith, director of research at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), revealed alarming levels of food-borne pathogens in street-vended foods across Lagos.

Using the Vitek Immunodiagnostic Assay System (VIDAS), Smith’s team detected Salmonella, a bacterium linked to severe gastroenteritis and typhoid fever, in food purchased in Yaba.

“Over 50 percent of urban dwellers consume ready-to-eat street foods. That reality prompted this investigation,” Smith said.

She warned that more than 200,000 deaths annually in Nigeria are attributed to food-borne diseases.

“When food is sourced informally, especially without traceability, people may unknowingly consume contaminated meals,” she said.

Regulatory blind spots

Lagos state requires food handlers to undergo biannual health screenings. But enforcement, particularly among mobile and informal vendors, remains weak.

Smith recalled encountering a vendor selling ‘Abacha’ without a fixed stall.

“How do you regulate hygiene when the vendor has no permanent location?” she asked.

A previous study by Smith in 2003 found that six out of 100 food handlers in Oshodi were asymptomatic carriers of Salmonella typhi.

“There is a dire need for increased surveillance and collaboration between Lagos State and NIMR,” she said.

Contamination is contamination’

Dietitian Olusola Malomo, speaking to BusinessDay, said the allegations raise serious public health concerns.

“Once food is contaminated, the quantity consumed becomes irrelevant. Contamination is contamination,” Malomo said.

He explained that food delivery platforms introduce a third-party risk that regulators have not fully addressed. “When you eat in a restaurant, you can observe hygiene practices. With online delivery, that visibility disappears,” he said.

Malomo warned that vulnerable groups, including pregnant women, children, the elderly, face heightened risks.

“In pregnancy, food poisoning can have lifelong consequences for both mother and child,” he said.

He added that brand impersonation in food delivery is not just a business issue. “This is a public health issue. If platforms fail to verify vendors properly, illnesses will occur. It is only a matter of time,” Malomo stressed.

Regulatory response

An official of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), who spoke anonymously, said the agency is reviewing the allegations.

The official said the FCCPC has previously intervened in complaints involving delivery platforms over issues such as unauthorised charges and failed refunds and has issued multiple warnings in 2025 against unsafe practices in the food value chain.

“These concerns align with issues of untraceable sourcing and consumer deception,” the official said.

Broken trust in a booming market

Nigeria’s online food delivery market has grown rapidly, driven by urbanisation, mobile connectivity, and changing lifestyles.

But the Glovo controversy has exposed a fragile trust underpinning that growth.

For Corporate Ewa, the damage has been personal and professional.

The brand maintains it has never partnered with Glovo and has apologised to customers affected by any impersonated listings.

For consumers like Adenike Ruth, the lesson came painfully. “I trusted the brand. I didn’t know I was eating something else entirely,” she said

As calls grow louder for intervention by the FCCPC and stronger oversight from food safety regulators, Nigerians are increasingly being advised to verify restaurants directly through official channels.

In the race for speed and convenience, Malomo warn that accountability has fallen behind, adding that until that gap is closed, the question remains how many more customers will unknowingly consume impostor meals and pay the price with their health. (BusinessDay)