The festive season is here and there is going to be a lot of eating drinking. As a result, merchants of fake food and frinks are on the prowl, cashing in on the occasion to churn our their fake products in droves!
Recently, the media was awash with news of fake beverages in the market, night clubs, and malls. And just last week, afrobeats singer, Daniel Benson, known professionally as Bnxn and formerly known as Buju, called out a lounge for selling him fake drinks at the same price as the authentic ones.
Bnxn, in a series of posts on his X account, stressed the importance of respecting his health and money, urging the lounge to deliver what customers pay for.
Bnxn, who did not disclose the name of the lounge, warned that if it happened again, he would take the microphone from the club’s hypeman and expose them.
On Monday, the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, said the agency intercepted counterfeiters involved in the production of a variety of fake beverages, including wines, soft drinks, and other products in the Eziukwu market in Aba, Abia state.
Prof Adeyeye said the street value of the confiscated and destroyed fake products is estimated at over N750m.
She said some of the nefarious activities of the counterfeiters included the manufacturing of all kinds of adulterated products, especially different kinds of wine from a wide variety of brands ranging from Seaman Schnapps, Henessy, Four Cousins, Carlo Rossi, Jenney, Chelsea London Dry Gin, Schnapp Dry Gin, McDowells, Black Labels, Gordons, Martell, Campari, Smirnoff ice, Eva non-alcoholic drink, Evra non-alcoholic drink, Cartel, among others.
While urging Nigerians to remain vigilant, the agency is tasked consumers to always scrutinise branded drinks to distinguish them from counterfeits before consuming them.
Essentially, individuals must take extra caution this yuletide season albefore buying any beverage.
Follow the below tips when buying your beverages: How to identify fake alcoholic drinks
- Download a QR/Barcode code scanner on your phone – So your mobile phone doesn’t come with the automatic scanner for the type of QR/barcode on the bottle. Hence, you have to download the app either from your play store or app store.
- Scan the QR/Barcode – Once you pick up a drink you are allowed to scan the QR/Barcode before you can proceed to make payment. Have it in mind that if you’re not allowed to scan the QR/Barcode in the store
- Results will show the information of the particular drink scanned
- If the results are blank, without any information or the QR/Barcode doesn’t scan at all then you know that it is a fake drink.
Place: Only buy NAFDAC registered drinks from reputable and licenced retailers, bars and supermarkets.
Price: If the product is being sold below its normal price, or does not seem to include normal taxes on liquors, then it is probably fake.
Packaging: Check for poor quality packaging, spelling mistakes and unusually shaped bottles. Look for the contact information and address of the manufacturer. If it is missing, the alcohol is fake.
Inspect the seal: If the seal is broken or damaged, then the contents might have been interfered with and are not safe to drink. Check for fake bar codes. If you have an app on your mobile phone that scans bar codes, scan it and see if it’s listed as the correct product.
Product: If the product smells like paint or nail polish remover, then it is probably fake.
