The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in Ondo has said that most of the packaged water companies in the state operate with expired licences.

“Most of the packaged water, popularly called ‘pure water’, that I know of in Ondo State since I came on board, have been operating with an expired licence,” the state coordinator of NAFDAC, Benu Philip, said.

He also disclosed that the agency sealed companies over non-compliance with the regulation and standards.

Mr Philip said the affected companies spread across the state were sealed between January and June.

He explained that all the affected companies were operating with expired licences and producing in an unclean environment.

“In addition to locking the facilities, the companies will pay an administrative charge for late renewal of their registration licence and submit necessary documents for the renewal process,” he said.

Mr Philip said the licence issued is not forever, adding that renewal periods should be sustained to avoid regulatory interruption.

He advised Nigerians to look for the NAFDAC registration number, batch information, and date markings on the sachet and bottled water.

“Our mandate, specifically, is to ensure, regulate and control the manufacturing of food, drugs, cosmetics, medical devices and chemicals, which we refer to as regulated products.

“Once you have that number on your certificate, it shows that you have gone through the regulatory processes to ensure that you make safe products to the consuming public, but it is not forever; it has a timeline,” he said.

He said the agency would continue collaborating with other agencies to ensure its set goals and targets were achieved.

(NAN)