By Muhammed Akindele
In this month-long investigation, MUHAMMED AKINDELE exposes how Seven bakeries in Sokoto State produce loaves of bread without registration with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
Abdulmalik Abdulwahab, a 500-level law student of Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto (UDUS), has not forgotten the loaf of SA'A Bread he bought from the hostel mini-mart in his 100-level days. It tasted unusually stony, and he abandoned it after the first bite. Something he claimed was nothing close to the bread from his hometown in Ilorin.
“It was after I took the first bite that I checked the bread,” Abdulmalik said. “The bread had dark spots all over the body.”
Hours later, he started feeling a sharp stomach pain and developed severe diarrhoea that lasted into the next day and disrupted his lectures.
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| UDUS stores openly display bread without a NAFDAC number. Credit: Muhammed Akindele. |
It was at that point that I made a resolve that I’d stop taking bread,” He ended.
But Abdulmalik is not alone. Rasheedat Abidiesin, another 300-level student, said a similar experience in her first year ended her habit of eating just any bread.
She said the loaf, bought at a hostel mini-mart for N200 or N250, was far too salty. By night, she had a stomach ache; by morning, she was running to the toilet in class.
“When I went to class, I was also having a running stomach, which made me run back to the hostel for relief,” she said. “That was the time I decided not to take bread on campus again.”
Investigation
To confirm Abdulmalik and Rasheedah’s testimonies, this reporter set out to verify the amount of unlicensed bread being sold on UDUS campus. A month-long investigation by this Digest Press found Seven brands wanting among 16 bread brands reviewed across the university community. Four bread brands carry no NAFDAC registration number on their labels: Sa'a Special Bread, Unity Coconut Bread, MB Chiroma Special Bread, and Shabatu Special Bread.
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| Premier and Jidda Special Bread, and a search of their number on NAFDAC's verification portal returned "Product not found!” Credit: Muhammed Akindele |
For Jidda Special Bread, Sunny Special Bread and Premier Special Bread with NAFDAC numbers SO/0068/SKK, SO/0115B/SRZ, and SO/0233B/SRZ, respectively, searches were conducted on the NAFDAC Automated Product Administration and Monitoring System (NAPAMS) during those periods. Every search returned "Product not found.”
After Digest Press submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to NAFDAC, setting out these findings, it responded from the records of its database confirming that three of the Seven breads are registered: MB Chiroma, Sunny Special Bread, and Premier.
While NAFDAC also confirmed that it knew Unity Bread had not been registered to this reporter, it was unable to verify Sa'a, Shabatu, and Jidda as at the time of filling this report.
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| NAFDAC database record for MB Chiroma Bread, listed under A8-108309L. Source: NAFDAC records sent to Digest Press. |
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| NAFDAC database records for Sunny Special Bread, listed under SO/0115B/SRZ. Source: NAFDAC records sent to Digest Press. |
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| NAFDAC database records for Premier Bakers and Confectioneries Bread, listed under SO/0233B/SRZL. Source: NAFDAC records sent to Digest Press. |
Here is where each brand stands.
Unity Coconut Bread carries no NAFDAC number on its label, and NAFDAC says the bread is produced without a registration number. It is the only brand the agency has confirmed as unregistered.
Sa’a Special Bread and Shabatu Special Bread also carry no NAFDAC number on their labels. The maker of Sa’a could not be reached through the contacts on its packaging. NAFDAC has not yet verified any of the three.
Jidda Special Bread prints the number SO/0068/SKK, but our search on the NAFDAC portal returned “Product not found.” NAFDAC has not yet verified this brand either.
MB Chiroma Special Bread has no number on its label, but NAFDAC says it is registered under the number A8-108309L. Sunny Special Bread prints SO/0115B/SRZ, and Premier Special Bread prints SO/0233B/SRZ.
The portal found neither during our searches, yet NAFDAC’s records list Sunny under SO/0115B/SRZ and Premier under SO/0233B/SRZL.
Several vendors interviewed by Digest Press said they did not know the bread lacked NAFDAC numbers. They said they obtained the products from the bakeries. For example, Alhaji Umaru, a provisions seller, said that's how they got it from the bakery, and he was unaware of anything called a NAFDAC number.
“NAFDAC? What is that? I’m not aware the bread is not licensed,” Umaru told our reporter.
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Sunny Special Bread, and a search of its number on NAFDAC's verification portal returned "Product not found!” Credit: Muhammed Akindele |
Shehu Muntari, Aliyu Ismaeel and Buhari echoed Alhaji Umaru's claim of ignorance among UDUS vendors, selling products they know nothing about.
What NAFDAC Requires
NAFDAC’s food-registration guidelines state that food products should not be manufactured, advertised, sold or distributed in Nigeria unless they have been registered with the agency.
The agency’s bread guidelines also state that NAFDAC must inspect and recognise bread factories before bread is manufactured.
The regulations are intended to ensure that food products meet required safety and quality standards before they reach consumers.
In July 2024, NAFDAC shut down a bakery in Sokoto State during a raid after finding unfortified sugar and bromate, a banned chemical. Garba Adamu, then the state coordinator, said the bakery also used unregistered saccharine as a sweetener. Six other bakeries were sanctioned for poor hygiene.
Aliyu Shehu, a doctor at the Federal Teaching Hospital Birnin Kebbi, said that the major concern with food products that have not been properly regulated or whose registration cannot be verified is the uncertainty surrounding their safety and quality.
“If the food is contaminated, poorly processed, or improperly stored, it can cause food poisoning and other foodborne illnesses, which may present with symptoms like vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and fever,” he said.
However, Shehu cautioned that the absence of a verifiable NAFDAC number does not automatically prove that a food product is unsafe.
“However, it is definitely a regulatory concern because the consumer cannot easily verify that the product has gone through the required regulatory process. So, it should raise caution rather than being taken as proof that the product is harmful.”
Shehu said many consumers pay more attention to the price, appearance and freshness of bread than the regulatory information on its packaging.
“Most buyers mainly look at the price, appearance, and freshness,” he said.
He advised students who suspect that a food product has made them sick to stop consuming it and seek medical attention, especially if the symptoms are severe or persistent.
He also advised consumers to keep the packaging and, where possible, the remaining product because they could help identify what was consumed.
“If several people who consumed the same product develop similar symptoms, that should also be reported to the appropriate health or regulatory authorities,” he said
Students Continue to Buy Bread
For Abdulrahman Qudus, a student who spoke to Digest Press, the concern is not an illness but the texture of the bread sold on campus. He said he often feels as though there are tiny stones in the bread anytime he's eating.
According to him, he only eats bread when he goes to town.
Echoing Qudus’ complaint, another 400-level student, who asked not to be named for fear of being identified, said he continues to buy the bread despite disliking its quality.
“I just like bread. But because the good ones like DevKem are out of reach for me, I have no choice but to stick to the cheaper ones, even though I never enjoyed them,” he said.
Manufacturers
The owner of MB Chiroma Bread said the brand is registered but that the NAFDAC number had not been printed on its labels because the bakery was still using its old packaging. NAFDAC’s records later supported his claim of registration.
When asked to provide the NAFDAC number or the new label bearing the registration number, the owner hung up and stopped answering his calls. He had not responded to Digest’s follow-up questions at filing time.
Mai Rago, the owner of Unity Bread, repeatedly promised to provide the brand’s NAFDAC registration number but had not done so after several follow-up calls.
SA’A Bread could not be reached through the contact details printed on its label.
The first telephone number printed on the label was not reachable. The other number on the label was answered by a man who claimed to be in Lagos and denied affiliation with SA’A Bread.
Murtala Jamaka, the manager of Premier Bread, declined to comment when asked about the registration number displayed on the bread.
Sufiyanu, the owner of Jidda Bread, also declined to speak to this reporter.
The manager of Sunny Bread promised to provide his employer’s contact number but had not done so despite repeated follow-up calls.
NAFDAC Confirms Digest Findings, Promises to Investigate
On the 21st of September, Digest Press submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to NAFDAC, presenting our findings on the seven breads during this investigation and the registration numbers printed on three of them. The agency stamped and received it.
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| FOI Duly Stamped by the NAFDAC Authorities. |
During subsequent communication, a NAFDAC official told this reporter that the agency was aware that Unity Bread was being produced without a registration number.
The agency said it would verify the remaining brands and provide feedback.
In an interview with the Sokoto State NAFDAC Coordinator, Abdussalam Lawal, he said NAFDAC is responsible for regulating the importation, manufacture, distribution and sale of regulated products in the state.
He also said the agency’s ability to effectively carry out its duties had been affected by a shortage of personnel in the state.
Lawal said he had taken note of the findings presented by Digest Press, including the names of the bread brands and the registration numbers printed on their labels.
He said NAFDAC would investigate the findings and take appropriate regulatory action if violations were established.
At the time of publication, NAFDAC had not provided verification for the other brands.
Equally, Digest presented its findings to the Students’ Union. Fauziyyah Adamu, the Students’ Union Welfare Director, noted that the incident is really concerning, appreciated this reporter’s effort and promised that the union will put necessary measures in place.
“I believe the union will put necessary measures in place, and we will communicate once there is an accurate decision,” she said.
But amidst promises, Rasheedat and Abdulmalik’s prayers are the same. The ability to buy safe bread without having to worry about verification.