The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has warned importers, manufacturers, distributors and operators in Nigeria’s bakery and confectionery industry against using unsafe ingredients or misleading consumers as businesses grapple with rising production costs.
The Commission said financial pressure cannot justify practices that expose consumers to unsafe products, inaccurate labelling or deceptive marketing.
FCCPC Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Tunji Bello, issued the warning at a stakeholder engagement with bakery and confectionery operators organised by the Commission’s South-West Zonal Office at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Bello was represented by the South-West Zonal Coordinator, Dr Olubunmi Otti.
The engagement focused on consumer protection, product safety, quality and labelling compliance across the sector.
Bello acknowledged pressure from higher costs of flour, sugar, energy, transportation, packaging, equipment and financing. However, he said operators must not transfer those pressures to consumers through unsafe production practices.
“Food safety cannot be compromised in the pursuit of profit,” Bello said.
He warned operators against substituting approved ingredients with unsafe alternatives, using harmful or prohibited additives, compromising hygiene, manipulating expiry information, short-weighting products or making misleading claims.
The warning is significant for an industry supplying everyday staples such as bread and other baked products to millions of Nigerians. Consumers generally cannot independently verify the source, quality or storage conditions of ingredients used in commercially produced food.
Bello also stressed the importance of accurate production dates, shelf-life information, allergen declarations and storage instructions. He said information provided through labels, packaging, advertisements, social media and points of sale must accurately represent the products being sold.
The FCCPC said Section 134 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act requires manufacturers, importers and distributors to label or describe goods in a manner that makes them easily traceable.
The Commission also urged operators to maintain effective production records and traceability systems, respond promptly to complaints and cooperate with regulatory inspections. Where safety concerns arise, businesses are expected to take appropriate steps concerning affected products, including recalls or withdrawal from the market where necessary.
Earlier, Akinwumi Isola, Head of the Quality Assurance and Development Department of the FCCPC’s South-West Zonal Office, said effective regulation required continuous dialogue, stakeholder education, transparency and mutual respect.
Bello said the Commission would continue engaging businesses constructively but warned that dialogue should not be interpreted as regulatory leniency.
The message is clear: rising production costs remain a commercial challenge, not a justification for compromising consumer safety. For bakery operators, maintaining ingredient integrity, hygiene, accurate labelling and traceability will remain critical to protecting consumers and preserving confidence in the sector.
