SHUTS (2)
The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control has shut the Wuse, Zone 4, outlet of Mr. Biggs in Abuja, for allegedly selling unwholesome products to the public.
The agency also arrested seven suspects in connection with the alleged sale of alcoholic beverages, while it sealed the premises of the producer in Abuja.
The agency said it discovered that the dispensary, kitchen and storage areas of the sealed Mr. Biggs outlet were found to be rat-infested; while the oven used for food preservation was swarming with flies.
The Deputy Director, Drugs, in the Establishment Inspection Directorate of the agency, Dr. Eric Iful, stated this during a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said he was acting under the instruction of NAFDAC's Director-General, Dr. Paul Orhii, whom he represented at the press briefing.
Iful explained that the punishment was meted out to the fast food outlet, having been found to have consistently violated NAFDAC regulations for the fourth time this year alone.
Before taking the action, he said that officers from the establishment inspectorate division had been inundated with complaints that fast food operators were selling unwholesome products across the country.
As a result, he said the inspectorate began routine fact-finding activities on fast food outlets across the country, during which many lapses were allegedly observed..
To reduce the incidence of food-borne diseases, he said that NAFDAC organised a training workshop for fast food operators and hoteliers on June 29 in Lagos.
But on July 11, he said the shut Mr. Biggs outlet was found wanting when a consumer reported that the chicken served with the beans porridge he bought was stale.
He said that the complaint prompted the EID officers to inspect the outlet, during when the NAFDAC team made unacceptable discoveries.
Iful said, "The dispensary, kitchen and storage areas were grossly untidy and rat-infested; while two deep freezers in use (found in the place) were not functioning."
