Key points
- The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Area Command, has intercepted 1,306 sacks of expired and decomposing noodles allegedly concealed in a truck.
- The truck was reportedly declared as carrying food items before Customs officers subjected it to examination.
- The Command also intercepted 3,300 cartridges of explosive materials and handed them over to the Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit.
- Other seizures included foreign parboiled rice, Cannabis Sativa, pharmaceutical products and more than 310,000 sticks of cigarettes.
- The seized goods had a combined Duty Paid Value (DPV) of ₦365.16 million.
Main Story
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Area Command, has intercepted 1,306 sacks of expired and decomposing noodles allegedly concealed in a truck in an attempt to prevent the entry of unsafe food products into Nigeria.
The seizure was disclosed by the Customs Area Controller, Comptroller of Customs Abdullahi Kaila, at a press briefing at the Command on Tuesday.
Kaila said the truck was initially declared as carrying food items but was intercepted during an enforcement operation and subjected to further examination.
The inspection, he said, uncovered 1,306 sacks of expired and waste noodles, each weighing 50 kilogrammes, with several of the products already deteriorating and visibly decomposing.
“What was discovered was deeply disturbing because many of the products had already deteriorated and were visibly decomposing.”
The Customs Area Controller said the seizure underscored the importance of sustained border surveillance in protecting Nigerians from prohibited and potentially dangerous imports.
The Command also intercepted 3,300 cartridges of explosive materials, which were subsequently handed over to the Nigeria Police Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit for safe custody and further investigation.
Other items seized included 1,268 bags of foreign parboiled rice, 373 parcels of Cannabis Sativa, 90 packs of Tramaking 250mg, 69 packs of Royal Tapentadol 250mg and 310,000 sticks of Time/Yes cigarettes, among other prohibited goods.
The combined Duty Paid Value of the seized consignments was put at ₦365.16 million.
The Issues
The interception of the expired noodles raises significant public health and border-control concerns, particularly because the products were reportedly concealed and falsely declared.
Allowing deteriorated food products into the domestic market could expose consumers to serious health risks, while the concealment of such consignments highlights the challenges Customs faces in detecting fraudulent declarations and prohibited imports.
The discovery of explosive materials presents an even more serious security concern. The handover to the Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit allows specialised authorities to secure and investigate the items.
The seizures also demonstrate the broad nature of Customs’ border mandate, which extends beyond revenue collection to include public safety, trade regulation, national security and the enforcement of import restrictions.
What’s Being Said
Comptroller Abdullahi Kaila, Customs Area Controller, Seme Command
Kaila said Customs officers remained committed to securing Nigeria’s borders while facilitating legitimate trade and generating revenue for national development.
On the expired noodles, he said:
“Upon examination we uncovered 1,306 sacks of expired and waste noodles, each weighing 50 kilograms.”
He said the Command’s enforcement operations were increasingly driven by intelligence and sustained surveillance.
NAFDAC Representative
Receiving the seized consignments on behalf of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the agency’s Deputy Director and Coordinator commended the cooperation among the agencies.
“This is a clear demonstration of a working synergy from top to bottom.”
He said the collaboration would continue to protect the country from activities capable of threatening public safety.
Revenue Performance
Alongside the seizures, the Seme Area Command reported a significant increase in revenue collection.
The Command remitted ₦19.84 billion to government coffers during the period under review, compared with ₦15.94 billion recorded during the corresponding period in 2025.
The increase represents an improvement of about ₦3.90 billion, or roughly 24.5 per cent, year-on-year.
Kaila attributed the performance to sustained enforcement, intelligence-driven operations and improved compliance.
What’s Next
The seized explosive materials will remain under the custody of the Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit for further investigation and appropriate action.
The expired food products and other regulated consignments have also been handed over to relevant sister agencies in accordance with the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023.
Customs and its partner agencies are expected to sustain joint enforcement operations along the Seme border, with particular attention to fraudulent declarations, prohibited imports, unsafe food products, narcotics, pharmaceutical products and security-sensitive materials.
Bottom Line
The Seme Area Command’s latest interceptions highlight the multiple risks confronting Nigeria’s borders—from unsafe food imports to illicit drugs, counterfeit or restricted products and explosive materials.
While the ₦365.16 million seizure demonstrates the financial value of Customs enforcement, the more significant outcome is the prevention of potentially harmful goods from reaching Nigerian consumers and the removal of explosive materials from circulation.
With revenue also rising to ₦19.84 billion, the Command’s performance illustrates how intelligence-led enforcement can simultaneously support national security, public health, legitimate trade and government revenue.
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