On Wednesday, 6th November 2024, a combined team from the National Consumer Protection Commission, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Sierra Leone Standards Bureau, and Civil Society Organizations working in the consumer space and the media, with the support of the Sierra Leone Police at Waterloo, embarked on the destruction of confiscated expired products seized from various shops in Freetown.
Speaking at the dumping site at Waterloo, the Consumer Relations Supervisor, Mrs Bernadette Ballay Fullah, explained that the public destruction of the said confiscated product is an act to let the public know that such products are not fit for consumption and further reinforces the message that all expired products discovered in the shops and warehouses of any business entity will be seized and destroyed, apart from the administrative actions that would be taken against them.
She furthered that this exercise is to further raise awareness among members of the public that there are expired products in the market and that when going to buy from shops and in the market, they should exercise caution and look at the expiry dates on the products. In the event, they discover any expired products on the shelves of businesses, they should report same to the Commission at 28 Siaka Stevens Street in Freetown. Reporting promptly will also help the Commission to weed out all expired products in the market.
Madam Fullah informed the crowd gathered at the site that the products that are being destroyed were discovered during various unannounced visits to shops by a combined team of the Trade Ministry, National Consumer Protection Commission and the Standards Bureau. All expired items found in the shops were taken off the shelves and confiscated, adding that the Consumer Protection Act of 2020, section 93 (2. A,b,c), gives the Commission the right to remove such products, which are in contravention of section 46 (2, a b,c) of the said Act, which stipulates that the consumer should be provided with goods that are fit for consumption and have no defect. She admonished members of the public to support the efforts of the Commission by identifying such dealers through information sharing. Noting that while the Commission and its partners will do their best to protect the public, the work of eradicating the market of expired and substandard goods is everybody’s business.
Madam Fullah explained the method of destruction, stating that all bottled items would be destroyed, with the bottles broken and contents emptied in a hole already dug for that purpose. As for the bags of rice, couscous, flour and other products, the bags will be torn open and all the contents emptied into the hole, with other products like biscuits, noodles etc., they will be burnt.
The armed security of the SLP helped prevent the crowd from storming the site and carting away the expired products, and the entire exercise went on smoothly.
