SPECIAL REPORT: How tiger nut, kunu, zobo sellers source plastic bottles from dumpsites, hospital wards, others; put consumers’ lives at risk

By Toyibat Ajose-Adeyemi, Alagbe Elisha, Adekanla Esther, Adelani Khadijat

 

That attractive iced tiger nut, Kunu, Zobo, Fura de nono and other locally made drinks specially packaged in used soft drink/water plastic bottles might not be what you think it is. Investigations by NewsClick Nigeria revealed that most times these plastic bottles are either picked from dumpsites, bare floor, drainages, social events, hospital wards and dustbins or bought from people who picked them from same source!

Our investigations further revealed that majority of the bottles retained the old brand despite carrying new contents (the local drink) thus deceiving unlettered consumers. Some are unlabeled and cannot be traced to a particular address. The hawkers/sellers are also not permanent on a spot. They sell in traffic and regularly switch locations to where they make better sales. Aside from the plastic bottles, NewsClick Nigeria can establish that the preparation process including water used cannot be hygienically guaranteed especially that the sellers operate in a free-for-all world of theirs.

 

Unprocessed product, open market, no regulation

Investigations by this medium further revealed that the local drink sellers operate in an unregulated market therefore making it possible for them to be unanswerable to anyone even after falling short of production standard.

NewsClick Nigeria discovered that most of the vendors produce the drinks at the comfort of their homes. An official of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) who spoke under condition of anonymity with NewsClick Nigeria said there’s little or nothing the Agency can do to ‘regulate a non-existing market.’ According to him, the Agency can only act if the producers are registered and producing below specified standards.

 

Health hazards of consuming unprocessed drinks in poorly sourced bottles

According to health experts who spoke with this medium, consuming drinks repackaged in used bottles especially those picked from hospital wards and environments have potential to harbour deadly communicable diseases that could put the health of consumers at risk and possibly cause an epidemic.

‘People in this part of the world just have this lackadaisical attitude of consuming anything without a check on the implication of such on their health. I never thought people can be careless to the point of buying a blank drink anywhere and consume such. By blank I mean unprocessed drink with no traceable address of the manufacturer. It’s like buying death recipes with your hard earned! These indigenous drinks that people buy in traffic, at bus stops and other random places are neither processed nor unregistered, the containers have been used elsewhere and more importantly the sellers don’t have a known address. I advise people who have been consuming such to put an end to it immediately and go for comprehensive medical check-up,’ a medical doctor with one of the General Hospitals in Lagos said.

Another medical practitioner known for offering health tips on social media had earlier warned against consuming unprocessed local drinks to avoid terminal illness. He disclosed that some hospital cleaners usually pick up these used bottles from wards, waste bins to sell to drink vendors.

He also lamented that the health implications of their action was in the fact that some of the plastic containers have been used by patients suffering from infectious diseases like tuberculosis, hepatitis and Lassa fever, among others.

“Some of these bottles were used by patients who had tuberculosis, which means they coughed out their saliva into it. Some were used by patients with Hepatitis B and other infections that can be transmitted; it could also be Lassa fever or Ebola viral infection,” he said.

He further expressed fears on the possibility of the bottles not being properly sterilised, hence the high chances of disease transmission. He explained that the unbecoming development could be responsible for why some people become terminally ill and cannot explain the source of their sickness.

Meanwhile, consumers in their numbers who spoke to our reporters shared different near-death experiences of aftermath of the consumption of these largely unprocessed and unregulated drinks. However, some also made cases for the sellers, saying the drinks are more nutritional and less expensive than carbonated drinks.

 

I was rushed to hospital; stooled for three days, lost weight, appetite after Zobo drink – Mummy Peace

The adverse effects of the source of these plastic bottles on the health of those who consume the contents are troubling and devastating. A 25-year-old trader who resides at Iyana-Ipaja and identified herself as Mummy Peace shared with NewsClick Nigeria how she nearly lost her life from consuming one two months ago. ‘I rarely buy edibles outside especially those not labeled. However, on this fateful day in June, I was thirsty and felt the urge to buy water but there was none in sight. I was returning home from market and the traffic was really bad that I knew I might not get anywhere close to my house in three hours.  After waiting endlessly for the water sellers and couldn’t find any, I settled for a zobo drink because that was like the only thing close to water that I could buy in that traffic.”

She explained that she started feeling uncomfortable about an hour after consuming the Zobo drink. Shrugging it off as random body discomfort especially in a prolonged traffic, Mummy Peace said she managed to get home but the discomfort had become rather unbearable. “I started feeling stomach rumbles about an hour after consuming the drink. I didn’t want to immediately suspect the Zobo drink so I just assumed it was the stress of the long hours in traffic. I managed to get home despite frequent urges to beg the driver and other passengers to allow me alight and take some fresh air.”

Speaking further, the mother of one said she stooled for three days non-stop and her husband had to rush her to the hospital when she started feeling weak and losing weight. According to her, it was in the hospital that the doctors established that she took contaminated drink after conducting series of tests on her.

“From that night, I started stooling non-stop for three days. My husband who had been noticing this and had earlier advised we go to the hospital but I kept declining rushed me there without even seeking my consent the third day when it became obvious that I might pass out. I had lost appetite, weight and became weak. I was as if I had been sick for three months. At the hospital, the doctors conducted series of test to establish that I had a badly contaminated drink that took the exact symptoms of food poisoning. They said I won’t have survived it if I had delayed my coming by a day more,” Mummy Peace said appreciating God, her husband and team of doctors that worked on her.

 

I won’t ever take any of it again, even if offered for free – Artisan

An auto mechanic who identified himself as Baba Ahmed couldn’t hide his disdain for the local drink sellers ‘for selling what they knew could kill him’. He said if he had the wherewithal, he would have sued the particular one that sold to him last.

‘I’m alive today only by the Grace of God. The tiger nut I took last year would have made me long be forgotten today if not for the timely intervention of my son who works in one of the government hospitals. In all sincerity, it’s not the first time I am taking the drink and I don’t I ever experienced any upset. However, I can’t particularly say what went wrong with this particularly one. I didn’t even feel anything till the second day. I woke up with a severe stomach pain that got me crying like a toddler. My children and wife had gone out thinking I was fine and would go to my workshop later being a Thursday. It didn’t take too long before I started stooling. I visited the toilet seven times in less than three hours. I collapsed in the toilet the seventh time before my son who had forgotten an important work document accidentally walked.’

Continuing he said: ‘The next thing I remembered was opening my eyes in the hospital ward surrounded by my wife and children. According to what my son told me, the laboratory test on my stool indicated food poisoning. He warned me to never patronize those hawkers again. From that day, I made up my mind never to have anything with that drink even if offered for free. As if they knew what they had done, the hawkers have never passed by my workshop since then. If I have the money, I would have looked for that particular hawker and sued her because I could have died if my son had not walked in the moment he did,’ he said angrily.

 

Vendors open up on sourcing for materials, bottles, hygiene and profit    

The vendors in their interaction with NewsClick Nigeria reporters explained that the source of the bottles isn’t as important as the hygienic processes involved in the preparation of the drink. According to them, they either pick directly from social events (parties), dumpsites or pay those scavenging for it. They also insisted that basic hygiene processes are followed from pouring the drink in the bottles for sale.

“Let’s not deceive ourselves. People customizing Zobo for higher levels may use printing and other methods, but at the local level, we pick plastics. However, I pick those in good shape, well covered, and dropped in good places. I sterilize and wash them thoroughly myself. I clean the plastics two to three days before making the Zobo,” a vendor who identified herself as Mrs Oluwakemi explained.

Oluwakemi noted that she sells her drinks in containers like paint buckets and are usually sold out in two to three days.

Defending her not using branded plastics, she explained: “It’s expensive to use branded plastics for local drinks like Zobo and Tiger Nuts. If the cost increases, no one will buy them. Branded plastics could cost around 500 Naira, making the drinks more expensive.”

Another vendor, Iya Basira told NewsClick Nigeria she has been in the local drink business for over two years, specializing in Kunu and Zobo. She also does not pick used plastics but ‘buys from trusted source.’

“I get my ingredients from the market,” she explained. For plastic containers, she relies on two trusted vendors. “Initially, 12 plastics cost 1000 Naira, but now it’s 1500 per dozen. Despite the price hike, I continue buying these containers because my customers’ health is very important to me.”

Iya Basira also feel using branded plastics with details of the seller is the most ideal and plans on doing such in the future. ‘I plan on using branded plastics soon, but the profit isn’t really worth it right now’, she said.

She produces around 60 drinks daily, split between Kunu and Zobo. Profits vary, but on a good day, she makes up to 2000 Naira.

Adeshola, in her 30s said she pays kids to pick used and disposed bottles at public events.

On basic preparation hygiene, she said: ‘I prepare the mixture in my kitchen, ensuring the surroundings are washed and well-ventilated.’

‘I buy ingredients from local markets and pay kids to pick plastic bottles from parties at a local event center,’ she explained.

Adeshola might consider using branded and special produced pet bottles in the future but not now. “There is no need for branded plastics for now. As my business expands, I’ll consider it,” she said.

Overseeing the production process herself, she produces about 100 drinks daily and sells around 76 pieces, earning approximately 3000 Naira daily.

A vendor who sells to students at Lagos State University of Education (LASUED) said picks used unbranded plastics picked from the university ground. “Students drink a lot of carbonated drinks, so I find plastics everywhere,” she explains. Regarding customer health, she says, “My concern is to satisfy students’ cravings. Washing the bottles cleans all the germs.”

This vendor does not see any need for selling with branded pet bottles as long as she can pick on bare university ground. ‘Only those with money can expand. As long as I can pick bottles around, I don’t see the need for expensive ones,’ she noted.