'Nigeria imports 90% of expired rice’- Customs boss

Customs boss, Hameed Ali 

Retired Colonel and Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service (NSC), Hameed Ali has reportedly said that influx of expired rice into the country is responsible for strict restriction of importation through the land borders.

The Customs boss said over 90 percent of rice imported into the country through land borders are expired commodities.

Reacting to requests by the Beninoise Rice Millers’ Association to review of the law on rice imports, Ali said the government will not rescind on its decision to put strict laws to measure rice importation via land borders.

In his words, 

“We have not outrightly placed a ban on importation of rice, what government did was to outlaw its importation through the land borders because at the borders we do not have equipment to check if it has expired or not. But at the seaports we have all the equipment needed to carry out these checks.”

The Nigerian Customs had placed strict laws on rice importation through the land borders following revelation that a high number of the imported rice are expired.

Source: Pulse News