NDLEA Raises Fresh Alarm Over Drug Laced Cookies and Sweets, Urges Parents to Protect Children.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has urged parents and guardians across Nigeria to closely monitor the snacks, sweets and other confectionery products consumed by children, following a series of seizures involving illicit substances concealed in products designed to resemble ordinary treats.
The agency’s warnings highlight a growing concern over the use of attractive packaging and familiar food products to disguise illegal drugs. In June 2025, NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi warned parents to pay attention to substances resembling sweets, chocolates, candies and biscuits found in their children’s bags and pockets. The warning followed seizures of drug-laced products recovered during enforcement operations.
The concern has also emerged in Kano, where the NDLEA cautioned parents about suspicious sweets and cookies believed to contain intoxicating substances. The agency advised parents to examine product packaging and ingredients carefully, particularly where cannabis-related imagery or other suspicious markings are present. Parents were also encouraged to watch for unexplained changes in their children’s eating and sleeping patterns that could warrant further attention.
The warnings came amid other seizures involving cannabis infused confectionery. In March 2025, the NDLEA reported recovering candies confirmed to contain a strong strain of cannabis from a children’s shop in Lagos. According to reports, the products had been imported and packaged as sweets, raising concerns about the possibility of drug products being deliberately marketed alongside ordinary children’s items.
The agency has also previously uncovered illicit cannabis packaged to resemble imported cookies and snacks. In November 2025, NDLEA operatives reportedly dismantled a Lagos based distribution network accused of packaging Canadian Loud, a potent cannabis strain, in colourful sachets carrying cookie and snack labels. Two suspects were arrested during the operation, according to the agency.
For parents, the NDLEA’s warnings underscore the importance of knowing what children take to school and consume at home. Parents and guardians should be cautious about unfamiliar snacks, products with unclear labelling or packaging, and food items obtained from unknown sources. Any suspicious substance should be kept away from children and reported to the appropriate authorities rather than consumed or tested personally.
The development also reinforces the wider challenge facing Nigerian authorities in tackling evolving methods of drug distribution. As traffickers increasingly exploit ordinary-looking consumer products and social-media channels, public awareness, parental supervision, responsible retail practices and sustained law enforcement action remain critical to protecting children and young people from illicit substances.