The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) in the Upper West Region has safely disposed of a large quantity of expired, unregistered, and banned consumer products seized across the region.The exercise followed an intensive market surveillance operation conducted across all 11 municipalities and districts between January 2025 and March 2026.Among the destroyed items were 89 cartons of banned mixed alcoholic drinks, along with significant quantities of unregistered cosmetic products containing hydroquinone, an ingredient prohibited in skin-lightening products since 2015.Speaking at the disposal site, the Upper West Regional Head of the FDA, Kelvin Dafaari Sunkpal, said the exercise was necessary to protect public health by removing unsafe products from the market.“As you can see, these are expired products, unregistered products and banned mixed alcoholic drinks that were seized across the 11 municipalities and districts in the region,” Mr Dafaari Sunkpal said. “We are here today to safely dispose of these products.”He noted that although the exact monetary value of the seized items had not yet been determined, the quantity of products removed from the market was substantial.The seized cosmetics included 85 packs of Clairmen and 23 packs of Carol White, both of which were found to contain hazardous levels of hydroquinone.Addressing the presence of the banned alcoholic drinks, Mr Dafaari Sunkpal explained that the FDA had prohibited beverages that combine alcohol with active stimulants such as caffeine.He said manufacturers had been given sufficient time to recall their products, but some were still found on the market during recent inspections.“These are drinks that the FDA banned last year. We gave the manufacturers until March this year to recall their products from the market. However, during our market surveillance after March, we still came across several quantities of them,” he said.Asked about the sanctions imposed on traders found selling the prohibited products, Mr Dafaari Sunkpal said the Authority had moved beyond public education and was now enforcing administrative penalties.“For the alcoholic drinks, they were fined administratively. They paid money to the Authority. The sellers of the cosmetic products were also fined because we have gone beyond the sensitisation stage. We’ve educated them to stop selling these products, but we still find some of them on the market,” he explained.The FDA has urged the public to remain vigilant when purchasing packaged foods, beverages, and cosmetic products.Mr Dafaari Sunkpal advised consumers to check expiry dates, product registration status and other safety information before making purchases, warning that the consumption or use of unsafe products could pose serious health risks.“We always carry out public education, but consumers also have to be careful about what they eat and use,” he cautioned. “We should all be each other’s keeper. Let us choose wholesome products and avoid using our hard-earned money to buy sickness for ourselves.”