SON Warns Producers Of Hand Sanitizers & Wash Lotion To Adhere Strictly To Standard

LUCKY LAWAL

Due to the influx of different sanitizers and wash lotions in the market, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has warned manufacturers of these hand sanitizers and liquid hand wash to adhere strictly to global best practices and failure to do so would attract penalties.

The agency pointed out the necessities of producing quality hand sanitizers which cannot be overemphasized at a time when the world is on the race to find a cure to combat the Coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking during a facility tour to Cormat Nigeria in Ogun State on Thursday 25th June, 2020, The Director General, SON, Osita Aboloma, dully represented by the Ogun State Officer 11, Engr. Akanbi Eyitayo Micheal, said SON would not tolerate any minus in standards of any product.

 Aboloma, who spoke through his representative, urged consumers to always insist on patronizing only hand sanitizers certified by SON to avoid harmful effects of the product on their skin while also getting value for their hard earned money.

According to him, quality hand sanitizers and liquid hand wash are one of the critical tools to battle the virus, saying that hand washing with soap and water is one of the most important steps that can be taken to avoid getting sick and spreading the virus to loved ones.

He said many diseases were spread by not cleaning the hands properly after touching contaminated objects or surfaces, stressing why it was critical to wash hands at key times such as after a flood or during a pandemic.

Recall that SON supported the manufacturing and importation of essential materials to combat the challenges of COVID-19 through the deployment of 28 relevant international Standards from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and one from the African Organization for Standardization (ARSO) on Alcohol based Hand Sanitizer.

“In all our observations during  quarterly visits to the factory, they have been adhering to our standards and we will like to tell consumers and stakeholders not to patronise all the hand sanitisers in the market; some of these hand sanitisers have bad reactions on your skin, so it is always good to patronise only certified liquid hand wash in this present situation we have found ourselves,” he said. 

He urged manufacturers to always visit SON to obtain the minimum requirement standards for producing goods in the country, stressing that SON would only support and encourage genuine businesses in the country.

He said in line with the Federal Government’s mandate and ease of doing business, SON had repositioned itself to become business facilitators, urging manufacturers to take advantage of SON’s services to become competitive both locally and globally.  

“We are here to give technical support to Cormat Nigeria Limited. They had been one of our stakeholders for the past 15 years and they are not just coming into the business of alcohol-based hand sanitizer and liquid hand wash production; they have been on ground for more than a decade,” he added.

“We have always admonished manufacturers to come to us for technical support so that we can guide them through. SON is with you all the way and in line with the ease of doing business with the mandate of the Federal Government, we are here to encourage manufacturers and even the small businesses too. Come to us, we will guide you and give you all the necessary technical  support,” he said.

Responding, the Head Technical and Plant Manager, Mr. Jelle Van Der Meer, thanked SON for the visit, stating that the company recognizes that it is a trying period in the world, so it is open to visits and suggestions by SON to help the company raise the bar for performance to a higher level in achieving corporate goals.

Van De Meer also reassured the SON team that as an ISO certified Company all observations for improvements will be adhered to and given the necessary attention as it is open for continual improvement with the proper understanding of what it means to produce premium quality products in keeping ahead of competition.

SON’s visit was important to the company as it would go a long way to raising its bar for standardization while also generating new ideas and creating new opportunities for the company to be competitive.

Cormat Nigeria Limited is a leading company which is into the manufacturing of general household products.
SON visit to the company was to inspect the production process especially the hand sanitizers and antiseptic cleaners to storage through packaging and also to the laboratory and also focus and give the company technical support.

“The visit by SON is very important because it gives us the ideas and opportunity to raise the bar and we are glad to receive technical support from SON to achieve bigger goals for the greater good.”

Van De Meer applauded SON for being part of the journey to get to the highest level  of producing quality products. According to him, their input has been very important to us and it will trigger us to do even more and become better than our competitors.