Residents of Osogbo, Osun State, have looted a warehouse belonging to Global Food Initiative after operators of the controversial cheap-food scheme reportedly disappeared, leaving customers who had paid for food items unable to collect their orders or recover their money.
The incident occurred on Tuesday at the company’s facility in the Odi-Olowo area of Osogbo, where angry customers had gathered after the operators reportedly became unreachable.
Videos from the scene showed residents removing bags of rice, vegetable oil, spaghetti and other food commodities from the warehouse after the crowd broke into the facility.
The development followed a tense Monday gathering at the company’s premises, where customers who had paid in advance for food items at significantly reduced prices demanded that the operators either release their goods or refund their money.
Global Food Initiative had reportedly attracted customers with food prices substantially below prevailing market rates. One resident, identified as Mistura, told PUNCH that she paid N300,000 for 11 bags of rice at N27,000 per bag, compared with a reported market price of about N55,000.
Another customer, Olamide, said she paid N1.2m for various food items intended for her stepdaughter’s forthcoming wedding.
According to her account, she had previously purchased two five-litre containers of groundnut oil from the company before making the larger payment.
Other customers also reportedly deposited substantial sums. One participant in the scheme claimed that a woman had deposited N35m for food items, while another customer presented a receipt showing a N10m payment. These figures have not been independently verified.
The scheme reportedly operated on a pay-now, collect-later arrangement. Customers were required to make advance payments and return about a week later to collect the food items.
Tension reportedly increased after a radio presenter in Osogbo warned residents about the scheme. Customers subsequently converged on the company’s premises after some of those who had paid said they could no longer reach the operators.
According to one customer quoted by PUNCH, the operators initially appeared at the premises but fled after seeing the large crowd gathered outside.
The situation later escalated when residents broke into the warehouse and began taking away food products.
The police had earlier deployed officers to the area to prevent a breakdown of law and order. The Osun State Police Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Ojelabi, said officers were sent to the location after the authorities became aware of the growing tension.
Ojelabi said the police had not initially received a formal complaint from affected customers but were monitoring the situation and trying to establish what had happened.
He confirmed that Global Food Initiative had been collecting money from members of the public while promising to provide subsidised food items.
The circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the operators and the company’s financial arrangements remain under investigation.
The incident has raised concerns over schemes offering essential commodities at prices far below prevailing market rates, particularly at a time when many Nigerian households are struggling with high food prices.
A separate report by the Guardian said the company had distributed flyers in Osogbo advertising unusually low prices for rice, cooking oil, spaghetti, semovita and other household commodities.
For customers who made advance payments, the collapse of the scheme has created significant financial uncertainty. Some said they had deposited hundreds of thousands or millions of naira in anticipation of receiving food items at discounted prices.
Meanwhile, the warehouse looting has introduced another dimension to the incident, as the actions of residents could potentially lead to further legal and security consequences.
Authorities are expected to determine the identities and whereabouts of the operators, establish the amount collected from customers and investigate whether the business was deliberately structured to defraud participants.
The police have also been tasked with maintaining order and preventing further escalation as affected residents seek answers over their missing payments and promised food supplies.
For now, the controversy remains unresolved, with customers demanding accountability, the operators reportedly unreachable and security authorities working to establish the facts surrounding the failed food scheme.
