Nigeria: this restaurateur who serves vulture meat instead of chicken
In Nigeria, a restaurateur was arrested for selling vulture meat instead of chicken.
Ce restaurateur qui servait de la viande de vautour à la place du “poulet”
A very popular restaurateur was detained for fraudulently serving vulture meat to his customers, passing it off as chicken. The case broke out at the end of May 2025 in a city in Nigeria.
According to the local press, the said Nigerian restaurateur, famous for his “big chicken thighs” highly prized by the locals, was arrested after being caught in the act of food fraud. For months, he had been serving vulture meat to his customers, disguising it as roasted chicken.
The scandal erupted when a group of residents, intrigued by the strange shape of some carcasses being discreetly carried in bags, forced the man to reveal their contents. To their horror, they discovered carefully plucked, cut, and marinated vulture carcasses, made to resemble regular poultry.
According to several testimonies gathered on site, the establishment attracted a loyal clientele thanks to its generous portions and competitive prices. “Many people traveled miles to eat there. No one could imagine such deception,” confided a regular customer, visibly in shock.
Fraud Revealing a Larger Issue
The consumption of vultures is banned in many countries due to the serious risks it poses to public health. These scavengers often carry bacteria, viruses, or parasites, and their flesh can cause severe, even fatal, food poisoning.
The health authorities immediately closed the restaurant and opened an investigation. Veterinary services are currently conducting toxicological analyses on the seized samples. Food fraud enforcement agents have been mobilized to trace the restaurateur’s supply chain.