Food must not be adulterated for illegal profit

It’s highly disappointing to hear that some factories allegedly do not follow the rules of quality control as 75 per cent of the chemicals used by these factories for colouring food are time-expired. A recent news report said a number of renowned companies are still engaged in unethical food adulteration business. Earlier, we saw small and household factories engaged in this dirty practice. Now, big industries are joining the fleet.
It is no surprise that the adulteration of foods has now become a national health issue. It is not only directly endangering public health with numerous acute and chronic diseases but also making our future generation vulnerable to a health disaster. If the trend goes on unchallenged, the next generation will be seriously affected by physical and mental illness. Usually, fruits, vegetables, milk, fish, sweetmeats, rice, wheat, meat, oil, ghee, spices, egg, soft drink, juice powder, baby foods and so on – are commonly adulterated. Fruits are adulterated with calcium carbide, ethephon, formalin, injections of colours and sweeteners.
Some regular food items like carrots, beans, tomatoes, bananas, mango etc. are contaminated with toxic pesticides. DDT is widely used in dried fish at a higher concentration. On the other hand, milk is adulterated with formalin, the addition to dirty water. Each and every item is adulterated by dishonest traders for pocketing the extra money. We see that despite different initiatives taken by Bangladesh Food Safety Authority, City Corporations of Dhaka, Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution, Consumers Association of Bangladesh, mobile court operations by RAB magistrates and other authorities concerned could not bring discipline in the food sector.
However, strict market monitoring along with the implementation of existing laws is now much needed to check food adulteration. Side by side bringing big food companies under quality control supervision is very much important as such bad practice usually increases targeting different religious festivals including Ramzan ensuing soon.