DSCC pledges support for safe food campaign

Calling for a broad-based public movement against food adulteration, Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Administrator Abdus Salam on Saturday said ensuring safe food for consumers requires collective action and sustained public awareness in addition to regulatory enforcement.

Addressing a discussion organised by the Food Safety Movement to mark World Food Safety Day and the organisation’s sixth anniversary, he said food safety directly affects people’s daily lives and cannot be guaranteed through enforcement drives alone.

“Public awareness remains one of the biggest challenges in ensuring food safety. A safe food system can only be established through the collective efforts of producers, traders, consumers and all relevant stakeholders,” he said.

Emphasising the need to broaden awareness initiatives, Abdus Salam said campaigns should extend beyond seminars and conferences to reach mosques, madrasas and other public spaces.

He also stressed the importance of engaging food courts, street food vendors and small-scale food businesses in food safety awareness programmes.

The DSCC Administrator said the erosion of social values has weakened civic responsibility, noting that voluntary organisations, cultural groups, clubs and libraries had previously played a significant role in promoting social awareness.

“If we can nurture greater humanity and social responsibility among people, the tendency to produce and sell adulterated food will also decline,” he observed.

Referring to the increasing number of mobile and roadside food vendors in the capital, he called for enhanced monitoring of the quality of water used in food preparation and cleaning.

“Business should continue, but it must be conducted in an organised and hygienic manner,” he added.
Abdus Salam said the city corporation has been carrying out regular mobile courts, inspections and awareness programmes across the capital to improve food safety standards.

“I want to stand with this social movement for safe food. Continue your campaign, and the city corporation will extend its full support as your partner,” he said.

The discussion was chaired by Acting President of the Food Safety Movement Prof Dr Mahmudul Islam Selim.

Food safety experts, representatives of government and private organisations, journalists, academics and members of the organisation attended the programme.

Speakers at the event also called for stricter enforcement of food safety laws and stronger monitoring mechanisms to better safeguard public health.