Food adulternated, drugs not Jamaat MP says

A Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker on Thursday criticised the widespread adulteration of food in Bangladesh, telling Parliament that while medicines sold in the country are unadulterated, food is not.

“We see that there is no adulteration in drugs, but food is adulterated. This is very surprising,” said Subikunnahar, a Jamaat lawmaker from a reserved women’s seat, drawing attention to the contrast between regulatory outcomes in the two sectors.

She raised the issue through a supplementary question during the 22nd sitting of the second session of the 13th Parliament, with Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram in the chair.

Subikunnahar said that although a variety of fruits are available in the markets during the fruit season, ordinary consumers have no reliable way of knowing which items are free of formalin and safe to eat.

She asked the government what effective steps were being taken to ensure food reaching the public is free from adulteration.

Responding to the question, State Minister for Food Md Abdul Bari acknowledged that food adulteration is a serious public health problem, saying it is contributing to complex diseases among the population, including cancer and kidney disease.

He said the prime minister is deeply concerned about the issue and has instructed the relevant authorities to take effective measures to address it.

Bari told Parliament that the prime minister held an almost three-hour meeting on Wednesday with mobile court magistrates involved in anti-adulteration drives, along with concerned officials and ministry representatives.

At that meeting, a committee was formed under the leadership of the public administration adviser to determine how food items can be made free of adulteration, how mobile court operations can be made more effective, and what further steps are needed.

The state minister said the committee had already held its first meeting, at which several important decisions were taken.

Bari said the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection, the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority and other relevant agencies under the food ministry would work in coordination to prevent adulterated food from being marketed.

He said the government, in line with the prime minister’s instructions, is making its utmost effort to take the necessary steps to rid food items of adulteration, and expressed hope that the government would succeed in this area by ensuring accountability across the board.