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The Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) fined food establishments more than Tk 1 crore in September for violating food safety laws and filed 44 cases through mobile courts and other enforcement drives.
The authority imposed fines totalling Tk 1,00,65,000 during the month under the Safe Food Act, 2013, according to a statement issued on Tuesday.
BFSA conducted 71 enforcement drives and monitored 1,307 food establishments across the country in September. It also issued health certificates for three export-quality products.
In Dhaka metropolitan area, the authority conducted 26 drives, fining 12 establishments Tk 16 lakh and filing 14 cases.
The violations included operating without mandatory registration, preparing food in unhygienic conditions and storing unlabelled fish, meat and other food items in refrigerators.
Several establishments also failed to display trade licences, food workers’ health certificates and pest-control certificates.
Outside Dhaka, BFSA raided 28 establishments in different districts, uncovering a range of food safety violations.
Among the offences were making chanachur by trampling it underfoot, using burnt oil and unauthorised chemical colours, allowing cockroaches and bedbugs at production sites, using unapproved ghee and adding kewra water to biryani.
Other violations included selling products without labels and producing food in filthy and unhygienic conditions.
The establishments were fined a total of Tk 45.70 lakh and 30 cases were filed.
Separately, 31 establishments were fined Tk 38.95 lakh through summary trials conducted by the judge of the Pure Food Court and a metropolitan magistrate.
In total, BFSA conducted 71 enforcement drives in September, imposing fines of more than Tk 1 crore and filing 44 cases, the statement said.
Alongside enforcement, the authority has stepped up monitoring of food establishments nationwide, inspecting markets, hotels and restaurants, bakeries, sweet shops, and food production and processing facilities.
The monitoring focuses on compliance with food safety rules covering production, storage, serving, processing and marketing. Establishments are given instructions to correct violations, while legal action is taken where necessary.
BFSA is also conducting awareness campaigns through multiple channels to promote safe food consumption, hygienic production and marketing practices, and consumer responsibilities, it said.