Report Writing on Food Adulteration

Food Adulteration Rings Alarm Bell/Food Adulteration Reaches New Height/Food Adulteration Is on the Increase

Staff Reporter, Dhaka, July 5, 2022: Food adulteration is indeed a serious issue in Bangladesh, as it is in many other countries around the world. Adulterated foods can cause various health problems and diseases, some of which can be life-threatening. It is alarming to hear that almost all types of food items in Bangladesh, including fish, meat, vegetables, milk, biscuits, and juice, are adulterated in one way or another.

The fact that hotels and restaurants are also serving adulterated food adds to the problem. The government has taken some measures to combat this issue, such as setting up mobile courts to detect and punish those who engage in food adulteration. However, it seems that these measures are not sufficient to fully solve the problem.

It is encouraging to know that some conscious people are trying to avoid these adulterated foods, but more needs to be done. The government and the public must work together to completely eradicate this problem. This can be done by implementing stricter laws and regulations, ensuring proper enforcement, and creating public awareness about the dangers of consuming adulterated foods. Only then can the people of Bangladesh be assured of the safety and quality of the foods they consume.

Food Adulteration at an Alarming Rate

Sukomal Datta, The Daily Sun, Dhaka, 4 November 2021: Food adulteration is silently killing the whole nation with slow poisoning because people are taking chemically-treated food items both knowingly and unknowingly, which has now become a major threat to public health.

Food adulteration has emerged as another biggest problem of the city life which is still on the increase. Some dishonest businessmen add harmful chemicals to food items to prevent it from being rotten easily. And food sellers adulterate food by adding different harmful substances to make them more attractive to the customers.

Harmful Textile color is being used in bakery industry. Fruit sellers add harmful chemicals to banana, mango etc to ripen those artificially. Fish sellers add formalin and other poisonous chemicals to fish so that they do not get rotten. It results not only the loss of actual quality of the food item, but also turns a food into poison. These colours and chemicals can cause fatal diseases like cancer in human body.

The government has set mobile courts to detect and punish dishonest businessman who are associated with adulteration. But few mobile courts are not enough to prevent adulteration.

Dr. Selima Rahaman, the leader of Consumer's Rights Movement of Bangladesh, said in a seminar, "The government is not serious at all about such a serious issue. They are happy to organize several monitoring cells that work less and tell much".

Yesterday the Food Minister Abdul Razzak consoled people about this and promised to launch an all out campaign against food adulteration as early as possible. He also said,

“We are aware of the rampant use of formalin and chemical preservatives in foods. We will take immediate steps.”

Honourable minister requested the business folk and the mass people to co-assist the ministerial activities regarding this. Since 2010, food adulteration has increased across the country remarkably.

Food Adulteration Rings Alarm Bell/Food Adulteration Reaches New Height/Food Adulteration Is on the Increase

Staff Reporter, Dhaka, July 5, 2022: It may arouse astonishment among the people of the world that Bangladeshis devour adulterated foods from outside and still they are alive. Food adulteration has become a new problem in the country. People do not bother what they are having as foods even they know that it may cause them much harm.

There are hardly any food items from fish to meat, vegetables to milk; biscuits to juice that are not adulterated in one way or another. The hotels and restaurants are also serving these poisonous and unhealthy menus. Different reports show that adulterated foods are causing serious diseases including diarrhoea and dysentery round the year. Recently, the government and general public have been much worried about this issue. The government has set mobile courts to detect and punish dishonest people. But these scopes are hardly enough. And at least some steps are taken by the conscious people of the country. For example, they are trying to avoid some of these foods. But it is not enough. Both the government and public have to work together in order to eradicate this problem entirely.

Alarming Increase in Food Adulteration

Sukomal Datta, The Daily Sun, Dhaka, November 4, 2013: Food adulteration has emerged as a silent but lethal menace, posing a significant threat to public health across the nation. Both knowingly and unknowingly, people are consuming chemically-treated food items, leading to a slow poisoning that is silently ravaging the population.

In urban areas, food adulteration has reached alarming levels, fueled by dishonest practices among businessmen and food sellers. Harmful chemicals are surreptitiously added to food items to prolong their shelf life, enhance their appearance, or artificially ripen fruits. The bakery industry, for instance, is tainted by the use of harmful textile colors, while fish sellers resort to adding formalin and other poisonous chemicals to prevent spoilage.

This widespread adulteration not only compromises the quality of food but also transforms it into a potent source of harm, with the potential to cause fatal diseases such as cancer. Despite efforts by the government to combat this issue through mobile courts and regulatory measures, the scale of adulteration continues to escalate, raising questions about the efficacy of current enforcement mechanisms.

Dr. Selima Rahaman, a prominent figure in the Consumer's Rights Movement of Bangladesh, lamented the lack of seriousness from the government in addressing this critical issue. She criticized the superficial efforts of monitoring cells, which she deemed insufficient in tackling the pervasive problem of food adulteration.

In response to mounting concerns, Food Minister Abdul Razzak reassured the public and pledged to launch a comprehensive campaign against food adulteration without delay. Acknowledging the rampant use of formalin and chemical preservatives in foods, he emphasized the government's commitment to taking immediate action. He urged both business stakeholders and the general populace to collaborate with ministerial efforts in combating this pressing issue.

Since 2010, instances of food adulteration have surged across the country, underscoring the urgent need for concerted action to safeguard public health and restore trust in the food supply chain.