The Pure Food Court in Chattogram has fined four food establishments a total of Tk40 lakh for various serious food safety violations, including the presence of cockroaches, insects, burnt oil, and expired food.
The penalised businesses are Flavours Sweets & Bakery, Meridian Food Products Limited, Utshob Supershop, and Rio Cafe-Mazaydar.
Flavours Sweets & Bakery was fined Tk19 lakh, Meridian Food Products Limited and Utshob Supershop were fined Tk10 lakh each, and Rio Cafe-Mazaydar was fined Tk1 lakh. The court has also ordered prison sentences for those responsible in default of payment.
The summary judicial operations were carried out from Saturday morning across various food establishments in Chattogram city. The drive was led by Mohammad Mostafa, metropolitan magistrate and first-class magistrate, Judge of the Chattogram Metropolitan Pure Food Court.
Mohammad Farhan Islam, the Metropolitan Safe Food Officer of the Bangladesh Safe Food Authority (BSFA) Chattogram Metropolitan office, disclosed the details on Sunday.
Flavours Sweets & Bakery fined Tk19 lakh
During the raid at the Flavours Sweets & Bakery factory, officers found evidence of sub-standard ghee being manufactured and used to produce bakery items.
The factory was storing and reusing rotten and stale sweet leftovers, keeping expired sweets, cakes, and biscuits, and failing to properly print production and expiry dates as well as nutritional information on its products.
Food was being manufactured on damp floors, with broken tiles and a dirty drainage system. The authorities also discovered workers wrapping yogurt in dirty blankets for fermentation, using insect-infested nuts, and processing food with dirty rolling pins, spoons, and knives.
Foods without expiry dates were stored in the freezer.
Additionally, the establishment lacked the necessary business and quality control certificates, and was producing ghee without registration. During the inspection, the management was uncooperative, keeping several rooms, drawers, and freezers locked and refusing to open them.
Flavours Sweets & Bakery was fined Tk19 lakh under Section 58 of the Safe Food Act, 2013, with three months of default imprisonment.
The court also directed representatives of the business to appear in person on 22 September to submit a progress report regarding the overall quality improvement of the establishment.
Cockroaches and insects at Meridian Factory
At the factory of Meridian Food Products Limited, authorities found that the quality of various chips, noodles, and mango bars was not properly controlled or ensured. Sub-standard food items were being prepared and stored for sale.
Cockroaches were found crawling in various parts of the factory, and insects were discovered inside drums of mango pulp, which is the raw material for mango bars. The floors were broken and oily, and nimki and chips were manufactured in unhygienic conditions without cleaning stoves at regular intervals.
The inspectors also found improper waste storage, the use of burnt oil in food processing, and the storage of potato sticks without expiry dates. Furthermore, there were no expiry labels on the used oil and mango pulp.
Meridian Food Products Limited was fined Tk10 lakh for violating Sections 26 and 33 under Section 58 of the Safe Food Act, 2013, with three months of default imprisonment. The court ordered the establishment to submit a quality control report for all its food products and to appear in person on 6 September.
Dirty meat storage, unlabelled products at Utshob Supershop
Utshob Supershop was found selling sub-standard pickles and low-quality homemade products, storing and selling meat in extremely dirty conditions, and selling expired momos.
Various food products, including dates, lacked mandatory labels. Imported juices, honey, bottled water, nuts, energy drinks, olive oil, and soy sauce lacked required labelling and nutritional details.
Some products did not have nutritional details in Bengali, and original nutritional labels on some items were covered up with the shop’s own stickers.
Additionally, the shop sold food products without proper importer details, failed to declare the colouring agents used in jilapis, and processed beef and mutton on the same chopping board with the same knives and cleavers.
The cold storage was not kept running continuously, and rotten chillies, spoiled spices, and chocolates were stored for sale.
The supermarket was also selling baby food, unauthorised food supplements, and pickles and homemade products without the necessary registration. Open, loose oil was used in popcorn and caramel production.
The establishment sold allegedly imported fruits at high prices but failed to present importer details or purchase documents.
For these irregularities, Utshob Supershop was fined Tk 10 lakh, with three months of default imprisonment.
The court ordered the management to appear in person on 30 August to present the purchase prices of imported fruits and other necessary details, and directed them to immediately stop selling pickles without proper nutritional information and homemade products without registration and nutritional information.
Rio Cafe fined Tk1 lakh
At Rio Cafe-Mazaydar, authorities discovered food being processed and sold in unhygienic conditions, rotten and stale food being stored, and food handlers showing indifference to basic hygiene guidelines.
The cafe stored chocolate donuts, pastries, and other foods without expiry dates, and operated without proper registration and certificates.
For violating Section 39 under Section 58 of the Safe Food Act, 2013, Rio Cafe-Mazaydar was fined Tk 1 lakh, with 10 days of default imprisonment.
Joint effort to safeguard public health
The operations were coordinated by officers and staff of the BSFA district and metropolitan offices, Safe Food Inspectors of the Chattogram City Corporation area, and members of Rapid Action Battalion-7 (RAB-7), Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP), and Battalion Ansar.
“Regular monitoring and legal actions are being taken against food establishments to protect public health,” said Metropolitan Safe Food Officer Mohammad Farhan Islam. He added that such drives and judicial operations would continue in public interest.
