A soybean oil packager in Munshiganj has been fined Tk75,000 after inspectors found its bottles contained less oil than advertised, with five-litre bottles short by 150 millilitres and one-litre bottles missing 40 millilitres.
A mobile court, conducted on Monday at Khandaker Consumer Products in Sukhbaspur, Rampal, under Munshiganj Sadar, also ordered the seizure and destruction of bottles used to supply underfilled fortified soybean oil.
The Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) found that five-litre bottles contained 150 millilitres less oil than declared, while two-litre bottles were short by 50 millilitres and one-litre bottles by 40 millilitres.
The shortfalls represented 3 per cent, 2.5 per cent and 4 per cent of the respective labelled quantities, meaning customers were receiving less oil than they were paying for.
Inspectors also found that the company was packaging and selling fortified soybean oil without the required product packaging registration certificate.
The mobile court imposed the fine under the Standards of Weights and Measures Act 2018 and ordered the destruction of the bottles used for the underfilled products.
Munshiganj Deputy Commissioner’s Office Executive Magistrate Md Omar Faruk led the operation.
BSTI Narayanganj Regional Office Deputy Director and Office Head K M Hanif and Assistant Director Md Rakibul Alam assisted the operation.
BSTI Inspector Md Hafizur Rahman served as prosecutor.
BSTI said it would continue inspections and enforcement drives against adulterated and substandard products, short measurements, unauthorised use of its standards mark and violations of packaging regulations.
