A dispute between Square Pharmaceuticals and a poultry entrepreneur has intensified, with the farmer accusing the drugmaker of prescribing an underdose of a herbal anti-coccidial product that he claims devastated his non-antibiotic, free-range chicken business.
Md Imrul Hasan, managing director of Organik Chicken Limited, claimed at a press conference at the National Press Club on Saturday that Square’s recommended dose for the Swiss-made product Herb-All COCC-X caused Tk6.5 crore in revenue losses and a further Tk8 crore in missed business growth.
He said the original manufacturer, Life Circle Nutrition of Switzerland, advised farmers to use 1kg of the product for every tonne of poultry feed during the first two weeks of a flock’s life, followed by 500g per tonne for the remaining grow-out period.
Hasan claimed Square instead instructed farmers to use only 300–500g per tonne from day one, depriving birds of adequate protection, weakening their growth and increasing mortality on his farm.
He also alleged that Square violated its import approval by repackaging the imported 20kg bags of Herb-All COCC-X into small jars for retail sale, saying the deviation from permission requirements further raised questions about the process.
Hasan said he had used the product for three and a half years before discovering the recommended dose from the Swiss company, after which he raised the matter with Square and later with the Department of Livestock.
He also claimed that Square’s own product trials in Bangladesh reportedly used 1–2kg per tonne of feed, questioning why the recommended dose to farmers was subsequently reduced.
The Department of Livestock sought clarification from Square in June after receiving Hasan’s complaint.
Officials said the company replied to the notice and later revised its suggested dose while discontinuing repackaging into smaller jars following departmental instructions.
Officials confirmed that the department had urged both sides to settle the matter mutually.
While Hasan reiterated at the press conference that he is seeking Tk14.5 crore in compensation, Square rejected his claims.
“This customer is trying to make some money by making the country’s largest pharmaceuticals company a hostage,” Square Pharma finance chief Muhammad Zahangir Alam told TIMES after the event.
He said the customer had been asked to provide detailed supporting documents but did not do so.
Alam added that the earlier recommended moderate dose had worked effectively for other farms in Bangladesh and the Philippines with the manufacturer’s approval.
He said nothing proved that only Square’s recommendation caused the losses, arguing that farm management and feed practices could also have played a role.
He questioned how the farm could have solely depended on the product when it was not available for two years in between.
He also cast doubt on Hasan’s claimed timeline, saying a broiler cycle does not last two months and asking how a product could be used repeatedly for 3.5 years despite “frustrating results.”
