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The Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) has directed manufacturers to immediately withdraw 10 substandard food products from the market, including specific spices from Bombay Sweets and several brands of ghee, after they failed to meet national quality benchmarks in laboratory testing.
The national standards regulator announced the decision on Wednesday (August 26) through a press release signed by BSTI Secretary Moinuddin Mia. Show-cause notices have been issued to the concerned manufacturing companies, asking why their BSTI certification licenses should not be permanently revoked.
According to the regulatory circular, BSTI collected market samples during routine surveillance drives and tested them at its accredited laboratories. Laboratory analysis revealed that "Baghabari" brand ghee contained no actual milk fat; instead, it was formulated using palm olein and hydrogenated vegetable oil (vanaspati) and sold deceitfully under the guise of pure ghee. Similarly, several spice varieties from Bombay Sweets & Co. Ltd. failed Bangladesh Standards (BDS) due to excessive ash and salt content.
The specific failed spice batches from Bombay Sweets & Co. Ltd. comprise Duck Curry Powder (Batch No. 141224), Tehari Masala (Batch No. 140226), Kala Bhuna Masala (Batch No. 260927), Beef Meat Curry Masala (Batch A), and Fish Curry Masala (Batch A).
The substandard ghee and butter oil brands flagged for failing parameters—such as refractive index, iodine value, saponification value, and Polenske value—include:
"Baghabari" Ghee by Baghabari Premium Ghee Company
"Arun Baghabari" Ghee by Kishoreganj Food Products
"New Radhuni" Ghee by M/S Mamun Food Products
"City" Ghee by M/S Mamun Food Products
"Elders" Butter Oil by Elders Food Products and Packaging Industries
Commenting on the enforcement, BSTI Director General (Secretary) Kazi Imdadul Haque affirmed, "Maintaining product quality in compliance with national standards is a legal and ethical obligation for every licensed manufacturer. If any enterprise fails to meet this mandate, BSTI is determined to take stern punitive and legal action. Alongside certification, we will sustain rigorous market surveillance to eliminate counterfeit and adulterated products."
BSTI advised consumers to refrain from purchasing the flagged items and urged the public to verify the BSTI quality logo, license number, manufacturing and expiration dates, and ingredient declarations prior to purchase. Consumers can report food adulteration or misuse of standards via the BSTI hotline at 16119 or email at [email protected].
