Bangladesh Pure Food Act 2005

1. 1
Course Title: Business Law
Course Code:
Submitted to
United International University
Submitted By
Afsana Ferdousi
ID: 111131468
Section:
Date of submission
August 23, 2016

2. 2
Report
On
Bangladesh Pure Food Ordinance: 2005

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Executive Summary:
Food adulteration in the country has assumed alarming proportions. Experts in medical
biology point out that consumption of adulterated food affects people with kidney
dysfunction, diabetes and cardiac problems. They further point out that one of the
important reasons for infertility is the presence of residues of pesticides, growth hormones,
heavy metals and mycotoxins in our food.
The main reason for this is that our farmers are not properly trained in the use of chemical
fertilizers. Absence of effluent treatment plants on one hand and lack of training of the farmers,
the factory wastes, and fertilizer and pesticide residues are drained out at will into the farmlands,
ultimately contaminating the farm at large.
Food safety legislation should be developed and updated taking into consideration specific needs
of consumers and food producers, development in technology, emerging hazards, changing
consumer demands and new requirements for trade, harmonization with international and
regional standards, obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements, as well
as social, religious and cultural habits. The implementation of food safety legislation throughout
the food chain is essential in establishing an effective food safety system.
Effective national food control systems are essential to protect the health and safety of domestic
consumers. They are also critical in enabling countries to assure the safety and quality of their
foods entering international trade and to ensure that imported foods conform to national
requirements. The new global environment for food trade places considerable obligations on
both importing and exporting countries to strengthen their food control systems and to
implement and enforce risk-based food control strategies.
The pure Food Act 2005 is the Bangladeshi food legislations that form the backbone of the food
safety program. The objective of the pure Food Act 2005 is to ensure that the public is protected
from health hazards and fraud in the preparation, sale and use of foods and for matters connected
therewith.

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Table of Content
SL Topic
Page
No
1 Introduction 5
2 Main Features 5-11
3
Implementation
12
4 Disadvantages 13
5 Ways to Overcome 13-14
6 Conclusion 15
7 Reference 16

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Bangladesh Pure Food Ordinance: 2005
Introduction
Food safety legislation should be developed and updated taking into consideration specific
needsof consumers and food producers, development in technology, emerging hazards,
changingconsumer demands and new requirements for trade, harmonization with international
andregional standards, obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements, as
wellas social, religious and cultural habits. The implementation of food safety legislation
throughoutthe food chain is essential in establishing an effective food safety system.
Effective national food control systems are essential to protect the health and safety of
domesticconsumers. They are also critical in enabling countries to assure the safety and quality
of theirfoods entering international trade and to ensure that imported foods conform to
nationalrequirements. The new global environment for food trade places considerable obligations
onboth importing and exporting countries to strengthen their food control systems and
toimplement and enforce risk-based food control strategies
The pure Food Act 2005 is the Bangladeshi food legislations that form the backbone of the
foodsafety programme. The objective of the pure Food Act 2005 is to ensure that the public
isprotected from health hazards and fraud in the preparation, sale and use of foods and for
mattersconnected therewith.
Main Features
Provisions regarding manufacture and sale of Food
 1. Prohibition of manufacture or sale of food not of proper nature, substance
or quality.
(1) No person shall directly or indirectly
(a) Manufacture or sell any article of food which is adulterated, or
(b) Sell to the prejudice of the purchaser any article of food which is not of the nature, substance
or quality demanded by the purchaser.

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(2) An offence shall not be deemed to have been committed if the article of food contains the
normal constituents and if any innocuous substance or ingredient has been added thereto,
if such substance or ingredient
(i) is required for the production or preparation of such article as an article of commerce in a
condition fit for carriage or consumption, and
(ii) is not so added fraudulently to increase the bulk weight or measure, or to conceal the inferior
quality, of such article: Provided that the admixture of such substance or ingredient does not
render such article to be injurious to health;
 2. Prohibition of sale or use of poisonous or dangerous chemicals, intoxicated
food color, etc.
No person shall directly or indirectly sale any food in which poisonous or dangerous chemicals
or ingredients or additives or substances like calcium carbide, formalin, pesticides [DDT
(dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane), PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyl oil) etc. or intoxicated food
color or flavoring matter has been used in any food which may cause injury to human body.
 3. Prohibition of manufacture or sale of food not of proper standard of
purity.
No person shall, directly or indirectly manufacture or sell any milk, butter, ghee, wheat flour
(that is to say, maida, atta or suji) or mustard or any other rape seed oil, or any other article of
food which are not of proper standard of purity.
Standard of purity of milk or skimmed milk or condensed milk or
sterilized milk or desiccated milk
 1. In the case of milk other than skimmed, condensed, sterilized or desiccated
milk
(a) The species of animal from which the milk is derived shall be specified by the seller in such
manner as the local authority may direct by general or special order in this behalf;
(b) The article sold shall be the normal, clean and fresh secretion obtained by the complete
milking of the udder of a healthy animal of the species specified, not earlier than seven days after
the calving and freeing of the colostrum of such animal; and
(c) The article sold shall, whether such secretion has been processed or not, be an article from
which no ingredient has been extracted and to which no water or other substance (including any

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preservative) has been added and which contains the normal constituents prescribed under clause
(a) or sub-section (1) of section 5.
 2. In the case of skimmed milk
(a) The container shall be labeled and marked in such manner as may be prescribed;
(b) The article sold shall contain such proportion of the constituents of milk as maybe prescribed;
and
(c) The place at which such article is sold shall be specified by the seller in such manner as the
local authority may direct by general or special order in this behalf.
 3. In the case of condensed, sterilized or desiccated milk
(a) The container shall be hermetically closed, labeled and marked in such manner as may be
prescribed; and
(b) The article manufactured or sold, as the case may be, shall contain such proportion of the
constituents of milk as may be prescribed.
Standard of purity of butter
In the case of butter, the article manufactured or sold, as the case may be, shall be exclusively
derived from the milk or cream (other than skimmed, condensed, sterilized or desiccated milk or
cream) of a cow or buffalo or both, and may be with or without salt and with or without the
addition of any innocuous coloring matter, and shall not contain a greater proportion of water
than may be prescribed.
 1. Standard of purity of ghee
In the case of ghee (that is to say, clarified milk fat), the article manufactured or sold, as the case
may be, shall contain only substances (other than curds) which are prepared exclusively from the
milk of cows or buffaloes or both, and shall fulfill such other conditions as may be prescribed.
 2. Standard of purity of wheat flour

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In the case of wheat flour (that is to say, maida, atta or suji), the article manufactured or sold, as
the case may be, shall contain only substances which are derived exclusively from wheat, and
shall fulfill such other conditions as may be prescribed.
 3. Standard of purity of mustard or any other rape seed oil
In the case of mustard or any other rape seed oil, the article manufactured or sold, as the case
may be, shall be derived exclusively from mustard or any other rapeseed, as the case may be, and
shall fulfill such other conditions as may be prescribed.
 4. Prohibition of manufacture or sale of anything similar to or resembling an
article of food
No person shall, directly or indirectly and whether by himself or by any other person acting on
his behalf, manufacture or sell anything similar to or resembling an article of food notified or
under any name which so resembles the ordinary name of such article of food as to be likely to
deceive the public or which is in any way calculated to mislead the public as to the nature,
substance or quality of that thing.
 5. Prohibition of keeping adulterants in places where food is manufactured or
sold
A person cannot keep or sell adulterants near the premises of manufacturing process of food. If
any kind of adulterants is found near a food premise or shop then the owner will be accused for
breaking the law if the contrary cannot be proven. No person shall keep Guzi (niger seed) in any
manufactory or shop. No person shall keep any quantity of white oil except under a license
granted by a local authority.
 6. Prohibition of sale of diseased animals and unwholesome food intended for
human consumption
No person shall sell for human consumption any living thing which is diseased or unsound or sell
or manufacture any other article of food intended for human consumption which is unwholesome
or unfit for human consumption.

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 7. Prohibition of use of false labels
No person shall, directly or indirectly use labels which falsely describes that the article is to
mislead as to its nature, substance or quality.
 8. Registration of certain premises
The premises used for manufacturing, storing or selling food must be registered from authorized
body.
 10. Special provisions for seller of Ice cream and some other food
The manufacturer and seller of certain dry food such as ice cream, ice, pickles, sweets, cake,
biscuits, bread, flour, pulses etc must clearly write their address on the signboard and the
transport the use to delivery. Prohibition of the keeping of bread-stuffs, etc, otherwise than in
covered receptacles. No milk, bread-stuffs, cake, pastry, sweetmeats, confectionery or other
article of food intended or commonly used for human consumption without further preparation
by cooking shall be sold, exposed or kept or hawked about or stored for sale unless they be kept
properly covered or otherwise guarded to the satisfaction of the local authority, so that they shall
be protected from dust, dirt and flies.
 11. Certain diseased person not to manufacture, sell or touch food
No person, who is suffering from leprosy, tuberculosis or any other disease which may be
notified by the Government in this behalf, shall manufacture or sell any article of food, or will
fully touch any such article which is for sale by any other person.
Provisions regarding analysis of food
 1. Right of purchaser to have article of food analyzed or otherwise examined

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A person who has purchased any article of food shall, on payment of such fee as may be
prescribed, be entitled to have a sample of such article analyzed or otherwise examined by the
public analyst appointed for the area in which the purchase was made, and to receive from such
public analyst a certificate in the form provided in the Schedule, specifying the result of the
analysis or examination.
 2. Providing samples for examination is obligatory
Any Gov’t nominated person can order the buyer to sell certain products to him for the purpose
of examination. He can also ask for the sample of the products to be kept for sale or transport or
store.
 3. Procedure for obtaining analysis or examination
A person who intends to have analyzed or otherwise examined a sample shall-(1) forthwith
notify in writing his intention to the person who sold or surrendered the sample;(2) divide the
sample into three parts, and mark, seal or fasten each part
• One part to the person who sold the sample, or
• One part to the consignor, whose name and address appear on the container of the article,
• One part for purposes of future comparison; and (3) thereafter submit within seven days one
part to the public analyst appointed for the area in which the sample was sold or surrendered.
 4. Duty of public analyst to supply certificate of analysis
Every public analyst to whom a sample has been submitted for analysis or bacteriological or
other examination shall-
(a) Analyze or examine such sample or cause such sample to be analyzed or examined;
(b) not later than 14 days[ seven days in normal case and two days in case of emergency after the
date on which he receives the sample, deliver to the person submitting it a certificate specifying
the result of the analysis or examination,
(c) Send a copy of the certificate to the local authority concerned.
Provisions regarding inspection and seizure of food

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 1. Appointment of Inspector
A person can be appointed as an inspector by the Gov’t or Gov’t monitor local authority.
 2. Right to enter premises
A person authorized, or an Inspector appointed, have the right to enter any premises at any hour
of the day or night excluding the hours between midnight and day break.
 3. Production of books, vouchers and accounts
A person authorized, or an Inspector appointed, may by written notice require any person
carrying on the trade or business in, or manufacturing or selling, any article of food, to produce
before him for inspection all books, vouchers, accounts and other documents relating to such
trade, business, manufacture or sale and every person on whom such notice is served shall
comply with such requisition.
 4. Power to seize food believed to be adulterated
The nominated person can inspect and examine the food any time (except midnight to dawn) and
seize food believed to be adulterated.
 5. Destruction of seized living things and food
The nominated person in front of two witnesses and with the written acknowledgement of the
owner will destruct the seized food products.

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Implementationof Food Act in Bangladesh
 Using chemicals and industrial dyes to look food fresh and tasty
The bananas arrive at Sadarghat before first light. One by one the trucks roar into the
crammedAhsanullah Road that charts the banks of the Buriganga river on Dhaka’s southern
edge. Thebananas, piled high in the hold, are offloaded into the numerous warehouses that line
the streets.As the sky lightens up, the cargo is more visible. They are a deep green in colour and
bitter to thetaste. But by that same afternoon, miraculously, these same bananas will be bright
yellow andsweet. As the trucks pull away an army of workers, spray-cans on their shoulders
enter thewarehouses and start spraying the fruits stacked on the floor. ‘It is a medicine that
helpsthe banana ripen better and get a nice yellow colour,’ says one local wholesaler.
 2. Arsenic phosphorous and the carbide produces acetylene gas
The chemical, it turns out, is Calcium Carbide, and is extremely hazardous to the human
bodybecause it contains traces of arsenic and phosphorous. Once dissolved in water, the
carbideproduces acetylene gas. Acetylene gas is an analogue of the natural ripening agents
produced byfruits known as ethylene. Acetylene imitates the ethylene and quickens the ripening
process. Insome cases it is only the skin that changes colour, while the fruit itself remains green
and raw.When the carbide is used on very raw fruit, the amount of the chemical needed to ripen
the fruithas to be increased. This results in the fruit becoming even more tasteless, and possibly
toxic.
 Fish in kitchen markets are stored in formaldehyde (used topreserve dead-bodies)
The chemical fertiliser urea is used in our rice to make it whiter, fish in kitchen markets arestored
in formaldehyde (used to preserve dead-bodies) to keep them fresh-looking, colours
andsweeteners are injected into fruits, and Recent studies by the Food and Nutrition
Institute,University of Dhaka, have also found Escherichia coli (E-coli), Salmonella, and
Shigella bacteriain restaurant food and street food in the city.Eating contaminated food may
cause diarrhoea, dysentery and other diseases. ‘Finding bacteria isvery common in the restaurant
foods. But the more alarming thing is that the restaurant owners do not throw out the leftover oil
from everyday cooking, using the same oil the next day. As a result the peroxide value of the oil
increases and it becomes toxic ultimately.
CAB members. Honey is also frequently adulterated, as lab tests have found sugar syrup is often
mixed with honey to enhance the sweetness. Nowadays, pure butter oil and ghee are also very
rare in the market. Dishonest traders use a host of ingredients such as animal fat, palm oil, potato
mash, and vegetable oil to produce fake butter oil. They even mix soap ingredients like steirian
oil with ghee, to increase the proportions.

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Drawbacks:
1. Food control activities are implemented unorganized form, including scanty information
on food contamination.
2. Food laws and regulations do not embody recent international developments. It is not up
to date with recommendation by CAC (Codex Alimentarius Commission Act 1961), SPS
(Sanitary and Phytosanitary) Agreement, TBT (Technical Barriers to Trade) Agreement
and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) System.
3. There are insufficient cooperation and coordination in the activities of law regulating
bodies like BSTI, DGF, Bangladesh Police, and Law Commission etc.
4. There is a lack of consumer/public awareness program.
5. There is a constraint of financial resources.
6. Multifarious factors are influencing food safety policies.
7. Proper enforcement of laws, regulations and standards are absent.
8. Both producers and consumers are lacking in knowledge regarding food safety laws,
regulations and standards.
9. Safe limits of arsenic in food have not been determined. Therefore, we have a long a way
to go to ensure safe and wholesome food.
Ways to Overcome:
 A comprehensive and unified food safety policy should be formulated, unified
administrative system should be established and a unified food safety law should been
acted.

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 Food ordinances, food regulations and other relevant Acts should be updated from time to
time in view of the changing requirements arising out of scientific and technical
developments.
 There should be harmonization among among the functions of law regulating bodies like
BSTI, DGF, Bangladesh Police, and Law Commission etc.
 Problem of manpower and equipment shortage of food safety regulating bodies should be
solved immediately.
 Corruption should be reduced in food safety regulating bodies like BSTI, DGF,
Bangladesh Police, and Law Commission etc.
 Mobile court invigilation should be more frequent all over the country.
 Media should provide more coverage on mobile court invigilation and punishment of
dishonest food businessmen.
 Measures should be taken to modernize food inspection, manufacturing procedures and
research on foodborne disease outbreaks like diarrhea, cholera, dysentery, bird flu, swine
flu etc.
 More organizations should be established for accreditation, regulation and certification.
 Frequent training program should be arranged for food inspectors, food scientists, food
analysts, food policy makers microbiologists, v) public health physicians, vi) food
technologists, vii) serial librarians and documentation officials, viii) food law experts etc.
 Guidelines should be formulated on good agricultural practices and good manufacturing
practices for all food items including fruits and vegetables.
 Food laws and regulations should accommodate international standards by adopting the
guidelines and practices of CAC (Codex Alimentarius Commission Act1961), SPS
(Sanitary and Phytosanitary) Agreement, TBT (Technical Barriers to Trade) Agreement
and HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point) System.
 Cleaning, grading, testing, standardization, packing, storage, labeling and marketing
based on well documented principles of good practice, HACCP, scientific storage should
be encouraged at farmers’ level so as to promote direct integration of food processing
units with producers.
 A national food control agency should be established.

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We should ensure pure and wholesome food for all our citizens. Food production should be
monitored along its every step. Food safety practices should be inspected from the farm to
the dining table.
Conclusion:
Access to pure food is a necessary corollary of right to life. Every human being has a right to get
pure food for his consumption. Every state should provide comprehensive law for the safety and
purity of food. Pure and unadulterated food should be made available to every person,
irrespective of his caste, creed, religion, race and nationality. But unfortunately, food safety
situation in our country is very much precarious. Manufacturers and sellers frequently mix
poisonous and dangerous chemicals like calcium carbide, formalin, pesticides, intoxicated
colorants and flavorings which are injurious to our body. Legal regulations and manufacturers
monitoring practices are not enough to prevent contamination of the country's food supply and to
protect consumers from serious harm.

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References:
1. http://www.wikipedia.org
(last accessed on : 19 Aug,2016)
2. http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/fs_management/guidelines_foodcontrol/en
(last accessed on : 19 Aug,2016)
3. http://www.fao.org/docrep/meeting/008/ae335e.htm
(last accessed on : 19 Aug,2016)
4. http://www.scribd.com
(last accessed on : 21 Aug,2016)
5. https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/bsafe/gXxrzjvR8Rs
(last accessed on : 19 Aug,2016)