BSTI orders withdrawal of Bombay Sweets spices, Baghabari ghee among 10 substandard products
Five spice products failed tests for excessive ash and salt, while five ghee and butter oil products failed on multiple quality parameters.
The Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) has ordered the withdrawal of 10 products from the market after laboratory tests found them below the prescribed Bangladesh Standards.
The products include five spice products manufactured by Bombay Sweets & Co Ltd and five brands of ghee and butter oil. BSTI has also issued show-cause notices to the manufacturers, asking why their licences should not be cancelled, according to a press release issued today (26 August).
The Bombay Sweets products are curry powder, duck meat spice, tehari spice, kala bhuna spice, beef spice and fish spice. Laboratory tests found excessive levels of total ash and salt in the products.
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The ghee and butter oil products are Baghabari, Arun Baghabari, New Radhuni, City and Elders. These products failed to meet standards on parameters including refractive index, iodine value, saponification value and Polenske value.
BSTI said laboratory tests found that Baghabari ghee contained no milk fat and was instead made using palm olein and vanaspati before being marketed as ghee.
The products were identified through BSTI's regular market surveillance programme.
BSTI Director General Kazi Imdadul Haque said maintaining product quality in line with national standards is both a legal and ethical responsibility of licensed manufacturers.
He advised consumers to check the BSTI standard mark, licence number, manufacturing and expiry dates, and ingredients before purchasing products.
Consumers can report complaints regarding product quality, adulteration or misuse of the BSTI standard mark to BSTI at 16119 or dg@bsti.gov.bd.
