Bangladesh court bans pasteurised milk for five weeks amid health scare

The High Court has banned sales of pasteurised milk for five weeks after the discovery of substances that are harmful for human consumption in the products of 14 companies.

Court Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 28 July 2019, 10:29 AM
Updated : 28 July 2019, 02:57 PM

Antibiotics have been found in the products of all 14 companies while lead in 10 of these, according to results of tests conducted following the court’s order.

The ban on Sunday left no way of producing pasteurised milk legally during this period as these are the only companies with clearance from the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution or BSTI.

A panel of two judges advised customers to refrain from buying pasteurised milk in this period.

Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir ordered the ban with a set of rules after getting test results on the products of the 14 companies by four organisations.

The 14 companies are:

Aftab Milk and Milk Products

Akij Food and Beverage (Farm Fresh)

American Dairy Limited

Bangladesh Milk Producers’ Cooperative Union Limited (Milk Vita)

Baro Awlia Dairy Milk and Foods (Dairy Fresh)

BRAC Dairy and Food Project (Aarong Dairy)

Danish Dairy Firm Limited (Ayran)

Ichhamoti Dairy and Food Products (Pura)

Igloo Dairy

Pran Dairy

Purbo Bangla Dairy Food Industries (Arwa)

Uttarbango Dairy (Milk Fresh)

Shilaidaha Dairy (Ultra Milk)

Tania Dairy and Food Products

The Institute of Public Health Nutrition, Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) or Science Laboratory, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) and Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute conducted the tests on the pasteurised milk of the 14 companies.

The court had ordered them to check whether there were antibiotics, detergent, formalin, and bacteria in the products.

The court had also sought a report on how much time BSTI will need to achieve the capacity to conduct these tests.

The tests by the four agencies found lead, a heavy metal, beyond the tolerable level in the products of 10 companies.

Antibiotics were found in products of all the companies, according to the reports. 

BSTI said it would require until January next year to be able to conduct the tests.

After a icddr,b study found 75 percent liquid milk products in the country unsafe for direct consumption last year, Supreme court lawyer Md Tanvir Ahmed filed a writ petition seeking actions.

On June 25 this year, a BSTI lawyer told the media that nothing harmful was found in tests conducted on the products following the court’s order.

The same day, a group of Dhaka University teachers said they found antibiotics in pasteurised milk of seven companies.