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5 months ago

World Food Safety Day

Experts call for ensuring trans fat-free food to safeguard public health

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Experts in a webinar on Tuesday emphasised the need for stringent control over trans fat levels in food to safeguard public health, citing its link to increased risks of heart diseases and other non-communicable illnesses. 

Despite the government’s enactment of the "Controlling Trans-Fatty Acid in Foodstuffs Regulation 2021," significant progress in its implementation remains elusive, prompting calls for comprehensive enforcement to mitigate the health hazards associated with trans fats, they said.

At the webinar titled "Implementation of Trans Fatty Acid Control Regulations: Progress and Way Forward," organised by research and advocacy organisation PROGGA (Knowledge for Progress) in collaboration with Global Health Advocacy Incubator (GHAI), the health experts underscored the urgency of addressing the trans fat issue to align with this year's theme, "Food safety: prepare for the unexpected."

According to the WHO report on Global Trans-fat Elimination 2022, 43 countries including neighbouring India have implemented best-practice policies for tackling trans fat in food. However, Bangladesh continues to lag behind in this issue.

Dr Mohammad Mostafa, Member (Public Health and Nutrition), Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) informed at the webinar that there are various stages involved in implementing the trans fatty acid regulation.

“We are moving forward step by step and we are optimistic about commencing the full-fledged implementation of the regulation soon,” he added.

Enamul Hoque, Deputy Director (Agriculture and Food), Standards Wing, Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) said, “We have some technical limitations in terms of implementing the regulation. However, we are actively working to overcome these.”

Mustak Hassan Md Iftekhar, Founder Chairman of Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) and Secretary General and CEO of Bangladesh Food Safety Foundation (BFSF), Muhammad Ruhul Quddus, Bangladesh Country Lead of GHAI, Professor Dr. Sohel Reza Choudhury, Head of Department of Epidemiology & Research, National Heart Foundation, Shamsun Naher Nahid, Head of Nutrition at the Department of Diet and Nutrition of BIRDEM General Hospital, SM Nazer Hossain, Vice President, Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB), and ABM Zubair, Executive Director of PROGGA were also present at the webinar as discussants. 

The webinar was moderated by PROGGA’s Coordinator Sadia Galiba Prova. People of different professions from different regions of the country joined the webinar.

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