Food Safety Authority Warns Against Selling ‘Moth Dal’ Dyed as ‘Moong Dal’
The Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) has issued a warning regarding the practice of mixing a harmful dye with a type of lentil known as ‘Moth Dal’ and marketing it as ‘Moong Dal.’ This information was released in a public notice on Sunday (November 2nd).
Details of the Adulteration
The notice stated that ‘Moth Dal’ is being mixed with yellow coloring and sold as ‘Moong Dal.’ The dye used, Tartrazine, is not approved for use in lentils and poses various health risks.
• Market Discrepancy: While ‘Moth Dal’ was imported in quantities twice that of ‘Moong Dal’ in the last fiscal year, ‘Moth Dal’ is not found under its own name in the market.
• Contamination Rate: More than half of the collected samples of lentils sold as ‘Moong Dal’ in the local market were found to be mixed with dye.
Legal and Public Advisory
The BFSA emphasized the legal implications:
The notice stated: “The unauthorized use or inclusion of any color in food, or the import, processing, storage, supply, or sale of food mixed with such colors, is a punishable offense under Section 27 of the Safe Food Act, 2013.”
All food business operators have been instructed to refrain from importing, processing, storing, supplying, or selling colored lentils.
The general public is advised to ensure the purity of Moong Dal and to verify that the lentil has not been mixed with color before purchasing it.
