The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The Government has decided to re-examine the sample of eight-powder milk brands earlier tested positive of melamine following the demand of multinational companies.

Two committees have been formed to conduct three tests on the eight powder milk brands. The authorities asked the committees to submit their report to the government within seven days.

The decision to constitute two committees was taken at an Inter-ministerial meeting held at Commerce Ministry yesterday. Commerce Secretary Firoz Ahmed presided over the meeting.

The government has formed a twelve-member expert committee comprising two teachers from Department of Chemistry of Dhaka University (DU), three members each from the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC), and the BCSIR, two members from Bangladesh Standard and Testing Institute (BSTI), one member each from the Health Ministry and the Plasma Plus, a private laboratory.

The committee will conduct two tests separately on the eight powder-milk brands within the country and one in a foreign laboratory.

After getting the final test report from the expert committees, the government will take final decision where to impose restriction or not on the brands, Firoz Ahmed said.

He said that the Ministry has also constituted another five-member committee to collect the samples of the eight powder milk brands within 12noon today (Monday) and submit the samples to the expert committee.

The five-member committee consists of one member each from the commerce ministry, industries ministry, health ministry, BSTI and one member from the powder milk company.

Additional Secretary of Commerce Ministry Golam Mostakin, Controller of Export and Import Md Zahurul Alam, Chairman of Atomic Energy Commission Dr Shafiqul Islam, Prof AJ Mahmood of the Department of Chemistry of DU, Chairman of BCSIR Dr Akram Hossain, director general of BSTI Azmal Hossain, Country Manager of Dano Ahmed Kabir, Health Nutrition Department Director Dr Fatema Parvin Chowdhury and Nestle Bangladesh Limited Managing Director Laurant Thersnd, among others, were present in the meeting.

At the meeting, the Country Manager of Dano Ahmed Kabir claimed that no melamine detected in Dano products during a test in Germany.

Nestle Bangladesh Limited Managing Director Laurant Thersnd pointed out that two laboratories outside Bangladesh had tested the Nestle products and found that it contained no melamine.

On October 18, the teachers of the Department of Chemistry of DU were critical of Bangladesh Standard and Testing Institute (BSTI) for its incompetence to find traces of melamine in eight powder milk brands of multinational companies.

The DU test result showed all the eight brands of milk contain melamine ranging between 40 milligram per kg to 450 milligram per kg.

The result showed Nido Fortified Instant contains highest level of melamine, 450miligram per kg and Dano contains lowest level of melamine, 40 miligram per kg.

Other brands, Sweet baby-2, contains 280, in Yashli-1 the level is 140, Yashli-2 holds 290, Anline 200, Diploma 230, and Red Cow 300, milligram per kg melamine.