DLS sets up modern lab to ensure food security

The Department of Livestock Services (DLS) has established a modern lab at Savar for testing quality of eggs, milk, meat and value-added animal products, officials said on Saturday.
The DLS would collect samples from across the country and test the products to inform the people about the quality, they said.
The sophisticated quality control (QC) lab was set up at a six-stroied building at a cost of Tk 1.05 billion which would start commercial operation soon, said DLS director general Dr Abdul Jabbar Shikdar. It would be a unique lab to ensure food quality, he added.
DR Jabbar said they were trying to get local and international accreditation so that their certification and test results are accepted everywhere in the world.
In a recent visit, this correspondent found that the lab has feed quality control, residue and biologics, product quality control, microbial food safety, and biomedical engineering sections having sophisticated materials and machinery.
Planning Commission member Zakir Hossain Akanda also visited the lab to review the project implementation status.
The lab will also test the quality of poultry and other livestock feeds to ensure nutritious meat, egg and milk output with adequate food value.
"We will collect samples from across the country time-to-time for testing the quality. And, we will inform the people about the result. Thus the consumers will be aware of the quality of the animal products," said lab project director Dr. Mostofa Kamal.
"We will also collect samples of feeds for the poultry and other livestock from across the country and analyse their nutrition values in our labs. Then, we will inform the people about the feed quality. It will check adulterated feeds as well as ensure quality of animal products," he told the FE.
Bangladesh is one of the lowest protein intake countries and its people are still lagging behind the average standard of animal protein intake.
According to the DLS, although the meat and eggs supply have improved a lot, but the milk supply against the demand is still lower in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute (BLRI) director general Dr Nathu Ram Sarker said they would prepare a database of the testing results and the people would have access to it for getting information.
He said that any person or company can also test the feeds and animal products for getting all the information, including its food value, nutrition level, residue, biologics and microbial food safety level.
For this test, they will get results within three to seven days after giving the samples where a minimum fee would be applicable, the DG added.
When asked about the lab, Planning Commission member MR Akanda said that this is one of the best labs in Bangladesh for testing the animal products and their feeds.
"The authority has procured the lab machinery from the best producers in international markets including USA, Japan and Europe. We hope the DLS will operate the lab in a sophisticated way for facilitating supply of quality food across the country," he said.
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