Confidence Salt owner faces arrest warrant over substandard iodised salt

A Dhaka court has issued an arrest warrant against Sadiul Islam, owner of Confidence Salt Limited, after laboratory tests found the company’s iodised salt failed to meet required chemical standards.

The warrant was issued on Wednesday, December 17, by Special Metropolitan Magistrate (District and Sessions Judge) Nusrat Sahara Bithi of Dhaka Pure Food Court-2.

According to the case statement, chemical analysis revealed deficiencies in key components of Confidence iodised salt, including iodine and sulphate levels. The case was filed on December 9 by Kamrul Hasan, a Safe Food Inspector of the Bangladesh Safe Food Authority and Food and Sanitation Officer of Dhaka South City Corporation Zones 2 and 6. The next hearing is scheduled for December 29.

The investigation was launched after two consumers purchased one kilogram of Confidence iodised vacuum-packed salt from a shop in Khilgaon Tilpapara on November 30, suspecting it to be substandard. The sample was subsequently divided, sealed and sent to relevant authorities, including the Chief Health Officer and the Modern Food Laboratory and Training Centre, for testing.

Laboratory results confirmed that the salt did not fully comply with legal standards. While sodium chloride content – required to be at least 98 per cent – was found to be 99.67 per cent, iodine content measured only 13 parts per million (ppm), below the prescribed range of 20-50 ppm. 

Sulphate content, which should remain below 0.60 per cent, was found at 0.001 per cent.

The complaint cites violations of the Safe Food Act, 2013, particularly Sections 26 and 58, forming the basis for legal action against the company’s owner.

MMA/MHK/NMA