A mobile court on Wednesday fined a chips manufacturing factory Tk 100,000 under the Safe Food Act, 2013 after detecting multiple food safety and hygiene violations during an inspection in Sylhet.

The drive was conducted at Suman Food Products, located near the Telibazar Bypass in the Sylhet Metropolitan area, under the leadership of Assistant Commissioner Md Parvez of the Deputy Commissioner's Office, Sylhet.

During the inspection, the mobile court found a series of irregularities in the factory's chips production process.

The violations included the use of burnt cooking oil, the use of substandard black salt in food preparation, and the storage of salt in open sacks under unhygienic conditions.

Inspectors also found that large quantities of chips were being produced and marketed using counterfeit labels in an unsanitary environment.

In addition, the factory premises were found to be dirty and poorly maintained, while the establishment lacked a valid trade licence and other required approvals.

The inspection further revealed that workers were handling and packaging chips with bare hands, with several food handlers having long and unclean fingernails. Food products were also found to be stored directly on the floor.

Considering the offences, the mobile court imposed a cash fine of Tk 100,000 on the establishment under Section 39 of the Safe Food Act, 2013.

The operation was coordinated by Syed Sarfaraz Hossain, Safe Food Officer of the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA), Sylhet Metropolitan. Officials of the BFSA, Sylhet Metropolitan, along with a team from the police, were present during the drive.