The government is working to introduce policies on the use of trans-fat and edible oil at restaurants to safeguard public health, said a senior official of the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA).

"The policy will address the issues of proper use of edible oil and trans-fat content in food," said Md Abdul Kayowm Sarker, chairman of the BFSA.

He was speaking at a dialogue on "Policy of Developing Collection System for Used Cooking Oil in Bangladesh" on Monday. The Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD) and Muenzer Bangla Private Ltd, a subsidiary of Muenzer Bioindustrie of Europe, organised the virtual dialogue, according to a press release.

As per the Food Safety Hygiene Regulation 2018, nobody can use any by-products of food preparation. Used cooking oil is a waste product, and it must not be applied for further use as it violates the regulation, Sarker said.

"In particular, we are interested in implementing the testing methods during our regular checks at restaurants and other food businesses to monitor the exact amount of used cooking oil," he said. 

Sarker said the BFSA was keen to develop a strategy for recycling used cooking oil so that the oil is used safely for further value-addition and safe waste disposal.

Manzur Morshed Ahmed, a member of the BFSA, said there were many health issues regarding the use of used cooking oil.

"On the other hand, used cooking oil can be used as value-added products taking environmental aspects into account. There should be a guideline for collecting used cooking oil and developing a clear strategy for collecting it."

BUILD CEO Ferdaus Ara Begum, who moderated the programme, underscored the need for initiating policy support for a formal collection system of used cooking oil.

Bangladesh imports more than three million tonnes of edible oil. But only a negligible portion is collected as used cooking oil mostly by informal actors, who sell them to restaurants, said the BUILD in the press release.

Latiful Bari, chief scientist of the Food Analysis & Research Centre for Advanced Research of Sciences, said reusing cooking oil increases the cholesterol, creates peroxides acid, causes cancer. Cooking oil with a high percentage of polar compounds is the prime cause for some of the worst diseases.

Harald SIGL, head of corporate communications and public affairs at Muenzer Bioindustrie Austria/Europe, said it is indispensable to have a precise legal regulation on collecting used cooking oil.

Md Abdur Rahim, joint secretary of the export wing of the commerce ministry, said the government would consider allowing exports of used cooking oils if stakeholders recommended.

Fahad Saleh, chief operating officer of Muenzer Bangla, Md Masud Alam, national food safety consultant of the Food and Agriculture Organisation and Syed Muhammad Shoaib Hasan, CEO of HIFS Food, also spoke.