The Minister said these things today as the chief guest at a workshop organized by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization at the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council auditorium in Farmgate, Dhaka.
The event was chaired by Dr. Md. Abdus Salam, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council. Special guests present were Agriculture Secretary Dr. Rafiqul E Mohamed, Additional Secretary of the Economic Relations Division A K M Sohel, and Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Md. Mahmudur Rahman.
The Minister said, to ensure safe food for the people of the country, it is not enough to only make farmers aware; strict quality control measures must be implemented from the point of pesticide import, registration, quality testing, and landing. Safe food production is the biggest challenge for agriculture in the coming days and one of the key conditions for creating a competitive position for Bangladesh's agricultural products in the international market.
The Agriculture Minister further said that currently, the demand for safe and quality food is greater than the quantity of food in the world. Special emphasis must be given to producing internationally standard safe food by utilizing Bangladesh's fertile soil, favorable climate, adequate sunlight, and rainfall.
The Minister said, in many cases, pesticides are applied a short time before harvesting crops, resulting in harmful chemical residues remaining in the food. In this situation, the problem cannot be solved only by training farmers; rather, the quality control and management of pesticides must be ensured from the source.
Highlighting the potential of agricultural products, Amin Ur Rashid said that the introduction of modern and hygienic packaging systems for mango export in Bangladesh is already yielding positive results. Similarly, jackfruit, meat, and other agricultural products have immense potential in the international market. However, to increase exports, international standards and food safety must be ensured at every stage of production, processing, preservation, and supply chain.
The Agriculture Minister said that the goal of safe food production can be achieved through the combined efforts of agricultural researchers, scientists, extension officers, and field-level officials. By quickly delivering research-developed technologies to farmers, a modern, environmentally friendly, and sustainable agricultural system must be developed.
