After a series of inspections and lab tests, arrest warrants have been issued against senior officials of Nestlé Bangladesh, Meghna Group, and SA Group over allegations of marketing adulterated and substandard food products.
The warrants were issued on 24 November by Magistrate Nusrat Sahara Bithi of the Safe Food Court, following applications submitted by Kamrul Hasan, a safe food inspector at Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC).
The accused include Nestlé Bangladesh Managing Director Deepal Abeywickrema and Public Policy Manager Riashad Jaman; Meghna Group Chairman Mostafa Kamal; and SA Group Chairman Md Shahabuddin Alam.
The next court hearing is set for 15 December.
According to the complaints, inspectors collected samples of KitKat chocolates, Fresh Refined Sugar, and Goalini Full Cream Milk Powder from different outlets in Dhaka.
Lab tests reportedly found Nestlé’s KitKat to be of low quality, Meghna Group’s sugar adulterated and unsafe, and SA Group’s milk powder far below the required protein and fat levels. For instance, the milk powder labelled “full cream” contained only 9.5% protein instead of the required 34%, and its fat content was just 7.58%, far below the standard 42% or more.
Nestlé, however, has strongly challenged the basis of the case. In a statement on Tuesday, the company said inspectors filed the case without verifying documents or consulting them.
Nestlé claimed that accredited laboratories in India and Dubai found the product within acceptable limits under comparable standards and noted that the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) has no specific standard for chocolate-coated wafers like KitKat.
The company added that its distributor had already shared all test reports with authorities.
Nestlé also said that its products are imported legally under the HS Code for chocolate-coated wafers, and that customs only clears shipments after receiving fitness certificates from the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR). A recent BCSIR report declared the product safe under existing food safety laws, the company added.
Despite the company’s stance, the DSCC report claimed the tested KitKat samples contained higher acidity than allowed, along with lower-than-standard milk solids and milk fat in the chocolate coating.
Meghna Group, on the other hand, said it was unaware of any case filed against it, calling the allegations false. SA Group has not issued an official response yet.
Zakaria, chairman of the Bangladesh Food Safety Authority, said the agency regularly collects around 150 samples every month to detect adulterated or unsafe food items. If products repeatedly fail to meet standards, legal action is taken as per the law.
With the court orders now in effect and companies pushing back with their own claims, the issue has raised fresh questions about testing standards, transparency, and the safety of widely consumed food products in the local market.
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