Load-shedding is under way across the country as power generation has been disrupted, with districts and upazilas hit hardest. Without uninterrupted electricity, perishable goods kept in cold stores are at risk of spoiling.

In this situation, entrepreneurs in the sector have drawn the government's attention to the need to ensure uninterrupted power for the cold storage industry.

The Bangladesh Cold Storage Association (BCSA), the cold store owners' body, recently sent a letter on the matter to the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources.

According to the association, there are more than 400 cold stores, large and small, across the country. They usually store table potatoes, seed potatoes, export potatoes, potatoes for industry, fruit, fish, meat and other perishables, which are then supplied to the market through the year as demand requires.

Mostafa Azad Chowdhury Babu, senior vice-president of the FBCCI and president of the Bangladesh Cold Storage Association, said load-shedding is making it impossible to keep cold store temperatures under control. As a result, the quality of stored products is deteriorating and goods are even at risk of rotting, causing financial losses for farmers, traders and cold store owners.

He also feared that the market for these products could become unstable if frozen goods are damaged.

In view of the situation, he asked the government to take quick steps to keep the power supply to cold stores uninterrupted.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.