Packaged fertilisers sold by seven companies in Saturia upazila of Manikganj have been found adulterated in government testing. The upazila agriculture department has ordered the companies and their dealers to withdraw the products from the market at once and has announced legal action.

To check complaints from farmers, the Department of Agricultural Extension collected 16 samples on 21 December 2025 from ten pesticide and fertiliser shops — among them M/s Alamgir Traders of Char Tilli, M/s Abdullah Enterprise of Char Saturia, Arif Enterprise of Baliati Bazar and Pulak Traders — and sent them to the Ministry of Agriculture's Soil Resource Development Institute. The results reached the department on 8 September.

The products found adulterated are Babylon Boron from Babylon Agro and Dairy Ltd, Babylon Zinc from Babylon Agriscience Ltd, Need Solubor from Need Agro Industries Ltd, Solid Zinc Mono from Agro Mine (Pvt) Ltd, Bijoy Zinc Sulphate Monohydrate from Hossain Enterprise C.C. Ltd, Mono Zinc from Velco Agro Industries and GB Zinc from Green Bangla Agrovet Ltd.

Upazila Agriculture Officer Tania Tabassum said the seven companies' products performed below the government specification and were therefore classed as adulterated under section 17(2)(gha) of the Fertiliser (Management) Act 2006, which makes stocking or trading such fertiliser a punishable offence. The department estimates that more than 37,000 farmers in Saturia, the district's main farming upazila, have been cheated by adulterated fertiliser and pesticide companies.

Farmers told reporters that when they ask for advice, sub-assistant agriculture officers — the block supervisors — send them to particular shops, where shopkeepers hand them low-grade fertiliser in place of established brands. Rashid, a vegetable grower from Kamta, said some packaged fertilisers he used last year did considerable damage to his field. Block supervisors Abul Kalam Azad and Nazmul Kamal of Dhankora union called the allegation entirely baseless.

The companies have responded. Alamgir Hossain, marketing officer at Green Bangla Agrovet, said the company had received no formal complaint from farmers and no withdrawal notice, and that zinc content can drop somewhat in long storage. Zainal Abedin, sales and marketing officer at Need Agro Industries, said a small shortfall can occur in transport or packaging, but lead and cadmium are below tolerable limits so the product is safe for soil and crops.

Saturia's upazila nirbahi officer, Kazi Mohammad Anik Islam, said farmers' interests come first and no dealer involved in adulterated fertiliser or fraud will be spared. In a vegetable and potato belt such as this, the finding is a warning to growers to look hard at the micronutrient products they buy.

Source: banglanews24