School Seminar in Paikgachha Stresses Safe Food Habits to Fight Adulteration

Health and food safety officials on Thursday stressed the urgent need to build early dietary awareness among school children to combat the growing public health threat of food adulteration across the country.

The call came during an awareness seminar and quiz competition hosted at the Paikgachha Municipality Town Secondary School auditorium in Khulna. The event focused on educating young students about the dangers of contaminated food, the importance of avoiding junk food and the fundamentals of proper hygiene.

Khulna District Safe Food Officer Md. Mokhlesur Rahman presented the keynote address, breaking down complex topics such as food preservation techniques, personal hygiene and national safe food laws into accessible concepts for the students.

"If we can successfully build strong awareness at the school level, it creates a positive domino effect that directly impacts families and the wider society," Rahman noted.

Speaking as the chief guest, Paikgachha Upazila Health and Family Planning Officer Dr. Ahsanara Binte Ahmed highlighted the connection between nutrition and academic performance. "A student's eating habits are directly tied to their physical and mental growth. We must actively reject unhygienic street foods and junk meals and instead foster a habit of consuming fresh, home-cooked food," she advised.

The seminar, presided over by Headmaster Narayan Chandra Shikari and moderated by Upazila Sanitary and Safe Food Inspector Uday Kumar Mandal, warned that widespread food contamination has become a major roadblock to raising a healthy and talented generation. Speakers urged a coordinated campaign combining families, schools, and regulatory bodies to secure food safety.

The event concluded with an interactive safe food quiz competition, followed by prize distribution and the dissemination of educational leaflets among the students and teachers.