Pricey cow milk contaminated as melamine scare spreads
Powder milk mixed with cow milk in Nilphamari, doctors say
Melamine contamination in a few popular foreign brands of powdered milk has made the panicked parents of babies to buy cow milk from the open market, making it pricier in northern districts.
But there are reports of many babies' becoming affected with intestine diseases after taking adulterated cow milk as many traders are mixing low quality powder milk with cow milk to earn high profit.
But the market monitoring by the government agencies is still poor.
Dr Dilip Kumar Roy, child specialist of Nilphamari 100-bed hospital, said anxious parents of infant babies are coming to him to seek advice whether it is right to use cow milk as substitute for foreign powdered milk.
“The babies under six months can take a mixture of cow milk, water and sugar in the proportion of one litre milk, one litre water and one spoonful of sugar. For babies above six months, additional food like khichuri, suji and some other food can be given along with it. But in the both cases, breast-feeding should continue,” he said.
“The babies attacked with intestine diseases are being taken to hospitals in large number recently. So special care should be taken so that the babies are not fed with adulterated cow milk. The proportion should be correct too,” Dr Dilip said.
Several parents told this correspondent that fearing melamine contamination, they are avoiding not only powdered milk of eight banned brands but also other brands not yet banned by the government.
They said they are feeding their babies cow milk purchased from open markets.
Sources said taking the opportunity of high demand of cow milk many traders are adulterating cow milk with dirty water of the ponds and canals or some substandard powdered milk smuggled from India. Lack of hygiene sense of among a section of cow milk traders adds to the problem.
“I used to feed my six-month-old baby Red Cow and Dano powdered milk. After banning of the two brands, I started feeding him cow milk in recommended proportion. But the baby has got intestine disease caused due to adulterated milk sold in the open market,” said Shilu Mia, a trader in Nilphamari.
Ahsan Habib Nilu, a journalist in Kurigram, said, “My wife, a college teacher, has to spend most part of the day at the workplace. A woman housekeeper takes care of our six and a half month-old-baby. Earlier the child was given powdered milk but after the ban on some contaminated brands, we are giving it cow milk along with other foods. Fearing adulteration of the cow milk in the open market, I have bought a milking cow to get pure milk so that we can save the baby from intestine disease.”
Many parents are rushing to the dairy farms where quality and hygiene are believed to be maintained to some extent but most buyers become disappointed as they fail to get milk even for additional prices.
Ali Akbar, the owner of one of the biggest dairy farms in Kurigram, said the demand of cow milk has increased greatly in recent time. Buyers are coming from distant places, making his daily produce of 70-80 litres of milk sold out in a short time, he said.
The owner of Lalon Palon Dairy Farm at Nilphamari, Belal Hossen said many parents of babies are now dissatisfied with him for failure to supply cow milk as per requirement.
Visiting different cow milk markets in Nilphamari, Kurigram and Lalmonirhat districts it was found that a litre of cow milk is being sold from Tk 32-Tk 35 which was Tk 25 Tk 26 two weeks back.
Besides adulteration of milk, lack of hygiene makes cow milk unsafe for consumers.
The sanitary inspector of Nilphamri, Hamidul Islam told this correspondent that they would soon launch drive against adulteration of cow milk.
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