Grading system introduced for Dhaka restaurants, hotels

From now on, the restaurants and hotels in the capital will be marked with coloured stickers of four categories to specify their food quality, environment, decoration and standards in order to ensure safe food for people.

Under the system, the restaurants will be divided under four categories -- A+, A, B and C.

A green colour sticker will demonstrate that the standard of the restaurant is 'A+' while orange colour one will indicate that its food is not safe yet. If restaurants with orange stickers fail to improve the standards within a month, their licences will be revoked.

Food minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder inaugurated the grading system of restaurants and hotels at a city hotel on Sunday.

Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) took the initiative to introduce the grading system.

If any restaurant gets 90 marks based on different criteria, it will get a green colour sticker with 'A+' while 80 scorer will get blue colour sticker with grade 'A' and 55-79 scorer will get yellow sticker with 'B' while 45-55 scorer will get orange sticker with grade 'C'.

The minister also urged all to come forward to ensure safe food for all and create awareness among people.

BFSA chairman Mohammad Mahfuzul Hoque said the grading system is an international one. "Owners of different restaurants had sought permanent solution from us to avoid fine by the mobile courts and following their demand, we introduced the system on 2 April 2018 by using a sticker for Kasturi Hotel on experimental basis," he said.