WIDESPREAD bacterial contamination in retail meat shops in Dhaka is alarming, mounting a threat to public health and food security. A recent study published in the Journal of Biosciences and Public Health finds that beef and chicken sold on the local market carry high loads of harmful microorganisms, many resistant to common antibiotics. Researchers collected 45 samples from cutting boards and cleaning water drums in meat outlets in March鈥揗ay, for laboratory analysis. The findings show that up to one million colony-forming units of Escherichia coli and substantial concentration of other gram-negative bacteria, including Klebsiella, Citrobacter and Enterobacter, alongside Staphylococcus aureus. Even more troubling is the scale of antimicrobial resistance. Seventy per cent of isolates withstood azithromycin while nearly two-thirds resisted tetracycline and ciprofloxacin, vital for treating infections of the lungs, skin and urinary tract. Chicken shops proved especially hazardous, with Pseudomonas colonies showing resistance to all six antibiotics tested, including gentamicin and ceftriaxone, often reserved for severe, hospital-treated cases. The research also uncovered glaring hygiene gaps among vendors, most of whom lack basic food safety training or adequate protective gear, creating conditions ripe for the spread of life-threatening bacteria through the food chain.
The implications of the findings reach far beyond individual cases of food poisoning. They signal a dangerous convergence of weak food safety oversight, indiscriminate antibiotic use in livestocks and inadequate training of meat handlers, a combination that accelerates antimicrobial resistance, one of the gravest public health threats. When bacteria circulating through everyday food supply chains become resistant to first- and even last-line drugs, routine infections may escalate into untreatable conditions, driving up treatment costs and hospital stays while additionally straining the already stretched health services. In a densely populated city such as Dhaka, where wet markets serve millions daily, even minor lapses in hygiene can facilitate large-scale outbreaks, undermining consumer confidence and threatening regional trade in animal products. Addressing the problem requires a concerted, multisectoral response. The enforcement of hygiene standards at markets should be stepped up through regular inspection, licensing and penalties for non-compliance. Mandatory training for vendors, supported by local governments and public-health agencies, should equip workers with basic infection-control skills. Equally crucial is a tight regulation of antibiotic use in agriculture, including bans on growth-promotion doses and robust monitoring of veterinary prescriptions. Without swift, coordinated action, the country risks fostering bacteria that modern medicine can no longer defeat.
Authorities should, therefore, enforce rigorous hygiene standards in wet markets, ensure that meat vendors undergo mandatory food safety training and regulate antibiotic use in livestocks to curb the spread of resistant bacteria. Without coordinated efforts of the government, industry and the public, it risks a future where everyday infection could become untreatable, turning ordinary meals into a potential health threat.
