Advancing Food Safety in Bangladesh: Challenges and the Promise of Smart Sensor Technology

Food safety is a critical public health concern for preventing foodborne illnesses and ensuring consumer protection. Food safety hazards may present throughout the food supply chain, from farm to fork, posing significant health risks. This comprehensive review explored the prevalent food safety hazards in Bangladesh and highlighted the smart sensor technologies for hazard detection. By reviewing recent literature on food safety hazards in the Bangladeshi food web, this study discusses the potential consequences of these hazards and their detection methods. Finally, a critical evaluation of the existing food safety challenges in Bangladesh and smart sensor-based detection techniques are provided. Bacterial pathogens, agrochemical residues, toxic food preservatives, and adulteration are highly prevalent in the Bangladeshi food chain. The key food safety challenges of the country are the lack of public awareness, unhygienic practices in food handling and preparation, multiplicity of laws and lack of coordination among regulatory authorities, bureaucratic complexities, and lack of inadequate infrastructure and skilled human resources. Smart sensor-based detection offers a promising solution to the limitations of conventional food hazard determination techniques, providing rapid and accurate results with low cost, portability, and ease of operation, thereby significantly enhancing the country’s food safety scenario. This review may help policymakers, regulatory authorities, and academicians to better understand the existing challenges in the Bangladeshi food chain and to develop more effective strategies for mitigating risks, ensuring food safety, and enhancing public health.