Directorate General of Food

department · verified (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head: Md Abul Hasanath Humayun Kabir
Role: Director General
Annual budget: —
Staff: 12819
Established: 1971
Legal basis: Food (Special Courts) Act 1956; Public Food Distribution System under Ministry of Food formed after independence in 1971. DG Food traces its institutional origin to the Bengal Civil Supplies Department established by the Bengal Rationing Order 1943 in response to the 1943 Bengal Famine. After Bangladesh's independence, the Ministry of Food and Civil Supplies (later renamed Ministry of Food in 2012) established the Directorate General of Food as the primary operational arm.

DG Food is simultaneously executing two major operations: (1) the Boro 2026 domestic procurement drive (3 May to 31 August 2026) targeting 7.70 lakh MT of food grains from farmers at fixed prices, with paddy at Tk 36/kg and parboiled rice at Tk 49/kg; and (2) managing public buffer stocks of 19.20 lakh MT (15.79 lakh MT rice + 3.39 lakh MT wheat as of 30 March 2026). The directorate is also overseeing arrival of the remaining 3.00 lakh MT of contracted rice imports and operating 1,066 OMS centres distributing subsidised rice (Tk 15/kg) to 55 lakh families under the FY2025-26 food safety-net programme.

Recent activity

2026-03-30 statement State Minister for Food Md Abdul Bari disclosed in the National Assembly that public food godowns hold 19.20 lakh metric tons of food grains as of 30 March 2026, comprising 15.79 lakh MT of rice and 3.39 lakh MT of wheat. He noted DG Food had received 3 lakh MT of imported rice with a further 3 lakh MT in transit, and had contracted 7.10 lakh MT of wheat imports (5.35 lakh MT already received). ↗↗↗↗
2026-04-22 procurement Government fixed Boro 2026 procurement prices and targets: paddy at Tk 36/kg (target 5.00 lakh MT), parboiled rice at Tk 49/kg (target 1.20 lakh MT), atap rice at Tk 48/kg (target 1.00 lakh MT), and wheat at Tk 36/kg (target 0.50 lakh MT). DG Food was designated to run the nationwide drive from 3 May to 31 August 2026, with paddy and wheat collection starting 3 May and rice collection from 15 May. The Haor region's six districts began collection from 3 May given the earlier harvest. ↗↗↗↗↗↗
2026-05-03 procurement DG Food launched the Boro 2026 nationwide paddy and wheat procurement drive on 3 May 2026 as scheduled. The procurement campaign runs through 31 August 2026. Food grains are collected directly from farmers at government-fixed prices across all districts, with rice procurement commencing 15 May. ↗↗↗
2026-02-17 policy Under the BNP government that assumed office on 17 February 2026, Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid was appointed Minister for Food, Agriculture, Fisheries and Livestock. DG Food continues its operational mandate under the Ministry of Food, which retains a separate ministry portfolio despite the combined ministerial designation. ↗↗↗
2025-07-05 policy Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumder announced expanded OMS and TCB food distribution commencing mid-July 2025, targeting 55 lakh beneficiary families in FY2025-26 for six months each, with rice priced at Tk 15/kg. DG Food runs 1,066 OMS centres in city corporations and major municipalities. FY2025-26 OMS allocation: 2.40 lakh MT rice and 3.00 lakh MT wheat. Total food grain distribution target for FY2025-26 was set at 36.6 lakh MT. ↗↗↗
2025-10-01 policy Government directed private sector rice importers to import up to 5.00 lakh MT of rice as part of a total FY2025-26 rice import plan of 9.00 lakh MT (5.00 lakh MT private, 4.00 lakh MT government-to-government or international tender). This import directive was issued to counter record domestic rice prices and replenish buffer stocks managed by DG Food. ↗↗↗

Provenance & notes

Established year 1971: DG Food's institutional predecessor was the Bengal Civil Supplies Department (est. 1943 under the Bengal Rationing Order 1943 post-Bengal Famine), which continued as East Pakistan's food department. After Bangladesh's independence in 1971, the Ministry of Food and Civil Supplies formally reconstituted the Directorate General of Food; established_year set to 1971 as the post-independence institutional start. The ministry was renamed Ministry of Food in 2012 (confirmed Wikipedia). Current head Md Abul Hasanath Humayun Kabir confirmed as Director General via DG Food's official officer list (dgfood.gov.bd/site/view/officer_list_category/6864) and BSS News report of April 2025 (bssnews.net/district/264113); specific appointment date not available in any identified primary source -- head_since left null. Staff count 12,819 sanctioned posts: sourced from CGIAR Diagnostic Study of DG Food (cgspace.cgiar.org); breakdown: 227 Class I cadre, 676 Class I non-cadre, 1,763 Class II, 5,443 Class III, 5,613 Class IV. DG Food standalone annual budget in BDT not separately published in MoF budget documents; annual_budget_bdt left null. Ministry of Food food subsidy FY2025-26 Tk 8,100 crore confirmed by The Daily Star (thedailystar.net/business/economy/news/food-subsidies-raised-nearly-12-3842841). Buffer stock 19.20 lakh MT (15.79 lakh MT rice + 3.39 lakh MT wheat) as of 30 March 2026: confirmed independently by BSS News, The Daily Star, Dhaka Tribune, and UNB. Boro 2026 procurement drive 3 May 2026: confirmed by BSS News, Outlook Bangla, Bangladesh Pratidin, Business in Bangladesh, FAO GIEWS, and Jago News 24. Procurement prices (paddy Tk 36, parboiled Tk 49, atap Tk 48, wheat Tk 36) confirmed by multiple outlets including Daily Star and BD Pratidin. 5.00 lakh MT private rice import directive: confirmed cross-source (Daily Star JS session report, TBS, IREF). Ministry of Food minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid (BNP): confirmed by BSS News and IRRI press release.

Directorate General of Food

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