“Chaos” in functional foods: Part 2: Difficult to distinguish between real and fake

Pharmacist Nguyen Thi Hoa is certifying genuine Royal Jelly products.

Ms. Huong wondered: "Why is it not a genuine product but still has a stamp?" The drug seller replied: "There are 5 or 7 types of stamps, now what kind of stamp doesn't a pharmacist have? I know someone so I'm telling you!" Ms. Huong trusted and spent 850,000 VND on a functional food product for skin beauty, insomnia prevention, and diabetes treatment in the Royal Jelly product of Costar.

I was standing next to her and was also a regular customer so I asked the owner: “If the pharmaceutical representative can put stamps on non-genuine products, can smuggled products from China like the information on TV sneak into the pharmacy?” She replied: “Yes, it’s just a matter of whether we import them or not. Counterfeit goods are exactly the same as genuine goods.”

Quy Thoa stall (Le Loi street) has only a few modest items but is highly recommended by many people, this is a trusted address.

At the Quy Thoa milk and candy store on Le Loi Street - Vinh City, it is an address that office ladies have been telling each other for a long time: "Hand-carried goods, nowhere else, very good". Here, functional foods such as sheep placenta, colagel, spirulina with skin beautifying effects of Shiseido, Wakodo - Japan are sold in very modest quantities.

Ms. Thuy, the shop owner, said: “This is hand-carried goods that my aunt imported from flight attendants, only a few boxes, usually regular customers take them all, there are no more left to display on the counter like this. If you want to buy them, you have to order them, my aunt's products are a brand in this city, no need to worry, you will be addicted to them!”

The genuine products hand-carried here are not cheap, from 850,000 - 980,000 VND. Each box of skin-beautifying colagell can be used up in 2 weeks, which means that each month the user will lose 1,700,000 VND. When I asked how to distinguish between real and fake, Aunt Thuy laughed: "I give up, basically it is about trusting the source of the goods, Chinese goods are very sophisticated, no matter what type, what brand, they all have boxes and proper stamps. If you are greedy for cheapness and buy floating goods on the market, you will die immediately." However, even the regular customers at Ms. Thuy's stall do not know the origin of the products here, and basically they still buy based on trust.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Le Na - an office worker in Quang Trung ward, a regular customer of Quy Thoa said: "I have been using the colagell product for many months now but still haven't seen any improvement in my skin. I heard that you have to persistently use up to ten boxes to see results. Just be patient and see." Ms. Dung, a colleague, still regularly buys products here, said: "I see my skin is smoother, and the dark spots have faded significantly after using the 5th box. Now I'm addicted to it and I'm afraid it will run out, so I have to stock up on a few boxes at home."

Looking for answers about the real effects of the skin-beautifying functional foods currently sold on the market in Vinh City, pharmacist Nguyen Thi Phong Lan, owner of a pharmacy on Doi Cung Street, shared: “We have attended many seminars on the issue of functional foods, which are simply supplements of vitamins A, E, C, B1, B12, B6 and some trace elements extracted from natural foods. If we eat a lot of oranges, drink a lot of water and eat a lot of soybeans and brown rice, we will fully supplement those trace elements without having to take those expensive green and red pills.”

When asked about the origin of functional foods sold on the market, Ms. Lan said: "In addition to functional foods produced domestically, most functional foods produced abroad are obtained by pharmacies through online shopping services, some are obtained through import companies. Generally, if counterfeit goods are mixed in, consumers will not know, but our pharmacy will know because the import price will be cheaper."

The chaos in the market of functional foods is something that anyone can see. Why have the authorities not taken any action to inspect these sensitive products? The answer is waiting for the managers to speak up!

Thanh Nga