Concerns about 'dirty' food during Tet

There are still many violations.

On December 14, 2022, while on duty, the patrol and control team of Traffic Police Team No. 4, Nghe An Police discovered a young man carrying 2 white foam boxes on a motorbike without a license plate. When the police approached to examine, the subject suddenly left the 2 foam boxes and ran away.

Two foam boxes containing contaminated food were discovered by Traffic Police Team No. 4, Nghe An Police. Photo: Document

Suspecting that the styrofoam box was unusual, the Traffic Police contacted the People's Committee of Nam Thai Commune to coordinate in checking and clarifying. When opening the lid of the styrofoam box, it was discovered that it contained 30 kg of pig intestines that smelled bad and did not have the required inspection documents. The police handed it over to the functional unit of Nam Dan District to destroy it according to regulations.

In recent times, local police forces have continuously arrested cases related to dirty food and food of unknown origin transported through Nghe An... According to authorities, the closer it gets to New Year's Eve,Lunar New Yearand the holiday season, the problem is lostfood safety and hygienemore worrying. Mr. Pham Ngoc Quy - Head of the Department of Food Safety and Hygiene of Nghe An province said: Tet and the festival season is the time when the demand for food consumption increases dramatically and leads to many risks of food safety and hygiene. And at this time, violations of the law on food safety and hygiene also become more complicated, with many sophisticated tricks. For profit, the subjects have brought smuggled foods of unknown origin into the market and sold dirty food to consumers.

Some food production establishments use banned substances and food additives in excess of the permitted dosage; change packaging, labels, and expiration dates for food. Business establishments do not ensure one-way food production processes. People directly processing food do not meet the requirements according to regulations. In particular, many individual households that do not regularly participate in food production, processing, and trading now also participate on this occasion...

Inspection team checks safety assurance at food production, trading and processing establishments. Photo: Thanh Chung

With these dangers, food poisoning can happen at any time. Food poisoning can come from the following stages: First, during the breeding and growing process, producers use many plant protection chemicals and growth stimulants without following the proper procedures. These harmful factors exist for a long time in livestock and crops, causing poisoning to consumers. Second, during the circulation of food on the market, traders use and abuse food preservatives. Third, during the processing process, processors use many food additives and do not process properly, causing food to be exposed to microorganisms. Fourth, related to homemade wine and infused wine.

Strengthen inspection and control

To minimize the risk of food safety loss, on December 15, 2022, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Plan No. 895/KH-UBND on inter-sectoral inspection and examination of food safety in Nghe An province in 2023. The plan's objective is to strengthen food safety assurance in production, processing, trading, and importing food during peak periods, protecting consumers' health; tightening management and strictly handling violations of food safety.

Nghe An province's interdisciplinary inspection team inspects supermarkets during Lunar New Year. Photo: Thanh Chung

Through inspection, examination, timely detection and prevention of violations of food safety, not allowing unsafe food, food of unknown origin, smuggled food to circulate in the market; preventing and limiting food poisoning cases due to consumption of fake food, unsafe food, poor quality food, in order to improve the quality of health protection and care for the people.

The People's Committee of Nghe An province has also issued a Plan to implement food safety assurance work for the Lunar New Year and the 2023 Spring Festival season in Nghe An province. The plan was issued to minimize food poisoning cases during the Lunar New Year and the 2023 Spring Festival season; establish interdisciplinary inspection and examination teams from the provincial level to the commune, ward and town levels, focusing on product groups that are consumed a lot during the Tet and festivals and have high-risk factors, food processing craft villages, markets, border gates, especially food supply hubs. The plan implementation period is from December 23, 2022 to March 12, 2023.

There are 3 main activities deployed on this occasion, including interdisciplinary inspection, supervision and communication. For interdisciplinary inspection, Nghe An established interdisciplinary inspection teams from the provincial to communal levels, inviting representatives of the Fatherland Front at the same level to participate in inspection and supervision. For supervision, the Provincial People's Committee assigned departments, branches, localities and relevant agencies to proactively establish supervision teams to monitor food contamination risks according to assigned and decentralized fields, focusing mainly on items used a lot during the Lunar New Year and festivals such as meat and meat products, soft drinks, cakes, jams, candies, cereal products... to promptly warn of food safety risks.

People choose to buy food at supermarkets and markets. Photo: Duc Anh

Regarding communication activities, the Provincial People's Committee requests media agencies, organizations, and socio-political organizations from the provincial to communal levels to diversify appropriate forms and means of communication to disseminate the contents of the Law on Food Safety, legal documents on food safety, standards, technical regulations, regulations on food safety conditions and knowledge on food safety; promptly warn of food safety risks before, during and after Tet, as well as the 2023 Spring Festival season... Publicize on mass media about organizations and individuals violating regulations on ensuring food safety; widely propagate and actively encourage establishments, individuals, and addresses producing and trading safe food to consumers.

Based on the Plan of the Provincial People's Committee, at this time, functional departments, branches and localities have also developed and implemented plans to ensure food safety for the Lunar New Year of Quy Mao - Spring Festival season 2023 and established inspection teams to warn, deter and prevent illegal food production and trading.