Vietnam’s Law on Food Safety and Hygiene, which took effect July 1, is expected to help tighten control over fruit and vegetable imports.
The new law expected to help tighten control over fruit and vegetable imports
Under the law, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is responsible for managing quality of imported fruits and vegetables, with special attention paid to their origins.
But the law still leaves Vietnamese consumers somewhat confused over how to buy quality imported fruits.
Chinese fruits shell game
Dozens of tonnes of Chinese fruits are imported to Vietnam every day over the border at Tan Thanh, in the northern province of Lang Son, while hundreds of tonnes of vegetables cross the border at Lao Cai.
According to MARD, Vietnam has been importing 27 types of fruits from China.
This has led to confusion among Vietnamese consumers concerning the quality and origins of imported fruits, said the National Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Quality Assurance Department.
In order to ensure better quality control of imported agricultural products, Vietnam and China agreed to a programme for checking the exact origins of these products in both countries.
To date, all Chinese traders have strictly complied to the regulations on packaging and labels for fruit exports to Vietnam.
These labels can even be seen in Hanoi’s Long Bien market, said head of the Tan Thanh Flora Assurance Station.
However, when the products arrive in Vietnam, traders deliberately switch the Chinese labels with other ones, such as New Zealand, Thailand or the U.S.
The MARD official admitted that they are facing difficulties in managing the quality of imported fruits and vegetables due to the ambiguity of current regulations. They hope that the new Law on Food Safety and Hygiene will help to solve the problem.
Uninformed consumers
In accordance with current regulations, both importers and exporters, to and from Vietnam, must register their product\'s origins.
Unloading imported Chinese fruits for wholesale
According to an anonymous official of one importing company, a firm with a certificate to import grapes from the U.S. could mix in Chinese fruits, and then label it as coming from the United States.
He added that falsifying import stamps from other countries is not difficult, and that consumers should not rely on them as a guarantee of quality.
Nguyen Xuan Hai, Director of Klever Limited Company said that, in order for consumers to be sure they are buying good quality fruits and vegetables, they should take into account other details, such as packaging and certificates of quarantine, in addition to the label identifying the products\' origin.
