Patties Food Co. has yet to export to Vietnam
Nguyen Xuan Hong, director of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's plant protection department, said suspect frozen berries from China’s Patties Food Co. have yet to enter Vietnam.
Australian authorities have requested a recall on frozen berries by Patties Food, which are sold in that country under the brand names "Nanna’s Frozen Mixed Berries" and "Creative Gourmet Mixed Berries".
Hong said substandard water used during the processing of the fruits in China was believed to be contaminated with Hepatits-A, or the virus may have entered through substandard processing and packing processes.
The Plant Protection Department ordered its border quarantine agencies, notably at Cat Lai Port in HCM City, to scrutinise all frozen fruit imports from China.
Vietnam imported 125 tonnes of frozen fruit from China last year, and imports since the start of 2015 are estimated at 35 tonnes.. All the frozen fruit was for food processing, not direct consumption, as was the case in Australia.
“No packed frozen fruits branded Nanna’s Frozen Mixed Berries or Creative Gourmet Berries have been found in Vietnam, and we have confirmed Parties Food Co does not export to Vietnam,” Hong said.
Up to 450,000 people across Australian may have eaten the contaminated frozen berries, but medical authorities there cannot say how widespread the problem is due to the long incubation period of the virus.
