Seminar eyes food safety; mislabeled milk found

Hanoi (VNA) - Small-scale production and inadequate definition of responsibility between ministries, agencies and localities were hampering food hygiene and safety, a seminar in Hanoi was told on Feb. 24.

National Fisheries Quality Assurance and Veterinary Directorate deputy director Dr
Nguyen Nhu Tiep also said: "The number of properly-qualified laboratories and modern
facilities is limited, as is the number of enterprises following safety
regulations."

Those enterprises that follow the regulations focused on fish produce and
vegetables, he said.

Tiep, who was addressing a Coordination Meeting with donors and projects supporting
food safety in Vietnam , said regulations, norms and standards to deal with
violations of food-safety law were urgently required.

"Awareness among state management agencies, particularly at the local level, about
the impact of food safety on public health and trade is poor," said he. So too is
awareness among producers and businessmen about their social responsibilities for
food safety while their technical knowledge was limited.

Seminar participants, who included representatives of non-government organisations
and project donors, attempt to identify duplication and gaps in the food-safety
regime.

The delegates agreed that more supervision and inspection was required to ensure
producers follow the principles of food safety and sanitation throughout the food
chain.

They also agreed to clarify the responsibilities of ministries and agencies; improve
food-safety awareness among managers, farmers, entrepreneurs and consumers; upgrade
food-processing factories and increase monitoring and testing.-Enditem