To tighten food safety management during the Lunar New Year and festive season

In order to protect people's health, prevent food poisoning during the Lunar New Year and Spring Festival 2023, Binh Duong Provincial Steering Committee for Food Safety had a plan to promptly inspect and timely prevent the production and trading of fake and poor-quality food, minimizing food poisoning cases. Inspection activities are planned to last from now until the end of March 2023.

To inspect with defined focuses

Inspection with defined focuses is the task set by Provincial Department of Health for Provincial Food Safety and Hygiene Office on occasion of the Lunar New Year and Spring Festival 2023. Accordingly, Department of Health directed Provincial Food Safety and Hygiene Office to collaborate with relevant units to strengthen inspection of food safety in collective kitchens, restaurants, hotels, street food in the province, limiting the number of large food poisoning cases.

Retailers sell clean, stamped meat at Thu Dau Mot market.

Nguyen Van Dat, Director of Provincial Food Safety and Hygiene Office, said that during the Lunar New Year and Spring Festival 2023, this unit has coordinated with the agriculture, industry and trade branches to conduct inspection of items currently being consumed by many people. Typical products, such as meat products, beer, wine, alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, biscuits, jams, candies, vegetables, food additives... and catering business establishments; to focus on controlling production and import hubs, wholesale markets, trade centers, supermarkets, conventional markets, slaughterhouses and food transporters; at the same time, strictly control smuggling activities, commercial fraud, counterfeit goods, goods of unsatisfactory quality, expiry date, unknown origin.

“During the inspection, the interdisciplinary inspection team combined well with the communication and education on food safety knowledge and laws, raising public awareness of food safety. These activities will be implemented before, during, after the Lunar New Year and the Spring Festival 2023, ensure to be on schedule according to the direction of the Central Interagency Steering Committee on Food Safety," said Dat.

According to Dat, in addition to inspecting products, the provincial interdisciplinary inspection team will also inspect food production and business facilities. Inspection criteria were the compliance with the law on food safety; production, processing and food safety conditions of food service business establishments; quality and safety of food products, origin; register for the publication or self-announcement of products, labeling and advertising; taking samples for testing… During the inspection, detected violations will be handled strictly.

Establish inspection teams along three lines

Currently, Provincial Steering Committee for Food Safety is establishing teams at three levels: provincial, district and commune levels. Accordingly, Department of Health cooperates with the agriculture, industry and trade branches, and Provincial Market Management Department to set up interdisciplinary and specialized inspection teams to check food safety, food production and business establishments according to state management decentralization.  Department of Health inspects food establishments, restaurants and bars; ensure food safety for events, festivals and conferences in the province during Tet holiday. Department of Agriculture and Rural Development inspects wholesale markets, cold storage of agricultural products, slaughterhouses… Department of Industry and Trade and Department of Market Management inspect shops, supermarkets, commercial centers, markets... In parallel with province-level activities, 9 districts, towns, cities, and 91 communes, wards and townships also established inspection teams to check street food businesses.

Huynh Minh Chin, Deputy Director of Provincial Department of Health, said that Department of Health is the standing agency of the Provincial Steering Committee for Food Safety. The Department is strengthening monitoring and receiving information on food contamination and food poisoning; issues warning of food contamination risk; promptly organizes emergency, investigate, handle food poisoning, and coordinate with relevant agencies in handling food safety issues related to people's health. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall coordinate with relevant departments and branches in investigating and handling food poisoning; step up the prevention and control of diseases in animal husbandry and cultivation; manage and control livestock and poultry slaughter and specialized activities related to food safety in agriculture and rural development. District-level Food Safety Steering Committees direct health offices, economic offices, medical center, departments, mass organizations and commune-level Food Safety Steering Committee to implement fully food safety assurance activities before, during and after the Lunar New Year.

Currently, Department of Industry and Trade and Provincial Department of Market Management are collaborating with relevant departments and agencies to closely inspect and monitor the quality of alcohol, so that alcohol products of unknown origin and no labels are not allowed to circulate on the market during the Lunar New Year. In addition, these units also assign staff to investigate and handle food poisoning (if any). Along with that, as a standing unit of the Provincial Steering Committee for Food Safety, Department of Health directed Provincial Food Safety and Hygiene Office to coordinate with relevant units to enhance food safety inspection at the collective kitchens, restaurants, hotels, street food, limiting the occurrence of large food poisoning cases.

Reported by Hoang Linh - Translated by Ngoc Huynh

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