Many Vietnamese Legislators Willing to Supervise Food Safety, Hygiene

Four Vietnamese state agencies and 33 provincial delegations in the country’s legislative body National Assembly (NA) have expressed their willingness to participate in the parliament’s supervision program on food safety and hygiene amid increasing social concern on the issue, state media has reported. The news was unveiled at the legislative session on July 25 on food safety and hygiene of the ongoing first session of the parliament in the 14th tenure. Food safety and hygiene is one of key issues under the parliament’s supervision program for the 2016-2021 period. According to the NA’s Standing Committee, majority of Vietnamese are concerned about increasing violations of food safety and hygiene, including abuse of toxic pesticides in crop cultivation and banned antibiotics and harmful substances in livestock husbandry and food processing. Many food processors have been used banned substance in their production of foodstuffs and beverages, legislators said. Due to rampant sale of foodstuff and beverage products contaminated with toxic chemicals and microorganisms, Vietnam’s number of people affected from cancers has risen to 150,000 yearly and expected to rise further to 200,000 cases a year by 2020. The Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development and Industry and Trade are assigned to control food safety and hygiene, but any of them are responsible for violations in the field, the NA’s Standing Committee said. The overlapping responsibilities and lack of coordination between state agencies are the main causes for the problem, the committee noted. Vietnam is an exporter of farm produce and the violations of food safety and hygiene will affect the country’s shipments of agricultural products abroad, along with protecting the local consumers’ health, it added. (vneconomy.vn July 25)