Vietnam Ministry Urges to Check China-imported Fruits for Safety Violations

Public concerns have been raised after the news of exported Chinese fruits to Australia causing hepatitics A. Accordingly, the Department of Plant Protection under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development just received a document from Australian authorities about 13 Australians falling ill with Hepatitis A after eating a batch of frozen mixed product imported from China. The Department was asked to verify the news. According to the initial verification, frozen imported fruits into Australia are planted in Chile and packed in China and distributed in Australia by Patties Foods Company. Food Administration of Vietnam asked the Department of Plant Protection to re-check and to plan measures to control related products. Nguyen Xuan Hong, chief of the Department of Plant Protection, confirmed that after receiving the information from the Australian authorities and the document of the Food Administration his department has ordered all quarantine stations especially these in Northern border crossings to re-check all Chinese imported fruits into the country. In a talk with reporters of the Sai Gon Giai Phong newspaper, head of the Quarantine Station in section 7 in the northern provinces of Cao Bang and Lang Son Nguyen Thi Ha said that no Chinese-imported fruits violating the food safety regulation were found. Meantime, Nguyen Xuan Hong affirmed that Vietnam has not imported mentioned-above toxic fruits. (www.saigon-gpdaily.com.vn Feb 25)