VATIS UPDATE Article

According to a recent Viet Namese Health Ministry-drafted decree, a food production and trading establishment must be large enough for installing food production lines and facilitating food transportation. The draft, which sets conditions for food production, trading, advertising and testing, and designation of organizations in charge of regulation conformity certification or food safety inspection for imported food products managed by the Ministry of Health, requires food production areas neither to be submerged or stagnated by water, nor to be contaminated by harmful animals, insects or microorganisms.

Moreover, equipment and tools in direct contact with food must be safe and made of materials not causing food pollution. They must also be easy to clean, sterilize and maintain. The establishment must have sufficient facilities for workers to wash their hands and sanitize their boots and shoes before they enter the food production area. A food production workshop must have at least one hand sink per 50 workers. Establishment owners and workers directly engaged in food production must acquire a certificate on training in food safety knowledge. They must obtain a health certificate issued by a district- or higher-level health establishment.