However, food safety violations are still complicated, causing worry and indignation in society. The main reason is that many localities have not paid enough attention and focus to food safety management, detecting violations late and failing to handle them in a timely manner...

In order to raise responsibility, enhance the effectiveness of state management and create a positive shift in the work of managing and ensuring food safety, the Prime Minister requested Ministers, heads of agencies at the ministerial level, agencies belonging to the Government, and Chairmen of provincial and centrally governed municipal People's Committees to carry out their food safety management responsibilities fully and seriously and to bear accountability to the Prime Minister for fulfilling the duties assigned to them.

Unscheduled inspections of food safety

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc requested the Ministers of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade to strengthen inspection and supervision work, especially unscheduled inspection and supervision of food safety for the product categories assigned to them, to strictly manage materials related to food safety, and to promptly resolve food safety incidents; to handle within their authority or recommend strict handling of collectives and individuals that violate the law and of agencies and officials that lack responsibility and relax food safety management.

The Ministry of Public Security directed the professional forces and the local police to keep a firm grasp of the situation on key routes and in key areas regarding food safety violations, and to investigate and criminally handle serious violations in the field of food safety in accordance with the law.

Before 20/5/2016, the Ministry of Finance is to submit to the Prime Minister a funding plan for food safety management work, in a direction that allows localities to use the entire amount of administrative fines for food safety violations, and only to allocate additional funding from the state budget to meet the requirements of this work when it is truly urgent, especially funding for inspection, testing, technical equipment, and the handling and destruction of unsafe food; organizations and individuals that violate the law must pay the cost of handling and destroying unsafe food.

In the immediate term, 90% of the central budget expenditure estimate already allocated for food safety projects under the Health and Population Target Programme has been advanced, so that ministries, sectors and localities can carry out food safety assurance tasks in 2016.

Resolutely handle officials who relax food safety management

The Prime Minister requested the People's Committees at all levels to take responsibility for ensuring food hygiene and safety within their areas; to identify ensuring food hygiene and safety as an urgent task requiring focused direction and administration; and to prioritize allocating sufficient funding and resources for the work of managing and ensuring food safety, and in the immediate term, proactively to allocate funding corresponding to the administrative penalty revenues from food safety violations collected into the local budget in accordance with the Law on State Budget, to invest in technical equipment and in inspection, testing, and the handling and destruction of unsafe food.

Chairmen of higher-level People's Committees must directly direct and regularly urge and inspect the compliance with food safety laws of lower-level state agencies; and resolutely handle officials and public servants who lack responsibility and relax management. Leaders at all levels, from commune to province, must bear responsibility when food safety violations occur within their areas.

Developing a safe food distribution system

Under the Prime Minister's direction, localities shall publicize and call on every farming household, farm owner and business to comply with food hygiene and safety regulations and to sign commitments to ensure food hygiene and safety. Organizations and individuals engaged in production and trading must publicly disclose their production and business processes that ensure food safety and hygiene. Ensuring food safety must be a criterion in building new rural areas and cultural residential areas.

Focus on directing the establishment and development of raw material areas for the production of safe agricultural and food products; promote the widespread application of the VietGAP model and other safe production models and develop a safe food distribution system.

Localities shall invest in mobile or fixed testing equipment at trading centres and large agricultural markets, guide and help the public identify safe food and unsafe food, and make full use of the capacity of the local testing centres.

Intensify publicity and mobilization for food safety implementation

The Prime Minister requested news agencies, first and foremost the central and provincial and municipal news agencies, to increase news reports, columns, specialized pages and programmes on food safety; and to provide objective, honest and timely information and publicity about safe food, especially exemplary models of safe food production, processing and distribution, as well as food safety violations.

Vietnam Television will continue to work closely with the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade to effectively carry out the food safety communication programme.

Vietnam Radio urgently needs to build and broadcast a dedicated food safety section; and to coordinate with local radio and television stations to increase the volume of food safety information, with particular attention to publicity through the grassroots broadcast system.

The Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, Industry and Trade, Public Security, the Border Guard and localities shall have appropriate mechanisms (such as hotlines) to receive reports from the public and the press about food safety violations and to handle them strictly and promptly; and shall have forms of recognition and reward for individuals who detect and provide information about the production and trading of unsafe food.

Ensuring the safety of fresh food products

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc requested focused direction to create clear changes in 2016 in ensuring safety and hygiene for fresh food products and for food products used in the daily lives of the people.

The Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the national 389 Steering Board, and the customs, border guard and market management forces, together with localities, shall strengthen their forces and increase inspection, control, prevention and strict handling of the smuggling, circulation and trading of fresh food products that are unsafe or of unclear origin.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall strengthen management to prevent counterfeit and low-quality alcoholic beverages and soft drinks, smuggling and commercial fraud in circulation and trading; and ensure food safety and hygiene at markets, supermarkets and shopping centres.

The Prime Minister requested the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade to issue lists of prohibited substances in the production and processing of food within the product categories they manage and to coordinate with the state management agency for each substance to include it in the list of substances requiring special control; and to focus on eliminating the use of sabutamol, carbendazim and antibiotics in livestock farming, food production and processing.

The Ministry of Health shall tighten the management of the production, trading and import of functional foods, preservatives and food additives, and shall direct localities to ensure food hygiene and safety in food and drink, street food and collective kitchens at industrial parks, tourist areas, festivals and large events.

Phan Hiển