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Ho Chi Minh City Mandates Strict Food Origin Traceability for Markets and Stores
๐Ÿ‡ป๐Ÿ‡ณ Vietnam /Economy & Trade

Ho Chi Minh City Mandates Strict Food Origin Traceability for Markets and Stores

From Tuแป•i Trแบป · () Vietnamese

Translated from Vietnamese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Ho Chi Minh City will mandate supermarkets, convenience stores, and wholesale markets to only accept goods with verifiable origin information.
  • The city aims to enhance food safety control and traceability, particularly for produce sold in markets and supermarkets.
  • Current traceability efforts for fruits and vegetables remain inconsistent, with many vendors relying on manual records and general invoices.

Ho Chi Minh City is set to tighten its grip on food safety by mandating that all supermarkets, convenience stores, and wholesale markets exclusively accept products with traceable origin information. This initiative aims to bolster the city's control over food safety and significantly enhance the traceability of goods.

While Ho Chi Minh City has had traceability systems in place for years, their implementation has been inconsistent, especially for fruits and vegetables. Many markets and even some supermarkets still struggle with comprehensive traceability. Experts emphasize the need for synchronized solutions, including policy support and greater consumer involvement, to make traceability efforts truly effective.

It's very difficult to trace the origin in detail now, because in reality, the sellers I buy from also collect goods from many farmers. They take a little from each place, mix it, and send it down here.

โ€” Mr. HongA vendor at the Hoc Mon wholesale market explains the difficulty in tracing the origin of produce due to consolidated sourcing from multiple small farmers.

At the Hoc Mon wholesale market, a major hub for produce, traceability for fruits and vegetables remains a significant concern. While pork products have detailed tracking via leg tags, other items often rely on basic manual records and general invoices. One vendor noted that consolidating produce from multiple small farmers makes detailed tracing difficult, with invoices sometimes not accurately reflecting the quantities received.

Compounding the issue, over 150 unofficial selling points operate around the Hoc Mon market, lacking proper oversight. Many vendors in these areas are reluctant to provide information about their goods' origins. A similar situation exists at the Thu Duc agricultural wholesale market, where despite a large volume of produce, traceability is fragmented, with many traders using handwritten logs and vague invoices, making it challenging to pinpoint exact product origins.

Although the origin information has improved to meet tax obligations under new regulations, detailed traceability is impossible.

โ€” Ms. N. ThuyA long-time trader at the Thu Duc market comments on the limitations of detailed traceability despite improvements for tax purposes.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Tuแป•i Trแบป in Vietnamese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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