Its Industry Agency will carry out the inspections at oil producing facilities with a focus on small-scale facilities that lack proper conditions or are exempt from food safety certification, VnExpress has learned.
The ministry has also instructed local market surveillance teams to intensify oversight of businesses in the industry.
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Cooking oil used to fry potatoes. Photo by Pexels/Wijs |
This follows a major crackdown by police in the northern Hung Yen Province on adulterated cooking oil made by Nhat Minh Food Production and Import-Export Co.
They found that the company imported seed oil for animal feed and labeled it as “OFOOD” and sold it as cooking oil.
The investigation found that tens of thousands of tons of fake cooking oil had sold, primarily to industrial kitchens, restaurants and food processing villages.
Seed oil used for animal feed does not meet food safety and hygiene standards and lacks nutritional value for human consumption, the Industry Agency said.
The ministry said Nhat Minh had submitted a self-declaration for its seed oil product, but it has not issued a food safety certificate.
However, it did not receive complaints from local authorities or other related agencies about the company’s production and sales of tainted cooking oil, it said.
It promised to get to the bottom of the issue to ensure there is no adverse impact on the food industry or consumer confidence.
In April 71,000 liters of cooking oil and 40 tons of fake monosodium glutamate (often known as MSG) were seized in Phu Tho. The products had been distributed through various channels, including social media and local markets in industrial zones.Authorities have recently uncovered multiple cases of substandard and adulterated food products.
Consuming unsafe food, besides diarrhea or poisoning, can also long-term health risks like liver and kidney damage and reproductive system disorders due to chemical or microbial contamination, and increase the pressure on the healthcare system.
Vietnam’s cooking oil market, with its annual demand of 1.5 million tons, is worth around VND30 trillion (US$1.15 billion).
