Many workers choose to go to the toad market for convenience
Present at the road in Bau village, Hau Duong village, Kim Chung commune on an afternoon in mid-June 2025, reporters noticed that the two sides of the road had a variety of foods, from meat, fish, seafood... to vegetables and fruits. Many snacking stores with many types of processed foods, such as: Chicken feet, grilled meat...
After finishing overtime, Ms. Do Thi Thom (a worker at Thang Long Industrial Park) stopped by a roadside shop to buy food for dinner. "I often buy food at the flea market for convenience. On the way home from work, I only need to stop by for 1-2 minutes to be able to buy everything for dinner" - Ms. Thom said. According to Ms. Thom, she only occasionally cooks for herself, mainly eating at the restaurant.
The female worker only bought 2 dishes: Sea fish and 1 batch of Malabar spinach. I didnt know if the food I bought was clean or not. For the Malabar spinach, I am sure it is not grown by sellers but by their imports. Sea fish must be preserved, it is easy to have chemical residue" - Ms. Thom said.
The female worker who is living alone shared that although she is not comfortable buying food at the market for workers, with her current low income as well as the favorable factors when traveling, she cannot afford to go to the supermarket with food with clear origins.
Mr. Pham Duy Dinh (residing in Nhue village, Kim Chung commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi) said that he often buys food at the village market. "To be honest, I bought food when I saw people buying food at the market, I didn't pay much attention to food safety. If others can eat it, I can eat it too" - Mr. Dinh said.
According to the male worker, when he went to the market, he found fresh, delicious meat, fish, vegetables... and bought them without paying attention to their origin, or researching whether there were chemical residues, pesticides, weight gain, etc. "The items here do not have labels of origin; it is impossible to know whether there are pesticide residues or not" - Mr. Dinh shared.
Occasionally, when his wife and children are away and alone, this worker from Phu Tho also eats popular meals outside the restaurant. Each portion of rice costs about 30,000 - 35,000 VND. "Just like buying food outside the restaurant, when eating at the restaurant, I can only pray for food safety and not affect my health, because I can't be sure if I can eat clean food" - Mr. Dinh said.
Selling people are uncertain about food safety
Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim (character's name has been changed) sells vegetables on Da Loc Street (Bau Village, Kim Chung Commune, Hanoi) said that she often sells some types of vegetables such as Malabar spinach, water spinach, squash, squash, watermelon, saltwater...
Ms. Kim said that she often takes vegetables from villagers to grow for sale. Although the supplier confirmed that the vegetables were safe, she admitted that she was not sure if the vegetables had pesticide residues when taken for sale. Her younger sister grows melons, the older sister sells them in salt and melon; tofu is imported from a production facility in Hau Duong village. The garlic product was imported by her from a unit specializing in supplying this product.
"We grow and make them only to know if the vegetables are guaranteed or not; but as at present, we cannot be sure about that if we buy food from others" - Ms. Kim said.
Meanwhile, many items are being sold right on the road. A cucumber seller said that she took the cucumbers from the villagers for 12,000 VND/kg. When the reporter expressed concern about whether the cucumber still has pesticide residues, a customer suggested soaking it in salt water before eating it to ensure safety.
At a shop, grilled skewers are sold for 10,000 VND/ksen. The seller said he took fresh pork from the meat shop next door. "The pigs are raised by local people, then the slaughterhouses buy them, then slaughter them, process them, and distribute them to retailers" - the store owner said. Thus, it is difficult for buyers to be sure that they can buy pork with 100% safety assurance.
A worker commented that buying food can only be done with the mentality of " may be lucky, may be risky", just hoping not to eat poor quality food in your daily meals, because the food is all purchased by traders, without labels to check and supervise.
