Nearly 1,320 tons of meat contaminated with Salmonella before being imported into Vietnam
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in the first 7 months of 2024, Vietnam imported over 450 thousand tons of meat and animal by-products for food, an increase of 6.4% (for meat products alone, it reached over 320 thousand tons, an increase of over 40%) over the same period in 2023.
However, from the effective date of Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT (May 16, 2024) to September 25, 2024, a total of 55 batches tested positive for Salmonella out of a total of 6,679 batches tested for Salmonella, accounting for nearly 1%.
Thus, if Salmonella testing is not performed, a large amount (over 1,319 tons) of animal meat contaminated with Salmonella will be imported into Vietnam, posing a very high risk of causing epidemics, food insecurity, and affecting the health of Vietnamese consumers.
Import quarantine for negative batches is carried out within 1-3 days; only about 1% of positive batches of animal products need to be isolated and cultured for confirmation, which takes 5-6 working days in accordance with current legal regulations.
Does Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT cause difficulties in importing?
Regarding the issuance of Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT causing difficulties for import, the Department of Animal Health held meetings with the Agricultural Counselor and officials of the Embassies of Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and Canada. These countries all confirmed that there were no major problems.
However, some Agricultural Counselors from the United States, Brazil, Singapore, France, Korea, Spain, Denmark, the Netherlands, etc. expressed concern about the issuance of Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT, which makes it difficult for countries to import meat, and requested to discuss and clarify regulations on quarantine of animals and terrestrial animal products.
In response to this request, on June 27, 2024, the Office of Notification and National Enquiry Point on Epidemiology and Animal and Plant Quarantine of Vietnam (SPS Vietnam) held a meeting with the US side at the WTO headquarters and invited the Director of the Department of Animal Health, Department of International Cooperation (to attend the online meeting) to discuss and answer questions from the US side.
The Department of Animal Health affirmed that the issuance of Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT complied with international law and did not cause difficulties for import enterprises in the recent past.
From the time the Circular takes effect until the end of 1 month of implementation, countries exported 59,461 tons of meat and meat products to Vietnam, equivalent to the same period in 2023 (60,516 tons of meat and meat products) and equivalent to April 2024 (60,525 tons of meat and meat products).
Thus, up to now, the implementation of Circular No. 04/2024/TT-BNNPTNT has not affected the quantity of animal products from countries exporting to Vietnam.
Domestically, businesses and associations have made recommendations to the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on strict control of imported goods to protect domestic livestock and the health of domestic consumers.
Typically, CJ Group sent the Prime Minister in Official Dispatch No. 24/2024/CV-CJ, in which it proposed to issue "Technical barriers in trade defense, restricting the import of unwanted food and livestock products into Vietnam".
Domestic livestock associations also sent documents to the Prime Minister and the Chairman of the National Assembly; the National Assembly Standing Committee and relevant ministries and branches on strict control of imported goods, similar to regulations on quarantine of animals and domestic livestock products, protecting the health of animals and consumers.
