On June 22, information from Thanh Hoa Provincial Police said that the Economic Police Department of the Provincial Police had inspected and verified information reflecting on the abandonment of a series of packaging packaging for fish sauce bottles, causing bad public opinion, affecting the reputation of traditional local products.
The inspection results showed that these products were produced at Thanh Hoa Seafood Processing Joint Stock Company, with an office address at 149 Le Lai, Dong Son Ward, Thanh Hoa City; the factory is located in Hoa Loc Commune, Hau Loc District. The legal representative is Mr. Le Hung Quang (born in 1979, residing in Nong Cong district, Thanh Hoa province).
According to Mr. Quang, in 2023, the company signed a contract to supply about 2,000 bottles of fish sauce (worth 40 million VND) to Phuong Nhi fish sauce business establishment in Quang Nam. Due to slow consumption, in early 2024, this establishment proposed to return the goods. The company has received a portion of the product and refunded about 20 million VND. The company was not notified and its inventory status was unclear.
In early 2025, the owner of Phuong Nhi continued to contact to request the remaining amount but did not mention the inventory. When the incident happened on the evening of June 18 - people in Phuoc Loc village (Tam Thai commune, Phu Ninh district) discovered thousands of fish sauce bottles thrown on the side of the road - Mr. Quang said that the facility still kept a large quantity of products. He contacted the agency many times but did not receive any response from the agency.
At the inspection of the factory in Hoa Loc, Mr. Quang provided complete legal documents including: Certificate of business registration issued by the Department of Planning and Investment of Thanh Hoa province; Certificate of food safety management system No. 080/FSMS of the Department of Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Quality Management.
The factory has 4 areas: operation area, processing - packaging area, fish sauce tank area and storage area. Currently, only 5/72 salt tanks are in operation. The production area is noted for being clean and air-conditioned. In addition, behind the factory, there are about 70 bottles of fish sauce packed in cardboard trays, with a note "use-done items waiting to be processed". According to Mr. Quang, this is a recalled or on display, waiting to be handed over to a competent unit for handling according to regulations.
Since April 2025, the company has temporarily stopped producing fish sauce to study a new business direction and has not produced any more batches since then.
According to the authorities, it is likely that the number of products thrown away was handled by the distributor without permission, not by the manufacturer. Thanh Hoa Provincial Police are continuing to coordinate with relevant agencies to clarify responsibilities.
Previously, as reported by Lao Dong Newspaper, on the evening of June 18, people in Phuoc Loc village, Tam Thai commune, Phu Ninh district, Quang Nam province discovered thousands of bottles of fish sauce and dipping sauce thrown away in the bushes along the main Phu Ninh canal.
Immediately afterwards, Quang Nam Provincial Police and Tam Thai Commune Police coordinated with the Market Management Department (Quang Nam Provincial Department of Industry and Trade) to make a record and collect the products to the Tam Thai Commune Police headquarters for counting and serving the investigation.
