Hanoi Department of Health said: On January 2, Hanoi City's Interdisciplinary Food Safety Inspection Team No. 1 inspected food safety assurance for Tet at the Nguyen Ninh traditional green rice cake production facility (address 11 Hang Than, Ba Dinh District).
At the time of inspection, Nguyen Ninh green rice cake production facility had 5 production workers and 1 facility owner. Through the actual inspection, inspection team No. 1 discovered a series of food safety violations at this facility.
According to information from the Hanoi Department of Health, the inspection team discovered that the production area of the facility was used in the family kitchen, without separate areas, arranged in a messy manner and seriously degraded. The floor in the kitchen area was peeling, moldy, the drains were open, and there was garbage stagnation...
Entering inside, the inspection team also discovered clothes being hung to dry right in the production area.
More notably, "the processing and preparation tools used in production are dirty due to lack of regular cleaning. The toilet area is located right in the processing and preparation area. Insects and animal feces were also found in the production area" - information from the Hanoi Department of Health emphasized.
Because the facility is cramped and has no storage, the sacks of dried rice ingredients are stacked right at the entrance to the kitchen, near the moldy wall area...
Upon inspection, the facility was unable to present health certificates and confirmation of food safety training for the facility owner and 5 employees; and was unable to present documents proving the origin of all raw materials, food additives, and packaging that directly contact food.
In addition, the label of the green rice cake product is not consistent with the product declaration and is not in compliance with product labeling regulations.
Based on the above violations, inspection team No. 1 requested the facility to temporarily suspend operations to immediately correct the shortcomings. At the same time, the Ba Dinh District Food Safety Steering Committee was assigned to continue working to handle the violations and report the results to interdisciplinary inspection team No. 1 before January 10, 2025.
The inspection team also took two samples of cakes, including green rice cakes and xu xe cakes, to test for quality standards.
Previously, the Hanoi People's Committee decided to establish 4 interdisciplinary food safety inspection teams during the 2025 Tet holiday, of which 3 teams are headed by leaders of the Departments of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Industry and Trade, and 1 team is headed by the leader of the City Market Management Department.
The inspection focuses on establishments producing, processing, trading, importing food, unit markets, supermarkets, shopping malls, food service establishments, street food businesses, focusing on establishments producing, trading, importing food items used a lot during Tet At Ty and festivals such as: Meat, meat products, beer, wine, alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, cakes, jams, candies, vegetables, tubers, fruits, food additives, food service establishments...
Nguyen Ninh green rice cake is a traditional delicacy loved by many Hanoians and tourists visiting the capital.
This is also a typical item used in many formal occasions such as engagement ceremonies, weddings, celebrations and is chosen as a special gift for friends and relatives on business trips or visiting relatives.
This brand is even honored as "the quintessence of Hanoi's green rice cake" because it is over 150 years old. Nguyen Ninh's cake shop on Hang Than Street is also a check-in point for many tourists when coming to Hanoi.
The price of each cake at this establishment is from 6,000 to 8,000 VND.
The discovery by authorities of a series of food safety violations at the Nguyen Ninh green rice cake production facility has made many consumers angry and concerned.
