Imported meat to be tested on arrival
Imported meat in Vietnam will have to be quarantined in warehouses near border gates for testing starting October, animal health authorities said at a meeting Monday.
Until now, importers were allowed to transport the meat directly to their own premises.
Pham Xuan Binh, director of the Animal Health Center No.6 that is responsible for preventing animal diseases in nine provinces around Ho Chi Minh City, said the meat will be kept at the warehouses authorized by the customs for five to seven days at the maximum so that the firms do not have to pay excessive rent for storage.
If the meat does not meet safety and hygiene requirements, the firms will be fined instead of being cautioned, and they will also be forced to send the meat back or destroy them.
The requirements state that no salmonella is permitted but the firms told officials at a recent meeting that bacteria in animal products can only be gotten rid of when they are well cooked.
The Animal Health Department under the Ministry of Health said it will forward this problem to the ministry later.
Binh said his unit has not yet bought a refrigerated truck to carry the meat samples for testing.
“We’ve asked the ministry for one since July but it has not been approved yet, so we will still have to use the firms’ trucks to do it.”
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