JavaScript is off. Please enable to view full site.

Japanese company decries cumbersome sampling of seafood imports into Vietnam

Japanese company decries cumbersome sampling of seafood imports into Vietnam

Thursday, March 15, 2018, 20:00 GMT+7

A Japanese food importer in Vietnam has called for improvements to the current procedures for sampling imports, which places a burden on companies with a clean record.

Taking samples of every import is wasteful and unnecessary, especially when it involves companies that has never failed a test, the complaint said.

Ho Chi Minh City-based Lotus Group, a Japan-invested company specializing in food imports and restaurant franchising, mentioned Vietnam’s red tape in food import inspection on Wednesday during a meeting with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).

The company said it imports an average of 50 kilograms of fresh seafood every two days to supply its Japanese restaurants in Vietnam.

Despite passing every inspection with flying colors, a Lotus Group representative said the company has been subject to sampling for each of its shipments, without exception.

“A restaurant-quality fish weighs about five kilograms. By taking away one kilogram for sampling, authorities make an entire fish nearly unusable,” the representative said.

“For importers with a clean record, sampling should be less frequent,” he suggested.

According to the representative, even in Japan, companies with a good history of following food safety regulations are subject to only one random sampling each year.

Not only is food inspection in Vietnam more frequent, it also takes longer, a JETRO official pointed out.

Inspection of imported meat can take up to a full week to complete, while vegetables take four days to be sampled and cleared.

This process raises the costs of preserving the items in cold storage, while also reducing the quality of the food, the JETRO official explained.

Despite such lenghthy inspections, dirty food remains an unresolved issue in Vietnam, where thousands fall ill every year from food poisoning, according to Ministry of Health figures.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!

TUAN SON / TUOI TRE NEWS

More

Read more

;

VIDEOS

‘Taste of Australia’ gala dinner held in Ho Chi Minh City after 2-year hiatus

Taste of Australia Gala Reception has returned to the Park Hyatt Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City's District 1 after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Vietnamese woman gives unconditional love to hundreds of adopted children

Despite her own immense hardship, she has taken in and cared for hundreds of orphans over the past three decades.

Latest news

NASA delays crewed lunar landing to 2027

The United States is pushing back its planned return to the moon from 2026 to 'mid-2027' as it deals with heat shield issues and other troubles plaguing its Orion crew capsule, NASA officials said Thursday