According to the decree, the highest fine will be VND100million (US$4,700) instead of VND30 million ($1,400) as regulated in Decree 45issued in 2005. Depending on the level of breaches, violators can have theirfood safety and hygiene certifications withdrawn and processing equipmentconfiscated.
The decree also regulates that people using meat or meat products which are notquarantined to make other products will be fined VND3-5 million ($140-240). Peopleusing unsafe materials or materials with unclear origins to process food willbe fined VND10-15 million ($470-710). The fine of VND20-40 million ($950-1,900)will be imposed on people using poisonous additives to process food.
A higher fine of VND30-50 million ($1,400-2,380), willbe imposed on people using banned materials. They can also have their foodsafety and hygiene certificates withdrawn if they repeat their violation.
According to uncompleted statistics of the Viet Nam Food Administration, nearly80,000 food enterprises across the country, making up nearly 30 per cent of thetotal, were discovered to have violated food safety and hygiene regulationsthis year. However, Tran Thu Cuc, owner of the Thu Cuc Food ProcessingEnterprise in Ha Noi's Hoang Mai District, said imposing the fine of VND100million (US$4,700) for all people was not reasonable.
“It's a small money for a big enterprise but a huge amount of money forsmall ones,” she said.
There should be different fine levels for different producer sizes, said Cuc.
Meanwhile, Nguyen Minh Hai, owner of the Minh Hai Food Processing Company inDong Anh District, said high fines were a good measure to bring substandardfood processing enterprises into line.
Some enterprises sold unsafe and unhygienic food which affected the reputationsof other companies, Hai said. The decree will be put into effect on December25. VNS