Conditions to ensure food safety for food traders in Vietnam

Conditions to ensure food safety for food traders in Vietnam

This text presents regulations on conditions to ensure food safety for food traders of functional foods,  micro-nutrients-fortified food, food additives, and food  processing aids in Vietnam.

I. Conditions to ensure food safety for food traders in Vietnam

1. Physical foundations, equipment, tools and persons directly engaged in the trading in functional food, micro-nutrient-fortified food, food additives and food processing aids must comply with the following requirements:

a) Requirements for food traders in Vietnam:

i. Having sufficient area to arrange zones of food showing and sale, zones of containing, preservation and being convenient to transport materials, food products.
ii.Not being flooded, stagnant.
iii.Not being affected by animals, insects, and harmful microorganisms;
iv.Food safety not being affected from areas polluted by dust, toxic chemicals and other source causing pollution.
v.Design of zones for food business, sanitation, dressing and undressing protective clothing and auxiliary zones must be separate, suitable to requirement of business food.
vi.Structure of houses of zones are solid, suitable to nature, scale of food business; being built by materials which are suitable and assurance of hygiene, prevented from harmful microorganisms, destruction, penetration and habitation of insects, animals.
vii.Floor is flat, smooth; with hard surface, load supporting, abrasion-proof, and good drainage, not cause slipperiness, not stagnant and easy to clean.
viii.Ceiling is flat, bright color, made of solid materials, not leaked, water-permeable, not cracked, no moss, mold, not stagnant, not adhered by dirty substances and easy to clean;
ix.Doors, windows are smooth, flat, convenient to clean; necessary places must have protection grid to avoid from penetration of insects, harmful animals.
x.Light source, light intensity must ensure comply with provision; lamps should be shielded safely.
xi.The air ventilation system is suitable to requirement of food preservation, ensure ventilation in zones.
xii.Having sufficient tools to collect waste; tools are made of materials which not be corrupted much, ensure be closed, with lids and be cleaned regularly.
xiii.The sanitation zones of facility must be arranged to separate with food business zones; gates of restrooms are not open through the food preservation zones; at least, it must have 01 (one) restroom for 25 persons; having sufficient clean water in conformity with National technical regulation (QCVN) on clean water No.02:2009/BYT, having tools, soap, detergents for sanitation and washing hands; having instruction board “Washing hands after going to the toilet” at an apparent position.
xiv.Having sufficient clean water for sanitary of equipment, tools, and sanitary of facility and in conformity with National technical regulation (QCVN) on quality of living water No.02:2009/BYT;
xv.The business food must have clear origin, not been expired.

b)Requirement for equipment, tools

i.Having sufficient equipment for business operation, preservation which are suitable to requirement of each type of food (shelves, cupboard displaying product, equipment to control temperature, humidity, air ventilation in zones of containing, displaying and sale, preserving food); having regulation on process, hygiene mode for facility.
ii.Having sufficient equipment to control temperature, humidity, air ventilation and elements effecting food safety at the technical request of each type of food product during the course of food business operation.
iii.Equipment of insect and harmful animal prevention and fighting are not rusted, easy to disassembly to maintain and clean, designs ensure effective operation in insect and harmful animal prevention and fighting; not to use drugs, animals in order to destroy rats, insects in food business and preservation zones.
iv.Equipment, tools for product quality and safety supervision, measurement must ensure accuracy and be maintained, tested periodically as prescribed.

c)Requirements for person directly performing food business

i.Owner of facility and persons directly performing food business must be trained and granted certificate of training knowledge on food safety as prescribed.
ii.Owner of facility and managers contacting directly with food and persons directly performing food business must be examined health and granted certificate of good health as prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health. The health examination is performed by medicine facilities of district level or equal or higher level.
iii.Persons getting illness or diseases in list of contagious illness or diseases to which employees are not permitted to directly contact in the course of food business operation prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health shall not permitted to directly take part in the course of food business operation.
iv.Persons, who directly operating food business, must wear separate protective clothing; not smoke, spit in the food business zones

2. Functional food, micro-nutrient-fortified food, food additive and food processing aid materials and products traded at establishments must comply with national technical regulations and food safety regulations of competent agencies and have not yet passed their shelf lives. Traders must keep books, contracts, invoices and documents on the sale and purchase of such materials and products so as to assure traceability of traded food.

3.Clean water sources for washing, equipment and tools and personal hygiene at establishments must undergo quality and hygiene inspection at least once every year. 

II.Safety conditions in food preservation

1. Physical foundations and equipment for preservation of food materials, food additives, food processing aids, food preservatives and food products must comply with the following requirements:

a)Raw materials, wrappings, finished food must be preserved in containing zones, separate storehouses, with an area that is enough large to preserve food; designed in conformity with requirement on preservation, delivery of each type of food and food raw materials; building materials contacting with food ensure safety.
b)The food storehouse must ensure reliable, safety, ventilation, east to clean and prevent from penetration and habitation of insects, harmful animals.
c)The containing zones, storehouses to preserve food must have sufficient name board; internal rules, process, hygiene mode; for raw materials, finished food with requirement of special preservation must have register book monitoring temperature, humidity and other conditions.
d)Having sufficient brackets, shelves made of reliable and sanitary materials; ensure enough light and shielded safely. Raw materials, food products must be packed and preserved at position with distance from floor of not less than 20cm, distance from wall of not less than 30cm and distance from ceiling of not less than 50cm.
e)Having specialized-use equipment to adjust temperature, humidity, air ventilation and elements effecting food safety; specialized-use equipment must be suitable and ensure it is able to monitor and control mode of preservation with respect to each type of food at the request of producers; equipment is easy to maintain and clean.
f)Having sufficient other equipment, tools to supervise temperature, humidity and elements effecting food safety during the course of food production.
g)Food raw materials, food additives, processing supports, preservation agents and food products must be contained, preserved in according to provisions on product preservation of producer and requirement of food type on temperature, humidity, light and elements effecting food safety.
h)Ice water used in food preservation must be produced from clean water sources in according to National technical regulation (QCVN) on clean water No.02:2009/BYT.

2.Persons in direct contact with food must comply with the following requirements:

a.Owner of facility and persons directly performing food business must be trained and granted certificate of training knowledge on food safety as prescribed.
b.Owner of facility and managers contacting directly with food and persons directly performing food business must be examined health and granted certificate of good health as prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health. The health examination is performed by medicine facilities of district level or equal or higher level.
c.Persons getting illness or diseases in list of contagious illness or diseases to which employees are not permitted to directly contact in the course of food business operation prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health shall not permitted to directly take part in the course of food business operation.

III.Safety conditions in food transportation

1. Food containers must be separated from the surrounding environment so as to prevent the intrusion of dust and insects and have a suitable size.

2. Special-use carriers and containers in direct contact with food during transportation must be made of easy-to-clean materials which do not contaminate food or food packages.

3. To have sufficient equipment to control the temperature, moisture, air ventilation and other elements affecting food safety during transportation according to manufacturers” technical preservation requirements for each type of food.

4.To have internal rules on food safety assurance during transportation; to maintain and control preservation conditions during transportation as required for each type of food product; food with special preservation requirements must be separately handed over filling and bottling water, labeling and printing by transporters to recipients.

5.Equipment and tools must be cleaned so as to assure hygiene before, during and after transportation. Food may not be transported together with toxic goods or goods which can cause cross-contamination, thus adversely affecting food quality and safety.

6. Persons in direct contact with food during transportation must comply with the following requirements:

a. Owner of facility and persons directly performing food business must be trained and granted certificate of training knowledge on food safety as prescribed.
b.Owner of facility and managers contacting directly with food and persons directly performing food business must be examined health and granted certificate of good health as prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health. The health examination is performed by medicine facilities of district level or equal or higher level.
c.Persons getting illness or diseases in list of contagious illness or diseases to which employees are not permitted to directly contact in the course of food business operation prescribed by the Ministry of Public Health shall not permitted to directly take part in the course of food business operation.

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Related text:
- Certificate of food safety in Vietnam, Click here