HCM CITY — Hundreds of food containers are being kept at HCM City ports as their owners have failed to produce papers, including food-safety certification, as required by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Cat Lai Port alone has kept more than 500 imported containers of frozen meat, dried food and materials for seafood processing.
Dozens of containers are piled up at other ports in the city. Each container weighs between 23 and 25 tonnes.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's Circular 25 said that imported frozen meat, dried food and materials for seafood processing must have food-safety certificates as well as lists of production businesses issued by a responsible authority of each country.
The circular, which became effective on September 1, also asked businesses to have licenses for every import shipment and safety certification for imported food issued by the Vietnamese authorities.
Doan Ngoc Tho, who owns a frozen food import company in HCM City, said he did not have these papers and could not finish customs clearance procedures.
More than 20 food containers of his company have been kept at Cat Lai Port for a week.
"I lost more than US$2,000 a day in electric and cold storage fees, " Tho said.
Do Ha Nam, director of HCM City-based Intimex Company, signed a contract to buy frozen food from a foreign company months ago and each day 10 containers arrive at Cat Lai port.
"I lack certification required by the new circular, but I cannot cancel the contract with the foreign company right now," Nam said. More than 40 containers of his company are being kept at the port.
Many company representatives said that Viet Nam had no office responsible for issuing certification of food safety for imported food.
They contacted the ministries of Health as well as Agriculture and Rural Development, and both said they were not responsible.
Nguyen Xuan Binh, director of the Animal Health Zone 6 Centre that manages animal heath and animal products in the south, said officials of several ministries and services should meet to settle the problem and help clear food containers at ports. — VNS
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