Director of the municipal Department of Health Nguyen Khac Hien said on February 7 that his office will implement mobile food testing labs to deter unsafe food sold at restaurants and street vendors where spring festivals take place.
He noted that interdisciplinary inspection teams, in cooperation with local authorities, will take samples of food at food businesses operating at spring festivals for tests in February.
The mobile testing labs could test a raw food sample for different kinds of chemicals or bacteria within 30 minutes or two hours at the longest, according to the official. They will help deterring violated businesses at the soonest time, Hien said.
The labs will also help to reduce difficulties of inspection work, he added. As usual, there are many food vendors at festivals while the time of testing food at local labs took much time. When the authorised agencies receive food test results, a large amount of food had been sold.
The Huong Pagoda Festival in My Duc district, which attracts tens of thousands of tourists each day during the festival time, will be the first to be inspected this month, Hien added.
Those who were found to violate food safety and hygiene regulations will face fines and be forced to stop business, according to Director Hien.
Earlier, Hanoi's Health Department asked all food businesses to sign commitment to follow the regulations on food hygiene and safety.
Last weekend, an interdisciplinary inspection team from the department conducted an inspection on 23 food businesses at Va Temple Festival in Son Tay township. The festival welcomed nearly 1,000 tourists each day.
All 10 samples of noodles and five samples of chili sauce met the food hygiene and safety’s requirements. However, only 22 out of 55 bowls were found to meet the hygiene. The team gave warnings to these businesses.
Another inspection team also inspected two businesses at Soc Temple Festival in Soc Son district and two other businesses in Tay Ho Temple in Tay Ho district. Results pointed out that the preservation work of raw materials did not meet safety criteria.
Last month, the Ministry of Health’s Food Hygiene and Safety Department has set up six teams and more than 5,100 groups to inspect food businesses in 42 cities and provinces. More than 2,300 businesses were found to violate the regulations, paying the fines of nearly 8.2 billion VND (361,940 USD) in total.
About 22 businesses were forced to stop their operation and 414 kinds of food were seized and culled.
He noted that interdisciplinary inspection teams, in cooperation with local authorities, will take samples of food at food businesses operating at spring festivals for tests in February.
Hanoi's Department of Health conducts an inspection on a food business at Soc Temple Festival in Soc Son district.
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The labs will also help to reduce difficulties of inspection work, he added. As usual, there are many food vendors at festivals while the time of testing food at local labs took much time. When the authorised agencies receive food test results, a large amount of food had been sold.
The Huong Pagoda Festival in My Duc district, which attracts tens of thousands of tourists each day during the festival time, will be the first to be inspected this month, Hien added.
Those who were found to violate food safety and hygiene regulations will face fines and be forced to stop business, according to Director Hien.
Earlier, Hanoi's Health Department asked all food businesses to sign commitment to follow the regulations on food hygiene and safety.
Last weekend, an interdisciplinary inspection team from the department conducted an inspection on 23 food businesses at Va Temple Festival in Son Tay township. The festival welcomed nearly 1,000 tourists each day.
All 10 samples of noodles and five samples of chili sauce met the food hygiene and safety’s requirements. However, only 22 out of 55 bowls were found to meet the hygiene. The team gave warnings to these businesses.
Another inspection team also inspected two businesses at Soc Temple Festival in Soc Son district and two other businesses in Tay Ho Temple in Tay Ho district. Results pointed out that the preservation work of raw materials did not meet safety criteria.
Last month, the Ministry of Health’s Food Hygiene and Safety Department has set up six teams and more than 5,100 groups to inspect food businesses in 42 cities and provinces. More than 2,300 businesses were found to violate the regulations, paying the fines of nearly 8.2 billion VND (361,940 USD) in total.
About 22 businesses were forced to stop their operation and 414 kinds of food were seized and culled.
