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Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda and Education Board Vu Thanh Mai and Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen preside the workshop |
This morning, a workshop on the implementation of the Secretariat’s Directive No. 17-CT/TW was held in Ho Chi Minh City by the Central Propaganda and Education Board in coordination with the Ministry of Health to discuss enhancing food security and safety in the new situation in the southern region.
Speaking at the conference, Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen said that in recent years, food safety and security have been ensured, greatly contributing to the improvement of state agencies’ effectiveness while the information and communication on security and food safety are increased amongst Vietnamese people.
The Ministry of Health has enhanced inspection and examination. If inspectors from the Ministry detect violations, they will throw the book at violators.
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Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen speaks at the workshop |
Initially, the government formed a number of models of safe food production and processing. Many large enterprises invest in production lines to sell good food; subsequently, more domestically produced food products meet international standards on food safety. However, there still exist food poisoning and food-borne diseases, especially in collective kitchens in industrial zones and schools.
Small businesses use social networks and the internet for untrue advertisements of nutritional supplements affecting the interests and health of consumers, causing public anger whereas responsible agencies have not coordinated well in management.
According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong, Director of the Food Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health, Vietnam is currently a major food exporter in the world, with an export turnover of agricultural products reaching over US$40 billion including over $3.5 billion for rice exports to 120 countries and territories and over $11 billion for seafood exports with revenue from shrimp export of over $4 billion. Food export revenue accounts for a large proportion of Vietnam's GDP.
Vietnamese food and foodstuff have been displayed in supermarkets in difficult markets such as the US, Japan, South Korea and the EU.
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Rice growing in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang (Photo: SGGP) |
At the same time, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong said Vietnam's food is enough to feed more than 100 million people in the country and is still enough to feed an extra of 100 million people. The Southeast Asian country used to be a country that had to import food, but now it has risen to be the second largest rice exporter in the world. Moreover, the average life expectancy of Vietnamese people increased from 71.3 in 2007 to 73.7 in 2022.
Workshop participants also discussed and assessed food safety management and the primary steps of implementing the Secretariat’s Directive 17-CT/TW dated October 21, 2022 on strengthening food security and safety in the new situation; from there, they proposed appropriate solutions to effectively implement the Directive 17-CT/TW.
The workshop saw the participation of Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda and Education Board Vu Thanh Mai.
