Staff butchering pork at Hoc Mon agricultural and food wholesale market. Illustrative photo: Huong Giang/VNA
The newly discovered cases once again "sound the alarm" about the state of food safety and hygiene, causing harm to consumers' health and directly affecting legitimate businesses. In fact, there are currently many businesses that operate honestly and systematically, with products that meet international standards on food safety and hygiene thanks to investment in modern equipment.
As the owner of the brand "BAF Vegetarian Pork", Mr. Nguyen Van Minh, Deputy General Director of BAF Vietnam Agriculture Joint Stock Company, said that in order to bring consumers a source of pork that ensures food safety and hygiene, BAF's disease management motto is to focus on "Disease prevention through biosafety, responsible use of antibiotics instead of antibiotic abuse, prioritizing the use of products that replace beneficial microorganisms, enzymes, organic acids and herbs as top priorities".
To strictly control the quality of products reaching consumers, BAF applies operating procedures from breeding, slaughtering, packaging, and distribution in accordance with state standards and strict regulations set by the enterprise. From pig selection, transportation to the slaughterhouse, slaughtering - packaging to distribution, every stage is closely monitored to ensure food hygiene and safety and prevent the "mixing" of non-BAF products.
In particular, BAF Vietnam registered and was selected by the Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine as a pilot unit to deploy and operate the traceability system for livestock facilities and products of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment . BAF is actively participating in the management programs on food safety and disease safety of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and proactively applying digital technology in production management and operation.
Currently, consumers still have the habit of buying "hot" pork at traditional markets. Authorities have also instructed consumers on how to choose pork, paying attention to choosing fresh pork with a dry surface, light pink color, not wet or slimy, and good elasticity... However, livestock experts also note that consumers have another option to buy branded, safe, and traceable chilled meat, which is gradually appearing more and more in the lives of Vietnamese consumers.
According to the provisions of Circular No. 33/2012/TT-BNNPTNT stipulating hygiene conditions and ensuring food safety for establishments trading in fresh meat and edible animal by-products used as food, the conditions and storage period for meat and by-products are that chemicals must not be used for preservation; meat and by-products stored at room temperature can only be sold within 8 hours from the time of slaughter; meat and by-products stored at a temperature of 0 to 5 degrees Celsius can only be sold within 72 hours from the time of slaughter.
Currently, there are a number of enterprises that have invested thousands of billions of VND in modern production lines to produce food safety products that meet international standards. A typical example is Masan MEATLife Joint Stock Company with its MEATDeli refrigerated meat product.
This enterprise currently has two MEATDeli chilled meat processing complexes located in Ha Nam and Long An, both equipped with synchronous and advanced equipment lines provided by Marel - the world's leading company in slaughtering and meat processing equipment from the Netherlands. The entire production process uses chilled meat technology from Europe and complies with BRC Standards - the global food safety standards established by the British Retailer Consortium.
In addition to the modern and advanced operating system, the representative of MEATDeli said that the Company also strictly controls the input pig source, applying the "3 quarantine lines" control system according to the instructions of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) and the Department of Food Safety - Ministry of Health. Including: Quarantine line No. 1 - Only healthy pigs are brought from the farm to the factory; Quarantine line No. 2 - Only healthy pigs are brought into production at the factory; Quarantine line No. 3: Only safe pork is sold from the factory.
Masan MEATLife Joint Stock Company also shared the entire process of producing chilled meat that meets European standards before being released to the market. Accordingly, upon arriving at the factory, pigs are allowed to rest, drink clean water and be carefully cared for, then isolated and listened to relaxing music before being stunned with CO2 gas so that the pigs completely lose consciousness. This is the current humane slaughter method and is in line with the chilled meat processing standards of developed countries.
A representative of Masan MEATLife Joint Stock Company added that MEATDeli chilled meat is the first meat brand to meet BRC standards. This is a global standard for food safety established by the British Retailer Consortium. To be certified to meet BRC standards, manufacturers must meet requirements such as commitment to innovation, food safety, and clear traceability of origin information.
Deputy General Director of BAF Vietnam Agriculture Joint Stock Company, Mr. Nguyen Van Minh, said that it is necessary to put all slaughtering activities into standard facilities, ensuring food hygiene and safety, limiting small-scale, manual slaughtering. Investing in a standard slaughterhouse requires a huge cost, therefore, the factories both serve internally and provide external services to improve exploitation efficiency. Along with that, to strictly manage food hygiene and safety, the state needs to have a master plan for slaughterhouses that are suitable in terms of geography, population size, and logistics. At the same time, create a policy mechanism to encourage livestock enterprises to invest in a system of slaughterhouses and food processing plants to manage and supply safe, quality food that ensures hygiene for consumers, Mr. Minh analyzed.
According to VNA
Source: https://doanhnghiepvn.vn/kinh-te/dau-tu-bai-ban-cho-thit-sach-/20250630072924607
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