We must get to the bottom of the case of thousands of boxes of functional foods dumped in the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City like 'trash'.

Faced with the reality of thousands of boxes of functional foods with expiry dates being dumped in the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City, readers believe that it is necessary to investigate thoroughly and handle them strictly according to regulations.

Functional foods with an expiry date of 2026 were dumped along Nguyen Van Linh Street, Binh Chanh District - Photo: NGOC KHAI

After Tuoi Tre Online published the articles: "Verifying thousands of boxes of functional foods dumped in the suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City"; "Identifying 5 dumped drug and functional food sites in Binh Chanh"..., it received a lot of feedback and shares from readers.

Real and fake functional foods mixed together, what can consumers trust?

Many readers said that looking at the pictures of functional foods, most of them are familiar products that are often used for families. Notably, many boxes of functional foods have an expiration date until 2028, for adults and children, but are thrown away like trash.

According to readers, fortunately these products did not reach consumers, otherwise who knows what would have happened?

"It's so scary, these things are ingested by thousands of people over the years, not knowing how toxic they are?", reader Nam Nguyen expressed.

Reader Mo Mo asked: "Is this an act of destroying evidence to avoid being arrested and being held responsible by consumers? Only those who have used it will suffer, not knowing if there will be any consequences?"

More surprisingly, reader Minhngoc said that after looking at the labels of functional foods, he realized that most of them were familiar names.

Currently, on social networking platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, Facebook... functional food advertisements are rampant.

"If these foods are not strictly controlled, people's health will be threatened, possibly leading to cancer, stroke..., consequences that people cannot foresee," a reader expressed concern.

Thinking the same, reader Dong Phuong said that during the COVID-19 pandemic, due to travel restrictions, the house being far from town, having many relatives, and not knowing when the epidemic would be controlled, the family had ordered a lot of functional foods to have in reserve when needed.

"When ordering, you should also check which company produces the product (usually pharmaceutical companies or factories), whether it is licensed for production, how long the seller has been selling it, and what the feedback is from previous buyers. Now I realize that in the pictures published in the newspaper, there are some products that look familiar," this reader shared.

Must do it to the end and handle it seriously

To ensure people's health, many readers hope that the authorities need to promptly investigate and clarify the matter, and handle it thoroughly because it is related to people's health.

"Authorities need to get the addresses on the packaging of products, medicines... that are still in their expiration date, and immediately check these manufacturing locations. There is no reason to throw away products that are being sold," reader Hanh commented.

Or according to reader ZXZ, "just keep searching for cameras along that route and you'll find the tricycle driver... from there you'll find everything."

Similarly, a reader with a Saigon account exclaimed: "This is terrible, the authorities need to get to the bottom of it to handle it."

Sharing the same thought, reader Le Trung Hieu suggested: "We need to severely punish counterfeit goods to protect consumers' health, and at the same time bring fairness to genuine manufacturers who produce real goods and pay real taxes."

"I believe the police and local authorities will find out who this fake food belongs to and handle it according to the law," reader Trang hopes.

Many products for children, sick people, pregnant women

According to records, the functional foods found dumped in the suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City are mainly brain supplements, vitamins, bone and joint supplements... for children, sick people, pregnant women, produced and under the responsibility of many pharmaceutical companies in Hanoi .

A typical example is a type of vitamin AD, which is clearly stated to increase calcium absorption for pregnant women and growing children, with raw materials imported from the US.

This product was manufactured in January 2025 and has an expiration date of January 2028, manufactured by M. Joint Venture Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company in Chuong My District, Hanoi City.

There are also some other products such as nutritional supplements for joints, osteoarthritis; nutritional supplements for the brain, blood circulation, stroke prevention; bird's nest helps enhance intellectual and physical development for children...

Some product packaging clearly states: "Doctor recommended brand, ingredients imported from USA".

Ms. Pham Khanh Phong Lan, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Food Safety, said she is coordinating with local authorities to verify the origin and handle the matter.

Legal functional foods that have expired must be destroyed according to procedures, witnessed by competent authorities, and of course not thrown into the environment like that.

DONATE

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/phai-lam-cho-ra-le-vu-hang-ngan-hop-thuc-pham-chuc-nang-do-dong-o-vung-ven-tp-hcm-nhu-do-rac-20250608101613289.htm