Circular No. 08/2013/TT-BYT guiding advertising of food products under the management of the Ministry of Health

CIRCULAR

Guidelines on Food Advertising under the Management of the Ministry of Health

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Pursuant to the Advertising Law No. 16/2012/QH13 dated June 21, 2012;

Pursuant to the Food Safety Law No. 55/2010/QH12 dated June 17, 2010 and Decree No. 38/2012/NĐ-CP dated April 25, 2012 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Food Safety Law;

Pursuant to Decree No. 63/2012/NĐ-CP dated August 31, 2012 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Health;

At the proposal of the Director of the Food Safety Administration;

The Minister of Health issues this Circular guiding food advertising under the management of the Ministry of Health,

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

Article 1. This Circular stipulates conditions, authority, files, and procedures for confirming the content of food advertising under the management of the Ministry of Health.

Article 2. This Circular applies to organizations and individuals related to information and advertising activities of food under the management of the Ministry of Health within the territory of Vietnam.

Article 2. Types of Foods Required to Register Content for Advertising

1. Functional foods;

2. Nutrient-enriched foods;

3. Natural mineral water;

4. Bottled water;

5. Food additives, food processing aids;

6. Packaging materials and containers used in food production, processing, and trading;

Article 3. Prohibited Acts in Food Advertising Activities

1. Advertising food without a content confirmation certificate issued by the competent health authority.

2. Advertising counterfeit or substandard food.

3. Advertising food with medicinal effects.

4. Advertising food that does not match the declared conformity or safety regulations or exaggerates the effects of the food.

5. Advertising food through articles written by doctors, pharmacists, or healthcare staff describing the food's therapeutic effects.

6. Using images, reputation, letters from healthcare units, healthcare staff, or patient thank-you letters to advertise food.

7. Other prohibited acts as prescribed by advertising laws.

Chapter II

CONDITIONS, AUTHORITY, FILES, PROCEDURES FOR CONFIRMING THE CONTENT OF FOOD ADVERTISING

Article 4. Conditions for Food Advertising Content

1. Advertising content on mass media, leaflets, posters, billboards must accurately reflect the product's declared effects; additional content must be supported by scientific documentation and must ensure the following accurate and truthful information:

a) Product name;

b) Product origin, manufacturer's name and address, importer's name and address;

c) Product effects (if applicable);

d) Warnings when using the product (if applicable);

đ) Usage instructions, storage instructions (for products with special usage and storage methods);

e) For functional foods, there must be a statement in writing or spoken "This product is not a medicine and does not replace the treatment effect of medicines," the font size must be Times New Roman 14, and the spoken message must be audible under normal conditions.

2. For advertising on boards, signs, panels, price shelves, other objects, aerial or underwater objects, mobile objects, it is not necessary to include all product information (usage, effects, storage) but must be consistent with the declared conformity or safety regulations.

Article 5. Competence to issue certificates confirming the content of food advertisements and registration for organizing seminars and conferences to introduce foods

1. The Ministry of Health shall delegate the Food Safety Agency to organize the issuance of certificates confirming the content of advertisements for health foods; nutritionally enriched foods.

2. The Food Safety and Hygiene Inspection Agency shall organize the issuance of certificates confirming the content of advertisements for foods under the management of the health sector as follows: bottled water, natural mineral water; food additives, food processing aids; packaging materials and containers used in the production, processing, and business operations within the scope of division of responsibilities assigned by the Ministry of Health; confirmation of registration files for organizing seminars and conferences to introduce foods under the management of the health sector on its territory; confirmation of the content of advertisements for foods managed by other ministries and sectors when such advertisements claim effects on health.

Article 6. Registration Documents for Certificates Confirming the Content of Food Advertisements

Organizations and individuals must submit one set of registration documents for advertising foods to the competent state agency before advertising.

The set of documents includes:

1. A certificate application for confirming the content of food advertisements (as per Appendix 01 issued together with this Circular);

2. A business registration certificate of the enterprise or a license for establishing a representative office of foreign traders (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration);

3. A certificate of declaration of conformity with food safety regulations (for products without technical standards) or a receipt of declaration of compliance issued by the competent state agency (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration);

4. Detailed information about the product already confirmed by the competent authority (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration);

5. Food advertising products:

a) One copy of the recorded advertisement content on a video disc, audio disc, or floppy disk accompanied by two scripts (stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration) for television, film, and radio advertisements.

b) Two copies of the proposed advertisement content layout (stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration) and a soft file containing the registered advertisement content for print media, flyers, posters, billboards, or printed on other items, online newspapers, corporate websites, advertising service provider websites, and the Internet.

6. Reference materials and scientific evidence supporting the advertisement information if the content is not included in the detailed product information already confirmed by the competent authority. In cases where the proof material is written in a foreign language, it must be translated into Vietnamese.

All documents must be stamped across the seams by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration.

7. A sample label of the product that has been approved by the competent health authority (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration).

Article 7. Procedures for Issuing Certificates Confirming the Content of Food Product Advertisements

1. Within ten working days from the date of receiving complete and valid documents, the competent state agency must issue a certificate confirming the content of the advertisement according to the prescribed regulations (as per Appendix 02 issued together with this Circular); in case of non-issuance of the certificate, the competent state agency must provide a written response stating the reasons for non-issuance.

2. Within three months from the date the agency receiving the documents issues a letter requesting additional information or corrections, if the organization or individual applying for the advertisement content registration does not amend or supplement the documents and does not respond to the agency receiving the documents, it will be considered as having no intention to advertise the registered food product.

Article 8. Food Seminars and Conferences

1. Foods that have been granted circulation permits within the country or those without such permits but with production country circulation permits may organize seminars for introduction in Vietnam, specifically:

a) Domestic organizations and individuals with appropriate business registration certificates may organize food introduction seminars.

b) Foreign organizations and individuals wishing to organize seminars for food products not yet permitted for circulation in Vietnam but permitted in their production countries must cooperate with domestic organizations and individuals holding appropriate business registration certificates to organize such seminars.

2. Seminar speakers must be persons with professional qualifications in medicine, pharmacy, nutrition, or relevant specialized degrees from university level and above, and they must bear legal responsibility for the truthfulness and accuracy of their reports at the seminars and conferences.

3. The content of food introduction materials at seminars and conferences must comply with advertising laws and other related legal provisions.

4. Prior to organizing food introduction seminars and conferences, organizations and individuals must submit application files for seminar and conference content confirmation to the competent state agency where the seminars and conferences will be held, and can only organize such events upon receipt of a confirmation certificate for the seminar and conference registration application from the competent state agency.

5. Product introduction and advertising activities by sponsors at seminars and conferences must adhere to the advertising regulations stipulated in this Circular and other relevant legal provisions.

Article 9. Documents and Procedures for Confirming Registration to Organize Food Introduction Seminars and Conferences

1. Documents for organizing food introduction seminars and conferences include:

a) A registration form for the content of food introduction seminars and conferences (as per Appendix 03 issued together with this Circular);

b) A copy of the business registration certificate or establishment permit for a representative office of the enterprise (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the food introduction seminar or conference);

c) A product standard certification or a declaration of conformity acceptance certificate confirmed by a health authority. For foods not yet permitted for circulation in Vietnam, a free circulation certificate from the production country must be provided (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the food introduction seminar or conference);

d) A detailed product information copy confirmed by the competent authority (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the food introduction seminar or conference);

đ) A product label sample (a copy stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the food introduction seminar or conference);

e) Two copies of the marketing plan or script or set of materials confirmed and stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the seminar or conference (accompanied by one disk image, audio disk, or soft file) intended for presentation at the seminar or conference;

g) A list of speakers (complete information about the speaker's professional qualifications or scientific titles);

h) Reference materials and scientific evidence supporting the advertising information when such information is not included in the detailed product information confirmed by the competent authority. In cases where proof documents are written in a foreign language, they must be translated into Vietnamese. All documents must be stamped by the organization or individual applying to organize the food introduction seminar or conference.

2. Procedure for Confirming Advertising Content of Food Products in Seminars and Conferences

Organizations and individuals must submit registration files to the Food Safety and Quality Control Agency in the area where the food introduction seminar or conference is planned to be held before organizing it.

Within ten working days from the date of receiving complete and valid files, the competent state agency must issue a confirmation certificate for the seminar and conference registration application according to the regulations (as per Appendix 04 issued together with this Circular); if the confirmation certificate for the seminar and conference registration application is not issued, the competent state agency must provide a written explanation for the non-issuance.

Article 10. Format for Recording the Number of Content Confirmation Certificates for Food Advertising

Clause 1. For advertising content confirmed by the Ministry of Health (Food Safety Administration), the recording principle shall be as follows: registration number/year of issuance/XNQC-ATTP (Example: 123/2008/XNQC-ATTP).

Clause 2. For content confirmation certificates issued by the Food Safety and Hygiene Control Agency, the recording method shall be similar to that for certificates issued by the Food Safety Administration, supplemented with the abbreviation of the province's name in uppercase letters immediately following the abbreviation YT. The abbreviations of provinces and centrally governed cities are listed in Appendix 05 attached hereto. Example: 123/2013/XNQC-YTHN.

Article 11. Validity Period of Content Confirmation Certificates for Food Advertising

Content confirmation certificates for food advertising become invalid in the following cases:

Point 1. The certificate for receiving the declaration of conformity or the certificate confirming compliance with food safety regulations becomes invalid.

Point 2. The enterprise has its food safety and hygiene certification revoked.

Point 3. There are changes in the product's composition or function.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 12. Effective Date of this Circular

This Circular takes effect from April 26, 2013.

Article 13. Transitional Provisions

Agencies, organizations, and individuals who have registered advertising food dossier before this Circular takes effect and received a dossier acceptance certificate from the competent state management agency shall continue to advertise until the advertising materials become invalid.

Article 14. Implementation Organization

The Director of the Food Safety Administration, the Department of Health Director of provincial and centrally governed city shall be responsible for implementing this Circular.

During implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, local units shall report to the Ministry of Health (Food Safety Administration) for research and resolution./.