Decision No. 149/2007/QĐ-TTg on approving the National Target Program on Food Safety and Hygiene for the period 2006-2010

 

Pursuant to …;

Regarding the approval of the National Target Program on Food Safety and Hygiene for the period 2006-2010

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;
Pursuant to the Law on Health Care for the People dated June 30, 1989;
Pursuant to Ordinance No. 12/2003/PL-UBTVQH11 dated July 26, 2003 on Food Safety and Hygiene;
Pursuant to Decree No. 163/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 7, 2004 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Ordinance on Food Safety and Hygiene;
Considering the proposal of the Minister of Health,

DECISION:

Article 1. Approves the National Target Program on Food Safety and Hygiene for the period 2006-2010 (hereinafter referred to as the Program), with the main contents as follows:

I. OBJECTIVES OF THE PROGRAM

1. General objectives:

Building and enhancing the capacity of the food safety and hygiene management system (referred to as FSHTP) to ensure FSHTP standards consistent with advanced regional and global standards; contributing to protecting public health and consumer rights; meeting requirements for development and economic integration.

2. Specific targets by 2010:

a) Enhancing awareness, practice of FSHTP and responsibility of producers, traders, and consumers of food. By 2010, 90% of producers, 80% of food traders, 100% of managers and leaders, and 80% of consumers should have correct knowledge and practice regarding FSHTP;

b) Strengthening the capacity of organizational systems for managing, inspecting, and testing FSHTP from central to local levels and within relevant ministries and sectors. By 2010, 100% of staff involved in central-level, regional, provincial, and municipal management, inspection, and testing of FSHTP should be trained and upgraded in their professional skills; 90% of staff at grassroots level (districts, counties, communes, wards) should participate in training courses on quick detection techniques for food contamination;

c) By 2010, 80% of national technical standards and regulations on FSHTP should align with international standards;

d) Gradually applying the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system for food safety quality management. By 2010, 100% of large-scale industrial food production facilities with high risk should apply HACCP;

e) Establishing a program for analyzing and managing risks of food contamination, proactively preventing food poisoning and foodborne diseases;

Establishing a comprehensive system for monitoring food contamination from production to circulation and supervising food poisoning incidents. By 2010, the rate of chemical and antibiotic residues exceeding permissible limits should be reduced to 1-3% of total food samples tested.

II. TIME FRAME AND SCOPE OF THE PROGRAM

1. Implementation period: from 2007 to 2010.

2. Scope of implementation of the Program: throughout the country.

III. PROJECTS UNDER THE PROGRAM

1. Project to enhance the capacity for food safety and hygiene quality management in Vietnam:

- Lead agency and project manager: Ministry of Health.

- Coordinating agencies: Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities, and relevant ministries and sectors.

- Activities of the Project:

+ Developing and promulgating legal documents on FSHTP consistent with international treaties to which Vietnam is a party; developing and promulgating national technical standards on FSHTP for food production, processing, and distribution facilities;

+ Building and enhancing the capacity of the FSHTP management system from central to local levels. Training, conducting surveys, exchanging experiences on management, testing, and inspection practices for FSHTP staff;

+ Conducting inspections and supervision of compliance with FSHTP regulations and annual plan implementation evaluations;

+ Advising and guiding food production and processing facilities to apply quality management systems according to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Good Hygiene Practices (GHP), and HACCP standards; issuing certificates of FSHTP compliance for businesses in 10 high-risk food categories;

+ Establishing advanced models for FSHTP;

+ Organizing and maintaining a network of FSHTP volunteers at village, commune, and ward levels.

2. Project on information, education, and communication to ensure food safety and hygiene quality:

- Lead agency and project manager: Ministry of Health.

- Coordinating agencies: Ministry of Information and Communications, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities, and relevant ministries and sectors.

- Activities of the Project:

+ Developing a strategy for information, education, and communication on FSHTP until 2020;

+ Identifying target groups based on their roles in the food supply chain, ecological regions, ethnic groups, etc., to develop appropriate messages and approaches; publishing communication products suitable for different target groups;

+ Mobilizing communication channels and forces for FSHTP;

+ Establishing mobile propaganda teams on FSHTP;

+ Providing communication equipment and tools;

+ Building databases and applying information technology in FSHTP management.

3. Project to strengthen the capacity for food quality testing and establish a food poisoning surveillance system, foodborne disease monitoring, and contaminant risk analysis:

- Lead agency and project manager: Ministry of Health.

- Coordinating agencies: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Trade, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities, and relevant ministries and sectors.

- Activities of the Project:

+ Developing a plan for diversifying, socializing, specializing, and popularizing the food testing system in Vietnam to assess chemical and microbial hazards throughout the entire food supply chain.

+ Invest in upgrading central and regional key food safety quality testing laboratories; standardize all laboratories according to Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) standards and central and regional laboratories according to international standards (ISO/IEC 17025); develop methods and maintain annual technical capability assessments for laboratories; establish and uniformly disseminate food safety quality testing procedures and techniques nationwide;

+ Invest in equipment for provincial and district-level food safety quality testing; research, produce, and equip rapid tests for commune-level testing;

+ Establish and maintain a risk analysis system including risk assessment, risk notification, and risk control; establish methods for tracing food origin and issuing food safety risk warnings;

+ Develop models for preventing food poisoning and foodborne diseases in high-risk areas;

4. Project to ensure food safety in production, initial processing, storage, and processing of agricultural products;

- Lead and manage the Project: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

- Collaborating agencies: People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities and relevant ministries and sectors;

- Activities of the Project:

+ Develop, supplement, and complete legal regulatory documents on food safety management, national technical standards and regulations on food safety in the fields of production, initial processing, storage, and processing of agricultural products in accordance with international treaties to which Vietnam is a member;

+ Monitor biological and chemical contamination in agricultural products; analyze and warn about food contamination risks;

+ Evaluate the current status of microbial and harmful chemical residues in animal agricultural products;

+ Control the quality of veterinary drugs and livestock feed usage;

+ Control the quality of fertilizers with high contamination risks;

+ Build and develop safe agricultural product production zones, focusing on vegetable, fruit, tea, sesame, livestock (pigs, dairy cows, chickens, bees) production zones;

+ Provide information, education, and communication on food safety in communities;

+ Guide, support, and implement certification for safe agricultural product production conditions and application of food safety quality management systems; support certification for advanced quality management system applications;

5. Project to ensure disease safety, environmental safety, and food safety for aquaculture products;

- Lead and manage the Project: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

- Collaborating agencies: People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities and relevant ministries and sectors;

- Activities of the Project:

+ Complete legal regulatory documents, national technical standards, and regulations on aquatic animal health and quality;

+ Train and enhance the capacity of local quality management and aquatic animal health agencies;

+ Promote and disseminate Vietnamese laws and regulations and those of major seafood markets regarding food safety, aquatic animal disease safety, national technical standards in breeding, storage, transportation, and processing of seafood; about banned chemicals and antibiotics;

- Support aquaculture facilities in applying Good Aquaculture Practices (GAqP), and seafood collection, initial processing, and processing facilities in applying Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) towards achieving industry standards;

+ Build and pilot operate a risk assessment and seafood product traceability system;

+ Invest in equipping two veterinary drug, feed, environmental treatment substance, and aquatic disease testing laboratories; purchase additional equipment for radioactive residue analysis, genetically modified food analysis, and antibiotic prohibition testing equipment;

6. Project to ensure street food safety;

- Lead agency and project manager: Ministry of Health.

- Collaborating agencies: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Industry and Trade, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities and relevant ministries and sectors;

- Activities of the Project:

+ Develop models ensuring food safety in some key cities;

+ Ensure street food safety linked to urban development in provinces and centrally-administered cities nationwide;

+ Develop food safety models in tourist areas, festivals, industrial zones, and schools;

+ Support food safety equipment, materials, and means for controlling street food services;

IV. SOURCES OF FUNDS AND IMPLEMENTATION MECHANISMS FOR THE PROGRAM:

1. Sources of funds for implementing the Program:

The estimated budget for implementing the Program is approximately 1.3 trillion VND, sourced from various funds: central government budget, local government budget, foreign loans, aid, domestic credit, and community fundraising;

Annually, based on the Program's objectives, content, and funding sources' capabilities, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance will coordinate with relevant agencies to unify the allocation of funds to ensure effective Program implementation;

2. Implementation Mechanism for the Program:

The management and operation mechanism for the Program shall be implemented in accordance with regulations governing the management and operation of national target programs and related current regulations;

V. ORGANIZATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAM:

1. The Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee for Food Safety is responsible for directing, monitoring, inspecting, and urging ministries, sectors, and People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities to effectively implement the Program;

2. The Ministry of Health:

- Lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and relevant agencies to establish the Program Management Board, Project Management Boards under the Program; direct the heads of project management boards to develop and submit projects for approval in accordance with regulations;

- Lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors annually to develop detailed plans and implement activities according to approved content, sending them to the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance for consolidation and reporting to the Prime Minister;

- Urge, inspect, and supervise the implementation of the Program; organize mid-year reviews and annual summaries, consolidate, and report to the Prime Minister regularly.

- Take the lead and coordinate with localities and relevant ministries and agencies to build and implement Projects according to their assigned functions and tasks.

3. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall take the lead and coordinate with localities and relevant ministries and agencies to build and implement Projects according to their assigned functions and tasks, ensuring that agricultural and aquatic products must be certified as meeting food safety standards before being exported or put on the domestic market for consumption.

4. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to balance and allocate annual financial plans to implement the Program based on consensus with the Ministry of Health in accordance with current regulations; take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Health and relevant ministries and agencies to guide localities to integrate other Programs with the National Target Program on Food Safety from planning to implementation.

5. The Ministry of Finance:

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to allocate budgets for ministries, sectors, and localities to implement the Program in accordance with the State Budget Law and guiding documents for implementing the National Target Program; take the lead in guiding financial management mechanisms for Program projects; coordinate with the Ministry of Health to develop guidance documents, inspect, and supervise the implementation of the Program.

- Coordinate with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and related agencies to establish cooperation mechanisms and implement measures to strengthen management and control of imported food and materials for animal husbandry, agriculture, food processing, and preservation.

6. Relevant ministries and sectors shall build implementation plans for project activities under the Program according to their assigned functions and tasks.

7. Responsibilities of localities:

- Mobilize resources and organize the implementation of Program contents according to the directives and guidance of the Steering Committee of the Program and competent ministries and agencies;

- Assign and decentralize responsibilities at each level and among departments and agencies at the same level in organizing the implementation of the Program based on the principle of increasing decentralization and enhancing the sense of responsibility at the grassroots level;

Direct the effective integration of Programs and projects within their jurisdiction; regularly inspect and supervise the management and implementation of the Program and report annually.

8. Relevant ministries and sectors and People's Committees at all levels shall cooperate with political-social organizations, mass organizations, and professional associations to disseminate food safety knowledge to members and mobilize communities to participate; implement specific activities contributing to ensuring

food safety: building community self-supervision models for small and scattered food processing establishments, building cultural-health villages; establishing food safety models for street food...

Article 2. This Decision takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

Article 3. The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees under the direct jurisdiction of the central government shall be responsible for implementing this Decision./.