Circular No. 17/2021/TT-BNNPTNT on traceability, recall, and handling of food that does not ensure safety within the management scope of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

CIRCULAR

Regulations on tracing the origin, recalling, and handling food that does not meet safety standards under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
Based on the Food Safety Law dated June 17, 2010;

At the proposal of the Director of the Quality Assurance Department for Forestry, Aquaculture, and Fisheries;

Pursuant to Decree No. 15/2017/NĐ-CP dated February 17, 2017 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to Decree No. 15/2018/NĐ-CP dated February 2, 2018, issued by the Government detailing the implementation of certain articles of the Food Safety Law;

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development issues this Circular to regulate tracing the origin, recalling, and handling food that does not meet safety standards under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

This Circular stipulates the procedures for tracing the origin, recalling, and handling food that does not meet safety standards; the responsibilities of organizations and individuals involved in the production and business of food under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

1. This Circular applies to organizations and individuals producing and trading in food (hereinafter referred to as the entity); other agencies, organizations, and individuals engaged in activities related to the provisions of Article 1 of this Circular.

Article 2. Applicability

2. This Circular does not apply to households and individuals producing small-scale food for immediate consumption and not for sale on the market.

1. Recall of products: refers to measures taken to remove unsafe food products from the food production and trade chain.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

2. Production batch (production lot): is a defined quantity of goods produced through the same technological process, under the same production conditions, and within a continuous production period.

3. Receipt batch: is a quantity of raw materials, semi-finished products, or finished products received at one time by an entity for production and trade.

4. Dispatch batch: is a quantity of finished or semi-finished products dispatched at one time by an entity to another entity for further production and trade.

5. One-step-back-one-step-forward traceability principle: means the entity must retain information to ensure the ability to identify the producer, trader, and production stage before and the producer, trader, and production stage after in the production and trade process for the traced product.

TRACING THE ORIGIN OF FOOD

Chapter II
Article 4. General Requirements for Tracing the Origin

1. Entities must establish a traceability system for food according to the one-step-back-one-step-forward traceability principle to ensure the ability to identify and trace a unit of product at specific stages of the food production and trade process.

2. When there is a request to trace the origin of food, the entity must provide retained information about the supplier of the receipt batch and the recipient of the dispatch batch during the entity's production and trade process.

3. Food after each stage must be coded and identified by an appropriate method to serve traceability purposes.

4. Entities subject to issuance of a Certificate of Food Safety Conditions; entities already issued one of the following certificates: Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), Food Safety Management System ISO 22000, International Food Standard (IFS), Global Food Safety Standard (BRC), Food Safety System Certification (FSSC 22000) or equivalent certificates still in effect must establish and maintain a traceability system as prescribed in Article 5 and store traceability information as prescribed in Article 6 of this Circular.

5. Entities not covered by the provisions of Clause 4 of this Article are not required to establish a traceability system but must retain minimum information for traceability purposes as specified in Clauses 1, 3, and 4 of Article 6 of this Circular.

5. Entities not falling within the scope provided for in Clause 4 of this Article are not required to establish a traceability system, but must retain the minimum information necessary for traceability purposes as specified in Clauses 1, 3, and 4 of Article 6 of this Circular.

Article 5. Establishing a traceability system

The traceability system includes the following main contents:

1. Scope of application of the system.

2. Procedures for coding, identifying raw materials, semi-finished products, finished products throughout the entire production and business process. The coding procedures must ensure that necessary information can be traced from the previous production stage.

3. Procedures for recording, entering data, and storing documents during the production process.

4. Procedures for periodic verification and updating, modifying, and supplementing the system.

5. Traceability procedures (personnel implementing, content, method, time of implementation).

6. Assignment of responsibilities for implementation.

Article 6. Storage of traceability information

1. Minimum information to be stored for traceability purposes at each facility for each batch produced and traded domestically:

a) For received batches: Name, address, and code number (if available) of the facility supplying the batch; delivery time and location; batch information (name/type, quantity, identification code).

b) For produced batches: Information about the produced batch at each stage (production time, name/type, quantity, batch/lot identification code).

c) For dispatched batches: Name, address, and code number (if available) of the receiving facility; delivery time and location; batch information (name/type, quantity, identification code).

2. Minimum information to be stored for traceability purposes at each food import facility for each imported food batch, including the information specified in Clause 1 of this Article and information about the production facility and exporting country.

3. The data management system, coding of traceability information must be stored using appropriate means to facilitate retrieval, with a minimum storage period from the date of production for food products not required to bear a mandatory expiration date as follows:

a) Six months for fresh agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products.

b) Two years for frozen and processed agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products.

4. In cases where agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products bear an expiration date, the facility must store traceability information for a minimum period of twelve months from the expiration date of the batch.

5. Retail businesses directly selling to consumers are not required to retain customer purchase information.

Article 7. Procedure for traceability

Facilities shall implement traceability for food items that do not meet safety requirements as stipulated in Clause 1 of Article 54 of the Food Safety Law according to the following procedure:

1. Identify the production batch and dispatch batch requiring traceability through stored records.

2. Compile and summarize information on the type of food, quantity of food in the produced, imported, sold, and remaining stock batches; list of customer names and addresses, food distributors (if any).

3. Identify production stages related to the production batch and dispatch batch that require traceability.

4. Prepare a report on the results of traceability after completing the traceability process for the production batch and dispatch batch; results of recalling and handling unsafe food as prescribed in Chapter III of this Circular and a report on investigating the cause of unsafe food, results of applying corrective measures as prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 18 of this Circular.

Chapter III

RECALL AND HANDLING OF UNSAFE FOOD

Article 8. General requirements for recalling unsafe food

1. The entities specified in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Circular must establish procedures for recalling unsafe food (the consignment delivered), including the following contents:

a) Develop plans (schemes) for recalling food corresponding to the actual production, business, and distribution activities of the entity;

b) Organize trial implementation of the plans, evaluate the effectiveness of their organization and implementation, amend and supplement, and approve the effectiveness of food recall plans;

c) Periodically conduct audits and evaluations of the effectiveness of approved food recall plans annually or at any time.

2. Procedures and steps for recalling and handling food:

a) Receive requests for recall and handling;

b) Evaluate the necessity of implementing the recall and handling;

c) Draft a recall plan (based on the approved model plan) and submit it for approval by the entity's leadership;

d) Organize the implementation of the recall according to the approved plan;

đ) Apply measures to handle unsafe food as prescribed in Article 13 of this Circular;

e) Prepare a report on the results of the recall, measures taken for the recalled consignment, and retain records. In cases where the recalled consignment affects other entities in the food production and business chain, the entity shall submit a report to the competent authority;

g) In cases where the recalled consignment has been distributed and consumed on a large scale, requiring prompt recall to minimize risks to consumer health and lives, or if the entity lacks the capacity to recall and handle all unsafe food, the entity shall submit a report to the competent authority to request support for organizing the recall and handling of food.

Article 9. Forms of recalling unsafe food

Entities shall implement recalls in cases of unsafe food as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 55 of the Food Safety Law in the following forms:

1. Voluntary recall is the act of recalling food carried out by organizations or individuals engaged in food production and business when they discover or receive information from organizations or individuals about unsafe food and such cases do not fall under the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article.

2. Mandatory recall is the act of recalling unsafe food pursuant to the recall decision of the competent authority as prescribed in Articles 15, 16, and 17 of this Circular or as prescribed by laws on administrative sanctions for food safety violations.

Article 10. Procedure for voluntary recall

1. Within a maximum period of 24 hours from the time of discovery or receipt of information about unsafe food, if determined to be a case requiring recall, the entity shall carry out the following:

a) Notify by telephone, email, or other appropriate means, followed by a formal written notification to the entire production and business system (production facilities, distribution facilities, agents, stores) to stop producing, trading in, and recalling the food subject to recall;

b) Notify in writing to provincial and municipal mass media agencies and relevant authorities as prescribed by laws on protecting consumer rights. In cases where the recall is conducted across two or more provinces or cities, a written notification must be sent to central mass media agencies to inform consumers about the recalled food;

c) Notify in writing the recall of food to the competent authority on food safety;

d) The entity’s owner must issue a written notice of the food recall specifying: the name and address of the production facility; the name of the food; packaging specifications, production batch number, production date, and expiration date; quantity, reasons for the recall; list of collection points for recalled food; time of food recall.

2. Within three days from the end of the recall, the entity’s owner shall report the results of the food recall to the competent authority on food safety according to the form prescribed in Appendix I attached to this Circular and the method of handling the food after recall.

Article 11. Compulsory Recall Procedure

1. Within a maximum period of 24 hours from the time when it is determined that food falls under the circumstances requiring recall, the competent authority specified in Clause 2, Article 9 of this Circular must issue a recall decision according to the model prescribed in Appendix II attached to this Circular.

2. Immediately upon receiving the recall decision, the owner of the establishment shall implement the provisions stipulated in Clause 1, Article 10 of this Circular.

3. Within three working days from the end of the compulsory recall, the owner of the establishment shall report the results of the food recall to the authority that issued the recall decision according to the model prescribed in Appendix I attached to this Circular and propose the form of handling for the recalled food.

4. The competent authority issuing the food recall decision shall be responsible for supervising the recall process and notifying the competent authority on food safety, relevant agencies to coordinate.

Article 12. Recall Procedure in Cases of Severe and Urgent Food Safety Incidents

1. The competent authority shall issue a forced recall decision in cases where the owner of the establishment fails to carry out the compulsory recall within the recall period as prescribed in Clause 4, Article 55 of the Food Safety Law.

2. The forced recall decision of the competent authority must clearly state the organization or entity responsible for enforcing the recall, the organization or entity responsible for monitoring or witnessing, the deadline for enforcement, and the form of handling the recalled food.

3. In cases where food poses a serious risk to public health or other urgent situations, the competent authority shall directly organize the recall and handling of food as prescribed in Point d, Clause 5, Article 55 of the Food Safety Law.

4. After completing the recall and handling of non-compliant food, the competent authority implementing the recall and handling of food shall issue a written notice requesting the owner of the establishment to fulfill the obligation to pay the costs incurred in recalling the food.

5. The owner of the establishment shall be responsible for paying the costs of carrying out the recall and handling of food (if applicable) after receiving a written notice from the competent authority.

Article 13. Forms of Handling Non-Safe Food After Recall

1. Rectifying product defects, label errors:

a) Rectifying product defects: applicable to cases where food can be processed using technical measures to ensure food safety;

b) Rectifying label errors: applicable to cases where food labels are not correctly marked as required.

2. Changing the purpose of use: applicable to cases where non-safe food affects consumer health and cannot be used as food but can be used for other purposes after appropriate processing.

3. Re-exporting: applicable to imported food that does not meet safety requirements and is subject to re-exportation as prescribed by law.

4. Destruction: applicable to cases where food has safety limits that do not comply with self-declaration files, technical standards, food safety regulations affecting consumer health, and cannot be changed in purpose or re-exported as prescribed in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article and other urgent situations prescribed in Article 12 of this Circular.

5. In cases of product recall as prescribed in Article 10 of this Circular, the owner of the establishment shall choose to apply one of the forms of handling products after recall as prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of this Article.

6. In cases of product recall as prescribed in Article 11 of this Circular, within three working days from the date of receipt of the report on the results of the product recall, the authority issuing the recall decision must issue a written agreement on the form of handling the product after recall proposed by the owner of the establishment. If the authority disagrees with the proposed form, it must issue a written notice stating the reasons for disagreement and propose a form of post-recall handling for the owner of the establishment to apply.

Article 14. Report on the Results of Food Handling After Recall

1. The handling of food after a mandatory recall decision by the competent authority must be completed within a maximum period of three months from the date the competent authority agrees in writing with the proposed handling method of the establishment owner.

2. For product defect correction and label error correction methods:

a) In case of voluntary recall: After completing the correction of product defects and label errors, the establishment owner must submit a written notification clearly stating the name, quantity, accompanied by evidence of correction to the competent authority for food safety. After submitting the notification, the establishment owner is permitted to circulate the food.

b) In case of mandatory recall: After completing the correction of product defects and label errors, the establishment owner must submit a written notification clearly stating the name, quantity, accompanied by evidence of correction to the authority issuing the recall decision. Within three working days from the date of receipt of the report from the establishment owner, the authority issuing the recall decision must issue a written agreement regarding circulation of the product. If there is disagreement, the reasons must be clearly stated. The establishment owner may only circulate the food upon receiving a written agreement from the authority issuing the recall decision.

3. For the purpose conversion method:

After completing the purpose conversion, the establishment owner must submit a written report on the purpose conversion of the food clearly stating the name, quantity, time, field of purpose conversion, accompanied by evidence of food purpose conversion to the competent authority for food safety or the authority issuing the recall decision. The buyer of non-safe food can only use the food according to the reported purpose of use to the competent authority for food safety and as recorded in the contract.

4. For the re-export method:

After completing the re-export of food, the establishment owner must submit a written report on the re-export of food clearly stating the name, quantity, country of origin, re-export time, accompanied by the export documentation to the competent authority for food safety and the authority issuing the recall decision.

5. For the destruction method:

After completing the destruction of food, the establishment owner must submit a written report on the destruction of food clearly stating the name, quantity, completion time of destruction, destruction location, accompanied by the destruction record confirmed by the organization implementing the destruction to the competent authority for food safety or the authority issuing the recall decision.

Chapter IV
IMPLEMENTATION

Article 15. Responsibilities of General Departments and Sectoral Agencies

Within their management scope according to assigned functions and tasks, the General Departments and sectoral management agencies are responsible for coordinating with relevant agencies to implement:

1. Inspecting the implementation of traceability, recall, and handling of unsafe food by establishments under their management.

2. In cases where unsafe food is discovered through inspection or information warnings from importing countries and other sources, they must issue a written notice requiring food production and business establishments to conduct traceability, recall, and handle unsafe food. The notice includes the following information:

a) Name of the establishment responsible for traceability, recall, and handling of food;

b) Identification information of the batch of goods subject to traceability (if applicable);

c) Reasons for conducting traceability, recall, and measures to handle food after recall (if applicable);

d) Scope and deadline for conducting traceability, recalling food, and handling products after recall (if applicable);

đ) Authority responsible for inspecting traceability, recall, and handling of unsafe food.

e) Notifying the application of mandatory recall measures, recalls in cases of serious and urgent food safety incidents, handling methods for unsafe food, and reporting the results of handling food after recall according to Articles 11, 12, 13, and 14 of this Circular.

3. Proposing the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Provincial Food Safety Management Board to direct subordinate specialized agencies to support or directly organize the recall and handling of unsafe food in the following cases:

a) Food that poses a severe risk to public health, distributed across multiple provincial areas;

b) Food that poses a risk to consumer health, distributed to consumers through non-traditional food distribution channels such as: e-commerce platforms; online sales through digital platforms; online ordering/delivery applications without identifying the responsible recall establishment or the responsible recall establishment lacks the ability to timely prevent food safety risks;

c) Other emergency situations where the competent authority determines that the establishment lacks the ability to recall and handle all unsafe food.

4. Annually or at any time (when required), submitting reports on the results of inspections of compliance with regulations on traceability, recall, and handling of unsafe food by establishments under their management to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (through the Directorate of Quality Assurance of Forestry, Aquatic Products, and Aquaculture); recommending the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development about the responsibilities of specialized management agencies, proposing solutions and measures to ensure food safety.

Article 16. Responsibilities of the Directorate of Quality Assurance for Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Products

1. Perform advisory tasks and general consolidation on the construction and implementation of legal regulations, consolidate reports on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food within the scope of management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. Within the assigned scope, take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to implement the provisions of Clauses 1, 2 and 3 of Article 15 of this Circular. Directly organize the implementation of the tasks of agencies specified in Article 15 of this Circular if the management assignment is unclear or the food involves the functional management of two or more agencies.

3. Annually or at any time, report the results of inspecting the implementation of regulations on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food nationwide; propose the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on the responsibilities of specialized management agencies, and recommend measures to ensure food safety for agricultural and forestry products.

Article 17. Responsibilities of Provincial Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, Food Safety Management Boards of centrally governed cities

1. Take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to inspect the implementation of traceability, recall and handling of food that has been warned about safety issues according to the information provided in Articles 15 and 16 of this Circular and from other sources of information.

2. Organize the recall and handling of unsafe food as stipulated in Clause 3 of Article 15 of this Circular and require organizations and individuals producing and trading unsafe food to cover the costs of recalling and handling such food.

3. Organize inspections to ensure compliance with regulations on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food for facilities delegated to local management according to the professional guidance of related General Departments and Directorates.

4. Annually or upon request, report the results of inspecting activities on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food within their management scope at the local level.

Article 18. Responsibilities of Organizations and Individuals Producing and Trading Food

1. Establish and maintain a traceability system, retain information for traceability as prescribed in Articles 5 and 6 of this Circular, and establish procedures for recalling unsafe food as prescribed in Article 8 of this Circular.

2. Conduct investigations into the causes of unsafe food, establish and implement necessary measures to address and prevent similar cases.

3. When discovering unsafe food produced or traded by their facility, or upon receiving notification from agencies mentioned in Articles 15, 16 and 17 of this Circular, the facility must implement traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food as prescribed in this Circular within the time limit set by the competent state authority. In case of failure to recall within the prescribed period, the organization or individual producing or trading food will be compulsorily recalled in accordance with the law.

4. Comply with requirements of competent authorities regarding traceability, recall and handling of unsafe food; comply with administrative penalty decisions (if any); handle unsafe food as prescribed in Article 13; report the results of handling food after recall as prescribed in Article 14 of this Circular.

5. Organizations and individuals producing and trading unsafe food shall bear all costs for recalling and handling unsafe food.

6. Apply technological solutions in the traceability system of the facility, enhance connectivity and information exchange for traceability among related parties.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 19. Transitional Provisions

1. Cases of unsafe aquatic products discovered and handled before the effective date of this Circular shall continue to be governed by Circular No. 03/2011/TT-BNNPTNT dated January 21, 2011 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on traceability and recall of products not meeting quality and safety standards in the field of aquaculture.

2. Cases of unsafe agricultural and forestry products discovered and handled before the effective date of this Circular shall continue to be governed by Circular No. 74/2011/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 31, 2011 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe agricultural and forestry products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Article 20. Effective Date

1. This Circular shall take effect from February 2, 2022.

2. The following documents and regulations shall cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect:

a) Circular No. 03/2011/TT-BNNPTNT dated January 21, 2011 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on traceability and recall of products not meeting quality and safety standards in the field of aquaculture.

b) Circular No. 74/2011/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 31, 2011 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on traceability, recall and handling of unsafe agricultural and forestry products under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

c) Article 7 of Circular No. 11/2017/TT-BNNPTNT dated May 29, 2017 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development amending and supplementing certain articles of legal documents related to the functions and tasks of units under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

3. During the implementation process, if there are difficulties, agencies, organizations and individuals should promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for study and amendment.