General Department of Customs is working with ministries and sectors to implement the scheme on reforming the model of quality inspection, food safety inspection for imported goods.

The General Department of Vietnam Customs held a meeting related to the development
of the Draft Decree on state inspection of quality and state inspection of food safety
for imported goods in March 2021. Photo: N. Linh.

It is working with relevant units, speeding up the completion of procedures to submit to the Government for promulgation a decree on State inspection of quality and state inspection of food safety for import goods. Accordingly, based on the appraisal meeting at the Ministry of Justice on July 6, 2021, the General Department of Vietnam Customs has urgently completed the dossier and reported to the Ministry of Finance to send to the Ministry of Justice for appraisal.

Along with that, arranging and supplementing human resources and equipment to be ready to perform quality inspection and food safety inspection per the roadmap of the proposed scheme to meet the new model.

That is performing pilot testing for products available on the market and criteria that have been certified in accordance with to Decree 107/2016/ND-CP such as: testing of microbiological criteria (on some dried fruit products); pilot testing of heavy metal indicators on samples of powdered milk, vegetables, fruits; microbiological and heavy metal testing for food additive samples. At the same time, reviewing and revising ISO 17025: 2017 system; prepare a dossier following ISO 17065: 2013 to register for product certification activities and request the Plant Protection Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) to appoint a certificate of conformity of fertilisers.

The implementation of Decision 38/QD-TTg is divided into two phases, including:

Phase 1, (from 2020 to 2023): submitting to the Government for promulgation a Decree stipulating the management mechanism, methods, order and procedures of quality inspection and food safety inspection for imported goods; organise the implementation of the scheme; evaluate and summarise the implementation of the scheme and propose tasks in phase 2.

Phase 2, (from 2023 to 2026): reviewing, amending and supplementing specialised management laws and related documents, reporting to competent authorities in the direction of applying best international practices and unifying the focal point of quality inspection and food safety inspection for imported goods at the border gate is the customs authority.