HCMCity (VNA) - The HCM City People’s Committee has approved a pilotprogramme to sell safe food at two traditional markets -- Ben Thanh Market andthe Hoc Mon Wholesale Market in the district of the same name.
Theprogramme will be gradually expanded to all markets in the city by 2020.
TheHoc Mon market is the largest pork supplier in the city, accounting for 50-55percent of the city’s total demand, while Ben Thanh is a symbol of thetraditional Vietnamese market and gets an average of 10,000 visitors a day.
Thesellers selected for the pilot programme have to meet three basic criteria –having a business licence and a food safety and hygiene certificate and ensuringclear product origins.
TheFood Safety Management Board said it would work with relevant departments toguide the sellers and closely monitor their business activities to imposesanctions on those violating food safety regulations.
Ateam of 14 officials from the board will be sent to the Hoc Mon market to monitorthe safe food operation.
Theywill work with the market’s management to monitor the tracking of the origin ofpork under a programme launched a few months ago by the Department of Industryand Trade.
Forvegetables and fruits, the team will help sellers set up a record system totrack information about the sources of the products entering and leaving themarket.
BenThanh Market will be monitored by its own management, which will organisetraining courses in tracing pork origin and food safety regulations forsellers.-VNA