Ministry of Industry and Trade organized a workshop on building technical regulations for cassava starch products

The workshop was chaired by the Department of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion with the participation of units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade : Ministry Office, Department of Industry, Department of Domestic Market Management and Development, Department of Import and Export, Department of Trade Defense, Department of Legal Affairs, Institute of Food Industry, Institute of Strategy and Policy Research on Industry and Trade.

Also attending the workshop were representatives from ministries, branches and associations such as: Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Environment , Vietnam Quality Standards Institute, Vietnam Cassava Association, universities... and representatives of enterprises producing and trading cassava starch.

Building standards suitable to Vietnamese practices

Speaking at the opening of the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Viet Tan, Deputy Director of the Department of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion, said that cassava and cassava products (including cassava starch) are one of 13 key agricultural products of Vietnam.

Over the years, cassava starch has made an important contribution to the economy , especially in the export sector and as a raw material in the production chain of many types of food, bringing in billions of USD in value each year and creating jobs for millions of farmers and workers in many localities.

Mr. Nguyen Viet Tan, Deputy Director of the Department of Innovation, Green Transformation and Industrial Promotion (Ministry of Industry and Trade) delivered the opening speech at the workshop.

However, with the increasingly deep international integration and domestic demand, cassava starch used in food requires specific regulations on quality and food safety. Meanwhile, the reality of cassava starch production in Vietnam still has limitations: processing technology and production scale are not really uniform, creating different product quality.

This not only affects the competitiveness of products in the international market but also poses potential risks to food safety in application and reduces the reputation of national agricultural product brands. Currently, for cassava starch products used in food, Vietnam does not have a national technical regulation in accordance with domestic and international regulations and meets the development of the industry.

Pursuant to the Law on Food Safety, the Law on Product and Goods Quality, the Decrees guiding the Law, and based on the functions and tasks of industry management, the Ministry of Industry and Trade plans to develop and promulgate National Technical Regulations on cassava starch used in food.

The research, development and promulgation of National Technical Regulations for cassava starch will be based on the principles that the expected indicators specified in this Regulation are consistent with applicable regulations, ensuring harmony of interests of people, businesses and society; ensuring requirements of publicity and transparency.

National technical regulations are built according to the principle of conformity with regulations of countries in the world and in the region; reviewing and selecting advanced standards in the world suitable to practical conditions in Vietnam.

The draft contents of the Standards must include the correct contents; mention the traceability of origin, and specific product labeling methods to ensure transparency in production and business.

The content of the regulations is easy to understand, easy to apply, and harmonizes the requirements for quality assurance for consumers and the sustainable development goals of enterprises. The process of developing and promulgating national technical regulations complies with the provisions of law.

" Today, the Ministry of Industry and Trade invites representatives of relevant ministries, branches, associations and businesses to discuss and agree on regulations on quality and food safety standards for cassava starch products used in food processing in the most transparent and public spirit ," said Mr. Nguyen Viet Tan.

Ministry of Industry and Trade receives contributions to complete standards

Also speaking at the workshop, Mr. Nghiem Minh Tien, Chairman of the Vietnam Cassava Association, said that the association fully supports the issuance of national technical regulations to manage the quality of cassava starch products and protect the national brand.

Mr. Nghiem Minh Tien, Chairman of Vietnam Cassava Association, spoke at the workshop.

In reality, each factory and each locality applies its own standards, causing product inconsistency and affecting reputation in the international market.

However, the development of standards needs to be considered to ensure that they are suitable for practice, do not create additional burdens for businesses and do not affect the competitiveness of the entire industry.

“ The Vietnam Cassava Association recommends that the drafting committee provide a reasonable implementation roadmap, especially with new targets, so that businesses have time to invest and adapt. At the same time, unify technical regulations with import markets to facilitate export activities, ” said Mr. Nghiem Minh Tien.

Contributing his opinion at the workshop, Mr. Tran Si Dung, Chairman of the Board of Members of Yen Binh Investment and Trading Company Limited, highly appreciated the seriousness, determination and thoughtfulness of the Ministry of Industry and Trade when drafting the standards.

Mr. Tran Si Dung said that the regulations stated in the standards are suitable for the production and business practices of enterprises, and do not require enterprises to change technology or invest in expensive machinery.

Conference scene.

At the workshop, representatives of businesses and associations continued to give comments on the contents stated in the draft national technical regulations on cassava starch such as: definition, scope of application, safety indicators, quality indicators, implementation roadmap...

Concluding the workshop, Mr. Nguyen Viet Tan said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade appreciates the contributions from ministries, branches, experts, associations, and enterprises regarding the standards on cassava starch. The Ministry will synthesize the opinions, provide specific explanations, and soon complete the draft standards to continue to collect public opinions in the coming time.

Source: https://moit.gov.vn/tin-tuc/hoat-dong/hoat-dong-cua-cac-don-vi/quy-chuan-ky-thuat-san-pham-tinh-bot-san.html

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