VZCZCXRO7077
RR RUEHAST RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB RUEHPOD RUEHTM
DE RUEHHI #1320/01 3380745
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 030745Z DEC 08
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8798
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 5338
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 7199
RUEHGZ/AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU 0001
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 001320 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
HHS/OSSI/DSI PASS TO OGHA AND FDA 
CDC FOR COGH AND CCEHIP/NCEH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EAGR SENV TBIO EFIN ETRD VM
SUBJECT: VIETNAMESE RESPONSE TO MELAMINE CONTAMINATION SHOWS 
CONTINUED WEAKNESSES IN FOOD SAFETY REGULATION 
 
REF: A. HANOI 398; B. HANOI 409; C. HANOI 694; D. HANOI 588; E. 07 
HANOI 2012; F. HO CHI MINH CITY 915 
 
HANOI 00001320  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (U) Summary.  Recent discoveries of melamine contamination in 
milk products, eggs and animal feed imported from China highlight 
gaps in Vietnam's food safety import programs.  Though the 
Government of Vietnam (GVN) eventually located, sampled, and tested 
thousands of products, its initial reaction was to deny that it had 
allowed the importation of suspect Chinese dairy products, changing 
its position only when confronted by local media and consumers with 
evidence of those products on market shelves.  The resulting 
discovery of thousands of tons of dairy products of unknown origin 
raised additional concerns about the capacity of the Vietnamese food 
safety and inspection system.  The situation is made worse by the 
continuing flow of licit and illicit shipments of suspect products 
from China, a particular concern now that melamine contamination has 
been found in Chinese poultry products.  The Ministry of Health 
(MOH) has taken a zero concentration tolerance approach to melamine, 
which appears more stringent than standards adopted elsewhere around 
the world, including the United States.  The U.S. Embassy has 
offered to assist the GVN to respond to legitimate health concerns 
without unduly restricting imports.  End Summary. 
 
FIRST, MELAMINE CONTAMINATED MILK PRODUCTS FROM CHINA 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) In early October, after initially stating that blacklisted 
Chinese milk products had not been allowed to enter Vietnam, the 
central Bureau for Food Safety and Hygiene of MOH ordered expanded 
product safety testing after local reporters documented the 
importation and sale of hundreds of tons of Chinese-origin milk. 
Milk imports included those from three firms known to have sold 
tainted milk in China:  Sanlu, Yili and Longcom.  (Note: Chinese 
firms exported substantial amounts of milk products to Vietnam). 
Testing confirmed that several batches of milk products imported 
from China contained melamine.  Inspections also turned up many tons 
of milk powder of dubious origin, highlighting the difficulty in 
tracking and managing the path of various food products on their way 
to consumers.  As of mid-November, MOH had announced the detection 
of 33 melamine-contaminated products in Vietnam, including five tons 
of powdered milk just imported into the country by a trading company 
in Ho Chi Minh City. 
 
THEN, CONTAMINATED ANIMAL FEED 
------------------------------ 
 
¶3. (U) Following the discovery of contaminated milk products, local 
media reported that the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and 
Technology detected melamine in 80 out of 400 animal feed samples 
imported from China.  Soon thereafter, tests on 240 tons of fish 
meal imported from China found traces melamine some containing up to 
two parts per million (ppm) of melamine.  (Note:  The U.S. Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA) standard is 2.5 ppm of melamine per 
kilogram of food products.  End note.)  GVN tested farmed fish 
raised on contaminated feed and found no melamine in the fish.  The 
Vietnamese press also reported of melamine found in eggs smuggled 
from China.  To date, there are no reports of domestically produced 
milk products, animal feed or related goods have been found to 
contain melamine.  Unlike China, Vietnam does not have a substantial 
domestic milk production sector and does not require testing for 
protein content in the processing of dairy products; therefore there 
is not the same incentive to add melamine to those products. 
 
GVN CONSULTED WITH WHO AND FAO 
------------------------------ 
 
¶4. (SBU) Once confronted with clear evidence of melamine 
contamination, GVN health officials turned to the World Health 
Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) 
for assistance in preparing a response and prevent consumer panic. 
WHO and FAO recommended that consumers only chose products verified 
as not containing melamine and with proper packaging, labels and 
origin clearly displayed.  WHO sent two Vietnamese technicians to 
Singapore for training to detect melamine contamination. 
 
GVN RESPONSE TO MELAMINE CONTAMINATION OF MILK PRODUCTS 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Following consultations with WHO and FAO, MOH established 
inter-ministerial teams to conduct inspections, suspended the 
 
HANOI 00001320  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
distribution of all milk products without a clear origin and brand 
name, and standardized melamine testing methods.  Many local stores 
simply pulled off the shelves all milk products with a Chinese 
connection.  GVN officials subsequently penalized many small traders 
for trading milk without labels or of dubious origin.  In late 
October, Vietnamese officials announced plans to return over 393 
tons of melamine-contaminated milk powder imported from China and 
destroy 384 tons of contaminated liquid milk and milk ingredients, 
also from China. 
 
A ZERO TOLERANCE APPROACH 
------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Despite WHO advice to adopt international standards, which 
generally allow minimal presence of melamine in food products, 
Vietnam adopted a standard allowing no detectable concentration of 
melamine in dairy products in Vietnam.  This contrasts with the 
general international threshold (consistent with U.S. Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA) policy) of 2.5 ppm of melamine per kilogram of 
food products and 1 ppm for infant formula. 
 
MELAMINE BEYOND DAIRY PRODUCTS 
------------------------------ 
 
¶7. (U) Following the news of possible contamination of imported 
Chinese poultry products, Vietnam began inspecting eggs and animal 
feeds throughout the country and required all shipments of animal 
feed imported into the country to present certificates of origin to 
customs offices.  Local supermarkets requested egg suppliers to 
provide free-melamine certificates with the products sold in their 
markets.  The GVN then announced plans to cordon-off affected farms 
and destroy the feed.  Initial testing has not found any melamine 
contamination in samples taken from Ho Chi Minh City supermarkets. 
 
 
CONSUMPTION CONTINUES, REGARDLESS OF SAFETY CONCERNS 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Despite wide media coverage of melamine contamination and a 
broad, though somewhat delayed GVN response, Vietnamese consumers 
still face exposure to melamine-contaminated goods, including 
poultry products illegally smuggled from China.  (Note: this is not 
the first public health issue involving smuggled Chinese poultry, as 
chickens smuggled into Vietnam from China repeatedly have tested 
positive for the H5N1 highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza, 
Refs A and B).  Additionally, low-income Vietnamese consumers find 
it hard to resist low-priced imports.  In contrast, the urban 
emerging middle class, particularly in Ho Chi Minh City, is voting 
with their paycheck. Large Vietnamese retail chains like Saigon 
Coop, which controls about 40 percent of Vietnam's modern retail 
sector, say that their store orders indicate that greater numbers of 
Vietnamese consumers are switching to high-quality U.S. products 
despite their price. 
 
U.S. ACTIONS 
------------ 
 
¶9. (SBU) U.S. milk product exports to Vietnam approach USD 100 
million per year.  Embassy Agricultural Attache drafted a letter to 
the MOH's Vietnam Food Administration offering to assist GVN efforts 
to prevent adulteration, while requesting that Vietnam rely upon 
realistic science-based analysis that will not unduly impede the 
delivery of imported milk products to Vietnamese consumers.  The VFA 
responded that it appreciated the offer of assistance and would 
notify the U.S. Embassy if it received any approvals for new 
regulations related to melamine. 
 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) Vietnam faces an uphill battle to regulate domestic food 
safety:  long, porous borders, low technical capacity and a history 
of traditional (versus modern) retail (Refs C, D and E) mean that 
GVN authorities do not have the capacity to track imports adequately 
or to implement a comprehensive inspection scheme.  Interestingly, 
Vietnam's domestic food safety regulators are beginning to learn 
from Vietnam's exporters that comprehensive supply chain management 
and rigorous testing are both key to maintaining markets. 
Vietnamese companies are keen to learn more on how to protect their 
brands -- as demonstrated by the hundreds of businesses that turned 
 
HANOI 00001320  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
out for the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission seminars on 
U.S. product safety standards this September (ref F). 
At the same time, a zero-tolerance approach is designed to fail. 
Vietnam is unlikely to prevent imports of legitimate products that 
meet international standards, and it will likely create incentives 
to smuggle products into the country.  There is no quick solution to 
Vietnam's food safety deficiencies.  While GVN announced a major 
program last year to improve capacity for food safety to improve 
overall monitoring, testing and enforcement, little donor support 
has come to the table. 
 
¶11. (U) This cable was coordinated with Consulate General Ho Chi 
Minh City. 
 
MICHALAK