Nha Trang chicken facilities to be inspected after rash of food poisoning cases

Dinh Van Thieu, the central province's vice chairman, has ordered the immediate creation of an inspection team to visit all food-related business establishments starting Monday.

He told an emergency meeting Saturday that it had been determined chicken was the main cause of the recent food poisoning incidents.

"Rice is not a problem, but chicken and the sauces and pickles that accompany it are important.

"The inspection should focus on chicken slaughterhouses to clarify the origin of the chicken and places where the meat is traded."

He said all large establishments must comply with regulations that require food to be checked before, during and after cooking and samples to be retained for possible future testing.

He cited the case of Tram Anh chicken rice restaurant, a famous eatery in Nha Trang that attracts hundreds of customers daily but failed to follow the three-step food inspection and sample regulations.

When 367 of its customers fell prey to food poisoning last month, authorities had great difficulty in investigating and determining the cause, he pointed out.

He called on relevant agencies to impose heavy penalties on Tram Anh as a deterrent.

Last Friday 37 students from two schools in Nha Trang, Vinh Truong Primary School, and Tran Hung Dao Middle School, were hospitalized with food poisoning after eating breakfast.

All of them vomited and had stomachache and breathing difficulty after eating.

Two students of Vinh Truong Primary School in Nha Trang City sit with their parents at the General Hospital of Khanh Hoa Province on April 5, 2024 after they were hospitalized for food poisoning. Photo by VnExpress/Bui Toan

The breakfast, which included chicken rice, sushi and fast food, were bought by the students' families from various local eateries.

A girl in fifth grade died of unknown causes.

Provincial health authorities said the girl had a peripheral circulatory and respiratory arrest outside the hospital.

They carried out an autopsy to determine the cause of death, but Le Van Khoa, deputy director of the Department of Health, said: "There are still no conclusions."

Khoa said 15 other students are still in hospital but in stable condition.

The city Health Center has taken food and drink samples from households near the two schools to send to Pasteur Institute Nha Trang to find the cause of the poisoning.

Addressing the meeting, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thi Minh Thao, deputy chief of the provincial police department’s economic police unit, said recently several cold storage facilities had been found storing chicken meat that did not meet safety and hygiene standards.

Their chicken is not guaranteed to be safe, but their prices are low, he said.

"The foods processed from that chicken are sold at street stalls and pubs."

Thieu said the city is a popular and established tourist destination, and the frequent occurrence of food poisoning would affect its tourism environment and businesses.

"It is necessary to prevent the sources of suspected poisoning and address the issue of unsafe food to avoid similar incidents."