THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government of September 30,1992;

Pursuant to the Law on the Protection of People�s Health of July 11, 1989;

In order to put an end to the iodine deficiency and diseases caused thereby, positively contributing to the care and protection of people�s heath, raising their intellectual standards and stepping up the socio-economic development;

At the proposal of the Health Minister,

DECREES:

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.-

1. This Decree prescribes the production and supply of iodized salt for human use, called edible salt.

2. Edible salt and salt used in food preparation must all be mixed with iodine according to the prescribed standards.

Article 2.- In this Decree, the following terms shall be construed as follows:

1. Common salt is the non-iodized salt, including grain salt, cooking salt, ground salt, rock salt and other types of salt produced from sea water or exploited from salt mines.

2. Edible salt is the common salt mixed with KIO3 (potassium iodate) according to prescribed standards to prevent goitre, cretinism and other diseases caused by iodine deficiency.

3. Fake edible salt is the salt with edible salt package, trade marks and labels but not reaching the prescribed standards.

Article 3.-

1. The production, trading in and circulation of common salt do not fall within the scope of regulation by this Decree.

2. The policy on edible salt price and freight subsidies for the mountain regions and islands shall comply with Decree No.20/1998/ND-CP of March 31, 1998 of the Government.

Article 4.- The State bodies, the social organizations and the mass media agencies shall have to propagate and educate population so that they understand the usefulness of the mixture of iodine into salt for human use and abide by the law provisions on the production and use of edible salt.

Article 5.-

1. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall perform the function of State management over the production of edible salt, decide on the national plan for edible salt production and coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in organizing the circulation of assorted edible salt throughout the country.

2. The Health Ministry shall grant edible salt production eligibility and qualification certificates, supply potassium iodate (KIO3) for edible salt processing, supervise the organization of production, closely inspect the edible salt quality control, and guide people who cannot take edible salt due to pathological reasons.

3. The Ministry of Trade shall perform the function of State management over the circulation of edible salt on the market, draw up plan for the expansion of edible salt circulation network and ensure that the edible salt supply shall comply with policies, prescribed quality standards and with the regulations on price.

Article 6.- The production of fake edible salt is strictly forbidden.

Chapter II

CRITERIA AND CONDITIONS FOR EDIBLE SALT PRODUCTION

Article 7.- The cadres and workers of edible salt production establishments shall have to meet the following conditions:

1. Cadres in charge of technical and professional management and testing officials of the edible salt production enterprises must have professional diplomas or certificates of primary or higher grade and must thoroughly grasp the edible production process.

2. Workers directly engaged in edible salt production must be persons:

a) Who do not suffer from any contagious diseases or skin diseases.

b) Who have knowledge about food hygiene, product quality, edible salt production process and labor safety techniques in production.

Article 8.- The edible salt production establishments must fully meet the following conditions:

1. The edible salt production location must be hygienic and far from hazardous environment, with toilets and locker rooms built separately for workers.

2. Workshops and warehouses for the production and storage of edible salt must be built in a way to ensure the dryness, cleanness, airiness, without being flooded or roof-leaking, with waste discharge system ensuring the environmental hygiene, with the floor of warehouses being cemented and the floor of workshops being paved with enameled tiles. Workshops and warehouses must be linked together like a chain, from the raw materials storehouses, mixing workshops to finished product storehouses.

3. The edible salt production establishments must have a testing room fully equipped with instruments and chemicals to determine the iodine quantity for each production batch. The testing cadres must satisfy all criteria defined in Clause 1, Article 7 of this Decree.

4. The production establishments must be fully equipped with labor safety and labor hygiene facilities for laborers as prescribed by the labor safety legislation.

Chapter III

COMPETENCE AND PROCEDURES FOR GRANTING THE CERTIFICATES OF ELIGIBILITY AND QUALIFICATIONS FOR EDIBLE SALT PRODUCTION

Article 9.- Organizations and individuals wishing to produce edible salt must be granted the certificates of eligibility and qualifications for edible salt production by the Health Ministry.

Article 10.- A dossier of application for edible salt production eligibility and qualification certificate shall include:

1. The application for the certificate of edible salt production eligibility and qualification.

2. The enterprise�s production plan, clearly stating the location, professional equipment and facilities as well as material and technical foundation.

3. Professional diplomas and testing certificates of professional and technical cadres as well as testing officials.

4. Food hygience and safety certificate granted by the prophylactic medicine center of the provincial/municipal Health Service.

5. The evaluation record and written recommendation by the competent State body in the locality.

Article 11.-

1. Organizations and individuals, before carrying out the procedures of application for registration to set up edible salt enterprises or expand the edible salt business scale according to the provisions of law, shall have to compile dossiers according to the provisions in Article 10 of this Decree and send them to the competent State bodies of the localities where the enterprises are headquartered, applying for the evaluation of full eligibility and qualifications for edible salt production.

2. Within 20 days after fully receiving the dossiers of application for the edible salt production eligibility and qualification certificates, the competent State bodies in localities shall have to complete the evaluation and send written recommendations to the Heath Ministry. Within 20 days after receiving the evaluation results and written recommendations from the competent State bodies, the Health Ministry shall grant the edible salt production eligibility and qualification certificates.

3. After being granted the certificates of edible salt production eligibility and qualifications, organizations and individuals shall have to proceed with the procedures of application for the establishment of salt enterprises or the expansion of business scale, and have to make business registration as prescribed by laws.

Chapter IV

PROVISIONS ON EDIBLE SALT QUALITY CONTROL

Article 12.-

1. Edible salt produced for sale on the market to users must be up to the quality standards set by the competent State bodies.

2. The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall, after consulting with the Health Ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, issue the standards of iodized fish sauce, iodized soup seasonings and other iodized food products; and supplement and amend a number of norms of material salt and edible salt, suitable to international standards and technical conditions so as to protect the people�s health.

Article 13.- Edible salt is a goods item subject to compulsory quality registration. The edible salt production establishments shall have to register salt quality as prescribed. Edible salt traders are allowed only to trade in edible salt made by production establishments which have been already granted the production eligibility and qualification certificates and registered their trade marks and product quality according to the provisions of law.

Article 14.- Edible salt must be put in bags which can keep salt tight close and protect quality during the process of preservation, transport and storage.

Article 15.- The edible salt products must bear labels with the following necessary information fully inscribed thereon:

1. Name and address of the production and processing establishment.

2. The quality registration number of the production and processing establishment.

3. The iodine content.

4. Weight.

5. Instructions on preservation and use.

6. Date of production.

7. Use duration (not more than 12 months after the production date).

Article 16.- The edible salt production establishments shall have to examine the iodine content in the edible salt before it is put out to sale according to the technical process of batch, lot or working shift, and take responsibility for the quality of edible salt they have turned out respectively.

Article 17.-

1. Edible salt, when being transported from the production places to the sale places, must be packed in bags weighing not more than 50 kg each. On the transport bags there must be symbols saying "chong am" (anti-moisture), "chong rach"(anti-tear) and "tranh mua nang" (keep away from rain and sunshine).

2. Edible salt must be transported by means with lids to avoid heat and sunshine; the transport means must be hygienic.

Article 18.-

1. Edible salt must be preserved in well-ventilated storehouses and placed 0.30m from the walls, 0.30 m above the floor and 0.50 m below the roof.

2. When put on sale, the edible salt must be kept at dry, well-ventilated places and away from sunshine, rain, heat and moisture.

Chapter V

EXAMINATION, INSPECTION AND HANDLING VIOLATIONS

Article 19.- Edible salt producing and/or circulating establishments shall be subject to examination and inspection by various medical agencies and competent State management bodies.

Article 20.- Specialized medical and trade inspectors and presidents of the People�s Committees of all levels are competent to handle administrative violations in the production and supply of edible salt according to the provisions of law.

Article 21.- Acts of administrative violations committed by organizations and/or individuals producing and/or supplying edible salt must be administratively sanctioned and subject to fine levels as prescribed in Article 1 of Decree No.46/CP of August 6, 1996 of the Government defining the sanction against administrative violations in the field of State management over medical matters when there appears one of the following acts of violating provisions of this Decree:

1. Producing edible salt without having the food safety and hygiene certificate.

2. Violating regulations on transport of edible salt.

3. Violating regulations on edible salt preservation.

4. Failing to stick labels on products or having stuck labels in contravention of the regulations.

Article 22.-

1. Warning or a fine of from 50,000 to 200,000 VN dong against any organization or individual that produces or trades in edible salt and commits one of the following acts:

a) Failing to abide by the regulations on personal hygiene for the laborers.

b) Letting laborers who are suffering from contagious and/or skin diseases to be directly engaged in the production of edible salt.

c) Failing to organize training on food safety and hygiene for laborers.

d) Trading in edible salt which does not meet the quality standards set by the State.

2. A fine of from 1,000,000 to 3,000,000 VN dong for one of the following acts:

a) Failing to examine the idione contents in edible salt before it is put out for sale.

b) Failing to fully provide testing instruments and chemicals.

3. A fine of from 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 VN dong for act of producing fake edible salt, which is, however, not serious enough to be examined for penal liability, falling in one of the following cases:

a) Producing edible salt which fails to meet the quality standards prescribed by the State.

b) Labeling common salt as the edible salt.

4. Organizations or individuals that commit acts of using certificates of units meeting the food safety and hygiene standards, production licenses and/or edible salt business licenses for the wrong purposes shall be subject to the following penalties:

a) A fine of from 3,000,000 to 10,000,000 VN dong.

b) Being stripped of the right to use the certificate of unit meeting the food safety and hygiene standards, the production licenses or the edible salt business licenses.

c) Forcible reprocessing of edible salt if it fails to meet the prescribed standards; or destruction of edible salt if it is fake.

5. For acts mentioned in Point d, Clause 1, Points a and b, Clause 3, this Article, additional sanctions shall also apply, including stripping of the right to use the certificates of edible salt production eligibility and qualifications, establishment permits and business licenses.

6. In addition to the above forms of sanction, organizations and/or individuals committing acts mentioned in Clauses 2, 3, Article 21, Point d of Clause 1, Point a of Clause 2 and Clause 3, this Article shall also be subject to one of the following measures:

a) Being compelled to destroy fake edible salt mixed with components other than iodine.

b) Being compelled to reprocess edible salt which fails to meet the quality standards as prescribed in Point d of Clause 1 and Point a of Clause 3, this Article.

Article 23.- For acts of producing and/or trading in fake edible salt, if having enough signs to constitute a crime, the State bodies competent to sanction administrative violations shall have to transfer the dossiers to the judiciary agencies for penal liability examination as prescribed by laws.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 24.- This Decree takes effect 15 days after its signing. All previous regulations contrary to the regulations of this Decree are now annulled.

Article 25.- The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the People�s Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall have to implement this Decree.

On behalf of the Government

Prime Minister