TikTok 'Hai Sen' case of selling fake goods: Food Safety Department licensed the product and then advised against using it?

Hải Sen - Ảnh 1. — The Food Safety Department recommends that people do not use Hai Be Delicious Baby Syrup product, which has just been determined by the investigation agency to be fake - Photo: Screenshot

Licensed and then only recommend "do not use" when there is a violation?

On the evening of June 17, the Food Safety Department's website posted a warning to people not to use Hai Be Delicious Appetizer Syrup of Hai Be Company Limited while the authorities are verifying the incident.

In the case of TikTok "Gia Dinh Hai Sen", according to the Investigation Police Agency of Ninh Binh Province Police, the appraisal results for the quality indicators of "Hai Be Delicious Syrup" determined that the substances including vitamin A, calcium, vitamin C (the main substances that create the product's effects) only reached less than 70% compared to the announcement, according to regulations, the health protection food "Hai Be Delicious Syrup" is fake...

The agency has also initiated criminal proceedings and prosecuted defendants related to the incident.

After the investigation agency initiated the case, the Food Safety Department posted information "recommending consumers not to use the product while waiting for the authorities to verify the incident". It is worth mentioning that this product had been licensed for circulation.

Even in the advisory notice, the Food Safety Department confirmed that it had received the product declaration dossier, meaning that in principle, the product was qualified to be put on the market.

The warning from the responsible "approving" agency to the "warning" agency without any solutions for recalling, inspecting the production facility... makes many people wonder. And once again, public opinion raises questions about the responsibility in management and post-inspection of this unit.

Delay in issuing documents creates big loopholes

According to current regulations, functional food products and health protection foods only need to submit a declaration with documents proving quality, origin, ingredients, testing... to be eligible to circulate on the market.

Licensing is almost purely an administrative procedure, based on documents provided by the enterprise itself, rather than through actual inspection.

Therefore, many products, after being "legalized" with a published code, are immediately released into the market by individuals and businesses with winged advertisements. They even attribute the effects of curing and preventing diseases in violation of regulations.

After the fake milk scandal, a series of fake functional foods and now "appetite syrup" - a product for children - the most vulnerable group - has been counterfeited. And when the product is discovered to be defective, the role of the licensing agency is limited to the recommendation "do not use".

The "license first, warn later" practice makes consumers frustrated and lose trust.

Sharing at a recent anti-counterfeiting meeting organized by the Ministry of Health, Lieutenant Colonel Vu Thanh Tung, Deputy Director of the Department of Police Investigation of Crimes of Corruption, Economy, and Smuggling (C03), Ministry of Public Security, stated that recently, subjects have also taken advantage of limitations in post-inspection work to commit violations.

"In addition, some existing problems and inadequacies in current legal documents related to the pharmaceutical and food safety fields, and the delay in issuing regulations and instructions for law enforcement have also created loopholes for subjects to take advantage of," Mr. Tung emphasized.

Recently, the police agency also prosecuted 5 defendants who were former leaders and officers of the Food Safety Department, who committed a number of violations when granting certificates for functional food factories according to GMP standards and issuing product declaration documents.

The Minister of Health said that this unit will review to complete the legal basis, and is resolutely implementing the construction and completion of institutions such as guidelines for implementing the Pharmacy Law, amending Decree 15 on the field of food safety and will submit it to the Government for early promulgation to resolve difficulties arising in practice in the field of food safety.

After the crackdown on counterfeit goods in the last peak month, people expect there will be a "turning point" so that counterfeit goods will no longer have a "place to live", and people will no longer have to be confused between real and fake as they are now.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/vu-tiktok-hai-sen-ban-hang-gia-cuc-an-toan-thuc-pham-cap-phep-san-pham-roi-khuyen-khong-dung-20250618122041388.htm