Vietnam Food Safety: Circular 17/2023/TT-BYT Updates

On September 25, 2023, the Minister of Health issued Circular No. 17/2023/TT-BYT, amending, supplementing, and abolishing various legal documents concerning food safety. This Circular takes effect from November 9, 2023.

According to the Circular, the Ministry of Health has amended and supplemented 06 Circulars: Circular No. 24/2019/TT-BYT dated August 30, 2019, on the management and use of food additives; Decision No. 46/2007/QD-BYT dated December 19, 2007, on the issuance of “Regulations on the maximum limits of biological and chemical contamination in food”; Circular No. 18/2019/TT-BYT dated July 17, 2019, on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) in the production and business of health food; Circular No. 48/2015/TT-BYT dated December 1, 2015, on food safety inspection activities in food production and business under the management of the Ministry of Health; Circular No. 43/2014/TT-BYT dated November 24, 2014, on the management of functional foods; and Circular No. 49/2015/TT-BYT dated December 11, 2015, on conformity announcement and compliance declaration for tobacco.

Additionally, Circular No. 17/2023/TT-BYT completely abolishes Circular No. 14/2011/TT-BYT dated April 1, 2011, on guidelines for sampling for inspection and examination of food quality and hygiene.

Furthermore, the Circular partially abolishes two documents: Circular No. 29/2020/TT-BYT dated December 31, 2020, amending, supplementing, and abolishing several legal documents issued or jointly issued by the Minister of Health, and Decision No. 46/2007/QD-BYT dated December 19, 2007, on the issuance of “Regulations on the maximum limits of biological and chemical contamination in food”.

Thus, the issuance of Circular No. 17/2023/TT-BYT is timely to amend and abolish outdated regulations, ensuring the consistency and uniformity of the legal system, saving time and effort, and meeting the timely management requirements. It ensures simplicity, transparency, comprehensibility, and ease of implementation, facilitating organizations and individuals operating in the food sector, contributing to the promotion of administrative procedure reform.