Self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam

Confectionery is a popular product and is widely put into production and business. The confectionery market in Vietnam is predicted to generate revenue of 8.5 billion USD by 2023, with an annual growth rate of 10.17%. To bring cake, jam, and candy products to the market, businesses and business establishments must carry out product self-declaration procedures. So, how to self-publish confectionery products to ensure compliance with the provisions of law. In the article below, Viet An Law will guide documents and procedures for self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam.

Legal basis

• Law on Food Safety 2010, as amended and supplemented in 2018.
• Decree 15/2018/ND-CP details several articles of the Food Safety Law, as amended and supplemented by Decree 155/2018/ND-CP and Decree 85/2019/ND-CP.
• Circular 43/2018/TT-BCT on food safety management under the responsibility of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, amended and supplemented by Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BCT.
• Decision No. 46/2007/QD-BYT dated December 19, 2007, promulgating regulations on maximum limits of biological and chemical contamination in food.

Competent agencies receive dossiers for the declaration of confectionery products

• Food Safety Management Board (or equivalent) of the province where the enterprise produces and sells confectionery products.
• Food Safety Branch (or equivalent) under the Department of Health of the district/province where the bakery and confectionery products are located, if that location is in another district/province.

Some famous confectionery brands in Vietnam

Bibica

Bibica Joint Stock Company, Vietnam. Bibica specializes in providing confectionery products such as moon cakes, chocolate, Hura sponge cakes, pies, cookies, candies of all kinds… Bibica has now become one of the ‘monuments’ of confectionery in Vietnam, highly appreciated by many reputable organizations, and trusted by Vietnamese people from all walks of life.

Hai Chau

Hai Chau Confectionery Joint Stock Company is one of Vietnam’s leading companies in the field of cake, candy, and food production. Hai Chau’s dry food products, sponge cream and soup powder have long been popular in most parts of the country and are always trusted by consumers.

Hai Ha

Hai Ha Confectionery Joint Stock Company (HAIHACO) is one of the largest confectionery manufacturing enterprises in Vietnam. Products of Hai Ha Confectionery Joint Stock Company are continuously admired by consumers and voted as “High-quality Vietnamese goods”.

Biscafun

Biscafun Confectionery Company belongs to Quang Ngai Sugar Joint Stock Corporation, established in 1994, is the leading unit specializing in manufacturing and trading confectionery products in Vietnam. Currently, the Biscafun brand is present in many countries around the world such as Russia, America, China, Japan, Korea, India, the Middle East, Taiwan,…

Kinh Do

Mondelez Kinh Do is known as a large domestic confectionery manufacturer, having spent more than 20 years in establishment and development. In recent years, Kinh Do has become one of the major moon cake companies in the country

Trang An

Trang An is a strong national confectionery brand, spending more than half a century of formation and development to crystallize into the “quintessence of Vietnamese confectionery” as it is today. Trang An’s products are not only widely distributed nationwide but also exported to many countries in Southeast Asia and are targeting major countries in the world.

Orion

Orion is a famous candy brand from Korea. Orion first entered the Vietnamese confectionery market in 1997 and established Orion Vina Food Company Limited in the City. Ho Chi Minh in 2005. A milestone for the company’s continuous development and becoming a familiar brand in the hearts of Vietnamese people.

Huu Nghi

Huu Nghi Food Joint Stock Company (Huu Nghi Food), formerly known as Huu Nghi Premium Confectionery Factory, was established in 1997 and is now one of the leading prestigious brands in Vietnam in the field of manufacturing and trading of cakes, confectionery, and food.

Procedures for registering self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam

The steps to self-declaration of confectionery products are carried out in the following 3 steps:

Testing confectionery products

Enterprises must conduct testing of confectionery products at reputable testing centers recognized by state agencies. This is considered the most important step in the entire process of registering the quality declaration of confectionery products.

Product testing is carried out at a center recognized by the Ministry of Health. Testing of confectionery and confectionery must comply with the following national technical regulations:

• Decision No. 46/2007/QD-BYT dated December 19, 2007, Promulgating “Regulations on maximum limits of biological and chemical contamination in food;
• QCVN 8-1:2011/BYT National technical regulation on limits of fungal toxin contamination in food;
• QCVN 8-2:2011/BYT National technical regulation on heavy metal contamination limits in food;
• QCVN 8-3:2012/BYT National technical regulation on microbial contamination in food;
• National Standard TCVN 5908: 2009 Candy

Criteria to analyze when testing cakes, jams, and candies:

• Sensory criteria: Color, shape, smell, taste.
• Physicochemical indicators: Energy, carbohydrate content, protein content, fat content, sucrose, moisture,…
• Microbiological criteria: Total number of aerobic microorganisms, Coliforms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium perfringens, the total number of yeast & and mold spores,…
• Heavy metal criteria: Lead content, cadmium content,…

Note: These are general reference criteria for cakes, jams, and candy products. Depending on the characteristics of each specific product, businesses test different criteria to ensure compliance with the requirements of the Ministry of Health.

In addition, businesses and production facilities also need to pay attention to some common mistakes that increase testing time and costs:

• Setting targets incorrectly according to regulations. The development of testing criteria must be based on available principles depending on QCVN, TCVN, and the specific characteristics of each product. If you do not understand the regulations and clearly understand the product, it is difficult to develop appropriate testing criteria. If the criteria are incorrect or missing, the documents will be returned, wasting time checking and re-checking many times. If you test for too many criteria, of course, it is not wrong, but you will have to spend a large amount of money on “unnecessary” criteria.
• The test certificate is not reasonable. A valid testing certificate is one issued by a testing laboratory recognized or designated by the state to serve food safety and hygiene. Currently, there are many testing centers established, but not all centers can provide valid testing certificates.

Documents for declaration of confectionery and confectionery products

Documents to be able to declare confectionery products include the following documents:

• Self-declaration dossier according to the prescribed form (Form No. 01 Appendix I Decree 15/2018/ND-CP).
• The product inspection result certificate is valid for 12 months from the date of submission of the application and is issued by a designated testing laboratory or a testing laboratory recognized by ISO 17025 including safety criteria set by the Ministry of Health issued according to risk management principles by international regulations or safety norms according to corresponding regulations and standards declared by organizations and individuals in cases where there are no regulations of the Ministry of Health (original or certified copy).
• Certificate of Food Safety, HACCP, GMP, SSOP, ISO certification…
• Product label or photo of product label (with trader’s stamp), including secondary labels (for imported products, if any).

Note: Contents of main and secondary labels:

Under Decree 43/2017/ND-CP, name of goods, name and address of trader responsible for the product, origin of goods, and other mandatory criteria according to Appendix 1 of this Decree.

Procedure for self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam

To self-declare the quality of confectionery products, businesses, organizations, and individuals need to follow the following steps:

Step 1: Quality inspection of confectionery and cakes.

• Prepare samples of confectionery products for inspection.
• Determine inspection criteria based on standards and legal regulations on confectionery products.
• Send samples of confectionery products to authorized testing facilities for testing.

Step 2: Self-declare the quality of confectionery products.

• Enterprises register to self-declare the quality of confectionery products on mass media or their websites.
• Publicly post information at the headquarters of organizations, individuals, or businesses.
• Submit 01 (one) registration for self-declaration of the quality of confectionery products by mail or submit directly to the competent state management agency, designated by the Provincial People’s Committee.
• After declaring confectionery products, businesses, organizations, and individuals have the right to produce and trade the products. They also take full responsibility for the safety and quality of that product.

Some frequently asked questions during the process of self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam

Time to self-declaration confectionery products

The time to declare confectionery products is from 05 to 07 working days from the date the competent authority receives the valid dossier from the business.

Can self-declared records be presented in other languages?

According to the law, documents in the self-declaration file for confectionery products must be presented in Vietnamese and do not use foreign languages. If there are documents in a foreign language, they need to be translated into Vietnamese and confirmed by notarization. This ensures that the registration meets the language requirements of the state regulatory agency.

If in an organization there are 02 or more production facilities announcing confectionery products, what are the procedures for announcing the products?

In case an organization or individual has 02 or more production facilities and produces confectionery products, they only need to carry out the procedure to register the product declaration at a local state management agency. methods that organizations and individuals have the right to choose (except for products registered at the Ministry of Health). This simplifies the registration process and avoids duplication of work.

If I do not declare my confectionery products, will I be punished?

In case of circulating products on the market without declaration, there may be a fine from 15,000,000 VND to 20,000,000 VND according to the provisions of Point a, Clause 1, Article 20 of Decree 115/2018/ND-CP.

Customers who need advice on procedures for self-declaration of confectionery in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the best support.