At a regular press conference on the morning of 1/4, Phan Quang Minh, Deputy Director of the Department of Livestock Production and Veterinary Medicine, stated the Ministry reported to the Government and issued a directive to enhance control over slaughter, quarantine, and disease prevention. Working groups will inspect slaughter operations in various localities within the week, with media invited to participate to report on the situation and identify existing issues.

Minh noted the Hanoi incident not only increased disease spread but also exposed shortcomings in public service discipline and enforcement. The primary issue stems from inadequate chain management, where diseases originating from breeding facilities spread unchecked through transportation, slaughter, and consumption stages.

Specialized agencies advocate for synchronous control across the chain, emphasizing monitoring at breeding facilities as a crucial step for early disease detection. Transportation and slaughter remain weak points due to limited quarantine personnel and wide management areas, making comprehensive control difficult.

Despite existing regulations, enforcement in the slaughter stage is lax. Control activities, mandated before, during, and after slaughter, are not strictly followed. The country currently has approximately 24,858 small-scale slaughter facilities, while centralized facilities are few, posing significant food safety risks.

Phan Quang Minh speaks at the press conference on the morning of 1/4. Photo: Gia Chinh

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phung Duc Tien highlighted the complexity of slaughter, quarantine, and disease prevention, noting the continued prevalence of small-scale slaughter models. Price fluctuations often lead to recurring spontaneous slaughter, complicating management.

The movement of animals and animal products across multiple areas complicates control, especially given the broad management scope and limited personnel. The Deputy Minister urged units to tighten discipline, clarify responsibilities at each chain stage, and review and propose amendments to outdated regulations.

Police previously uncovered a large-scale network for slaughtering and distributing diseased pigs in Hanoi. Nguyen Thi Hien, the slaughterhouse owner, was accused of colluding with quarantine officials to process African swine fever-infected pigs, including dead ones, for market distribution.

Since early 2026, approximately 3,600 infected pigs, totaling nearly 300 tons of meat, entered the market via wholesale and local markets, and supplied a food company for schools. The case led to the prosecution of several veterinary officials for bypassing control procedures, forming a closed chain from collection, slaughter, to distribution.