Pigs imported from Thailand were quarantined in Nghĩa Đàn District, Nghệ An Province. — VNA/VNS Photo Nguyễn Oanh

HÀ NỘI — The Department of Animal Health under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has reported that Thailand-imported live pigs to Việt Nam were safe, adding that they did not contain banned substances.

Recently, there were rumours in Việt Nam that a batch of Thailand-imported live pigs had some banned substances and would have to be quarantined for 45 days to ensure safety for consumers.

However, the Department of Animal Health on Monday confirmed that live pigs imported from Thailand were certified not to use food with banned substances in the process of breeding according to the regulations of Thailand and Việt Nam.

The agreement between the two countries on veterinary requirements for pigs imported from Thailand to Việt Nam stipulates that pork had to meet requirements on disease safety, come from Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)-licensed livestock farms, and be certified by the Animal Health Authority of Thailand that pigs do not use food with banned substances in the livestock process.

The examination of the first batch of live pigs imported from Thailand to Việt Nam was conducted by the Region 3 Animal Health Division, under the Department of Animal Health.

Before, Thailand-imported live pigs were transported to the quarantine area in the central province of Nghệ An. The Region 3 animal health division also co-ordinated with the provincial veterinary department to check the sanitary conditions in the quarantine area.

In this quarantine area, veterinary officers would take samples from the pigs, ensuring that they were healthy before being consumed in Việt Nam.

Live pigs would be transported from Nghệ An Province to the northern province of Hà Nam.

A representative of the enterprise that imported the first batch of live pigs said that they would sell all of these pigs to the wholesale market in Hà Nam, with prices from VNĐ81,000 to VNĐ84,000 (over US$3) per kg. This price is currently lower than that of domestic pigs which is about VNĐ90,000 per kg. — VNS