Food safety in Hanoi's vegetable supply
Food safety of vegetables, a major component of diets, has become a widely publicized issue in Hanoi. Studies reveal a host of contaminants present at levels well above maximum residue limits, including pesticides, nitrate and heavy metals. In response to concerns, the government launched a safe vegetable program in 1995 including technical support to cooperatives on the supply end, and the establishment of “safe vegetable shops” to ensure distribution of this produce. This article presents the results of a qualitative survey of households and restaurants regarding the issue of vegetable safety. It confirms consumer interest in the program to provide safety guarantees, and suggests that many would be willing to pay a price premium. The constraint at the moment appears mainly on the supply rather than on the demand side. Safe vegetable shops, with only 1.5% of Hanoi's current vegetable supply, are able to sell easily all they can purchase, despite some price premiums. However, to move from this experimental stage to a larger-scale program, it would be useful to gain more detailed insights into the size of the potential market for safe vegetables, by way of a larger survey.
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | conference_item biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
CIRAD
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| Subjects: | E73 - Économie de la consommation, Q03 - Contamination et toxicologie alimentaires, légume, contamination chimique, hygiène des aliments, enquête auprès des consommateurs, agriculture urbaine, circuit de commercialisation, sécurité sanitaire des aliments, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_8174, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_28319, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_3019, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_28656, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_35707, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_4622, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_33995, http://aims.fao.org/aos/agrovoc/c_8227, |
| Online Access: | http://agritrop.cirad.fr/514095/ http://agritrop.cirad.fr/514095/1/ID514095.pdf |
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