The Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ba Ria – Vung Tau Province has just issued an administrative sanction decision against Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thao (born 1982), owner of the Banh Mi – Xoi Co Ba Ben Dinh eatery.
According to the sanction, the establishment was found to have four administrative violations in its production and business activities, including: failure to follow a one-way production process from raw materials to the final product; employees handling food without wearing gloves; operating without a certificate of food safety conditions; and selling food that caused food poisoning to five or more people, not yet at the level of criminal prosecution.
Banh Mi – Xoi Co Ba Ben Dinh has been closed since the food poisoning incident.
As a result, the Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee of Ba Ria – Vung Tau decided to impose a total administrative fine of VND 125 million for the four violations.
The eatery will also face aggravated circumstances for “large-scale administrative violations,” as the food poisoning incident affected a total of 342 people. Additionally, the violation affected “multiple people, including children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and pregnant women.” The establishment will be suspended from all production, processing, business, and food supply activities for five months.
According to the sanction decision, the owner will be responsible for all costs associated with the treatment of food poisoning and medical examinations for the affected individuals.
Patients receiving treatment at the emergency room of Vung Tau Hospital after the food poisoning incident.
Prior to this, test results detected the presence of Salmonella spp bacteria in samples of boiled pork, pate, cha lua (Vietnamese pork sausage), fresh herbs (scallions and cilantro), and pork sauce, as well as Escherichia coli bacteria in the fresh herb samples, exceeding the permitted limit.
Based on the epidemiological analysis of individual investigations and the results of food and clinical specimen testing, the authorities concluded that the incident at Banh Mi – Xoi Co Ba Ben Dinh was a food poisoning case caused by microorganisms (Salmonella spp and Escherichia coli), affecting 342 people with symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, and fatigue. One death was recorded, attributed to banh mi consumption.
