Markets

The Savvy CEO: How One Woman’s Venture into Jerky Production Scored a Whopping $4 Million Profit

In a recent shocking revelation, it has come to light that from 2020 up until her arrest, Vu Thi Huong, a resident of Vinh Hung in Phu Tho province, utilized over 1,000 tons of mostly untraceable frozen meat to produce approximately 400 tons of dried meat products. This illicit operation netted Huong over 100 billion VND. The products were found to be counterfeit, with fake labels of origin and fake certificates.

Administrator

13 August, 2025

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On August 11th, the Phu Tho Provincial Police announced that they had initiated legal proceedings, prosecuted, and detained Vu Thi Huong, residing in Vinh Hung, Phu Tho Province, for the production and trading of counterfeit food products.

According to the Phu Tho Provincial Police, through their investigations, they uncovered Huong’s illicit activities. The Provincial Police Directorate instructed the Economic Police Department to coordinate with relevant units to conduct a surprise inspection of the production facility of MQ Food Co., Ltd., located in Vinh Hung, Phu Tho Province (formerly of Dai Dong, Vinh Tuong, Vinh Phuc Province), with Vu Thi Huong as its director.

The inspection uncovered three cold storage warehouses containing 30 tons of fresh buffalo and pork meat and one ton of fresh sausage; and one warehouse for finished products, containing three tons of dried buffalo meat and 3.4 tons of packaged dried pork.

Dried buffalo meat produced by Vu Thi Huong.

Further inspection of the food production facility of Vu Thi Hien, Huong’s sister, also located in Vinh Hung, led to the discovery of an additional 300 kg of packaged dried meat, two vacuum-sealing machines, and numerous packages bearing the brand name of Cuong Huong Co., Ltd.

Investigations by the Phu Tho Provincial Police revealed that the raw materials consisted of imported frozen buffalo and pork meat from India, mostly of unknown origin and without proper invoices or documentation. Several batches of meat in the cold storage warehouses had begun to emit a putrid odor, indicating spoilage.

Notably, to gain consumers’ trust, Huong established a fictitious branch named Cuong Huong Co., Ltd. (later renamed MQ Food Co., Ltd.), with an address at 22/15/200 Minh Khai, Ha Giang City, and printed this address on the product packaging, along with the phrase “Highland Specialty,” despite having no production or business operations in this locality.

Untraceable buffalo meat dried and packaged by Vu Thi Huong.

Additionally, Huong purchased HACCP certification and printed it on the product packaging. She also designed QR codes and affixed them to the packages without registering them with the competent authorities.

Using these deceptive tactics, from 2020 until her apprehension, Vu Thi Huong utilized over 1,000 tons of frozen meat to produce approximately 400 tons of dried meat products, generating estimated revenues of over 100 billion VND.

The Phu Tho Provincial Police are currently expanding their investigation to ensure strict handling in accordance with the law.