Hanoi (VNA) – Effective communication, higher business awareness and greater application of science and technology are crucial to ensure transparency across the supply chain, heard the forum on “Identification Technology and Traceability – Elevating Vietnamese Goods” held by Trade and Industry Newspaper on October 9.
Participants at the forum agreed that those measures would not only improve product management but also boost exports and enhance Vietnam’s competitiveness in global markets.
For years, Vietnam’s market has struggled with the presence of fake, low-quality and origin-falsified products, from traditional markets and convenience stores to supermarkets and e-commerce platforms. This causes heavy losses for legitimate businesses and harms purchasing quality for consumers.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), in the first half of 2025 alone, authorities handled more than 50,000 violations, including nearly 2,000 cases of trafficking banned goods, 7,000 cases of commercial and tax fraud, and over 1,600 cases involving products of unknown origin. Many of these cases were prosecuted, serving as a strong deterrent.
Recalling Europe’s infamous horsemeat scandal over a decade ago, when mislabeled meat products shook consumer trust, Industry and Trade Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Nguyen Van Minh said Vietnam has faced similar issues. At the end of 2024, major cases involving counterfeit milk powder, fake supplements and medicines were busted by the Ministry of Public Security, raising fresh alarms about transparency in production, business and market supervision.
“These incidents underscore the vital role of product identification and traceability in restoring market trust,” Minh said.
A representative from Vinamilk noted that counterfeit and low-quality goods have appeared across multiple sectors with increasingly sophisticated tricks, threatening public health and undermine brand reputation.
Currently, Vietnam’s traceability management remains fragmented across ministries and agencies, lacking a unified national platform for product identification, verification and tracking.
Vinamilk suggested building an integrated system managing the entire supply chain from production and import to circulation and consumption, using advanced technologies to ensure the immutability, integrity and independent verification of data.
“A unified platform would help businesses comply with quality standards, prove product origin, cut testing and inspection costs, and improve access to export markets,” the representative said.
A traceability system aligned with international standards would also enable Vietnam to meet stringent market requirements in the EU, the US and Japan, thereby enhancing the global credibility of Vietnamese goods.
Transparency in origin – a survival strategy
In today’s globalised economy, Vietnamese goods must compete not only in price and quality but also in proven, reliable origin. Traceability has become a product’s “identity card” — a steel shield for consumers and a “passport” for Vietnamese products to reach world markets.
According to Tran Thanh Binh, Head of the MoIT’s Origin of Goods Division under the Import-Export Department, Vietnam has signed 17 free trade agreements (FTAs) and is gearing up to negotiate two more. These trade pacts open up vast opportunities for Vietnamese products to access global markets with significant tariff benefits. However, businesses can only fully capitalise on these advantages if they adhere to key regulations, including traceability requirements.
In fact, the difference in tariffs thanks to the certificate of origin can bring a huge advantage. For example, Vietnamese rice exported to the EU without a certificate of origin is subject to a tax of 175 EUR per tonne, but with proper certification, the tax drops to zero, Binh explained.
However, origin fraud remains a persistent issue, including the use of fake or forged certificates of origin (C/O) and simple reprocessing of imported goods to falsely claim Vietnamese origin.
“Such practices not only violate the law but also damage Vietnam’s credibility in international markets,” Binh warned.
She urged enterprises to strictly comply with origin rules, stressing that short-term gains from falsified documents could result in long-term losses, as import authorities can retroactively inspect and impose back taxes. Transparent compliance, meanwhile, secures long-term tariff benefits and stable, sustainable growth.
Indeed, a certificate of origin serves as the “passport” that allows Vietnamese goods to enter export markets and enjoy trade preferences. Just as citizens must adhere to all rules when using passports and visas to travel abroad, products must also comply with specific requirements to enjoy these trade advantages./.
