Self-declaring vegetarian food is a necessary decision for businesses before bringing products to market. This process ensures vegetarian food meets regulatory safety and quality standards. Long Phan’s article will provide detailed instructions on the steps to self-declaring vegetarian food, from product identification to preparing documents and submitting the declaration, helping businesses comply with legal regulations.

How are vegetarian foods defined?

Vegetarian foods are products that do not contain animal ingredients. These products include processed fruits and vegetables, tofu, vegetarian patties, vegetarian sausages and plant-based meat substitutes. In addition, spices and vegetarian dipping sauces are also classified in this group. Accurately determining the product type helps businesses apply the correct announcement process according to regulations.

Is it mandatory to carry out vegetarian food declaration procedures?

According to Article 4 of Decree 15/2018/ND-CP, organizations and individuals producing and trading food must self-declare processed and pre-packaged foods, food additives, and processing aids. food, food containers, packaging materials in direct contact with food.

Vegetarian foods are not included in the list of products required to register a declaration. However, businesses still need to carry out procedures for self-declaration of products. This process helps make product information transparent with state management agencies and consumers. Self-declaration is also the legal basis for businesses to be allowed to produce and sell products on the market. Correct implementation of this process helps businesses avoid legal risks and build reputation with customers.

How is the process of self-declaring vegetarian food done?

Documents need to be prepared for publication

According to Clause 1, Article 5 of Decree 15/2018/ND-CP, product self-declaration documents include:

• Product self-declaration according to Model number 01 Appendix I issued with Decree 15/2018/ND-CP.
• Product food safety testing results certificate within 12 months. This certificate must be issued by a designated or ISO 17025 accredited testing laboratory.

Documents in the application must be in Vietnamese. If there are foreign documents, a notarized translation into Vietnamese is required. All documents must be valid at the time of publication.

Sequence of steps

The process of self-declaration of vegetarian food includes the steps specified in Clause 2, Article 5, Decree 15/2018/ND-CP (amended by Clause 2, Article 1, Clause 1, Article 3, Decree 155/2018/ND- CP) as follows:

Step 1: Enterprise prepares documents and completes them according to regulations.

Step 2: Enterprises self-publish product information on mass media, corporate websites or list at headquarters.

Step 3: Upload information to the Food Safety Data System.

Case 1: For supported localities, Enterprises register themselves on this system.

Case 2: If this system is not available, submit the application directly or by post to the competent state management agency designated by the Provincial People’s Committee to store records and post data.

Note: If there are changes in product name, origin, or ingredients, it needs to be re-announced. Other changes only require written notification.

As stated above, this is not a mandatory procedure for vegetarian food. Therefore, businesses can do business as soon as they are eligible while carrying out product self-declaration procedures

Consulting and implementing effective self-declaration procedures for vegetarian products at Long Phan

Long Phan provides consulting services and supports businesses in implementing procedures for self-declaration of vegetarian products. Our services include the following scope of work:

• Research and determine the exact type of product that needs to be announced.
• Instructions on preparing complete documents according to regulations.
• Drafting the correct product self-declaration form.
• Support performing product testing at standard testing laboratories.
• Submit documents and monitor the processing process at the management agency.
• Consulting on other issues related to product announcement.
• Support in handling problems that arise during the publication process.

Self-declaration of vegetarian food is not a mandatory procedure for businesses. However, if customers need to carry out the process, please contact Long Phan via hotline 0906735386. We will advise on suitable solutions, helping you complete the procedure quickly and effectively.