Farmers spray pesticides on a farm in the Mekong Delta.

Banned plant protection chemicals of Chinese origin are being widely used in the country, posing a potentially serious threat to human health and the environment, concerned authorities say.

Most of the chemicals had been imported into Vietnam by overland trade and had Chinese labels, he said.

“The banned chemicals can damage the plants, farmers and consumers as well as destroy helpful bacteria in the soil, apart from causing other environmental harm.”

Nguyen Van Thieu, the bureau’s deputy chief inspector, said: “It’s hard to survey the ratio of Chinese-origin plant protection chemicals in the market, but a large number of locals have imported materials from China to make their own products.”

A survey last month found 30-70 percent of the chemicals being sold at shops were imported from China.

An expert wishing to remain unnamed also said there have been a large number of fake plant protection chemicals from China being smuggled into Vietnam, which were bought by farmers because they were sold at very low prices.

The influx of banned chemicals has also facilitated overuse of the products by farmers, who are likely to use them improperly because they cannot read the Chinese labels, he said.

A survey last year found that of 8,200 respondent households growing vegetables, 1,458 were using pesticides and other plant protection chemicals improperly.

With more than 20,000 shops nationwide selling the imported chemicals, concerned agencies were finding it difficult to control the problem, the expert said.

In 2008, nearly seven tons and 2,600 liters of banned plant protection chemical were seized by authorities in the southern region.

Serious danger

A seminar early this month heard 15-20 million people in Vietnam have regular contact with plant protection chemicals and as many as 70 percent have shown symptoms of poisoning.

The Preventive Health Bureau has also reported poisoning from plant protection chemicals is among the top causes of death among the residents, ranked fourth behind high blood pressure, lung diseases and traffic accidents.

Dao Ngoc Truc, marketing manager of the Lua Vang Joint Stock Company, which produces plant protection chemicals locally, estimated around 80 percent of such products in Vietnam are of Chinese origin.

He said many small producers buy large cans of chemicals from China and simply distribute them in small bottles of their own brands to sell in the local market.

Fabric worries continue

Virtually all apparel stalls at the An Dong Market in Ho Chi Minh City sell readymade clothes from China, while many household businesses in a Hanoi guild commune assured buyers of unlimited supply of fabric of the same origin, Saigon Tiep Thi newspaper reported Monday.

The report comes on top of heightened consumer concerns after the recent expose on garments and toys made in China’s Guangdong province being contaminated with harmful chemicals.

The An Dong Market is known as the country’s largest market for clothes with 2,000 stalls supplying fabric and garments to traders nationwide as well as in Cambodia.

While most of the stalls have turned to displaying locally made products dominantly, the supply of Chinese clothes continues unchecked.

Buyers typically pay no attention to the product’s origins, the report said. Some traders confirmed the products were from China but failed to disclose more specific details.

“If products from Guangdong contain harmful chemicals, all stalls will get involved,” said Hoa, a small trader at the market.

Chi An, a trader who buys from the market, said most children’s clothes stalls sell products from Guangdong

Many traders at the market said that to reduce the smell from clothes made in China, they dry it under sunshine before spraying water and ironing them.

In Hanoi, more than 500 traders at the Ninh Hiep Commune in Gia Lam District supply huge quantities of fabric they claim is from Guangxi province in China.

Trader Xuyen said she buys a full truck of fabric every few days from Guangxi.

Cuong, another trader, said his customers are wholesalers who buy large quantities of fabric to supply retailers in northern provinces.

He said he could not estimate the sales figures of fellow traders because most do not use invoices for their purchases.

Many traders said they stored large quantities of fabric and garments in nearby warehouses, putting limited quantities on display in order to avoid raids by market watchdogs.

In 2007, the market management officials seized four tons of fabric from traders in Ninh Hiep Commune. However, no raid has been conducted there since.

The Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality under the Ministry of Science and Technology is preparing safety criteria for children’s toys including the amount of formaldehyde or aqueous formaldehyde in fabric used to make or dress up the toys.

Formaldehyde is a chemical that can cause skin or respiratory infections.

Source: TN, Agencies