Fined 180 million VND for company causing poisoning of hundreds of workers

By the morning of July 4, all patients had stabilized, were discharged from the hospital, and returned to work as usual, said Mr. Nguyen Van Toan, Head of the Food Safety and Hygiene Department.

According to Mr. Toan, the suspected food poisoning was braised sea fish, supplied by Ha Long Seafood Processing Joint Stock Company. This unit has sufficient conditions and business license.

However, test results of fish samples showed that histamine levels were 40 times higher than the standard level, which could be the cause of the poisoning. Authorities are continuing to clarify the cause.

Among seafood, fish is one of the food sources containing the highest amount of histamine. Specifically, marine fish such as mackerel, anchovies, tuna, herring, skate… if not frozen well after catching, or poorly refrigerated, will cause bacteria to grow strongly and transform the amino acid histidine into histamine, which is toxic to humans.

For now, based on the Decree on administrative sanctions for violations of food safety, Thanh Hung Service Company Limited – the meal provider – was fined 180 million VND, due to the large number of people being poisoned.

According to initial investigation, at around 11:30 on June 27, after lunch at the company, many workers showed signs of rashes and red faces. At 12:30, many people started vomiting, had stomachaches and diarrhea.

After that, 127 workers showed signs of health instability and were transferred to Viet Tiep Friendship Hospital, Hai Phong International General Hospital and An Duong District Medical Center. Of these, 7 people became more seriously ill, with signs of rash, chills, blood clots in the mucous membranes, feeling of anxiety, palpitations, dizziness…, and were treated at Viet Tiep Friendship Hospital. Doctors there diagnosed them with anaphylactic shock and treated them according to the protocol.