Vietnamese enterprises exporting agricultural products and food to Italy risk clearance suspensions over simple document information discrepancies. Notably, if Italian customs detect food safety violations, shipment batches can face destruction or re-exportation, while enterprises are placed under targeted surveillance with inspection frequencies elevated to 20–50%.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade recently provided information regarding sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regulations applied to Vietnamese agricultural products, food, and seafood exported to the Italian market.

According to the Vietnam Trade Office in Italy, imported goods from Vietnam arriving via major seaports—such as Genoa, La Spezia, Trieste, Naples—and international airports including Rome Fiumicino and Milan Malpensa undergo strict controls by Customs and the Italian Ministry of Health at Border Control Posts (BCP).

Notably, upon port arrival, Italian functional authorities execute a 3-tier inspection process: documentary checks, identity checks, and physical inspections with sampling.

During documentary checks, functional agencies cross-check documents including phytosanitary certificates, health certificates, certificates of origin, wild-caught seafood certificates, and related declarations. Discrepancies regarding HS codes, product scientific names, factory information, or even typographical errors can cause shipments to face clearance suspensions for verification.

Subsequently, functional agencies inspect container seals, batch numbers, labels, packaging, and verify them against declaration dossiers. Depending on a commodity's risk level and an enterprise's compliance history, shipments may undergo sampling to test for plant protection chemical residues, mycotoxins, antibiotics, harmful microorganisms, and heavy metals.

While awaiting laboratory results—typically lasting 3 to 7 working days—goods must remain in quarantine warehouses at ports or authorized bonded warehouses.

If testing reveals a single parameter exceeding limits, border control agencies can reject entry. Shipments must be destroyed within Italy or re-exported outside the EU, with all arising costs borne by exporting enterprises and cargo owners.

Another notable risk is that information regarding non-compliant shipments will be posted onto the EU's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF).

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, violating enterprises may be placed under targeted surveillance, leading to physical inspection and sampling rates at EU border gates increasing to 20–50% during subsequent export attempts.

For commodities where Vietnam maintains strengths—such as coffee, cashew nuts, pepper, and fruits/vegetables—the EU strictly applies plant protection chemical residue regulations. In cases where an active substance lacks a specific maximum residue limit (MRL) for a product, a default limit threshold of 0.01 mg/kg may be applied.

Cashew nut and pepper products must also satisfy mycotoxin regulations, while coffee is monitored for Ochratoxin A (a dangerous mold toxin). Therefore, controlling moisture levels, raw material preservation, and chemical residues right from the production phase holds decisive importance for clearance capabilities.

For marine-harvested seafood—such as tuna, squid, octopus, and mackerel—shipments must be accompanied by catch certificates alongside information regarding fishing vessels, harvesting zones, times, and output volumes. Italian Customs can cross-check data on the EU's digital certification system (CATCH). If figures between logbooks, port confirmations, and export declarations lack consistency, shipments risk being detained for audit.

For farmed seafood like shrimp and pangasius, processing enterprises must possess valid EU export approval codes registered on the electronic certification system (TRACES NT) while guaranteeing strict compliance with chemical and antibiotic residue rules.

To diminish risks, the Vietnam Trade Office in Italy recommends that enterprises test goods prior to export, carefully review document consistency, and continuously update EU SPS regulations to limit risks of goods being detained at ports, incurring costs, or suffering import rejections.

Source: Bao Tien Phong