1.       Unit Name: Department of Food Chemistry

2.       Historical Background:

Food hygiene and safety have always been important areas within nutrition science. Before the August Revolution, the Pasteur Institute in Hanoi (now the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology) already had a department dedicated to detecting food fraud. In 1941, the Food Composition Table for Indochina countries was published by this department.
After peace was restored and the capital was taken over in 1954, the Ministry of Health strengthened the Department of Food Hygiene at the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology. In 1980, the National Institute of Nutrition was established, and the Food Hygiene Department of the Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology was transferred to become an itegral part of this new institute, which serves as Vietnam’s national center for nutrition and food safety.

Since its establishment, the Food Hygiene Department has continuously grown. Many of its core staff members have become key personnel in agencies such as the Food Safety Authority and the National Institute for Food Control. In 2005, the department was renamed the Department of Food and Food Safety to focus more deeply on food science and food safety research. It comprised three specialized teams: Food Chemistry, Food Toxicology, and Food Microbiology, with more than 20 researchers and technicians.

After nearly a decade of development, new scientific areas required further implementation and in-depth research, such as molecular biology and the relationship between genes and foodborne diseases. To align with the Institute’s strategic development orientation, in 2014, the Department of Food and Food Safety was restructured into two independent units: the Department of Food Chemistry and the Department of Food Microbiology and Food Biology.

The Department of Food Chemistry has since been assigned important roles in developing research and testing in food quality and safety, supporting state management in food safety, and strengthening provincial-level food testing laboratory networks.

3.       Functions and Duties

3.1.      Function

The Department of Food Chemistry is responsible for scientific research, personnel training, technical guidance to lower-level units, public education, international cooperation, and providing scientific and technical services related to food quality and safety.

3.2.      Duties

-         Conduct research on the nutritional value of foods in the Vietnamese diet and their impacts on health.

-         Study food hygiene and safety; propose policy solutions to ensure food safety for the population.

-         Participate in education, training, and technical supervision in the field of food chemistry.

-         Participate in state food safety inspections and contribute to the development of food quality and safety regulations.

-         Collaborate with scientific research institutions, international organizations, government and non-governmental agencies both regionally and globally, in accordance with the law regulations, to carry out research and development projects on food quality and safety.

-         Provide services in training, knowledge updates in food science, along with food quality and safety testing.

-         Perform other tasks as assigned by the Institute Director. 

4.       Services Offered

The Department of Food Chemistry provides the following scientific and food safety services:

-         Consultation and testing for products requiring nutritional labeling.

-         Food quality and safety testing.

-         Research and evaluation services for the stability of new food products.

-         Training services: short-term courses on food chemistry testing; supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate theses.

5.       Some Highlighted Images:

The former Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet visited the National Institute of Nutrition and
the Department of Food Hygiene on December 9, 1996.

Photo of activities on research and food testing

Modern analytical equipments at Department of Food Chemistry