Consumers when choosing meat in the cooler of a supermarket need to learn carefully because there are many types of defrosted meat Photo: Tran Viet – VNA Cheap, easy to buy, convenient to process Ms. Linh Chi (banker, Ba Trieu branch, Hanoi), said that recently, when she went to the supermarket, she came across lean pork, pork belly imported from the US, cut into pieces and pre-packed in blister packs. , stored in the refrigerator for sale. This type of meat costs from 104,000-154,000 VND/kg, cheaper than fresh domestic meat. When she wondered about the fact that imported meat was not kept in the freezer but kept in the cooler when sold, the supermarket staff explained: “Frozen meat is often in large volume, making it difficult for consumers to buy, so Supermarket defrosts, cuts, divides into small pieces from 300-400gr/tray and is stored in the refrigerator”. Further observation, Ms. Linh saw that at this food counter in the supermarket, there was a sign noting to consumers: “The product has been defrosted, please do not re-freeze”. According to the reporter’s observations, with meats that have been defrosted, chopped, and sold as cool or fresh meats, many customers choose because of their low prices, suitable for the retail needs of the majority of customers. . However, very few supermarkets clearly state the origin and condition of these meats. In supermarkets, convenience stores, you will not easily recognize this as thawed meat because the small stamps on the surface of the tray only display the words “American beef shoulder”, “Australian beef shoulder”. … Especially, what is more worrying, if supermarkets and convenience stores bring defrosted meat to sell as cool meat, in markets, thawed meat is sold as fresh meat. Even at the end of the day, if it doesn’t sell out, the stall owner will re-freeze the meat to sell it the next day. Thawed meat does not guarantee food safety With the advantages of being easy to buy because of its small volume, convenient processing, and low cost, consumers have chosen this type of defrosted meat. However, food safety experts are concerned about the safety and quality of frozen meat when defrosting if done in an inappropriate manner. Specifically, when defrosting, the meat must be brought to the refrigerator (temperature is about 4-5 degrees Celsius) to slowly defrost, not put the meat outside in the natural environment or put the meat in water. When leaving meat out, the high temperature will make it easy for bacteria to infect and grow, which is not safe. In many supermarkets, convenience stores, markets, imported meat is thawed for retail Dr. Nguyen Duy Thinh, former officer of the Institute of Food and Biotechnology, University of Science and Technology, said that in markets, hygienic conditions cannot be compared with supermarkets, meat has a high risk of infection. With unsold meat, small traders re-freeze, bacteria continue to be inhibited, but after thawing, exposed to normal temperature, bacteria multiply faster before re-freezing. Moreover, when selling, due to the large amount of meat, the cooler is not able to cool the pieces of meat evenly, so it still creates opportunities for bacteria to grow. The amount of bacteria will multiply day by day. After three days, the meat in the supermarket can be the same as the meat in the market if it is stored at a temperature above 5 degrees Celsius. “It is best to defrost it on the same day it is sold out” – Dr. Nguyen Duy Thinh said. In addition, Mr. Vu The Thanh, a food safety and hygiene expert, said that defrosted meats are more susceptible to infection than fresh meat because when defrosting, the bacteria will continue to multiply after the freezing process. and multiply to infinity if favorable conditions are met. Therefore, when buying defrosted frozen meat, consumers should process and use it within the same day, do not re-freeze the meat because it will form ice in the piece of meat, after thawing again. , the meat will be dehydrated, not good to eat. Mr. Nguyen Van Manh, owner of a chain of stores specializing in selling clean food, said that fresh, frozen and chilled meat products must all meet technical regulations on food safety, if Failure to do so will result in fines or even criminal penalties. Explaining the reason why retailers still openly sell defrosted meat, Mr. Manh said that because these units did not announce or promote the meat as cool or fresh meat, the authorities cannot be punished. “The standard is for businesses to have grounds to announce the quality of products sold on the market, not mandatory. Only if these stalls hang signs selling cool and fresh meat but sell defrosted meat. , has just been punished”. To the naked eye, it can be seen that the pieces of pork after defrosting are usually pale in color. Even, the meat is still a bit cold, some pieces of meat still have ice crystals. As for beef, frozen buffalo meat that is thawed is usually darker in color, especially when sold at room temperature, on a hot day in the market.

In many supermarkets, convenience stores, wholesale and retail markets, pork, beef and chicken of all kinds are defrosted for retail, in which, there are products that are discolored and metamorphosed right on the counters and stalls. See defrosted meat as cool, fresh meat In previous years, imported frozen meat was often preferred by collective kitchens (schools, factories, restaurants) because the price is much cheaper than fresh meat (hot meat) in the country and the price advantage when buying the whole box (per barrel) cartons are usually from 18-25kg). But now, imported meat is defrosted and retailed by stall owners in markets, shops and supermarkets. Bach Hoa Xanh convenience store on Vo Thanh Trang street, Tan Binh district, Ho Chi Minh City sells a lot of lean pork chips, pork ribs, and imported beef thighs. All meats here have been defrosted, chopped, and sold as cool or fresh meats. According to some customers, they buy this type of product because it is cheap and easy to process. Some customers don’t even know it’s defrosted meat. “All meat imported here is frozen meat that has been defrosted and has the same quality as chilled meats,” the store employee said. Many types of defrosted meat sold on the side of the wholesale market for agricultural products and food in Hoc Mon began to change color, but consumers still flocked to buy it due to the low price. At the Tops Market supermarket on Au Co Street, Tan Phu District, Ho Chi Minh City, the amount of beef imported from the US and Australia is quite large, overwhelming domestic beef. Meat is divided into many types such as ribs, pork belly, shoulder loin, corn, neck core meat, lean thigh, lean shoulder, flower corn… All are cut into all sizes (1-2cm thick slices, thin slices, slices). square, wrap enoki mushrooms…) and then put in a plastic tray with a weight of 300-400g, which is very suitable for the retail needs of most customers. It is not easy to recognize that this is defrosted meat because the small stamps on the surface of the tray only show the words “American beef shoulder”, “Australian beef shoulder”… With thick cuts of meat, still fine. Ice crystals between the fibers are easier to see, but with thin slices, the ice crystals disappear, they look like cool meat. Meanwhile, at the counter, there is no information that this is defrosted meat. Some meats have a promotional label, which has a three-day shelf life. According to staff, this supermarket often has promotions and discounts directly on products; all promotional meat is fresh meat, not old meat like in other supermarkets (?). At Big C supermarket on Truong Chinh Street, Tan Phu District, in addition to imported beef and pork, there are also whole chickens, garlic thighs, and imported chicken thighs. All kinds of pork and beef are also chopped, blistered, and sold in the freezer. Particularly, the types of chicken are defrosted and sold as fresh chicken in the country. At this area, there is a sign warning consumers: “Product has been defrosted, please do not re-freeze”. At Lotte Mart supermarket, imported beef has been sliced, packed, and defrosted, but the packaging says “fresh beef”. Not selling all, re-freezing again If supermarkets and shops bring thawed meat to sell as cool meat, in markets, thawed meat is sold as fresh meat. Even at the end of the day, if not sold out, the stall owner will re-freeze the meat to sell the next day. At a beef stall in Ba Hoa market, Tan Binh district, at 6am, all beef tendons in the tray were still a bit cold, some pieces of meat were still mixed with ice crystals. According to our observations, during the lunch break, this unsold meat continued to be re-frozen and then displayed on a tray for further sale at 15:00. “In the morning, this beef tendon costs 150,000 VND / kg, but in the afternoon, the price is about 120,000-130,000 VND / kg. Meat that is not sold out must be re-frozen for preservation. It’s the same everywhere, not just here,” said the stall owner. In markets, it is not difficult to recognize frozen beef and buffalo meat that is thawed and sold as fresh meat. Imported goods are mainly packed in boxes according to categories such as thigh, loin, and neck meat, while most stalls also sell these types. These defrosted meats often darken very quickly when sold at room temperature, especially on hot days. Previously, the Veterinary Department of Ho Chi Minh City had exposed cases of defrosting meat and then dipping it into fresh beef blood to deceive consumers. Route 4 on the side of Hoc Mon wholesale market for agricultural products and food is the gathering place for dozens of frozen pork trucks. This is also a place to sell defrosted and re-frozen pork on a fairly large scale. Here, there are more than a dozen stainless steel tables set up next to refrigerated trucks for small traders to display meat for sale. Meat is exposed, uncovered, under the table only temporarily lined with cardboard or plastic bags. Meat juice from the table dripped to the ground, pooled in puddles, and smelled foul. These “stalls” sell all kinds of pork such as tenderloin, cutlet, young ribs, bacon, lean shoulder, thigh, ham, hoof, and offal. Because everything is frozen, when it’s on the table, it’s a bit cold. The prices of these meats are half as cheap as hot meat in the wholesale market of agricultural products and food in Hoc Mon: pork leg and pork belly at 55,000 VND/kg; Young ribs, pork heart cost 65,000 VND/kg. According to our observations, most customers come here to buy wholesale, at least 5kg or more, in and out continuously. Vendors also use their bare hands to pick up meat for customers, with only a few wearing gloves. A seller here said that the customers who come to buy are mainly people from restaurants and collective kitchens, they take a lot of money due to the cheap price, but the delicious meat is not inferior to fresh meat because it is preserved by refrigerated trucks. specialized. However, it was only around 7am, the sun was still not shining, the meat in some stalls had stopped freezing, started to turn a little pale, not pink, and lost its elasticity when pressed. This amount of meat is put in plastic bags by the owners of the stalls and brought to the refrigerated truck to be re-frozen, wait a few hours or the next day for sale. This happens from early morning to late evening. According to regulations, to sell frozen meat, small traders in the wholesale market of agricultural products and food in Hoc Mon must register; If you do not register, you will be severely fined. Meanwhile, the “field stalls” on the side of this market sell defrosted meat without knowing if it has an expiration date or is marinated with any preservatives. (According to Women in HCMC)