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src=\u0027https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/hero\/public\/2025-05\/SaferPork%20Vietnam.jpg.webp?h=3db43f72\u0027 alt=\u0022Safer pork in Vietnam\u0022 class=\u0022d-none\u0022 \/\u003E\n      \u003C\/figure\u003E\n        \u003Cdiv class=\u0022sharing-buttons\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ca\n        href=\u0022https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/stories\/safer-pork-healthier-people\u0022\n        title=\u0022Share on Facebook\u0022\n        target=\u0022_blank\u0022\n        aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Ci class=\u0022fa-brands fa-square-facebook\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022visually-hidden\u0022\u003EFacebook\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/a\u003E\n      \u003Ca\n        href=\u0022https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/stories\/safer-pork-healthier-people\u0022\n        title=\u0022Share on X\u0022\n        target=\u0022_blank\u0022\n        aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Ci class=\u0022fa-brands fa-square-x-twitter\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022visually-hidden\u0022\u003ETwitter\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/a\u003E\n      \u003Ca\n        href=\u0022https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true\u0026amp;url=https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/stories\/safer-pork-healthier-people\u0022\n        title=\u0022Share on LinkedIn\u0022\n        target=\u0022_blank\u0022\n        aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Ci class=\u0022fa-brands fa-linkedin\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022visually-hidden\u0022\u003ELinkedIn\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/a\u003E\n      \u003Ca\n        href=\u0022https:\/\/api.whatsapp.com\/send?text=https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/stories\/safer-pork-healthier-people\u0022\n        title=\u0022Share on Whatsapp\u0022\n        target=\u0022_blank\u0022\n        aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Ci class=\u0022fa-brands fa-square-whatsapp\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022visually-hidden\u0022\u003EWhatsapp\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/a\u003E\n      \u003Ca\n        href=\u0022https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/stories\/safer-pork-healthier-people\u0022\n        title=\u0022Copy on Clipboard\u0022\n        target=\u0022_blank\u0022\n        class=\u0022share-button\u0022\n        aria-hidden=\u0022true\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-link\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022visually-hidden\u0022\u003ECopy on Clipboard\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/a\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022container\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-10 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n        \u003Cdiv class=\u0022title-wrapper\u0022\u003E\n          \u003Ch2 class=\u0022title\u0022\u003ESafer pork, healthier people\u003C\/h2\u003E\n                      \u003Ch3 class=\u0022subtitle\u0022\u003EPutting food safety first in Vietnam \u003C\/h3\u003E\n                  \u003C\/div\u003E\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022content\u0022\u003E\n    \n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003EJust two decades ago, food safety was widely considered an issue for high-income countries\u2014a kind of luxury good, a nice-to-have, but \u201cnot really key to development,\u201d says ILRI\u2019s food safety expert and epidemiologist \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/people\/delia-grace\u0022\u003EDelia Grace\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPeople thought food safety was about as important as ingrown toenails.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBut starting in the early 21st Century, everything changed. In 2015, the World Health Organization \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.who.int\/publications\/i\/item\/9789241565165\u0022\u003Epublished the results of a decade-long study\u003C\/a\u003E, finding that the burden of food-borne disease worldwide was comparable in scale to the \u2018big three\u2019 of deadly illnesses: malaria, HIV\/AIDS and tuberculosis.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThere was this sudden realisation by the donors and the big health organisations that we\u0027ve got a problem as big as malaria, most of it is coming from animal sourced foods sold in traditional markets in Asia and Africa\u2014and we\u0027ve never invested anything in it, and we don\u0027t know how to do anything about it,\u201d says Grace.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAt the same time, people in low-income countries were increasingly worried about food safety. In Asia, a series of health scares made headlines\u2014\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/fluorescent-blue-meat-glows-in-the-dark-2011-12\u0022\u003Eglow-in-the-dark pork\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/articles\/PMC2799451\/\u0022\u003Emelamine-poisoned milk\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2015\/06\/24\/asia\/china-smuggled-meat\/index.html\u0022\u003Eforty-year-old frozen beef\u003C\/a\u003E, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2013\/may\/03\/china-meat-offence-rat-mutton\u0022\u003Efox and rat meat sold as mutton\u003C\/a\u003E. \u201cWhen you open the door in the night and your pork is glowing green, and the next time, it\u0027s twitching\u2014these sorts of things make people think there\u0027s something wrong with my food supply,\u201d says Grace.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EA nationally representative \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/325139143_Vietnam_Public_Opinion_survey_2015\u0022\u003Esurvey\u003C\/a\u003E in Vietnam found that food safety was consumers\u2019 number one concern\u2014trumping pollution, road safety, and domestic violence\u2014and in 2010 the Vietnamese government brought in its first \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/abs\/pii\/S0956713519304517\u0022\u003Efood-safety law\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFortunately, ILRI was in the right place at the right time. It was one of very few organizations already working on food safety and studying traditional markets. As a post-doc in 2006, Grace was the only person in the entire CGIAR researching food safety risk analysis, the gold standard for assessing food problems. By 2008, she was leading food safety research in Vietnam, India and Africa.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWorking with local partners, she and her team launched a new project, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/news\/vietnam-pigrisk-project-team-shares-findings-improving-food-safety-pig-value-chains\u0022\u003EPigRisk\u003C\/a\u003E, in 2012. It included the first-ever \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/knowledge\/publications\/quantitative-risk-assessment-salmonellosis-through-pork-consumption-vietnam\u0022\u003Equantitative risk assessment of food safety in Vietnam\u003C\/a\u003E\u2014and one of the first for any low or middle income country.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n  \n  \n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022video-wrapper\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Ciframe src=\u0022https:\/\/fifty.ilri.org\/media\/oembed?url=https%3A\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch%3Fv%3DfMJlZSaqFPQ\u0026amp;max_width=0\u0026amp;max_height=0\u0026amp;hash=TBW6lfpLy1ScCD-Y8np-fa-oHxVdlTVR9Q02RQKp8s0\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022113\u0022 class=\u0022media-oembed-content\u0022 loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 title=\u0022Improving food safety in the wet markets of Vietnam\u0022\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E\n\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003ERISKY BUSINESS \u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EQuantitative analysis is crucial, because humans are \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/06\/30\/smarter-living\/why-youre-probably-not-so-great-at-risk-assessment.html\u0022\u003Enotoriously bad at assessing risk\u003C\/a\u003E. Our intuitive sense of danger often doesn\u2019t align with the things most likely to kill us. For instance, people tend to be afraid of flying and shark attacks, when driving and falling coconuts are vastly more dangerous. \u201cPeople judge by what \u003Cem\u003Efeels \u003C\/em\u003Escary, not by looking at the numbers,\u201d Grace says.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe same applies to food safety.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFood is one of the things people feel a lot of fear around\u2014but the things people worry about are often not the things that actually make them sick.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFor instance, that luminescent pork was \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.theage.com.au\/national\/shining-steak-anyone-20051117-ge198b.html\u0022\u003Elikely caused by \u003Cem\u003EPseudomonas fluorescens\u003C\/em\u003E, a harmless bacterium\u003C\/a\u003E, while twitching meat simply indicates it\u2019s extremely fresh\u2014residual muscle activity in the tissues causes it to move.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n                   \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--contacts paragraph--view-mode--default\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n      \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Delia%20Grace%20headshot.jpg.webp?itok=ciFLzZ7Z\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Delia Grace photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Delia Grace\n\n      \u003Csmall\u003E  ILRI food safety expert and epidemiologist\n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n      \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Hung-Nguyen.jpg.webp?itok=tKrfZo7o\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Hung Nguyen photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Hung Nguyen-Viet\n\n      \u003Csmall\u003E  Program Leader (a.i.), Health\n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n      \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Fred-Unger.png.webp?itok=uDgO1zP5\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Fred Unger photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Fred Unger\n\n      \u003Csmall\u003E  ILRI regional representative for Asia\n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003ESo the ILRI team, funded by ACIAR and other donors, set out to study empirically what were the most important food-safety problems in the pork value chain in Vietnam.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn 2013, researchers worked with government officials to set up a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/69465\u0022\u003EFood Safety Risk Assessment Task Force\u003C\/a\u003E to build local capacity and oversight. The project supported by Tran Thi Tuyet-Hanh an environmental health scientist to investigate chemical contamination in pork\u2014she found only minimal amounts\u2014and included smallholders, wet-market vendors, slaughterhouses and policy-makers in their \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/77702\u0022\u003Ecomprehensive analysis of the biological hazards\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe innovated quite a bit with the methods,\u201d says Grace. Unlike in high-income countries, most actors in the value chain weren\u2019t routinely collecting data.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBut it can be gathered, at relatively low cost. You might not be able to \u0026nbsp;collect blood samples from 30,000 pigs. Instead, you sit with 200 farmers and you say, what makes your pigs sick? How many pigs die when your pigs get sick? What symptoms do you see? Do they get blotchy skin? These are experts, and they can provide us with information which we can then put into our models.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAnother of the team\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/107035\u0022\u003Estudies\u003C\/a\u003E found that a parasitic porkworm (\u003Cem\u003ETrichinella spiralis\u003C\/em\u003E) and pork tapeworm (\u003Cem\u003ETaenia solium\u003C\/em\u003E), which causes cysticercosis in humans, both had some impact, though the threat was diminishing in Vietnam as people built latrines and fenced off their pigs, disrupting the parasites\u2019 life cycles. Avoiding eating raw or undercooked pork can reduce the risk further, says ILRI veterinary epidemiologist \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/people\/fred-unger\u0022\u003EFred Unger\u003C\/a\u003E. \u201cThey are also relatively easy to control with vaccines \u0026nbsp;anti-parasitic drugs, which are very effective for tape worms in pigs at least.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBut the most serious threat by far, the study showed, was \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella \u003C\/em\u003Epoisoning.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cem\u003ESALMONELLA\u003C\/em\u003E SCARE\u003C\/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EPigRisk showed that as much as \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/77739\u0022\u003Ehalf of the pork\u003C\/a\u003E sold in informal markets was contaminated with \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella\u003C\/em\u003E. Around 17 percent of Vietnamese people risked getting sick every year because of eating pork, due to \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella \u003C\/em\u003Epoisoning. Foodborne diseases have a significant economic impact on Vietnam, with \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/articles\/PMC4659871\/\u0022\u003Efood-borne diarrhea\u003C\/a\u003E alone costing the country approximately USD 6 million annually\u2014equivalent to 1% of its GDP.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cEverywhere food comes together\u2014the wholesale market for vegetables, the slaughterhouse for meat, the dairy cooperative for milk\u2014massive contamination occurs at all of those points,\u201d says Grace. In the slaughterhouses, pigs are typically killed on the ground, which often leads to \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/articles\/PMC4659871\/\u0022\u003E\u003Cem\u003ESalmonella\u003C\/em\u003E contamination\u003C\/a\u003E through contact with the animals\u2019 feces.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n                 \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--testimonial\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-left\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\n  \u003Cp\u003EWhy pork? Because many Southeast Asian people eat a lot of pork\u2014on average, 30 kilograms of pork per year per capita in Vietnam. When you work on the key protein source in the country you can make more impact for the country.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-right\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n    \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Hung-Nguyen.jpg.webp?itok=tKrfZo7o\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Hung Nguyen photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Hung Nguyen-Viet\n\n        \u003Csmall\u003E  Interim program lead, Health \n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003EThe presence of \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella \u003C\/em\u003Ein raw pork is not necessarily a problem, though, as long as you cook the meat\u2014and many consumers were aware of the need to cook pork well before eating it. But during food preparation\u2014in both the markets and in households\u2014people often used the same knives and cutting boards for both raw pork and fresh vegetables, causing cross-contamination. When families ate the raw salad, they consumed the \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella\u003C\/em\u003E bacteria and got sick.It\u2019s important to note that wet markets themselves are only part of the problem, says Unger.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWe found in Cambodia and in Vietnam that supermarkets are not necessarily safer\u2014they can be as safe or as unsafe as traditional markets. They may look nicer, but they keep the meat longer than in the market, so that if pork is contaminated during slaughter, the salmonella has more chance to grow,\u201d he says.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n                 \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--testimonial\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-left\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\n  \u003Cp\u003ESo it\u0027s not the pork itself which is making you sick. It\u0027s what the pork is bringing into your kitchen. That was just a totally novel finding.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-right\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n    \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Delia%20Grace%20headshot.jpg.webp?itok=ciFLzZ7Z\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Delia Grace photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Delia Grace\n\n        \u003Csmall\u003E  ILRI food safety expert and epidemiologist\n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003EILRI\u2019s next project in Vietnam showed exactly that.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBeginning in 2017, the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/research\/projects\/market-based-approaches-improving-safety-pork-vietnam-safepork\u0022\u003ESafePORK project\u003C\/a\u003E tested interventions to improve food safety across the pork value chain. The researchers worked with 10 slaughterhouses and about 30 retailers in markets across the northern provinces of Hung Yen, Nghe An, Hoa Binh, and Thai Nguyen.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThey offered training in hygienic management practices to more than 500 pork-sector workers, as well providing \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/131537\u0022\u003Ea simple technology\u003C\/a\u003E to selected slaughterers and retailers.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n                 \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph paragraph--type--testimonial\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-left\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\n  \u003Cp\u003ETraditional markets can be safe, and pork value chains can be made safer.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Ci class=\u0022fa-solid fa-quote-right\u0022\u003E\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022paragraph--type--author\u0022\u003E\n    \n  \u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/picture\/public\/2025-06\/Fred-Unger.png.webp?itok=uDgO1zP5\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022 height=\u0022200\u0022 alt=\u0022Fred Unger photo\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-picture\u0022 \/\u003E\n\n\n\n\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\n\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022wrapper\u0022\u003E\n      \u003Ch4\u003E\n  Fred Unger\n\n        \u003Csmall\u003E  ILRI regional representative for Asia\n\u003C\/small\u003E\n      \u003C\/h4\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003EFor the slaughterhouses, they developed a metal grid, 20 cm high and tailored to the specific dimensions of each facility, to separate the carcasses from the contaminated ground. And in the markets, they gave pork retailers a pack containing a hygienic cutting board, knife, and a tray to keep their raw pork separate from the cooked meat and vegetables they sell.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/inline\/public\/2025-06\/Slaughterhouse_after%20interventions.jpg.webp?itok=f2rgyOCJ\u0022 width=\u00221280\u0022 height=\u0022964\u0022 alt=\u0022Grills at slaughterhouses\u0022 class=\u0022image-style-inline\u0022\u003E\n\n\n\n\n    \u003Cfigcaption style=\u0022max-width:1200px\u0022\u003E\n        Simple innovations such as 20cm raised metal grid structures at slaughterhouses helped to reduce contamination of pork carcasses from the ground.\n\n          \u003Cspan\u003ECredits:   Photo ILRI\/Delia Grace\n\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cEach little pack cost around US$35, which I think almost every retailer can afford,\u201d says \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.ilri.org\/people\/hung-nguyen-viet\u0022\u003EHung Nguyen-Viet\u003C\/a\u003E, interim leader for ILRI\u2019s health research theme. At the same time, the researchers ran trainings for journalists about food safety, in an effort to improve public communication about the risks of food-borne illnesses while preventing panic.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAfter the intervention, the study found that the prevalence of \u003Cem\u003ESalmonella \u003C\/em\u003Ein retail pork decreased, on average, from 52 percent to 24 percent. \u201cOf course, you don\u2019t get it to zero,\u201d says Unger. \u201cBut you reduce the hazard.\u201d Subsequent studies showed consumers were \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fsufs.2023.1055877\u0022\u003Ewilling to pay 20 percent more\u003C\/a\u003E for safer fresh pork they could trust.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Ch3\u003EPEOPLE POWER\u003C\/h3\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe next step for food safety is to scale up these interventions so they can have a wider influence, says Grace.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWe have shown how big a problem food-borne illnesses are, how easy and cost effective the problem is to solve, and how all the incentives are aligned. The \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fsufs.2023.1055877\u0022\u003Ecustomers want it\u003C\/a\u003E, the sellers want it. We haven\u0027t yet got it to scale.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThrough Vietnam\u2019s food safety task force, and Food Safety Working Group, ILRI scientists collaborated with the World Bank and Vietnamese officials on a \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/80653\u0022\u003Efood-safety risk management report\u003C\/a\u003E they hoped would lead to a $100 million investment; it was scuppered by Covid-19.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n\u003Csection class=\u0022container single-column-sidebar paragraph\u0022\u003E\n  \u003Cdiv class=\u0022row\u0022\u003E\n    \u003Cdiv class=\u0022col-md-7 offset-md-1 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n            \u003Cdiv class=\u0022text-container\u0022\u003E\n        \n  \u003Cp\u003EFrom 2021 to 2023, ILRI led the CGIAR One Health Initiative, which conducted a randomised controlled trial of SafePORK\u2019s piloted \u0026nbsp;interventions in five provinces of Vietnam. A similar project, Safe Food Fair Food, \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/10568\/126734\u0022\u003Etested them in Cambodia\u003C\/a\u003E. In addition, researchers added a food-safety rating program to give incentives to retailers and slaughterhouses to change their behaviour, and boost consumer awareness of food-borne disease risks.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cfigure\u003E\n      \u003Cimg loading=\u0022lazy\u0022 src=\u0022\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/inline\/public\/2025-06\/Ratings%20in%20wet%20markets.jpg.webp?itok=FCbybv5C\u0022 width=\u00221600\u0022 height=\u00221067\u0022 alt=\u0022Wet market in Khe Tre Market in Thua Thien Hue Province \u0022 class=\u0022image-style-inline\u0022\u003E\n\n\n\n\n    \u003Cfigcaption style=\u0022max-width:1200px\u0022\u003E\n        A retailer at a wet market displays a health rating placard at her stall as part of the food safety rating program to incentivize safer hygiene practices.\n\n          \u003Cspan\u003ECredits:   Photo ILRI\/Chi Nguyen\n\u003C\/span\u003E\n      \u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe results have been mixed, says Unger. While for Cambodia, the interventions reduced salmonella contamination by around 50 percent, about similar to SafePORK we found that food safety outcomes under the One Health Initiative differed for Vietnam. \u201cWe\u2019re still analysing, but it seems that for some provinces of Vietnam, it works, it\u0027s promising. For others, it\u2019s actually not that promising.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EScaling up is a work in progress. But Nguyen-Viet is optimistic. Through research, partnerships, the food safety task force and \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/safegroproject.com\/en\/announcement-of-the-establishment-of-vietnam-center-for-food-safety-risk-assessment-vfsa\/\u0022\u003Ea new working group\u003C\/a\u003E, ILRI scientists and partners have been able to influence policy and build capacity in Vietnam, he says. \u201cSometimes we researchers can a bit too shy to speak out. We do good research, we publish in journals. But sometimes we don\u0027t take one step beyond that to knock on the door of policy makers, and propose things.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn this case, we did. We were there at the right time. We talked to the right people. And it happened\u2014we created the opportunity to develop more projects to improve the lives of people through safer food.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn the process, ILRI staff, led by Grace, recruited and trained more than 10 local Masters and 4 PhD students\u2014scientists who might have ended up in another sector, but are now experts in food safety.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt\u0027s just so good see these incredibly talented people working in a really important area which had truly been totally neglected. That\u2019s really good for food safety\u2014and human health.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E--\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EStory written by Kate Evans, science writer\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\n      \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003C\/div\u003E\n    \u003Caside class=\u0022col-md-3 col-sm-12\u0022\u003E\n          \u003C\/aside\u003E\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/section\u003E\n\n  \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003C\/article\u003E\n","settings":null}]