Circular 02/2024/TT-BKHCN management of product and goods traceability

CIRCULAR

On the management of product and goods traceability^[1]

Pursuant to the June 29, 2006 Law on Standards and Technical Regulations;

Pursuant to the November 21, 2007 Law on Product and Goods Quality;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008, detailing a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality; and the Government’s Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP of January 21, 2022, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008, Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP of May 15, 2018,  detailing a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality, and Decree No. 86/2012/ND-CP of October 19, 2012, detailing and guiding a number of articles of the Law on Measurement;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 28/2023/ND-CP of June 2, 2023, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Science and Technology;

At the proposal of the Director General of the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality and the Director of the Department of Legal Affairs;

The Minister of Science and Technology promulgates the Circular on the management of product and goods traceability.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Circular provides the management of product and goods traceability, covering the state management of product and goods traceability; regulations on product and goods traceability systems to ensure data connection and sharing; management of the use of product tracing codes, location tracing codes and data carriers; responsibilities of organizations and individuals implementing product and goods traceability; responsibilities of organizations and individuals providing product and goods traceability services and solutions and organizing the implementation of product and goods traceability.

Article 2. Subjects of application

This Circular applies to:

1. Organizations and individuals engaged in production, trade and service provision that implement product and goods traceability.

2. Organizations and individuals providing services and solutions related to product and goods traceability.

3. State management agencies and related organizations and individuals.

Article 3. Interpretation of terms

In this Circular, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. Traceability means the supervision and identifiability of a product or service unit by time or location through each stage of the production, processing, storage, preservation, transportation, distribution and trading process. 

2. Traceability system means a system covering the identification of products and collection and storage of information on the status of products by time and location in order to manage information on product quality and safety.

3. Product tracing code means a sequence of digits or digits and letters that is used during the traceability process for identification of products in the stages of production and trading.

4. Location tracing code means a sequence of digits or digits and letters that is used during the traceability process for identification of the location where events in the stages of production and trading take place.

5. Traceability code means the final identification code in each stage of the traceability process (consisting of a continuous sequence of digits or digits and letters constituted from the product tracing code, location tracing code, consignment/batch number, and time of occurrence of the relevant event) that is encrypted in a data carrier to publicly and transparently display information on the product or goods in the market and provide information for traceability.

6. Traceability data carrier means a data-containing means or object (stamp, label, card or another appropriate means or object), ensuring that data are readable on devices.

7. Traceability data means data from different parts and processes within the determined traceability scope. Traceability data include data on the quality and safety of products and basic information.

8. “One Step Forward - One Step Back” principle means a principle of traceability in which an organization or individual must retain information to ensure the supervision and identifiability of the previous and subsequent production or trading stages in the production and trading process of the product in question.

9. The National Product and Goods Traceability Portal includes the systems of hardware, software and databases for provision of information on the origin of products and goods, which is capable of connecting information to the traceability systems of lines ministries, localities, agencies, organizations and enterprises and international systems.

Article 4. Principles of application

1. Organizations and individuals producing the products and goods specified in Clause 4, Article 19dd of the Government’s Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008, detailing a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality (below referred to as Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP), which is amended under Clause 3, Article 1 of the Government’s Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP of January 21, 2022, amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP, the Government’s Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP of May 15, 2018, detailing a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality, and the Government’s Decree No. 86/2012/ND-CP of October 19, 2012, detailing and guiding a number of articles of the Law on Measurement (below referred to as Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP) shall comply with this Circular’s provisions on traceability of products and goods.

2. Organizations and individuals producing, trading in, or providing services concerning, products and goods other than those specified in Clause 1 of this Article may opt to implement this Circular’s provisions on product and goods traceability if they so wish.

3. Production, trading and service organizations and individuals shall comply with this Circular if they wish to connect to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal.

4. To comply with the law on confidentiality during the process of product and goods traceability and connection to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal.

Chapter II

PROVISIONS ON PRODUCT AND GOODS TRACEABILITY

Article 5. Management of the use of product tracing codes, location tracing codes and data carriers

1. Organizations and individuals implementing product and goods traceability that use product tracing codes and location tracing codes must ensure conformity with National Standard TCVN 13274:2020 on Traceability - Guidelines for formatting tracing codes declared by the Ministry of Science and Technology before putting such codes into use.

2. Organizations and individuals implementing product and goods traceability that use data carriers must ensure conformity with National Standard TCVN 13275:2020 on Traceability - Format of data carriers declared by the Ministry of Science and Technology. Data carriers shall be glued, printed, attached, molded or engraved directly on products, goods, their commercial packaging, or other materials attached to such products and goods or their commercial packaging, ensuring that data are readable on devices.

Article 6. Assurance of data connection and sharing of product and goods traceability systems

1. A product and goods traceability system must adhere to the following principles:

a/ The “One Step Forward - One Step Back” principle: The capacity for supervising and identifying the previous and subsequent production and trading stages in the production and trading process of a product or goods must be ensured;

b/ The “Master Data Element Availability” principle: Master data elements must be collected, stored and updated promptly in reports on detailed information about important events of the production process and supply chain;

c/ The “Transparency” principle: The traceability system must meet the requirements for minimum transparency by using static data on customers, suppliers, products and production conditions;

d/ The “Adequate Participation of Tracing Parties” principle: The traceability system must have the participation of all tracing parties of the organization concerned.

2. The product and goods traceability systems of organizations or individuals must ensure the adequate traceability process according to national standards, national technical regulations, international standards, or regional standards equivalent to types of products and goods, and be declared as conformable with corresponding standards or technical regulations. The ground for conformity declaration shall be self-assessment results of organizations or individuals or certification results of designated certification organizations in accordance with law.

3. The traceability data of each product or goods in a product and goods traceability system must contain at least the following information:

a/ Name of the product or goods;

b/ Image of the product or goods;

c/ Name of the producer or trader;

d/ Address of the producer or trader;

dd/ Stages in the production and trading process (including at least the information on the product tracing code, location tracing code and time of occurrence of events subject to traceability in each stage);

e/ Production or trading time (time of occurrence of the events subject to traceability);

g/ Traceability code of the product or goods;

h/ Brand, trademark, code, and serial number of the product (if any);

i/ Shelf life of the product (if any);

k/ Applicable national standards, national technical regulations, international standards, regional standards and manufacturer standards.

4. In order to be connected to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal, a product and goods traceability system must contain at least the information specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

5. Traceability data of a product or goods on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal for looking up by consumers must contain at least the following information:

a/ Name of the product or goods;

b/ Image of the product or goods;

c/ Name of the producer or trader;

d/ Address of the producer or trader;

dd/ Production and trading time (time of occurrence of events subject to traceability);

e/ Brand, trademark, code, and serial number of the product (if any);

g/ Shelf life of the product (if any).

6. In every event after each stage, a product shall be identified with a traceability code for traceability. Traceability codes shall be encrypted in data carriers.

7. Data carriers used for traceability must comply with Clause 2, Article 5 of this Circular.  Decrypted information must contain at least the information specified in Clause 5 of this Article.  The minimum retention time of traceability data for each type of products or goods must comply with regulations of the line ministry.

Chapter III

STATE MANAGEMENT OF PRODUCT AND GOODS TRACEABILITY

Article 7. The Ministry of Science and Technology

1. To comply with Clauses 1 and 4, Article 19dd of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP, which is amended under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP.

2. To assign the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality to act as a standing body to assist the Ministry of Science and Technology in performing the state management of products and goods traceability, specifically as follows:

a/ To assume the prime responsibility for, guide the application of, and organize the dissemination of, public communication about, training in, and implementation of activities related to, product and goods traceability;

b/ To build, operate and administer the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal;

c/ To assume the prime responsibility for researching and developing technical solutions to ensure the capacity of interacting, exchanging and connecting traceability data with the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal; to assist organizations and individuals in maintaining data on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal;

d/ To designate product and goods traceability system certification organizations in accordance with law;

dd/ To inspect and examine product and goods traceability.

3. Before December 25 every year or when requested, to report to the Prime Minister on the implementation of product and goods traceability.

Article 8. Line ministries

1. To comply with Clauses 2 and 4, Article 19dd of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP, which is amended under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP.

2. To formulate schemes, programs and plans and allocate necessary resources for implementation of activities related to product and goods traceability according to their competence.

3. To assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Science and Technology and related ministries and sectors in, inspecting and examining product and goods traceability according to their competence.

4. To assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Science and Technology (via the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality) in, managing traceability information at their ministries; to provide and look up information on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal to serve the state management at their ministries.

5. Annually or when requested, to submit reports on the implementation of product and goods traceability at their ministries, made according to the form provided in the Appendix to this Circular, to the Ministry of Science and Technology (via the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality) for summarization and reporting to the Prime Minister. The data-cutoff time, time limits for report submission and methods of report submission and receipt must comply with the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 13/2021/TT-BKHCN of December 30, 2021, providing the periodical reporting regime under the state management of the Ministry of Science and Technology (below referred to as Circular No. 13/2021/TT-BKHCN).

Article 9. Provincial-level People’s Committees

1. To comply with Clause 3, Article 19dd of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP, which is amended under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP.

2. To assign agencies acting as advisory and assisting bodies for provincial-level People’s Committees in performance of the state management of product and goods traceability in localities under Clause 13, Article 8 of the Government’s Decree No. 24/2014/ND-CP of April 4, 2014, on specialized agencies under provincial-level People’s Committees:

a/ To assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality in, guiding the application of, and organizing the dissemination of, public communication about, training in, and implementation and management of, traceability in localities; to coordinate with the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality in exploiting, providing, and looking up information on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal to serve the state management work in localities;

b/ To assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality and related agencies in, managing, examining, and handling violations in, product and goods traceability in localities;

c/ Based on the actual situation in localities, to formulate plans and prepare necessary resources for implementation of activities related to product and goods traceability on an annual, medium-term or long-term basis, and report them to provincial-level People’s Committees for consideration and approval;

d/ To formulate suitable plans to encourage, attract, and assist local enterprises in developing product and goods traceability systems with their resources and other support sources; and report such plans to provincial-level People’s Committees for consideration and decision.

3. Annually or when requested, to submit reports on the implementation of product and goods traceability, made according to the form provided in the Appendix to this Circular, to the Ministry of Science and Technology (via the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality) for summarization and reporting to the Prime Minister. The data-cutoff time, time limits for report submission and methods of report submission and receipt must comply with Circular No. 13/2021/TT-BKHCN.

Chapter IV

RESPONSIBILITIES OF ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS IMPLEMENTING TRACEABILITY AND ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS PROVIDING TRACEABILITY SERVICES AND SOLUTIONS

Article 10. Organizations and individuals implementing product and goods traceability

1. To comply with this Circular’s provisions on product and goods traceability.

2. To declare product and goods traceability systems’ conformity with equivalent national standards, national technical regulations, international standards or regional standards.

3. To take responsibility before law for information on product and goods traceability specified in this Circular.

4. To submit to the inspection, examination and supervision of competent state agencies in charge of managing product and goods traceability in accordance with law.

5. In case of connecting information to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal, to promptly update traceability data of products and goods specified in Clause 5, Article 6 of this Circular according to each stage of the production and trading process on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal; to coordinate with the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality so as to ensure maintenance of data on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal.

Article 11. Organizations and individuals providing product traceability services and solutions

1. To provide product traceability services and solutions meeting the requirements specified in this Circular.

2. To take responsibility before law for the services and solutions related to product traceability provided to organizations and individuals. If wishing to connect to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal, to coordinate with the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality so as to ensure maintenance of data on the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal.

3. To submit to the inspection, examination and supervision of state management agencies in charge of product and goods traceability in accordance with law.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 12. Effect

This Circular takes effect on June 1, 2024.

Article 13. Transitional provisions

Organizations and individuals that have built and operated product and goods traceability systems before the effective date of this Circular shall, if wishing to connect to the National Product and Goods Traceability Portal, review and declare the conformity of their product and goods traceability systems under Article 6 of this Circular.

Article 14. Organization of implementation

1. The Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality shall guide and organize the implementation of this Circular.

2. In case the legal documents referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or replaced, the amending, supplementing or replacing ones shall prevail. In case the standards referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or replaced, the Ministry of Science and Technology’s guidelines shall be complied with.

3. Any problems arising in the course of implementation of this Circular should be reported in writing to the Ministry of Science and Technology (via the Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality) for guidance or appropriate revision.

4. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies, provincial-level People’s Committees and related organizations and individuals shall implement this Circular.-

For the Minister of Science and Technology
Deputy Minister
LE XUAN DINH

* The Appendix to this Circular is not translated.