Fears African swine fever affected food may be on sale in UK

Fresh concerns have been raised about the UK’s border controls after it emerged that products from a Vietnamese food manufacturer at the centre of an African swine fever scandal were on sale in the UK until recently.

Vietnamese media have reported that the CEO of Ha Long Canned Food JSC (Halong Canfoco) has been charged with “negligence causing serious consequences”, after the company was found to have used pork infected with African swine fever (ASF) in its canned paté.

See also: 6 ways to help protect against African swine fever

According to VN Express International, the case came to light last September when Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security’s economic police intercepted two trucks carrying 1.2t of pork of unknown origin.

The meat later tested positive for ASF, which has been circulating in the country this year.

Investigators subsequently discovered 130t of frozen diseased pork at the company’s warehouse.

Authorities said the company produced more than 1.7t of paté – around 14,000 cans – using contaminated raw materials on 6 and 7 September 2025.

Other products, including 4,000kg of spring rolls and 3,000kg of premium spring rolls, also tested positive for ASF, while frozen pork and chicken skin were found to be contaminated with salmonella.

Despite the findings dating back to the autumn, Ha Long products were available in the UK until a few weeks ago.

A Google search showed canned paté, pork liver paste and sliced pork on sale via Huong Viet Asian Supermarket.

Halong Canfoco pork products being sold in the UK

After being contacted by Pig World, the leading title for the UK pig industry, a spokesman for Huong Viet said: “Since the news broke, we have removed all their products from our shelves and online.”

The company said it became aware of the case via Vietnamese media around three weeks ago.

There is no suggestion the retailer has done anything wrong.

Aims sounds alarm

Tony Goodger, head of marketing and communications at the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers (Aims), alerted the Food Standards Agency (FSA) after spotting the products on sale.

“It appears that we are leaving the country’s biosecurity to chance,” he said.

“At present, we have no idea about the full range of potentially contaminated products in the UK, for how long they have been sold to consumers, their batch codes or where else they might be being sold.”

An FSA spokesperson said: “We’re aware of the issue and we’ll share with relevant authorities, so together we can evaluate this and provide appropriate follow-up action if required.”

National Pig Association chief executive Lizzie Wilson said the case was “hugely worrying”.

She added: “We need to know how widely and for how long these products have been sold in the UK – and whether potentially infected meat is still available.”