Ho Chi Minh City police arrest 7 in fake beef ring using banned chemical

The fake meat was reportedly supplied to restaurants across the city and in neighboring provinces.

Authorities identified 33-year-old Le Quang Quyet as the ringleader, with his main accomplice, Nguyen Duc Dat, the same age.

The remaining five suspects were involved in producing, distributing, and managing the sale of the counterfeit meat.

All seven face charges of producing and trading counterfeit food products.

The arrests followed an inspection of a food processing facility at 46 D2 Street, Thoi An Ward on November 15.

Police found Quyet and six employees churning out fake beef, while another worker was caught transporting more than 36 kilograms of the suspicious product to customers.

Subsequent tests confirmed the meat was counterfeit.

600 kilograms of counterfeit beef daily

Authorities said Quyet’s facility had been operating since February without a business license, tax registration, or formal employment contracts.

Expanding the investigation, police raided Dat’s establishment at 144/2 Street 6, Hiep Binh Ward on November 16, seizing 247 kilograms of suspected fake beef along with equipment and chemicals used in the scheme.

Quyet admitted that Dat provided instructions on producing the counterfeit beef and supplied both the pork and sodium metabisulfite, an inorganic chemical commonly used as a disinfectant, preservative, and antioxidant.

The process involved soaking pork in a mixture of pig blood and the chemical to mimic beef’s color and preserve the product before packaging, freezing, and selling it.

Investigators said the ring turned out around 600 kilograms of counterfeit beef daily, supplying roughly 75 restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City and neighboring provinces.

The meat sold for VND118,000-140,000 (US$4.5-5.3) per kilogram, generating illicit profits of up to VND40,000 ($1.5) per kilogram.

Sodium metabisulfite poses serious health risks

In an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Monday, Assoc. Prof. Nguyen Duy Thinh, former lecturer at the Institute of Food Technology, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, said using toxic chemicals to convert pork into beef constitutes commercial fraud and poses serious health hazards.

He stated that sodium metabisulfite is banned as a preservative in meat products.

Although it can inhibit microbial growth and slow spoilage, the chemical poses serious risks to humans.

In gas form, it may irritate the eyes and respiratory system, cause nausea and vomiting, and be life-threatening at high concentrations. 

In salt form, it is toxic if ingested, particularly through meat.

Regulations allow its use only in limited cases for certain exported fruits, such as longan and lychee, for surface disinfection.

Sensitive groups, including children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with underlying health conditions, are particularly vulnerable.

Studies show the chemical can damage normal cells, reduce cell survival, and trigger cell death.