Vietnam: FDA food import refusals, 2020–2025
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Vietnam was the origin of 834 of 22,156 US food import refusals in 2020–2025 (3.8%), ranking 5th of 146 origins. 86% were hazard findings and 14% paperwork alone. 43% concerned fishery/seafood products; the most-cited safety charge was filth, and the most-cited paperwork charge not in English.
Every US food import refusal naming Vietnam as origin, 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2025. A refusal is one import entry, however many product lines it carried. Download every table (CSV).
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By year
| Year | Refusals | Share of US total | Rank among origins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 65 | 2.4% | 8 |
| 2021 | 108 | 3.7% | 7 |
| 2022 | 130 | 3.8% | 5 |
| 2023 | 169 | 4.8% | 5 |
| 2024 | 174 | 4.4% | 5 |
| 2025 | 188 | 3.3% | 5 |
| 2020–2025 | 834 | 3.8% | 5 |
Year links open that year's refusals, entry by entry.
Tables below show each year 2020–2025; cells are shaded against their row's own peak. Change compares 2025 with 2020 and is shown only where 2020 had at least 10 refusals ("new" where it had none).
Hazard or paperwork
A refusal is a hazard finding when any of its charges is a safety one — filth, pathogens, residues, contaminants, unsafe additives — and paperwork when every charge is labelling, registration or a missing filing. One citing only charge codes FDA has not published is unclassified.
| Year | Hazard findings | Paperwork only | Unclassified | Hazard share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 59 | 6 | 0 | 90.8% |
| 2021 | 98 | 10 | 0 | 90.7% |
| 2022 | 115 | 15 | 0 | 88.5% |
| 2023 | 144 | 25 | 0 | 85.2% |
| 2024 | 140 | 34 | 0 | 80.5% |
| 2025 | 164 | 24 | 0 | 87.2% |
| 2020–2025 | 720 | 114 | 0 | 86.3% |
By industry
| FDA industry | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fishery/Seafood Products rates → Fish-other · Shrimp-prawn · Squid-octopus · Tuna |
31 | 73 | 56 | 52 | 55 | 88 | 355 (42.6%) | +184% |
| Fruit and Fruit Products rates → Citrus · Fruit-other · Stone-fruit · Tropical |
11 | 11 | 21 | 28 | 24 | 39 | 134 (16.1%) | +255% |
| Vegetables and Vegetable Products rates → Pepper · Vegetables-other |
7 | 6 | 17 | 18 | 26 | 8 | 82 (9.8%) | — |
| Nuts and Edible Seeds rates → Cashew · Other-nuts |
1 | 0 | 2 | 38 | 22 | 17 | 80 (9.6%) | — |
| Vitamins, Minerals, Proteins, and Unconventional Dietary Specialties for Humans | 1 | 5 | 5 | 14 | 17 | 8 | 50 (6.0%) | — |
| Spices, Flavors, and Salts | 8 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 6 | 49 (5.9%) | — |
| Bakery Products, Doughs, Bakery Mixes, and Icings | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 16 (1.9%) | — |
| Multiple Food Dinners, Gravies, Sauces, and Specialties (Total Diet) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 12 (1.4%) | — |
| Dietary Conventional Foods and Meal Replacements | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 9 (1.1%) | — |
| Macaroni and Noodle Products | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 (1.1%) | — |
| Whole Grains, Milled Grain Products, and Starch rates → Grains-starch-other · Rice |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 (1.1%) | — |
| Candy Without Chocolate, Candy Specialties, and Chewing Gum | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 (0.8%) | — |
| Soft Drinks and Waters | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7 (0.8%) | — |
| Snack Food Items (Flour, Meal, or Vegetable Base) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 (0.5%) | — |
| Food Sweeteners (Nutritive) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (0.4%) | — |
| Coffee and Tea | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (0.2%) | — |
| Dressings and Condiments | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (0.1%) | — |
| Filled Milk and Imitation Milk Products | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (0.1%) | — |
| Food Additives - for Human Use | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 (0.1%) | — |
| Gelatin, Rennet, Pudding Mixes, and Pie Fillings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (0.1%) | — |
| Milk, Butter, and Dried Milk Products | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 (0.1%) | new |
| Vegetable Protein Products (Simulated Meats) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 (0.1%) | new |
By charge group
A refusal citing charges in two groups counts once in each, so rows can add up to more than the total.
| Charge group | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filth and insanitary conditions (hazard) | 19 | 28 | 51 | 56 | 47 | 64 | 265 (31.8%) | +237% |
| Salmonella (hazard) | 16 | 40 | 27 | 25 | 26 | 41 | 175 (21.0%) | +156% |
| Labelling (paperwork) | 10 | 13 | 19 | 30 | 39 | 23 | 134 (16.1%) | +130% |
| Pesticide residues (hazard) | 7 | 6 | 16 | 31 | 30 | 27 | 117 (14.0%) | — |
| Contaminants (hazard) | 2 | 6 | 4 | 26 | 16 | 22 | 76 (9.1%) | — |
| Veterinary drug residues (hazard) | 10 | 15 | 10 | 8 | 15 | 16 | 74 (8.9%) | +60% |
| Process and registration (paperwork) | 2 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 13 | 18 | 59 (7.1%) | — |
| Unsafe additives (hazard) | 4 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 10 | 5 | 43 (5.2%) | — |
| Histamine (hazard) | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 13 (1.6%) | — |
| Listeria monocytogenes (hazard) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 (0.7%) | — |
| Undeclared allergens (hazard) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 (0.5%) | — |
| Other charges (no group) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (0.4%) | — |
Most-cited charges
FDA's own charge codes, with a plain-English label. Each is counted once per refusal.
Safety charges
| Charge | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
filth FILTHY |
18 | 22 | 51 | 52 | 46 | 54 | 243 | +200% |
Salmonella SALMONELLA |
16 | 40 | 27 | 25 | 26 | 41 | 175 | +156% |
pesticide residue PESTICIDE |
7 | 6 | 16 | 31 | 30 | 27 | 117 | — |
veterinary drug residue VETDRUGRES |
10 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 12 | 60 | +20% |
poisonous or deleterious substance POISONOUS |
2 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 8 | 11 | 42 | — |
nitrofuran NITROFURAN |
1 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 34 | — |
unsafe color additive UNSAFE COL |
4 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 26 | — |
poisonous substance POISONORD |
0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 20 | — |
insanitary plant MFR INSAN |
1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 16 | — |
unsafe food additive UNSAFE ADD |
0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 16 | — |
Paperwork charges
| Charge | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
not in English NO ENGLISH |
0 | 4 | 9 | 16 | 23 | 6 | 58 | — |
nutrition labeling NUTRIT LBL |
2 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 16 | 11 | 49 | — |
no process filing NO PROCESS |
1 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 28 | — |
color not declared COLOR LBLG |
5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 24 | — |
ingredients not listed LIST INGRE |
2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 23 | — |
no food-canning registration NEEDS FCE |
2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 23 | — |
no net quantity LACKS N/C |
0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 22 | — |
false or misleading label FALSE |
4 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 18 | — |
labeling LABELING |
1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 15 | — |
unapproved new drug UNAPPROVED |
0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 15 | — |
By month
Pooled across 2020–2025. Each row is shaded against its own peak, so its season shows whatever its size. Hazard findings peak in October; Paperwork only peak in May.
Hazard or paperwork
| Kind | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hazard findings | 62 | 53 | 58 | 54 | 51 | 57 | 71 | 50 | 60 | 75 | 65 | 64 | October |
| Paperwork only | 5 | 7 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 6 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 7 | May |
By charge group
| Charge group | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filth and insanitary conditions | 25 | 19 | 16 | 21 | 24 | 19 | 26 | 21 | 18 | 28 | 23 | 25 | October |
| Salmonella | 12 | 12 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 9 | 16 | 20 | 16 | 14 | July |
| Labelling | 10 | 8 | 17 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 6 | 13 | March |
| Pesticide residues | 9 | 8 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 17 | 13 | 5 | 10 | 13 | 8 | 6 | June |
| Contaminants | 9 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 12 | November |
Import divisions
The FDA division that handled the entry. DSWI and DNBI are the Mexican and Canadian land borders, so this says as much about the route as about the product.
| Division | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2020–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DWCI — West Coast | 41 | 52 | 92 | 98 | 95 | 93 | 471 | +127% |
| DNEI — Northeast | 9 | 32 | 14 | 23 | 33 | 39 | 150 | — |
| DSEI — Southeast | 11 | 18 | 11 | 34 | 31 | 36 | 141 | +227% |
| DSWI — Southwest, the Mexican land border | 3 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 11 | 39 | — |
| DNBI — North Border, the Canadian land border | 1 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 33 | — |
Method
- Source: FDA Import Refusal Report (U.S. Food and Drug Administration); every food import refusal dated 2020–2025.
- Counts are import entries, not product lines. A refusal naming several origins counts once for each, so origin shares can add up to more than 100%. FDA records this origin as Vietnam and Viet Nam; both are counted here.
- Charge groups are this site's grouping of FDA's charge codes; a code belongs to the first group that claims it, the same rule as the hazard pages.
- A charge is what FDA cited to refuse the entry, often on appearance or documents rather than a laboratory result. Counts depend on how often each product is examined, so they are not a rate of unsafe food.
- Licence: CC-BY-4.0. Cite as "Vietnam: FDA food import refusals, 2020–2025", fruit-risk.com, 2026-09-20, https://fdair.fruit-risk.com/reports/vietnam.html.
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