Food poisoning hits 300 workers

Food poisoning hits 300 workers

VIETNAM: Nearly 300 workers at a South Korean-owned garment manufacturing plant in Vietnam's southern business capital of Ho Chi Minh City were treated in hospital after eating contaminated food, the firm said on Thursday.

The 295 employees of the Kyungrim Vina Co. in the city's Binh Chanh district were taken to two nearby hospitals on Thursday after complaining of respiratory problems, vomiting and diarrhea.

Their symptoms appeared after eating a pork and vegetable lunch in the factory canteen, a company spokeswoman said.

Over 140 of the workers were kept overnight in hospital for further treatment but the rest were discharged later that day which, ironically, was National Health Day.

Food poisoning outbreaks in factory canteens are increasingly common in Vietnam, particularly in the south where year-round humidity and hot conditions provide fertile breeding grounds for bacteria. --AFP