The General Department of Customs and Excise mobile team at Chrey Thom International Checkpoint in Cambodia’s Kandal province has decided to ban imports of six types of vegetables from Vietnam – Chinese cabbage, broccoli, ladyfingers, small lemons, pumpkin and garlic chives.

The decision came after Cambodia import Export Inspection and Fraud Repression Directorate-General (CamControl) officials in Kandal province discovered traces of pesticides on the six types of vegetables that could cause health problems for consumers.

Moung Dara, the chief of the mobile Customs and Excise team, told The Post on Monday that during the past three days, his team worked with Kandal province’s CamControl officials to conduct quality checks on more than 20 types of fruits and vegetables imported from Vietnam through the Chrey Thom international Checkpoint.

He said: “After the poisonous pesticide was discovered, we seized and destroyed all of it and instructed our Cambodian vendors to stop importing those products from Vietnam. But the next day, we still saw the six vegetables being imported. So, our authorities have decided to officially ban the import of them from Vietnam.”

Kandal Camcontrol branch manager Ou Manrin told The Post that agricultural pesticides are commonly used for killing insects and helping vegetables grow, but they can become harmful to consumers if they are not properly decomposed before the vegetables are shipped.