Tests showed the product did not contain any vitamins and failed to meet food safety standards.
Authorities said the suspects used underground pipes to pump crude vegetable oil from animal-feed tanks into containers meant for consumer cooking oil.
Shell companies and falsified safety documents were then used to distribute the product.
The oil was sold to industrial kitchens, restaurants, and snack producers where ingredient sources are not closely monitored.
Dong Thap Province-based An Hung Phuoc Import-Export Trading Co., Ltd, one of Vietnam's largest vegetable oil importers, was also identified as a distributor.
Police in Hung Yen Province have charged the suspects with producing and trading counterfeit food and smuggling.
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| More than 1,000 tonnes of imported oil was seized. Photo: HB |
Investigators said some firms involved had operated for up to 14 years, with estimated annual revenue of VND4.5 trillion (US$172.1 million).
Authorities said the group profited from price differences and tax evasion.
Cooking oil for human use carries an eight percent value-added tax, while oil for animal feed is tax-exempt.
Human-grade oil also sells for about 17 percent more than feed oil.
The Ministry of Health's Vietnam Food Administration urged industrial kitchens and food service providers to verify suppliers' documentation and report suspicious ingredients.
It warned that misuse of food ingredients would be strictly punished./.
Binh Nguyen