Kratie town governor Sek Bun Heng has established a working group to stop unauthorised rice wine production and prevent the sale of counterfeit rice wine or wine that has no quality.
Bun Heng said in a decision dated August 6 that the working group is made up of members from the town administration and the town's five commune chiefs.
The working group will inspect all rice wine production facilities to see if they have permits and follow the law.
The working group will instruct rice production owners not to use forbidden chemical substance that can be fatal.
Rice wine producers must maintain hygiene and standards. Their wine must undergo regular quality test.
The decision followed a spate of deaths from tainted rice wine throughout the country of late.
From June 2020 to July of this year, more than 70 people died from rice and herbal wine poisoning in several provinces including Kandal, Pursat, Kampong Chhnang, Prey Veng and Kampot, according to a report from the General-Directorate of Consumer Protection, Competition and Fraud Repression (CCF).
