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The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (August 31) released the findings of its food safety report for last month. The results of about 12 700 food samples tested were found to be satisfactory except for 11 unsatisfactory samples which were announced earlier. The overall satisfactory rate was 99.9 per cent.
A CFS spokesman said about 1 400 food samples were collected for microbiological tests, some 4 000 samples were taken for chemical tests and the remaining 7 300 (including about 6 900 taken from food imported from Japan) were collected for testing of radiation levels.
The microbiological tests covered pathogens and hygienic indicators, while the chemical tests aimed at detecting pesticides, preservatives, metallic contamination, colouring matters, veterinary drug residues and others.
The samples comprised about 3 400 samples of vegetables and fruit and their products; 600 samples of meat and poultry and their products; 1 600 samples of aquatic and related products; 1 000 samples of milk, milk products and frozen confections; 600 samples of cereals, grains and their products; and 5 500 samples of other food commodities (including beverages, bakery products and snacks).
The 11 unsatisfactory samples included six vegetables and fruit found with pesticide residues exceeding the legal limits; two prepacked sorbets detected with coliform counts exceeding the legal limit; one fresh bamboo shoot found with a preservative, sulphur dioxide; one dried daylily flower detected with excessive sulphur dioxide and one portion of chicken with sesame sauce found with an excessive amount of coagulase-positive staphylococci organisms.
The CFS has taken follow-up action on the unsatisfactory samples including informing the trade concerned of the test results, instructing the trade concerned to stop sale of the incriminated food items and tracing the sources of the food items in question.
Since the Pesticide Residues in Food Regulation (Cap 132CM) came into effect on August 1 last year, as of July 31 this year the CFS had taken over 29 700 food samples at import, wholesale and retail levels for testing for pesticide residues and a total of 104 vegetable and fruit samples have been detected to have excessive pesticide residues. The overall unsatisfactory rate is less than 0.4 per cent.
The spokesman added that excessive pesticide residues in food may arise from the trade not observing Good Agricultural Practice, e.g. using excessive pesticides and not allowing sufficient time for pesticides to decompose before harvesting. The Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) of pesticide residues in food is not a safety indicator. It is the maximum concentration of pesticide residues to be permitted in a food commodity under the Good Agricultural Practice when applying pesticides. In this connection, consumption of food with pesticide residues higher than the MRL does not necessarily mean it could lead to any adverse health effect.
The spokesman reminded the food trade to ensure that food is fit for consumption and meets legal requirements. Consumers should patronise reliable shops when buying food and maintain a balanced diet to minimise food risks.
Ends/Monday, August 31, 2015
Issued at HKT 14:31
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