The Food & Environmental Hygiene Department is inviting applications from food business owners to join an incentive scheme to help them improve their premises' hygiene standards.

The department today started issuing letters to all eligible food business owners informing them of the scheme which will provide loans for works to improve the hygiene conditions of their shops.

Owners of restaurants, factory canteens, food factories,  siu mei and lo mei shops, cooked-food hawker licences, cooked-food stalls and siu mei and lo mei stalls operating inside department-managed markets, and businesses operated under sushi and sashimi permits are all eligible to apply.

They could use the loan to undertake a variety of hygiene-improvement works, including:

* refurbishment of kitchens, food preparation rooms, scullery and toilets;

* installation of new scullery facilities and equipment for storage of food and utensils; and

* installation of display panels, showcases or other related facilities at shopfronts.

Loan capped at 40% or $50,000

They may qualify for a loan of up to 40% of the approved cost of the improvement works or $50,000, whichever is lower.

Loans are granted on a per-premises basis. Borrowers will pay interest at the Government's "no-gain-no-loss interest rate", which now stands at 2.826% per annum, and repay the principal and interest in 24 monthly instalments.

The approved loans will be released to borrowers in no more than two stages.

Up to 30% on start of works, rest on completion

Up to 30% of the loan may be released once the improvement works start. The rest will be released to borrowers on completion of all the relevant works to the department's satisfaction.

Together with the letter, food business owners will receive an information pamphlet, "Incentive Scheme for Hygiene Improvement in Food Premises".

Loan application forms can be downloaded from the department's website at www.fehd.gov.hk or picked up from its district offices.

Application deadline: July 15

Applications should be submitted in person or by mail to the Executive Officer (Loan), Food & Environmental Hygiene Department, 42/F, Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong.

The deadline for applications is July 15.