Off colour: Deputy Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Eddy Chan (left) says the Government has proposed to amend the Harmful Substances in Food Regulations to prohibit the use of malachite green in food.

The Government has proposed to amend the Harmful Substances in Food Regulations under the Public Health & Municipal Services Ordinance to prohibit the use of malachite green in food. The amendment is expected to be gazetted next Friday. 

Speaking at a Legislative Council this morning, Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Dr York Chow said the amendment would empower the Government to prosecute people who sell food products containing the industrial dye - a suspected carcinogen - and to destroy those unsafe products.

To strengthen the export and import control regime, the Government will work with the Mainland Authorities to explore whether all live eel and eel products imported from the Mainland should require an accompanying health certificate showing they do not contain malachite green.

18 samples contain malachite green

The Food & Environmental Hygiene Department has collected 27 samples of live eels and eel products for sale in local markets and food outlets for testing since the Guangdong authority decided to recall eel products destined for exports.

Based on the results available so far, malachite green was found to be present in 18 samples. The department will follow up these cases, seeking to have the remaining products destroyed.

The department will continue to collect samples of eel and eel products for testing. It will exercise its statutory power under the Public Health & Municipal Services Ordinance to seize and destroy the food if they are unfit for human consumption.

An advisory letter will be issued immediately to remind the fish trade and food business that their products should not contain malachite green. They will also be urged to send their eel and eel products to the department for testing.

Food safety centre might be formed

To address the great concern over food safety issues, the bureau has decided to undertake a comprehensive review including enhancing the notification system with the Mainland, surveillance and enforcement support services, inspection and food sampling/laboratory testing work.

It is considering establishing a Food Safety Centre.

Speaking on the Streptococcus suis outbreak in Sichuan, Deputy Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Eddy Chan said the Government's handling of the import of Sichuan pork complies with the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary & Phytosanitary Measures promulgated by the World Trade Organisation.

"Compared with the case of Sichuan in which we received sufficient information for us to make a judgement or assessment, in the case of the recall of pork by the Shenzhen Authority, we have not been informed of the specific reasons for the recall.

Staff to be sent to inspect Mainland pig farms

"In the absence of detailed information, we therefore decided not to process any application for the importation of frozen pork from Shenzhen and Henan on August 15 as a precautionary measure until we have obtained clarification from the Mainland Authorities."

On August 18, the Shenzhen authority explained that its recent pork recall was due to suspected Streptococcus suis contamination. It also confirmed that there were no human infections or pork contamination.