Author Archives: hksar gov

     â€‹Correctional officers stopped a person in custody from assaulting another person in custody at Pik Uk Prison today (June 21).             At 12.45pm today, a 36-y… read more

     Hong Kong Customs and the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) stepped up enforcement from June 18 to 21 at various land boundary control points to crack down on inbound travellers illegally bringing regulated food into Hong Kong and to safeguard public health.

     Customs and the CFS conducted joint law enforcement operations at the Lo Wu, Lok Ma Chau Spur Line, Shenzhen Bay and Heung Yuen Wai Control Points for four consecutive days from June 18 to 21, and deployed quarantine detector dogs to assist law enforcement officers in carrying out their duties. A total of 15 cases involving inbound persons illegally bringing regulated food including raw meat, poultry and eggs into Hong Kong were found during the operation. Prosecutions against the persons suspected of contravening the Imported Game, Meat, Poultry and Eggs Regulations (Cap. 132AK) will be instituted by the CFS.

     Customs and the CFS will continue to maintain close liaison and exchange of intelligence, and step up enforcement operations and publicity and education, at various boundary control points to combat illegal food import activities. As of yesterday (June 20), the CFS had instituted 774 prosecutions against inbound persons for illegally bringing game, meat, poultry and eggs (regulated food) into Hong Kong this year.

     Pursuant to Cap. 132AK, each consignment of imported game, meat, poultry and eggs, whether for personal use or not, must be accompanied by a health certificate issued by the issuing entity of the place of origin or written permission from the FEHD. Regulated food entering Hong Kong from the Mainland must be accompanied by a health certificate issued by Mainland Customs to prove that the food is from registered processing plants for supplying to Hong Kong recognised by the Mainland regulatory authority.

     Customs and the CFS remind members of the public not to defy the law by importing regulated food without a recognised health certificate, written permission from the FEHD or import licence for the sake of convenience. Offenders are liable on conviction to a maximum fine of $50,000 and six months’ imprisonment under Cap. 132AK.

     Members of the public may report any suspected smuggling activities to Customs’ 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).

      

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (June 21) investigating a suspected ciguatoxin poisoning case affecting four persons.     The case involves four females ag… read more

     A man was prosecuted by the Labour Department (LD) for operating an employment agency (EA) without a valid licence in violation of the requirements under Part XII of the Employment Ordinance (EO). The man was convicted at Eastern Magistrates’ Courts today (June 21) and was fined $12,000. The court also ordered the man to refund the service fee of $1,795 to the employer concerned.

     In March 2023, the LD received a complaint against a man from an employer seeking to hire a foreign domestic helper. As a subsequent investigation indicated sufficient evidence that the man was operating an EA without a valid licence, the LD took out prosecution against him.
 
     All establishments or persons operating a business in Hong Kong for the purpose of obtaining employment for another person or supplying personnel to an employer are governed by Part XII of the EO and the Employment Agency Regulations. Irrespective of the mode of operation or the types of jobs involved, all EAs must obtain a licence issued by the LD before undertaking any EA activities. Except for the EA licence holder or his/her associates, no one shall operate, manage or assist in the management of an EA. Offenders may face prosecution.
 
     The LD reminds EAs to operate in full compliance with the law as well as the Code of Practice for EAs at all times. Failure to do so may lead to prosecution and/or revocation of licence. The maximum penalty for the offences of unlicensed operation of an EA or overcharging commissions from job seekers is a fine of $350,000 and imprisonment for three years.
     
     Should there be enquiries about matters related to EAs or complaints about suspected violations of EAs, please contact the Employment Agencies Administration of the LD (telephone: 2115 3667; email: ea-ee@labour.gov.hk; address: Unit 906, 9/F, One Mong Kok Road Commercial Centre, 1 Mong Kok Road, Kowloon). read more

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) today (June 21) reported the latest progress of its investigation into the food poisoning clusters involving three restaurants located in the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong hotel. Food businesses should pay attention to and comply with the relevant food safety guidelines.

     Since the relevant clusters had been announced on June 12, the CHP has set up a hotline for enquiries by persons who may be affected. Nine enquiries have been received so far. After investigations, a total of eight epidemiologically linked food poisoning clusters were confirmed by the CHP including the three earlier announced clusters, involving nine males and six females aged between 3 and 42. All affected persons have consumed vanilla-flavoured ice cream at restaurants located in the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong hotel on June 1 or 2. They developed abdominal pain, fever, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea about 15 to 65 hours after consuming the food concerned.

     All of the 15 affected persons have sought medical advice. Four of them required hospitalisation and were discharged after treatment. All patients are in stable condition. The stool specimens of six affected persons were positive for Salmonella upon laboratory testing. Four of the Salmonella isolates belongs to the same group of Salmonella enteritidis. In view of the epidemiological investigations and test results, the affected persons’ symptoms were very likely related to consumption of the concerned ice cream provided by the hotel.

     Following notification of the incident from the CHP on June 11 evening, the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) and the Environmental Hygiene Branch of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) immediately conducted investigations at the relevant premises and the ice cream production kitchen concerned. It also reviewed the food preparation process in detail and collected samples (including food and environmental samples) for testing. Besides, the concerned premises have been instructed to immediately suspend the production and sale of relevant food as well as to carry out cleaning and disinfection of the premises. Meanwhile, the CFS also provided advice on food safety and environmental hygiene to person-in-charge and staff of the restaurants. 

     The personnel from the CHP and the FEHD again visited the restaurants and the ice cream production kitchen on June 12 for further inspection and collection of food samples for further testing. So far, no salmonella was found in the ice cream and vanilla oil samples, environmental samples and staff stool samples collected from the relevant premises. The FEHD will review the overall investigation result and will initiate prosecution against the premises concerned if there is sufficient evidence. The FEHD continued its inspection on a daily basis, and confirmed that the premises have suspended the production and sale of the food concerned. Follow-up actions are ongoing.
 
     To prevent foodborne diseases, members of the public are reminded to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene at all times. When dining out:
 

• Patronise only reliable and licensed restaurants;
• Avoid eating raw seafood;
• Be a discerning consumer in choosing cold dishes, including sashimi, sushi and raw oysters, at a buffet;
• Pre-cooked or leftover foods should be stored and reheated properly before consumption;
• Ensure food is thoroughly cooked before eating during a hotpot or barbecue meal;
• Handle raw and cooked foods carefully and separate them completely during the cooking process;
• Use two sets of chopsticks and utensils to handle raw and cooked foods;
• Do not patronise illegal food hawkers;
• Drink boiled water;
• Do not try to use salt, vinegar, wine or wasabi to kill bacteria as they are not effective; and
• Always wash hands before eating and after using the toilet.