Food retailer convicted of supplying and in possession of duck liver with false claims (with photo)

     A food retailer was convicted of supplying and in possession of a kind of Chinese duck liver that was falsely claimed as "Hungarian goose liver", in contravention of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO), and was fined $30,000 at the Shatin Magistrates' Courts today (October 23). A total of 27 packs of duck liver involved in the case were also confiscated.

     During a territory-wide inspection conducted earlier, Hong Kong Customs purchased a food product claimed to be goose liver from the food retailer and sent the samples to the Government Laboratory for testing. The testing results revealed that the products were actually duck livers.

     Customs subsequently took enforcement action and seized a total of 27 packs of related products with a total value of about $3,900 from four branches of the food retailer.  

     Customs reminds traders to comply with the requirements of the TDO and urges consumers to procure products at reputable shops.

     Under the TDO, any person who supplies goods with a false trade description in the course of trade or business, or is in possession of any goods for sale with a false trade description, commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.

     Members of the public may report any suspected violations of the TDO to Customs' 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).