Hygiene Standards Aid Suppy

Mr Chow said the Government has reached an agreement with the State General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection & Quarantine that the supply of chilled pork to Hong Kong and the number of processing plants can be increased according to market needs. The details were published in a written reply to the Legislative Council, this week.

According to the Census & Statistics Department, an average of about 1,000 tonnes of chilled pork were imported into Hong Kong each month from January to November last year.

About 83 per cent of chilled pork was imported from the Mainland, 15 per cent  from Thailand, and two per cent  from countries including Australia, France, Canada, the US, Italy, Japan and the Netherlands.

Hong Kong's Administration and the AQSIQ have set stringent inspection and quarantine standards for chilled pork imported into the province. Mainland slaughtering and processing plants must hold a certificate of hygiene registration from China's National Regulatory Commission for Certification and Accreditation. Pig farms are also supervised by the local inspection and quarantine authorities.

Since August 2006, a total of four Mainland processing plants in Guangdong and Shenzhen have obtained approval to supply chilled pork to Hong Kong. Officers of the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department have inspected these plants seven times and all assessments proved satisfactory.

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