**********************************************************
The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (May 3) that the import into and sale within Hong Kong of raw oysters harvested from Area 15 of British Columbia, Canada, has been prohibited with immediate effect.
A spokesman for the CFS said, "Following up on a number of food poisoning outbreaks suspected to be related to the consumption of raw oysters as notified by the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health earlier, the CFS banned the import into and sale within Hong Kong of all raw oysters harvested from Vancouver Island, Canada, or produced by a Canadian manufacturer, Pacific Rim Shellfish (2003) Corp, last Thursday (April 28) to safeguard food safety and public health. The CFS, when following up on an additional outbreak, found that the same supplier has also supplied raw oysters harvested from Area 15 of British Columbia (FAO Area 67 BC 15-4) to one of the restaurants concerned. For the sake of prudence, the CFS has immediately banned the import into and sale within Hong Kong of all raw oysters harvested from Area 15 of British Columbia, Canada."
The trade is urged to stop using or selling the product concerned immediately should they still possess it.
The spokesman pointed out that as oysters feed by filtering a large volume of seawater, pathogens (such as norovirus), chemical contaminants or natural toxins can accumulate in them if they are grown in or harvested from contaminated water. Regardless of the season or the region in which the oysters are harvested, consuming oysters, particularly raw or partially cooked ones, carries an inherent food safety risk. Susceptible groups, such as pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems or liver diseases, should avoid eating raw oysters.
The CFS has informed the Canadian authorities of the import ban and will also notify the local trade. It will continue to follow up on the incident and take appropriate action to safeguard food safety and public health.
Ends/Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Issued at HKT 19:57
NNNN
