LCQ13: Unified new brand for local agricultural and fisheries products
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Question:
To promote sustainable development of the local agriculture and fisheries industries, the Government plans to establish a unified new brand for local agricultural and fisheries products (the new brand). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the latest implementation timetable for the new brand and the respective specific targets for each phase of implementation;
(2) of (i) the specific channels through which the authorities will promote the new brand, (ii) the ways to be adopted by the authorities to evaluate the effectiveness of the promotional efforts, and (iii) the key performance indicators to be formulated by the authorities;
(3) of specific incentive measures taken by the authorities to attract members of the industry to actively participate in the new brand, and how the authorities will assist the participants concerned or the certified products in developing their markets in the Mainland and overseas;
(4) given that according to the paper submitted by the Environment and Ecology Bureau and the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department to the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene of this Council in February last year, the authorities will establish a certification, testing and traceability system for the new brand, of the details of such system, and how to prevent uncertified products from entering the supply chain in the processes of transportation, storage, as well as sales and marketing;
(5) of the monitoring mechanism to be put in place by the authorities upon formal launch of the new brand to safeguard the reputation of the new brand, and the specific measures to be taken against any non-compliant act committed by participants in the new brand;
(6) whether the authorities have assessed the anticipated economic benefits that may be brought about by establishing the new brand; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(7) as there are views that it takes time for practitioners of the local agriculture and fisheries industries to adapt to a series of new regulatory requirements and operational processes, such as certification, quality standards, and traceability management, when participating in the new brand, whether the authorities have plans to provide systematic training courses tailored to suit the needs of the industry; if so, of the specific measures in place to assist these practitioners in grasping the details of the new brand; if not, the reasons for that;
(8) of the financial budget for and future operating expenses involved in implementing the new brand; how the authorities will pay for the expenditures on the new brand (e.g. based on a user-pay principle), and the projected fees for participating in the new brand; and
(9) whether the authorities have drawn reference from similar overseas initiatives in terms of their structural design, mode of operation, and regulatory mechanisms when formulating the new brand; if so, of the details (including the regions and initiatives to which reference has been made, as well as how to apply the relevant experience to the actual circumstances of the local agriculture and fisheries industries for changes and improvement and adjustment)?
Reply:
President,
The reply to the question raised by the Hon Chan Pok-chi is as follows:
The Government is committed to promoting the sustainable development of the agriculture and fisheries industries and is actively working with the industries to take forward the various initiatives under the Blueprint for the Sustainable Development of Agriculture and Fisheries. Among these initiatives, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) will launch a new unified brand for local agricultural and fisheries products in the middle of this year, which aims to promote awareness of products and provide the public with high-quality and fresh food, while enhancing the added value and competitiveness of products to increase the income levels of fishermen and farmers. This will not only encourage the younger generation to join the agriculture and fisheries industries, but will also give impetus to the industries to increase investment and raise the quantity, quality and value of their produce. The catering industry can also make good use of local ingredients to develop diverse and speciality menu, thereby creating new business opportunities.
The AFCD is now actively pushing the work on brand establishment forward in the following two areas:
(1) Setting up a certification, testing and traceability mechanism
To raise the credibility of the new unified brand, the AFCD has subsidised the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA) through the Sustainable Agricultural Development Fund to explore the setting up of certification, testing and traceability mechanism, ensuring that participating fishermen and farmers follow the production standards and cultivation methods set out by the AFCD and comply with the safe, low-carbon and high-quality indicators and testing requirements. The products under the new brand are traceable, making it trustworthy for public to purchase them. In setting up the abovesaid mechanism, the HKQAA conducted thorough studies, including making reference to the framework and the operational experience of similar mechanisms in Chinese Mainland and overseas, and made modifications and adjustments according to the actual situations of the local agriculture and fisheries industries to ensure that the mechanism meets local needs.
(2) Brand building and promotion work
The Ocean Park Hong Kong (Ocean Park) has been promoting the "Eat Local" campaign in recent years to enhance public awareness and support for local agricultural and fisheries products. To leverage on and make good use of Ocean Park's experience in promoting local agricultural and fisheries products and its established partnerships with local agricultural and fisheries producers and stakeholders, the AFCD has subsidised Ocean Park through the Sustainable Fisheries Development Fund to develop a series of comprehensive publicity and promotion campaigns for the new brand. Meanwhile, to inject youth creativity into the brand, Ocean Park is collaborating with the Hong Kong Design Institute to design the brand logo with a view to creating a fresh brand image.
Last year, the AFCD set up a new Branding and Promotion Subcommittee under the Advisory Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries to provide advice on the certification plan and promotion strategies for the new brand. Currently, the preparatory work is progressing well, and the AFCD is confident in launching the new unified brand in the middle of this year as scheduled.
At this stage, the AFCD is consulting the industries and relevant stakeholders on the details of the plan. Once the specific details are finalised, the Government will report in detail to the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene of the Legislative Council, regarding matters such as the brand name, the certification, testing and traceability mechanism, the publicity campaign, support measures provided to the industries, as well as the evaluation of work effectiveness and the resource allocation.
Ends/Wednesday, February 4, 2026
Issued at HKT 16:25
Issued at HKT 16:25
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