LCQ18: Routine Food Surveillance Programme
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Question:
After the Centre for Food Safety of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department had detected cadmium at levels exceeding the legal limit in samples of crabs imported from the Philippines in April and October 2026 respectively under its routine Food Surveillance Programme, it immediately gave instructions to stop sales of and remove from shelves the affected products, and traced the source and distribution of the products. At the same time, it alerted the Philippine authorities to the incidents for follow-up actions, so as to safeguard the safety of imported food. To further fortify the line of defence for the safety of aquatic products imported into Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the latest progress of the current investigation into the two aforementioned incidents of samples of crabs imported from the Philippines containing cadmium at levels exceeding the legal limit; the follow-up work on tracing the distribution of the affected products and regulating importers;
(2) of the sampling scale, testing coverage and overall satisfactory rate of the routine surveillance at the import level on crabs and other aquatic products imported from the Philippines in the past 12 months; in view of the situation that samples of the aforementioned products have been detected with cadmium at levels exceeding the legal limit twice within half a year, whether the authorities will optimise the sampling strategy for the relevant species by adjusting the testing frequency and coverage, so as to further enhance the effectiveness of gatekeeping at the import level;
(3) in respect of the repeated occurrences of food safety risks from the same place of origin within a short period of time, of the specific collaboration mechanisms in place between the authorities and the relevant authorities of the place of origin concerned to promote source control; whether they will further deepen bilateral co-operation with the place concerned in future to jointly enhance the safety and quality of imported aquatic products;
(4) given that long-term excessive intake of cadmium may affect the kidney functions, whether the authorities will further step up the publicity of public health advice to educate members of the public on the safe purchase and consumption of aquatic products, and whether they will continuously enhance the existing food safety information disclosure mechanism; and
(5) of the detailed types of imported aquatic products covered under the current routine Food Surveillance Programme, and the specific criteria for conducting food safety risk assessment on aquatic products (including how the focus of sampling inspections and frequency of tests are adjusted in response to the safety records of different places of origin, food risk levels and international food safety alerts), so as to continuously enhance the effectiveness of gatekeeping for imported food?
Reply:
President,
The reply to various parts of the question from the Hon Chan Pok-chi is as follows:
(1) to (3) and (5) The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department collects food samples at import, wholesale and retail levels for testing under the routine Food Surveillance Programme (FSP) every year. Adopting a risk-based approach, the CFS flexibly adjusts the number of samples collected, sampling frequency and type of tests under the FSP as necessary (with around 65 000 food samples collected in 2025) having regard to factors such as food safety risks, past surveillance results, local and overseas food incidents and intelligence.
The scope of the FSP covers various types of aquatic food products (mainly including fish, crustaceans, bivalves and other molluscs (such as squid and octopus)). In the past year (from November 2025 to October 2026), the CFS collected 90 samples of aquatic products imported from the Philippines for testing. Eighty-eight of the samples were found to be satisfactory. As regards the aforesaid two unsatisfactory samples, one sample was a blue crab with cadmium at a level of 4.74 parts per million (ppm) detected (announced on April 9 this year). The other sample was a red crab with cadmium at a level of 4.12 ppm detected (announced on October 21 this year). The levels of cadmium in both samples exceeded the legal limit of 2 ppm for crustaceans as specified in the Food Adulteration (Metallic Contamination) Regulations.
The Food Safety Ordinance establishes a food tracing mechanism that requires food importers to maintain records of movements of food to facilitate prompt source tracing and follow-up actions by the CFS in case of food incidents. Regarding the aforesaid two unsatisfactory samples, the CFS immediately instructed the importers to stop sales and remove from shelves the affected products. The CFS also initiated tracing of their sources and distribution. Further investigation by the CFS revealed that the crabs in both cases were wild-caught and did not involve aquaculture farms. In view of this finding, the CFS has strengthened risk management measures by imposing a hold-and-test arrangement at the import level on blue crabs/red crabs from the exporters involved since then. The products concerned will only be released for sale in the market upon obtaining satisfactory test results. The CFS has also stepped up surveillance and inspection under the FSP.
On another front, the CFS has notified authorities of the Philippines for follow-up action. If necessary, the CFS will further liaise with the other side to ensure that the imported food products comply with Hong Kong's food safety standards. On top of a Food Incident Surveillance System established by the CFS, it participates in the International Food Safety Authorities Network (jointly established by the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) as well as other international food safety information networks to monitor food incidents outside Hong Kong, exchange information and take appropriate follow-up measures.
(4) The CFS will continue to issue press releases on unsatisfactory samples promptly, and make good use of social media to disseminate food safety information more effectively to members of the public across sectors. For cadmium in food in particular, the CFS has integrated laboratory analytical results with local food consumption data during the Second Total Diet Study and estimated that the health risk to the local population from dietary exposure to cadmium is low. Nevertheless, the CFS will continue to step up dissemination of information on metallic contaminants and the food safety of aquatic products to the public through various channels including social media, food safety publications and public education activities. It will also encourage members of the public to maintain a balanced and diversified diet, and avoid selective eating of only a few types of aquatic products or over-consuming them.
Ends/Wednesday, November 11, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:15
Issued at HKT 12:15
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