Proximity to the mainland's manufacturing sector boosts Hong Kong's quality-assurance operators
When the story broke about dairy products being contaminated with melamine, it raised a global red alert on food products exported from the mainland.
Excessive amounts of melamine in the body can lead to kidney stones, bladder cancer or damage the reproductive system.
The melamine scandal led to strong demand for the services of testing laboratories which are dedicated to ensuring food and consumer products safety.
Testing services have been highly developed in Hong Kong for about three decades, with most industry players experiencing double-digit growth in the past 10 years.
This was partly thanks to Hong Kong's key location, cheek by jowl with the huge manufacturing sector in southern China, said Yonnie Yiu, general manager of SGS Hong Kong, a third-party testing, inspection, verification and certification company.
The industry handles burgeoning import requirements from the European Union and the United States. 'Manufacturing, trading, sourcing and export sectors are counting on those world-recognised, third-party quality-assurance companies to provide holistic and professional solutions for the maximum protection of their brand reputation and product quality,' Ms Yiu said.