New | Cafe de Coral says lard from Taiwanese ‘gutter oil’ firm used at its Hong Kong branches

The popular fast-food chain Cafe de Coral is the latest big name in Hong Kong to be drawn into the growing “gutter oil” scandal, after it emerged the chain had been purchasing lard oil produced by the Taiwanese firm at the centre of the food safety scare.

Last week it was reported that edible oil firm Chang Guann had blended “gutter oil” – illegally produced oil usually made from recycled kitchen waste – with fresh lard oil to produce 782 tonnes of Chuan Tung brand oil.

The scandal has rocked the food industry, with revelations that the oil was sold to more than 1,000 food manufacturers, bakeries, restaurants and night markets and used in a huge range of products, from mooncakes and dumplings to instant noodles, crackers and buns.

A Cafe de Coral spokesman said it learned on Monday that a Hong Kong supplier, Lam Soon Food Supply Company, had supplied the chain with lard oil made by Chang Guann.

The spokesman said the company “had no knowledge” of the source of the lard oil.

The batch was supplied between March 18 and April 8 this year for making a “Western-style” sauce and none of it now remains.

Lam Soon had reassured the chain that other batches of lard oil it supplied did not come from Chang Guann, the spokesman said, adding that Cafe de Coral will conduct tests on lard oil being used at some of its 140 branches to verify it is safe.