All green bean vermicelli carrying the famous 'Longkou' name has been removed from the shelves by key supermarket chains after a media report said some of the products carried cancer-causing agents.
None of the noodles carrying the chemical have been found in Hong Kong. But the supermarkets are removing all products with the Longkou name as a precaution.
Longkou is a region particularly famous for the traditional food, but the name has been adopted by manufacturers across and even outside the mainland.
Wellcome, ParknShop and CRC yesterday voluntarily banned sales of the Longkou vermicelli.
China Central Television reported on Monday that some of the products from four manufacturers on the mainland contained a bleaching agent, BPO (benzoyl peroxide), and a raising agent, ammonium hydrogencarbonate.
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department said neither chemical was banned in Hong Kong or overseas as food additives. But John Ho Wing-shing, a biochemistry professor at Chinese University, warned that excessive intake of both chemicals over a long period could cause cancer.
The food department yesterday said it had immediately contacted its mainland counterpart for more information, such as finding out whether the four manufacturers' products had been imported into Hong Kong.