Merchants agree to halt sales of the mainland fish after malachite green found
The city's major fish importers have agreed to a request by the Centre for Food Safety not to sell freshwater garoupa, after the cancer-causing preservative malachite green was found in 11 of 15 samples of the fish.
The request followed a similar request regarding turbot for the same reason issued on Wednesday, and as more samples came to light of eggs contaminated with another cancer-causing chemical, Sudan dye.
Centre for Food Safety acting controller Ho Yuk-yin said malachite green had been found in freshwater garoupa samples collected in wet markets across the city and the centre was tracing the origin. 'The content, however, was extremely low, ranging from 0.0022 to 2.3 milligrams per kilogram,' Dr Ho said. It was not known where the contaminated fish originated.
Meanwhile, three fresh eggs from 55 samples have been found to contain the banned dye Sudan, bringing to six the number of positive samples found in the city. Two of the samples were obtained in Mong Kok and one in To Kwa Wan.
'The level of the dye found was more or less the same as the previous batch,' Dr Ho said, adding they originated in Hunan . A total of 700 eggs from three egg retailers would be destroyed. One of the contaminated eggs came from Hubei .
Meanwhile, legislators and a food safety expert have called on the government to investigate if officials need to be disciplined for the centre's delay in informing the public of the health risk.