Cancer-causing colourant found in Hong Kong's lucky buns ahead of Cheung Chau festival
Red 2G found in samples of the kind that's sold during the annual Cheung Chau festival, prompting one shop to discard several hundred
A banned and potentially cancer-causing colourant has been found in two samples of lucky buns - the symbol of an annual festival on Cheung Chau - ahead of tomorrow's tourist draw, the Bun Scrambling Competition.
The Centre for Food Safety found the lucky bun samples containing Red 2G - a carcinogenic colouring matter - among 17 collected samples, both of which came from Yee Ma Bakery, on San Hing Street, Cheung Chau.
The buns, stamped on top with the Chinese characters meaning "safe" in red colouring, are sold on the island during Cheung Chau Bun Festival, which is held in the fourth month of the Lunar calendar.
The Bun Scrambling Competition, held on the eighth day, is the highlight of the festival and attracts thousands of visitors to the outlying island, about an hour's ferry ride from Central. A spokesman for the Centre said the presence of Red 2G in colouring matter was a breach of the Food Business Regulation.
Its use in food has been forbidden in the city since December 2008 and offenders using the banned dye face a fine of HK$50,000 and imprisonment for six months.
While there is no immediate health risk for simply consuming food with the colourant, there is a risk of cancer with long-term consumption.
"If you just eat one bun, it is not carcinogenic," said Dr Roger Wong Hoi-fung , research assistant professor of the University of Hong Kong's chemistry department. "You would probably need to eat at least 100 buns to suffer any ill-effects." However, Wong advised removing the skin of the bun before eating it to avoid consuming any colourants.