Sushi and sashimi samples fail to meet Hong Kong food safety standards
Four samples taken from outlets found to exceed city's food safety standards
Four sushi and sashimi samples out of 197 taken from food retailers failed to meet hygiene standards, including one that contained double the acceptable amount of bacteria, the Centre for Food Safety said.
The four unsatisfactory samples were retrieved from three independent Japanese restaurants in Kowloon City, Tsuen Wan and Tai Po, and a ParknShop supermarket in Tin Shui Wai. Further samples from follow-up visits were found to be satisfactory.
In response, ParknShop said food safety was its top priority and that it conducted "regular surveillance".
The study also found no samples with excessive pathogens, microorganisms that could cause diseases. But 11 sashimi samples and one piece of sushi had borderline levels of , certain forms of which are antibiotic-resistant and can be deadly.
Dr Samuel Yeung Tze-kiu, the centre's principal medical officer, said the public should not be overly worried about the test results. "We are mostly concerned with pathogens," he said. "ACC and reflect hygiene conditions but do not cause diseases."
Yeung was referring to the aerobic colony count, an indicator of the total amount of bacteria present. Two sashimi samples of sea urchin and prawn, and a salmon roe sushi, had ACCs of one to two times more than the maximum limit set by the centre.
