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How safe is the food you eat in Hong Kong?

News

Hong Kong

Denise Tsang

Rachel Yeo

How much carcinogen do you eat? We tested Hong Kong food items flagged over the past decade. Here’s what we found

Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen

Some of the products tested. Photo: SCMP

Thomas Ng, chairman of the Hong Kong Food Council. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Lawmaker Steven Ho. Photo: Edward Wong

Products were checked at the Hong Kong Standards and Testing Centre. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Cookies from Marks & Spencer, Chips Ahoy and Quaker were tested. Photo: SCMP  

Cooking oils were also tested for harmful substances. Photo: SCMP

Lecturer Chan Tsz-chung says Hong Kong has comprehensive regulations on food safety. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Varieties of Amoy (left) and Tung Chun King soy sauces were tested. Photo: SCMP

Oscar Liu

‘It doesn’t mean you will get cancer’: carcinogen-free food is not easy to come by, experts say. How worried should Hong Kong consumers be?

 Illustration: Henry Wong

We know snacks are not good for our health but will they really give us cancer? Photo: Shutterstock

Chan Tsz-chung, a lecturer at the department of health and life sciences at the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education in Chai Wan. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Marks & Spencer All Butter Cookies with Pistachio Nuts and Almonds, Chips Ahoy Chocolate Chip Cookies and Quaker Oat Cookies were tested for carcinogens. Photo: SCMP

A consumer says she will continue to use Yuwanjia Peanut Oil because its price suits her budget. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong Food Council chairman Thomas Ng. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

The Post tested the sodium levels of Brilliant Hot & Spicy Flavour Prawn Crackers, Select Original Prawn Crackers and Papatonk Original Indonesian Premium Shrimp Crackers. Photo: SCMP

Cancer scare in food tests: ‘we just present facts’, Hong Kong watchdog Consumer Council says

 Illustration: Brian Wang

Consumer Council chief executive Gilly Wong. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Samples of soy sauces, cooking oils, cookies and crispy snacks tested by the Consumer Council over the past 10 years. Photo: SCMP 

A selection of Consumer Council magazines. Photo: Jonathan Wong

The Consumer Council found contaminants in a number of cooking oil products. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Steven Ho, a lawmaker who represents the agriculture and fisheries functional constituency. Photo: Edward Wong

The council says it has received many suggestions from the public on which products to test, but its manpower and resources are limited. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

In a three-part series on food safety, the Post enlists the help of an independent laboratory to assess the levels of harmful substances in a variety of items the Consumer Council tested in the past 10 years, explores the results in greater detail, and interviews the council’s chief executive, Gilly Wong.


Consumer protection in Hong Kong

Series