A potentially harmful oil called 'gutter oil' has made its way to Hong
Kong and investigators fear that this oil has been used to make some of
the local favourites there - including dumplings, pastries and pineapple
buns. The oil, which originates from Taiwan, is made from illegally
recycled products - including fat collected from grease traps. Local
chains in Hong Kong are being forced to pull down products from their
shelves as authorities investigate whether they contain gutter oil.
Taiwanese authorities say a factory in the south of the island illegally used 243 tonnes of tainted products, often referred to as "gutter oil", to mix into lard oil in a case that has reignited regional concerns about food safety standards. The lard oil - a clear oil pressed from pig fat - was supplied to at least 900 restaurants and bakeries in Taiwan. The owner of the factory has been arrested.
In Hong Kong, Philip Ho, an officer from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, told RTHK radio that dozens of food samples had been taken with results expected in the next few days. "The investigation is ongoing. After we spotted the problem, we have been trying to contact food operators such as importers and bakeries," Ho said.
A spokeswoman for the Centre for Food Safety said that labs were also conducting tests on mooncakes from retailers across the city. Mooncakes are popular dense pastries consumed in vast numbers during the Mid-Autumn festival, a traditional harvest festival that is currently being celebrated across China. Popular bakery chain Maxim's Cakes removed pineapple buns from their shelves over the weekend after confirming they had used oil from Chang Guann, the Taiwanese oil manufacturer at the heart of the scandal.
The chain said there was no evidence that the lard oil used to make the buns contained tainted products, but it was removing them anyway "to be ultra cautious on food safety". It has since switched to a Dutch supplier. Dumpling eatery chain Bafang Yunji also pulled its curry dumplings, local broadcaster RTHK reported, while supermarket Wellcome removed two products, a BBQ sauce and a noodle dish, from its shelves.
The Centre for Food Safety said it was liasing with Taiwanese authorities, adding that it was prioritising checks on "cooking oil, bakeries, dim sum manufacturers and snacks shops selling Taiwanese-style food".
In Macau, the city's Food Safety Centre said 21 bakeries and food manufacturers had bought oil from Chang Guann through a local importer. Chang Guann has apologised for the scandal but said it was unaware the oils were recycled.
The scandal is the second food safety scare to hit Hong Kong this summer.
In July, McDonald's suspended sales of chicken nuggets and several other items after admitting it imported food from a US-owned firm in China at the centre of an expired meat scandal.
Taiwanese authorities say a factory in the south of the island illegally used 243 tonnes of tainted products, often referred to as "gutter oil", to mix into lard oil in a case that has reignited regional concerns about food safety standards. The lard oil - a clear oil pressed from pig fat - was supplied to at least 900 restaurants and bakeries in Taiwan. The owner of the factory has been arrested.
In Hong Kong, Philip Ho, an officer from the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, told RTHK radio that dozens of food samples had been taken with results expected in the next few days. "The investigation is ongoing. After we spotted the problem, we have been trying to contact food operators such as importers and bakeries," Ho said.
A spokeswoman for the Centre for Food Safety said that labs were also conducting tests on mooncakes from retailers across the city. Mooncakes are popular dense pastries consumed in vast numbers during the Mid-Autumn festival, a traditional harvest festival that is currently being celebrated across China. Popular bakery chain Maxim's Cakes removed pineapple buns from their shelves over the weekend after confirming they had used oil from Chang Guann, the Taiwanese oil manufacturer at the heart of the scandal.
The chain said there was no evidence that the lard oil used to make the buns contained tainted products, but it was removing them anyway "to be ultra cautious on food safety". It has since switched to a Dutch supplier. Dumpling eatery chain Bafang Yunji also pulled its curry dumplings, local broadcaster RTHK reported, while supermarket Wellcome removed two products, a BBQ sauce and a noodle dish, from its shelves.
The Centre for Food Safety said it was liasing with Taiwanese authorities, adding that it was prioritising checks on "cooking oil, bakeries, dim sum manufacturers and snacks shops selling Taiwanese-style food".
In Macau, the city's Food Safety Centre said 21 bakeries and food manufacturers had bought oil from Chang Guann through a local importer. Chang Guann has apologised for the scandal but said it was unaware the oils were recycled.
The scandal is the second food safety scare to hit Hong Kong this summer.
In July, McDonald's suspended sales of chicken nuggets and several other items after admitting it imported food from a US-owned firm in China at the centre of an expired meat scandal.
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