| Import Control and Food Safety Guidelines
Guide to Import of Marine Products into Hong Kong Purpose The purpose of this guide is to provide general guidance for importers
who wish to import marine products into Hong Kong. Statutory Requirements In Hong Kong, the legal framework of food safety control is laid down
in Part V of Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance, Cap. 132
and its subsidiary legislation. A list of the subsidiary legislation is
at Appendix. The basic requirement,
as stipulated in Section 54 of the Ordinance, is that no food intended
for sale should be unfit for human consumption. Importers can purchase the main Ordinance and its subsidiary legislation
from the Publications Sales Unit at Room 402, Murray Building, Garden
Road, Central. Food and Environmental Hygiene Department  Food
and Environmental Hygiene Department of the Government of the Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region is responsible for implementing territory-wide
policies of food safety control and enforcing the food legislation. To
this end, part of its duties is to exercise the power provided under Section
62(1) of the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance to collect
food samples at points of entry to the territory for analyses, including
bacteriological and chemical examinations.
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department will pay the market price of
any samples taken from importers. Due to difficulties in ascertaining
the price at entry points, the Department will issue a sampling notice
to importers when samples are collected. The notice will specify items
and quantities of food samples which have been taken. Importers could
send an invoice and a copy of the notice afterwards to the Department
for payment. Importers Food importers, through close liaison with exporting countries, are responsible
for ensuring marine products they procure comply with the local legislation.
Since marine products, being more liable to bacteriological or chemical
contamination in the harvesting zone or handling process, are considered
as high-risk food items, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department strongly
encourages importers to obtain health certificates issued by health authorities
of countries of origin to accompany their imports certifying that the
marine products concerned are fit for human consumption. Arrival of Consignment Section 59(1)(c) of the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance
provides Food and Environmental Hygiene Department with the power to make
special procedures for examining imported food. At present, when a consignment
of marine products arrives at entry points of Hong Kong, it may be subject
to inspection or sampling by the Department. If the importer concerned
is not able to present a health certificate during inspection, the Department
will take samples from the consignment for examinations before its release. Where to make applications or enquiries? Applications related to payment of samples should be addressed to the Centre of Food Safety of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department at 43/F, Queensway Government Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong . For enquiries, please feel free to call the Department's Chief Health Inspector (Import/ Export)6 at 2867 5990 or 24-hour hotline on food safety at 2868 0000.
Centre for Food Safety
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department |
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