FOOD CONSUMPTION SURVEY

Introduction

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) will conduct Hong Kong's largest scale and most comprehensive food consumption survey for collecting information on food consumption patterns of the general public. Such information will provide data for the evaluation of risks associated with food. In the past, only small scale studies for collecting food consumption data had been conducted in Hong Kong. As there were no previous surveys to collect territory-wide food consumption data for the purpose of food safety risk assessment, it is crucial for FEHD to conduct a population-based food consumption survey to establish a comprehensive database for food safety risk assessment. The survey will also enhance the department's risk assessment capacity.

What is a food consumption survey?

• A food consumption survey is a survey to collect food consumption data of the population, such as (1) types of food intake, (2) amounts of food intake and (3) dietary practices.

How will the results be used?

• We will use the food consumption data to find out if the public is exposed to any potential dietary risks such as those from contaminants and food additives, and also to understand the size of the risk and which population groups may be most at risk. At present, we do not have comprehensive data to conduct these in-depth risk assessments.
• Such information will be vital for the Government in formulating public policies and education strategies to promote food safety in Hong Kong.

Who will carry out this survey?

• FEHD has commissioned The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) to conduct this survey. The CUHK survey team consists of experts in nutrition, public health and statistics, and well-trained interviewers.

Which groups of people is this survey targeted at?

• This survey aims to cover the Hong Kong population aged 20 to 84 years. Around 5 200 qualified people all over the territory will be selected through an anonymous and scientific household address sampling procedure.

When will this survey be conducted?

• The fieldwork has been commenced since March 2005.

What information will be collected in this survey?

• Food consumption data will be collected by three face-to-face and telephone interviews with each participant. Other information such as the participant's dietary practices, weight and height, general health, as well as demographic information will also be collected.

How long will the interviews take?

• The first interview will take about 15 minutes, the second about 45 minutes, and the final interview by telephone will take only 10-15 minutes.

Your support and collaboration are crucial!!

• Throughout the survey, the selected households will receive an invitation letter from FEHD explaining the interview arrangement. Each selected household will be asked to contact us after receiving the letter so that we can recruit one participant from the household.
• Participants will be selected through strict scientific sampling procedures and cannot be replaced. Once you are selected, therefore, your support will be extremely important to us. Your participation will definitely be worthwhile, and your time well spent, because the information you provide will reflect the food consumption patterns of many Hong Kong residents, and will even benefit the whole community by helping to strengthen our efforts to prevent foodborne diseases and protect the health of the public.

Will my personal data be disclosed if I participate in the study?

• All your data will be kept strictly confidential. Neither FEHD nor any other government agency will have access to information that identifies you. Survey results will be published only in the form of overall population food consumption patterns.

How can you help?

• You can help by
  • cooperating with the interviewers to provide accurate information; and
  • passing information about the food consumption survey to your relatives and friends.

For further information, please:

• call the FEHD Hotline 2868 0000;
• call the CUHK Survey Unit on 2994 3594 or 2609 6876 during office hours; or
• e-mail to the CUHK Survey Unit at hkfcs@cuhk.edu.hk