Replies to LegCo questions

LCQ13: Food labelling

Following is a question by the Hon Fred Li and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr York Chow, in the Legislative Council today (May 30):

Question:

Recently, I have received complaints from members of the public pointing out that the labels on the packages of pre-packaged beverages sold in Hong Kong, such as beer and milk products, etc., do not provide information on the sources of manufacture. I have also found that alcoholic beverages of an alcoholic strength by volume of more than 1.2% are not required to show their nutrition information. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) of the legislation under which the aforesaid beverages are exempted from the requirement of showing their sources of manufacture and nutrition information on their labels, together with the justifications for the exemption;

(b) whether it will consider amending the relevant legislation to require that the aforesaid relevant information must be shown on the labels of the aforesaid beverages; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(c) whether it has assessed if not showing such information on the packaging labels is unfair to consumers when they choose their beverages; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

Food label is an important channel of communication between manufacturers and consumers. It serves as a tool for the food industry to provide information for potential buyers and assist them in making informed food choices.

Under Schedule 3 of the Food and Drugs (Composition and Labelling) Regulations (Cap. 132W) (the Regulations), prepackaged foods are required to be marked or labelled with the following information:

(a) name or designation of the food;
(b) list of ingredients;
(c) indication of "best before" or "use by" date;
(d) statement of special conditions for storage or instructions for use;
(e) name and address of manufacturer or packer;
(f) count, weight or volume; and
(g) appropriate language.

The requirements on nutrition labelling and nutrition claim of prepackaged food, including those on energy value and nutrient content of food, as well as the conditions for making nutrition claim, are provided in Schedule 5 of Cap. 132W.

Our statutory provisions and requirements on food labelling are able to keep up with the latest international development. We will also review our food legislation from time to time to ensure that it is up-to-date.

My reply to the question is as follows:

(a) and (b) According to Schedule 4 of Cap. 132W, drinks with an alcoholic strength by volume of more than 1.2% are exempted from some labelling requirements in Schedule 3, including the marking of the information on food manufacturer or packer. When the Government proposed to amend Cap. 132W in 2004, the relevant subcommittee of the Legislative Council had thoroughly discussed the labelling requirements of these alcoholic drinks. As many of the alcoholic drinks sold in Hong Kong were imported from non-English speaking countries, the subcommittee, after consultation with the trade, accepted that there were practical difficulties in labelling alcoholic drinks with an alcoholic strength of 1.2% or more in either English or Chinese. After careful consideration of the views expressed by the subcommittee and the trade, the Government decided that these alcoholic drinks should be exempted from some labelling requirements in Schedule 3, including the marking of the information on food manufacturer or packer.

From the perspective of food safety, the Food Safety Ordinance (Cap. 612), which fully commenced on February 1 this year, provides for, inter alia, the registration scheme for food importers and food distributors and the requirement for food traders to maintain proper transaction records. Such measures help enhance food traceability so that in the event of a food incident, the Administration can trace the source of food more effectively and take prompt action to protect public health. Even if the information on food manufacturer or packer is not shown on the food label, with the transaction records kept by food traders, the Administration can still trace the source of food, thus safeguarding public health.

As for nutrition labelling, under Schedule 6 of Cap.132W, some food items are exempted from the nutrition labelling requirements of the Regulations, including drinks with an alcoholic strength by volume of more than 1.2%.

There is no internationally-recognised standard for the nutrition labelling of these alcoholic drinks, nor are there any nutrition labelling requirements imposed on such alcoholic drinks by the European Union and other advanced countries. There will be practical difficulties for us to implement these requirements unilaterally in Hong Kong and the trade will also be significantly affected as a result. In enacting the nutrition labelling legislation, we have therefore made reference to international practices and decided to exempt these drinks from the requirements of nutrition labelling.

The Milk Regulation (Cap. 132AQ) requires, inter alia, that any milk or milk beverage to be imported into Hong Kong for sale should come from a source of manufacture that has been approved by the Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene. As such, before importing milk or milk beverages into Hong Kong, importers need to make application in writing regarding the source of manufacture and provide the full name and detailed address of the milk or milk beverage processing plant concerned.

Under Section 6 of Schedule 3, Cap. 132W, prepackaged milk and milk beverage shall be marked with the name and detailed address of the manufacturer / packer. Otherwise, the milk or milk beverage shall be marked with an indication of its country of origin, together with:

i. the name of the distributor or brand owner in Hong Kong and the address of the registered or principal office of the distributor or brand owner in Hong Kong, with the full address of the manufacturer or packer of the food in its country of origin provided in writing to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) in advance; or

ii. a code marking identifying the manufacturer or packer in its country of origin, with particulars of the code marking and of the manufacturer or packer to whom it relates provided in writing to FEHD in advance.

Besides, every container containing milk or milk beverage shall be marked with the name and address of the person by whom the contents were processed in accordance with Schedule 2 of Cap 132W. Prepackaged milk and milk beverages shall be marked in accordance with the requirements of nutrition labelling and nutrition claim of prepackaged food under Schedule 5.

(c) Milk and milk beverages must be labelled with the specified information (i.e. the labelling requirements for milk and milk beverages in Schedule 2, the general labelling requirements in Schedule 3, as well as the nutrition labelling requirements in Schedule 5) in accordance with Cap. 132W. Hence, consumers are already fully informed when making their choices.

Although drinks with an alcoholic strength by volume of more than 1.2% are exempted from some labelling requirements in Schedule 3, including the marking of the information on food manufacturer or packer, those with an alcoholic strength of less than 10% are still required to indicate their durability in the labels, i.e. the indication of "best before" or "use by" date, so as to protect consumers. In addition, after the enactment of the Food Safety Ordinance, even if the information on food manufacturer or packer is not shown on the food label, with the transaction records kept by food traders, the Administration can still trace the source of food. Consumers are therefore further protected.

In the light of the nutrition database of relevant authorities of other countries(1) and its own risk assessment studies, the Centre for Food Safety has set up a Nutrient Information Inquiry System (NIIS) for the public to find out the nutrient content of different food items, so as to help them make informed food choices. It is an online searchable database containing nutrient data of commonly consumed food items which are of relevance and interest to our local community. Among other things, nutrient data of milk and milk beverages as well as some exempted alcoholic drinks are available in NIIS for the information of consumers. NIIS can be accessed at http://www.cfs.gov.hk/english/nutrient/index.shtml.

(1) Including:
The Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention
The Nutrient Data Laboratory, US Department of Agriculture
Food Standards Australia New Zealand
The Institute of Nutrition, Mahidol University, Thailand


Ends/Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Issued at HKT 15:00

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