2009 was yet another challenging and fruitful year for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD).
The outbreak of human swine flu worldwide was a matter of great concern. With the confirmation of the first imported case on May 1, the Department swung into action and took up the cleansing and disinfection of the under-quarantine Metro Park Hotel in Wan Chai, to support the Governments contingency plan. Keeping public places clean and hygienic is crucial for fighting infectious diseases. We have hence stepped up cleansing of the territory, in particular hygiene blackspots.
Hawker licensing policy was reviewed and updated to respond to public needs amid growing popular demand for preserving local culture. We relaxed the policy on licence succession and transfer for Dai Pai Tongs, if environmental hygiene is not compromised and the local district councils are supportive. New licences were also issued to bootblack hawkers and on-street ice-cream vendors to carry on their trades.
A comprehensive review of the positioning, functions and usage of public markets was completed and the findings presented to the relevant Sub-committee of the Legislative Council. To tap the views of stakeholders, the Department organised regional retreats with participants from primarily trade representatives and tenants to give suggestions on improving market facilities and management.
The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) worked hard on the commencement of the statutory Nutrition Labelling (NL) Scheme in July 2010. The CFS communicated closely with the trade to facilitate compliance with the new law. A Small Volume Exemption Office was set up well ahead of the commencement of the scheme to process trade applications. A comprehensive publicity and education programme was also launched, targeting the trade, laboratory service providers and the public at large.
The Department contributed to the staging of the 2009 East Asian Games, through detailed planning, preparation and monitoring of the food plans and environmental hygiene programmes for various Games venues and the caterers.
Looking ahead, the CFS is gearing up for the implementation of the NL Scheme. Our prime goals are facilitating consumers in understanding NL and making healthy food choices, encouraging manufacturers to apply sound nutrition principles in the formulation of foods, and regulating misleading or deceptive labels and claims.
The CFS will also work on the drafting of the Food Safety Bill which is scheduled for Legislative Council scrutiny in 2010. The proposed legislation will strengthen control on food safety. Among other measures, the implementation of the mandatory food importers and distributors registration scheme and food transaction record system will make it possible to trace origins and contain problems early upon the outbreak of food incidents.
On the provision of public niches, the Department completed the construction of the Diamond Hill Columbarium in early 2009 which yielded 18 500 new niches for allocation. We also started the construction of another columbarium in Kiu Tau Road, Wo Hop Shek Cemetery, which will provide 41 000 niches on completion in 2012. We will continue to make best endeavours to identify more sites and rally community support for building more public columbaria to meet demand.
It is the mission of FEHD to maintain a clean and hygienic environment and ensure food safety for the people of Hong Kong. We will do the best we can to make Hong Kong a better place in which to live.
Cheuk Wing-hing
Director
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department