Our Services

We deliver our services through the Centre for Food Safety, the Environmental Hygiene Branch, the Administration and Development Branch and the Private Columbaria Affairs Office (organisation chart as below).  The following paragraphs give an overview of our major operations, some of which may have an impact on the environment.

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Food Safety

We monitor the safety of imported and locally produced food to ensure that food available for human consumption is wholesome, unadulterated and properly labelled.  We also aim to safeguard public health through testing and control of imported live food animals; and to advise the public on risk management measures in relation to food and public health matters.  Our major areas of work in regard to food safety control include risk management; and risk assessment and communication.

Risk Management

To ensure safety of food supply in Hong Kong, we undertake continuous monitoring, testing and enforcement action.  Food samples are taken at import, wholesale and retail points for chemical, microbiological and radioactivity tests to ascertain their fitness for human consumption.  Pre-packaged food is also checked for compliance with food labelling laws.

Risk Assessment and Communication

Under the risk analysis model for food safety control, we conduct risk assessment on food hazards and recommend food standards.  On risk communication, we emphasise the importance of tripartite collaboration among the Government, food trade and consumers in ensuring food safety.  We promote food safety messages to the food trade and public through various channels.  We also promote Good Hygiene Practices (GHPs) and the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles to the food trade, in particular the high risk sectors, to enhance food safety.

Business Process Re-engineering and Overhaul of Information Technology Systems

To enhance food safety control, we conduct workflow reviews, formulate long term strategies for information technology-enabled business transformation and map out strategic proposals on re-engineering business processes, operational procedures and information management, with a view to developing computerised systems that can better support data analysis and risk profiling.  Through the Food Trader Portal (FTP) which was launched in stages at the end of 2019, food traders can now complete registration as importers or distributors by electronic means; and importers of meat, poultry, game, eggs, milk and frozen confections can apply for import licences and import permission and report food consignments arrival online.  We will continue to enhance our information technology systems in the order of priorities.

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Environmental Hygiene Services

We strive to provide and maintain a clean and hygienic living environment for the people of Hong Kong.  Major environmental hygiene services that have direct environmental impact include public cleansing services, licensing and control of food businesses, provision and management of environmental hygiene and related facilities, public market management, hawker management, cremation and green burial services, and pest control operational services.

Public Cleansing Services

We are committed to keeping public places clean, tidy and free from litter.  Public cleansing services range from street sweeping and washing, collection of household waste and street waste, gully cleansing, desludging of septic tanks, to managing public cleansing facilities like refuse collection points (RCPs), public toilets and bathhouses.  The Department and its cleansing contractors deploy a total workforce of about 13 000 to provide these cleansing services.

We provide some 11 700 litter containers, 440 dog toilets and 1 900 dog excreta collection bins throughout Hong Kong.  There are some 3 000 RCPs in Hong Kong for the temporary storage of street waste and household waste pending collection.  Waste is collected at least once a day at these RCPs and some 6 130 tonnes of household waste are collected daily by refuse collection vehicles managed either by ourselves or our contractors.

Licensing and Control of Food Businesses

We license food businesses to safeguard public health and safety and conduct regular inspection to ensure hygiene standards of licensed food premises are met.  We also take law enforcement actions, such as prosecutions, imposition of court orders, daily fines and suspension or cancellation of licences, against unhygienic premises.

Provision and Management of Environmental Hygiene and Related Facilities

We are responsible for the management of a wide variety of environmental hygiene and related facilities.  In 2021, we managed 807 public toilets, 26 public bathhouses, ten public cemeteries, six crematoria, 11 columbaria and 13 gardens of remembrance.

Public Market Management

We are vested with the responsibility of properly managing public markets and keeping them neat and tidy.  In 2021, we managed 97 public markets.  Among them, 39 comprised both a wet market and a cooked food centre and 23 were free standing cooked food markets, with around 13 555 stalls selling foodstuffs and a wide range of clothing and daily necessities.

Hawker Management

On-street hawking is an economic activity with a long history.  Through licensing and law enforcement, we aim to minimise the environmental nuisance caused by hawking activities.

Cremation and Green Burial Services

We manage six crematoria for the provision of cremation services to the public, and also promote green burial, viz. scattering of cremated human ashes at sea or at gardens of remembrance, as a more sustainable form of ash disposal.

Pest Control Operational Services

We are responsible for providing pest control services in public places, such as control and prevention of rodents, mosquitoes and other arthropod pests with public health importance.

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Administration and Development Services

Planning of Capital and Minor Works Projects

We plan new capital works projects relating to markets, RCPs, public toilets, crematoria, columbaria and food control facilities and improve our existing departmental facilities.  We do our best to reduce the environmental impact of these projects during the construction and operational phases, and will incorporate green features into the design as far as practicable.

Public Education and Publicity

Public awareness of maintaining a clean and hygienic environment is enhanced through our public education in an integrated approach.  We run a Health Education Exhibition and Resource Centre inside Kowloon Park at Tsim Sha Tsui to organise publicity and educational programmes for the community.  We also disseminate environmental hygiene messages through different channels and various campaigns.

Pest Control Advisory Services

We give advice on pest control and prevention to government departments and the general public.  Our work includes surveillance and monitoring of pest problems to prevent local transmission and investigation of vector-borne diseases.

Internal Administration Support

We maintain a departmental fleet of some 670 vehicles to provide support services, of which about 190 are specialised vehicles, such as Refuse Collection Vehicles and Street Washing Vehicles.

Public Market Development and Revitalisation

We study the need and feasibility of providing new public markets and take forward related works projects.  We also implement the Market Modernisation Programme, review the facilities and introduce new market management measures, with a view to improving the operating environment of public markets to benefit the public and tenants.

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Regulation of Private Columbaria

Implementing the Licensing Regime of Private Columbaria

We provide executive support to the Private Columbaria Licensing Board (PCLB).  In processing applications for licence or exemption from private columbaria, we seek advice of the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) on matters relating to environmental protection for the reference of the PCLB.  Compliance with conditions imposed by the PCLB, including those relating to environmental protection, by licence/exemption holders is monitored on an ongoing basis in coordination with the concerned department.

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Our Impact on the Environment

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