Reuters AlertNet Lite - Hong Kong finds dye in one China egg, halts imports

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Hong Kong finds dye in one China egg, halts imports

22 Nov 2006 08:22:26 GMT
Source: Reuters

HONG KONG, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Hong Kong found traces of a red industrial dye in one chicken egg from the central Chinese province of Hunan on Wednesday and promptly suspended imports, the latest in a string of food safety scares.

Hong Kong stepped up checks on Chinese eggs after China's food safety watchdog confirmed last week that samples of duck eggs sold in some cities were found to contain Sudan II, a cancer-causing red dye that farmers used to feed their ducks to make their eggs look redder and fresher.

More than 5,000 ducks were culled in mainland China.

"We told the Chinese authorities we found Sudan red in one chicken egg and requested that exports be stopped. They agreed," a Hong Kong government spokeswoman said.

The news caused disquiet in Hong Kong, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 and relies largely on mainland China for food supplies.

The Hong Kong government spokeswoman said traces of Sudan were also found in a duck egg from central Hubei, but it was not immediately clear if imports had been suspended.

The red-egg case follows a similar scandal in which the Yum Brands Inc.'s Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants came under scrutiny early last year after Sudan A was found in some of its chicken products in China.

Food security has become a priority issue for China and Hong Kong after a series of scandals over tainted or counterfeit products.

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Last updated:Wed Nov 22 08:25:40 2006