Austrade is warning Australian food and beverage exporters that Hong Kong's new Pesticide Residues in Food Regulation will be enforced from 1 August.
The regulation will apply to fresh and processed food products, and non-compliance can lead to fines or even imprisonment.
“While full enforcement begins from 1 August 2014, Australian food exporters are recommended to work with their Hong Kong importers or distributors as early as possible to meet these requirements,” said Austrade's Hong Kong business development manager, Frances Cheung.
She said it is important for food and beverage exporters to have a strong understanding of the city’s new pesticide residue regulation, which comes into full effect on 1 August 2014 after a two-year grace period.
There are three main parts to the Regulation. Firstly, the Regulation sets out a list of maximum residue limits (MRLs) covering 360 pesticides. Secondly, the Regulation specifies individual residue limits for over 7,000 pesticide-food pairs.
Both these elements of the Regulation are found in Schedule 1. The MRLs and extraneous maximum residue limits (EMRLs) contained in Schedule 1 are primarily drawn from available standards recommended by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex). Where Codex does not specifiy limits, Hong Kong follows standards set by mainland China, the US and Thailand in that order.
Thirdly, the Regulation includes a list of 78 exempted pesticides, which are specified in Schedule 2.
To assist compliance with the requirements of the Regulation, the Hong Kong Government has prepared User Guidelines, Guidelines on Food Classification and a Guide to the Proposal for Addition or Revision of MRLs/EMRLs in Schedule 1 and Addition of Exempted Pesticides in Schedule 2.
However Cheung said local industry in Hong Kong is concerned about the cost and time required to test the pesticide residue limits of each ingredient, especially for processed foods.
Local industry is also concerned about when and how the Hong Kong Government will perform pesticide residue checks after food products are imported into Hong Kong, she said.
Through the Food Surveillance Program, the Hong Kong Government takes food samples at three levels - import, wholesale and retail - for testing to ensure food is fit for human consumption.
“This is an issue which will be monitored by Austrade Hong Kong as the Regulation comes into effect,” Cheung said.
For further information on this topic, or to understand more about doing business in Hong Kong, please contact Frances Cheung at hongkong@austrade.gov.au.
