Hong Kong food safety authorities have ordered an immediate halt to the sale of oysters from a French brand, after suspected gastroenteritis cases emerged in the Netherlands, which some catering industry operators said weakened consumer confidence and added to the woes of the already struggling sector.
The Centre for Food Safety on Wednesday also ordered the trade to suspend imports of raw oysters from the French brand Josephine that were produced and packed between March 5 and 25.
Chris Chung, whose oyster restaurant sells around seven oyster brands, noted that the Josephine brand was rather “obscure”.
Given that raw oysters remained a “relatively niche market”, the city’s roughly one dozen suppliers typically stocked a few varieties and distributed them to local restaurants, he said.
Chung added that his restaurant had experienced a 40 to 50 per cent decline in business since January.
In February, the government called for the public to temporarily stop consuming raw oysters due to norovirus-related food poisoning cases.
“The government has handled the issue in a way that left many customers with the impression that they should not eat oysters at all, and this shift in public perception is hurting our industry,” Chung said.
A manager, surnamed Chan, from an oyster store in Yuen Long said her company did not import the French brand.
She noted that walk-in orders had dropped by half on Valentine’s Day on February 14, and urged the government to encourage residents to avoid specific suppliers with poor track records, rather than asking them to avoid consuming oysters in general, which stifled business.
The South China Morning Post contacted eight restaurants and stores on Thursday. All eight said they did not serve Josephine oysters, and one said it had not even heard of the brand.
The Centre for Food Safety said traders had been instructed to stop using or selling any affected batches still in stock.
A spokesman said the authority had received a notification from the European Commission’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed about suspected gastroenteritis cases in the Netherlands that might be linked to consuming the oysters.
“As a precaution, the centre immediately instructed the trade to temporarily suspend the import and sale within Hong Kong of the raw oysters concerned,” the spokesman said.
The brand voluntarily removed the affected oysters from shelves.
No food poisoning cases or complaints related to the product have been reported in Hong Kong so far.
The centre said it had stepped up the collection of raw oyster samples for testing.
Officials reminded the public that raw or partially cooked oysters were considered high-risk foods and advised vulnerable groups, including pregnant women, young children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems or liver disease, to avoid eating them.
City health authorities reported a sharp rise in raw-oyster-related food poisoning cases from mid-January, with infections climbing through early February and affecting more than 100 people.
Most illnesses were attributed to norovirus, and many of those affected had eaten raw oysters before falling ill. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
