The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has warned fresh provision shops not to place pig carcasses outside their stores or risk losing their licences.

The warning came after the department recently recorded the first violation of this particular licensing condition since it was instituted in 2022.

Officers found that a Kai Bo Food Supermarket outlet in Yuen Long kept pig carcasses outside the premises during special operations on more than 200 shops conducted across the city between late February and early March to clamp down on improper procedures after deliveries that increased the risk of rodent infestations.

Officers issued more than 40 verbal warnings and initiated 21 prosecutions in the blitz.

Speaking on RTHK, assistant director of operations Wan Chi-shun said the department was working to cancel the Yuen Long outlet's licence but that the final decision would be made after considering representations made by the shop.

He warned that meat had to be properly handled.

"Pig carcasses must be placed inside the store. The most ideal way is, first, to put it on a table," Wan said.

"Second, some stores will hang it on the wall and not place it on the floor.

"If they run out of space and need to use the floor, they can take appropriate measures – such as using suitable tools or items that can prevent contamination. These are acceptable to us."

He went on to say that shops had to opt for items such as plastic sheets and wooden boards to place underneath the carcasses if they had no other spots apart from the floor.

The department has also suspended a shop in Kowloon City from operating following rodent infestations.

Wan said that even though the store had continuously carried out control measures following the suspension, it would only be allowed to reopen for business only when it met the department's requirements, describing the situation there as being "serious".

He stressed that officers had continued to carry out random inspections, particularly during the early hours to target violations at fresh provision stores.



Edited by Thomas McAlinden