HONG KONG: Hong Kong's Consumer Council Urges Restaurants To Stop Sourcing Animals Fattened On Hormone Supplements

Hong Kong's consumer watchdog is tackling a major public health risk by getting restaurant chains to disclose whether they use meat from animals fed on growth-promoting antibiotics.

The Consumer Council will urge them to set a timetable to stop sourcing meat and poultry from animals that are routinely fattened on the supplements in an effort to stop the spread of deadly, antibiotic-resistant bacteria that pose a serious hazard.

Council chief executive Gilly Wong Fung-han told the Post: "We are not sure whether these big companies are really unaware of the health risks. We will alert them to the problem if they claim they do not know about it."

She did not identify which restaurant groups would be approached.

"After writing letters to these companies, we will seek to meet with them to discuss their sourcing policies," she said.

The agricultural sector uses about half of the antibiotics produced across the world in livestock production to make animals grow quicker and to treat sick livestock. But the increasing use of antibiotics in animal feed had led to humans developing resistance to antibiotics, imposing an extra burden on the medical system, Wong said.

In the European Union, antibiotic-resistant bacteria have caused 25,000 human deaths a year. The World Health Organisation, which recently organised World Antibiotic Resistance Awareness Week, has warned that without urgent action people are heading for a post-antibiotic era in which common infections and minor injuries may once again kill.

Concern group Consumers International, which leads the global campaign against antibiotics in food production, warned: "If antibiotic resistance continues to grow unchecked the results will be catastrophic."

Wong said restaurant chains, as major buyers of meat and poultry, had more bargaining power and played an important role in promoting a sustainable food industry.

But a blanket ban on antibiotics in meat production would be a lengthy and complex process, Wong said, and introducing legislation, though necessary, would be difficult in Hong Kong.

"We need food traders' cooperation," she stressed.

"Using market forces is the fastest way in prompting them to tackle the problem head-on. Public opinion will prod these companies into supplying antibiotic-free food."

She noted that some international fast food chains in the United States had begun to reduce the use of meat containing antibiotics, with antibiotic-free chicken already on the menu.

"We need to give local restaurants some time," Wong said. "But international chains will have to explain to us if they fail to extend their antibiotic-free production policy adopted in other places into Hong Kong."

Dr Terence Lau Lok-ting, a biology professor at Polytechnic University, welcomed the initiative but said the council needed to communicate closely with the food industry to work out implementation details. "Most traders attach importance to food safety. The initiative should benefit them in the long run," said Lau.