 |
| Goods trucks carry food imports from China. |
The supply of food in Hong Kong is expected to return to normal when deliveries resume due to the opening of new interchange venues for Mainland and Hong Kong goods vehicle drivers, Hong Kong officials said today.
A shortage in fresh vegetables and meat have been felt in Hong Kong since Feb. 8 when deliveries were disrupted due to the closure of an interchange after two cross-border truck drivers tested positive for Covid-19, and other drivers hd to be quarantined.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
In a press statement, the Hong Kong government said the Shenzhen Municipal People's Government opened temporary interchange venues yesterday (February 12) morning.
“The Mainland authorities and the HKSAR Government are working closely together to firm up the detailed arrangements to expedite the logistics of food supply for Hong Kong so as to resume the supply situation to normal as soon as possible,” it added.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
The new venues will replace the one closed temporarily last Feb. 8 for disinfection.
An earlier press release cited Mainland authorities as saying a cross-boundary goods vehicle driver planning to return to Hong Kong and another driver under the closed-loop management in the Mainland tested positive in Covid-19 nucleic acid tests on Feb. 7.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
The authorities took swab samples and disinfected the interchange premises visited by the drivers. This resulted in other drivers at the venue to be held until epidemic control work had been completed at around 9pm. Those in close contact with the two drivers were held at nearby hotels for quarantine.
To recover from the delays, the operating hours of the control points on both the Guangdong and Hong Kong sides were extended, but a number of northbound goods vehicles drivers who were allowed to leave immediately aborted plans to cross into China and returned to Hong Kong.
 |
| CONTACT US! |
As a result, deliveries of fresh produce at the wholesale markets were down two-thirds on Feb. 8.
Hong Kong imports 90 per cent of its food supplies from China, according to figures from the Food and Health Bureau.
 |
| Press for details |
China is the leading source of Hong Kong’s supply of fresh pork, chilled and frozen pork, eggs, as well as fresh, chilled and live chicken.
Hong Kong has an agriculture industry made up of some 2,400 farms employing 4,300 farmers and workers in Hong Kong, producing fresh vegetables, pigs and poultry for local consumption. Its production, however, meets only a small portion of Hong Kong’s needs.
 |
| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
In 2017, the agriculture sector supplied some $966 million worth of produce, and accounted for less than 0.1% of Hong Kong's Gross Domestic Product, according to a report from the Legislative Council Commission.
 |
| PADALA NA! |
 |
