Not to consume a kind of cheese from Italy with possible Shiga toxin-producing E. coli contamination

Centre for Food Safety

Cheese

Product name: FONTINA D.O.P.

Place of origin: Italy

Producer: COOPERATIVA PRODUTTORI LATTE E FONTINA SOC. COOP.A.R.L.

Importer: Bravo Fine Foods Limitedand New Food Project Limited

Lot: LOTTO C261

Best-before date: November 19, 2020

• The CFS received a notification from the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) of the European Commission that the above-mentioned product might have been contaminated with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and is being recalled.
• Preliminary investigation found that two local importers, Bravo Fine Foods Limited and New Food Project Limited, had imported some of the affected product into Hong Kong.
• People will contract STEC-causing gastro-intestinal disease through consumption of contaminated water or undercooked and contaminated foods. Intestinal bleeding and serious complications such as hemolytic uraemic syndrome may also develop in some people.

• The CFS immediately contacted local major importers and retailers for follow-up.
• The importers have initiated a recall according to the CFS' instructions.

• The trade should stop using or selling the product concerned immediately if they possess it.

• Consumers should not consume the affected batches of the product if they have bought any.
• Enquiries about the recall can be made to the hotlines of Bravo Fine Foods Limited and New Food Project Limited at 3528 0348 and 5248 8527 respectively during office hours.

The CFS press release