Egg tarts, Chinese dough fritters, puff pastry among worst artificial trans fat offenders in Hong Kong
Egg tarts, Chinese dough fritters and puff pastry contain some of the highest levels of artificial trans fat out of nearly 150 samples tested, Hong Kong’s food safety regulator has said ahead of next month’s ban on the ingredient that increases the risk of heart disease.
The Centre for Food Safety on Thursday said the tests found six out of 149 food samples contained levels of artificial trans fat that exceeded World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, which state the ingredient should not make up more than 2 grams per 100 grams of total fat in food.
The tests, conducted between November 2021 and July 2022, found more than 2 per cent of artificial trans fat in six samples of egg tarts, Chinese dough fritters, puff pastry crust in soup, fried bean curd rolls and a hotpot soup base.
The centre found that two samples of puff pastry crust in soup produced by the same catering chain contained 6.7 grams of artificial trans fat per 100 grams of fat.
Ray Hung Chi-tat, a senior chemist at the watchdog, said the use of partially hydrogenated oil might be responsible for the high levels of artificial trans fat in the egg tart and puff pastry samples. Deep frying or reheating might have led to the artificial trans fat levels in the samples of fried bean curd roll and hotpot soup base, he added.
“If we remove problematic ingredients from the source, we can ensure consumer health,” Hung said.
But the centre noted the results marked a significant improvement over the results of a similar study carried out in 2019, which found excessive artificial trans fat in a quarter of the samples tested.
The latest study was conducted ahead of a ban on the import and sale of any foods, fats or oils that contain partially hydrogenated oil, a major culprit of increased artificial trans fat levels, on December 1.
“Partially hydrogenated oil is commonly used as a substitute for butter in baking or frying because of its lower cost and longer shelf life,” said Dr Terence Cheung Yung-yan, a consultant for community medicine at the centre.
“Trans fat increases the level of bad cholesterol and reduces the level of good cholesterol. There is growing evidence that trans fat is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, which is the third-leading cause of death in Hong Kong.”
The Centre found the levels of artificial trans fat in puff pastries, pies, samosas and Chinese pastries had decreased compared with the study conducted in 2019.
“Through our work, we see that the industry has also made changes to their formula and supplier, which showed an obvious drop and a lower percentage of samples exceeding the recommended levels,” Cheung said.
Lawmakers passed legislation banning artificial trans fats in 2021 and the grace period for food providers to find an alternative ends on November 30.
The centre has been in close contact with the industry over sourcing healthier alternatives, such as canola oil or corn oil, Cheung added.
In 2018, the WHO called on governments around the world to remove artificial trans fat from the food supply. More than 20 countries, including the United States, Canada, Singapore and Thailand, have banned partially hydrogenated oil.
