Tea chain's off the boil over hygiene

Mainland tea-chain store Nayuki, which listed in Hong Kong at the end of June, fell more than 10 percent after state media said its stores have hygiene problems.

A Xinhua News Agency reporter went to some branches of Nayuki and saw cockroaches crawling around in many of them while its staff used parts of fruit that were spoiling for drinks, unwashed rags to wipe tables and handled food with their bare hands while its products had false labels.

The reporter was struck by the fact that cockroaches seemed to be a normal sight for many of the workers and was told that, although there are many requests for better hygiene, staff would ignore guidelines when busy.

It was also reported that some mangoes, after cutting out rotting black parts, were used in drinks. Bread items, which should have been disposed after four hours on the shelf, were put on sale again after the time label was replaced.

In a statement, the company said the stores involved were closed on Monday. It will invite regulators to make an inspection and publish the results as soon as possible.

The stock price of Nayuki plunged 10.83 percent on the news and ended at HK$9.72.

Mainland media also reported that HeyTea plans to go public in Hong Kong next year with a target valuation of HK$150 billion.

eurus.yiu@singtaonewscorp.com