Fufuland ice cream exceeds coliform bacteria limits by 690 times

An ice cream sample from a famous dessert brand Fufuland contained coliform bacterial and total bacterial counts exceeding the legal limits by 690 and 24 times respectively, the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced. 

The sample of milk-flavored ice cream taken from the MegaBox branch of the mainland brand contained 69,000 coliform bacteria per gram and 1.2 million total bacteria per gram.

The restaurant has already stopped selling and discarded the affected product. 

CFS said the coliform count and the total bacterial count which exceeded the legal limits indicated the unsatisfactory hygiene conditions, but that did not mean that consumption would lead to food poisoning.

It has also provided health education on food safety and hygiene to the person-in-charge and staff of the restaurant and requested that thorough cleaning and disinfection be carried out. 

Under the Frozen Confections Regulation, frozen confectionery for sale should not contain more than 100 coliform bacteria per gram or more than 50,000 bacteria per gram. Offenders face a maximum penalty of a HK$10,000 fine and three months imprisonment upon conviction.