CENTRAL: The Customs and Excise Department (C&ED), after obtaining consent from the Secretary for Justice, has accepted a written undertaking made under the civil compliance-based mechanism of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO) by a chain bakery suspected of supplying goods with false trade descriptions and possessing for sale or trade goods with false trade descriptions.
The C&ED earlier received a complaint against a chain bakery for supplying “Herbal Dried Orange Peel” and “Preserved Snake Dried Orange Peel” with false trade descriptions applied, in contravention of Section 7 of the TDO.
Customs officers conducted a test-buy operation and purchased the two types of dried orange peel from the chain bakery. After investigation, it was confirmed that the above goods did not contain the ingredients as suggested by their labels, namely tendril leaf fritillary or snake bile.
The company was co-operative in the course of the investigation and proposed to undertake in writing not to continue or repeat the conduct concerned. The trader also agreed to take remedial actions.
A C&ED spokesman stressed that if the trader breaches any terms of the undertaking, the C&ED might withdraw the acceptance of the undertaking pursuant to the TDO, to be followed by investigation and legal proceedings.