A Hong Kong's food official has said there's a well operating pesticide monitoring system on vegetables selling in Hong Kong, trying to reduce the citizens' anxiety over the poisonous vegetables found in local market.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Carrie Yau said the system is effective as there have been no major food poisoning cases involving pesticide-tainted vegetables recently.

She said samples will be collected at the import, wholesale and retail levels for testing. Traders whose vegetables contain excessive pesticide will be deleted from the list of importers.

Meanwhile, on the policy to cap the maximum daily supply of chickens from the Chinese mainland at 20,000, Yau said the figure was formed after carefully considering different factors. However, she admitted the authority will consider raising the quota during the upcoming Tuen Ng Festival.

(Xinhua News Agency April 24, 2006)