HK may withdraw milk powder exit limit in October

Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's government says it may withdraw the limit imposed on taking baby milk powder out of the region in October, as its market stabilizes.

The director of Hong Kong SAR's government's food and health bureau, Ko Wing Man, says since the implementation of the exit limit on milk power, local supply is again getting stable. The SAR's government will carry out pressure testing, and if the measures prove to have been effective, they will withdraw the restriction. The crackdown on milk powder came in the wake of a dwindling supply of the two best-selling milk powder brands in Hong Kong.

Most people attribute the shortage to throngs of the mainland milk powder traders who were flooding to Hong Kong and diverting large quantities from the local supply. The export regulations came into effect from the beginning of March. It forbids people over the age of 15 from carrying milk powder exceeding 1.8 kilograms out of Hong Kong, which is about two cans. Offenders are liable to a fine of 500 thousand Hong Kong dollars and imprisonment for two years.