LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 8035 OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Thursday, 17 March 2011 The Council continued to meet at Nine o'clock MEMBERS PRESENT: THE PRESIDENT THE HONOURABLE JASPER TSANG YOK-SING, G.B.S., J.P. IR DR THE HONOURABLE RAYMOND HO CHUNG-TAI, S.B.S., S.B.ST.J., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LEE CHEUK-YAN THE HONOURABLE FRED LI WAH-MING, S.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE MARGARET NG THE HONOURABLE JAMES TO KUN-SUN THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG MAN-KWONG THE HONOURABLE CHAN KAM-LAM, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE MRS SOPHIE LEUNG LAU YAU-FUN, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LEUNG YIU-CHUNG DR THE HONOURABLE PHILIP WONG YU-HONG, G.B.S. THE HONOURABLE WONG YUNG-KAN, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LAU WONG-FAT, G.B.M., G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE MIRIAM LAU KIN-YEE, G.B.S., J.P. 8036 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 THE HONOURABLE EMILY LAU WAI-HING, J.P. THE HONOURABLE ANDREW CHENG KAR-FOO THE HONOURABLE TAM YIU-CHUNG, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE ABRAHAM SHEK LAI-HIM, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LI FUNG-YING, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE TOMMY CHEUNG YU-YAN, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE AUDREY EU YUET-MEE, S.C., J.P. THE HONOURABLE VINCENT FANG KANG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-HING, M.H. THE HONOURABLE LEE WING-TAT THE HONOURABLE JEFFREY LAM KIN-FUNG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE ANDREW LEUNG KWAN-YUEN, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG HOK-MING, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE WONG TING-KWONG, B.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHIM PUI-CHUNG PROF THE HONOURABLE PATRICK LAU SAU-SHING, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE KAM NAI-WAI, M.H. THE HONOURABLE STARRY LEE WAI-KING, J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE LAM TAI-FAI, B.B.S., J.P. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 8037 THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAK-KAN THE HONOURABLE PAUL CHAN MO-PO, M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN KIN-POR, J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE PRISCILLA LEUNG MEI-FUN THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG KWOK-CHE THE HONOURABLE WONG SING-CHI THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-KIN, B.B.S. THE HONOURABLE IP WAI-MING, M.H. THE HONOURABLE IP KWOK-HIM, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE MRS REGINA IP LAU SUK-YEE, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE PAUL TSE WAI-CHUN THE HONOURABLE LEUNG KWOK-HUNG THE HONOURABLE TANYA CHAN THE HONOURABLE ALBERT CHAN WAI-YIP MEMBERS ABSENT: THE HONOURABLE ALBERT HO CHUN-YAN DR THE HONOURABLE DAVID LI KWOK-PO, G.B.M., G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LAU KONG-WAH, J.P. THE HONOURABLE TIMOTHY FOK TSUN-TING, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE FREDERICK FUNG KIN-KEE, S.B.S., J.P. 8038 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 DR THE HONOURABLE JOSEPH LEE KOK-LONG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE RONNY TONG KA-WAH, S.C. THE HONOURABLE CYD HO SAU-LAN DR THE HONOURABLE LEUNG KA-LAU DR THE HONOURABLE PAN PEY-CHYOU DR THE HONOURABLE SAMSON TAM WAI-HO, J.P. THE HONOURABLE ALAN LEONG KAH-KIT, S.C. THE HONOURABLE WONG YUK-MAN PUBLIC OFFICERS ATTENDING: THE HONOURABLE AMBROSE LEE SIU-KWONG, G.B.S., I.D.S.M., J.P. SECRETARY FOR SECURITY DR THE HONOURABLE YORK CHOW YAT-NGOK, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH CLERKS IN ATTENDANCE: MRS CONSTANCE LI TSOI YEUK-LIN, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL MRS PERCY MA, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 8039 MEMBERS' MOTIONS PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Members who are having their breakfast are giving their support to a slow food culture with their actions. We will begin the debate on the second motion without legislative effect. PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Second motion: Promoting a slow food culture. Members who wish to speak on the motion debate will please press the "Request to speak" button. I now call upon Mrs Sophie LEUNG to speak and move her motion. PROMOTING A SLOW FOOD CULTURE MRS SOPHIE LEUNG (in Cantonese): President, I move that the motion, as printed on the Agenda, be passed. President, by a slow culture food culture it does not really mean eating slowly. As a matter of fact, "slow food" is used as an antithesis to fast food. I am sure there are people among us who have never heard about the term "slow food" before. But I am sure they all know what fast food is. "Slow food" is so named because of a movement began by an Italian culinary guru called Carlo PETRINI to resist the fast food culture. He was concerned about the fact that not only had fast food changed our food culture but also our lifestyle as well. It also caused an impact on the ecology. So he started this slow food movement and went to places all over the world to preach the slow food culture. I am not talking about food today. I wish to talk about food education, that is, the culture and education of food and about food. It is a way of life underpinned by the way we eat. About this idea of how food changes the way we think and even the person we are, this is what a French gourmet master who used to say, "You are what you eat." A respect for food is a core value of the slow food movement. We can see that tonnes of food are wasted every day in Hong Kong. This shows that the 8040 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 attitude we have towards food is not at all correct. Many people just want to fill up their stomach, or they want to eat quickly, or they may want to try different kinds of food, and so they do not treat food with their heart. They do not respect it. Or they may use too much seasonings and condiments that cover the true flavour and taste of food. At times, I would wonder if this is because the food concerned is not fresh enough. The result is that the problem of obesity in people has become a great challenge for every modern society. Kids in many developed countries love nothing other than fast food. This is because their parents only care about convenience or because they simply do not know anything about the culture of food. At times, I would think whether we are really savouring the taste of food, or we are trying to gratify our taste buds with condiments. A respect for food makes us care more about the source of food and its quality. A slow food culture advocates cutting the food mileage, that is, the carbon footprints. It emphasizes the use of locally available ingredients and materials for food. Hong Kong is a culinary capital. We can find all kinds of ingredients and materials for food right here. But we have to notice that the shipment of food, no matter it is by trucks or by airplanes, would invariably produce carbon emission. So as we want to eat good food, do we have to eat food from thousands of miles away? Should we think that only exotic food is good? As a matter of fact, the simple and rustic kind of food is what we call good food. Also, people just want to gratify their taste buds and care nothing about the culture of food. A million kinds of technology are used to interfere with the growth of things consumed as food. In the past, we did not do this kind of thing. We would eat what is seasonable. But now we use the greenhouse ― and that is another source of carbon emission ― to enable plants which we consume as food to grow all the year round. Sometimes hormones and other kinds of chemicals are used to make plants look good. Or genetic engineering is employed to make plants look incredibly attractive. When such things are done, do we know that apart from satisfying our senses, we are causing a lot of pollution and burden to planet Earth? If we really know how to respect food, we would waste less. Recently, there are discussions in society on the issue of food waste. Food waste is caused by our wastage of food. We often see in restaurants how people leave a lot of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 17 March 2011 8041 food uneaten, which is then thrown away. This is because what remains on the table cannot be used again. Come to think about this. Farmers work hard in growing the food we eat, and cattle and sheep also need a long time to grow up before they reach the meal tables. In order to meet the needs of humans for food, these cattle and sheep are often made to grow faster or they may be made to put on weight artificially. So I think that we must put in more efforts and educate people about the culture of food. If we know how food should be respected, and if we can pause and think and hence conclude that we do not really need to consume so much food, then we do not have to be on diet or fear that we may get diabetes or a stroke. And it would not be necessary to ship so much food waste to the landfills. I understand the question which many people may have on their minds.