Nothing holds off Hong Kong's winter chill like a hearty bowl of snake soup -- but there's a problem. Many restaurants are missing the main ingredient.
Hong Kong's snake industry is suffering a severe supply crunch after Chinese authorities banned exports during the SARS outbreak, when research suggested the respiratory illness was spread by wildlife in southern China.
The global epidemic was declared under control in July, and snakes have gotten a SARS-free bill of health, but the ban still stands. Chinese officials have told Hong Kong snake dealers it's a conservation measure following a spike in mainland consumption, but the merchants aren't so sure.
Some suspect they're victims of an overly cautious bureaucracy.
At China's State Forestry Administration, which holds final say over snake shipments, a spokesman who identified himself only by the surname Liang told a reporter by telephone he had no information on the ban.
But it's definitely felt in the former British colony, where the love of exotic food is said to include any creature whose back faces the sky.
"I don't see it served anywhere. It doesn't seem like restaurants are coming out with any promotional packages," said Vincent Li, a 26-year-old financial consultant whose company puts on snake dinners for employees every year.
China is Hong Kong's top source of snakes, shipping about 67,000 every year, and traders are having to defrost last year's leftovers and import snakes from Southeast Asia at prices up to 20 percent higher.
An average meal of snake costs HK$26 (US$3.30), about the same price as a bowl of noodle soup.
Some restaurants keep snakes coiled up in cages, ready to be killed and cooked on demand. But this season many are dropping snake from their menus.
Snake aficionados view the meat as a winter-warming food, even an aphrodisiac.
"It tastes great. It's good for your body," Li said.
RESILIENCE: Taiwan plays a key role in semiconductors, energy, information infrastructure and advanced manufacturing, AIT Director Raymond Greene said Taiwan’s continued investment in deterrence and resilience remains vital, especially in uncrewed systems and other emerging technologies, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday. Greene made the remarks at the annual National Strategic Summit on Supply Chain Resilience held by the Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET), a government-backed think tank. As Taiwan last year became the US’ fourth-largest trading partner and supply chain security is becoming more important, cooperation in emerging technologies continues to deepen between the two countries, he said. The US is committed to accelerating innovation, building key infrastructure, strengthening cooperation
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
RIGHT DIRECTION: Taiwan’s efforts to prevent forced labor include a proposal to ‘fully prohibit’ employers from withholding workers’ documents, an official said Taiwan is to establish a mechanism to restrict imports of goods linked to forced labor, the Executive Yuan said yesterday, after the US proposed imposing additional tariffs on Taiwanese goods over labor concerns. “The Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Economic Affairs are to establish an interministerial review procedure,” Executive Yuan spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said at a news briefing in Taipei. “The government is to use the Foreign Trade Act [貿易法] as the legal basis to restrict imports of goods produced with forced labor” and bring its supply chain governance more in line with international standards on human rights, resilience
NOT IMMEDIATE: Taiwan has a chance to appeal the proposed 10 percent tariff before it starts, while other countries face a 12.5 percent tariff from the trade office Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the US to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released on Tuesday by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent or more tariff on them. The USTR in a statement said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is
RSS