HONG KONG — It ain't good if it doesn't stink, say fans of the popular snack. But a vendor selling "stinky tofu" was fined $1,538 for violating the rights of others to fresh and clean air.
Ng Shiu-ping of Tasty Food Shop was convicted Friday of breaching air pollution laws, according to local news reports.
Vendors usually deep-fry the tofu in big woks in oil on sidewalks or at store fronts so the smell can attract customers. Yeast is added, and the smell comes from fermentation. Each patty costs about 60 cents.
In issuing the fine, Magistrate Anthony Kwok said the smell filled the homes of Ng's neighbors, the South China Morning Post said Saturday.
"When people are enjoying such a delightful snack, however, we are paying a social price for it as our air is polluted because of its preparation," the Post quoted Kwok as saying. "It's not right to trade our right to have clean and fresh air with the snack because only a group of people enjoy eating them."
Ng, who sells the tofu in the busy Mong Kok shopping district, had been convicted three times in the past for stinking up the air.
She pleaded not guilty this time around, saying she spent more than $12,800 on an air purifying system after her previous convictions.