[Update: A Shopee spokesperson said that they have removed all relevant product listings from the platform as soon as they were aware of the case. You can read their statement below]

Singaporeans are not allowed to bring back bak kwa (barbecued meat) from Malaysia. Neither is bak kwa allowed to be imported from Malaysia.

However, a Mothership reader recently pointed out that bak kwa from Malaysia is available on online shopping platform Shopee.

This listing below offers 300g of sliced pork bak kwa for S$12.49 while 300g of minced pork bak kwa goes for S$9.85.

The product ships from Port Dickson in Negeri Sembilan, according to the listing.

This listing below purports to sell bak kwa from a dim sum shop in Kajang.

500g of their sliced pork bak kwa goes for S$23.62 while their minced pork bak kwa goes for S$20.23 per 500g.

These bak kwa from Malaysia cost less than those in Singapore, especially during the Chinese New Year season.

During last year's Chinese New Year, Singapore bak kwa cost between S$52 and S$56 per kilogram.

However, they cannot be brought into Singapore.

During our checks, we found that there are many other listings for bak kwa from Malaysia:

Interestingly, you cannot find these listings if you search under the Bak Kwa category.

Instead, many of them are listed under unrelated categories such as "Pet Food and Supplies", "Cooking Ingredient", and "Frozen Food".

When we tested if it is possible to place an order, we managed to get it shipped:

Import of pork products only allowed from SFA-approved countries

There are currently only 22 Singapore Food Agency-approved countries, including Canada, Netherlands and the United States, for the import of raw and processed pork to Singapore.

Aside from these countries, pork products can be imported from other countries but with conditions.

For example, only canned pork products are allowed from the Czech Republic, while only heat-treated pork products are allowed from China.

Travellers are not allowed to bring in meat, meat products and eggs from Malaysia. Only frozen pork is allowed to be imported from Sarawak (East Malaysia).

If you're bringing in pork for yourself, you can only bring in up to 5kg of pork products from Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the U.S.

In response to queries by Mothership, a Shopee spokesperson said that they have removed all relevant product listings from the platform:

“At Shopee, we are committed to providing a reliable, enjoyable, and secure shopping experience for all users.

We take a zero-tolerance approach to the sale of prohibited items on our platform, and we require our sellers to be compliant with both local regulations where we operate and our own stringent policies.

As soon as we were made aware of this case, we removed all relevant product listings from the platform, and have taken steps to prevent other similar prohibited products from being listed on our platform."

Mothership has reached out to the Singapore Food Agency for comment.

Top image via Shopee.