The state-run Xinhua News Agency reported Friday that the violations were uncovered after inspecting more than 920,000 food merchants, according to the Ministry of Health. The caterers' failure to observe best practices in food preparation has resulted in the rising incidence of food poisoning and infectious disease in China.
The ministry though reported a slight improvement in the food preparation sector from last year, when 110,000 violations were registered and 1,444 food hygiene licenses were revoked. Almost 30,000 businesses were also then found without licenses.
The health department admitted during Friday's conference that only 73 percent of the China's restaurants regularly inspect the hygiene certificates of their suppliers.
To force caterers to be more sanitation conscious, the government is implementing a hygiene grade certification program by year's end. The public will then be discouraged from patronizing establishments that do not meet the grade.
Restaurant owners purchasing substandard food products will also be severely penalized.
The government also plans to standardize practices such as food production licensing and product labeling and recalling.
The nationwide campaign on food safety in China kicked off in September and will run the rest of the year. School cafeterias, construction sites and small restaurants in rural areas and city outskirts are among the inspection targets.
