46 officials punished for food safety scandals

Eight suspects involved in five food safety incidents have been transferred to judicial organs and another 46 officials have been punished for neglect of duty, the Ministry of Supervision said on Wednesday.

In one case, more than 25,000 kilograms of pork from sick pigs was purchased, cooked and sold by vendors in east China's Anhui Province, with a sales value of 80,000 yuan (13,218.5 U.S. dollars), according to a statement released by the ministry.

In another case, nine officials have been punished for inadequate supervision after a highly toxic pesticide was found to have been used in the planting of ginger by farmers in east China's Shandong Province, it said.

The ministry urged governments at all levels to draw lessons from the food safety scandals and harshly crack down on food-related crimes.