A recent unannounced inspection campaign was launched by the Market Supervision and Administration Bureau of Xing'an County, Guangxi. The operation, carried out without prior notice, targeted key areas and business models in the online food delivery sector within its jurisdiction.
The campaign covered six distinct types of entities, including county-level operation stations for online food delivery platforms, integrated online and offline food service stores, and delivery-only kitchens with no dine-in facilities. This comprehensive approach aimed to eliminate regulatory blind spots and ensure a thorough inspection process.
During the checks, inspectors focused on verifying platform merchants' qualifications, information disclosure, and daily management controls. Stringent measures were taken against unlicensed "shadow shops." Particular attention was paid to hidden delivery-only kitchens, with detailed inspections of their sanitation conditions and operational standards.
At one county-level platform operation station, officials meticulously reviewed records, including merchant files, qualification verifications, and routine patrol logs. They urged the platform on-site to shoulder its primary responsibility, emphasizing that platforms must not act as mere "absentee landlords" or passive conduits for information.
Instead, platforms were instructed to establish robust dynamic merchant management systems to ensure consistent operational and management standards across both online and offline channels. The role of delivery riders as frontline monitors, given their direct access to kitchens and broad contact, was highlighted to foster a multi-party collaborative regulatory framework.
The inspections uncovered five major food safety hazards in some online food delivery kitchens. These included poor environmental hygiene, improper food storage, inadequate health management of staff, and non-standard operational procedures.
One delivery-only cake-making kitchen exhibited particularly severe issues, with haphazardly stored ingredients and a lack of dedicated preparation areas creating a high risk of cross-contamination. The inspection team issued immediate rectification orders with clear deadlines and standards, implementing a closed-loop management system of "dynamic records and issue resolution."
Establishments with prominent risks or failing to meet operational requirements were ordered to suspend business immediately for rectification, firmly preventing "operating while non-compliant" and reinforcing food safety accountability.
To address challenges like the limited scope of traditional manual inspections, insufficient frequency, and difficulty detecting hidden problems, the campaign mandated a comprehensive upgrade to an AI-powered "Internet + Transparent Kitchen" system for all online food service providers. This technological enhancement aims to significantly boost regulatory efficiency.
This measure represents a fundamental shift from the traditional labor-intensive inspection model, bringing hidden online kitchens into full public view and directly addressing consumer demands for transparency and food safety assurance.
Concluding the operation, regulators issued clear directives to platform operators, all catering businesses, and the supervision task force. These include maintaining kitchen hygiene as a routine practice, implementing meticulous staff management, reinforcing platform accountability, fully deploying AI smart supervision, strictly enforcing the issue rectification system, and building a comprehensive, normalized, and long-term food safety regulatory system.
This special inspection is a key part of Xing'an County's broader campaign to safeguard food safety in the online catering sector by identifying and eliminating risks. Through a combined strategy of leadership-led inspections, full-process oversight, precise record-keeping, and technology-enabled supervision, significant potential hazards in the local online food delivery industry have been effectively addressed, and online business operations have been standardized.
"The stricter the supervision, the more reassured we are when ordering takeout," commented citizens observing the inspections. Moving forward, the Xing'an County Market Supervision Bureau will continue to conduct regular special inspections and "look-back" checks on rectified issues, focusing on weak links to prevent problems from recurring. This ongoing effort aims to promote standardized, high-quality development in the industry and firmly uphold public safety standards.
Comments