Expert Interpretation of the "Guidelines on the Primary Responsibility of Food Sellers for Food Safety (Trial)"

To further implement the "Food Safety Law," the "Regulations on the Implementation of the Food Safety Law," and the "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Deepening Reform and Strengthening Food Safety Work," and to urge food sellers to fully assume the main responsibility for food safety and conduct business activities legally and compliantly, the State Administration for Market Regulation recently issued the "Guidelines for the Main Responsibility of Food Sellers for Food Safety (Trial)" (Market Supervision Food Economy [2020] No. 99, hereinafter referred to as the "Guidelines"). The relevant content of the "Guidelines" is interpreted as follows:

I. Background of the Issuance of the "Guidelines"  

The Party Central Committee and the State Council have always attached great importance to food safety work. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly delivered important speeches and instructions on strengthening food safety work, and Premier Li Keqiang and other State Council leaders have also repeatedly put forward clear requirements for food safety work. In 2019, the "Opinions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council on Deepening Reform and Strengthening Food Safety Work" were issued, and the "Regulations on the Implementation of the Food Safety Law" were promulgated, proposing new requirements for reforming and innovating the food safety supervision mechanism. The food sales link involves many aspects and a wide scope; the overall quality of food sellers is not high, and their food safety management capabilities are weak. Situations where they do not understand, cannot, or do not know the main responsibilities and obligations for food safety still occur from time to time. In response, the industry generally hopes to further clarify and detail relevant normative requirements and compile them into a booklet to facilitate food sellers' understanding and implementation of legal and regulatory requirements.

To further urge food sellers to strictly fulfill the main responsibility for food safety, the State Administration for Market Regulation, based on a comprehensive review of relevant food safety laws, regulations, standards, and policies, widely solicited opinions and suggestions from grassroots regulators, relevant associations, and representatives of food sellers, drafted and issued the "Guidelines for the Main Responsibility of Food Sellers for Food Safety (Trial)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Guidelines") to guide and urge food sellers to know and understand the law and conduct business activities in accordance with the law.

II. Main Content of the "Guidelines"

For ease of use and reference, the "Guidelines" present various requirements in tabular form. The "Guidelines" are divided into five columns: first, the "Project" column, which mainly classifies and clarifies the main responsibilities, totaling 47 responsibilities; second, the "Key Points" column, which mainly clarifies the implementation requirements of each main responsibility, totaling 105 requirements; third, the "Content" column, which details the implementation content and requirements of each key point, totaling 195 items; fourth, the "Applicable Objects" column, which clarifies the subjects responsible for implementing each main responsibility; and fifth, the "Basis" column, which clarifies the legal and regulatory basis for each main responsibility.

(1) About the content of the "Guidelines." The "Guidelines" divide the main responsibility for food safety into three parts: "Key Responsibilities," "Basic Responsibilities of Food Sellers," and "Other Related Responsibilities." In the "Key Responsibilities," the "Guidelines" emphasize key responsibilities such as food safety self-inspection and traceability system construction in response to prominent issues of inadequate responsibility implementation, aiming to remind food sellers to use these two responsibilities as starting points to enhance their awareness and initiative in fulfilling the main responsibility for food safety. In the "Basic Responsibilities of Food Sellers," the focus is mainly on strengthening the "process control" requirements for food sellers, while also considering control requirements for elements such as "licenses," "systems," "personnel," "labels and instructions," and "temperature." In the "Other Related Responsibilities," the main responsibilities that should be fulfilled by entities engaged in food storage and transportation business who are not food producers or operators, operators of centralized food trading markets, organizers of exhibitions and sales fairs, counter lessors, and providers of third-party online food trading platforms are clarified, strengthening control requirements for elements such as "filing," "capability requirements," "process management," "premises and facilities and equipment," "cooperation obligations," "reporting," and "prohibited behaviors."

(2) Carrying out the "Self-Commitment to Safe Food Supermarket" activity. To further enhance the enthusiasm and initiative of food sellers in fulfilling their main responsibilities and to urge the industry to improve food safety integrity levels and food safety management capabilities, the "Guidelines" clearly encourage food sellers to conduct a comprehensive food safety risk and hazard investigation and rectification, make a "Self-Commitment to Safe Food" to the public, and post the commitment content prominently at their business premises.

Next, the State Administration for Market Regulation will guide and urge local market supervision departments to vigorously promote the "Guidelines" through various publicity media and in multiple forms. At the same time, it will urge provincial market supervision departments to further supplement and refine local regulations and rules, forming local food sellers' main responsibility guidelines for food safety; further strengthen supervision and inspection, and increase penalties for inadequate fulfillment of main responsibilities; further orderly promote the self-commitment to safe food activity, encourage food sellers to actively fulfill their main responsibilities for food safety, fully ensure public dietary safety, and continuously improve the integrity and self-discipline level of the food sales industry.