Yonghui, Hema among supermarkets singled out by China’s food safety watchdog for breaches

China’s market regulator has highlighted 11 cases of supermarkets and online platforms selling food products that did not meet national food safety standards, some of which are operated by the country's largest technology giants like Alibaba and JD.com.

In a formal notice issued Tuesday, China's State Administration for Market Regulation singled out companies including two outlets from Tencent-backed Yonghui Superstore, and a Hema supermarket outlet in Guangzhou, operated by Alibaba.

Certain batches of eggs sold in a Beijing Yonghui Superstore exceeded safe levels of enrofloxacin, a type of antibiotic commonly used to treat animals. Another Yonghui store in Hebei, as well as the Hema supermarket in Guangzhou, sold squid that also exceeded safety levels for an antibiotic.

Other merchants selling products that did not meet the food standards include a Carrefour store in Beijing with yogurt waffles containing excess levels of sodium, as well as an online merchant selling crunchy rice snacks on JD.com's e-commerce platform with too much peroxide. An online store on Taobao was also singled out for selling seaweed that exceeded acceptable lead levels.

Neither Alibaba, Yonghui Superstore or JD.com responded to requests for comment.

China has struggled with food safety issues over the years. The government stepped up oversight following a widespread incident in 2008 involving Chinese milk and infant formula being tainted with melamine. Stricter food safety requirements were imposed across the supply chain, from producers to retailers, and outdated national food safety laws were updated in 2015.