Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Entrustment Production

Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Entrustment Production

(Promulgated by Order No. 113 of the State Administration for Market Regulation on December 12, 2025, effective from December 1, 2026)

Article 1 These Measures are formulated in accordance with laws and administrative regulations such as the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China and its implementation regulations, with the aim of standardizing food and food additive (hereinafter collectively referred to as food) entrustment production activities, strengthening the supervision and administration of food entrustment production, and ensuring food safety.

Article 2 These Measures apply to food entrustment production activities and their supervision and administration within the territory of the People's Republic of China.

Food entrustment production as referred to in these Measures means the activity where the entrusted party, according to the requirements of the entrusting party, engages in all or part of the production processes of food and delivers the produced food.

Where food production is carried out through methods such as trademark licensing or franchising in accordance with laws and regulations like the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China and the Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Franchises, and such activities conform to the circumstances stipulated in the preceding paragraph, these Measures shall apply.

Article 3 The entrusting party shall obtain a food production and operation license or complete the filing for only selling prepackaged food according to law, possess the capability to supervise the entrusted party in conducting production in accordance with laws, regulations, food safety standards, and contract agreements, and ensure the normal fulfillment of its primary responsibility for food safety.

For food that requires a complete production process according to laws, regulations, food safety standards, and relevant requirements for food production licenses, partial production processes shall not be entrusted for production.

Article 4 The entrusted party shall obtain a food production license according to law. The food categories and variety details specified in the duplicate of the food production license shall include the food categories and varieties being entrusted for production, and the entrusted party shall possess corresponding production capacity and food safety assurance capability.

Article 5 Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall, in accordance with the Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Food Production and Operation Enterprises' Implementation of Primary Responsibility for Food Safety, establish and improve corresponding food safety management systems for food entrustment production activities, assign corresponding food safety management personnel, formulate documents such as Duties of the Food Safety Chief and Rules for Food Safety Officers, and strictly implement the primary responsibility for food safety.

Article 6 Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall carry out entrustment production activities in accordance with laws, regulations, food safety standards, and contract agreements. The entrusting party shall supervise the production activities of the entrusted party and be responsible for the food safety of the entrusted production. The entrusted party shall accept supervision from the entrusting party and be responsible for its production activities.

Article 7 The entrusting party shall not incite, compel, or covertly compel the entrusted party to conduct food production activities in violation of laws, regulations, and food safety standards.

If the entrusting party engages in prohibited acts as stipulated in the preceding paragraph, the entrusted party shall refuse or cease production for it.

Article 8 The entrusting party shall, according to the provisions of Article 4 of these Measures, inspect the qualification certificates and food safety assurance capability of the entrusted party, and maintain records thereof.

The entrusted party shall, according to the provisions of Article 3 of these Measures, inspect the qualification certificates of the entrusting party, and maintain records thereof.

The record retention period shall be not less than six months after the expiry date of the shelf life of the last batch of products from the entrustment production; where there is no definite shelf life, the retention period shall be not less than two years after the production date of the last batch of products from the entrustment production.

Article 9 Before implementing food entrustment production, both entrusting and entrusted parties shall conclude a written entrustment production contract.

The entrustment production contract shall generally contain the following food safety-related matters:

(1) The qualifications of both entrusting and entrusted parties;

(2) The name, variety, and applicable standards of the food to be entrusted for production;

(3) The procurement and provision methods of food raw materials, food additives, packaging materials in direct contact with food, etc.;

(4) The content, methods, and frequency of the entrusting party's supervision over the production activities of the entrusted party;

(5) Handling methods and responsibilities in the event of food safety accidents or food safety emergencies;

(6) Other food safety matters agreed upon by both entrusting and entrusted parties.

Matters agreed upon in the contract shall not violate laws, regulations, food safety standards, and other relevant provisions.

Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall not, through concluding an entrustment production contract or under the guise of concluding a trademark licensing contract, franchising contract, etc., reduce or exempt themselves from the food safety responsibilities they should legally bear.

Article 10 Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall report to the county-level market supervision and administration department at their respective locations within ten working days after concluding the entrustment production contract. The content of the entrustment production report shall include the names, addresses, responsible persons, contact information, food production and operation license numbers or filing numbers for only selling prepackaged food, food categories, applicable standards, contract term, etc., of both entrusting and entrusted parties.

If there are changes to the report content specified in the preceding paragraph, if the contract is terminated, or if the certificates or licenses of either party are revoked or cancelled, a report shall be made to the county-level market supervision and administration department at their respective locations within ten working days from the date of the change, contract termination, or revocation/cancellation of certificates or licenses.

County-level and higher local market supervision and administration departments are encouraged to adopt informatization methods to facilitate the submission of materials such as entrustment production reports by both parties.

Article 11 Food raw materials, food additives, and packaging materials in direct contact with food provided by the entrusting party and the entrusted party shall comply with food safety standards. Both parties shall be responsible for the food raw materials, food additives, and packaging materials in direct contact with food they respectively provide.

When the entrusting party acts as the supplier, the entrusted party shall legally fulfill the obligation to inspect and record the incoming goods, and the entrusting party shall not refuse, obstruct, or interfere with this.

If the entrusted party makes purchases on its own, it shall legally fulfill the obligation to inspect and record the incoming goods, and the entrusting party shall supervise the procurement activities and the inspection of incoming goods by the entrusted party.

Article 12 The labeling of food produced under entrustment shall comply with the provisions of laws, regulations, and food safety standards.

Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall review and keep records of the labeling of food produced under entrustment. The record retention period shall be not less than six months after the expiry date of the product's shelf life; where there is no definite shelf life, the retention period shall be not less than two years.

Article 13 For prepackaged food produced under entrustment, its label shall indicate, in adjacent positions, the name, address, and contact information of the entrusting party, and the name and address of the entrusted party, prefixed with words such as "Entrusting Party, Entrusted Party" or "Entrusting Unit, Entrusted Unit".

Article 14 The entrusting party may supervise the production activities of the entrusted party through methods such as stationing its own personnel or hiring a third-party institution on-site, or conducting inspections. The entrusting party is encouraged to employ informatization means for supervision.

The supervision content shall generally include the risk control status of matters such as the entrusted party's premises environment, equipment and facilities, personnel management, raw material control, control of key production links, inspection control, transportation and delivery control, label and instruction management, etc.

The entrusting party shall record its supervision of the entrusted party's production activities. Relevant records shall be confirmed by both entrusting and entrusted parties and retained separately.

Article 15 The entrusting party shall regularly inspect and evaluate the safety status of food produced under entrustment. If it is discovered that the production conditions of the entrusted party have changed and no longer comply with food safety requirements, the entrusting party shall require the entrusted party to immediately take corrective measures; if there is a potential risk of a food safety accident, it shall require the entrusted party to immediately stop the entrustment production activities and report to the county-level market supervision and administration department at the location of the entrusted party.

Article 16 The entrusted party shall inspect the food produced under entrustment in accordance with relevant state regulations and retain inspection records and product samples. The entrusting party may, based on needs or contract agreement, request the entrusted party to provide samples and retain them itself.

The entrusting party shall inspect the factory inspection report provided by the entrusted party and sample products for inspection as needed to ensure food safety, guaranteeing that the food produced under entrustment complies with laws, regulations, and food safety standards.

The retention period for inspection records and product samples shall be not less than six months after the expiry date of the product's shelf life; where there is no definite shelf life, the retention period shall be not less than two years.

Article 17 If the entrusting party or the entrusted party discovers that the food produced under entrustment does not comply with food safety standards or there is evidence proving it may harm human health, it shall immediately notify the other party to stop production and operation activities.

The entrusting party shall lawfully recall food that has been marketed, notify relevant operators and consumers, and record the recall and notification situation. The entrusted party shall cooperate with the entrusting party in implementing the recall.

Article 18 Both entrusting and entrusted parties shall accept and cooperate with the supervision and administration of food entrustment production by market supervision and administration departments.

Article 19 Market supervision and administration departments shall include checks on entrustment production in their daily supervision and inspections, record the inspection results, and keep them on file for reference. The inspection content includes the following key matters:

(1) The qualifications of both entrusting and entrusted parties;

(2) The entrustment production contract, entrustment period, food varieties entrusted for production, applicable standards, and the implementation of the entrustment production reporting system;

(3) The establishment of food safety management systems and the assignment of food safety management personnel by both entrusting and entrusted parties;

(4) The supervision by the entrusting party over the production activities of the entrusted party;

(5) The implementation of food safety self-inspections by the entrusting party;

(6) The labeling of food produced under entrustment;

(7) The inspection records and product samples of food produced under entrustment;

(8) Other matters requiring key inspection as stipulated by the Measures for the Supervision and Inspection of Food Production and Operation.

Article 20 Market supervision and administration departments across regions shall strengthen information sharing and law enforcement collaboration in daily supervision, case investigation, and other work to jointly prevent food safety risks in entrustment production.

When a local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level discovers clues to illegal activities in entrustment production, it shall handle them according to law. If the production and operation premises of the entrusting party or the entrusted party are not within its jurisdiction, it shall also promptly notify the market supervision and administration department at the same level at the location of those premises about the illegal clues. The notified market supervision and administration department shall carry out verification according to law, promptly control food safety risks, and deal with the illegal activities of the entrusting party or the entrusted party according to law.

Article 21 Local market supervision and administration departments at or above the county level shall record the results of daily supervision and inspections of both entrusting and entrusted parties, the investigation and handling of illegal activities, and other information into the food safety credit archives.

Article 22 Where the entrusting party violates the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 3 of these Measures, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall order it to make corrections within a specified time limit; if corrections are not made within the time limit or the circumstances are serious, a fine of not less than 30,000 yuan but not more than 100,000 yuan shall be imposed.

Where the entrusted party violates the provisions of Article 4 of these Measures, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose penalties in accordance with the provisions of Article 49 and the third paragraph of Article 53 of the Measures for the Administration of Food Production Licensing.

Article 23 In any of the following circumstances, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall order corrections and impose a fine of not more than 50,000 yuan:

(1) The entrusting party violates the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 3 of these Measures by entrusting partial production processes for food that requires a complete production process;

(2) The entrusting party, knowing that the entrusted party does not possess the production capacity and food safety assurance capability stipulated in Article 4 of these Measures, still entrusts production;

(3) The entrusting party or the entrusted party violates the provisions of Article 8 of these Measures by failing to inspect the other party's qualification certificates according to law and keep records, or the record retention period does not comply with regulations;

(4) The entrusting party or the entrusted party violates the provisions of the fourth paragraph of Article 9 of these Measures by reducing or exempting itself from the food safety responsibilities it should legally bear through concluding an entrustment production contract or under the guise of concluding a trademark licensing contract, franchising contract, etc.;

(5) The entrusting party violates the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 11 of these Measures by refusing, obstructing, or interfering with the entrusted party's legal fulfillment of the obligation to inspect and record incoming goods.

Article 24 In any of the following circumstances, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose penalties in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 126 of the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China:

(1) The entrusting party violates the provisions of Article 5 of these Measures by failing to establish a food safety management system or failing to assign food safety management personnel;

(2) The entrusting party violates the provisions of Article 15 of these Measures by failing to regularly inspect and evaluate the safety status of food produced under entrustment;

(3) The entrusting party or the entrusted party violates the provisions of the first or second paragraph of Article 16 of these Measures by failing to fulfill the corresponding inspection obligations.

Article 25 Where the entrusting party or the entrusted party violates the provisions of Article 10 of these Measures by failing to fulfill the reporting obligation according to law, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall order corrections and give a warning; if corrections are refused, a fine of not less than 2,000 yuan but not more than 10,000 yuan shall be imposed.

Where false information is provided when reporting, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose a fine of not less than 5,000 yuan but not more than 30,000 yuan.

Article 26 Where the entrusting party or the entrusted party violates the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 11 of these Measures by providing food raw materials, food additives, or packaging materials in direct contact with food that do not comply with food safety standards, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose penalties on the entrusting party or the entrusted party in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph of Article 125 of the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China.

Article 27 Where the label of prepackaged food produced under entrustment does not comply with the provisions of Article 13 of these Measures, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose penalties on both entrusting and entrusted parties in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Labeling.

Article 28 Where food produced under entrustment does not comply with laws, regulations, or food safety standards, the local market supervision and administration department at or above the county level shall impose penalties on both entrusting and entrusted parties in accordance with the provisions of relevant laws and regulations.

When a market supervision and administration department imposes penalties on the entrusting party or the entrusted party in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph, and any of the following circumstances exist, heavier penalties shall be imposed according to law:

(1) The entrusting party incites, compels, or covertly compels the entrusted party to conduct food production activities in violation of laws, regulations, or food safety standards;

(2) The entrusting party fails to supervise the production activities of the entrusted party according to the provisions of these Measures;

(3) The entrusted party, knowing that the food entrusted for production does not comply with laws, regulations, or food safety standards, still accepts the entrustment for production;

(4) The entrusted party evades supervision by the entrusting party conducted according to the provisions of these Measures;

(5) Other circumstances where heavier penalties should be imposed according to law.

Article 29 Where laws, administrative regulations, departmental rules, and relevant state provisions have stipulations regarding the production or processing of special foods, those stipulations shall prevail.

For entrustment production within the territory of the People's Republic of China of food intended solely for export, and for overseas enterprises entrusting domestic food producers to produce food, the relevant provisions of the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China and its implementation regulations concerning food import and export shall apply.

Article 30 These Measures shall be effective as of December 1, 2026.

Interpretation

Recently, the State Administration for Market Regulation formulated and issued the Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Entrustment Production, aiming to further consolidate the responsibilities of both entrusting and entrusted parties, standardize food entrustment production activities, and focus on preventing food safety risks.

Clearly defining the scope of entrustment production. Food entrustment production is defined as the activity where the entrusted party, according to the requirements of the entrusting party, engages in all or part of the production processes of food and delivers the produced food. Production activities such as trademark licensing, franchising, processing with supplied materials, and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) production are all brought within the scope of supervision.

Specifying qualification requirements for both parties. It stipulates that the entrusting party must obtain a food production and operation license or complete the filing for only selling prepackaged food, must possess the capability to supervise the production activities of the entrusted party, and must be able to normally fulfill its primary responsibility for food safety. Market entities lacking the stipulated qualifications and capabilities may not entrust production. The entrusted party must obtain a food production license for the corresponding category according to law and possess corresponding production capacity and food safety assurance capability, and may not accept entrustment beyond the scope of its license or production capacity.

Detailing the responsibilities and obligations of both parties. It elaborates on the food safety responsibilities of both entrusting and entrusted parties regarding qualification inspection, raw material inspection, labeling, food safety self-inspection, inspection and sample retention, recall, etc. It requires the entrusting party to establish a food safety management system, assign food safety management personnel, and supervise the entrusted party; the entrusted party is responsible for its production activities and accepts supervision from the entrusting party.

Standardizing entrustment production contracts. It explicitly stipulates the food safety-related content that contracts should contain and prohibits both parties from reducing or exempting themselves from the food safety responsibilities they should legally bear through concluding an entrustment production contract or under the guise of concluding a trademark licensing contract, franchising contract, etc.

Establishing a food entrustment production reporting system. It requires both entrusting and entrusted parties to report to the county-level market supervision department at their respective locations within ten working days after concluding the entrustment production contract, specifies the content of the report, and also requires reporting within ten working days if the report content changes or the contract is terminated.

Strengthening territorial supervision. It requires the local market supervision departments of both entrusting and entrusted parties to promptly incorporate entrustment production activities into daily supervision, carry out supervision and inspection of entrustment production activities, and conduct supervision and sampling inspection of related products. If the two parties are not in the same region, the party discovering a problem should promptly notify the market supervision department at the same level in the other party's location to ensure coordinated, linked, and blind-spot-free supervision.

Increasing supervision and law enforcement efforts. It sets corresponding penalties for acts such as failure of either party to meet qualification requirements, failure to fulfill reporting and inspection obligations for entrusted production food, providing false information when reporting, violations of regulations in entrustment production activities, and non-compliance of entrusted production products. It requires that when investigating and handling related food safety violation cases, authorities should "trace back" whether the entrusting party or the entrusted party had subjective malice and other circumstances, and treat these as aggravating circumstances for severe punishment.