Beijing steps up food safety enforcement, police say

Beijing police stepped up efforts to combat food safety crimes in 2025, solving more than 130 cases and detaining over 280 suspects, the city's Public Security Bureau said on Monday.

Xie Chenjie, a senior bureau official, said at a press conference that police across the capital focused on protecting food and drug safety throughout the year, with intensified testing and regular crackdowns targeting key consumer goods, including meat, eggs, dairy products, grains, cooking oils and beverages.

Inspections were strengthened in high-risk areas such as meat markets, school campuses and rural fairs, Xie said.

"In February 2025, working with police from other provinces, we dismantled a criminal gang involved in selling counterfeit branded chicken wings, shutting down 39 sales and storage sites," he said.

Xie also highlighted efforts to protect medical insurance funds, noting a crackdown on fraud schemes such as fabricating medical conditions to overprescribe or falsely prescribe drugs for illegal resale, as well as the unauthorized resale of medicines covered by medical insurance. In 2025, Beijing police detained 260 suspects in cases involving medical insurance fraud, he said.

Authorities also intensified action against intellectual property violations and environmental crimes. Police targeted more than 20 types of infringement and counterfeiting offenses affecting daily life, including those involving clothing, digital products, auto parts and children's goods, detaining more than 800 suspects over the year, Xie said.

In July 2025, Beijing police cracked a case involving illegal fishing in the Miyun Reservoir, detaining 54 suspects and seizing more than 280 pieces of fishing equipment, he added.