Adopted at the 197th Executive Meeting of the State Council on November 29, 2013
Promulgated by Order No. 645 of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China on December 7, 2013
Revised in accordance with the Decision of the State Council on Amending and Repealing Certain Administrative Regulations on March 1, 2016
Effective: December 7, 2013
Table of Contents
Chapter I — General Provisions
Article 1 — These Measures are formulated for the purpose of strengthening the administration of the salt industry, ensuring the effective implementation of the salt iodization program to eliminate iodine deficiency hazards, and protecting the health of the people.
Article 2 — All activities relating to the development, production, transportation, sale and storage of salt resources within the territory of the People’s Republic of China shall comply with these Measures.
Article 3 — The State shall implement monopoly administration over salt. The administrative department in charge of the salt industry under the State Council shall be in charge of the administration of the national salt industry. The administrative departments in charge of the salt industry under the local people’s governments at or above the county level shall be in charge of the administration of the salt industry within their respective administrative regions.
Article 4 — The State shall encourage the development of the salt industry, and shall support scientific research, technological transformation and the development of new products in the salt industry.
Chapter II — Salt Production
Article 5 — The State shall implement a fixed-point production system for salt. Enterprises engaged in salt production may not engage in production without approval.
Article 6 — The establishment of a salt production enterprise shall be subject to the examination and approval of the administrative department in charge of the salt industry under the people’s government at the provincial level and the issuance of a fixed-point production permit.
Article 7 — Salt production enterprises shall organize production in accordance with the State plan, strengthen enterprise management, improve labor productivity, reduce production costs, and ensure product quality.
Article 8 — The development of salt resources shall comply with the overall plan for the development of the salt industry and shall be subject to examination and approval in accordance with the law. Unauthorized development of salt resources is prohibited.
Article 9 — Salt production enterprises shall establish and improve the product quality testing system, and may not ship products that fail the quality inspection.
Chapter III — Salt Transportation and Marketing
Article 10 — The State shall implement a monopoly wholesale system for salt. Enterprises engaged in the monopoly wholesale of salt shall be subject to the examination and approval of the administrative department in charge of the salt industry and shall obtain a monopoly wholesale permit.
Article 11 — Salt monopoly wholesale enterprises shall purchase salt from designated salt production enterprises in accordance with the State plan, and shall wholesale salt within the designated marketing areas.
Article 12 — The retail of salt shall be conducted by units and individuals that have obtained retail licenses. Salt retail licensees must purchase salt from local salt monopoly wholesale enterprises.
Article 13 — The transportation of salt shall be accompanied by the salt transportation permit issued by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry. The transportation of salt without a salt transportation permit is prohibited.
Article 14 — Salt for industrial use shall be separately transported and stored in accordance with the relevant provisions of the State, and may not be diverted for use as edible salt or sold in the edible salt market.
Chapter IV — Iodized Salt and Salt Quality
Article 15 — Edible salt supplied to residents shall be iodized in accordance with the provisions of the State. The iodine content in iodized salt shall conform to the national standards.
Article 16 — The administrative department in charge of health under the State Council shall be responsible for determining the standard for the iodine content in iodized edible salt. The iodine content in iodized edible salt shall be tested and labeled before leaving the factory; products that fail the test may not leave the factory.
Article 17 — In areas where iodine deficiency is prevalent, iodized salt shall be supplied. In areas where the drinking water contains high iodine, non-iodized salt shall be supplied. Other edible salt may not be marketed in areas where iodized salt is supplied.
Article 18 — Edible salt shall comply with the national hygiene standards. The packaging of edible salt shall be marked with the salt type, net content, place of origin, date of production, shelf life, and the standard code.
Article 19 — Salt that fails the quality standards may not be marketed. It is prohibited to sell the following salt products in the edible salt market:
(1) liquid salt, including brine;
(2) industrial waste salt and waste liquid salt; and
(3) salt extracted from wells and mines by the water solution mining method or brine salt where the production process does not meet the hygiene requirements.
Chapter V — Legal Liability
Article 20 — Whoever, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, produces salt without authorization shall be ordered by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry to stop production, the salt products shall be confiscated, and a fine of not less than one time but not more than three times the value of the salt products illegally produced may be imposed.
Article 21 — Whoever, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, transports salt without a salt transportation permit shall be ordered by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry to stop the illegal act, the salt products illegally transported shall be confiscated, and a fine of not less than one time but not more than three times the value of the salt products illegally transported may be imposed.
Article 22 — Whoever, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, wholesales salt without authorization shall be ordered by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry to stop the wholesale business, the salt products shall be confiscated, and a fine of not less than one time but not more than three times the value of the salt products illegally wholesaled may be imposed.
Article 23 — Whoever, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, sells non-iodized salt in areas where iodized salt is supplied shall be ordered by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry to stop the sale, the illegally sold salt products and the illegal income shall be confiscated, and a fine may be imposed.
Article 24 — Whoever, in violation of the provisions of these Measures, sells salt that does not meet the national standards or hygiene standards as edible salt shall be punished by the administrative departments in charge of health, market supervision and administration, and other relevant departments in accordance with the law.
Article 25 — Where a staff member of the administrative department in charge of the salt industry abuses his or her powers, neglects his or her duties, or engages in malpractices for personal gain, he or she shall be given an administrative sanction in accordance with the law; where a crime is constituted, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law.
Chapter VI — Supplementary Provisions
Article 26 — For the purposes of these Measures:
(1) “salt” means edible salt and salt for industrial use; and
(2) “edible salt” means table salt, salt for food processing, and salt for animal husbandry and fishery use.
Article 27 — These Measures shall be subject to interpretation by the administrative department in charge of the salt industry under the State Council.
Article 28 — These Measures shall come into force as of December 7, 2013. The Regulations on the Administration of Salt promulgated by the State Council on May 27, 1996 shall be repealed simultaneously.
Disclaimer: This translation is provided for informational and reference purposes only. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, this is not an official translation and should not be relied upon as a legal document. For official purposes, please refer to the original Chinese text promulgated by the competent authorities of the People’s Republic of China. Dan Young Business Consultancy makes no warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, or currency of this translation and accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising from reliance on it.
