Beijing, Dec 28 (IANS): The Beijing municipal government will soon introduce a strict law, as well as an accountability system, to ensure food safety in the city.

Food producers or vendors will be banned from the sector for life if they are found to produce or sell unsafe food, according to a municipal food safety regulation that was passed Thursday at a session of the Standing Committee of the 13th Beijing Municipal People's Congress.

The regulation, effective from April 1, 2013, states that those found to be responsible for food safety problems, as well as the executives of companies that commit food safety violations, will not be allowed to operate in the industry for five years after their firms' licences are revoked, reported Xinhua.

The regulation also bans the use of discarded oil or fat to process cooking oil, as well as the use of such oil as raw material to make food.

The use of "gutter oil", or cooking oil that is created by reprocessing used oil, is a chronic problem in China.

Beijing's tough rules on food safety came shortly after Shanghai announced Wednesday that it would blacklist firms that flout food safety laws.