Shanghai, Sep 22 (IANS): The parent company of Shanghai Husi Food Co. Ltd. has announced it will sack 340 employees of the firm following an expose that it used expired meat.

In a statement posted on its website Monday, OSI China said a staff severance plan has been approved by the Shanghai government and local trade union, Xinhua reported.

Among the employees to be sacked were 226 directly employed by Husi, while the rest were hired via outsourcing contracts. The employees, most of whom are already on paid vacations, have been informed of the plan, according to the statement.

In addition to severance payment, OSI China said it would work with the local government to provide career advice and training for those laid off.

The Husi scandal came to light July 20, when a local TV station reported that the firm had supplied products tainted with reprocessed, expired meat to a host of fast food chains and restaurants across China, including McDonald's and KFC.

Six senior Husi executives have been formally arrested on charges of producing and selling spurious products.