Six Chinese people, including two children, died from food poisoning after eating dumpling soup and two more remained seriously ill, local media reported yesterday, the latest example of food safety risks facing domestic consumers. Four males and four females collapsed on Sunday with severe cramps and vomiting after eating the soup for lunch in the central province of Hubei, the Changjiang Times reported. Two died on the spot.

The dead included a 13-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy, the report said. It said the poisoning occurred at a scrap collection business but did not given any details of the cause, which officials were investigating. In Hefei, capital of the neighbouring province of Anhui, 74 people were taken to hospital on the day before after a birthday banquet, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.

?The patients suffered vomiting, twitching and diarrhoea,? Xinhua quoted the provincial health bureau as saying.

Samples of food had been collected for investigation and preliminary analysis showed the poisoning was caused by ?nitrite?, it said without explanation.

China is also in the middle of a nationwide campaign to improve food and product safety after a string of international scares that have tainted its export reputation.