Investigations into China's cold-chain sector has led to several managers, officials and business owners being punished for failing to meet Covid-19 prevention standards, the country's corruption watchdog said in a notice.

The Beijing branch of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) accused several people involved in the cold storage business of management and supervisory failures when it came to controlling Covid-19.

It accused one manager in an industrial park in southwest Beijing of “poor leadership and non-standard management that led to the spread of the epidemic”, Reuters reported.

Several officials have been expelled from the Communist Party and could face further criminal punishment, according to a notice published by the CCDI.