UPDATE 1-China state planner to increase food supplies to coronavirus-hit Hubei province

China's state planner said it has coordinated with state-owned agriculture conglomerates COFCO and Sinograin to increase the supply of meat, rice, flour, and edible oils to coronavirus-hit Hubei province and its capital Wuhan to ensure food security.

The coronavirus outbreak has killed over 630 people including the doctor who sounded the alarm regarding the disease. COFCO is sending more than 200 tonnes of rice, 50 tonnes of flour and noodles, and 300 tonnes of edible oils to Wuhan every day, China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a statement on Friday.

COFCO has also secured sufficient stocks of grains and edible oils in plants and warehouses in Hubei province and surrounding areas, according to NDRC. Sinograin has asked its soybean oil plants to resume production and secure supplies, the state planner said.

The state stockpiler has also prepared 280,000 tonnes of rice in inventories for a Sinograin plant in Hubei province -which has a population similar to Italy - for emergency processing and supplies. China will move 2,000 tonnes of frozen pork to state reserves in Wuhan, the NDRC said in a separate statement on WeChat.

The virus was discovered in Wuhan at the end of 2019.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)