China has issued the 12th Five-Year Plan for its food industry, aiming to have output of 12 trillion yuan ($1.9 trillion) by 2015, the National Reform and Development Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in a joint statement.

During the previous 5-year period (2006-2010), China's food industry generated an output of 6.1 trillion yuan, accounting for 8.8 percent of the country's total industrial output during the same period.

To realize its output goal, the plan calls for a restructuring of the food industry. The plan sees food conglomerates as a major driving the force in the sector, accompanied by small and medium-sized enterprises.

Chinese officials say they are making stronger efforts to address China’s long-term food safety concerns amid rising public outcries that the country's food products can't be trusted.

Scandals in the food sector are a nerve-racking issue for the Chinese authorities; numerous measures to enforce standards have failed to have the desired effect, meaning food safety remains a major public concern.

Inefficient inspection methods -- an issue partly attributed to supervisory powers being shared between different government organs -- have been widely cited as a main cause.

According to the plan, China will raise the threshold for businesses in the food sector and establish a sound monitoring system for food safety in addition to a different mechanism that attributes food safety responsibilities to businesses involved.

Earlier this week, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said that China would not tolerate any move that sacrifices the health of the population to achieve profit-taking.