Xiamen in East China's Fujian province launched "mobile canteens" in order to allow workers to dine in safety and curb the spread of novel coronavirus pneumonia as people return to work, according to local media reports on Feb 6.

The idea of "mobile canteens" was put forward by the Xiamen Municipal Bureau of Commerce, which offers online food delivery services for enterprises. The service will make it easier for workers to avoid crowded areas.

"Mobile canteens are a response to the novel coronavirus outbreak. They will not only offer a convenient and safe dining experience to employees, but also help dining enterprises deal with challenges posed by the epidemic," according to Chen Yuejin, deputy director of the Xiamen Municipal Bureau of Commerce.

Dining suppliers must operate in strict accordance with epidemic prevention and control standards and increase efforts to ensure food supply and safety.

Catering enterprises must follow standard protective measures to strengthen coronavirus prevention and control, according to a person in charge of the dining association of Xiamen.

With people gradually returning to work in Xiamen, the "mobile canteens" are expected to receive more orders, and the dining association will gather more high-quality catering enterprises with the aim of offering more customized services.