(Yicai Global) July 19 -- Shanghai’s market regulator launched a surprise inspection campaign and summoned executives at Wallace Burger & Chicken after a vlogger exposed appalling food safety issues at the fast-growing restaurant chain, billed as "China's KFC."

The local arm of the State Administration for Market Regulation checked more than 170 stores and distribution centers of Wallace on July 17, but found no serious food safety problems as suggested by the videos, the SAMR said in a statement on its WeChat yesterday.

However, three eateries will be fined as the regulator discovered that their daily monitoring was insufficient and some of their employees lacked medical qualifications.

Food safety became a trending topic on Weibo on July 17 after an undercover vlogger shared a video to show how staff at a Wallace outlet in Beijing prepared food without wearing face masks or gloves. They had even served customers fried chicken that had previously dropped on the floor.

The video clip indicated that Wallace is a best-selling fried chicken brand online. Daily sales at the specific outlet were suggested to be about CNY26,000 (USD4,025).

Wallace reacted quickly. The Fujian province-based firm said on July 17 on Weibo that the firm has closed the involved restaurant to rectify. The company promised to strengthen staff training in this district and firmly comply with relevant regulations.

Founded in 2009, Wallace has more than 10,000 food outlets nationwide. Its net profit jumped 69 percent to CNY92.1 million (USD14.2 million) in 2020 from a year ago, according to its earnings report. Revenue climbed 37 percent to CNY3.5 billion (USD539.9 million).

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi