BEIJING — China's food industry continued robust growth in terms of production and sales in the first quarter of the year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) showed.

The industrial added value of major food manufacturers rose 17.4 percent year- on-year in the period, and that of agricultural byproduct processors climbed 15.2 percent year-on-year, according to the MIIT.

Retail sales in the industry registered fast growth in the first three months, with sales of grain, oil and food commodities up 10 percent year-on-year to 414.44 billion yuan (about $64.08 billion).

Retail sales in the beverage sector surged 35.7 percent year-on-year to 64.43 billion yuan, while sales in the tobacco and alcohol sector registered a 44.9 percent yearly increase to 121.32 billion yuan, MIIT data showed.