More than 300 employees of a pipe manufacturing company are suspected victims of food poisoning in an east China city Wednesday, local authorities said.

The 300 employees of Seamless Oil Pipe Company Ltd. in Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province asked for leave Wednesday morning and the company found the employees had begun going to hospital late Tuesday, said an official with the municipal health bureau.

As of Wednesday afternoon, most people had gone to work or gone home while 20 were still in hospital for further medical observation, the official said.

The initial investigation showed that the unsanitary conditions in the company's canteen caused the suspected food poisoning, the official said.

The medical fees would all paid by the company and further investigation is underway, the official said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 10, 2009)