Fourteen people were hospitalized after eating contaminated food in northwest China's Shaanxi province on Thursday, local authorities said on Friday.

The student at a nearby university was hospitalized after eating contaminated food in Shaanxi province on Thursday.[Photo/HSW.cn]

The victims began to show signs of food poisoning around 10:35 a.m. Thursday after eating food purchased from a street vendor in the Chang'an district of the provincial capital of Xi'an, according to district government officials.

An initial investigation showed that the victims, mainly migrant workers and students at a nearby university, are suffering from nitrite poisoning. They are being treated at the Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital and are in stable condition, officials said.

Police have questioned the street vendor who sold the food to the victims, as well as the owners of a nearby meat store and grain store.