NANNING - Eighty-three people in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region are believed to be suffering from food poisoning, local authorities said Monday.

Three of the sickened people remain in hospital as of Monday night, although their condition is not critical, the Xiangzhou county authorities said.

The victims reported suffering from tightness in their chests and diarrhea after eating rice noodles at restaurants or at homes in the county, the authorities said.

An investigation revealed that the noodles in question were produced by Dingjuying Rice Noodle Factory, which produced 660 kg of rice noodles on Monday and sold 645 kg to townships and the county seat.

The county's food safety supervision authorities have recalled more than 400 kg of the noodles for further investigation.