(Yicai Global) Nov. 21 -- Alibaba Group Holding has fired the general manager of the Shanghai branch of grocer Hema because one store has been caught selling expired vegetables despite the fact that the retail chain has a mobile application to trace the origins of the produce.

Hou Yi, Hema's founder and chief executive, posted an open apology on his Weibo social media account, saying that the store manager should bear the responsibility for the misconduct. The grocery chain has an app that allows clients to scan QR codes to find out where some of the food products are from.

A consumer saw a staff member updating labels of packaged carrots on Nov. 15 at the Hema Daning store in the northern district of Shanghai, which has prompted public doubt regarding food safety in the retailer's shops. Underneath the new tag, the consumer saw multiple others, leading to a date six days ago.

The shopper reported to the store manager who said that the shop attendant had printed these labels without permission. The consumer reported the incident to the Jing'an District Market Supervision in downtown Shanghai. The bureau said on Nov. 19 that it has started investigating the issue, which involves inspecting the store's each product label. 

All branches have started to self-inspect to improve their operating standards and Hema will recruit secret shoppers from consumers to supervise the service, Hou said. 

Alibaba kicked off the high-tech grocery chain this year, and it plans to open as many as 1,000 Hema supermarkets in the next five years, the Hangzhou-based tech firm said in a statement earlier. 

Editor: Emmi Laine