The New Zealand government is hoping for a stronger alignment of food safety approaches with China after a visit by officials from the China Food and Drug Administration.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew said after meeting the five officials on Thursday that the countries were strengthening their understanding of each other's food safety systems.

The CFDA officials are in New Zealand on the last leg of a 10-week scholarship program during which they are interning at quality and research organizations to see "New Zealand's food safety systems at work", Goodhew said in a statement.