BEIJING -- China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) announced on Thursday that it has launched an investigation into imports of Indian tert-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ).

MOC has received requests from domestic TBHQ producers, accusing Indian manufacturers of dumping the product on the Chinese market and calling for an inquiry.

The ministry will consider whether Indian companies have sold TBHQ at an artificially low price in China and any consequences that the action may have brought to Chinese businesses.

The investigation is expected to take at least a year, and may be extended to February 2015.

TBHQ is an aromatic organic compound widely used in the food industry as antioxidation for vegetable oil, many edible animal fats, roasted food, fried food and other meat products. It is also used as a stabilizer for insecticide, as well as an intermediate for dyes and pharmaceuticals.