March 14 (Bloomberg) -- Beijing will distribute a booklet on spitting to try to stamp out the habit, and complete a rating of restaurants this year to improve food standards for the Olympics.

The city government identified 45 potential public health outbreaks such as bird flu and the spread of waterborne or intestinal diseases, which might disrupt the Summer Games and Paralympics in 2008, Jin Dapeng, director of the Beijing Public Health Bureau, said at a regular briefing today. About 35,000 restaurants will be rated from ``A'' to ``D,'' based on how well these outlets meet food safety standards, he said.

The city government last month started a campaign to promote manners ahead of the 2008 Olympic Games by introducing monthly ``queuing days'' to encourage people to stand in line, and raising the number of covered bins for disposing of spit. The booklet and queuing day, set for the 11th of every month, are part of a wider plan to improve etiquette in time for the 17-day sports event.

``Very soon, you'll see action and moves to prevent and forbid spitting,'' Jin said. ``Spitting is just uncivilized and it endangers public health.''

Spitting has become less common in China in the past decade because of growing concerns about health.

The Chinese capital will tighten enforcement of the 50 yuan ($6.45) maximum fine for littering and spitting in public places, as well as starting a campaign to educate citizens on using tissues to dispose of spit in covered bins, Zhang Huiguang, head of Beijing's Capital Ethic Development Office, said last month. The government will place more bins around the city, she said.

The city wants to step up education to explain the causes and harmful effects of spitting, Jin said. The city had previous success in programs to get residents to wash their hands and avoid spitting in public places during the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, he said.

Manners are already improving, according to the bureau's index on ``civilized behavior,'' run by Renmin University. The index increased to 69.06 percent last year from 65.21 percent in 2005 as people spit and littered less, Zhang said.

Beijing also wants to create no-smoking zones in the city, including Olympic venues during the Games, Jin said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Wing-Gar Cheng in Beijing at wgcheng@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: March 14, 2007 06:45 EDT