Customs Education | Understanding the Export Policy for Prepackaged Food via Market Procurement Trade

 

 

I. Definitions of Market Procurement Trade and Prepackaged Food

Market procurement trade is a trade mode where goods are purchased in designated market aggregation zones, and export customs clearance procedures are conducted by qualified operators. Prepackaged food refers to the food prepackaged or prepared in packaging materials and containers.

II. Applicable Scenarios for the Pilot "Export of Prepackaged Food via Market Procurement Trade"

Currently, various customs offices may engage in the export of prepackaged food through the market procurement trade mode, provided the conditions of "manageable risks, traceable origins, and accountability" are met. For instance, Hangzhou Customs implements three lists management of "importing nations or regions", "food categories", and "filed enterprises" on the basis of foreign market quality safety control requirements and food risk monitoring, with real-time dynamic adjustment.

Scope of implementation:

Prepackaged foods such as confections and chocolate products, pastries and cookies, seasonings, beverages (excluding drinking water), alcoholic drinks, canned fruits, noodles (without meat ingredients), honey, roasted nuts (cooked), tea (excluding Morocco), preserves, dairy beverages (excluding Singapore), soybean and grain products (excluding those with meat ingredients, and excluding Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and countries in the Eurasian Economic Union, Balkan countries, and Mexico), puffed foods, starch products (not made from rice and flour), instant cereal products, and jams and fruit syrup from legitimate manufacturing enterprises.

Foreign trade operators engaged in market procurement trade should apply to local commerce departments via the information platform. Upon review and approval by commerce departments, they become filed enterprises (hereinafter referred to as "filed enterprises") for market procurement and export of prepackaged foods and compile a directory of these filed enterprises on the platform.

III. Process for "Exporting Prepackaged Food under the Market Procurement Trade Mode" and "One Code" Application

Under the current process, export prepackaged food information declared by filed enterprises via the information platform, which includes details on legal manufacturers, product data, and trade information, is imported into the customs system for official declaration after it has been verified by the commerce department's information platform to meet the positive list requirements. Customs conducts inspection and quarantine according to system instructions, issuing an electronic original account for compliant batches, while non-compliant batches are issued a Notice of Nonconformity Handling to prevent their export. On this basis, Hangzhou Customs and local commerce department have strengthened cooperation to create a traceable QR code for batches of goods processed on the platform. Filed enterprises can print these QR codes and affix them to the outer packaging of export foods, enabling the traceability of actual products.

IV. Advantages of "Exporting Prepackaged Food under the Market Procurement Trade Mode"

The pilot project of exporting prepackaged food through market procurement trade is not only a reform measure aimed at reducing food safety risks through scientific supervision but is also an essential initiative to promote the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, enhance cooperation and exchanges between China and Central and Eastern Europe, and further deepen the comprehensive international trade reform trials.

Unlike traditional general trade, the market procurement trade mode determines that the exported foods originate from recognized market clusters, with inspection and supervision conducted at the procurement location, breaking the conventional territorial management requirement. Operators involved in market procurement do not need to return to the original production site of each food type for separate declarations; instead, they can resolve these issues through a "one-stop" process at the assembly point, accomplishing one-time declaration and inspection for multiple types and origins of prepackaged food.

 

 

---

Disclaimer：The above content is translated from Chinese version of this website. The Chinese version shall prevail.