New China import rules bring headaches for food and beverage makers
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[December 13, 2021] By
Dominique Patton and Siddharth Cavale
BEIJING (Reuters) - Makers of Irish
whiskey, Belgian chocolate and European coffee brands are scrambling to
comply with new Chinese food and beverage regulations, with many fearful
their goods will be unable to enter the giant market as a Jan. 1
deadline looms.
China's customs authority published new food safety rules in April
stipulating all food manufacturing, processing and storage facilities
abroad need to be registered by year-end for their goods to access the
Chinese market.
But detailed procedures explaining how to get the required registration
codes were only issued in October, while a website for companies allowed
to self-register went online last month.
"We're heading for major disruptions after Jan. 1," said a Beijing-based
diplomat from a European country who is assisting food producers with
the new measures.
China's food imports have surged in recent years amid growing demand
from a huge middle class. They were worth $89 billion in 2019, according
to a report by the United States Department of Agriculture, making China
the world's sixth largest food importer.

China has tried to implement new rules covering food imports for years,
triggering opposition from exporters. The General Administration of
Customs of China(GACC), overseeing the latest iteration of the rules,
has provided little explanation for why all foods, even those considered
low-risk such as wine, flour and olive oil are covered by the
requirements.
Experts say it is an effort to better oversee the large volumes of food
arriving at Chinese ports, and place responsibility for food safety with
manufacturers rather than the government.
GACC did not reply to a fax seeking comment on the rollout of the rules
and why it has not given food producers more time to prepare.
The European Union has sent four letters to Customs this year requesting
more clarity and more time for implementation, said Damien Plan,
agriculture counsellor at the European Union Delegation in Beijing.
Last week, GACC agreed that implementation should only apply to goods
produced on or after Jan. 1, effectively granting a delay for products
already shipped, said the European diplomat, though it has not yet
published an official notification.
Still, several diplomats and exporters said they saw the rules as a
trade barrier for overseas products.
"We have never had anything this draconian out of China," said Andy
Anderson, executive director of the Western United States Agricultural
Trade Association (WUSATA), a trade group that promotes U.S. food
exports.
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Lines of trucks are seen at a container terminal of Ningbo Zhoushan
port in Zhejiang province, China, August 15, 2021. cnsphoto via
REUTERS

He described the rules as a "non-tarriff trade barrier".
Food, especially chilled and frozen food, has already faced severe delays
clearing Customs in China in the last year due to coronavirus testing and
disinfection measures.
Foods including unroasted coffee beans, cooking oil, milled grains and nuts are
among 14 new categories deemed high risk that were required to be registered by
the end of October by food authorities of the exporting countries.
Facilities making low-risk foods can register themselves on a website that
launched in November but has not always worked.
"The Chinese system is working now but the English one is on a trial version,"
said Li Xiang, business development manager at Chemical Inspection and
Regulation Services Ltd (CIRS) Europe, which is helping companies with the
registration process.
The rules only apply to facilities making finished products to be exported to
China, but it provides little flexibility to change sourcing or labels.
Some U.S. spirits companies have registered but are still unclear on labelling
requirements, said Robert Maron, VP International Trade at the Distilled Spirits
Council of the United States.
"There is not a lot of time to understand what the requirements are and I think
that is the main concern from our membership," he said.
No Irish whiskey makers assisted by CIRS Ireland have been able to register so
far, said Li.
It is not clear what will happen if goods arrive without the required
registration codes stuck onto packaging.

"For the moment, the information we got from (Chinese) authorities is that there
won't be a grace period," he added.
(Reporting by Dominique Patton in Beijing and Siddharth Cavale in Bengaluru.
Additional reporting by Julie Ingwersen in Chicago and Francesca Landini in
Milan. Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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