New Import rules of China bring inconvenience for Food and Beverage Makers

The latest import rules of China brought headache to the makers of Irish whiskey, Belgian chocolate and European coffee brands, they are now scrambling to comply with new Chinese food and beverage regulations, with lots of companies that are fearful their goods will be unable to enter the giant market of China as a Jan. 1 deadline materialize.

Customs Authority of China published new rules regarding food safety rules last April demanding all food manufacturing, processing and storage facilities abroad to be registered by year-end for their goods to access the Chinese market.

The problem is the detailed procedures explaining how to get the required registration codes were only issued last October, while the website registration for the companies just went online last month.

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, Reuters reported.

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