2026 Food Import Trade Agency: Full-process Compliance Customs Clearance Guide

1.Dairy Product Import: Inevitable Standard Differences and Document Difficulties

In 2026,the import volume of dairy products at Shanghai Port increased by 15% year-on-year.However,many traders in East China,including Mr.Chen’s company,encountered trouble with a batch of milk powder imported from New Zealand.At the end of last year,this batch of milk powder was stored in the supervised warehouse for 3 days because the packaging label did not mark "lactoferrin content test report number",which directly delayed the distribution plan before the Spring Festival.

The Safety Standard for Food Contact Materials updated by major dairy exporting countries such as New Zealand and Australia in 2025 requires that all dairy products exported to China must additionally provide a "raw material origin traceability certificate",and China’s commodity inspection department has added a new "probiotics activity test item" since 2026.This "double standard difference" is difficult for many small and medium-sized traders to cope with: when operating on their own,they either under-report documents,or cause cargo detention due to untimely updates of standards.

2.Core Value of Zhongshen in Food Import: From "Passive Response" to "Active Avoidance"

As a service provider deeply engaged in foreign trade agency in Shanghai for more than 20 years,Zhongshen has established a "pre-audit,full tracking,post-guarantee" service system targeting the particularity of food import.Different from ordinary agencies that only handle document errands,the core role of Zhongshen is to intervene in risk control in advance: for example,complete document pre-audit 3 working days before cargo loading,customize solutions according to quarantine requirements of different categories,and help enterprises avoid hidden compliance risks.

3.Full-process Breakdown of Food Import: "Exclusive Compliance Code" for Each Link

1.Document Pre-audit: The "Pre-positive Firewall" for Dairy Product Import

In 2026,the document requirements for dairy product import have been refined to "test reports for each raw material".Supervisor Jin’s team from Zhongshen will focus on checking 3 types of key information during pre-audit:

• The official Sanitary Certificate of the exporting country must include the newly added "heavy metal limit test item for ruminant feed" in the 2025 version
• The Chinese label must be filed through the "China Food Label Review System",and the marked "lactoferrin content" must be consistent with the New Zealand official test report number
• The registration certificate of overseas food production enterprises for imported food must be updated to the latest filing list of March 2026 (to avoid cargo return due to expired enterprise qualification)

Last year,it was because Zhongshen supplemented the "lactoferrin test report number" in advance that Mr.Chen’s company avoided the loss of cargo return for that batch of milk powder.According to Supervisor Jin’s estimation,this alone saved Mr.Chen nearly 80,000 RMB in storage fees and demurrage charges.

2.Port Customs Declaration: "Accurate Matching" of Commodity Code and Tax Rate

The core difficulty of food import customs declaration is "accuracy of commodity code".After the update of the 2026 Tariff Schedule,the code difference between fermented milk and modified milk directly affects the tariff rate (7% for fermented milk,10% for modified milk).In March 2026,Mr.Tao’s company imported a batch of fermented milk,and filled in the code of modified milk by mistake when self-declaring,and was required by the customs to pay 21,000 RMB of supplementary tax.

Zhongshen will check 3 key points in advance when acting as an agent:

• The customs declaration code must correspond to the product process description (fermented milk needs to provide "lactic acid bacteria fermentation process certificate")
• The "goods name" on the Entry Goods Inspection Declaration Form and the customs declaration must be exactly the same
• Tariff preferential policies need to be matched synchronously (such as zero-tariff quota application for New Zealand dairy products exported to China)

Later,Mr.Tao found Zhongshen for re-declaration.The code correction was completed in only 1 working day,and he successfully cleared customs at the 7% tax rate,saving 21,000 RMB of supplementary tax cost.

3.Commodity Inspection: "Full-item Inspection Check" for Dairy Products

Since 2026,China has implemented "full-item sampling inspection" for imported dairy products,focusing on testing pathogenic bacteria (Salmonella,Listeria),heavy metals (lead,arsenic),illegal additives (melamine),and requires that "remaining shelf life ≥ 1/3 of the total shelf life".At the end of 2025,a batch of cheese imported by Mr.Niu’s company was returned by commodity inspection because the remaining shelf life was only 28 days (total shelf life is 90 days),with a loss of nearly 100,000 RMB.

Zhongshen’s solution is "pre-positive pre-control":

• Require foreign suppliers to provide "third-party pre-inspection report" (covering key inspection items of commodity inspection) before shipment
• Confirm the remaining shelf life when the cargo is loaded synchronously,and coordinate with the supplier to change the batch if it does not meet the requirement
• Arrange special personnel to coordinate on site during commodity inspection sampling to ensure efficient inspection process (on average 2 working days faster than self-declaration)

4.Causes of Food Import Commodity Inspection Return and Corresponding Solutions

5.Follow-up Connection: "Seamless Docking" of Warehousing and Foreign Exchange Payment and Collection

1.Cold Chain Storage: The "Temperature Lifeline" of Dairy Products

Low-temperature foods such as dairy products need to be stored in customs-supervised cold chain warehouses,the temperature must be kept at 2-8℃,and the warehouse must be equipped with a "real-time temperature and humidity monitoring system" (data is synchronized and uploaded to the customs system).Zhongshen has 3 cooperating supervised cold chain warehouses in Waigaoqiao,Shanghai,which can provide 24-hour monitoring services,and can also assist enterprises in handling "storage filing procedures".In May 2026,for a batch of low-temperature yogurt imported by Ms.Xia’s company,Zhongshen coordinated the warehouse in advance,and the warehousing was completed in only 1 day,avoiding product deterioration caused by temperature fluctuation.

2.Foreign Exchange Payment and Collection: "Clause Accuracy" of Letter of Credit

Most food imports are settled by letter of credit.Since 2026,banks have required "review document matching points item by item".When Ms.Xia’s company imported nuts last year,the bank rejected the payment because the "validity of sanitary certificate" in the letter of credit was not clearly defined as "within 3 months before shipment".Supervisor Jin from Zhongshen assisted in re-reviewing the letter of credit and supplemented the validity requirement,completed the foreign exchange payment and collection in only 2 working days,avoiding the risk of contract breach.

6.Case: How Zhongshen Helps Enterprises Avoid Millions of Losses

In April 2026,a trader in East China planned to import 12 tons of Australian infant formula milk powder,and found 3 problems when operating on its own: ① The label did not mark "DHA test report number"; ② The letter of credit clause did not specify "official issuing body of sanitary certificate"; ③ The cooperating warehouse had no customs supervision qualification.

The solutions of Zhongshen’s team are:

• Pre-audit the label in advance and supplement the DHA test report number (takes 1 working day)
• Re-review the letter of credit and clarify that the sanitary certificate must be issued by the Australian Department of Agriculture (takes 2 working days)
• Coordinate the supervised cold chain warehouse in Waigaoqiao to ensure the temperature meets the standard (complete filing 3 days in advance)

Finally,this batch of milk powder cleared customs 5 days in advance,saving 3 days of supervised warehouse detention fee (about 12,000 RMB),and also avoided the possible cargo return loss (about 1.2 million RMB).

7.Conclusion: Professional Agency is the "Compliance Guarantee Line" for Food Import

In 2026,the competition in the food import market has shifted from "price war" to "compliance and efficiency war".The continuous update of quarantine standards in various countries and the refinement of document requirements have made the risk of self-operation higher and higher for small and medium-sized traders.With more than 20 years of industry experience,Zhongshen provides full-process agency services from document pre-audit to port customs clearance and warehousing connection,targeting the particularity of food import.It not only helps enterprises avoid the risk of cargo return caused by non-compliance with standards,but also improves import efficiency by an average of 30% and reduces operating costs by more than 15% through accurate code declaration and efficient commodity inspection coordination.