Full Analysis of 2026 Imported Food Customs Clearance Process and Compliance Operations

2026 Imported Food Market Environment and Customs Clearance Challenges

Entering 2026,domestic consumers’ demand for high-quality imported food still maintains a strong growth trend,especially red wine and dairy products from Europe,as well as tropical fruits from Southeast Asia,whose sales in major supermarkets and e-commerce platforms have repeatedly hit new highs.However,behind the market prosperity,importers are facing increasing customs clearance pressure year by year.The General Administration of Customs has continuously tightened the requirements for "registration management of overseas production enterprises of imported food",and the review standards for Chinese labels are also increasingly refined.Many enterprises lacking practical experience often encounter cargo detention at ports due to inconsistency between the information on the certificate of origin and the declaration elements,wrong format of the nutrition fact table on the Chinese label,or failure to provide the official health certificate in time,which not only incurs high container detention fees and port charges,but also faces severe risks of cargo return or destruction.Under such a strict regulatory environment,traditional logistics transportation alone can no longer meet the demand,and professional import agency services have become the key to ensuring a smooth supply chain.

Core Functions of Zhongshen in Food Import Agency

As a professional foreign trade import and export agency company with more than 20 years of deep experience in the industry,Zhongshen is well aware of the particularity and complexity of food import.We are not only cargo transporters,but also gatekeepers for enterprises to import in compliance.In the process of food import,Zhongshen’s core role is reflected in the accurate interpretation of policies and regulations and the control of the whole process.We take advantage of Shanghai’s location as a major import port,combined with our own professional operation team,to provide customers with closed-loop services from the foreign shipping end to the domestic sales end.For food products,we have specially strengthened the links of "document pre-review" and "compliance consultation" to eliminate potential regulatory risks before the cargo arrives at the port.At the same time,we have integrated core functions such as international transportation,warehouse management,foreign exchange payment and import tax rebate to ensure that while customers enjoy efficient customs clearance,their capital flow and logistics can also be optimally configured,truly realizing a full-process,one-stop worry-free agency experience.

Disassembly of Compliance Operations for the Whole Process of Imported Food

Food import involves supervision by multiple departments such as customs,commodity inspection and health authorities,and the process is closely linked.Zhongshen disassembles this complex process into standardized operation stages to ensure that each node complies with the latest 2026 regulatory requirements.

Stage 1: Document Pre-review and Label Filing

This is the link where problems are most likely to occur in food import,and it is also the part where Zhongshen devotes the most energy.Before the cargo is shipped,our operation team will assist customers to pre-review the certificate of origin,health certificate,ingredient analysis report,etc.provided by foreign suppliers.Especially for Chinese labels,according to relevant national standards such as GB7718 and GB28050,they must accurately reflect the true attributes of the food.Zhongshen will arrange special personnel to check the ingredient list,allergen warning,and value conversion of the nutrition fact table on the label one by one to ensure that the typesetting and font size meet the specifications.For the first imported food categories,we will also guide customers to complete the entry animal and plant quarantine approval (if required) and importer filing work,to ensure that all "passes" are ready when the cargo arrives at the port.

• Review whether the certificate of origin and official health certificate are consistent with the shipping information.
• Confirm that the overseas production enterprise has been registered and filed with the General Administration of Customs.
• Design and review Chinese labels to ensure compliance with GB standards and 2026 new label regulations.
• Assist in sorting out and submitting basic trade documents such as contracts,invoices,packing lists,etc.

Stage 2: Port Customs Declaration and Tax Payment

After the cargo arrives at the port,Zhongshen will promptly start the customs declaration procedure.We use the single window system to accurately declare the HS code,product name,specification,country of origin and other information of the goods.Under the 2026 tax environment,we pay special attention to the utilization of preferential policies of various free trade agreements (such as RCEP),and help customers legally and compliantly reduce tariff costs by accurately submitting qualified certificates of origin.For food products,the customs price review link is relatively strict.With rich declaration experience,Zhongshen can assist the customs to quickly verify the price and avoid customs clearance delays caused by price queries.After the tax bill is issued,we rely on the efficient foreign exchange payment channel to assist customers to complete tax payment quickly and release the cargo as soon as possible.

Stage 3: Cargo Inspection and Quarantine

Customs clearance and release does not mean the end of the process,and the statutory inspection of food is the top priority.The customs commodity inspection department will sample the cargo to test whether the additives and microbial indicators meet the standards.Zhongshen is familiar with the inspection process and sampling probability of each port,and will arrange warehousing and logistics to cooperate with the inspection in advance.Only after obtaining the Certificate of Inspection and Quarantine for Entry Goods (health certificate) can the food be allowed to be sold in the domestic market.We follow up the inspection progress throughout the process.In case of abnormal indicators,we will immediately launch the emergency plan to assist customers in technical rectification or apply for re-inspection,so as to minimize losses.

Practical Case: How Agency Services Avoid Risks

To illustrate the value of agency services more intuitively,let’s look at a real case that occurred in early 2026.Mr.Fan from Shanghai planned to import a batch of high-end red wine from France to expand the domestic market.Mr.Fan has trade experience himself,but he does not have a thorough understanding of the specific label regulations for food import.He contacted a freight forwarder to arrange shipping on his own.As a result,after the cargo arrived at the port,the customs found during document review that the Chinese label did not mark the warning "Excessive drinking is harmful to health" in accordance with the latest regulations,and there was a slight discrepancy between the wine year on the certificate of origin and the year on the actual wine label.

The customs immediately detained the cargo,requiring label rectification and explanation of the year difference.This not only meant thousands of yuan of port detention fees per day,but also may lead to missing the Spring Festival sales peak season.Mr.Fan urgently contacted Zhongshen for help.After taking over the case,our Manager Han quickly sorted out the crux of the problem.First,we assisted Mr.Fan to communicate with the French winery and issued an official explanation letter for the year difference,proving that there was a clerical error in the certificate of origin.Second,we guided Mr.Fan to carry out label rectification in line with specifications in the bonded zone and affixed compliant Chinese back labels.Under the coordination of Zhongshen,the customs accepted the rectification plan,and the cargo finally cleared customs smoothly and obtained the health certificate within three days,catching up with the sales peak season.Mr.Fan later said with emotion that if he had entrusted Zhongshen to act as the full-process agent at the beginning,these low-level mistakes could have been found and corrected before shipping.

As can be seen from this case,professional agents are not just errand runners,but use professional knowledge to help enterprises avoid pitfalls.The following table summarizes the significant differences in risk control between enterprises’ self-operation and entrusting Zhongshen as the agent:

Summary

Under the foreign trade environment in 2026,imported food is no longer a simple buying and selling behavior,but a comprehensive test of policy sensitivity,operation precision and resource integration ability.With 20 years of industry accumulation,Zhongshen has standardized and transparentized complex links such as customs declaration and inspection,international transportation,and foreign exchange receipt and payment.We not only help customers solve the problem of how to get the cargo in,but also solve the problem of how to get the cargo in compliantly,quickly and at low cost through the whole process of risk control.For enterprises that want to deeply cultivate the imported food market,choosing Zhongshen as a partner is undoubtedly the optimal solution to improve import efficiency and reduce compliance risks.