---
title: "Can You Hire an Agency for Food Export in 2026? Full Analysis of Core Processes - Zhongshen Trading China"
description: "The global food trade volume will exceed 1.2 trillion US dollars in 2026. Demand for China's prepared food and organic food exported to Southeast Asia and Europe is surging，but policy barriers such as halal certification and label compliance have troubled many small and medium-sized food businesses. Can food export be entrusted to an agency? Drawing on 20 years of industry experience，Zhongshen disassembles the core processes，from document pre-audit to tax refund acceleration，analyzes how ag..."
url: "https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/food-wine/food-export-agency-2026-process-analysis.html"
language: "en"
type: "Article"
category: "Food and beverages"
datePublished: "2026-10-20"
dateModified: "2026-10-20"
brand: "Zhongshen Trading China"
image: "https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/food/Ol59Mq2Q33bVO.webp"
---

# Can You Hire an Agency for Food Export in 2026? Full Analysis of Core Processes

## Food Export to Southeast Asia in 2026: Strong Demand but Multiple Barriers

In 2026,the import volume of Chinese prepared meals and organic tea from Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia and Thailand increased by 23% year-on-year.However,when the Zhejiang food factory run by Ms.Fan tried to export to Malaysia on its own last year,it was held up at customs due to incomplete halal certification materials,resulting in a 3-week delay and order loss of more than 100,000 RMB — this is a common problem for many small and medium-sized food businesses.The certification requirements,label specifications and tariff policies involved in food export are often difficult for non-professional teams to handle.

![Can You Hire an Agency for Food Export in 2026? Full Analysis of Core Processes](https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/food/Ol59Mq2Q33bVO.webp)

## Core Value of Zhongshen’s Food Export Agency: Focus on Pain Point Solving

As a Shanghai-based agency with more than 20 years of deep experience in foreign trade,Zhongshen provides full-chain services from front-end certification coordination to back-end tax refund,targeting core pain points of food export.Different from general agencies,Zhongshen has built an exclusive policy database for different destination countries.For example,it can predict risks in advance for Malaysia’s Halal certification and Germany’s LFGB standard.

### Document Module: Strictly Follow Compliance Requirements of Destination Countries

Food export documents not only include conventional bills of lading and invoices,but also need to meet special requirements of the destination country.Take Malaysia as an example,Halal certification copy and Certificate of Analysis (COA) of food ingredients are required; labels must be marked in both Malay and English,and no illegal statements such as "curative effect" or "health benefits" are allowed.

- Certification body coordination: We have long-term cooperation with Malaysia’s JAKIM certification body,and can assist clients to supplement missing Halal materials,avoiding certification expiration or information inconsistency
- Label compliance review: We pre-audit label content 2-3 days in advance according to destination country regulations.For example,Germany requires labeling of allergen information (such as nuts and dairy products),and Zhongshen will check item by item against LFGB standards
- Bill of lading pre-confirmation: We synchronize shipping space information with shipping companies to ensure the bill of lading is consistent with the contract,avoiding customs clearance delays caused by vague product description

### Customs Clearance Module: Deal with Tariff Barriers and Improve Port Efficiency

Under the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement in 2026,Malaysia implements zero tariff on some Chinese food products,but this requires compliance with rules of origin (for example,the proportion of Chinese-sourced raw materials is ≥50%).Ms.Fan’s client failed to enjoy zero tariff last year due to incomplete certificate of origin,and paid 8% more tariff.In addition,the sampling rate for food at Malaysian ports has increased from 15% in 2025 to 22%,and a non-compliance rate of over 5% will lead to the return of the entire batch of goods.

| Destination Country | Core Certification Requirements | Tariff Policy | Sampling Focus |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Malaysia | Halal Certification (JAKIM),COA Report | Zero Tariff under China-ASEAN FTA (requires certificate of origin) | Ingredient compliance,Halal marking |
| Germany | LFGB Certification,Allergen labeling | EU GSP Tariff (1.5%-3% for partial food products) | Food contact material safety |
| Australia | FSANZ Certification,Nutrition information panel | Tariff reduction under China-Australia FTA | GMO ingredient testing |

Zhongshen’s customs clearance solutions: For tariff preferences,the document team will pre-audit raw material purchase contracts and certificates of origin to ensure compliance with FTA rules of origin.For example,when Ms.Fan’s client exported prepared meals to Malaysia this year,he successfully enjoyed zero tariff through pre-audit,saving more than 20,000 RMB in tariff for a single shipment.In addition,Zhongshen has established a priority communication mechanism with local customs clearance agents at Port Klang (Malaysia) and Port of Hamburg (Germany),can quickly provide supplementary materials during sampling,and shortens customs clearance time from the industry average of 7 days to 3-4 days.

![Can You Hire an Agency for Food Export in 2026? Full Analysis of Core Processes](https://cndpic.sh-zhongshen.com/uploads/tradepics/d2yUZcTBR3plh.webp)

### Tax Refund Module: Key to Accelerating Capital Circulation

The cycle of food export tax refund directly affects businesses’ capital turnover.In 2026,the State Taxation Administration of China requires the average tax refund period to be compressed to within 60 days,but many businesses still face delays due to incomplete documents.Targeting the pain points of food export tax refund,Zhongshen has established a "three-review three-verify" mechanism:

- Pre-audit of tax refund materials: Check the consistency of VAT invoices,export declarations and bills of lading before customs declaration,avoiding tax refund delays caused by wrong invoice title
- System connection with tax authorities: We realize data synchronization with Shanghai tax authorities,upload tax refund materials in advance to shorten review time
- Abnormal issue handling: If there are tax refund doubts (such as inconsistency between food ingredients and declaration),we assist in providing third-party test reports to solve the problem quickly

Last year,an organic tea exporter in Shanghai shortened its tax refund period from 55 days to 32 days through Zhongshen’s agency service,and its capital turnover efficiency increased by 41%.

## Choosing the Right Agency: Customized Services Adapt to Different Food Categories

Food has various categories,from pre-packaged food to frozen food,and export requirements vary greatly.For example,frozen food needs to provide cold chain temperature records,and organic food needs to obtain China’s GB/T 19630 organic certification.Zhongshen will develop an exclusive service plan according to clients’ product categories and destination countries:

For export of frozen prepared meals to Singapore,Zhongshen will coordinate with shipping companies that meet Singapore’s APL cold chain standards to ensure the transportation temperature stays stable below -18,and complete the application for import permit from Singapore Food Agency (SFA) in advance.

## Conclusion: Choose Customized Agency Services According to Your Own Needs

In 2026,the food export market has both opportunities and challenges.It is high-cost and high-risk for small and medium-sized businesses to deal with policy barriers on their own.With 20 years of industry experience,Zhongshen provides full-chain services from certification coordination,document pre-audit to customs clearance and tax refund,matching the food export requirements of different destination countries,helping clients save time and cost and avoid compliance risks.If you have food export demand,you can contact Zhongshen for a customized agency plan based on your product category and destination country.

## Related Resources
- [Food and beverages](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/food-wine/)
- [Trade Services](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/services/)
- [Trade Cases](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/cases/)
- [Trade Wiki](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/wiki/)
- [Trade Class](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/guide/)
- [Global Trade Services](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/country/)
- [Trade Q&A Hub](https://www.sh-zhongshen.com/en/qa/)

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