Why Are Southeast Asian Food Imports Often Detained by Customs? Full Process Breakdown by Professional Freight Forwarder

Current Situation and Real Difficulties of Southeast Asian Food Import

In the first quarter of 2026,the value of food imported from Southeast Asia via Shanghai ports increased by 23% year-on-year,but cases of return and destruction caused by inconsistent documents or unqualified quarantine also rose by 17% in the same period.Behind this figure lies the common dilemma faced by a large number of importers: frozen basa fish from Vietnam incurs cold storage fees of over 10,000 yuan per day due to port detention,pre-packaged coconut water from Thailand is detained for random inspection due to incorrect trace element labeling,and bird’s nest products from Malaysia cannot enjoy the agreed tax rate due to wrong format of the certificate of origin.These are not isolated cases,but high-frequency problems in Southeast Asian food import.

Although Southeast Asian countries are RCEP members eligible for tariff preferences,food standards vary significantly among countries.Aquatic products from Vietnam may carry anisakis risk,tropical fruits from Thailand need to be protected against fruit fly pests,and processed food from Indonesia often involves declaration of genetically modified raw materials.The *Provisions on the Administration of Registration of Overseas Food Production Enterprises for Import* updated by the General Administration of Customs in 2026 further tightened the access threshold,requiring that the registration information of overseas production enterprises in China must be completely consistent with the actual consignor.This detail has led to sudden interruption of many long-term cooperative trade chains.When importers handle matters on their own,they often find problems only after the goods arrive at the port,when the cost of document modification,return or destruction is already unavoidable.

Core Position of Zhongshen in the Import Process

Zhongshen is not a simple document transmitter,but a risk control center running through the entire supply chain.With 20 years of operational experience,we have established a dynamic regulation database for major Southeast Asian exporting countries,covering food standard updates,changes in customs law enforcement scales,and shifts in port inspection priorities of Vietnam,Thailand,Malaysia,Indonesia and the Philippines.When a customer plans to import a batch of dried mangoes from Thailand,we can issue an early warning three months in advance about the new sulfur dioxide residue standard to be implemented by the Thai Ministry of Agriculture,and advise the supplier to adjust processing techniques to avoid the risk of non-compliance after the goods arrive at the port.

This pre-positioned service is reflected in three levels: first,access qualification pre-review,verifying whether overseas production enterprises are registered in China and whether the registration scope covers the product categories to be imported; second,document logic verification,ensuring that information on the certificate of origin,health certificate and component analysis report forms a closed loop without contradiction; third,port selection advice,recommending entry ports with relatively low inspection rates and complete cold chain facilities according to the characteristics of goods.In 2026,the microbial sampling rate for Vietnamese aquatic products at Shenzhen Shekou Port decreased,while label review for Thai pre-packaged food at Shanghai Waigaoqiao became stricter.Such port difference information directly affects customs clearance efficiency.

Phase-by-Phase Breakdown of the Import Process

Document Pre-review: The First Line of Defense for Compliance

The precision of document pre-review determines the smoothness of subsequent processes.Taking import of frozen shrimp from Vietnam as an example,documents to be reviewed include: official Vietnamese health certificate (indicating fishing area,processing method,heavy metal test results),certificate of origin (RCEP format),proof of in-China registration number of the production enterprise,full-chain cold chain temperature record,and component analysis report.Zhongshen’s operating specifications require that the fishing area indicated on the health certificate must avoid the epidemic area list issued by Chinese customs,and the processing method must be clearly marked as "HPP high pressure sterilization" or "quick frozen after cooking".Any vague expression will lead to a requirement for reissuing the document.

The new compliance point added in 2026 is genetically modified ingredient declaration.If palm oil products imported from Indonesia contain genetically modified raw materials,they must be marked on the contract,invoice and packing list simultaneously,and declared in the "remarks column" of the customs declaration form.Zhongshen’s pre-review system automatically compares component analysis reports with declaration information.When it finds that a batch of Indonesian biscuits contains genetically modified soybean phospholipids without declaration,it will immediately notify the customer to supplement declaration documents to avoid being identified as concealed declaration and facing fines.The pre-review stage usually takes 3-5 working days,and this time investment can reduce the subsequent inspection rate by more than 60%.

Port Customs Declaration: Accurate Filling to Avoid Delays

The filling accuracy in the customs declaration link directly affects the result of customs risk assessment.After the upgrade of the Customs H2018 system in 2026,requirements for matching degree of commodity code,specification and model,brand and country of origin are stricter.Taking Thai coconut water as an example,the customs declaration form needs to subdivide it into "unsweetened" and "sweetened" categories,with tariff numbers 2009.8910 and 2009.8990 respectively.If it is incorrectly filled as 2202.9000 (other non-alcoholic beverages),the system will automatically trigger a manual inspection instruction.Zhongshen’s customs brokers will classify accurately according to the sugar content (Brix value) in the component test report,to ensure the system identifies the goods as low-risk commodities.

Price declaration is another high-risk point.Customs adopts a dynamic threshold model for price monitoring of Southeast Asian imported food.If the declared unit price is 15% lower than the average market price in the same period,the system will automatically issue a price query.Zhongshen’s operation is to prepare price explanation materials in advance,including original purchase invoices from suppliers,proof of international freight fluctuations,and exchange rate change explanations.In March 2026,a customer imported coffee powder from Vietnam,and the declared price was low due to the sharp drop in international coffee futures prices.We submitted the CME coffee futures price trend chart and local Vietnamese procurement contracts to customs in advance,successfully avoiding the price consultation procedure and saving 5-7 working days of port detention time.

Commodity Inspection: Practical Response to Quarantine Requirements

Commodity inspection is the most uncontrollable link in Southeast Asian food import.In 2026,the sampling rate of Vibrio parahaemolyticus for Vietnamese aquatic products by customs increased to 20%,and the "inspect and handle immediately" mode is adopted for fruit fly quarantine of Thai fruits.Zhongshen’s response strategy is "pre-correction" rather than "post-remediation".When a batch of frozen durian pulp from Malaysia arrives at the port,we will coordinate with a third-party laboratory recognized by customs to conduct microbial pre-inspection in advance.If the total number of colonies is close to the critical value,we will immediately start the port rapid processing procedure,and apply for ultraviolet sterilization in the customs supervised cold storage to avoid direct judgment of non-compliance.

For Thai longan,mangosteen and other fruits,the quarantine focus is to prevent Bactrocera dorsalis.Zhongshen will require suppliers to provide pre-export cold treatment records proving that the goods have been continuously treated at below 0.5℃ for more than 18 days,and mark the cold treatment container number on the packing list.After the goods arrive at the port,marked containers are given priority for customs inspection,and the inspection pass rate is significantly improved.The new "pre-export official verification" requirement added in 2026 means that the Thai Ministry of Agriculture needs to conduct video inspection of orchards and packaging factories.Zhongshen assists customers to sort out English versions of orchard medication records,packaging factory disinfection records and other materials in advance to ensure smooth passage of Thai verification,and avoid goods being refused entry due to lack of pre-export verification certificates.

Warehousing and Distribution: Last Mile Control

There are also compliance risks in warehousing and distribution after customs clearance is completed.According to Order No.248 of the General Administration of Customs in 2026,the first storage place of imported food in the domestic circulation link must be filed with customs.The bonded warehouses and normal temperature/refrigerated warehouses provided by Zhongshen are all filed.Customers’ goods can be stored directly after customs clearance,avoiding the risk of violation caused by secondary transportation to unfiled warehouses.The warehouse management system is connected with customs,and temperature and humidity data are uploaded in real time.For high-risk commodities such as Thai frozen seafood,an automatic alarm will be triggered and customs will be notified if temperature fluctuation exceeds ±2℃.This transparent operation reduces the frequency of subsequent customs supervision instead.

The compliance focus of the distribution link is label rectification.The Chinese labels of many Southeast Asian imported food are required to be rectified during port inspection.Zhongshen has set up a label rectification area in the warehouse,equipped with label printing equipment meeting GB 7719 standards,which can reprint and affix Chinese labels on site,avoiding logistics costs caused by transporting goods back and forth to factories.The new requirement for Indonesian bird’s nest products in 2026 is that "nitrite content" must be marked.We are equipped with rapid testing equipment in the warehouse to conduct random inspection on each batch of bird’s nest,to ensure the error between the label marked value and the actual test value is within 5%,avoiding complaint risks from professional anti-counterfeiting activists.

Practical Case: Ms.Zou’s Southeast Asian Food Import Experience

Ms.Zou’s company mainly operates Thai pre-packaged snacks.At the end of 2025,she planned to import a mixed container of coconut chips,dried mangoes and shrimp sticks.For her first operation,she entrusted the Thai supplier to handle export documents on its own.As a result,after the goods arrived at the port,it was found that the health certificate did not indicate the baking temperature of the coconut chips,and the unit of sulfur dioxide residue for dried mangoes was ppm instead of mg/kg,which did not meet Chinese customs requirements.The goods were detained at Yangshan Port for 12 days,incurring total container detention fees and cold storage fees of over 80,000 yuan,and were finally returned.

In March 2026,Ms.Zou turned to Zhongshen to act as the agent for the second batch of goods.We intervened two weeks before shipment,requiring the Thai supplier to reissue the health certificate,clearly indicating that the coconut chips were baked at 180℃ for 20 minutes,and the sulfur dioxide residue of dried mangoes was 0.35g/kg (which meets Chinese standards after conversion).At the same time,we found that the palm oil in the shrimp stick ingredients was not marked whether it contained genetically modified components,and immediately required the supplier to supplement the non-GMO declaration.The goods arrived at the port in early April.Due to complete documents and standardized declaration,customs only conducted document review and immediately released the goods.The entire customs clearance process took 2.5 working days.Ms.Zou’s goods were put on shelves on time before the Tomb-Sweeping Festival,and the sales volume was 40% higher than expected.This case confirms the value of pre-positioned compliance management.The 80,000 yuan return loss is enough to pay for dozens of professional agency service fees.

Value Summary of Professional Agency

The complexity of Southeast Asian food import lies in dynamic and changeable regulations,different national standards,and differences in port implementation scales.The value accumulated by Zhongshen over 20 years is reflected in converting scattered regulatory information into executable operation lists,and transforming lagging risk response into pre-positioned compliance design.The customs supervision environment in 2026 is becoming stricter,and the fault tolerance space for enterprises operating on their own has almost disappeared.A wrong character on a label may lead to the destruction of the entire batch of goods,and a price declaration error may trigger enterprise credit downgrade.The core role of a professional agency is not to replace enterprise decision-making,but to build a firewall for enterprises,identify potential compliance risks before the goods are shipped,and control possible port detention losses to the minimum range.For importers,choosing Zhongshen means converting the uncertain customs clearance process into a predictable and measurable supply chain link,which is the real cost optimization.

• Key verification points in the document pre-review stage: consistency between product description on the health certificate and component analysis report,standardization of RCEP format of the certificate of origin,validity of in-China registration number of the production enterprise
• Key actions in the port customs declaration stage: accurate commodity code classification,preparation of price explanation materials to respond to customs price queries,complete marking of special information such as genetically modified information in the remarks column of the customs declaration form
• Core control points in the commodity inspection stage: arrange port pre-inspection for high-risk commodities,prepare cold treatment records for fruits,provide non-epidemic area proof of fishing areas for aquatic products
• Compliance points in the warehousing and distribution stage: select customs-filed warehouses,complete label rectification in supervised places,upload temperature and humidity data to the customs system in real time