Practical Guide for Import Freight Forwarding in Chongming District

Practical Difficulties and Solutions for Import of Cold Chain Aquatic Products at Chongming Port

Chongming Island is located at the estuary of the Yangtze River.In 2026,the inspection volume of imported cold chain aquatic products increased by 30% year-on-year,with 70% of the goods coming from Canada,Norway and Russia.The company where Manager Feng works imported a batch of coldwater shrimp from Nova Scotia,Canada at the beginning of the year,but only found that the health certificate did not indicate the fishing area after the goods arrived at the port,almost facing return.Such situations are not uncommon at Chongming Port.Chongming Customs implements 100% inspection on imported cold chain food.The wharf inspection site is limited,and the backlog of goods exceeds 48 hours during peak periods,greatly increasing the risk of cold chain breakage.In addition,the sampling inspection of plasticizers in packaging materials was added in 2026,and the laboratory testing cycle was extended to 5 working days.Enterprises that declare on their own often face repeated returns due to unfamiliarity with the detailed rules.

Zhongshen’s Position in the Import Chain

Zhongshen has been handling import business at Chongming Port since 2006.The same team follows up on links such as customs declaration and inspection,international transportation,warehouse management,foreign exchange settlement,and export tax rebate.Documents are circulated internally,so customers do not need to repeatedly explain product characteristics.The company has a permanent office in Chongming Port Area.Customs declarers,inspection declarers and customer service staff are in the same work group.When a customer mentions a problem to one person,others are notified simultaneously.This setup reduces communication costs when handling emergencies.Over the past 20 years,Zhongshen has acted as an agent for over 120,000 tons of imported cold chain aquatic products,familiar with the work rhythm of Chongming Customs Inspection Division,and can reasonably arrange the arrival time to avoid peak inspection periods.

Disassembly of Import Process and Key Nodes

Document Pre-review: Lock in Risk Points in Advance

Documents required for cold chain aquatic products include: certificate of origin,health certificate,entry animal and plant quarantine permit,packing list,invoice,and bill of lading.After receiving the scanned copies,Zhongshen will check whether the processing plant name on the health certificate is on the approved list and whether the fishing area is within the allowed import waters.For the batch of Canadian coldwater shrimp from Manager Feng,the health certificate lacked the fishing area indication.Zhongshen detected the abnormality during the pre-review stage and immediately contacted the Canadian exporter to supplement the official statement.

• Certificate of Origin: Must indicate the FAO code of the specific fishing waters
• Health Certificate: The processing plant name must exactly match the approved list
• Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine Permit: The product name must exactly match the subsequent customs declaration form word for word
• Packing List: Must indicate whether it is individually quick-frozen (IQF) or block-frozen,and whether the net weight includes ice glazing

Port Customs Declaration: Specific Requirements of Chongming Customs

Chongming Customs implements the "inspect immediately upon arrival" mode for cold chain products.The product name on the customs declaration form must exactly match the quarantine permit,and the specification and model column must indicate whether it is individually quick-frozen or block-frozen.Zhongshen’s customs declarers are permanently stationed at Chongming Port,familiar with the work rhythm of the Inspection Division,and can reasonably arrange the arrival time to avoid peak inspection periods.In 2026,Chongming Port added an electronic gate system,which automatically triggers an inspection instruction within 30 minutes after the goods arrive at the port.Customs declarers must submit electronic declaration data within 1 hour,otherwise the system will automatically mark it as "abnormal".Zhongshen’s customs declarers use the pre-entry system,have completed data preparation before the goods arrive at the port,and complete the declaration within 15 minutes after arrival.

Commodity Inspection: Laboratory Testing and Release

Mandatory inspection items for cold chain aquatic products include: volatile basic nitrogen,histamine,and heavy metal residues.In 2026,sampling inspection of plasticizers in packaging materials was added.Zhongshen will prepare pre-inspection reports for the same batch of products in advance.If the laboratory results are abnormal,the retest procedure will be initiated immediately,and the cold storage will be coordinated to reserve storage space to avoid additional costs caused by goods being detained at the wharf.The refrigeration facilities at Chongming Customs inspection site are limited,and the temperature during inspection is controlled at -18℃ to -15℃.Exceeding 4 hours may affect product quality.Zhongshen has agreed on fixed inspection time slots with the Inspection Division to ensure that the entire process of container unpacking,sampling and sealing is completed within 2 hours.

• Volatile Basic Nitrogen: Freshness indicator,exceeding the standard means corruption is determined
• Histamine: Mandatory inspection for specific fish species,exceeding the standard may cause food poisoning
• Heavy Metal Residues: Lead,cadmium,methylmercury,sampled batch by batch
• Plasticizers: Newly added item in 2026,targeting plastic packaging materials

Warehousing and Distribution: No Cold Chain Breakage

Imported cold chain food in Chongming District must enter the Customs-filed cold storage.The cold storage cooperated by Zhongshen is located in Gangxi Town,15 kilometers away from the wharf,with a storage temperature of -22℃±1℃,and is equipped with temperature recorders.Goods can be put into storage within 2 hours after release.For goods that need to be transported to the urban area,refrigerated trucks are used,and GPS temperature control data is uploaded to the customs supervision system in real time.In 2026,Chongming District implemented "one batch,one code" traceability management for imported cold chain food.Zhongshen generates a QR code when the goods are put into storage,which is associated with the customs declaration number,quarantine certificate and cold storage temperature records.Downstream customers can view the entire process information by scanning the code.

Case: Remedy for Import Documents of Coldwater Shrimp

For the batch of Canadian coldwater shrimp from Manager Feng,the health certificate lacked the fishing area indication.Zhongshen contacted the Canadian exporter to supplement the official statement,explaining that the operating waters of the fishing fleet were in FAO Zone 21,which was within the allowed scope.At the same time,a situation explanation was submitted to Chongming Customs,applying for preliminary inspection with the supplementary statement.Customs agreed to give a 5-working-day buffer period after the supplementary statement was certified by the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Finally,the goods were successfully put into storage on the 3rd day after arrival,and no container detention fees were incurred.During the entire process,Zhongshen’s inspection declarer updated the certification progress of the supplementary statement to Customs every day,and the customs declarer coordinated the wharf to temporarily store the goods in the refrigerated area,with the fee calculated at the normal storage fee,avoiding high container detention fees.

Balancing Compliance Costs and Efficiency

The compliance costs of imported cold chain aquatic products mainly include: quarantine permit processing time (about 15 working days),laboratory testing fees (CNY 800-1500 per batch),and cold storage warehousing fees (CNY 4.5 per ton per day).Zhongshen has reduced the average customs clearance time from 7 days to 3.5 days through methods such as batch permit application,centralized declaration,and scheduled inspection.Taking Manager Feng’s coldwater shrimp as an example,the total value of the goods is CNY 450,000,and the agency fee is CNY 12,000,but the container detention fees (CNY 3,000 per day) and customs declaration demurrage fees (calculated at 0.05% of the cargo value per day) are avoided.The goods can be delivered to downstream customers on time,and capital turnover is faster.In the second quarter of 2026,he imported three more batches of goods through Zhongshen,with smooth processes and no further accidents.

Core Considerations for Choosing an Agent

For imported cold chain products,the value of an agency company is reflected in the response speed to abnormal situations.Zhongshen has a fixed office at Chongming Port.Customs declarers,inspection declarers and customer service staff are in the same work group.When a customer mentions a problem to one person,others are notified simultaneously.This setup reduces communication costs when handling emergencies.Manager Feng later calculated that although he paid the agency fee,he avoided container detention fees and customs declaration demurrage fees,the goods could be delivered to downstream customers on time,and capital turnover was faster.In the second quarter of 2026,he imported three more batches of goods through Zhongshen,with smooth processes and no further accidents.For enterprises without a dedicated import and export department,finding an agent familiar with Chongming Port is more cost-effective than hiring a customs declarer.A customs declarer only knows about customs declaration,but an agency company can provide a full-process solution from documents to distribution,and can also give response suggestions as soon as possible when customs policies are adjusted.