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Exporting pet food from China

Pet food is feed in Chinese law. Exported pet food must come from a producer registered with customs, is reported for inspection where it is made, and carries the producer's name or registration number. Customs issues the certificates, and recommends registered producers to destinations that ask for a list.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Legal status
Feed, including pet food and chews
Producer registration
With the directly affiliated customs, valid 5 years
Exporter
Files with its local customs
Inspection
At the place of production
Pack marks
Producer name or registration number, and use
Records
Kept at least 2 years

Before the goods leave

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Is the producing plant registered with customs for export feed? Read more
  2. 2Does the destination need GACC to list or recommend the plant? Read more
  3. 3Has the lot been reported for inspection where it was made, and has it passed? Read more
  4. 4Does it contain animal or plant products that need quarantine before exit? Read more
  5. 5Are the declaration documents ready 24 hours before loading? Read more
  6. 6Is a certificate of origin needed? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Registration of export feed producers

Pet food is feed, and exported feed must come from a producer registered with customs.

  • Feed includes pet food and chews, under the Measures on inspection, quarantine and supervision of import and export feed and feed additives (进出口饲料和饲料添加剂检验检疫监督管理办法), as amended by GACC Decree No. 262 from 15 April 2023 (Article 68).
  • GACC registers export feed producers, and exported feed must come from a registered producer (Article 30).
  • A producer applies to its directly affiliated customs with an application form, a process flow chart, a site plan and a list of products and raw materials; customs reviews the site and decides within 20 days, extendable by 10 (Articles 32 to 35).
  • Conditions include suitable premises and pest control, quality staff, testing capacity and a HACCP-based quality system, label management and traceability (Article 31).
  • Registration is valid for 5 years, one number per plant; renewal is sought 3 months before expiry, and customs reviews registered producers each year (Articles 36, 38 and 50).
  • Where a destination asks for a list of registered producers, GACC recommends them to its authorities (Article 40).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the registration certificate, annual review and product list with the plant, dated, and shows what expires before the next shipment. Ask about this

Inspection, labels and records

How exported pet food is inspected, what the pack shows, and what the producer and exporter keep.

  • Customs inspects exported feed against the importing country's requirements, bilateral agreements, Chinese law and the contract or letter of credit (Article 41).
  • Before export, the owner or agent reports the feed to the customs at the place of production with the contract and the factory's certificate of conformity (Article 42).
  • Customs checks that documents and goods match, including the producer's registration number, and checks the label and packaging, then samples for safety and hygiene testing (Articles 43 and 44).
  • Feed that passes receives the release documents and inspection certificates; feed that fails and cannot be treated is not released (Article 45).
  • The label meets the importing country's requirements, and the pack or label shows the producer's name or registration number and the product's use (Article 48).
  • Producers keep records of raw materials, testing, dispatch and recalls for at least 2 years; feed exporters file with their local customs and keep records for 2 years (Articles 48, 51 and 52).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps inspection certificates and the raw material records with each lot, and reads the label against what the destination asks for. Ask about this

Animal and plant quarantine

Quarantine for animal and plant products leaving China.

  • The owner or its agent reports animal and plant products and other quarantine objects to the port quarantine authority before they leave China (Law on Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine (进出境动植物检疫法), Article 20).
  • Products that pass, or pass after treatment, may leave; customs releases them on the quarantine certificate. Those that fail with no effective treatment may not (Article 21).
  • They are reported again if the destination changes to one with different requirements, if they are repacked or consolidated, or if the quarantine period runs out (Article 22).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps quarantine certificates with the lot and shows which ones a change of route or packing has made stale. Ask about this

Export declaration and customs recordation

Who may declare goods for export, when, and with which documents.

  • The consignor of exported goods may declare to customs itself or authorise a customs declaration enterprise; either must complete recordation with customs in advance (GACC Decree No. 277, Article 4).
  • Declaration is made on the electronic customs declaration form; a paper form may be used only in special circumstances with customs' consent (Article 5).
  • Exported goods are declared after they arrive at the area under customs supervision and at least 24 hours before loading (Article 7).
  • The accompanying documents are the contract, invoice, packing list, manifest, bill of lading or waybill, power of attorney for customs declaration, export licences and other documents required by law; goods subject to inspection and quarantine need the documents set for them (Article 8).
  • The consignor and the declaration enterprise answer for the veracity, accuracy, integrity and compliance of what is declared (Article 6).
  • Recordation of a customs declaration entity is valid for a long time; changes to the name, domicile, legal representative or declaration personnel are reported within 30 days (GACC Decree No. 253, Articles 8 and 9).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the contract, invoice, packing list and any licence with the shipment and lot, dated, and shows what is missing before the goods reach the port. Ask about this

Certificates of origin

Proof that goods originate in China, for non-preferential purposes and for preferential tariffs under trade agreements.

  • A consignor may apply for a certificate of origin to the inspection and quarantine authorities, now part of customs, or to the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and its local sub-councils (Regulations on the Origin of Import and Export Goods, Article 17).
  • The applicant registers with the issuing authority and declares origin truthfully; no certificate is issued for goods not originating in China (Articles 18 and 19).
  • Goods wholly obtained in China originate there; otherwise origin is where the last substantial transformation took place, judged first by a change in tariff classification (Articles 3 and 6).
  • Under RCEP, a Certificate of Origin is issued before shipment, or marked "ISSUED RETROACTIVELY"; China's issuing bodies are customs and CCPIT with their local branches (GACC Decree No. 255, Articles 19 and 42).
  • An approved exporter, which must be an Advanced Certified Enterprise, may issue its own declaration of origin under RCEP and the agreements with Iceland, Switzerland and Mauritius; the authorisation lasts 3 years (GACC Decree No. 254).
  • Consignors, manufacturers and approved exporters keep the documents proving origin for 3 years from issue (Decree No. 255, Article 41).
  • Obtaining a certificate by fraud, or forging or trading one, is fined 5,000 to 100,000 yuan (Regulations on Origin, Article 23).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps each certificate or declaration of origin with the shipment, beside the bill of materials it rests on, for the three years the records are kept. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
Registered export feed producerIts registration, quality system, labels, records and producing to the destination's standards or the contract.The registration and lot records kept together, dated, ready for customs and the buyer.
Feed exporterFiling with its local customs, reporting feed for inspection and keeping a business record.Each shipment's certificates and records in one place.
Customs declaration enterprise or forwarderDeclaring within the authority the exporter gives it, under a power of attorney filed with customs.Answers to its questions taken from the record rather than from email threads.
Customs and CCPITInspection, quarantine and export certificates (customs), and certificates of origin (customs or CCPIT).Certificates kept with the shipment and read against what the destination asks for.

Local customs

Producers register with the directly affiliated customs where they are located, which reports registrations to GACC within 30 days.

Feed is reported for inspection at the customs of the place of production, and the port customs checks that documents and goods match.

Where are the goods going?

Most of what pet food have to meet is set where they are sold. Each guide sets out the rules on arrival, with the official source for each.

Questions businesses ask

Is pet food regulated as feed for export from China?
Yes. The feed measures define feed to include pet food and chews, so their export rules apply (Measures on import and export feed and feed additives, Article 68).
Does a pet food factory need to register with China customs to export?
Yes. Exported feed must come from a producer registered with GACC through its directly affiliated customs (Articles 30 and 32).
How long is export pet food registration valid?
5 years from issue. Renewal is sought 3 months before it expires, and customs reviews registered producers each year (Articles 36, 38 and 50).
Does a pet food trader that does not make the food need to register?
A feed exporter files with its local customs before or when it first reports feed for inspection, and keeps a business record for at least 2 years (Articles 51 and 52).
What must the label of exported pet food show?
It meets the importing country's requirements, and the pack or label shows the producer's name or registration number and the product's use (Article 48).
Who issues the certificate for exported pet food?
Customs at the place of production, after it checks documents, labels and packaging and tests samples (Articles 42 to 45).
How does a Chinese pet food plant get listed with a foreign country?
Where the destination asks for a list, the directly affiliated customs reviews the producer and reports it, and GACC recommends it to the destination's authorities (Article 40).
What must an exporter do if pet food may be contaminated?
Registered producers and filed exporters report to their local customs within 24 hours and take control measures (Article 55).
When must goods be declared for export from China?
After they arrive at the area under customs supervision and at least 24 hours before loading. The consignor declares itself or through a customs declaration enterprise, both recorded with customs in advance (GACC Decree No. 277).
Who issues certificates of origin in China?
Customs and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) with its local branches. Approved exporters may issue their own declarations of origin under RCEP and some other agreements.
How does Compliant Always help with exporting from China?
Our team reads the rules for the routes you ship. Compliant Always shows which export documents apply to your product, keeps them with the shipment beside what the destination asks for, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

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