By a wide margin, China blocked more food imports at its ports of entry year over year in 2024.
Data released by the Chinese Administration of Customs shows food products from the U.S. were rejected the most, with 595 batches from the Western market seized. In 2023, 225 batches of American products were seized.
Second on the list in 2024 was Ecuador, which saw 429 batches of its food products impounded by Chinese customs. The country did not feature in the top five in 2023.
There were slightly fewer seizures of Japanese products in 2024 compared to 2023. Japanese seafood imports have been banned by China since August 2023. China agreed in September 2024 to begin importing seafood from Japan again, but still has not provided a timeline for doing so.
The main reasons for the seizures given by Chinese customs officials were “inconsistent documentation” and “non-compliant labeling,” while detection of animal disease was also cited as a reason.
The bulk of the seizures occurred at the ports of Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Tianjin.
An alert sent to clients from ZMUni Compliance Center, a consultancy based in the eastern city of Hangzhou, noted that the “significant rise” in the number of non-compliant food import batches in China highlights the country's increasingly stringent food safety standards and regulatory enforcement.
“From label compliance and proper use of food additives to the approval of new food ingredients and registration of overseas manufacturers, any regulatory misstep can lead to border rejections,” ZMUni, which advises foreign importers of food, said.
Even within its own borders, China has begun to put stricter regulations in place on food production.
Recently, the Chinese government rolled out new emissions regulations that target tilapia-farming operations in the country, particularly affecting fish farmers and seafood exporters on the island province of Hainan who are still recovering from a typhoon that devastated aquaculture operations last September.
Under the new regulations, tilapia farms must obtain export certifications in order for processors or exporters to use their products.
Josephine Wang, the head of export sales at seafood-processing firm Hainan Golden Spring Foods, told SeafoodSource that the steps needed to meet the certification criteria are strict, and very few Hainan farms meet the standards.
“The Hainan government canceled all farm registrations; farms will need to undergo registration again, but to get the license, the farms will now need to establish a standard wastewater treatment system,” she said. “So far, only about 15 percent of farms have fulfilled this condition, and this system costs a lot.”
