China Customs Rejected 182 Batches of Imported Food in November 2023, Involving Infant Formula and Dairy Products

On December 19, 2023, General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) published the list of non-compliant food products in November 2023. A total of 182 batches of imported food from 33 countries/regions were rejected.

Most non-compliant imported food in November came from Japan (26.9%, mostly candy and ice cream), followed by Vietnam (10.4%, mostly fruit and vegetable products) and the U.S. (8.8%, mostly nuts and meat products). The major reasons for import rejections were as follows:

• Unqualified labeling (30.7%)

• Discrepancy between cargo and certificate (17.0%)

• Excessive use of food additives/nutritional fortification substances (14.3%)

• Lack of inspection & quarantine permit (13.2%)

• Microorganism contamination (8.8%)

Noteworthy Products 

1. Infant formula  

One batch of stage 2 infant formula milk powder from South Korea faced customs clearance issues due to non-compliant iron content. According to GB 10766-2021 Older Infant Formula, milk-based products must have iron contents ranging from 0.24mg/100kj to 0.48 mg/100kj. For bean-based products, the acceptable range is from 0.36mg/100kj to 0.48 mg/100kj.

2. Dairy products 

Two batches of imported dairy products were rejected by China customs in November. Details are as follows:

More analysis on customs clearance in 2023 can be found below: 

• China Customs Rejected 246 Batches of Imported Food in October 2023
  

• China Customs Rejected 294 Batches of Imported Food in September 2023

• China Customs Rejected 229 Batches of Imported Food in August 2023

• China Customs Rejected 138 Batches of Imported Food in July 2023

• China Customs Rejected 226 Batches of Imported Food in June 2023

• China Customs Rejected 118 Batches of Imported Food in May 2023

• China Customs Rejection Data: 196 Batches of Imported Food in April 2023

• China Customs Rejection Data: 177 Batches of Imported Food in March 2023

• China Customs Rejected 156 Batches of Imported Food in February 2023

• China Customs Rejected 162 Batches of Imported Food in January 2023, Including Milk Powder & Probiotics