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China to Regulate Online Sale of Foods

Rapid growth in China’s domestic and crossborder ecommerce sector has given rise to an unregulated multibillion dollar industry and simultaneously presented serious questions regarding the safety and quality of foods sold through these channels for both policymakers and consumers. Under current market conditions buyers must beware of the high number of counterfeit and substandard products circulating through online sales channels.

To address the current chaos China CFDA has been tasked with supervising and ensuring the safety of foods sold through online channels. The CFDA has begun its mission by drafting a new regulation which will greatly increase the entry requirements for retailers to sell through dedicated websites or through other third party platforms.

The name of the new regulation is “Administrative Measures for Supervision on Operation of Foods Sold on the Internet”, under which

operators of foods shall be required to:

  • obtain a food operation license or a filing certificate from local FDA prior to doing business and display the business license and the operation license or certificate in a conspicuous area of the website homepage;

  • ensure all product information indicated on the website is consistent with the actual products sold;

  • check the licenses of their suppliers and product qualification certificates. In addition, they need to keep the detailed information of products on record for future reference.

  • Use logistic companies with capacity and competency to deliver foods with special requirements such as cold storage;

  • Provide invoices to consumers, which could be in electronic form.

operators of third-party e-commerce platforms should:

  • examine the qualifications of food retailers using their platforms

  • verify that the food quality and safety documentation of foods sold on their platforms and report to local FDA on any improprieties

  • help protect consumers’ right and can set up a compensation system.

Third party platforms are encouraged to be involved in authenticating the credentials of food operators, quality and safety certification, food inspection documentation, credit rating, information management, etc.

The highest fine for violation of this new regulation is 30,000 RMB. However, the Ministry of Public Security will also be involved which means serious violators will be subject to criminal prosecution. 

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