As distributed by AQSIQ, The AQSIQ has made great changes in the import policy of feed and feed additives, with a separate list formulated especially for feed additives and additive premix. This represents another step in the stricter regulation of China's food and feed market.

The Chinese government is paying close attention to food safety in the country and, as a result, keeps constantly upgrading the policies for food and feed regulation, including import conditions. Therefore, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People's Republic of China (AQSIQ) has established a supervision system which includes the whole steps of companies that want to import food and feed products to China. This indicates, that companies that are exporting food and feed related products to China, they are in need to pay more attention to the Chinese laws and regulations in order to know if and how they are able to export their products to China. Some of the most important tasks for an exporting company is to check if the product category is allowed to import to China, they have to design a compliant Chinese label, and it is necessary to conduct pre-test according to relevant Chinese national standard to check if the product quality can be compliant under Chinese regulation.

The AQSIQ issued at the beginning of March 2018, that the new version of the list of feed and feed additives was approved for import. a major change has been seen in the administration of feed additives. The statement says that the previous List of Products and Countries or Regions of Feed and Feed Additives Approved for Import has been effectively divided into two separate lists, each dealing with a specific segment. 

Imported Feed Ingredient, Pet Food and Compound Feed Products Quarantine Access and Overseas Manufacturers Registration;

Imported Feed Additives and Feed Additive Premix Feed Products Quarantine Access and Overseas Manufacturers Registration;

The first list is now dealing with the countries and regions that are allowed to export feed additives and additive premix into China. The second list deals with the countries and regions that are allowed to export feed raw materials, pet food, and formula feed into China.  

Looking at the changes occurring from the new regulation, it is basically the first time in China that feed additives and additive premix have been targeted by a separated list. It is worth mentioning, that from now on feed additives containing no ingredients of animal and plant origin are no longer allowed to be imported into China without approval.  

What’s more, in the new regulations, twelve countries' feed raw materials, pet food and formula feed have been newly added on the list. As a result, 62 feed products of 52 countries or regions were included in the List of Products and Countries/Regions of Feed Additives and Additive Premix Approved for Import and 268 feed additive products of 30 countries or regions included in the List of Products and Countries/Regions of Feed Raw materials, Pet Food and Formula Feed Approved for Import. 

It is stipulated that the feed products on the list are allowed to be imported before the overseas processing enterprises finish the registrations. Any foreign feed raw material or feed additive enterprise planning to export their products to China shall complete all the required access procedures and registrations in accordance with China's laws and regulations. 

How is feed export to China regulated?

Feed and feed additive exports into the Peoples Republic of China have to deal with two Chinese government authorities, namely the Ministry of Agriculture and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. 

 Of those, the Ministry of Agriculture is the competent registration authority of feed and feed additive products. For the purpose of strengthening the supervision of feed and feed additive imports and ensuring the quality and safety of animal products, the ministry has published the Regulation on Feed and Feed Additive Import. 

The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People's Republic of China is a ministerial-level department that is in charge of national quality, metrology, entry-exit commodity inspection, entry-exit health quarantine, entry-exit animal and plant quarantine, import-export food safety, certification and accreditation, standardisation, as well as administrative law enforcement. 

Overseas enterprises have to file an application in order to fulfil the import registration with the Ministry of Agriculture and obtain an import registration license for feed and feed additives before exporting to China for the first time. Without an import registration license, the imported feed and feed additives cannot be legally sold and used in China. A regular feed and feed additive import registration license remain valid for 5 years. 

Remarks from Petsourcing.com