The move is a result of the Chinese government’s desire to improve its supervision and quarantine processes for imported feed additives, said Ken Ziao, based at RingOne Technology Consulting Ltd, based in Beijing.
Foreign manufactures of feed additive additives without plant or animal origin used to be able to export directly to China without filing for General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People's Republic of China (AQSIQ) registration. Since March 2018, that is no longer the case, said the consultant. All feed additives – vitamins, amino acids or otherwise - have to get AQSIQ approval before export now, he said.
“This represents another step in the stricter regulation of China's food and feed market,” said CCM, the Chinese business intelligence analysis group, in a note on that development.
Ziao also told us that there are now two new approved feed product lists in China.
The first list deals with the countries and regions that are allowed to export feed ingredients, pet food, and compound feed into China. Some 12 countries' feed materials were newly added to that list, as of March this year, according to CCM.
The second list is concerned with the countries and regions that are allowed to export feed additives and additive based premixes into China.
“This is the first time that China has published a separate list of feed additives and additive premixes,” said Ziao.
Exporting to China
Foreign companies have to be listed within either of those documents before they can export to China. They must deal with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MoA) as well as AQSIQ to get registered.
Exporters have to file an application in order to fulfil the import registration with the MoA 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 remains valid for five years, as per the CCM note.
In summary, said Ziao, the AQSIQ & MOA procedures for foreign companies are:
- Obtain an import registration license from the China’s Ministry of Agriculture.
- Apply for market access with AQSIQ.
- Have their manufacturing facility be registered by AQSIQ.