AQSIQ Announcement No.53, 2013 on Dairy Import Inspection & Quarantine

 
The P. R. China is to implement its Administrative Measures on the Inspection & Quarantine of Dairy Imports & Exports on May 1, 2013, which was issued on January 24, 2013 by its General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection & Quarantine (AQSIQ) hereto.

To facilitate the smooth implementation of these Measures, relevant matters are hereby announced:

1. The AQSIQ may adjust the scope of dairy products subjected to these Measures and release the adjustment over its website.

The milk powders under Article 2 thereof include bovine colostrum powder; dairy-based infant formula foods include basic powder raw materials; these Measures are not applicable to the infant formula used for special medical purposes.

2. The AQSIQ maintains a registration system for external dairy enterprises engaging in the exports to China.

The AQSIQ may publicize its regulations on the registration and grant certain transitional period for the external enterprises to complete their registration with the AQSIQ.

Within the transitional period, the external enterprises undertaking the registration may still continue their exports to China as per these Measures.

3. The quarantine approval formalities shall be carried out for specified importing dairy products (see Annex 1) as per the Measures on Approval of Quarantine over Entry Animals & Plants (AQSIQ Decree No. 25).

The AQSIQ may determine and adjust the scope of import dairy products that are subjected to the approval of quarantine.

4. Regardless of any or no import record before, as from May 1, 2013, the first entry of certain product via a China port shall be regarded as the initial import; its subsequent imports via the same port shall be as non-initial imports.

The products shall be regarded identical where their information are mutually consistent in terms of external producers, product names and brands, formulas, external exporters, internal importers, and so on.

5. As regards the initial imports, the importers shall, upon their declaration for inspection, submit relevant test reports required by China national standard on food safety, including the norms of contaminants and fungal toxins contained in food.

As regards the non-initial imports, the importers shall, upon their declaration for inspection, submit copies of test reports and inspection certificates provided for their initial imports as well as the test reports required by the AQSIQ (see Annex 2).

As regards the initial imports of infant formula raw materials (dairy-based premix compound), the importers shall, upon their declaration for inspection, submit the test reports on concerned microorganisms, contaminants, and fungal toxins;

The non-initial imports of basic raw materials shall be provided with relevant microorganisms test reports.

The test reports aforesaid shall maintain one-to-one correspondence with the production dates or batch numbers of importing dairy products.

6. The testing organizations issuing the test reports aforesaid may be external official laboratories, third-party testing organizations or enterprise laboratories, or internal testing organizations that are qualified.

7. Where the test reports required are not available, the importers shall provide written explanations for the reasons and promise later submission of those test reports within certain time limit.

The inspection-quarantine agencies may start inspection of importing dairy products after receiving the test reports required. And the importing dairy products shall be stored in the supervision places designated or recognized by the inspection-quarantine agencies.

8. Where the dairy safety and sanitation are once not compliant, the importers shall, upon their re-imports, submit the test reports on specified items (including contaminants and fungal toxins) for consecutive five batches (i. e. five different batch numbers or production dates); where the incompliant items are illegal additives, the test reports shall contain such illegal additives.

9. External awards, honors, and certifications marked on the labels shall be provided with relevant certifying documents that are confirmed through China or foreign embassies and consulates.

10. The importers shall timely announce their import varieties, sources, brands and so on through public media (including enterprise official websites).

11. As regards incompliant imports to be destroyed or returned, the importers shall declare the destruction or return process to the inspection-quarantine agencies within five workdays upon completion of the destruction or return.


Annex 1. Import Dairies Subject to Quarantine Approval;
Annex 2. List of Test Items for Non-Initial Import Dairies;


The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection & Quarantine of China (AQSIQ)

April 15, 2013