Regarding the Inspection and Quarantine Requirements for Aquaculture Products from HongKong

According to the regulations of GACC and the Environment and Ecology Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government on the inspection, quarantine and sanitation requirements for farmed aquatic products exported from Hong Kong to the Mainland, from now on, farmed aquatic products from Hong Kong that meet the following relevant requirements are allowed to be exported to the Mainland:

 

I. Inspection and quarantine basis

(I) "China's Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine Law" and its implementing regulations, "China's Import and Export Commodity Inspection Law" and its implementing regulations, "China Food Safety Law" and its implementing regulations;

(II) "China's Import and Export Food Safety Management Measures" and "China's Import and Export Food Overseas Production Enterprise Registration Management Regulations";

(III) "GACC and the Environment and Ecology Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government on the Inspection, Quarantine and Sanitation Requirements for Farmed Aquatic Products Exported from Hong Kong to the Mainland Cooperation Agreement"

 

II. Scope of products exported to the Mainland

Farmed aquatic products refer to aquatic animal products and their products that are artificially bred for human consumption, excluding species listed in the appendix of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the list of national key protected wild animals, live aquatic animals and aquatic animal and plant propagation materials. The newly added catalog of farmed aquatic products exported from Hong Kong to the Mainland is attached.

 

III. Requirements for production enterprises

Processing enterprises that export farmed aquatic products to the mainland must hold relevant valid licenses issued by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department of Hong Kong, and the farms should be approved by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department of Hong Kong and be effectively supervised by it. The sanitary conditions of processing enterprises should comply with the requirements of the relevant food safety laws and regulations of both parties.

According to the relevant provisions of the "Food Safety Law of China" and its implementing regulations and the "Law of China on Import and Export Animal and Plant Quarantine" and its implementing regulations, production enterprises that export farmed aquatic products to the mainland must be approved by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department of Hong Kong and reported to GACC, and registered after review by GACC. Without registration, their farmed aquatic products shall not be exported to the mainland.

 

IV. Requirements for Products Exported to the Mainland

Hong Kong should ensure that farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland meet the following conditions:

(i) Farmed in local waters;

(ii) The raw materials and products do not have the following problems:

1. Aquatic animal diseases listed in the "List of Animal Quarantine Diseases Entering China" and required to be reported by the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) occur in Hong Kong, causing farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland to be or may be infected;

2. Any major food safety incident occurs in Hong Kong, which has affected or may affect farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland;

3. Farmed aquatic products exported or to be exported from Hong Kong to the Mainland seriously violate mainland laws and regulations and the provisions of the "Cooperation Agreement";

4. Major public health incidents occur in farms and production enterprises, such as employees infected with major infectious diseases, which have contaminated or may contaminate farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland and their packaging and transportation vehicles;

5. The breeding area is affected by pollutants, such as radioactive pollutants, which have contaminated or may contaminate farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland.

(iii) No drugs or additives prohibited by either party are used directly or indirectly (such as adding to feed), and drugs or additives restricted or permitted by both parties are used in accordance with regulations; no pathogenic microorganisms, toxic and harmful substances and foreign matter listed in the laws and regulations of both parties are found after inspection by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department of Hong Kong;

(iv) All farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland are inspected and quarantined by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department of Hong Kong, and no pathological signs of infectious and parasitic diseases are found, and no aquatic animal diseases that must be reported listed in the "List of Animal Quarantine Diseases Entering China" and stipulated by WOAH are found;

(v) ​​All farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland are certified by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department of Hong Kong to meet the hygiene requirements and are suitable for human consumption;

(vi) The processes of breeding, processing, packaging, storage and transportation all meet the hygiene requirements and traceability requirements of relevant aquatic products of both parties.

 

V. Certificate requirements

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department of Hong Kong is responsible for issuing official certificates confirmed by GACC for farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland. Each batch of farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland should be accompanied by at least one original official certificate to prove that the batch of products complies with the relevant laws and regulations on food safety in the Mainland and Hong Kong and the relevant provisions of the "Cooperation Agreement". The Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department should fully fill in the information of the production enterprises involved in the breeding, processing, transportation and other processes on the official certificate, including the breeding area, the name and registration number of the production enterprise.

The certificate is printed in Chinese and English. The format and content of the certificate must be approved by both parties in advance. The Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department should promptly provide the certificate sample, the official issuing agency seal and the handwriting of the signing official to GACC for filing. If there are changes in the content and format of the certificate sample, the official issuing agency seal and the handwriting of the signing official, the Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department should file with GACC at least one month before it takes effect.

 

VI. Packaging and labeling requirements

Farmed aquatic products exported to the Mainland should have outer packaging and separate inner packaging. The inner and outer packaging should be new materials that meet the standards of the Mainland and meet the requirements of preventing contamination by external factors.

The inner and outer packaging shall have firm, clear and legible Chinese labels indicating the following: product name and scientific name, specifications, production date, batch number, shelf life and storage conditions, production method (farming), production area (Hong Kong, China), all production enterprise names, registration numbers and addresses involved, and destination (must be marked "exported to mainland China").

Farmed aquatic products must be exported to the mainland in pre-packaged form, and the pre-packaged Chinese labels must comply with the mainland's import pre-packaged food label requirements.

 

VII. Other requirements

GACC implements inspection and quarantine on farmed aquatic products exported from Hong Kong to the mainland.

For unqualified products, GACC will return, destroy or otherwise handle them in accordance with mainland laws and regulations. For farms and production enterprises that have serious problems or have repeatedly encountered unqualified problems, GACC will take measures such as strengthening inspection and quarantine or suspending export to the mainland.

 

GACC

Jan. 7, 2025

 

Hong Kong adds new list of farmed aquatic products to be exported to the Mainland

 

Serial number	Chinese product name	Latin name	Outline	Order	division	Genus	kind	Processing method	Living waters (Sea water or fresh water)
1	Splendid Lobster	Panulirus ornatus	Soft Armor	Decapoda	Lobster family	Lobster	Splendid Lobster	freezing	Marine aquaculture
2	Ripple lobster	Panulirus homarus	Soft Armor	Decapoda	Lobster family	Lobster	Ripple lobster	freezing	Marine aquaculture
3	Chinese lobster	Panulirus stimpsoni	Soft Armor	Decapoda	Lobster family	Lobster	Chinese lobster	freezing	Marine aquaculture
4	Black croaker	Atrobucc a nibe	Actinopterygii	/	Sciaenidae	Melanogaster	Black croaker	freezing	Marine aquaculture
5	Red drum	Sciaenops ocellatus	Actinopterygii	/	Sciaenidae	Sciaenida	Red drum	freezing	Marine aquaculture
6	Brandt's Pomfret	Trachinotus blochii	Actinopterygii	Scorpiformes	Fish	Pomfret	Brandt's Pomfret	freezing	Marine aquaculture
7	Round-eyed swallowfish	Platax orbicularis	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	White Pomfretidae	Swallowfish	Round-eyed swallowfish	freezing	Marine aquaculture
8	Sea coyote	Rachycentron canadus	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Corytidae	Cory	Sea coyote	freezing	Marine aquaculture
9	Japanese sea bass	Lateolabrax japonicus	Osteichthyes	Perciformes	Euperchiidae	Leptospermum	Japanese sea bass	freezing	Marine aquaculture
10	Banded sea bream	Hapalogenys mucronatus	Actinopterygii	Sessiliformes	Odonata	Odonata	Banded sea bream	freezing	Marine aquaculture
11	Blackfin snapper	Hapalogenys nigripinnis	Actinopterygii	Sessiliformes	Odonata	Odonata	Blackfin snapper	freezing	Marine aquaculture
12	Flat snapper	Rhabdosargus sarba	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Sparidae	Flatfish	Flat snapper	freezing	Marine aquaculture
13	Gill perch	Plectropomus leopardus	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Serranidae	Gnaphalostria	Gill perch	freezing	Marine aquaculture
14	Blue fish	Siganus guttatus	Actinopterygii	/	Bluefish	Bluefish	Blue fish	freezing	Marine aquaculture
15	Pinctada martensii	Pinctada fucata	Bivalvia	Pearl Oysters	Pearl mussel family	Pearl clam	Pinctada martensii	freezing	Marine aquaculture
16	Chlamys farreri	Mimachlamys nobilis	Bivalvia	Pearl Oysters	Scallopidae	Chlamys farreri	Chlamys farreri	freezing	Marine aquaculture
17	Epinephelus spicata	Epinephelus cyanopodus	Osteichthyes	Perciformes	Serranidae	Epinephelus	Epinephelus spicata	freezing	Marine aquaculture
18	Mullet	Mugil cephalus	Actinopterygii	Mugilformes	Mugilidae	Mullet	Mullet	freezing	Freshwater aquaculture
19	Australian jewel bass	Scortum barcoo	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Carp	Dermacentor	Australian jewel bass	freezing	Freshwater aquaculture
20	Nile Carassius auratus	Oreochromis niloticus	Actinopterygii	Cichlidae	Cichlidae	Mouth-brooding Carassius	Nile Carassius auratus	freezing	Freshwater aquaculture
twenty one	Mozambique mouth-hatched African carp	Oreochromis mossambicus	Actinopterygii	Cichlidae	Cichlidae	Mouth-brooding Carassius	Mozambique mouth-hatched African carp	freezing	Freshwater aquaculture
twenty two	Red Tilapia	Oreochromis niloticus X Oreochromis mossambicus	Actinopterygii	Cichlidae	Cichlidae	Mouth-brooding Carassius	Red Tilapia	freezing	Freshwater aquaculture
twenty three	Gilthead Bream	Sparus aurata	Actinopterygii	Spariformes	Sparidae	Sparus	Gilthead Bream	freezing	Marine aquaculture
twenty four	White star snapper	Lutjanus stellatus	Actinopterygii	Lutjanidae	Lutjanidae	Lutjanus	White star snapper	freezing	Marine aquaculture

Note: The types of farmed aquatic products in the above catalogue can be added or deleted after confirmation by both parties through formal letters. After the catalogue is changed, no separate announcement will be issued. The "Catalogue of Foods Exported to China from Countries or Regions that Meet the Assessment and Review Requirements and Have Traditional Trade" published by the General Administration of Customs shall prevail.