Announcement on the requirements of imported Panama wild aquatic products inspection and quarantine
In accordance with Chinese laws and regulations and the veterinary health and quarantine requirements for the export of Panamanian wild aquatic products to China as agreed between the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Panama, the import of Panamanian wild aquatic products that meet the following requirements is now permitted:
I. Basis for Inspection and Quarantine
1. Laws and Implementation Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Entry and Exit Animal and Plant Quarantine, and Laws and Implementation Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Import and Export Commodity Inspection, and Food Safety Laws and its Implementation Regulations.
2. Administrative Measures for the Safety Management of Imported and Exported Foods and Regulations on the Registration Management of Overseas Producers of Imported Foods in the People's Republic of China.
3. The Protocol between the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Panama on Veterinary Health and Quarantine Requirements for Panamanian Wild Aquatic Products Exported to China (hereinafter referred to as the "Protocol").
II. Scope of Imported Products
Wild aquatic products refer to wild, human-consumable aquatic animal products and their derivatives, excluding species listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) appendices and the List of Key Protected Wild Animals of China (LSKPWA), live aquatic animals, and aquatic breeding materials.
III. Production Enterprise Requirements
Enterprises exporting wild aquatic products to China (including processing enterprises, fishing vessels, transport vessels, processing vessels, and independent cold storage) should be officially approved by Panama and be effectively supervised. Their sanitary conditions should comply with the veterinary health and public health laws and regulations of both China and Panama.
According to Chinese laws and regulations, enterprises exporting wild aquatic products to China should be recommended for registration by Panama's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and Ministry of Health (hereinafter referred to as the Panamanian side) to the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Chinese side). Enterprises not registered are not permitted to export to China.
IV. Requirements for Imported Products
The Panamanian side should ensure that the exported wild aquatic products to China meet the following conditions:
1. Legally caught in domestic or international waters.
2. Neither the raw materials nor the products are from areas affected by:
- Aquatic animal diseases listed in China's Entry Animal Quarantine Disease Directory or as required to be reported by the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) that could potentially infect the exported products.
- Significant food safety incidents in Panama that have or may affect the products.
- Serious violations of Chinese and Panamanian laws and regulations and the provisions of the Protocol.
- Major public health incidents, such as employee infections with significant communicable diseases, which have or could contaminate the products, their packaging, or transport.
- Waters polluted by contaminants, such as radioactive substances, which have or could contaminate the products.
3. Neither directly nor indirectly used banned drugs or additives by both sides and adhered to the regulations for the use of restricted or permitted drugs or additives. Upon inspection by competent authorities, no pathogenic microorganisms, toxic substances, or foreign matters listed in Chinese and Panamanian laws and regulations have been found.
4. All products exported to China have been inspected and quarantined by competent authorities, are sanitary, safe, fit for human consumption, show no signs of infectious diseases or parasitic diseases, and have no aquatic animal diseases that need to be reported as per the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) or listed in China's Entry Animal Quarantine Disease Directory.
5. The entire process from catching, processing, packaging, storing, transporting, transshipping to exporting should meet the sanitary and traceability requirements of both sides, as well as the relevant safety and health requirements for cold chain.
V. Certificate Requirements
Each container of wild aquatic products exported from Panama to China should be accompanied by at least one original veterinary (health) certificate, certifying that the batch of products complies with the veterinary and public health laws and regulations of both China and Panama and the provisions of the Protocol. The Panamanian side should complete the certificate with details of all involved production enterprises throughout the entire process, including processing plants, fishing vessels, transport vessels, processing vessels, and independent cold storage facilities, with their names and registration numbers, ensuring no omission of any involved enterprises.
The certificate should be printed in Chinese, English, and Spanish (English is mandatory when filling out the certificate). The format and content of the certificate must be approved by both sides in advance. The Panamanian side should promptly provide the Chinese side with sample certificates, official issuing institution seals, and signatures of officials for record-keeping. If there are changes in the certificate's content and format, the official issuing institution's seal, or the official's handwriting, the Panamanian side should provide the updated records to the Chinese side at least one month before they take effect.
VI. Packaging and Labeling Requirements
Panamanian wild aquatic products exported to China should have external and individual internal packaging. Both types of packaging should be made of brand-new materials that meet international sanitary standards and prevent contamination from external factors.
Both internal and external packaging should have labels in Chinese and English or Chinese and Spanish, including product name and scientific name, specifications, production date, shelf life, batch number, storage conditions, production method (wild-caught), producer name and registration number, production area and producer address (specific to state/province/city), and destination (marked as the People's Republic of China).
Prepackaged wild aquatic products exported to China should have Chinese labels that comply with China's imported prepackaged food labeling requirements.
VII. Other Requirements
China Customs will carry out import inspection and quarantine procedures on wild aquatic products exported from Panama to China.
For non-compliant products, measures such as return, destruction, or other treatments will be implemented according to Chinese laws and regulations. For producers with serious issues or multiple non-compliance incidents, the Chinese side may enhance inspection and quarantine measures or suspend imports.
This is hereby announced.
General Administration of Customs
October 16, 2023
