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What procedures are required for exporting food products as an agent?
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TRACKING NO. 20260130 / GLOBAL Zhongshen Trade · 23+ Years of Expert Trade Agency
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This is our trading company's first time acting as an agent for food exports, and our client is a wholesaler in Southeast Asia. We'd like to ask: What procedures are required from the domestic factory to the overseas client? Especially for food products, we've heard that the regulatory requirements are very strict, and we're worried that any omission during the process might lead to the goods being seized.
Evelyn LiYears of service：3Customer Rating：5.0
Cross-border Compliance SupervisorStart a Chat
When exporting food products as an agent，the key lies in addressing three critical compliance issues。
1. Factory Qualifications: Ensure the manufacturer has completed the "Registration of Export Food Production Enterprises"，which is a mandatory prerequisite for customs and inspection authorities。
2. Product Access Requirements: Verify the regulatory conditions corresponding to the HS code，such as whether animal/plant inspections，food hygiene certificates，or other approvals are needed。
3. Destination Country Requirements: Southeast Asian countries have varying standards—Indonesia requires BPOM registration，Malaysia mandates JAKIM certification for halal products，and Thailand requires Thai-language label registration。
We recommend conducting a pre-export product compliance assessment with the local customs authority after obtaining the factory’s production license and ingredient list. This helps avoid delays due to regulatory issues after the goods are ready for shipment。
Particular attention should be paid to shelf life requirements: Food exports typically have long shelf lives，so it’s advisable to reserve at least two-thirds of the shelf life period before shipping the goods.
Linda GaoYears of service：7Customer Rating：5.0
Documentation SupervisorStart a Chat
When exporting food for the first time, the most critical logistics aspects are temperature control and document coordination. For ocean freight, it’s essential to book refrigerated containers or ventilated containers, especially for high-temperature and high-humidity routes in Southeast Asia. For Incoterms, we recommend selecting CIF, as this allows you to control the freight forwarder and avoid clients appointing agents with poor customs clearance capabilities, which could lead to delays at ports. Regarding documents, the three essentials are: inspection and quarantine clearance documents, health certificates, and certificates of origin. The health certificate takes around 5 working days to issue, so it’s crucial to arrange this in advance. During customs declaration, the production date and batch number must match the health certificate exactly—even a single character mismatch could trigger inspections. Additionally, food inspection rates are high, so we recommend allowing an extra 3-5 days of buffer time. Cost-wise, note that refrigerated containers have a detention fee three times higher than regular containers. When booking space, ensure the free detention period is at least 14 days.
Jason WuYears of service：10Customer Rating：5.0
International Logistics & Supply Chain ManagerStart a Chat
As an agent, the core of business negotiations is to clearly define responsibilities and boundaries. For payment terms, it is recommended to insist on a 30% deposit plus 70% upon presentation of the bill of lading copy. Never get sidetracked by clients' "delivery upon receipt" rhetoric - we simply cannot afford the losses of clients refusing to accept goods after arrival. The contract must explicitly state: You are solely responsible for ensuring domestic export procedures comply with regulations, while the destination country's entry risks (e.g., insufficient client clearance capacity, local standard changes) are borne by the client. When communicating with clients, use phrases like "We will track the inspection progress throughout the entire process and promptly notify you of any abnormalities" to demonstrate professionalism and responsibility. For first-time collaborations, actively propose "starting with a small trial order for the first batch to validate the process before scaling up production". This not only reduces client decision-making pressure but also helps you control trial and error costs. Remember to request the factory to provide screenshots of the registered food production enterprise, which serves as solid evidence to convince clients of your "reliable supply chain".