I. Which food exports must be handled through a professional agency?

Under the latest 2025 international trade rules, the following three categories of food are recommended for mandatory professional agency representation:

• Food subject to special regulatory oversight
  • Infant and Follow-on Formula (registration with the General Administration of Customs of China for overseas production enterprises is required)
  • Health-functional foods (must be certified by the FDA or an equivalent authority in the target country)
  • Irradiated food (proof of irradiation treatment must be provided)
• High-risk perishable foods
  • Fresh dairy products (full-process cold-chain logistics required)
  • Frozen seafood (health certificate and catch certificate required)
  • Ready-to-eat prepared foods (stringent microbiological testing requirements)
• Categories involving intellectual property protection
  • Geographical Indication products (such as French Champagne and Italian Parma ham)
  • Patented formula food (intellectual property authorization documents required)

II. How to Choose Between Self-operated Export and Agency Export?

We recommend that companies evaluate from three dimensions:

• Completeness of Qualifications

  Taking the export of seasonings to the EU as an example, the following must be met simultaneously:

  • HACCP Certification (FSMA Compliance Requirements Added in 2025)
  • E-number food additive registration
  • Non-GMO Certificate (for soy products, etc.)
• cost control capability

  Case of a Nut Exporter: Self-built overseas warehouse incurs annual maintenance costs of about $1.2 million, while the agent-shared warehouse model can save 67%.

• risk tolerance threshold

  In 2023, a tea company had an entire container detained because its labels did not comply with the new FDA regulations, resulting in losses exceeding $300,000.

III. Core Service Offerings of a Professional Food Agency

• Compliance Services
  • U.S. FDA Food Facility Registration (renewed every even-numbered year)
  • EU TRACES System Pre-Notification of Goods
  • Japan Positive List System Compliance Review
• Logistics Optimization Plan

  A certain quick-frozen food company through an agentMultimodal transportation solution, transportation lead time improved by 40%, and the loss rate reduced to 1.2%

• Tariff Planning Services

  RCEP member countries can enjoy up to a 12% tariff reduction on food exports, subject to professional HS code classification.

IV. Selecting Food輸出代理店5 Key Precautions

• Verification AgencyEntry and Exit検疫検査Filing Number
• Confirm whether it is availableCold Chain Logistics Monitoring System
• Provide as requestedExport cases within the same category(e.g., the 2024 case of exporting condiments to Southeast Asia)
• ClearLiability Allocation for Quality Incidents(especially cases such as microbial contamination exceeding limits)
• Verificationoverseas通関capability(Some countries require a locally licensed customs broker)

V. 2025 Food輸出代理店Fee Reference Standards

The standard agency fee ranges from 3% to 8% of the cargo value, depending on:

• Complexity of certification documents (e.g., Halal certification incurs an additional 1.5% surcharge)
• Special Packaging Requirements (EU EPR Packaging Law Compliance Costs)
• Target market risk level (African countries generally add a 0.5–1% risk-control fee)