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How to supervise the import of health food?
source：http://www.jtia56.cn time：2023-10-10 16:47:23
1、 Definition of health food
Definition of health food: Food that claims to have specific health functions or is intended to supplement vitamins and minerals. Food that is suitable for specific populations to consume, has the function of regulating the body, is not aimed at treating diseases, and does not cause any acute, subacute, or chronic harm to the human body. (GB16740-2014 National Food Safety Standard for Health Food)
Health food is suitable for specific groups of people to regulate body functions, and the product manual should be labeled as "suitable for" or "unsuitable for".
It is worth noting that pregnant women, lactating mothers, and young children are the most frequently referred to as' unsuitable groups' in health food instructions.
2、 Health food management
Product registration and filing
The Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that the state shall strictly supervise and manage health food. The most important measure is to implement registration and filing management for health food.
1. Product registration
Health food that uses ingredients other than those listed in the health food raw material catalog, and first-time imported health food (excluding health food that supplements vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients) should apply for health food registration with the State Administration for Market Regulation.
The first imported health food refers to health food that is not from the same country, enterprise, or formula and has been applied for marketing in China.
2. Product Filing
The raw materials used in health food that have been included in the health food raw material catalog and the first imported health food that supplements vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients shall be filed with the State Administration for Market Regulation in accordance with the law.
3、 Functional Catalogue of Health Food
At present, among the health foods approved for registration and filing by regulatory authorities in accordance with the law, there are a total of 27 claimed health functions (see the table below), as well as nutrient supplements that supplement vitamins and minerals.
4、 Customs clearance and supervision of imported health food
Import through general trade channels
The customs implements conformity assessment on imported health food, including: assessment and review of food safety systems in overseas countries (regions), registration of overseas production enterprises, registration and certification of importers and exporters, approval of imported animal and plant quarantine, inspection of accompanying certificates of conformity, document review, on-site inspection, supervision and sampling, inspection of import and sales records, and combinations of various items.
According to the Announcement on the Implementation of Online Verification of Five Regulatory Documents, including the Registration Certificate of Special Medical Purpose Formula Food (Announcement No. 142 of the General Administration of Customs and the State Administration of Market Regulation in 2018), customs implements online verification of the Registration Certificate of Health Food or the Filing Certificate of Health Food during the customs clearance process.
Import through cross-border e-commerce channels
It should be noted that cross-border e-commerce imports of health food comply with the relevant quality, safety, hygiene, environmental protection, labeling and other standards or technical specifications of the country (region) of origin, but may differ from Chinese standards. Additionally, as the product is directly purchased from overseas and may not have a Chinese label, consumers can view the product's Chinese electronic label through the website.
5、 Suggestions for purchasing imported health food
Look at the sign
Consumers should pay attention to the "blue hat" health food special label on regular health food when purchasing, with approval marked below
Thank you for reading. If you have any import related questions, please feel free to contact our company.
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