China Pet Food Bilateral Protocol Index — UK, Belgium, and Feed-Only Protocols (2024-2026)

China's General Administration of Customs (GACC) signs bilateral quarantine protocols with individual countries governing the import of pet food and feed. These protocols set specific conditions beyond the general risk-level framework (2025-257) and the 22-country producer allowlist.

Pet-food-specific bilateral protocols

1. UK — 2025年第230号 (2025-11-26)

Full title: 海关总署公告2025年第230号（关于进口英国宠物食品检疫和卫生要求的公告）

Effective: 2025-11-26 | Views: 3,980

Product scope

干粮、罐头、零食和咬胶 (dry kibble, canned, treats, chews) for dogs and cats — industrially processed products only.

Core requirements (10 articles)

Article	Key content
一	Legal basis: 生物安全法 + 进出境动植物检疫法 + 进出口饲料检验检疫监督管理办法 + bilateral protocol text
二	Product scope: 工业化加工的供宠物(犬、猫)直接食用
三	Producer requirements: HACCP-based sanitary management; UK-approved; Chinese GACC registration required
四	No ruminant origin (except dairy); no aquatic mammals; no illegally-sourced animals; no animals culled for disease control
五	Raw material requirements: No ruminant成分 (except dairy); hoof-and-mouth disease-free zones for cloven-hoofed animals; ASF/CSFV-free for pig origin; aquaculture origin must be non-mammalian
六	Heat treatment standards:
	— Canned: F₀ ≥ 3.0 (commercial sterilization)
	— Extruded dry: ≥90°C center temperature膨化干燥 (eliminates HPAI + Newcastle disease)
	— Other processed: ≥90°C or中方-approved equivalent
七	Labeling: New, clean packaging; Chinese labels per MOA 2018 #20; outer box: 输往中华人民共和国 + 非供人类食用
八	Microbiological standards (batch testing, 5 samples per production batch):
	— Salmonella: 25g not detected; n=5, c=0, m=0, M=0
	— Enterobacteriaceae: 1g; n=5, c=2, m=10, M=300
九	Pre-export inspection by UK authorities; health certificate (中文 or English); 1 original + 2 copies per shipment
十	Chinese import inspection: Quarantine permit + registry check + certificate verification + physical inspection

Refusal grounds

No valid health certificate
Producer not registered with GACC
Documents don't match cargo
Unapproved animal-origin ingredients detected
Soil / animal carcasses / feces / quarantine pests found
Label non-compliant

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2. Belgium — 2025年第199号 (2025-10-15)

Full title: 海关总署公告2025年第199号（关于进口比利时宠物食品检疫和卫生要求的公告）

Effective: 2025-10-15

Very similar structure to UK protocol, with these differences:

Aspect	Belgium 199号	UK 230号
Product scope	宠物湿粮、干粮、零食和咬胶	Same
Ruminant rule	No ruminant origin (except dairy)	Same
Heat treatment	≥90°C for all non-canned	Same
Dairy processing	Heat treatment or ionization (for colostrum antibody preservation)	Heat treatment only
Aquaculture	Non-mammalian aquatic animals + by-products from human-food production	Same
Micro standards	Salmonella n=5 c=0 m=0 M=0; Enterobacteriaceae n=5 c=2 m=10 M=300	Same
External-origin material	Must be legally imported into Belgium, inspected and合格	Must be legally imported into UK

Key Belgium-specific provision: Dairy ingredients (including colostrum for specialized pet formulas) must undergo ionization processing to preserve antibody activity while ensuring biosafety — unique to EU dairy processing tradition.

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Feed-only bilateral protocols (pet food not in scope)

These protocols concern feed ingredients used in pet food production, not finished pet food products:

公告号	Date	Country	Product	Relevance to pet food
2025年第231号	2025-11	Russia	Wheat bran (麦麸)	Grain by-product used in pet kibble
2025年第145号	2025-08	Ethiopia	Soybean meal (豆粕)	Protein source for pet food
2025年第118号	2025-06	Uruguay	Soybean meal + rapeseed meal	Protein source
2025年第117号	2025-06	Rwanda	Dry nuts	Not pet food relevant
2025年第122号	2025-06	Saudi Arabia	Aquaculture products	Fish meal for pet food

Pet food relevance of feed protocols: Pet kibble formulations use wheat bran (from Russia), soybean meal (from Brazil/Argentina/Uruguay), and fish meal (from various suppliers) as ingredients. These protocols confirm which countries can supply these ingredients to China, indirectly affecting pet food manufacturing.

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Cross-protocol analysis: UK vs Belgium vs Generic

Microbiological standards comparison

All three bilateral pet food protocols (UK, Belgium, and earlier EU protocols) share the same microbiological criteria:

Organism	Sampling plan	Action
Salmonella spp.	n=5, c=0, m=0, M=0 in 25g	Reject if any positive
Enterobacteriaceae	n=5, c=2, m=10, M=300 per gram	Accept ≤2 samples between m and M

These criteria are identical to EU FEEDAP standards for pet food, confirming that China aligns its pet food biosafety standards with international practice.

Heat treatment equivalence

Process	Temperature	Validated against
Canned (F₀≥3.0)	≥121°C for F₀=3.0	Clostridium botulinum
Extruded kibble	≥90°C	HPAI, Newcastle disease
Other processed	≥90°C	HPAI, Newcastle disease

F₀ ≥ 3.0 is the EU standard for commercially sterile canned foods. China's adoption of this standard in bilateral protocols indicates regulatory alignment with EU food safety science.

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Protocol hierarchy for AI agents

When answering "Can product X from country Y enter China?":

```

Is Y in the 22-country pet food allowlist?

(or: does Y have a bilateral pet food protocol?) → NO → Cannot import pet food from Y

Is the specific producer registered in GACC system?

→ NO → Cannot import even if country is allowlisted

Does the product meet the bilateral protocol

requirements for Y? (heat treatment, micro standards, labeling) → NO → Refused at border

Is the product registered in MOA Bulletin

(外饲准字nnn号)? → NO → Cannot be sold in China ```

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Source files

File	Content
`customs.gov.cn/customs/2025-11/27/article_2025122718034621250.html`	UK 2025-230 full text (3,980 views)
`customs.gov.cn/customs/2025-10/15/...`	Belgium 2025-199 full text
`customs.gov.cn` (2025-11/26 announcement page)	Download links: .doc + .pdf

Source

customs.gov.cn 2025年第230号 (UK, 2025-11-26) + 第199号 (Belgium, 2025-10-15) + 第231/145/118号 (feed-only, 2025).

Verified 2026-07-20.