Importing pet food into China? This covers GACC factory registration, import registration, labeling and bonded storage, plus a compliance checklist.
Pet ownership keeps growing in China, and imported pet food sells well. In 2024 the urban dog-and-cat consumer market reached RMB 300.2 billion, up 7.5% year on year and the first time it passed RMB 300 billion (Paw Data's 2025 China Pet Industry White Paper). The momentum continued: by 2025 the market reached RMB 312.6 billion, up 4.1%, with 126 million urban dogs and cats and pet food alone accounting for 53.7% of pet spending, and Paw Data projects about RMB 405 billion by 2028 (Paw Data's 2026 China Pet Industry White Paper). Import volumes are rising, but pet food is not an ordinary product: it is classified as animal feed, supervision is strict, overseas factories must be registered, and labels follow specific rules. This article explains the entry requirements, the bonded-warehouse workflow and the operating details. Treat current GACC and MARA (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs) publications as authoritative, and note that policies prevail as officially published by the General Administration of Customs.
Imported Pet Food Compliance: Three Gates to Pass
Three gates stand between an overseas pet food brand and the Chinese market. First, the country of origin and feed category must be on the customs access list. GACC runs a registration system for overseas producers that export pet food to China: a producer must be examined and recommended by its home authority before it is added to the list of eligible feed producers. As of April 2025, 23 countries and regions were approved to export pet food to China (REACH24H citing the GACC access list). The list is still opening up: in November 2025, GACC Announcement No. 230 of 2025 set out quarantine and hygiene requirements for pet food imported from the United Kingdom.
Second, the product needs an Import Registration Certificate from MARA, under MARA Announcement No. 20 of 2018 and the Pet Feed Administration Measures. Third, labels must follow the Pet Feed Labeling Rules, including a complete Chinese label on imported packs, with product name, ingredients, nutritional guarantees and feeding instructions stated per the rules.
Costs sit on top of the paperwork. Since January 1, 2025, the provisional import tariff on canned pet food rose from 4% to 10% (State Council Tariff Commission's 2025 Tariff Adjustment Plan). Higher tariffs, more gates and a longer chain are exactly why a bonded warehouse helps. Import data shows why brands keep pushing: in the first half of 2025, China imported more than 23,380 tonnes of non-canned pet food (HS 23091090), with the United States alone supplying 89.5% of that volume, followed by Italy, Spain and New Zealand (GACC statistics via Foodmate, August 2025). Canned pet food is a chronic import category too, running a cumulative trade deficit of about USD 310 million over the past five years (Yiou Think Tank, 2025).
What a Bonded Warehouse Offers: Deferred Duty and a Compliance Buffer
The core value of bonded pet-food storage is deferred duty. Goods enter a Shanghai bonded warehouse in bonded status without paying import-stage taxes; duty is settled batch by batch when goods are declared for domestic sale or switched to general trade. For a brand holding large, high-value inventory, this keeps a meaningful amount of working capital in hand for months.
A concrete case: a brand importing 20,000 cans of wet food a quarter, paying the new 10% tariff, can leave every batch in bonded status until the e-commerce or distribution order is ready. Instead of paying duty on arrival and waiting for sell-through, the brand settles tax only on what actually leaves the zone — cash stays in the business for the whole storage cycle. In-zone, warehouses can also run value-added work such as Chinese label application, kitting and repackaging, so goods do not have to leave and re-enter the zone.
The second benefit is a compliance buffer. Factory registration status, import certificates and label content can all be checked and corrected inside the zone before duty is paid. Documents are sorted out first, then declared, which cuts clearance uncertainty. With temperature-controlled space, kibble and canned lines that are sensitive to heat and humidity get stable storage. Bird's nest and tonics, which also depend on overseas registration and traceability codes, can follow the same bonded route — see bonded storage for bird's nest and tonics for the compliance essentials.
Workflow and Compliance Checklist
A typical bonded flow looks like this: the overseas factory completes registration, the importer prepares certificates and labels, goods enter the zone in bonded status, labeling and kitting run inside, then goods are declared and released order by order. Responsibilities differ by step, so a checklist helps.
| Step | Requirement | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| Factory registration | On GACC access list, producer registered | Overseas factory |
| Import certificate | MARA Import Registration Certificate | Importer |
| Chinese label | Follows Pet Feed Labeling Rules, complete | Importer |
| Bonded entry | Stored in bonded status, duty deferred | Bonded warehouse |
| Inspection | Declared and inspected per quarantine rules | Customs/importer |
| Climate storage | Stable temperature for kibble and canned lines | Bonded warehouse |
| Release | Declared and released in batches, then picked | Bonded warehouse |
Labeling deserves special attention because it fails so often. The Chinese label on imported pet food must be complete and compliant before customs release, and corrections are cheaper inside a bonded zone than after clearance — a label rework in-zone means reprinting and re-sticking, while a failed outbound declaration means returns, demurrage and consumer complaints. If you are launching or re-stocking an imported pet food line, contact us to review your registration status, labels and bonded stocking plan before you book the vessel.
FAQ: Imported Pet Food Storage Questions
Does imported pet food really require overseas factory registration? Yes. Without registration the goods cannot be declared for import normally. The exact scope follows current GACC publications.
How many countries are approved to export pet food to China? 23 countries and regions as of April 2025 (REACH24H citing the GACC access list), with the UK added in November 2025 (GACC Announcement No. 230 of 2025). Policies prevail as officially published by the General Administration of Customs.
Where does most imported pet food come from? The United States supplied 89.5% of non-canned pet food imports in the first half of 2025, followed by Italy, Spain and New Zealand (GACC statistics via Foodmate, August 2025).
What is the difference between a bonded and a general warehouse for pet food? A general warehouse holds duty-paid goods. A bonded warehouse holds duty-unpaid goods, defers taxes and supports in-zone labeling and kitting.
Can pet food be stored in a temperature-controlled warehouse? Yes. Kibble and canned products sensitive to heat and humidity do better in a stable climate; our 1,000m² facility runs 18-25°C with 40-60% automatic humidity control.
How is bonded storage charged? By area, throughput and value-added services; final pricing is based on actual quotation and subject to our quotation.
Store Imported Pet Food Compliantly and Save, Starting with the Right Warehouse
Yunxiu (Shanghai) Information Technology Co., Ltd., founded on May 22, 2015, operates a 4,170m² bonded warehouse, a 1,500m² non-bonded warehouse and a 1,000m² temperature-controlled facility, holding AEO Advanced Certification, ISO9001, Class-A freight-forwarder and supervised-bonded-warehouse qualifications. Filing takes 3 working days, entry 1 working day, sorting 24 hours. Pet food stored here can be labeled and kitted in-zone. Free consultation: +86 18917757529 / jaysun@yun-xiu.cn — ask for a bonded pet food storage plan, read about overseas factory registration, or check the import labeling compliance guide.
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This article was written by the Yunxiu Supply Chain Research Center. Policy content subject to official GACC and MARA publications. Data updated to 2026.
