fbpx
DB Schenker - Now That's Logistics
  • English
    • Français
  • Insights
  • Shipping & Logistics
  • Digitalization
  • Trade
  • Industries
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Automotive
    • Beverages
    • Chemical
    • Consumer
    • Electronics
    • Fashion & Retail
    • Healthcare & Pharma
    • Industrial
    • Marine Parts
    • Oil & Gas
    • Semi Conductor & Solar
No Result
View All Result
  • Insights
  • Shipping & Logistics
  • Digitalization
  • Trade
  • Industries
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Automotive
    • Beverages
    • Chemical
    • Consumer
    • Electronics
    • Fashion & Retail
    • Healthcare & Pharma
    • Industrial
    • Marine Parts
    • Oil & Gas
    • Semi Conductor & Solar
No Result
View All Result
DB Schenker - Now That's Logistics
No Result
View All Result
Home Shipping & Logistics Customs Services

Three Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate

February 2, 2017
3 Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

This post is also available in: French

When you give someone chocolates for Valentine’s Day, you want those sweets to melt their hearts. What you don’t want is for those chocolates to melt out on the dock while U.S. Customs & Border Control and/or the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) decide whether to let them into the country or not.

Valentine’s Day is big business. On average, 62% of American adults celebrate the holiday, which generates $448 million in candy sales alone during the week leading up to the big event. Chocolate gets the biggest piece of that pie, so to speak, with merchants selling 58 million pounds of the confection ensconced in 36 million heart-shaped boxes to starry-eyed lovebirds, according to History.com.

3 Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate

Know the Rules 

For companies that are shipping chocolate right now, time is of the essence when getting the goods into stores and/or directly to recipients. “Because chocolate is a food product, the federal government oversees its safety not only to ensure that the products are consumable,” says Heather Burke, Schenker, Inc.’s director of regulatory compliance, “but also in terms of potential terrorist-related acts related to the nation’s food supply.”

And while they may seem innocuous enough when nestled in their paper candy cups and drizzled with caramel, chocolates are treated just like any other food product as they make their way into the country. Because of this, Burke says it’s critical that importers use the right documentation—and that all product descriptions are clear and accurate—or risk having their precious cargo spoil while regulatory agencies decide how to handle it.

Top Three Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate

If you’re concerned about potential delays or freight rejections for your chocolate shipments, here are the three most important factors you need to be aware of:

1) Educate yourself on the food import process. Because chocolate is an FDA-regulated product, when imported into the U.S. it must comply with the same FDA laws and regulations that apply to domestic products. Entries are submitted to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which then refers entries of FDA-regulated products to them for review.

The FDA divides the standards of identity for chocolate and chocolate ingredients into the following categories:

    • Chocolate liquor
    • Sweet chocolate
    • Milk chocolate
    • Buttermilk chocolate
    • Skim milk chocolate
    • Mixed dairy product chocolate
    • Bittersweet chocolate

Within each of these sections, the FDA states requirements regarding the formulation of each type of chocolate, such as the milk and sugar content that the chocolate must have to be classified into each category as well as restrictions as to what ingredients may be added to the product. Note that there isn’t a separate category for dark chocolate, and confusion about this sometimes causes import delays.

2) File your prior notices accurately and on time. Since 2003, food importers have been required to provide the FDA with advance notice of human and animal food shipments imported or offered for import. This allows the FDA, CBP, and other government agencies to conduct (and target) import inspections more efficiently while helping to protect our food supply against potential public health issues, acts of terrorism, and so forth.

3), and factor in the FSMA. More recently, the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) shifted the focus of federal regulators from responding to contamination to preventing it. In 2011 the FDA published an interim final rule requiring that a person submitting prior notice of imported food to report the name of any country to which the article has been refused entry.

When entry is made for FDA-regulated products, importers or their customs brokers must also include the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) code in the entry submission. This classification code is used to provide the applicable tariff rates and statistical categories for all merchandise imported into the U.S., and is based on the International Harmonized System. (See the U.S. International Trade Commission HTS page for more information.)

Avoid Costly Delays
Entry submissions containing incomplete or inaccurate information are flagged for manual review by the FDA. The FDA’s screening tool uses various sources of information to assess risk; for example, a firm’s previous compliance history or known compliance problems with a certain product.

“FDA entry reviewers look for complete and accurate data in the entry submissions,” according to the agency’s website. “Providing FDA with complete and accurate data expedites the review of your entry.”

By understanding the rules and process of importing perishable food products such as chocolate, you can ensure that your precious cargo will get to market on-time rather than literally melting on the dock. And romantics will thank you – after-all, some 36 million Americans agree that nothing says “I love you” like a heart-shaped box of chocolates!

 

Tags: Customs
Next Post

Retail Supply Chain Conference 2017

RECOMMENDED

Top 15 Ports in The Americas

Top 15 Ports in The Americas

March 16, 2018
Top 15 Ports in the Americas 2019

Top 15 Ports in the Americas 2019

June 24, 2019
USA, CCO Bill Heaney

Thought Leadership Updates with Bill Heaney

May 16, 2022
Top 2022 Ocean Shipping Trends and How to Navigate them

Top 2022 Ocean Shipping Trends and How to Navigate them

March 23, 2022

TRENDING

The Top Air Cargo Airports in the US

The Top 10 Freight Airports in the US

March 12, 2019
Managing the 180-Degree Shift in Land Transportation Dynamics

Managing the 180-Degree Shift in Land Transportation Dynamics

May 4, 2022
Thought Leadership Updates with David Buss

Thought Leadership Updates with David Buss

May 9, 2022
3 Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate

Three Things You Need to Know about Importing Chocolate

February 2, 2017
The Port of Vancouver — What Drives Canada’s Busiest Gateway

The Port of Vancouver — What Drives Canada’s Busiest Gateway

December 13, 2018
DB Schenker

DB Schenker is the world's leading global logistics provider, delivering over 150 years of premium performance and transportation solutions. One call gets our customers on the fast track to nearly 2,000 locations in all of the world's most important economic regions.

Contact Us

United States
+1 (800) 225-5229 (in USA)
+1 (602) 458-6200 (outside USA)
www.dbschenkerusa.com
Canada
+1 905 676 0676
www.dbschenker.ca

Categories

Visit Us

• DB Schenker Americas
• DB Schenker Canada
• DB Schenker Careers
• DB Schenker USA
• Trade Advisory Solutions

Follow Us

• LinkedIn
• Twitter USA
• Twitter Canada
• Facebook

© 2020 Schenker Americas, Inc. | Privacy Policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Insights
  • Shipping & Logistics
  • Digitalization
  • Trade
  • Industries
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Automotive
    • Beverages
    • Chemical
    • Consumer
    • Electronics
    • Fashion & Retail
    • Healthcare & Pharma
    • Industrial
    • Marine Parts
    • Oil & Gas
    • Semi Conductor & Solar
  • pt-br Português
  • fr Français
  • es Español
  • en English

© 2020 Schenker Americas, Inc. | Privacy Policy

We use cookies in order to optimize our website and continually improve it. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. You can find further information on cookies in our privacy policy. Accept
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT