Browse Data and Analysis

Under a new policy, importers of wine and distilled spirits whose domestic agents are registered within the Shanghai Free Trade Zone are no longer required to register the U.S. producer name and brand as a trademark in China prior to commercial sales.

On October 18, 2024, China notified National Food Safety Standard for Sterilized Milk Amendment No. 1 to the World Trade Organization (WTO) under G/SPS/N/CHN/1322.

FAS/Tokyo projects that Japan's fluid milk production will decline in 2025, primarily due to a decrease in the milking cow population anticipated from 2024.

China continued to be the world’s largest food importing country in 2023, with total food imports valued at $140 billion. The United States was the 4th largest source of China’s imports of consumer-oriented agricultural products in 2023.

U.S. pet food exports to China have grown with the increasing number of registered facilities and approved import licenses. The largest share of Chinese pet owners lives in second-tier cities, with export opportunities for U.S. pet food brands that want to reach more of the Chinese market.

The retail industry in Japan remained stable despite the continued strength of the U.S. dollar vs. the Japanese yen. To drive demand, retailers have strategically targeted the younger generation who seek easy-to-prepare, frozen, and ready-to-eat foods.

The National Health Commission (NHC) and the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR) published the National Food Safety Standard for “Sanitary Practices for The Production of Cooked Meat Products” (GB 19303-2023) on September 6, 2023.

China notified the National Food Safety Standard: Cooked Meat Products (draft for comments) to the WTO Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures as G/SPS/N/CHN/1313 on July 11, 2024.

On August 21, 2024, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) announced that it had initiated an anti-subsidy (i.e., countervailing duty or CVD) investigation on imports of certain dairy products originating from the European Union.

On July 11, 2024, China notified draft National Food Safety Standard for Cakes and Bread to the World Trade Organization (WTO) under G/SPS/N/CHN/1304.

On July 11, 2024, China notified revisions to the draft National Food Safety Standard of General Principles for the Labeling of Prepackaged Foods to the World Trade Organization (WTO) under G/SPS/N/CHN/1295/Add.1. The General Principles for the...

On June 26, Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries affirmed that it would increase the tariff-rate quota volumes for butter to 14,000 MT, but would leave non-fat dry milk (NFDM) unchanged at 750 MT.