How to export Butter from the UK to China

Start with the manufacturing plant’s approval

Butter and dairy fats fall under HS 040510, 040520 and 040590. Match the product’s composition to its classification before approaching an importer. The largest UK export line under HS 040510 was 04051011, natural butter containing 80% to 85% fat by weight, at £2.1m in 2025.

Under GACC Decree 280, the UK manufacturer must apply for registration and obtain its competent authority’s recommendation with a plant audit report. Confirm the dairy category and plant listing in GACC’s registration system. The overseas exporter and Chinese importer also have filing duties. Where quarantine approval is required, the importer must obtain its permit before signing the trade contract. Approval takes months, not weeks, and the Chinese authority decides. For cheese-specific preparation, see exporting UK cheese to China. For milk powder, see exporting UK milk powder to China.

HMRC recorded £2.2m of UK goods exports to mainland China under HS 040510, 040520, 040590 in 2025 (2024: £1.1m, +89.6%). Exports to Hong Kong under the same codes were £164k. January to July 2026: £135k against £2.2m in the same months of 2025 (-93.7%).

Price against the Chinese border charges

Each listed Chinese butter tariff line has a 10% MFN rate. Import VAT has a standard rate of 13%, subject to exceptions; the importer’s customs broker confirms the applicable treatment and whether consumption tax applies. VAT is calculated on customs value plus customs duty plus consumption tax. These charges add to the importer’s landed cost and shape the price it can offer your brand.

Prepare the butter specification and packaging

Have the importer review the butter specification against GB 19646-2025, covering cream, butter and anhydrous milkfat, and confirm its application to your product. Packaging, labels and marks must comply with Chinese law and national food safety standards; instructions must be in Chinese where required. Prepare Chinese label artwork for review. A registered plant’s packaging must show its China registration number or the number approved by its home authority.

Arrange the UK declaration and dairy certificate

For exports from England, Scotland or Wales, obtain a GB EORI and the correct commodity code. Arrange the export declaration with the value, weight, packaging, destination, transport and invoice and packing list references. Certificate 6288 covers exports to China of food containing dairy, including butter. The manufacturer should check its guidance notes for plant, product and ingredient limits before applying; the carrier needs the invoice and applicable certificates. For liquid dairy products, see our guide to exporting milk and cream to China.

Consider the bonded retail route separately

The cross-border retail import list includes 04051000 butter and 04052000 dairy spreads, both restricted to online bonded purchases. This is partial coverage of the butter tariff lines. Eligible retail imports are supervised as personal-use articles, with first-import licence, registration and filing requirements disapplied, except for suspended epidemic-area goods and emergency risk handling.

The overseas retail business carries product quality and safety responsibility and must appoint a mainland-registered company to register with customs, declare truthfully and share civil liability. Consumers must accept the prescribed risk notice before ordering, including possible differences from Chinese standards and labelling. The goods are for personal use and cannot be resold, so this route does not supply a distributor’s wholesale stock.

Find an importer and check its readiness

Our own staff in China find and check Chinese importers and distributors for UK brands. If an importer has already approached you, our staff check that company before stock is sent or anything is signed. Discuss its intended butter tariff line, registration-number declaration and quarantine-permit arrangements before agreeing the shipment plan.

For butter, our help is limited to preparation, finding and checking a Chinese importer, and coordinating licensed partners. We prepare registration and label work with licensed partners in China. The importer of record and any required cross-border e-commerce agent remain licensed partners’ roles; the manufacturer’s own filings remain its own. See our export service.