Sourcing chocolate batons from China

Chocolate baton duty and import controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 4 October 2026, heading 1806 covers chocolate and other food preparations containing cocoa. The selected lines relevant to chocolate batons all carry 8% duty for goods from China, so the range shown here is 8% throughout. The supplied records show no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspensions on these lines. The table gives classification candidates, rather than a code determined by the word baton.

The tariff attaches Veterinary control. Official guidance prohibits confectionery from China containing milk; using milk sourced from another country does not remove the prohibition. Do not order milk-containing batons for import into Great Britain. For recipes containing other animal ingredients, ask your customs broker to confirm admissibility and the veterinary documents required before shipment.

The tariff also attaches Restriction on entry into free circulation and Import control of organic products. Have your broker confirm their application and certificate requirements for the recipe. High-risk food of non-animal origin requires advance notification. Organic imports must use countries, territories and control bodies listed in the official registers. Confirm the commodity code using composition, filling and physical form. See the chocolate baking chips guide for the wider heading.

Specify batons for your pastry process

Specify length, width, thickness, piece weight and acceptable variation against your pastry dimensions. State whether the baton should retain its shape during baking or soften into a filling. Approve a sample baked in your own dough using your normal oven programme, then compare flavour, leakage and texture after cooling.

Record cocoa solids, cocoa butter, sugar, other vegetable fats, fillings and inclusions. Obtain the full ingredient list rather than relying on a dark chocolate description. For sale in England, confirm with the relevant food authority whether the chocolate name meets the applicable composition rules and whether the label meets food information and allergen requirements. Agree sealed liners, protection against breakage, storage conditions and remaining shelf life on arrival.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative bakery trial order: 100 kg of dairy-free chocolate batons, shipped with a consolidated load under 1806 32 90 00, invoiced at £3,000 free on board, with £100 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £3,100. Duty at 8% is £248. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £3,348, so it is £669.60. Import taxes total £917.60; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £248 of duty. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step. This assumes the goods are standard-rated for VAT. Most food for human consumption is zero-rated, and animal feed can be too, in which case no import VAT is due, so check the rate for your product in HMRC's VAT Notice 701/14.

Inspection checklist

Recipe: compare the batch ingredient declaration and composition results with the approved recipe; investigate any milk ingredient or undeclared substitution.

Dimensions: measure sampled batons and check piece weight, straightness, broken ends and loose fragments against the agreed specification.

Bake performance: repeat the approved pastry trial with production samples; check spreading, leakage, burnt flavour and filling texture after cooling.

Arrival condition: inspect liners and seals, bloom, clumping and odour; compare transport temperature records and remaining shelf life with the purchase specification.

What goes wrong

A supplier may describe a baton as dark chocolate while its recipe includes milk powder or butterfat. Milk-containing confectionery from China is prohibited, even when the dairy ingredient originally came from elsewhere. Check the recipe before paying for production; a duty rate does not establish permission to import.

Batons can look correct before dispatch but arrive broken, bloomed or stuck together. A recipe change can also turn a defined pastry filling into a spreading pool. Retain the approved sample, agree packaging and transport conditions, and inspect production samples using your baking process. Use the inspection guide to brief the checks.

Cambridge China Bridge sources these products for UK businesses, checking the factory and the documents before shipment. See factory verification. For repeat volumes, see container programmes.