Sourcing Peanut Butter from China

Peanut butter duty and border controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 30 September 2026, heading 2008 covers otherwise prepared or preserved fruit, nuts and other edible plant parts. Peanut butter is listed under 2008 11 10 00 at 12% for goods from China. The supplied tariff record shows no anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension for this line.

Chinese peanut butter is subject to the food-entry restriction: consignments can only enter Great Britain through designated border control posts. Confirm advance notification, border checks and CHED-D requirements with your customs broker before shipment. The tariff also attaches organic-product controls. For an organic order, confirm the certificate requirements with your customs broker; the certificate of inspection is issued by the exporter’s control body in the exporting country.

The table shows buying formats sharing the same peanut butter code, rather than separate tariff lines. Send the full recipe and packaging details to your broker and confirm the commodity code. For other prepared nuts and preserved fruit, see the wider heading guide.

Specify the recipe and peanut texture

Agree smooth or crunchy texture, peanut content, roast colour, salt, sugar, added oils and stabilisers. State whether oil separation is acceptable and approve a sample for spreadability, grit and peanut-piece size. Record the jar or tub material, closure, seal, fill weight, storage conditions and remaining shelf life you expect on arrival.

Ask for batch-specific aflatoxin testing before shipment and match reports to the finished product lot. Review the factory’s allergen controls and approve the English label before printing. Confirm how peanuts should be identified and emphasised as an allergen with the relevant food authority; prepacked food sold in Great Britain needs a UK business address.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 5 tonnes of smooth peanut butter in catering tubs under 2008 11 10 00, invoiced at £15,000 free on board, with £1,200 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £16,200. Duty at 12% is £1,944. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £18,144, so it is £3,628.80. Import taxes total £5,572.80; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £1,944 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

Batch evidence: match the product, production lot and carton markings to the aflatoxin report and border paperwork.

Texture and flavour: compare opened samples with the approved sample for roast flavour, grit, peanut pieces and oil separation.

Fill and seals: weigh sampled contents and inspect closures, sealing membranes, leaks and transit damage.

Labels: check the recipe matches the ingredient information, peanuts are emphasised and the UK business address is present. Compare date markings with the agreed remaining shelf life.

What goes wrong

A smooth sample can become gritty production stock, or a recipe change can alter sweetness, spreadability and oil separation. Loose closures and damaged seals can leave oily cartons. Record acceptance criteria against the approved sample and inspect finished packs before loading.

A good appearance or taste does not establish that a batch passes aflatoxin checks. An origin test can still be followed by a failing border result. Keep reports tied to the actual shipment and review factory cross-contact controls. Use a quality inspection brief alongside laboratory testing.

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.