Sourcing peanuts and canned fruit from China

Rates depend on sugar and pack size

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 26 September 2026, heading 2008 splits prepared fruit and nuts by product, added sugar, sugar content and the size of the immediate packing. Peanut butter carried 12%, roasted peanuts in packs over 1 kg 10% and in packs of 1 kg or less 12%. Mandarin segments with added sugar paid 18% in packs over 1 kg and 16% in smaller packs, and canned peaches with high sugar content 18%. None had an anti-dumping measure. Re-checked on 27 September 2026 across all 309 leaves: Chinese water chestnuts that are peeled, washed, blanched, chilled and individually quick frozen are suspended from 8% plus £3.10 per 100 kg to 0% plus £3.10 per 100 kg until 31 December 2028 (2008 99 91 00), and peach puree of 9 to 12 Brix (2008 70 61 90) and peach puree concentrate of 29.5 to 33 Brix (2008 70 69 90) are suspended to 0% until 31 December 2026. For juice ingredients, see sourcing apple juice concentrate.

Because the sugar percentage and the net content of the can or bag change the code, fix the recipe and pack size before quoting, and confirm the commodity code; plain nuts are covered in the walnut and pine nut guide. For fruit preserved by sugar, see our candied fruit and ginger sourcing guide.

Border checks and contaminants

The tariff applies a restriction to Chinese peanut butter, roasted peanuts and shelled groundnuts: release needs a finalised common health entry document for food of non-animal origin (CHED-D) under assimilated Regulation 2019/1793. The exemption for consignments of 30 kg or less applies only to specified categories, such as qualifying samples, personal consignments and scientific consignments, not ordinary commercial shipments for sale. The importer pre-notifies the consignment and it is checked at a border control post, where failing lots are rejected.

Assimilated Regulation 1881/2006 limits aflatoxins in groundnuts for direct consumption to 2.0 µg/kg of B1 and 4.0 µg/kg in total, and tin in canned foods other than beverages to 200 mg/kg. Peanuts are a major allergen that must be emphasised on labels, and precautionary allergen labelling should be used where a risk assessment identifies a risk of allergen cross-contamination that cannot be controlled. For canned mushrooms, see our canned mushroom sourcing guide.

Worked duty example

Suppose, purely for illustration, you import 20 tonnes of roasted salted peanuts in 200 g bags under 2008 11 96 00. At £36,000 free on board and £3,000 to ship and insure, the customs value is £39,000. Roasted peanuts in small packs at 12% pay £4,680 of duty; VAT is then worked out on value plus duty, £43,680, giving £8,736. Of the £13,416 paid at import, only the £4,680 of duty stays a cost for a VAT-registered business. Unlike plain nuts, roasted or salted nuts out of the shell are standard-rated for VAT, so the VAT here is real VAT charged, although a registered importer reclaims it. The method is set out in how UK import duty and VAT work.

What goes wrong

Peanuts fail on aflatoxin and cross-contact, canned fruit on the can and the drained weight. A lot that passes at origin can fail at the border check, and peanut butter made from kernels that were not sorted carries high aflatoxin. Canned mandarins and peaches arrive with drained weight below the label, broken segments, syrup weaker than stated, dented or swollen cans and internal corrosion that pushes tin up.

Test each peanut lot for aflatoxin in an accredited laboratory before shipment and keep the report with the CHED-D, confirm the factory's allergen controls, and for canned fruit check drained weight, syrup strength, segment grade and can seams on opened samples, incubate a sample for spoilage and inspect the can lining. For canned meat sourcing, see our canned pork trotters guide.

Cambridge China Bridge sources roasted peanuts, peanut butter, canned mandarins and other canned fruit, with aflatoxin testing and border paperwork planned before shipment. See how we source food products. For canned vegetable purchases, see our bamboo shoots and preserved vegetables guide. For UK snack exports, see our guide to exporting crisps to China.

Related guides: Sourcing citrus fruit and pomelos from China.