Sourcing porcine gelatin from China

Zero duty, with animal-product controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 2 October 2026, heading 3503 covers gelatin, gelatin derivatives, isinglass and other animal glues. Porcine gelatin falls within 3503 00 10 00, carrying 0% duty for goods from China, with no listed anti-dumping or countervailing duty and no suspension. The table repeats this code for different porcine gelatin forms; these are not separate tariff subheadings.

The tariff attaches veterinary control and waste import and export controls. For food gelatin, check country and establishment approval before ordering. Ask your customs broker to confirm the common health entry document, pre-notification and entry arrangements for your Chinese consignment. If the material is waste, ask the broker to confirm the applicable waste procedure; waste shipped under notification cannot move until the authorities involved have consented.

Agree whether the purchase is a food ingredient, capsule-making raw material or technical gelatin before confirming the commodity code. For other gelatin within the heading, see bovine gelatin. Keep duty and the product's VAT treatment separate when checking UK import duty and VAT.

Specify pig origin and gel performance

State porcine origin and whether the raw material is pig skin, bone or a specified mixture. Agree Bloom strength, viscosity, particle size, colour, odour, moisture and ash, with test methods and acceptance limits in the purchase specification. Ask for a batch certificate of analysis and retain an approved sample for comparison.

For food manufacture, agree microbiological and heavy-metal testing and trial the gelatin in your actual recipe. For capsule manufacture, add peroxide and conductivity checks where your process needs them. Treat finished empty capsules as a separate purchase from bulk gelatin. Use factory verification to check the producer's species segregation, batch records and laboratory capability.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order: 10 tonnes of food-grade pig-skin gelatin under 3503 00 10 00, invoiced at £48,000 free on board, with £2,400 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £50,400. Duty at 0% is £0. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £50,400, so it is £10,080. With no duty, the only import tax is the VAT, which a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim. The import duty and VAT guide explains each step.

Inspection checklist

Species: compare the pig-origin declaration with raw-material records and arrange species testing where substitution would affect your product.

Performance: compare Bloom strength and viscosity with the agreed specification, then check dissolution, colour and odour against the approved sample.

Batch quality: review moisture, ash, microbiology and heavy-metal results against your purchase limits; match the tested batch to the delivered lot.

Packing and documents: check sealed liners, dry bags, lot identification and matching supplier documents. Food gelatin must come from an approved establishment. Low-risk food imports need a commercial document; medium and high-risk imports need a health certificate.

What goes wrong

A batch can match the stated Bloom grade yet behave differently because viscosity or dissolution varies. Damp packaging can cause caking, and poor drying can leave unacceptable microbial results. Compare retained samples, test the delivered lot and hold suspect stock apart before using it.

A generic gelatin certificate may conceal mixed species or refer to a different production batch. A food-grade sales description also does not establish import approval. Check the producer and the intended import route before shipment, and resolve species or document mismatches before accepting the lot.

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.