Sourcing tiger nuts from China

Tiger nut duty and import controls

Read from the UK Trade Tariff on 4 October 2026, the residual roots and tubers line 0714 90 90 00 carried 2% duty for goods from China. No anti-dumping or countervailing measure or suspension is recorded in the supplied tariff data. Heading 0714 covers relevant roots and tubers fresh, chilled, frozen or dried. The table shows presentations sharing the residual line, rather than separate tiger nut subheadings.

The tariff attaches an organic import control. For organic tiger nuts shipped from China to Great Britain, obtain a Great Britain certificate of inspection for each consignment and check the exporter’s control body and export country against the non-UK organic registers. Your business must be certified by an approved UK control body. For fresh roots, confirm any phytosanitary certificate, pre-notification, plant health check and soil requirements with the relevant plant health authority before dispatch.

Confirm the commodity code against the actual tubers, processing and intended use before ordering. This guide concerns plain edible tiger nuts; ask your broker to check flour, drinks, cooked products and fishing bait separately. For the wider heading, see sweet potatoes, taro and yams.

Specify edible tiger nuts and drying

State the botanical identity, growing origin and food use in the purchase specification. Agree whether the tubers are whole or sliced, peeled or unpeeled, and fresh, chilled, frozen or dried. Keep planting material and fishing bait outside the food order. Ask who grows, washes, dries, sorts and packs the goods, including any subcontracted stages.

For dried tiger nuts, agree moisture and water activity targets, size grading, broken pieces, foreign matter limits and packaging against moisture uptake. Approve a representative sample for colour, aroma and texture. If you will soak or mill the tubers, assess a sample using your own process before approving the bulk lot.

Food imports must be safe and legal before entering Great Britain. Agree pesticide residue and microbiological testing with your laboratory for the intended use, and match reports to the shipped batch. Settle retail labelling before printing, including the food name, net quantity, appropriate date marking and responsible food business details.

Worked duty example

Illustrative example, not a quote: Illustrative order only: 200 kg of dried whole tiger nuts for food under 0714 90 90 00, invoiced at £1,580 free on board, with £200 of freight and insurance to the UK. The customs value is £1,780. Duty at 2% is £35.60. Import VAT at 20% is charged on the customs value plus duty, £1,815.60, so it is £363.12. Import taxes total £398.72; a VAT-registered importer can usually reclaim the VAT, so the lasting cost is the £35.60 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

Identity and grade: compare tubers with the approved sample; check size distribution, peeling, broken pieces and consistency across bags.

Cleanliness and condition: inspect for grit, stones, root debris, insects, mould, damp patches and musty or rancid odours. Open bags from different pallet positions.

Drying and packaging: measure moisture against the agreed specification; inspect liners, seals and signs of condensation, and weigh sampled bags.

Batch and documents: match bag markings, packing records and laboratory reports. For fresh or organic consignments, match the relevant certificates to the goods. Plan the quality inspection before dispatch.

What goes wrong

A clean surface sample can hide grit in the bag or damp tubers deeper in the load. Uneven drying and moisture entering through damaged liners can leave the arrival condition different from the approved sample. Check the packed shipment and inspect again on arrival before mixing lots or starting production.

A bait-grade offer can be mistaken for a food-grade supply, while peeling or sizing can change between sample approval and shipment. Put the intended use and acceptance criteria in writing. A generic laboratory report or an organic certificate for a different operator does not establish that the shipped batch matches your order.

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.