Export value reached 1.124 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.3%. Among the standout performers, ice cream and beverage exports surged nearly 25 times, pet food grew by 24.6%, and deep-processed food rose by 8.6%. These figures, released by Tai'an Customs, highlight a robust first half of the year for the city's agricultural and food product exports, with three key categories driving growth to new heights.
Inside the production workshop of Shandong Dayao Beverage Co., Ltd., bottles of carbonated drinks are rolling off the automated production line. "These goods are destined for Mongolia, and our customer's additional orders are already booked through September," a company representative told reporters. In April of this year, Dayao Beverage made its first export shipment to Mongolia. Within just three months, orders have transitioned from trial small batches to regular, large-scale supply. "Initially, we had no idea about the export process. Customs officers from Tai'an visited us to explain the entry requirements, even checking the foreign language translations on our labels multiple times," the representative added.
According to Tai'an Customs statistics, the city's ice cream and beverage exports reached 16.1276 million yuan in the first half of the year, a 24.7-fold increase year-on-year, making it the fastest-growing category among agricultural and food products.
At the Dongping County Pet Food Industrial Park, machines are humming in the production workshop of Greenfort Pet Food (Shandong) Co., Ltd., where bags of pet food are being packed for shipment to Indonesia. "To export to Indonesia, companies must first register and file with Chinese customs. We were completely unfamiliar with the process, so we relied heavily on the customs team's on-site guidance," the company's head said. According to regulations, pet food export companies must apply for registration with local customs, obtaining an Inspection and Quarantine Registration Certificate for Export Feed Production, Processing, and Storage Enterprises. Tai'an Customs formed a specialized foreign trade service team to visit the company, providing step-by-step guidance on document preparation, production process standardization, and on-site inspection readiness, helping the company secure its export qualifications smoothly.
Wang Jingbo, Deputy Section Chief of the Inspection and Quarantine Section 1 at Tai'an Customs, explained that since the start of the year, the customs office has used a "Direct Customs-Enterprise Channel" mechanism to offer "one-stop" services, including policy briefings and filing guidance, to companies in the industrial park. In the first half of the year, Tai'an's pet food exports reached 135 million yuan, a 24.6% increase year-on-year.
In the cold storage facility of Shandong Qijia Foods Co., Ltd., boxes of frozen pre-baked European bread and bagels are awaiting shipment, destined for the Netherlands. "Our bread can be stored at -18掳C for nine months. After thawing and reheating, it's as soft and fresh as freshly baked bread. A European bread that sells for a few yuan in China can fetch two to three euros in Europe," said Liu Jiao, the company's Foreign Trade Manager. Qijia Foods specializes in the R&D and production of frozen pre-baked bakery products, including frozen pre-baked European bread, bread sticks, and semi-finished Chinese pastries. Liu noted that the company previously focused on the domestic market and was unfamiliar with export procedures. "Customs officers visited us to help align our products with EU standards, guiding us on everything from label requirements to microbiological testing. Now, we not only export European bread and bagels but have also developed a multigrain series tailored for the European market, and our orders have multiplied several times," she said.
Wang Jingbo added that given the short shelf life and high cold-chain requirements of baked goods, Tai'an Customs has established a "green channel" for exports, implementing an "appointment-based inspection and immediate inspection upon reporting" system to ensure products clear customs while still fresh.
From an initial reluctance to export to a rush to enter the global market, Tai'an's agricultural and food products are now paving a clearer path overseas. Wu Wangping, Deputy Director of Tai'an Customs, stated that the next step will be to promote more specialty products, such as Feicheng peaches, Ningyang dates, and Mount Tai Polygonatum, to the world, injecting new momentum into the city's rural revitalization and high-quality foreign trade growth.