Hunan camellia oil exported to European market

After passing the inspection of Hengyang Customs, a batch of 5,964 kilograms of camellia oil produced by a Hunan-based company was shipped towards the EU on March 14, 2023.

Hengyang is a major producer of camellia oil in China. "In the past, camellia oil was mainly exported as healthcare products or raw materials of cosmetics, but seldom sold as high-end edible oil," said a person in charge of the Hengyang Customs. The exported camellia oil this time, reaching the food-grade standards, was Hunan's first bulk export of camellia oil to the high-end overseas consumer markets.

With the efforts of the Hengyang Customs, camellia oil was added as a new sub-heading in China's import and export tariff harmonized system in 2022. "With this sub-heading, camellia oil would be increasingly recognized in the international market," said the company manager. In 2023, the company will strive to explore the European market while consolidating the existing East Asian and Southeast Asian markets.

To support the export of camellia oil to Europe, Hengyang Customs designated staff to assist in the whole process, helping sort the food safety standards of the destination countries, and guiding the export companies to go through customs inspection before exporting. These helped shorten the export handling time and promote "Hunan-made" camellia oil to the world.