China toughens import rules on Vietnamese durians after detecting health risks
tightened oversight of imported Vietnamese durians this year after finding 'excessive levels' of two potentially harmful substances in the popular, high-value fruit.
The General Administration of Customs of China now requires enhanced pre-export safety checks and compliance testing before shipments leave the source country, with 'qualified' test reports to be attached to durians, a customs official told the Post, requesting anonymity due to internal rules.
She said the administration had intensified testing for the organic compound alkaline yellow and the metal cadmium in Vietnamese durians, after discovering concentrations that 'seriously endangered the health of domestic consumers' at the start of 2025.
'In order to effectively prevent food safety risks, the General Administration of Customs immediately took action.'
Under the stricter rules, Vietnamese durians are subject to 'batch by batch' testing – with any unqualified fruits returned or destroyed. Exporters are in turn suspended from shipping the fruit to China, she said.
Fresh durian shipments from Vietnam fell by about 45 per cent year-on-year from January to June in value terms, customs data showed. Vietnam's shipments totalled US$611.5 million over the first half of 2025.
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