The China-Laos Railway Has Built a "Fast Lane for Culinary Delights"

        On July 30th, over 52,000 bottles of Lao beer passed the inspection by Mengla Customs under Kunming Customs. Then, they were loaded onto an international freight train on the China-Laos Railway and left Mohan Railway Port for the domestic market. This "Southeast Asian flavor" will bring coolness to the scorching summer. According to the statistics of Mengla Customs, in the first half of this year, the import volume of Lao beer via the China-Laos Railway reached 1.672 million liters, a year-on-year increase of 58%. It has become a "star product" among the pre-packaged Southeast Asian foods imported via the China-Laos Railway.
　　"Now all the beer imported by our company is transported via the China-Laos Railway. It only takes 72 hours from the factory in Vientiane to the supermarkets in Kunming. Railway transportation not only has strong carrying capacity and is less affected by factors such as weather, but also can basically achieve 'zero cargo damage' of products, further reducing our operating costs and enhancing our market competitiveness." Deng Mengcheng, the customs declaration person in charge of Kunming Qianhao Logistics Co., Ltd., said.
　　With the continuous improvement of the transport capacity of the "golden route" of the China-Laos Railway and the rapid development of regional economic and trade cooperation, more and more characteristic agricultural and food products from Southeast Asia, such as Lao coffee, Tom Yum Goong instant noodles, and tropical fruits, are accelerating their entry into the Chinese market through this major international logistics channel, further meeting the diversified food needs of domestic consumers.
　　According to statistics, in the first half of this year, the freight volume of imports and exports via the China-Laos Railway exceeded 3 million tons, with a value of over 12.8 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.2% and 38.5% respectively. Both the volume and value reached record highs for the same period in history. Among them, the value of imported agricultural and food products reached 4.27 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 35%.
　　To ensure the smooth entry of food safely, Mengla Customs strictly implements the inspection and quarantine requirements for imported food, conducts key inspections on the outer packaging and labels of food, and relies on the technical center laboratory to conduct accurate tests on items such as pesticide residues, heavy metals, and food additives to ensure compliance with China's laws, regulations, and national food safety standards, so that consumers can "buy with peace of mind and eat with confidence."
　　"In addition, in response to the characteristics of short shelf life and high storage requirements of imported food, we have opened a 'green channel' and provided '7×24 hours' reservation customs clearance services. We guide enterprises to complete the registration of overseas food production enterprises in advance and encourage them to make good use of facilitation measures such as 'two-step declaration' and 'consolidated tax payment' to continuously reduce the customs clearance time of goods on the premise of ensuring safety." Huang Zhonglei, the head of the Comprehensive Business Section of Mengla Customs, introduced.