The United States is the largest candy consuming country in the world. According to the National Confectioners Association, Americans spend over 30 billion dollars on confectionery products each year and annual sales are expected to grow. With all that demand, it’s no wonder that countries around the world export billions of dollars’ worth of confectionery and chocolate products to the U.S. each year. In 2013, the U.S. imported approximately 1.6 billion dollars’ worth of confectionery products and 2.1 billion dollars’ worth of chocolate products, with Canada and Mexico being the largest suppliers.
With holidays like Halloween, Easter, and Valentine’s Day, the U.S. is a great market for candy, but foreign candy manufacturers should be aware of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations that can prevent candy shipments from reaching the country. For example, FDA has multiple Import Alerts that subject certain candy products to detention without physical examination (DWPE) at ports of U.S. entry. Import Alert 33-10 subjects shipments from red-listed companies to DWPE due to candy contaminated with lead. Import Alert 34-02 subjects shipments from red-listed companies to DWPE due to candy imbedded with non-nutritive objects. According to the alert, FDA does not allow non-nutritive objects to be partially or fully imbedded in confectionary products unless FDA has issued a regulation that exempts the particular object.
Certain Import Alerts pertain to any and all companies shipping candy to the United States. Under Import Alerts 33-04 and 33-15, all shipments of candy pacifiers and gel candies containing Konjac are subject to DWPE because they pose a potential choking hazard. Candy manufacturers can be affected by non-candy-specific Import Alerts as well. Import Alert 45-02, which subjects foods containing illegal or undeclared colors to DWPE, lists plentiful candy manufacturers. Many candy manufacturers can also be found on the red list for Import Alert 99-19, which is for products contaminated with Salmonella.
It’s important to be aware of FDA Import Alerts that may affect your shipments. Registrar Corp’s FDA Compliance Monitor allows users to check whether their own company or their suppliers are subject to an FDA Import Alert. If so, Registrar Corp may be able to help you petition for removal. For assistance with FDA Import Alerts or other FDA regulations for candy manufacturers, contact Registrar Corp at +1-757-224-0177 or Live Help is available 24 hours a day at regstaging.wpengine.com/livehelp.
