Now 27 companies in Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Yangjiang, and Shunde have chosen to export fresh aquatic products through the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) Zhuhai Port to Hong Kong and Macao, a significant increase compared with the number of four companies prior to the opening of the HZMB in 2018.

Statistics from Gongbei Customs showed that 24,000 metric tons of aquatic products, valued at 1.6 billion yuan ($252.3 million), were exported from HZMB Zhuhai Port in 2021, each being 1.6 and 1.2 times the figures in 2020. A total of 28 varieties of aquatic products were exported last year, 10 more than 2020.

Customs officers inspect fresh aquatic products being exported to Hong Kong [Photo by Cheng Lin and Lin Changfeng / Zhuhai Daily]

Nearly 500 tons of fresh aquatic products are exported to Hong Kong and Macao every week since the three-and-a-half-month fishing ban ended in August, noted Ma Shaowei of HZMB Zhuhai Port Customs.

The 24/7 clearance and advanced declaration services make customs clearance at the port faster and cheaper, attracting more companies in the Pearl River Delta to use it instead of the Port of Shenzhen, added Ma.

Weng Xipeng of Zhuhai Haimiao Aquatic Import & Export, one of the first companies to export fresh aquatic products via HZMB, said that the convenient and efficient customs clearance has brought the company more customers from Zhongshan and Shunde. 

HZMB Zhuhai Port Customs has also worked with Hong Kong parties to establish a "point-to-point" emergency clearance contact channel and formulated a special emergency response for customs clearance of fresh aquatic products.