A new direct transportation route for frozen poultry meat from the Chinese mainland to reach the Hong Kong market officially opened after a fully loaded truck departed from Doumen on June 22 and crossed the border at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) Zhuhai Port.

After quarantine and inspection conducted by Doumen Customs under Gongbei Customs, the cargo arrived in Hong Kong in only about two hours after its departure. Liang Ji, manager of Zhuhai Zhenmeng Meat & Poultry, said that the new route via HZMB Zhuhai Port has shortened one-way transportation time by 75 percent and reduced logistic costs by 5,000 yuan ($747) for a single trip, with the enterprise expecting to save 1.8 million yuan ($268,799) per year.

Aiming to achieve a stable supply of fresh products to Hong Kong, Gongbei Customs has striven to get support from the People's Government of Guangdong Province and Zhuhai Municipal People's Government while establishing a communication mechanism with the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department of Hong Kong.

Staff members of Gongbei Customs inspect frozen chicken meat [Photo provided to Zhuhai Daily]

Chen Shengxiang, chief of the Animal & Plant Section of the Import & Export Safety Division of Gongbei Customs, said that regular supervision on the inspection and quarantine procedures of frozen poultry meat have been carried out to ensure their quality. 

In addition, HZMB Zhuhai Port is a major port for fresh aquatic products on the west bank of the Pearl River Estuary. Agricultural products worth 1.18 billion yuan ($176.28 million) passed the port and entered Hong Kong in the first five months of 2022, increasing by 45.7 percent year-on-year. The total imported and exported cargo value that the port has handled since HZMB began operations in October 2018 to May of this year was 376.07 billion yuan ($56.19 billion).