Importing Food and Beverages into the USA

Food and drink imports are run by regulators as much as by freight. Every food shipment meets FDA — facility registration, Prior Notice, the importer's Foreign Supplier Verification Program and US labeling — and anything alcoholic also needs a TTB importer's permit and approved labels before it can be sold. Those rules are the same whether the product is Spanish olive oil, Italian cheese, Belgian chocolate, Armenian brandy or Brazilian coffee.

What changes by origin is the transit, the duty and how the product has to travel: reefer for chocolate, temperature-protected routing for oil and wine in summer, moisture control for coffee and spices. This page compares the origins we ship from and sets out the US rules that apply to every one of them. Each row links to a detailed guide.

Compare origins for food & beverage

Origin	Transit	Duty exposure	Typical load
Olive Oil & Foods from Spain	10–16 days from Valencia or Algeciras to the East Coast	Modest base duty on olive oil; wine adds federal excise; AD/CVD on Spanish ripe table olives; current EU measures checked at quoting	20ft flexitank of 20,000+ liters for bulk oil; palletized cases, temperature-protected in summer
Chocolate, Beer & Foods from Belgium	10–14 days on the water from Antwerp to the East Coast	Modest on most confectionery; beer adds federal excise; current surcharge on EU goods checked at quoting	Reefer at roughly 12–18°C for chocolate; shared reefer for smaller importers
Brandy, Wine & Foods from Armenia	Roughly 6–9 weeks door to door via Georgian ports	Modest duty plus federal excise on brandy and wine; many food and drink lines carry specific duties per kilogram or liter	Mixed containers of brandy, preserves and dry goods; reefer for heat-sensitive products in summer
Coffee from Brazil	14–21 days from Santos to the East Coast; 4–5 weeks door to door	Zero base duty on green coffee; any current surcharge confirmed at quoting	20ft: about 320 bags of 60 kg (19.2 tonnes), or about 21.6 tonnes in a bulk liner
Olive Oil & Gourmet Food from Italy	9–22 days to New York; about 21–25 days to Savannah	EU goods 10% all-in; AD/CVD on Italian dry pasta (producer-specific); in-quota cheese rate only with a USDA licence	Reefer at the cheese set point can carry oil and pasta too; flexitanks for bulk oil
Cheese & Gourmet Food from France	9–16 days Le Havre–New York by reefer; soft cheese by air from CDG	Many dairy lines under quotas (USDA licence for the in-quota rate); EU top-up only where duty is below 10%	Reefer at the producer's temperature with a logger; mixed-producer consolidations
Olives & Preserved Foods from Spain	10–16 days to the East Coast; 25–30 days to the West Coast	AD/CVD on Spanish ripe olives; high base rate on tuna in oil; most other lines topped up to 10%	Palletized cans and jars, weight-limited; mixed-producer consolidations
Beer from Germany	10–14 days from Hamburg or Bremerhaven to the East Coast; 20–25 days to the West Coast	Normal duty topped up to 10% under the EU measure; federal excise at entry	Palletized bottles, cans or kegs, weight-limited; reefer in summer
Frozen Fries & Vegetables from Belgium	10–14 days from Antwerp to the East Coast; 22–28 days to the West Coast	Normal duty topped up to 10% under the EU measure	40ft high-cube reefer at −18°C or colder
Coffee, Cashews & Pepper from Vietnam	About 21–23 days to Los Angeles/Long Beach; about 35 days to New York	Zero base duty on green coffee; coffee and spices exempt from the 12.5% Section 301 layer; cashews checked per line	20ft: about 320 bags of 60 kg green coffee
Seafood from Vietnam	About 21–23 days to Los Angeles/Long Beach by reefer; about 35 days to New York	AD and CVD orders on shrimp; AD on pangasius; 12.5% Section 301 layer; MMPA bans on some wild fisheries	40ft reefer at −18°C or colder, weight-limited
Palm Oil & Oleochemicals from Malaysia	About 18–24 days to Los Angeles/Long Beach direct; East Coast 28–38 days	Crude and refined palm oil exempt from the 10% Section 301 layer; oleochemicals checked per line	20ft flexitank (20,000+ liters) with heating; ISO tank for heated or chemical grades

Planning guidance only — rates, surcharges and transits change, and every shipment is quoted on its own facts.

US rules that apply whatever the origin

Frequently Asked Questions