A delegation of Chinese diplomats recently reassured Oregon trade regulators and hazelnut exporters regarding a new customs registration process imposed on the crop.

The embassy and consulate officials discussed trade relations with representatives of the hazelnut industry and the state’s Department of Agriculture during a Sept. 11 meeting in Wilsonville, Ore., that was closed to the public.

The negotiations weren’t secret but the meeting was kept private so the parties involved could discuss potentially sensitive matters openly, said Jess Paulson, ODA’s market access and certification director.

Much of the meeting was devoted to the “Decree 248” customs registration process for food products, which China began requiring last year, he said. U.S. companies were expected to complete the registration process by this July.

The Chinese diplomats asked about impediments in the process but assured the participating hazelnut packers that they’d satisfactorily completed the registration, Paulson said.

It’s not entirely clear what the customs registration was intended to accomplish, and some hiccups did arise for Oregon shippers, though the concern from the Chinese delegation was encouraging, he said.

“Our shipments are about to hit the water and we want to make sure we don’t run into any problems when they head to China,” Paulson said.

The information China sought from U.S. companies does raise questions about what it’s trying to achieve, given the requirements on food producers from USDA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, he said.

“It could be them mirroring what we’ve done with our Food Safety Modernization Act, in their own way,” Paulson said.

The Chinese officials also told the regulators and industry representatives that recently announced hazelnut quality standards are recommended rather than required, and explained the waiver process for some tariffs on the crop, he said.

From the broader perspective, the meeting helped convey to Chinese officials that Oregon remains interested in doing business despite the trade tensions of recent years, he said.

“Our message was: We are doing everything we can to comply with the requirements. China is an important market for us,” Paulson said.

Larry George, president of the George Packing Co., said that China has continued to impose restrictions on Oregon hazelnuts, including non-tariff trade barriers such as the new customs registration.

At the same time, China wants to encourage trade with the U.S. and thus hopes meetings with farm exporters will convince them to put pressure on the federal government, George said.

“The macro issues are just way bigger than us,” he said.

However, the Oregon hazelnut industry is no longer as dependent on the Chinese market, which traditionally bought half of the state’s crop, George said. Over a decade ago, up to 65% of Oregon’s production was shipped to China.

Now, that’s fallen to 25-30% for the industry overall, while only about 15% of George Packing’s sales volume is dedicated to the Chinese market, he said.