DHL FoodLogistics and Gerlach customs services ensure fresh mangos

The colorful selection of fresh fruit and vegetables is part of the everyday life in our supermarkets. We do not think much about the way the products have gone from the field or the plantation to our supermarket displays. Not to mention the planning and administrative work in the background, this is necessary so that exotics like pineapples, bananas or mangos can end up in our shopping cart.

Phytosanitary certificate, examination by the Plant Protection Office and registration number of the BLE approval - what does this have to do with fruit?

Take Peruvian mango, for example - a real delicacy of excellent quality, but only if all transport steps between picking in Peru and unpacking in the German supermarket are perfectly coordinated. If delays occur, for example due to missing or incorrect customs documents, the quality suffers. Imported clothing or electronics are patient, delayed imports can be expensive, but the risk of perishability rarely exists with sweaters or smartphones.

Food logistics is therefore - even more than logistics itself - a race against time. This is ideal when customers can rely on a network of transport and customs experts who are not only aware of the special challenges in food logistics, but also work hand in hand with shippers and closely accompany every step in the supply chain. That's why DHL FoodLogistics and the customs experts at Gerlach offer tailor-made logistics and transport solutions to ensure the freshness of delicacies such as mangos from Peru.

DHL FoodLogistics is responsible for planning, handling and coordinating the transport, including monitoring, and Gerlach takes care of the intricacies of the German customs system.

In detail, DHL FoodLogistics offer the following services, among others:

• Permanent coordination with the customer
• Obtaining necessary documents such as commercial invoice, proof of preference, EUR 1, phytosanitary certificate, bill of lading, etc.
• Scheduling of the investigations by the Plant Protection Office / Federal Institute for Agriculture and Food (BLE) at the place of shipment

In this well-orchestrated interaction, Gerlach's customs service providers take care of tasks such as generating the registration number of the BLE release, transmission via IT interface to the responsible border customs office and, of course, the customs declaration.

Customs declaration

After verification by customs, the application is accepted and checked for accuracy, completeness, authenticity and validity of the documents submitted (e.g. a preferential document or a certificate of origin). Where a customs debt is incurred as a result of acceptance of the customs declaration, release may be granted by the customs office only after the corresponding import duties have been notified and paid.

Release

With the release for free circulation, the goods change their customs status and become Union goods, so that the on-carriage (container chassis with refrigerated connection) to the German food retailers can be coordinated by the DHL FoodLogistics network. The mangos are allowed to enter the country.

Fiscal representation

Even special requirements such as fiscal representation are no problem. If, for example, the importer of the fruit is a Spanish wholesaler who serves the non-German food industry via German soil, the Gerlach customs experts from the tax department take over the so-called fiscal representation. With regard to the proper handling of VAT and statistical matters, the Spanish wholesaler who is the debtor of the import VAT (declarant) can be represented by Gerlach as a fiscal representative in accordance with §22a of the Turnover Tax Act (UStG).

Since he wants to pay the sales tax only in his country of destination in Spain, he carries out a tax-exempt, intra-Community delivery after the import according to § 5Abs.1Nr.3 UStG.

Gerlach in Germany is responsible for fulfilling the declaration and reporting obligations required for this. In Spain, the wholesaler must declare the purchase of goods for intra-Community purchase in accordance with the rules of his country.

By appointing a fiscal representative, the foreign entrepreneur saves himself the administrative effort of having his own tax registration in Germany.

And in the end - the mango arrives on time and above all fresh and delicious in the shopping cart.

For more information on DHL FoodLogistics contact our team: foodlogistics-de@dhl.com