Photo: CFP

Chinese customs authorities suspend imports from Indonesian aquatic product manufacturer Anugrah Laut for one week nationwide after a sample of the company's frozen pomfret fish tested positive for COVID-19.

The statement was made by the General Administration of Customs on Tuesday as part of its regular effort to guard against the risk of imported novel coronavirus in cold chain food from pandemic-hit countries.

After the one-week suspension, Anugrah Laut Indonesia will once again be able to apply for permission to import, according to customs.

This is not the first time that the novel coronavirus has been found in imported goods from an Indonesian company. One package of frozen Indonesian band fish tested positive via a nucleic acid test in September, which also led to a one-week suspension.

In order to effectively prevent imported cases from abroad, China Customs launched the preventative measures that specifically regulate the cold chain industry in September.

According to the regulations, if cold chain food exported to China by the same overseas manufacturer (or its packaging) tests positive for novel coronavirus via a nucleic acid the first and second time, customs will stop accepting import declarations from the relevant manufacturer for one week, according to the statement.

The approach has also been applied to other suppliers, including aquatic exporters from Russia and Brazil following the discovery of the coronavirus on sample food packages from their countries.