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Customs software · Food and beverage

Customs Declaration Software for Food and Beverage Trade

File your own customs entries with the product detail they need. Food and drink loads often carry health, plant or excise requirements alongside the declaration. CDUK keeps the customs side fast and checked, so perishable loads are not held up by paperwork. Every declaration, reference and response sits in one account, so your team always knows where a load stands.

  • File in-house
  • Product-level goods lines
  • ENS and ICS2 filings
  • AI document processing
Bring your filing in-house
  • Start each food import from a templatePick a saved template and the parties, procedure and goods are in place. Add only this load’s details.
  • Apply a saved product’s settings in one goCode, certificate references, unit and origin fill together, so food lines are not retyped for every load.
  • Catch errors early, then submitEvery missing field is listed by section. Jump to it, fix it, then submit your declaration.
  • Create the GMR with the import linkedVehicle, crossing and the declarations behind the load in one form. The references link automatically.
  • Hand the driver a barcode and PDFThe barcode is ready to show at check-in. Download it as a PDF in one click.

In a nutshell

A food or drink load usually has more than one gate to pass, and the customs declaration must be right first time. Health or plant notifications, excise arrangements, safety and security filings and road-crossing references may each apply, depending on the product and route. A perishable load cannot wait while paperwork is chased.

Customs Declarations UK (CDUK) lets your team bring customs filing in-house: prepare and submit your Customs Declaration Service (CDS) entries directly to HMRC, add the ENS or ICS2 filing and the GMR for the road crossing from the same account, and keep every declaration reference together. AI document processing turns invoices and packing lists into a draft, so recurring suppliers take minutes.

You have full control of what is submitted, with real-time validation and a full audit trail. Health notifications and excise are made with their own authorities, and CDUK keeps the references alongside your customs entry. Pay as you go, with no monthly fee. Accounts are activated instantly, and our UK team supports you through onboarding and training.

Why the product detail matters

“Food products” is not a goods description.

Composition, processing, presentation and intended use can all matter to customs treatment. These are the six details a food or drink line needs before it is ready to submit. Capture them once in CDUK and reuse them on every later load of the same product.

  • Composition and ingredients

    What the product is made of can change how it is treated. Describe the actual recipe, not the brand or range name, and save the finished description in CDUK so every future load of that product starts from it.

  • Processing and state

    Fresh, chilled, frozen, dried, cooked or preserved goods may be treated differently. State how the product has been processed, and use the UK Tariff lookup in the workflow to find the matching commodity code. Your team makes the classification call.

  • Presentation and packaging

    Pack size, retail or bulk presentation and the container can all be relevant. CDUK keeps net weight apart from packaging and pallet weight, so the figures on the entry match the load.

  • Beverage characteristics

    For drinks, type, strength and volume can affect classification and the information the movement needs. Capture them on the goods line and keep them with the declaration for later review. Loads with multiple strengths and sizes keep each line distinct and checkable.

  • Origin and supplier evidence

    Origin is set at product level, not by the supplier’s address. Record it on each goods line in CDUK and keep the evidence behind any preference claim in the same audit trail.

  • Quantities, units and value

    Cases, bottles, litres, kilograms and pallets all appear in food paperwork. AI document processing extracts them from the invoice and packing list so your team can reconcile them in one view. There is no per-document fee.

The whole shipment

Keep every requirement in view.

The customs declaration, the safety and security filing and the road-crossing references are all filed from your CDUK account. Health, plant and excise controls sit with their own authorities. The table shows which is which, so nothing is missed on the way to the border.

RequirementHow to approach itWhere it is prepared
Customs declarationPrepare the CDS entry and the applicable document references with guided checksIn CDUK, filed by your team
Health or plant controlsEstablish whether notifications, certification or checks applyWith the relevant authority; add the references in CDUK
ExciseReview the goods and movement arrangements for your productWith HMRC; keep the references with your entry
Safety and securityArrange the applicable ENS (entry summary declaration) for the direction of travel, such as a GB ENS or an EU ICS2 (Import Control System 2) filingIn CDUK, on the same account
Road crossingPrepare the required GMR (Goods Movement Reference) and, where relevant, the French ELO (Obligatory Logistics Envelope)In CDUK, free when your declaration is filed with us

Requirements vary by product and route. Your customs declaration works alongside any health notification, certificate or inspection your load needs.

Illustrative example

A product detail card, without a code or a rate.

Composition, packaging and quantities are what your team needs in front of it before submitting. The product, supplier and figures here are invented placeholders.

Product detail

Say what is in the pack

AI document processing (IDP) extracts invoice and packing-list data so you see the product detail next to the declaration lines. Your team checks the draft and completes the customs-specific information, with no per-document fee on supported declaration types.

  • Description reflects composition, processing and presentation
  • Net weight is kept apart from packaging and pallet weight
  • Gaps are flagged for your team before you submit
Reduce preparation work

Make regular shipments quicker to prepare.

Regular suppliers should not mean retyping the same declaration every week. Saved parties, cloned entries and AI extraction put most of the entry in place, so your team checks what changed and files.

  1. Start from saved information

    Reuse saved parties and cloned declarations for regular suppliers, so a repeat load starts with the familiar details in place. Update quantities, dates and values, then file.

  2. Extract the paperwork

    IDP extracts invoice and packing-list data into a draft. You check it and complete the customs-specific fields. Gaps are shown before you submit, so a perishable load is not delayed by a missing detail. Every change is recorded in the audit trail.

  3. Separate by treatment

    On mixed loads, keep goods with different treatment on separate lines and apply shared details only where they genuinely apply. A single vehicle with chilled, ambient and alcoholic lines can be checked line by line.

  4. Submit and follow status

    Submit direct to HMRC, then follow release status and notifications of customs responses in your account.

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions from food and drink businesses.

Does CDUK file IPAFFS notifications?

No. IPAFFS (the Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System) notifications are made with the authority directly, and CDUK has no integration with it. Add the relevant references to your customs entry in CDUK, so the whole load is documented in one declaration. Our UK team can help your people get comfortable with the workflow.

Are all food imports zero-rated or duty-free?

No. Treatment depends on the product, origin, procedure and applicable tariff measures. CDUK’s commodity lookup and requirements mapping help your team check these for each line before you submit. The classification decision is yours.

Does customs acceptance guarantee a perishable load can proceed?

Release follows HMRC’s response and any sanitary, phytosanitary or other control instructions. CDUK notifies you of customs responses as they arrive, so your team can act straight away on a perishable load and plan unloading, storage and onward delivery.

Does the customs declaration cover health and plant checks?

They run alongside each other. Health notifications, certificates and inspections are handled with their own authorities, while the customs declaration is filed in CDUK. Keep the references together on your entry so the shipment has one complete record, searchable later.

How should mixed loads of food and drink be handled?

Keep goods with different treatment on separate lines and apply shared information only to the items it covers. A shared vehicle or invoice does not make different products one customs item, and CDUK bulk editing makes that quick. Our team can show you how during onboarding.

Which safety and security filing do we need?

It depends on the direction of travel. A load entering Great Britain normally needs a GB ENS, and a load entering the EU normally needs an EU ICS2 filing, where applicable. Our team confirms exemptions for your route and goods. Both filings can be prepared from the same account as your customs declaration. See our guide to importing food and drink from the EU for context. Our UK team can talk you through the filings your lane needs at onboarding.

How is pricing set for regular food and drink shipments?

Pay as you go with no monthly fee and no minimum volume, or take a custom subscription with volume discounts for regular loads. Maximum prices per declaration are on our pricing page. Accounts are activated instantly, so a seasonal range can be filed from day one.

Explore related solutions

Plan the whole shipment.

Bring One Product and One Route

Pick a product and a route and we will walk through how your team files the customs entry in CDUK, alongside the other requirements. Register in minutes and pay only for what you file.

Book a food and drink demoRegister Now