In 2026, the global food consumption upgrade and trade pattern reconstruction are intertwined, presenting a structural transformation opportunity for China's frozen green bell pepper foreign trade industry. As an important category of specialty agricultural product exports, frozen green bell pepper have steadily expanded their share in the international market due to their excellent preservation properties and wide range of application scenarios. However, they also face the dual challenges of standard upgrades and intensified competition, exhibiting an overall development trend of "market differentiation, quality premium, and compliance as the key to success".
The market landscape continues to optimize, with traditional mainstays and emerging growth poles collaborating to drive progress. South Korea remains the largest export market for Chinese frozen green bell pepper, accounting for 60% of the market. The peak season for kimchi production drives exports to reach a peak in the fourth quarter. In 2025, Kailu County in Inner Mongolia accounted for nearly 80% of the national export volume, becoming a core supply base. Meanwhile, under the RCEP framework, the ASEAN market has performed impressively, with exports to countries such as Vietnam and Thailand surging by 27.5% year-on-year. Leveraging the advantage of tariff reductions and exemptions, it has gradually become an important destination for mid-to-low-end products. The high-end markets in Europe and the United States focus on functional demands. Germany and the United States have a strong demand for high-pigment (≥150 ASTA) and low pesticide-residue products, driving the export product mix towards a more refined and layered structure.
Enhancing product added value has become the core competitiveness, with technological iteration driving value leapfrogging. Leading enterprises have increased the retention rate of vitamin C to 91.4% through intelligent freeze-drying technology, while controlling the residual moisture rate below 3%. The export unit price of high-end products is over 30% higher than that of ordinary products, with a profit margin of 15%-20%. The catering and health product channels have become growth engines. The trend towards central kitchen standardization has promoted the application of frozen green bell pepper strips in ready-to-eat meals and Western sauces. It is expected that the penetration rate of B cities in the catering sector will rise to 19.7% by 2026. In the health product sector, the demand for high-activity ingredient products is accelerating due to the "medicine and food are of the same origin" policy.
Trade barriers and escalating compliance costs are forcing the industry to develop in a standardized manner. The EU's MRL standard has reduced the limit for acetamiprid to 0.01 mg/kg, while the US's GRAS compliance review has increased corporate testing costs by 18%-22%. In 2025, China's frozen chili peppers were reported by South Korea for exceeding pesticide residues in 8 cases, exposing the shortcomings in quality control of some small and medium-sized enterprises. In response, the industry is accelerating its adaptation to international standards. Customs offices in Qingdao and Manzhouli have introduced "pre-inspection" and "green lanes", which have increased customs clearance efficiency by 40%, shortened the customs clearance time to within 5 days, and effectively reduced supply chain costs.
In 2026, China's foreign trade of frozen green bell pepper strips is undergoing a transformation from "scale expansion" to "value-driven". Only by breaking through the quality bottleneck through technological upgrading, breaking down trade barriers through standard alignment, and diversifying and decentralizing market operations to spread risks, can we consolidate our advantages in global competition and truly enable this specialty agricultural product to make the leap from "supplied by China" to "globally preferred".
Post time: Jan-28-2026
