Abstract: The quality and safety of dairy products are an important global issue. Many countries have taken various measures including legislation, administration, justice and improving the inspection technology to improve the quality and safety of dairy products. The type and the number of dairy products imported to China have increased steadily recently. However, the differences between the domestic and international dairy products regulations and standards have made it difficult to find out the safety risks of imported dairy products and have frequently caused dairy products exported from China to suffer technical trade barriers. In order to safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese dairy product importers and exporters as well as consumers and to ensure the quality and safety of dairy products, it is urgent to understand the differences between the domestic and international dairy products regulations and standards and improve the pertinence and accuracy of detection methods. This article summarizes the current status of China’s standards for dairy products, compares the differences between them and those in its major trading partners in terms of the main indicators of quality and safety, and points out the differences between China and its major trading countries in terms of regulations and detection limits. Finally, suggestions are provided for the improvement of China’s dairy products regulations and testing method standards.

Key words: milk and dairy products; food safety standards; regulations; differences in testing indexes; quality and safety