Traders importing food for local consumption in
which have been prepared in accordance with the new food quality
standards of the Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology
(Esma).
Products must be labelled in Arabic and any consignments that do not
comply with this requirement will be turned back at the ports, a senior
official from
“Arabic labelling has been made compulsory for all food products coming
to UAE ports for local consumption or re-export,” said the official.
“We have advised all food traders to comply with the Arabic labelling
requirement because some products are entering the country without
proper labelling.
Traders have to comply with the new guidelines within the first three months of 2008.
“While many traders follow the Arabic labelling requirements, some
supermarkets and hypermarkets still display food products without the
correct labelling.
“After the three-month notice period such food products will not be allowed entry into the UAE.”
Last August, Esma introduced the Emirates Quality Mark, or
The municipality official said health inspectors would be increasing
the frequency of their visits to premises of local food companies –
especially those producing dairy products and meat – to ensure they
comply with
Production and expiration dates have to be printed on the original
package or label – writing the dates by hand or putting them on a
sticker are prohibited.
The official revealed that 40 health inspectors were stationed at each of
“For meat, poultry or related products, an original Halal certificate
issued by an Islamic organisation approved by the UAE Government is
required and import consignments without Halal certificate will be
detained at the port.
Traders have been advised to register products with the Food Import and
Re-Export System, an e-network covering all the areas regulated by the
municipality. These include imports, re-export, label approval, health
certificates and food destruction applications and certificates.
The numbers
