CAIRO: Egypt will begin tightening the regulation and monitoring of the organic food industry, namely in regards to the accurate labeling and specification of products, an official said Monday. Trade and Industry Minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid said in a statement that the measures are meant to protect consumers from fraud and deception; and that agencies and companies involved in the implementation of this resolution have three months to comply with its provisions. According to the International Trade Center (ITC), “Egypt has a well developed and rapidly growing organic sector. Organic production focuses on about 500 farming enterprises.” An ITC report said that Egyptian organic farmers grow a variety of crops, including grapes, citrus, dates mangoes and strawberries, vegetables, cereals and spices as well as non-food crops including cotton and medical plants. “While much produce is exported, primarily to Europe, Egypt is also one of the few African countries that enjoy domestic demand for a number of organic products. The ongoing expansion of the domestic market continues to diminish the local producers' reliance on export sales, thereby encouraging buoyant investment activity in the sector,” the report added. In a bid to capitalize on this growing demand, Rachid explained that some companies are illegally manipulating the specifications and labels of non-organic products and offering them to consumers as organic. The ministry's decision defined organic products as those that utilize internationally-recognized methods in the entire production process, up until the product's arrival to the end-consumer. The products must also be approved by the Egyptian Organization for Standards and Quality. The new regulations aim to prevent businesses from labeling products as “organic” unless they are registered with the Authority for Standards and Quality and are certified for organic production in Egypt. Regulatory bodies will then randomly inspect facilities licensed for production of organic products. Yasser Abdel Latif, quality assurance manager at Wadi Foods, a family-owned agri-business company, lauded the new regulations saying they will be “good for business.” “Wadi Food farms have been certified by BCS, a German firm licensed as a private controlling agency which certifies organic producers based on EU regulations on organic production, since 2006,” said Abdel Latif. “We use the most advanced technologies in organic farming and food processing, and are currently following all local and international regulations. We even export organic products to the most demanding markets in terms of quality and specifications including France and Spain,” he added. Abdel Latif said that the regulations should “purge out of all the illegal and misleading products” from the markets increasing consumer trust and satisfaction with certified products. In the statement, Hany Barakat, head of the Egyptian General Authority for Standards and Quality, said that meetings will be held during the next few days with inspection and certification bodies responsible for organic production to develop mechanisms and procedures for the implementation of this resolution.
