Exporting food to Qatar?

PCA Newsletters14 Mar 2024

SGS Gulf Limited is an approved certification body, providing certificates of conformity (CoC) for food consignments to Qatar.

Implemented and monitored by the Food Safety Department of Qatar’s Ministry of Public Health (MoPH-FSD), the Conformity Assessment of Food Scheme requires certification for all regulated product consignments imported into the country.

As an MoPH-FSD-approved body, we are able to provide certification of all regulated consignments destined for Qatar from global locations. We can assess the conformity of restricted products against applicable Qatari technical standards, offering comprehensive and efficient solutions to accelerate a products’ route to market while ensuring quality and safety and reducing potential losses.

How to achieve certification

Exporters to Qatar are required to apply for a CoC for all consignments from an approved certification body. The CoC must be presented along with the mandated documentary prerequisites for corresponding shipments.

The documents must include:

WATEQ registration
Invoice/pro-forma invoice
Packing list
Quality management system (QMS)
Internal CoA (certificate of analysis/test reports)
Product label (artwork)
Label inspection report
Evidence of product sample analysis performed by an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory to demonstrate compliance with Qatari Technical Standards/Gulf Cooperation Council General Standard Organization requirements

Products regulated under the program: *

Meat and meat products
Genetically modified products
Pre-packaged food
Spices
Fresh fruit and vegetables
Seafood
Processed food
Dairy products
Vegetable oil
Honey

* Specific regulatory mandates are subject to the country of origin for corresponding applicable product categories

Why SGS?

We offer a one-stop-shop service, delivering customer-focused solutions for testing, inspection and certification. With more than one hundred years of proven objectivity, reliability and integrity, we are the trusted partner of governments and trade communities, influencing change in opportunities, challenges and productivity.

We currently deliver conformity assessment programs on behalf of government authorities in a number of countries, including Saudi Arabia (SASO), Kuwait (PAIKUCAS), Kenya (KEBS), Egypt (GEOIC), Algeria (IANOR), Nigeria (SON), Tanzania (TBS), Uganda (UNBS) and Ethiopia.

With a network of 2,600 offices and laboratories around the world and extensive experience in managing conformity assessment programs, we provide efficient, comprehensive and customizable solutions to aid exporters in ensuring the regulatory conformity of their shipments.

For more details about SGS services, please contact the SGS office in your country.

Learn more about Product Conformity Assessment (PCA).

This article can also be found in our PCA Newsletter (Q1/2024) – which keeps you up to date with developments in technical barriers to trade and product conformity assessment.