Egypt Updates Dairy and Processed Food Shelf Life and Blend Standards

Egypt has drafted new standards to define shelf life for food products and specify requirements for a blend of sweetened condensed skimmed milk and vegetable fat, affecting dairy and processed food sectors.

Compliance Analysis: Egypt’s New Standards for Shelf Life and Blended Milk Products

Egypt has introduced two key draft standards affecting the dairy and processed food sectors:

1. Draft Egyptian Standard ES 2613-2 "Shelf life for food products – Part 2: Shelf life"¹, which establishes general shelf-life requirements for food products.
2. Draft Egyptian Standard for "A blend of evaporated skimmed milk and vegetable fat"², which defines compositional and labeling requirements for a specific blended milk product.

Both standards align with international benchmarks (e.g., Codex Alimentarius CXS 250/2006) and are enforced by the Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality (EOS)^{1, 2}.

Regulation Analysis

1. Shelf Life for Food Products (ES 2613-2)

• Scope: Applies to all food products (ICS 67.040)¹.
• Key Requirements:
  • Replaces the 2008 version of ES 2613-2 and incorporates partial amendments¹.
  • Mandates scientifically determined shelf-life labeling for food products, though specific duration thresholds are not detailed in the provided sources¹.
• Authority: EOS¹.
• Timeline:
  • Final date for comments: 28 June 2026².
  • Adoption/publication dates: To be determined^{1, 2}.

2. Blended Milk Product Standard

• Scope: Covers "a blend of evaporated skimmed milk and vegetable fat" (also described as unsweetened condensed skimmed milk with vegetable fat) for direct consumption or further processing (ICS 67.100.10)².
• Key Requirements:
  • Product must conform to Section 2 of the draft standard (compositional and quality criteria)².
  • Aligns with Codex Standard CXS 250/2006 (adopted 2006, amended 2010–2022)².
• Authority: EOS².
• Timeline:
  • Comment period: 60 days from notification circulation (deadline: 28 June 2026)².
  • Adoption/publication: To be determined².

Regulatory Context

• Enforcement: Producers/importers must comply with updates published in the Official Gazette via ministerial decrees (e.g., Decrees 100/2019, 209/2020, 393/2022, 233/2023, 361/2024, 447/2024)¹.
• Compliance Pathway:
  • Submit comments to the National Enquiry Point (EOS) or Central Administration for Foreign Agricultural Relations^{1, 2}.
  • Standards may enter into force 6 months post-publication (exact date pending)².

Summary Table

Summary Answer

Egypt’s draft standards introduce shelf-life labeling requirements (ES 2613-2) for all food products¹ and specific compositional rules for blended milk products (evaporated skimmed milk + vegetable fat)². Both standards align with Codex Alimentarius² and are enforced by the Egyptian Organization for Standardization and Quality (EOS). Stakeholders may submit comments until 28 June 2026², with final adoption timelines pending^{1, 2}. Compliance will be mandatory post-publication, likely within 6 months². For enforcement history, refer to prior ministerial decrees (e.g., 100/2019, 393/2022)¹.

Sources

1. ↩ G/TBT/N/EGY/212 https://docs.wto.org/imrd/directdoc.asp?DDFDocuments/T/G/TBTN19/EGY212A11.docx
2. ↩ docs.wto.org — imrd / directdoc https://docs.wto.org/imrd/directdoc.asp?DDFDocuments/T/G/SPS/NEGY182.docx