Additional Information for Exporters

Centre for the Promotion of Imports from Developing Countries, housed within the Dutch Government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, features market information on the European Union (EU), market surveys, match-making services for importers in Europe and exporters in the developing and least developed world, and food safety standards in the EU.cbi.nl

Codex Alimentarius Commission by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization to develop food standards, guidelines, and related texts, such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme.

European Commission’s (EC) Directorate on General Health and Consumer Protection maintains a website with up-to-date laws on the safety of food and other products, on consumers’ rights and on the protection of people’s health. It is the job of national, regional, or local governments in EU countries to apply the laws and ensure that traders, manufacturers and food observe the rules.

Quality Infrastructure in the East African Community is a forum for harmonizing regional quality standards and norms in a number of areas. The website is rich with information on the experiences of Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda in complying with international standards in food and agriculture; building and construction; mechanical engineering and metallurgy; chemicals and chemical products; textiles, apparel, and leather; electronics and information technology; metrology and testing; management systems & and service standards; environment, health, and safety; consumer products and general standards; energy; transport and packaging.

South African Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB) was established in 1926 to control all perishable exports from South Africa, the value of which is approximately 9 billion S.A. Rands. The information on this site may offer some insight into quality standards of South African exports to other countries.

The Trade Help Desk for Developing Countries operated by the Market Access Unit of the EC’s Directorate on Trade Information on EU and Member States’ import requirements as well as internal taxes applicable to products; information on EU preferential import regimes benefiting developing countries; trade data for the EU and its individual Member States

World Bank Group’s Trade and Competitiveness Group has a comprehensive website, which among other things, provides a page with links to research programs on standards; operational work on standards of other development agencies (including both bilateral and multilateral agencies, USAID, European Union, UNIDO and FAO), and general links to various other agencies and private standards initiatives.