The Azerbaijan Food Safety Agency (AQTA) has recognized the equivalence of food safety control systems in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Georgia, Croatia, Ireland, Iceland, Canada, Kazakhstan, Portugal, and Pakistan. A relevant decision was adopted by the agency regarding this.
According to information provided by AQTA's Information Support and Innovative Solutions Department, enterprises in these countries that produce high-risk food products will now be able to export products to Azerbaijan without additional assessment.
If official information or relevant documents regarding the approval of enterprises are submitted to the agency by the competent authorities of the countries whose equivalence has been recognized, there will be no need for re-approval of those enterprises. Before the decision was adopted, the food safety systems of these countries were evaluated by the agency, and the statistics of non-conformities observed in the field of food safety during trade turnover were taken into account.
According to the decision, if cases of non-compliance with the criteria taken as a basis for recognition are detected, or if cases of export of food and feed products dangerous to human and animal health from those countries to Azerbaijan recur, the issue of revoking the equivalence of the relevant country's food safety control system will be brought up for discussion at the agency's board.
Overall, the decision will contribute to the expansion of food product trade turnover between Azerbaijan and these countries.