Israel adopting 'European' standards on food imports

Tel Aviv [Israel], March 2 (ANI/TPS): Israel's Ministry of Health announced the opening of food and tobacco import routes that comply with European regulations and based on a declaration of legal marketing in Europe. The move, said the ministry, was made out of a desire to "harmonize and fully integrate the European regulation with the Israeli one." The ministry will publish legal memoranda on the matter as early as next week.
The leading principle in the opening of the new routes is the transfer of responsibility for the integrity and safety of the products to the importer in accordance with what is customary in Europe and giving the importer tools to carry out quality processes for risk management and quality control of the products imported to Israel.
In the field of food, the ministry said it continues to adopt additional European regulations beyond those it has already adopted in the past. This, it expects, will create optimal conditions for importing food into Israel and will allow regulatory certainty for Israeli industry as well.
The obligation of the importer's direct contact with the manufacturer will be canceled for a proper importer, and on the other hand, the obligation to carry out risk management and quality control processes by the importer and the marketer will be imposed.
In the field of perfumes, the ministry will allow imports based on a declaration that the product is safe and legally marketed in Europe. The obligation to have a medical record file will be abolished and the obligation of direct contact with the manufacturer will be abolished. (ANI/TPS)