Mandatory Halal Shipment Certificate for Food Exports to Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Halal Centre issues notification on the importance of obtaining a Halal Shipment Certificate for food exports to Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Halal Centre issued a notification emphasizing the importance of obtaining a Halal Shipment Certificate for food exports to Saudi Arabia. This circular applies to products regulated as Halal and those labelled as Halal on their packaging.

We would like to emphasize to all importers of food products that their HALAL certificates must be issued from the HALAL certification bodies recognized by the SFDA's Saudi Halal Center as follows:

1. Halal slaughter certificate includes consignments of whole carcasses, their parts, and the entrails of cows, sheep, goats, camels, chickens, ostriches, poultry birds, rabbits, etc. (all carcasses, parts, and entrails of wild animals that are permissible to eat according to Islamic law that have not undergone any manufacturing processes except cutting and packaging).
2. Halal Certificate includes the consignments of the following products:
   • Processed, seasoned, and canned meat such as minced meat, burger, mortadella, sausage, dried meat, meatballs, etc.
   • Compound food products that contain any proportion of meat, its products and extractions, grease, gelatin, collagen, animal abomasum, and animal-derived enzymes, such as pizza, samosa, pies, cake, soap, sauce, chocolate, candy, supplements, drinks, takeaway, snacks, etc.

Any other products that have the word or logo "HALAL" on their package.

For the complete list of regulated products please contact us.

In addition, Certificates of Conformity (COCs) and shipment certificates for affected products are issued by the Certification Bodies through the SFDA – Saudi Halal Center portal. Cotecna is notified by SFDA to issue Certificates of Conformity for regulated food and cosmetic products exported to Saudi Arabia.

Cotecna is also notified by SFDA, the GCC Accreditation Center and UAE MoIAT for Halal Certification and can assist you in obtaining all the required certifications to comply with this requirement.

To learn if your product is affected by this update, or to request for a free quote, please contact us here or on WhatsApp.

About Cotecna

For over 50 years, we have been supporting agriculture, food and pharma, minerals and metals, and consumer products supply chains all over the world. We provide testing, inspection, and certification services to help our clients navigate evolving regulations, ensure product compliance, and support their sustainability journey.