Cote d'Ivoire Establishes 7 New Food Standards to Enhance Product Quality

On July 26, 2024, the Ivorian Standards Institute, an authoritative body dedicated to improving the quality and safety of the country's products, announced seven new food standards that they are developing. The standards will cover a wide range of food categories, including concentrated tomato juice, bottled drinking water, natural mineral water, raw milk, fortified vegetable oils, fortified wheat flour and fortified food-grade salt. These initiatives are designed to set stricter quality and safety norms for Cote d 'Ivoire's food industry to ensure that every step from farm to table meets the highest hygiene and nutrition standards, while limiting the content of harmful substances such as heavy metals.

The development of these new standards will not only provide companies with clear production and compliance guidelines, helping them to produce safer and better quality food to meet the needs of markets outside China, but will also strongly protect the rights and interests of consumers. Consumers can be more assured that the food they buy will strictly comply with these new standards, thus ensuring that their health is not at risk while enjoying their food.

In order to ensure the fairness and applicability of these standards, the Ivorian Standards Institute is publicly soliciting views from all sectors of society. From the date of the announcement until August 5, 2024, any individual, organization or institution can participate in the discussion, provide suggestions and feedback through the official website of the Association. This reflects the importance the Ivorian government attaches to public participation in decision-making and its commitment to a fair, transparent and scientific food safety management system.

The Government of Cote d 'Ivoire emphasizes that it will carefully consider every public comment and make the necessary revisions and improvements to the standards with a view to their early publication and implementation. This marks a step towards a higher level of quality-driven development in Cote d 'Ivoire's food sector, contributing to the country's overall competitiveness while laying a solid foundation for a sustainable food safety environment.