New mandatory Egyptian Standard for Cheese (ES 2025/839) and six-month compliance period

This new standard is a revision and replacement of the previous national standard, aligning Egyptian regulations with international best practices, specifically the Codex Alimentarius Standard (CXS 283) as amended in 2022. This measure has been formally communicated to the World Trade Organization (WTO) under a Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Notification.

Mandatory compliance deadline

As stipulated in the Ministerial Decree accompanying the standard, all producers and importers have a six-month transitional period to ensure full compliance with the new requirements.

Key technical changes requiring immediate attention

We strongly advise all companies exporting cheese to Egypt to review their product specifications, labeling, and quality control procedures against the full text of the new standard. The most significant changes include:

Important steps to take

To ensure continued, uninterrupted access to the Egyptian market, your organization must take the following steps immediately:

1. Obtain and Review the Full Text: Secure the full official text of ES 2025/839 (available via EOS or the WTO TBT National Enquiry Point).
2. Product Audit: Review all cheese products destined for Egypt against the new classification, ingredient, and microbiological requirements.
3. Implement Changes: Complete all necessary modifications to product formulation, processing, quality assurance, and labeling within the six-month grace period.

Further assistance

The Embassy is committed to supporting the Dutch sector through this transition. We will continue to monitor the implementation of this standard and share any relevant interpretive guidance or updates from the Egyptian authorities.

For further assistance or clarification for the Dutch companies on this regulatory update, please contact us at kai-lvvn@minbuza.nl