India extends Halal certification for meat exports to Egypt

New Delhi: The government Monday extended the implementation of the mandatory India Conformity Assessment Scheme-Halal for exports of specified meat products to Egypt by three months.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said the move aims to facilitate completion of the onboarding and accreditation process of the Egyptian Halal certification bodies. The India Conformity Assessment Scheme (i-CAS)-Halal is a certification framework for exports of these products from India.

“The transition period prescribed for implementation of the mandatory i-CAS-Halal for exports of specified Meat and Meat Products to Egypt is extended by a further period of three months, i.e.,from nine months to twelve months...to facilitate completion of the onboarding and accreditation process of the Egyptian Halal certification bodies,” the DGFT said in a notification, ahead of commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal’s likely visit to Egypt later this week.

Rice exports

In a separate notification, the DGFT said the requirement for a Certificate of Inspection for Basmati and non-Basmati rice exports is limited to EU member states, the UK, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, with other European countries being exempt from this requirement till April 1, 2027.

The certificate is issued by the Export Inspection Council and Export Inspection Agencies.