Tove Leeds Certification & Inspection is a Conformity Assessment Body designated by the Saudi Food & Drug Authority (SFDA) to perform conformity assessment activities and issue Consignment Certificates of Conformity (CoCs) for food products within its current designated country scope imported into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
We support Saudi importers, international manufacturers, and exporters throughout the conformity assessment process, including document review, verification of product compliance, inspection and testing where required, and issuance of the Consignment Certificate of Conformity through the SFDA FASEH process.
Food CoC Step-by-Step Client Journey
1. Confirm importer, product and country eligibility
Confirm that the Saudi importer meets applicable SFDA requirements, the food product is appropriately registered where required, and the shipping/export country is within Tove Leeds’ current Food CoC designation scope.
2. Prepare shipment and product information
Finalize the core shipment information and collect the applicable food conformity evidence before or early in the shipment process.
3. Create the FASEH request
The Saudi importer submits the applicable electronic clearance/conformity request in FASEH and enters the relevant shipment and product details.
4. Select Tove Leeds where available
Where FASEH shows Tove Leeds for the relevant country/activity, select Tove Leeds Certification Inspection as the conformity assessment body.
5. Submit Technical and shipment document
Provide the shipment documents and product compliance information needed for the conformity assessment.
6. Technical document review
Tove Leeds reviews the shipment documents, product registration information where applicable, product specification, label information and other compliance evidence.
7. Inspection / sampling / testing where required
Based on the applicable conformity route, product risk and available evidence, Tove Leeds may require inspection, sampling, laboratory testing or additional documents.
8. Resolve findings
Any missing document or non-conformity is communicated to the applicant for appropriate corrective evidence/action.
9. Certification decision and CoC issuance
When applicable requirements are satisfactorily fulfilled, Tove Leeds completes the conformity decision and issues the Consignment Certificate of Conformity through the applicable SFDA/FASEH process.
10. Saudi clearance
The importer uses the CoC as part of the clearance file. SFDA may still perform further verification at entry and retains the final clearance authority.
Food Documents – Typical Requirements
The exact requirements depend on the food category, country of origin/export and applicable SFDA requirements. Typical documents may include:
- Commercial invoice
- Packing list
- Certificate of origin where required
- Bill of lading / air waybill when applicable
- Saudi importer details
- Exporter and manufacturer details
- Product/batch/lot and quantity information
- SFDA food product registration information where applicable
- Product specification and ingredient information
- Label / artwork
- Certificate of Analysis or laboratory reports where applicable
- Health certificate where applicable
- Halal certificate where applicable
- Halal slaughter certificate for applicable meat/poultry shipments
- Any other documents or certificates required by SFDA for the particular food product
What Tove Leeds May Review for Food
- Product classification and applicable regulatory requirements
- Importer/product registration information where applicable
- Ingredients, additives and product specification
- Nutrition and label information, including Arabic requirements where applicable
- Allergen declarations and product claims where applicable
- Manufacturing / expiry / shelf-life information where applicable
- Storage and transport conditions where relevant
- Health, origin, halal and slaughter documentation where applicable
- Laboratory testing evidence and product-specific limits where applicable
- Consistency of shipment, invoice, packing list and batch information
Food Country Scope
| 1. United Arab Emirates | 2. Bahrain | 3. Oman |
| 4. France | 5. China | 6. Morocco |
| 7. United States | 8. Qatar | 9. Kuwait |
| 10. Italy | 11. India | 12. Turkey |
| 13. Jordan | 14. Brazil | 15. Netherlands |
| 16. Germany | 17. Pakistan | 18. Indonesia |
| 19. Australia | 20. South Africa | 21. Poland |
| 22. Vietnam | 23. New Zealand | 24. Philippines |
| 25. Ireland | 26. Somalia | 27. Sri Lanka |
| 28. Sudan | 29. Egypt | 30. Tunisia |
Food CoC Common Reasons for Delay
- Product not correctly registered where registration is required
- Country/activity not within the selected conformity body’s current designation scope
- Incomplete invoice or packing information
- Label information not aligned with applicable requirements
- Missing health / halal / slaughter documents where applicable
- Mismatch between product, batch, quantity or shipment documents
- Required laboratory evidence not available
- Late submission after shipment has progressed beyond a point where inspection or sampling can be arranged efficiently
Frequently Asked Questions
Do all imported food products require the same certificates?
No. Supporting documents depend on the food category and applicable SFDA requirements. For example, SFDA identifies certificate of origin, halal certificates and halal slaughter certificates as applicable to certain imported food products.
Can Tove Leeds review documents before the FASEH request?
Yes. A pre-shipment document review can help identify missing information early, although formal certification remains subject to the official applicable process.
Can Tove Leeds issue a CoC for any country?
No. The country must be within the current Tove Leeds SFDA Food CoC designation scope and the request must be eligible through the applicable system.
Does a Food CoC replace SFDA clearance?
No. It forms part of the conformity/clearance process. SFDA retains the authority to review and clear or reject imported consignments.