The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) ensures that processed food available in Singapore, both imported and locally manufactured, is safe for consumption. Processed food products refer to all food products and supplements of food nature except meat products and fish products, fresh fruits and fresh vegetables.
All imports of processed food and food appliances must comply with prevailing requirements laid down under the Sale of Food Act and the Food Regulations including the labelling requirements.
Food additives permitted for use in food are listed under the Food Regulations. A list of food additives permitted under the Food Regulations and their corresponding INS* numbers (where available) can be found here. The list includes mainly those food additives listed under Regulations 16 to 28 and the Third to Eighth Schedules, and is not an exhaustive list of all the food additives permitted under the Regulations.
Herbal ingredients which may be used in food can be found here.
* The International Numbering System for Food Additives (INS) is a harmonised naming system for food additives. The identification number usually consists of three or four digits such as 100 for curcumins and 1001 for choline salts and esters. However in some instances the number is followed by an alphabetical suffix, for example, 150a identifies caramel I (plain caramel), 150b identifies caramel II (caustic sulfite process), and so on. The alphabetical designations are included in order to further characterize the different classes of additives (e.g. caramel produced by different processes). Under the column listing the name of the food additive, some additives are further subdivided by numerical subscripts. For example, curcumins are subdivided into (i) curcumin and (ii) turmeric.
Importers of processed food products and food appliances are required to register with the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority. To know more about registering with AVA, please click here.
Obtaining food from regulated sources
The long-term objective of AVA’s food safety program is to secure food safety at source. It is essential that food exported to Singapore is produced under sanitary conditions in a properly regulated establishment. Food importers are required to obtain food from regulated sources. They are required to maintain documentary proof that the products they import are produced in an establishment under proper supervision of the competent food authority or which has a quality assurance program acceptable to AVA
At present, importers of the following food products are required to submit certified-true-copy documents from the food safety authority of the country of origin certifying that the imported food product is produced or manufactured by a licensed or regulated premises:
|
S/No. |
Types of products |
|
1 |
Breads and buns |
|
2 |
Chocolate products |
|
3 |
Coconut milk and grated coconut, and nasi lemak |
|
4 |
Infant cereals and infant formulae |
|
5 |
Land snails |
|
6 |
Minimally processed fruits and vegetables |
|
7 |
Noodles and pastas |
|
8 |
Traditional cakes (kueh kueh) |
|
9 |
Cut Sugarcanes |
|
10 |
Mooncakes |
Some examples of documents that are acceptable include:
Business licence or registration of the premises
Health Certificate
Certificate of HACCP or equivalent quality assurance system
Certificate of Good Manufacturing Practices
A one-time submission of the regulated source documents is required by each importer for each foreign premises, unless there are changes to your sources of supply. Importers should fill in the attached form and fax the completed form together with a copy of the document(s) to AVA at Fax: 6221 5091. Importers should retain the original copy for AVA’s inspection as and when necessary.
AVA will be gradually extending this requirement to other imported processed food products.
It is the responsibility of the importers to ensure that the products imported by them comply with the Sale of Food Act and the Food Regulations. It is therefore, advisable that before importation, the importers initiate some quality control checks and due diligence checks on the products by sending their products to accredited laboratories for analysis.
A list of Singapore Accreditation Council-Singapore Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (SAC-SINGLAS) accredited laboratories can be found
here.
An import permit is required for every import consignment of processed food products or food appliances. Traders can apply for the import permits by declaring their imports through the TradeNet system. The system will then route the declaration to AVA for processing. Upon approval, the import permit for the consignment is incorporated in the Cargo Clearance Permit printed at the trader's terminal.
Registered importers must declare their registration numbers, the correct HS codes and product codes when applying for import permits through the TradeNet system, otherwise their permit applications will be rejected by the system. A list of HS Codes together with the product codes is available here.
Additional requirements and supporting documents such as health certificates and/or laboratory analytical reports may be required for the import of specific food products when applying for import permits.
When submitting the documents, please state the Unique Reference No. of the permit declaration and the AVA Registration Number on the top right hand corner of each document.
All imported processed food products and food appliances are subjected to inspection. Samples may be taken for laboratory analysis. In certain cases, a conditional approval message will be posted on the import permits to require traders to contact AVA at Tel: 6325 0783/ 6221 5056 to arrange for inspection.
AVA adopts a risk-based approach towards ensuring food safety. Food products identified through trend studies to be of high potential health risk, or have a history of poor food safety record are placed under strict import control (high risk). These products require pre-market assessment such as the requisition of health certificates or laboratory analytical reports to certify the safety of the products, or inspections and/or sampling, at the points of import.
For detailed import requirements of the strict control items, please click here.
For detailed import requirements of the artificial sweetening agents and rice, please click the links below :
With effect from 1 October 2006, there will be an application fee of $21.50 (inclusive of 7% GST) for every NEW application submitted for registration to import processed food (not containing meat and fish products and fresh fruits and vegetables) and food appliances.
In international food trade, it is common for the regulatory authorities of certain countries to require importers of food products to furnish various food export documents issued by the regulatory authorities of the exporting countries.
AVA issues various types of food export certificates (as follows) at the request of the local food exporters who are exporting processed food products, excluding meat and seafood products, from Singapore, to assist them in meeting the requirements of the regulatory authorities of the importing countries.
As different countries may have different import requirements for different types of food products, food exporters should always find out the exact type of export documents that are required by the importing countries and apply for these documents prior to the export of food products from Singapore.
AVA monitors international food safety-related developments and news on a daily basis including food product recalls. For the latest information on food product recalls and the availability of affected food products in Singapore, please click here.
Food Control Division
Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority
5 Maxwell Road #18-00 Tower Block
MND Complex
Singapore 069110
Tel: 6325 2579
Fax: 6324 4563
Operating hours:
| Mon-Fri |
: |
8.00am - 1.00pm |
| |
: |
2.00pm - 5.30pm |
| Sat, Sun and Public Holidays |
: |
Closed |
For enquiries:
- Mr Ong Swee Seng
Tel: 6325 0788
Email: ong_swee_seng@ava.gov.sg
- Mr Wan Yeng Phui
Tel: 6325 0789
Email: wan_yeng_phui@ava.gov.sg
- Mr Ahmad Rahman
Tel: 6325 8369
Email: ahmad_rahman@ava.gov.sg
- Ms Helen Ng
Tel: 6325 5483
Email: helen_ng@ava.gov.sg
- Ms Chan Li Chu
Tel: 6325 3093
Email: chan_li_chu@ava.gov.sg
- Mr Ng Sim Yam
Tel: 6325 0645
Email: ng_sim_yam@ava.gov.sg