Hello!
BG: I have several customers requesting labels in Spanish for Latin America and Japanese for Japan. We make shelf-stable processed foods. The preference is that these labels NOT be bilingual, since that causes a lot of crowding for the label text. I think FDA and State/Local Health Department doesn't mind that the labels are not English- as long as I record them for export only. Mexico for example has added a lot of new packaging requirements which make it difficult to do bilingual labeling.
Problem: My concern is that I won't be able to get an Export Certificate (Freesale Certificate) since the languages are not bilingual for English and FDA compliant for domestic sale. My only option is to get a letter from the Chamber of Commerce. However, some countries require an export certificate from the FDA or state health department to certify equivalency.
Question: Does anyone have experience exporting foreign language labels on processed foods from the US to Japan, Mexico, and SA countries? How do you know when an export certificate is needed for your product? All the resources I find only talk about meat, dairy, fish, and raw agricultural products- not shelf-stable processed foods for retail. Let me know what you think.
Thank you for any assistance.
