'Country of origin' labels, a must

20 Apr '07

1 min read

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reported that the Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa has passed final guidelines for the execution of 'Country of Origin' labeling on textiles and garment imports.

According to these regulations the label should feature either 'product is made in', 'produced in' or 'manufactured in', or just the name of the country of origin, essentially in English.

Sale or import of products that do not comply with these rules is prohibited, even if the commodity is manufactured in South Africa.

Government was compelled to take this step after inquiries showed, large amounts of products with no or misleading country of origin labels being sold and imported.

Infact the rules include domestically manufactured products made from imported materials. Such items are required to have labels saying 'Made in South Africa from imported material'.

Those merchandize that are completely manufactured in the Country should clearly state 'Made in South Africa'.

DTI, South African Revenue Services (SARS) and the South African Bureau of Standards will make sure that the rules are strictly being followed. SARS will also conduct surprise inspection of shipments for this purpose.