Saudi Arabia bans importing onion from Egypt

CAIRO – 17 January 2019: Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture imposed a temporary ban on importing onions from the Arab Republic of Egypt.

In a statement, Director-General of the Livestock Risk Assessment Department, Sanad al-Harbi, said that the ban came for the purposes of public interest after the results of the analysis of onion samples from Egypt proved to contain pesticide residues at a rate exceeding the limit allowed globally.

In April, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) lifted the ban on imports of Egyptian strawberries and peppers after the Saudi Arabian authorities were informed of the implementation of the new system in accordance with the European requirements, the approved limits for pesticide residues and Codex standards, raising the quality of Egyptian agricultural products, whether for domestic consumption or export.

Meanwhile, the SFDA also decided to lift the temporary ban on imports of Egyptian frozen guava to Saudi Arabia.

In December 2017, Saudi Arabia banned importing frozen guava from Egypt due to pesticide residues that exceeded global standards.

Saudi Arabia lifts ban on Egyptian strawberry, pepper

CAIRO - 4 April 2018: The Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) lifted the ban on imports of Egyptian strawberries and peppers to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, according to Ahmed el-Atar, chairman of Egypt's Central Department of Quarantine.