OREANDA-NEWS. Less than 5% of Belarus food manufacturers are ready to comply with the new safety standards for foodstuffs to be introduced by the Customs Union on July 1, 2013.

Chief of Belarus’ Republican Confederation of Entrepreneurship (RCE) Viktor Margelov made a statement to this effect at a press-conference on Wednesday.

There is a handful of certified laboratories operating in Belarus, which can check whether food products comply with the new safety standards, Margelov informed. “In simple terms, Belarusian food manufacturers have nowhere to go to get their products certified. A few Moscow experts are expected to come on June 21 to certify Belarusian laboratories. The new safety standards, however, will become effective on July 1,” Margelov said.

The expert emphasized the fact that the new food safety standards are much tougher than the existing standards, and treat both small business companies and large manufactures on the same footing.

Small and medium business companies of Belarus consider the enforcement of new safety standards as a heavy financial burden, which gives large transnational corporations an unfair advantage, Margelov said.