The Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation (Minpromtorg) has drafted a proposal to update the rules for issuing certificates and declarations of conformity. The changes, aimed at strengthening control over supply chains, will directly affect all companies engaged in foreign economic activity and importing food products from abroad. According to the new regulation, which is scheduled to enter into legal force on 1 March 2027, the forms of authorizing documents will be significantly expanded. The main changes concern the following:

1. Mandatory indication of GLN (Global Location Number), the global location number of the manufacturing plant. If the foreign food factory does not have this international identifier, the importer will have to specify the exact geographic coordinates of the production site using the GLONASS satellite system.
2. Addition of a field in certificates and declarations for integration of the GTIN (Global Trade Item Number), the international trade barcode. At the initial stage, use of this field is defined as optional.
3. A substantial expansion of the list of mandatory information about the imported batch of food products, the applicant, and the accredited certification body.

The document will remain in force until 1 March 2033. The public consultation procedure on the governmental portal will continue until 11 August of the current year.

The introduction of global identifiers GLN and GTIN is a logical extension of the policy of digital traceability of import flows in the food market. The main impact of the new requirements will be felt by Russian distributors working with local food factories from China and other Asian countries.

In many cases, small Asian manufacturers of authentic groceries, snacks, or specialized confectionery raw materials are not registered in international coding systems and do not have GLN numbers. Russian food importers need to initiate audits of their foreign food suppliers now and start the process of registering them in international databases, so that by 2027 they can avoid customs delays and refusals to issue mandatory conformity declarations (EAC).