Label rules › Afghanistan
Afghanistan food label requirements for packaging
Afghanistan’s written rules on food labels are short. Afghanistan’s food law (Article 17: “Every package of food intended for sale in Afghanistan shall have a label”; Article 18: international standards are the basis for national food safety standards) — so in practice labels follow the Codex General Standard for the Labelling of Prepackaged Foods (CXS 1-1985). Standards are set by the Afghanistan National Standards Authority (ANSA), renamed the Afghanistan Standard and Quality Authority (ASQA) in November 2025; its labelling standard is not published online. Here is what importers, inspectors and shoppers expect on the pack, and how to lay it out.
Checked: 27 October 2026
Mandatory items
| On the label | Means |
|---|---|
| د محصول نوم · نام محصول | The product name, in Pashto and Dari on the main panel, in the largest type — saying what the food truly is, not only the brand |
| خالص وزن · وزن خالص | Net quantity in metric units without the pack: g or kg for solids, ml or l for liquids |
| اجزا · ترکیبات | Ingredients in descending order of weight, with the additives; allergens named |
| د تولید نېټه · تاریخ تولید | Production date — day, month and year in Western digits; customs and inspectors look for it first |
| د تېرېدو نېټه · تاریخ انقضا | Expiry date, day, month and year — repeated in Pashto or Dari beside any English; goods near expiry are turned back at the border |
| د بچ شمېره · شماره بچ | The batch (lot) number on every pack |
| د ساتنې طریقه · طرز نگهداری | Storage conditions, and how to keep the food once opened — in Pashto or Dari |
| جوړوونکی · تولیدکننده | Name and address of the maker or packer; for imports, also the importer in Afghanistan |
| د اصل هېواد · کشور اصلی | Country of origin |
| حلال | Halal — imported food is expected to come with a halal certificate from a recognised body; a halal mark on the pack only with that certificate and the certifier’s official logo |
| د کارولو طریقه · طرز استفاده | Directions for use and warnings, when the food needs them |
Pashto and Dari
Pashto and Dari are the country’s two main languages, and local packs are usually bilingual: the product name and the key facts in both, often with English beside them. English alone is generally accepted on imports, but the expiry date and storage written in Pashto or Dari avoid questions at customs.
Keep the two languages in parallel blocks of the same size, right to left, with Western digits for dates, weights and the batch number, so a date reads the same in every language.
What goes on the pack
Following Codex: the name of the food, the ingredients in descending order of weight (with additives and allergens), the net quantity in metric units, the name and address of the maker, packer or importer, the country of origin, the batch number, the production and expiry dates, storage conditions and, where needed, directions for use.
Put the product name and the net quantity on the main panel; the other details on the information panel, away from seals and folds.
Dates are checked hardest
Production and expiry dates are what inspectors look at first: write day, month and year in numbers, in both languages if you can, and leave a clear line on the information panel for them to be printed on the line. Importers usually ask for a long remaining shelf life on arrival — agree it with them before the run.
Imported food and halal
Imported food goes through ASQA inspection at the border and is expected to carry a halal certificate from a recognised body. Food that does not meet the law may be relabelled within a set time, otherwise re-exported or destroyed at the importer’s cost (food law, Article 30). Print a halal mark only when the product holds the certificate, using the certifier’s official logo file.
Laying it out in Drint
Drint has no Afghanistan preset in the studio and does not check these rules — the label block presets cover other countries. Type the client’s Pashto and Dari text word for word; both join and shape correctly on the dieline in Noto Sans Arabic, Naskh and Nastaliq faces, including the Pashto letters ټ ډ ړ ښ ږ ڼ ې ۍ.
- Put the product name and net weight on the front panel, in both languages, in the largest type.
- Set the information panel: ingredients, maker or importer, origin, storage, in Pashto and Dari blocks side by side.
- Leave a clear line for the batch number and the production and expiry dates.
- Run Preflight in Export to catch text that is too small or too close to the cut.
Questions
Must the label be in Pashto and Dari?
Locally made packs usually carry both. On imports English is generally accepted, but the key facts — above all the expiry date and storage — in Pashto or Dari avoid problems at customs. Ask the importer what their inspectors expect.
Is there a published Afghan labelling standard?
Not online. The food law requires a label and makes international standards the basis, so design to the Codex General Standard (CXS 1-1985) and confirm details with the importer and ASQA.
Is halal certification needed?
Imported food is expected to come with a halal certificate from a recognised body. Print the halal logo only with that certificate and the certifier’s official file.
Does Drint check Afghan labels?
No. This page is a summary to design from; check the label with the client and the importer before printing.
A summary written to design packs, not legal advice. Sources read on 27 October 2026: the Afghanistan food law text filed with the WTO (Articles 17, 18 and 30), the ISO member page of the Afghanistan Standard and Quality Authority (renamed from ANSA in November 2025), the review “Food safety regulations in Afghanistan: progress, gaps, and future directions” (2026) and EFANDA Logistics’ 2026 guide to shipping food to Afghanistan. Check the current rules with your client’s importer and ASQA before printing.