We discussed this issue at a webinar in the WorldFood Connect business community

On February 19, WorldFood Connect hosted a webinar entitled “Labeling of Canned Meat Products: Is the Market Ready?”, the main topic of which was the readiness of the meat processing market for the introduction of widespread labeling from March 1, 2025.

Mandatory registration in the labeling system began on September 1, 2024, and by March 1, 2025, manufacturers, importers, peasant (farm) enterprises and agricultural production cooperatives must fully configure all the necessary processes for the start of mandatory labeling. Mandatory transfer of information on withdrawal from circulation and on product circulation will begin on October 1, 2026, and transfer of information in copy format on product circulation and withdrawal from circulation by means other than retail sale will begin on October 1, 2027.

At the webinar, Ekaterina Luchkina, Director of the Association "Association of Meat Processors", spoke in detail about the labeling system, its legislative base, additional system services, interaction with retail chains and consumer attitudes towards labeling. According to the speaker, the introduction of the "Honest Sign" labeling is aimed at uniting all market participants around a single digital platform, and the main goal of the labeling system is to ensure maximum traceability and increase transparency.

As Ekaterina noted, a survey among entrepreneurs showed that few people know about the additional functions of the marking system, and meanwhile, support programs and free services for working with the system exist. Among them are the mobile application "Honest Sign. Business", the electronic document management service "EDO. Light", the application "Marking. Simple". In addition, regional representatives of the operator are present in all federal districts and are ready to provide prompt support, and an "Honest Community" has been created, where you can get an answer to any question about the marking system.

The expert paid special attention to the main marking errors, including: incorrect conversion of the marking code, failure to comply with mandatory requirements for the quality of printing and application of the marking code, incorrect application of the marking code directly on the product packaging, transfer of incorrect information to the system (for example, the code status or expiration date). To avoid these errors, Ekaterina recommended testing the application method in advance with the retail chain.

Ekaterina also presented the results of a study conducted by the NAFI analytical center in May 2024, which showed the attitude of Russians to mandatory product labeling. According to this study, 61% of citizens do not understand what labeling is and why it is needed. At the same time, 58% of Russians said that they would trust a manufacturer with labeling more than without it. In addition, more than 80% of respondents believe that such categories of goods as baby food (93%), alcoholic beverages (92%), veterinary drugs (88%), canned food (85%) and meat and sausage products (83%) must be labeled.

Daniil Vasiliev, Deputy Director of RAY, also took part in the event. The expert spoke about the equipment required for labeling and methods of applying labeling codes, gave recommendations on which method of application is best suited for which packaging, and raised the issue of automation of labeling. According to Daniil, "automation of labeling is a comprehensive solution, not a set of equipment and software," so labeling should begin with changing business processes.