Malaysia Dairy Regulation

1. Definition and Classification

According to the Food Regulations 1985, “milk”, “raw milk” or “fresh milk” means the normal, clean, fresh mammary secretion of healthy cow, buffalo, goat or sheep that is properly fed and kept, excluding that obtained during the four days immediately following calving. As per Regulation 82 of the Food Regulations 1985, milk shall contain not less than 3.25 per cent of milk fat; and 8.5 per cent of non–fat milk solids; and shall not contain any added water, permitted food additive, other added substance, or trace of antibiotic substance; etc.

A dairy or milk product shall be any product prepared from milk, including the food for which a standard is prescribed in regulations 84 to 87 and regulations 89 to 116. Detailed definitions for each product category can be found in corresponding regulation as cited below.

Regulation No.	Product type	Regulation No.	Product type
(Regulation 84)	Skimmed milk, skim milk, non-fat milk or separated milk	101	Pasteurized cream
85	Pasteurized milk	102	Reduced cream or pouring cream
86	Sterilized milk	103	Butter
87	Ultra high temperature milk or U.H.T milk	104	Recombined butter
89	Flavoured milk	105	Ghee
90	Full cream milk powder or dried full cream milk	106	Cheese
91	Skimmedmilk powder, skim milk powder, dried non-fat milk solids or separated milk powder	107	Cottage cheese
91A	Malted milk powder
91B	Formulated milk powder for children
92	Recombined milk	108	Cream cheese
93	Reconstituted milk	109	Processed cheese
94	Evaporated milk or unsweetened condensed milk	110	Cheese paste, cheese spread or cheese mixture
95	Condensed milk or sweetened condensed milk	111	Club cheese or luncheon cheese
96	Lactose hydrolyzed milk	112	Dried cheese or powdered cheese
97	Filled milk	113	Cultured milk or fermented milk
97A	Filled milk powder	113	Cultured milk or fermented milk
98	Evaporated filled milk or unsweetened condensed filled milk	114	[Repealed]
99	Condensed filled milk or sweetened condensed filled milk	115	[Repealed]
100	Cream or raw cream	116	Ice cream

2. Competent Authority and Responsibilities

Competent authority	Responsibility
Ministry of Health (MOH), especially the Food Safety and Quality Program	Oversees the country’s food safety and quality control Develops food safety and quality policies and legislation Monitors and enforces compliance for imported and domestic food
Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living (KPDN)	Develops policies and strategies for the domestic trade, including distributive trade and consumerism sectors
Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM)	Manages halal compliance, which are mandatory to animal-based products
Department of Veterinary Services Malaysia (DVS)	Supervises the health of animals and animal products
Malaysia Quarantine and Inspection Services (MAQIS)	Conducts quarantine and inspection, and issues import permits
Royal Malaysian Customs Department (RMCD)	Handles customs clearance and importation

3. Regulatory Framework

The Food Act 1983 and its subsidiary legislation, the Food Regulations 1985, serve as the primary laws governing food safety and quality. Enterprises may also need to comply with other regulations issued by various departments:

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4. Market Access Approval

4.1 Country-level approval & Facility registration

For new exporting countries wishing to trade dairy products in Malaysia, the competent authority of the exporting country must complete a questionnaire. The DVS will then conduct a risk analysis of the exporting country’s disease status.

If the risk analysis is satisfactory and the risk is deemed low, the establishment or abattoir intending to export animal products to Malaysia must complete the following forms for an adequacy audit (document audit) by the DVS and JAKIM regarding halal compliance. Application forms can be downloaded from the DVS website: www.dvs.gov.my.

Application for Export of Meat, Poultry, Milk and Egg Products to Malaysia - (DVS)
HALAL Application form for the processing establishment - (JAKIM)
Halal application form for livestock/poultry products establishment to be exported to Malaysia – abattoir -(JAKIM)

A list of registered dairy enterprises can be checked via the links below.

List of dairy establishments approved for export to Malaysia (dairy products)
List of dairy establishments approved for export to Malaysia (liquid milk)

4.2 Permit & Certificate

Importers in Malaysia who intend to import dairy products from the approved facility need to apply for import permit through the online e-permit system. The import permit needs to be obtained by the importers in Malaysia prior to the import and shall be obtained for every consignment.

As per Regulations for the Importation of Milk Products into Malaysia (FMD free countries or zones), each consignment of milk products shall be accompanied by a valid import permit obtained before consignment departing from the exporting country issued by the MAQIS permitting the importation into Malaysia.

In addition to the import permit, the consignment of product shall be accompanied by an official Veterinary Health Certificate in English issued by competent Veterinary Authority of the exporting country. Cheese products are additionally to be with a Certificate of Analysis (Processed cheeses are exempted from this requirement).

4.3 FoSIM registration

Before exportation, importing and shipping agents (customs brokers) of overseas enterprises are required to register with the Malaysian Food Safety Information System (FoSIM). The system is linked to the Royal Malaysian Customs Department's system known as the Customs Information System (CIS), allowing importers, shipping agents, and Authorized Officers to manage food importation activities electronically using a risk-based approach.

4.4 Product compliance

Before exporting dairy products to Malaysia, overseas enterprises must ensure that the food products comply with both the general provisions and product regulations specified in the Food Act 1983 and Food Regulations 1985. For example, regulations regarding incidental constituents, like mycological contaminants, can be found in Part VII of the Food Regulations 1985. Specific product requirements can be found in corresponding regulations cited in Part 1 of this Pedia “Definition and Classification”. In addition, dairy products shall also satisfy the regulations raised by other authorities like JAKIM and DVS.

Part of the compliance requirements for some dairy products as regulated in the Food Act 1983 and Food Regulations 1985 are summarized as below.

Regulation No.	Product category	Product compliance
Regulation 84	Skimmed milk	Shall not contain more than 0.5 per cent of milk fat Shall contain not less than 8.5 percent of non fat milk solids Conform to the tests specified in subregulation 85(2).
Regulation 85	Pasteurized milk	Shall be milk that has been efficiently heat – treated by the Holding Method or by the High Temperature Short Time Method as stipulated. Shall conform to the following tests: (a) when subjected to the Reductase Test the sample shall not completely decolourize the methylene blue solution in less than 5 hours; (b) when subjected to the Phosphatase Test, it shall give a reading not exceeding 10µg p – nitrophenol per ml of milk; (c) when pasteurized milk is homogenized, it shall comply with the Homogenization Test.
Regulation 86	Sterilized milk	Shall be milk which has been filtered, homogenized and thereafter heated to and maintained at a temperature of not less than 100℃ for a length of time sufficient to render it commercially sterile and shall be packed in hermetically sealed containers.
Regulation 87	Ultra high temperature milk or U.H.T milk.	Shall be milk which has been subjected to heat treatment by being retained at a temperature of not less than 135℃ for at least two seconds to render it commercially sterile and immediately aseptically packed in sterile containers.

Food additive usage compliance in Malaysia can be found in ChemLinked's FoodCheck tool.

5. Label

Dairy products must first adhere to the general labeling requirements and product labeling requirements as specified in the Food Act 1983 and Food Regulations 1985. Then such products shall also meet the labeling requirements put forward by other authorities such as:

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Details regarding labeling requirements can be found at ChemLinked's FoodCheck tool. For allergen labeling, please read ChemLinked article "How to Label Food Allergen Information for the Malaysian Market".

Recommended materials:

Online course: Focus on Southeast Asia, Japan, and South Korea: Food Compliance and Import Procedure Interpretation
Online course: Unlock Food Labeling Requirements in Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia

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