1. Definition & classification
In this article, dairy products refer to plain and flavored dairy products derived from the milk of the milking animal, but exclude infant formula milk powder/liquid. According to the Food Category System (Annex II of MOPH Notification No. 418 Re: Prescribing the Principle, Conditions, Methods, and Proportion of Food Additives), the subcategories of dairy products in Thailand include:
1) Fluid milk and milk products
2) Fermented and renneted milk products (plain)
3) Condensed milk (plain) and analogues
4) Cream (plain) and the like
5) Milk powder, cream powder (plain) and powder analogues
6) Cheese and analogues
7) Dairy based desserts
8) Whey and whey products, excluding whey cheese
2. Competent authority
Competent authority | Responsibility |
Thailand Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) | Formulating relevant regulations, as well as the monitoring, supervision, and inspection of dairy products |
Thai Customs | Customs clearance inspection of imported dairy products |
3. Market access approval
3.1 Importer registration
According to Food Act B.E. 2522, food importers with a company based in Thailand should obtain an import license for the food categories they intend to import, and register for the serial number from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) themselves. Apart from that, importers should register with the Thai Customs for the customs clearance procedures.
3.2 Supervised as standardized food
Depending on the risk levels, food products in Thailand are classified into specially controlled food, standardized food, food with labeling, and general food. Cow’ s milk, flavored milk, fermented milk and other milk products (except infant formula) are regulated as standardized food, which means that they do not need to obtain registration as specially controlled food, but should conform to the product quality and labeling requirements in Thailand. The product owners are responsible for the product compliance.
4. Product compliance
4.1 Hygienic indicators
The maximum residue levels of pesticides, veterinary drug, contaminant, toxins, and microorganism in dairy products should conform to Thailand food regulations. Check the following documents for detailed limitations.
Items | Key regulations |
Pesticides residue | Amendments: Food Containing Pesticide Residues (Pesticide Residues in Food) (No. 2) Food Containing Pesticide Residues (Pesticide Residues in Food) (No. 3). |
Veterinary drug residue | |
Contaminant & Toxins | |
Microorganism |
4.2 Food additives
The use of food additives in dairy products should refer to MOPH Notification No. 418 B.E.2020 Re: Prescribing the Principle, Conditions, Methods, and Proportion of Food Additives (No.2).
4.3 Product compliance
The MOPH notifications regarding dairy products specify the product definition, quality standards, physicochemical indicators, storage conditions, container requirements, etc. For example, milk powder should be free of preservatives and artificial sweeteners. Please refer to the following regulations for the detailed requirements.
Regulations | Application scope |
MOPH Notification No. 406 (B.E. 2562 (2019)) Re: Cow's Milk No.2 | Fresh plain fluid cow’s milk Plain fluid cow’s milk Milk powder Condensed milk Recombined milk |
MOPH Notification No. 407 (B.E. 2562 (2019)) Re: Flavored Milk (No.2) | Flavored milk |
MOPH Notification No. 353 (B.E. 2556 (2013)) Re: Fermented Milk | Fermented milk, such as yogurt |
Cream | |
Notification of the Ministry of Public Health (No. 209) B.E. 2543 (2000) Re: Cheese | Cheese |
MOPH Notification No. 408 (B.E. 2562 (2019)) Re: Other Milk Products (No.2) | Other milk products |
5. Label
Dairy products are prepackaged food, so the labeling of them should conform to MOPH Notification No. 367 BE 2557 (2014) Re: Labeling of Prepackaged Foods and MOPH Notification No. 401 (B.E. 2562(2019)) Re: Labeling of Prepackaged Foods No. 3. According to the two regulations, the labeling content should be in Thai and include the following items:
Name of the food
Food serial number
Name and address of the manufacturer/packers/importers
Food content in metric system
Ingredient list (in descending orders by weight)
Allergenic substances
Functional class titles of food additives together with specific names or with International Numbering System (INS)
Text of “natural imitation odor added”, “artificial flavor added”, “natural flavor added” or “natural imitation flavor added” if such situation happens.
Shelf life
Warning statement (if any)
Storage condition (if any)
It is noteworthy that the product name of some dairy products should comply with the requirements specified in the corresponding MOPH notifications. For instance, the name of flavored milk should be “… flavored milk”, or “… flavored partly/skimmed/non-fat milk”, and the ellipsis are designated to its flavoring and heat treatment.
If the dairy product has nutrition claim or food value is utilized in the sales promotion, then it is required to have nutrition labeling. Nutrition labelling must be in Thai language, but foreign language may also be included. Please refer to MOPH Notification No. 392 (B.E. 2561 (2018)) Re: Nutrition Labeling No.3 for more details.
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