Online Training on Food Packaging and Labelling for African, Latin American and Caribbean Countries

Strengthening South-South and triangular cooperation in the agricultural sector

Towards a Solution

To address the above challenge, the Non-Aligned Movement Centre for South-South Technical Cooperation (NAM CSSTC) collaborated with the Government of Indonesia to organize training related to food labelling and food packaging. This is part of a series of training sessions supported by Indonesia to develop agricultural sectors in other developing countries using a South-South cooperation modality.

Experts from the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia teamed up with the Halal Food Authority of the United Kingdom to deliver virtual training sessions to 27 beneficiaries in 15 countries around the world (Belize, Burundi, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Gambia, Honduras, Kenya, Madagascar, Nicaragua, Panama, Rwanda, Suriname, the United Republic of Tanzania). Participants included government officials, farmers, business owners and education institutions. Using e-learning techniques, training materials were provided, and discussions held, with Q&A sessions.

Through the training, the participants received guidance on: (i) increasing competitiveness through packaging and labeling; (ii) basic knowledge of packaging types and designs for small- and medium-sized enterprises; (iii) halal food packaging and labeling; (iv) requirements regarding food labeling; and (v) design using an open-source application.

Packaging should consider brand selection to facilitate identification from other similar products, as a means of promotion, and increase consumer confidence. Attractive packaging design is very important in marketing efforts, considering the characteristics (for vegetables and fruits), packaging classification (disposable, multistrip, and semi-disposable) and levels (primary, secondary and tertiary).

The training introduced international regulations regarding food labeling  and gave participants new perspectives  on how goods produced by small- and medium-sized businesses can be export oriented. The training provided examples of graphic design through software applications, focusing on form and content of packaging, product information, legal aspects including copyright issues and selection of packaging materials to serve the purpose of marketing the products. The ‘smart intelligence packaging’ method was introduced which is economical but environmentally friendly. This method will help with competitiveness during marketing and is a sustainable practice.

One module covered halal certification of products. The module discussed how to increase consumer confidence by specifying the composition of the ingredients, including appropriate packaging, and which ingredients fall under the halal category as determined by the Halal Authority. The halal certification module was deemed useful as halal products are not yet a popular topic in Africa or South America and the Caribbean.

Through this training, participants gained the packaging and labelling knowledge for the purpose of marketing agriculture products which can be implemented in their own countries. In the end, to the training should boost the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers and provide opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment, as targeted by SDG 2.3. Furthermore, the partnership between the Indonesia and NAM CSSTC is in line with the concept of global partnerships for sustainable development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources to support the achievement of the sustainable development goals in all countries, in particular developing countries, as targeted by SDG 17.16.

As the training took place during the Covid-19 pandemic, this training was conducted online using e-learning and video materials and participants interacted online with the trainers. Although the virtual nature of the training was out of necessity, it was realized that online training is in fact environmentally friendly and cost effective, allowing even greater geographical reach for participation, and thus may be a long-term solution for training and sharing across nations and regions.

The training is considered relatively easily replicable and could be extended widely through online, hybrid or full offline settings.