Measures agreed on to speed up wheat shipment clearance process

AMMAN — Several measures are being taken to speed up the clearance of wheat shipments entering Jordan, while ensuring they meet all standards and specifications, officials said Thursday.

The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Jordan Food and Drug Administration (JFDA) under which lab tests for wheat samples should be completed within four to six days, ministry spokesperson, Yanal Barmawi, told The Jordan Times over the phone.

"It used to take longer, causing some delays for vessels in port," he noted.

Under the memo, the importer has the right to ask that samples be tested at any of the local accredited labs, which was not allowed before, as well as the right to be present at the time of the lab tests, according to Barmawi.

Another memorandum will soon be signed with the Ministry of Agriculture to speed up the process of handling shipments in port, he said.

Jordan also signed a memorandum of understanding with a UAE-based company that owns farms in Kazakhstan to supply Jordan with wheat, the official noted.

He added that the current wheat reserve is sufficient for nine months.

JFDA Director General Hayel Obeidat said the current situation is reassuring when it comes to stocks of wheat and barley, adding that the decision by some traders to refrain from bidding for tenders is unjustified.

He noted that since 2012, the JFDA approved the entry of 500 shipments of wheat, amounting to around 3.7 million tonnes in total, while it rejected one 50,000-tonne shipment of wheat from Poland because it did not meet the required standards.

The JFDA permitted the entry of 900,000 tonnes of wheat in 2015 so far, slightly over one million tonnes in 2014, 900,000 tonnes in 2013 and 975,000 tonnes in 2012.

"Jordanian standards are in line with international standards. They are not 'a Jordanian invention'," Obeidat said.

He added that Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour held a meeting earlier this week with stakeholders and several importers of wheat and barley to address challenges.

He explained that the meeting was held to encourage local traders to submit bids for tenders.

About 90 per cent of wheat supplied to Jordan comes through Amman-based Smart Solutions for Trade, which is an agent for several international companies, according to Obeidat.