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Selling pet food in Mexico

In Mexico, pet food is a product for animal use or consumption under the Federal Animal Health Law, administered by the Secretaría de Agricultura (SADER) and SENASICA. Depending on its ingredients it needs registration, authorisation or neither. Labels follow NOM-012-ZOO-1993 in Spanish, and imports need a zoosanitary certificate at the point of entry.

Updated · Each section links to the official source it comes from

Main law
Ley Federal de Sanidad Animal
Authority
SADER, with inspections ordered by SENASICA
Product status
Registration, authorisation or exemption, by ingredients
Labelling
NOM-012-ZOO-1993, in Spanish
Import
Zoosanitary import certificate and free sale certificate
Recalls
Notify the Secretaría; it may order withdrawal

Before a product goes on sale

The questions to answer, in the order they usually come up.

  1. 1Does the product need registration, authorisation, or neither? Read more
  2. 2What has to be on the label, in Spanish? Read more
  3. 3Does the facility meet NOM-012-ZOO and have a responsible veterinarian where required? Read more
  4. 4Which zoosanitary requirements and certificates apply to the import? Read more
  5. 5How are lots traced and withdrawn if needed? Read more

The rules, by area

What each area covers, the texts that set it, and what the official pages say.

Registration and authorisation

Which products for animal consumption need a registration or an authorisation from the Secretaría.

  • The Secretaría determines which products for animal use or consumption need registration or authorisation for reasons of safety, efficacy and risk; registered products receive a card with the registration number, authorised products an authorisation letter (Article 92, Federal Animal Health Law).
  • Registration covers, among others, feeds and medicated premixes that include additives, pharmaceutical active substances or antimicrobials (Article 150, fracción V, of the Regulation).
  • Authorisation covers, among others, finished feeds containing ingredients and meals of animal origin, nutraceuticals or functional foods, and non-medicated supplements (Article 151).
  • Feeds formulated only with grains and forage and their by-products, fish meal, vitamins, minerals or amino acids are exempt from registration and authorisation (Article 152).
  • To register an imported product, the applicant provides a free sale certificate from the country of origin, legalised or apostilled, and a good manufacturing practice certificate or equivalent (Article 155).

How we help: Compliant Always records each product's status, registration or authorisation number and the documents behind it, and shows which certificates expire first. Ask about this

Labelling under NOM-012-ZOO

What the label of a finished product shows.

  • Texts and legends on the labels of national and imported products are printed in Spanish (8.2.1).
  • Language must be clear and free of exaggeration; terms such as "lo único" or "lo mejor" are to be avoided (8.2.1).
  • The label shows net content, the commercial name, the product's regulation number where one applies, and, for food, the legend "Alimento para" with the species (8.2.2).
  • Imported products state "Elaborado por" and "Importado y distribuido por" with the names and addresses of both companies (8.2.2).
  • For food, the label gives a guaranteed analysis with minimum and maximum nutrient levels, the lot number and the expiry date (8.2.4).
  • Imported products not labelled at origin are labelled by the registration holder before or after import and before sale (8.2.5).

How we help: Compliant Always sets your label beside each clause of NOM-012-ZOO, including the nutrient analysis and the importer legend. Ask about this

Establishments and quality control

The rules for businesses that make, import or sell products for animal consumption.

  • NOM-012-ZOO-1993 applies to establishments that produce, import, condition or store products for animal use or consumption that represent a zoosanitary risk (1.2).
  • Quality control for food includes, as required, proximate analysis and testing for minerals, vitamins, antibiotics, antiparasitics, fungicides and pesticides (7.2.3); retention samples of finished food are kept for at least six months (7.4).
  • Importers guarantee each lot of raw material or finished product with the manufacturer's quality control certificate and a certificate of origin (7.1.2).
  • Establishments whose only activity is storing and selling finished animal food in its original closed packaging are exempt from having a responsible veterinarian (Article 195 of the Regulation).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps quality control certificates and retention-sample records with each lot, dated. Ask about this

Import

The zoosanitary requirements and certificates for bringing pet food into Mexico.

  • Products for animal use or consumption are inspected and need a zoosanitary certificate for import (certificado zoosanitario para importación), issued at the point of entry (Articles 24 and 33, Federal Animal Health Law).
  • The importer meets the zoosanitary requirements sheet set beforehand by the Secretaría; for products for animal use or consumption, it also provides a free sale certificate from the country of origin and information on use and dosage (Article 32).
  • Registered or authorised products, and those exempt under Article 152, do not need the free sale certificate at import (Article 62 of the Regulation).
  • Depending on the risk, the Secretaría may order quarantine at the importer's cost, or the return, conditioning or destruction of the goods (Article 36).

How we help: Compliant Always keeps the requirements sheet, free sale certificate and zoosanitary certificate with each shipment. Ask about this

Traceability and recalls

How products are traced, and what happens when one does not meet the rules.

  • Traceability information includes origin, provenance, destination, lot, and dates of production, packing or processing and expiry or best-before (Article 89).
  • Businesses notify the Secretaría when they suspect a product they made, distributed or imported does not meet animal health rules; the Secretaría may order its withdrawal, and the reasons are given to the Secretaría and consumers (Article 88).
  • Verification and inspection visits are ordered by SENASICA, the Servicio Nacional de Sanidad, Inocuidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (Article 234 of the Regulation).

How we help: Compliant Always ties each document to the lot and the supplier it came from, so a withdrawal starts from the record. Ask about this

Who answers for what

WhoWhat they answer forHow we help
Registration or authorisation holderThe product's status with the Secretaría and its label.Registration documents and labels kept together and dated.
ManufacturerQuality control, retention samples and the protocol of manufacture.Certificates of analysis kept by lot.
ImporterZoosanitary requirements, the free sale certificate and its details on the label.Certificates read and dated before the goods arrive.
RetailerSelling finished food in its original closed packaging.Product documents ready when a buyer asks.

Federal rules and the states

Product rules in Mexico are federal: the General Health Law, the Federal Consumer Protection Law and the Normas Oficiales Mexicanas apply across the national territory.

Health surveillance is shared. Under the General Health Law, a notice of operation (aviso de funcionamiento) goes to the Secretaría de Salud or to the government of the state (entidad federativa), and several sanitary NOMs are enforced by COFEPRIS and the state governments together.

Questions businesses ask

Who regulates pet food in Mexico?
The Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural (SADER) under the Federal Animal Health Law, with verification and inspection visits ordered by SENASICA.
Does pet food need to be registered in Mexico?
It depends on the ingredients. Medicated feeds need registration, feeds with ingredients of animal origin need authorisation, and feeds made only from grains, forage, fish meal, vitamins, minerals or amino acids are exempt (Articles 150 to 152 of the Regulation).
Which NOM sets pet food labelling in Mexico?
NOM-012-ZOO-1993, as modified in the DOF on 27 January 2004, for chemical, pharmaceutical, biological and food products for use in or consumption by animals.
Must pet food labels be in Spanish?
Yes. Texts and legends on labels of national and imported products are printed in Spanish (NOM-012-ZOO, 8.2.1).
What does a pet food label show in Mexico?
Net content, commercial name, regulation number where applicable, "Alimento para" with the species, the maker and importer, a guaranteed analysis, lot number and expiry date.
What certificate is needed to import pet food into Mexico?
A zoosanitary certificate for import, issued at the point of entry after inspection, on the basis of the zoosanitary requirements sheet (Articles 24, 32 and 33, Federal Animal Health Law).
Is a free sale certificate needed?
For products for animal use or consumption, yes, unless the product is registered, authorised or exempt (Article 32 of the Law; Article 62 of the Regulation).
Can imported pet food be relabelled in Mexico?
Yes. Products not labelled at origin are labelled by the registration holder before or after import and before sale (NOM-012-ZOO, 8.2.5).
What happens if pet food does not meet the rules?
The business notifies the Secretaría, which may order withdrawal; the reasons are given to the Secretaría and to consumers (Article 88, Federal Animal Health Law).
Does a pet shop need a responsible veterinarian?
Not if its only activity is storing and selling finished animal food in its original closed packaging (Article 195 of the Regulation).
How does Compliant Always help with selling in Mexico?
Our team reads the rules for the markets you sell in, including the Normas Oficiales Mexicanas and COFEPRIS requirements. Compliant Always shows which apply to your product, keeps the documents behind each one ready, and watches the sources for changes. It shows what the requirements say and what your documents show; you decide.

Sources

Compliant Always is a product of Lettuce Labs LLC. It shows what requirements say and what your documents show. It is not legal advice, and you decide.

Tell us what you make, and we will show you the rules for it.

Name the product and the markets you sell in. We will come back to you with what applies in Mexico and what your paperwork needs to show.

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