One of the conditions for importing organic food and feed into Great Britain is that importers (or their representative) must notify Port Health 24 hours in advance of the intended arrival of any organic consignment.

System for pre-notification

To assist with this Suffolk Coastal Port Health Authority have recently updated our PHILIS DES system. This is to enable electronic pre-notification of organic consignments of food and feed.

The update to PHILIS DES for organic pre-notifications has been simplified compared to the previous version. Guidance notes are available under the ‘Help’ section on DES. The system can also be used to upload copies of the organic certificate of inspection, the bill of lading, packing list and invoice rather than emailing these documents to us separately.

Please note: Port Health will still require the original signed and stamped certificate of inspection (COI) for validation. The Port Health endorsed signed COI must accompany the consignment to the consignee’s premises where it must be kept for two years.

Fees for verification of the COI

There will be a reduced fee if the organic pre-notification is completed on PHILIS DES

£45.72 – if the pre-notification is created on PHILIS DES

£60.96 – if the pre-notification is not created on PHILIS DES