Preqal Guides · Plain-language answers
How to export food from Guyana, step by step
Guyanese food sells wherever it lands. The diaspora wants it, CARICOM wants it, and the world is discovering it. What stands between a great product and a foreign shelf is paperwork and certification, and both are beatable. Here is the road.
Get your house papers first
Before any border matters, your business needs to stand properly at home. That means business registration, tax registration, and the food safety basics for your premises under the Guyana Food Safety Authority. The Guyana Marketing Corporation publishes requirements for agro-processor certification and supports new exporters, and the Guyana National Bureau of Standards runs the Made in Guyana mark that tells buyers where your product comes from.
None of this is difficult, but buyers and border agencies check it, and missing basics stall deals that took months to win.
Climb the certification ladder
Food safety certification works like a ladder, and each rung opens a bigger market. Good manufacturing practices and prerequisite programmes are the ground floor. HACCP sits above them and is the minimum for most cross-border trade. ISO 22000 wraps HACCP inside a full management system. At the top sit the GFSI-recognised schemes such as FSSC 22000, BRCGS and SQF, which the largest international buyers treat as their entry ticket.
You do not need the top rung to start exporting. Many CARICOM deals close with HACCP alone. But every rung you climb widens who will buy from you and strengthens your price.
What buyers actually ask for
A serious buyer will ask for your certification, a sample of your labels with correct ingredient and allergen declarations, shelf-life evidence, and traceability, meaning you can show which batch of raw material went into which carton. Exporters who can answer those four questions quickly get taken seriously. Exporters who cannot get polite silence.
The certificate matters most because it stands in for everything the buyer cannot see. They will never visit your plant. Your HACCP or FSSC certificate is your plant, as far as they are concerned.
Timelines, costs and the cluster advantage
From informal kitchen to HACCP-certified exporter typically takes six to twelve months of real work. The cost splits between upgrading premises where needed, the consultant who builds your system, and the certification audit itself.
There is also strength in numbers. Preqal built Export-Ready as a fixed-scope programme that repeats across a whole cluster of producers, which lowers the cost per business and matches the national push to get Guyanese agro-processed food meeting global standards. One certified processor becomes a path that neighbours can follow.
Quick answers
Do I need HACCP to export food to Trinidad or Barbados?
Most commercial buyers in CARICOM ask for HACCP as their minimum, and import authorities expect food from certified facilities. Treat it as required.
What is GFSI and do I need it?
GFSI is a global benchmark that recognises top food safety schemes such as FSSC 22000, BRCGS and SQF. You need one of those certificates when you target large international retailers. For regional trade HACCP usually opens the door.
I cook from home. Where do I start?
Start with business registration and the food safety basics for your space, then a gap assessment so you know exactly what stands between you and certification. Preqal's Risk Scan does that in seven days.
How does the Made in Guyana mark fit in?
The GNBS Made in Guyana certification tells buyers your product is genuinely local, which helps marketing. Food safety certification like HACCP is what lets the product legally and commercially cross borders. Strong exporters carry both.
Ready to walk this road with help?
Preqal Export-Ready™ was built for exactly this journey. One message starts everything.