Morocco Foodex expands sustainability expertise to support food exporters

Morocco is preparing to strengthen the sustainability expertise supporting its food exporters as environmental and climate-related requirements become increasingly important in international markets.

Through the Swiss Import Promotion Programme (SIPPO), implemented in Morocco by Swisscontact, a new capacity-building initiative is set to provide Morocco Foodex auditors with advanced training in three areas of sustainability. The programme is designed to help small and medium-sized enterprises and agricultural cooperatives better prepare for the technical and reporting requirements increasingly attached to international market access.

Three certification tracks for Morocco Foodex auditors

The programme, scheduled to run between the second half of 2026 and the first half of 2027, will focus on three professional certification pathways: Lead Verifier LCA-EPD, GRI Certified Sustainability Professional and SBTi Certified Expert.

Ten Morocco Foodex auditors will be selected for each training cycle. The objective is not only to expand their individual qualifications, but also to create a stronger pool of expertise capable of supporting companies seeking to demonstrate their environmental and social performance.

Each course will last five days, corresponding to 40 hours of training. Participants will progress from the fundamental principles of each framework to detailed requirements, audit preparation, practical exercises and examination preparation.

Life-cycle assessment at the heart of the first programme

The first training stream will focus on life-cycle assessment (LCA) and environmental product declarations (EPDs).

Auditors will examine the principles established under ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, including the identification of environmental impact categories and the collection and processing of data required to assess a product throughout its life cycle.

The programme will also introduce methodologies for calculating environmental impacts and working with major LCA databases such as Ecoinvent and Agribalyse.

Another component will involve the verification of environmental declarations in accordance with EN 15804, ISO 21930 and relevant product category rules. These skills are increasingly relevant for exporters facing requests for more detailed evidence about the environmental footprint of their products.

ESG reporting becomes a second priority

The second cycle will address sustainability reporting through the GRI Standards.

Participants will be trained in universal and sector-specific GRI requirements, as well as in double materiality assessments. They will also learn how to collect, consolidate and validate the ESG information required for sustainability reporting.

The training will cover environmental indicators including greenhouse-gas emissions, energy consumption, water use, waste and biodiversity. Social indicators and governance-related information will also form part of the programme.

For Moroccan food companies, the development of this expertise could provide greater access to structured guidance when preparing sustainability information for international partners and buyers.

Building science-based climate targets

The third component will focus on the Science Based Targets initiative and corporate climate objectives.

Auditors will work with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and learn how to quantify emissions across Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3. The programme will also address the preparation of comprehensive carbon inventories.

Beyond measuring emissions, participants will learn how to identify appropriate SBTi methodologies, develop emission-reduction pathways and support companies in implementing and monitoring decarbonisation action plans.

This approach shifts the emphasis from simply reporting environmental performance toward establishing measurable pathways for reducing emissions.

Supporting SMEs and cooperatives

The broader objective is to translate the new expertise into practical support for Moroccan exporters.

Morocco Foodex auditors already have experience in the inspection and evaluation of food exports. With additional sustainability qualifications, they are expected to be better equipped to assist SMEs and cooperatives dealing with increasingly detailed environmental, social and climate-related requirements.

The programme is also linked to the Morocco Sustain Food Standard (MSFS), introduced by Morocco Foodex at the end of 2025. Certified auditors are expected to contribute to the assessment and support of companies seeking certification under the national sustainability framework.

A continuation of Morocco's professional capacity-building

The initiative builds on a training programme launched in 2025, which enabled Morocco Foodex auditors to obtain IRCA Lead Auditor certification covering ISO standards related to waste management and energy management.

The new programme broadens that effort by incorporating environmental performance, social considerations, ESG reporting and climate targets.

Candidates selected by Morocco Foodex will be expected to have previous auditing or management-system assessment experience, knowledge of sustainability standards and environmental management systems, and an understanding of carbon-footprint and sustainability challenges specific to the food sector.

Swisscontact is seeking qualified service providers to deliver the three training cycles. Applicants are expected to submit a methodological proposal, detailed professional profiles, evidence of comparable assignments, financial proposals for each cycle and supporting references.

For Moroccan food exporters, the initiative reflects a wider shift in international trade: demonstrating compliance increasingly involves not only proving that a product meets market requirements, but also showing how it is produced, measured and improved from an environmental and sustainability perspective.