European Commission has decided to suspend five certifying bodies

European Commission has decided to suspend five certifying bodies

Subject : Agriculture

Section :

Context:

The European Commission has decided to suspend five certifying bodies from clearing or ratifying exports of Indian processed organic food products for their failure to comply with European Union norms and ensure contamination-free product

Concept:

According to Codex Alimentarius the traces pesticides leave in treated products or those left by veterinary drugs in animals are called “residues”.

Pesticide residues

A maximum residue limit (MRL) is the highest level of a pesticide residue that is legally tolerated in or on food or feed when pesticides are applied correctly in accordance with Good Agricultural Practice.

Veterinary drug residues

The maximum residue limit (MRL) is the maximum concentration of residue legally tolerated in a food product obtained from an animal that has received a veterinary medicine.

What is Codex standard?

Codex standards are based on sound science provided by independent international risk assessment bodies or ad-hoc consultations organized by FAO and WHO.

Scope:

The Codex Alimentarius includes standards for all the principal foods, whether processed, semi-processed or raw, for distribution to the consumer. Materials for further processing into foods should be included to the extent necessary to achieve the purposes of the Codex Alimentarius as defined. The Codex Alimentarius includes provisions in respect of food hygiene, food additives, residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs, contaminants, labelling and presentation, methods of analysis and sampling, and import and export inspection and certification.

More details:

• All  developed and developing countries fix their own Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) of pesticides on Raw Agricultural Commodities (RAC) based on their country specific Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and dietary consumption pattern.
• In India, the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) under Ministry of Health and Family Welfare evaluate the supervised trial residue data based on the approved GAP, for fixation of MRL.
• For tea, according to the Indian Tea Planters’ Association an MRL of10 mg/kg is currently established in India.

Organic farming in India:

• Organic products are grown under a system of agriculture without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides with an environmentally and socially responsible approach.
• This is a method of farming that works at grass root level preserving the reproductive and regenerative capacity of the soil, good plant nutrition, and sound soil management, produces nutritious food rich in vitality which has resistance to diseases.
• As per the available statistics, India’s rank 8th in terms of World’s Organic Agricultural land and 1st in terms of total number of producers as per 2020 data (Source: FIBL & IFOAM Year Book, 2020).
• The APEDA, Ministry of Commerce & Industries, Government of India is implementing the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP).
• The programme involves the accreditation of Certification Bodies, standards for organic production, promotion of organic farming and marketing etc.
• The NPOP standards for production and accreditation system have been recognized by European Commission and Switzerland for unprocessed plant products as equivalent to their country standards. With these recognitions, Indian organic products duly certified by the accredited certification bodies of India are accepted by the importing countries. APEDA is also in the process of negotiation with South Korea, Taiwan, Canada, Japan etc.

AREA

• As on 31st March 2021 total area under organic certification process (registered under National Programme for Organic Production) is 4339184.93 ha (2020-21). This includes 2657889.33 ha cultivable area and another 1681295.61 ha for wild harvest collection.
• Among all the states, Madhya Pradesh has covered largest area under organic certification followed by Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Karnataka.
• During 2016, Sikkim has achieved a remarkable distinction of converting its entire cultivable land (more than 75000 ha) under organic certification.

PRODUCTION

• India produced around 34 MT (2020-21) of certified organic products which includes all varieties of food products namely Oil Seeds, fibre, Sugar cane, Cereals & Millets, Cotton, Pulses, Aromatic & Medicinal Plants, Tea, Coffee, Fruits, Spices, Dry Fruits, Vegetables, Processed foods etc. The production is not limited to the edible sector but also produces organic cotton fiber, functional food products etc.
• Among different states Madhya Pradesh is the largest producer followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. In terms of commodities Oil seeds are the single largest category followed by Sugar crops, Cereals and Millets, Tea & Coffee, Fiber crops, fodder, Pulses, Medicinal/ Herbal and Aromatic plants and Spices & Condiments.

EXPORTS

• The total volume of export during 2020-21 was 68 MT. The organic food export realization was around INR 707849.52 Lakhs (1040.95 million USD). Organic products are exported to USA, European Union, Canada, Great Britain, Korea Republic, Israel, Switzerland, Ecuador, Vietnam, Australia etc.
• In terms of export value realization Processed foods including soya meal (57%) lead among the products followed by Oilseeds (9%), Cereals and millets (7%),Plantation crop products such as Tea and Coffee (6%),Spices and condiments (5%),Medicinal plants(5%), Dry fruits (3%), Sugar(3%), and others.