India’s organic certification procedures under cloud as APEDA penalises 3 more agencies 

India’s organic certification procedures under cloud as APEDA penalises 3 more agencies 

Subject: Agriculture

Section

Context :All is not well with the certification process of Indian organic products with the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) penalising three certifying agencies, including termination, for irregularities they committed in violation of the process.

• The ban was imposed after organic products certified by them for exports were found violating ethylene oxide norms of the European Commission.

APEDA

• The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) was established by the Government of India under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act passed by the Parliament in December, 1985.
• It functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The Authority has its headquarters in New Delhi.
• The Authority replaced the Processed Food Export Promotion Council (PFEPC).

Functions

• APEDA is mandated with the responsibility of export promotion and development of the scheduled products viz. fruits, vegetables and their products, meat and meat products, poultry and poultry products, dairy products, confectionery, biscuits and bakery products, honey, jaggery and sugar products, cocoa and its products, chocolates of all kinds, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, cereal and cereal products, groundnuts, peanuts and walnuts, pickles, papads and chutneys, guar gum, floriculture and floriculture products, herbal and medicinal plants.
• APEDA has been entrusted with the responsibility to monitor import of sugar.
• It looks after the development of industries relating to the scheduled products for export by way of providing financial assistance or otherwise for undertaking surveys and feasibility studies, participating through subsidy schemes.
• Registration of persons as exporters of the scheduled products and fixing of standards and specifications for the scheduled products for the purpose of exports.
• Carrying out inspection of meat and meat products in slaughterhouses, processing plants, storage premises and improving packaging of the scheduled products.
• APEDA also functions as the Secretariat to the National Accreditation Board (NAB) for implementation of accreditation of the Certification Bodies under National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) for organic exports. “Organic Products” for export are to be certified only if Produced, Processed and Packed as per the standards laid down in the document – “National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP).”
• The APEDA Chairman appointed by the Central Government

National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP)

• NPOP grants organic farming certification through a process of third party certification.
• It involves the accreditation programme for Certification Bodies, standards for organic production, promotion of organic farming etc.
• It is implemented by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
• The NPOP standards for production and accreditation system have been recognized by the European Commission, Switzerland and USA as equivalent to their respective accreditation systems.

Participatory Guarantee System for India (PGS)

• PGS is another process of certifying organic products.
• The certification is in the form of a documented logo or a statement.
• It is implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
• The organic farmers have full control over the certification process. PGS certification is only for farmers or communities that can organise and perform as a group. Individual farmers or groups of farmers smaller than five members are not covered under PGS.
• PGS is applicable on on-farm activities comprising of crop production, processing and livestock rearing, etc.
• Off-farm processing activities such as storage, transport and value addition activities by persons/agencies other than PGS farmers away from the group are not covered under PGS.
• Organic foods are also required to comply with the requirements of labelling of FSSAI in addition to that of NPOP or PGS-India.