Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Thursday asked global food regulators to keep farmers at centre stage while framing food safety regulations and ensure they get the right price for their produce.

 

Addressing the Global Food Regulators Summit 2023 here, Tomar said food is a basic right for every person and therefore, it is important to ensure the availability of food and global food safety. The summit is being organised by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) under the Health Ministry.

 

The minister highlighted that the Indian government has taken many steps to boost production and productivity in the agriculture sector, and the country is a surplus state in foodgrain production.

 

India also strives to fulfil the requirement of global food demand, Tomar said.

 

He also emphasised that regulations on processing, packaging and labelling of food products must ensure food safety and said the food regulator FSSAI is doing a great job in this aspect.

 

The minister told global food regulators that farmers should be at centre stage while framing food safety standards.

 

He said farmers are food producers and it is essential to ensure that farming is profitable to protect their interests.

 

While making regulations, Tomar said, it is important to keep in mind that consumers get good quality food products at an affordable price, and also farmers get the right price for their produce.

 

He made a strong case for promoting the use of millets by highlighting positive attributes of millets like their less water consumption compared to other crops, resilience to adverse climatic conditions and high nutritional value.

 

Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Government of Nepal, Bedu Ram Bhusal was also present at the event.

 

Through a recorded video message, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, congratulated the Union Health Ministry and FSSAI for organising this maiden global food regulators summit.

 

He said, 'We must collectively ensure that everyone everywhere enjoys access to safe and nutritious food'.

 

Amitabh Kant, G20 Sherpa, requested the gathering to utilise this platform for learning, strengthening networks to improve food safety and creating a mechanism for investing in food safety in a sustainable way.

 

Recognising the need to ensure a resilient food supply, he stressed the need to reduce food wastage, utilise digital tools for enhancing food supply and promote the use of resilient food crops like millet.

 

Principal Scientific Advisor Ajay Kumar Sood urged the participants at the two-day conclave to discuss the potential health hazards of plastic, nutraceuticals and metals in food supply and encouraged them to explore alternatives to single-use plastics, promote circularity in food-grade plastic production and use of sustainable material across supermarkets and take away services.

 

G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO of FSSAI, stated that safe and nutritious food is key to good health, while unsafe food causes 600 million infections and 4.2 lakh deaths every year.

 

He hoped that this gathering will brainstorm on the critical aspects of food safety and bring innovative solutions to ensure a safe food supply.

 

The Global Food Regulators Summit 2023 brings together food regulators from around the world to exchange perspectives and knowledge on crucial issues related to food safety systems.

 

The summit will have various technical sessions focusing on various topics, such as the roles and responsibilities of global food regulators, challenges and solutions for global food safety, robust standard setting, innovation in food emergency response and more.

The Philippines’ first border inspection facility located in this province will be completed in less than a year, bolstering the country’s ability to fight smuggling and animal diseases.

 

The government and the private sector partnered to establish a cold examination facility in agriculture (Cefa) in this part of Bulacan, a first of its kind in the country.

 

This facility, situated in a 10-hectare property, will house an inspection area as well as state-of-the-art testing laboratories and an incinerator to examine all imported animals, fish, plants and other commodities.

 

The project will funded by the P2.3-billion allotment made by the government this year for the development of such facilities.

 

The Department of Agriculture (DA) and Pacific Roadlink Logistics Inc. (PRLI) signed a memorandum of agreement on Thursday to establish Cefa.

 

Based on the accord, PRLI will contribute the resources and a suitable property for the first border facility. PRLI will build the inspection area while the DA will develop the laboratories for the inspection of agricultural products with perceived risk.

 

'We expect the construction to commence immediately,' said Bureau of Animal Industry Director Paul Limson in a media briefing, adding the construction would be concluded in six to eight months.

 

Particularly, the Cefa will thoroughly check all imported agricultural products depending on risk level, such as those coming from banned countries with existing disease/pest outbreaks, unaccredited/unregistered agricultural imports, misdeclared or smuggled agricultural goods, as well as those involved with suspected agricultural regulatory violations and other food items that are deemed high-risk.

 

'The involvement of PRLI is to provide a facility for the government because the primary issue was ASF (African swine fever). Smuggling, I will say, will be secondary. Now, we’ve seen the effect of ASF and avian influenza on the industry. That’s the primary reason,' PRLI president Edgar Dominic Milla said.

 

According to Milla, the design of the facility is scalable. The number of refrigerated containers coming from the Bureau of Customs and the DA can be increased to about 250 containers a day.

 

Agriculture Assistant Secretary James Layug said the Cefa would not only strengthen efforts to combat agricultural smuggling but also improve the process of examining imported food items.

 

'Right now, what happens is that we are only given a designated examination in the ports of entry, for example, at MICT (Manila International Container Terminal) and the Port of Manila,' Layug said.

 

At present, Layug noted that local authorities were only able to inspect about 10 percent of the entire shipment as the process of inspecting the imported goods was limited to opening and closing the containers.

 

After Bulacan, the DA is looking for other potential sites to put up other cold examination facilities in Cebu and Davao.

The Global Food Regulators Summit 2023 was inaugurated by Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, marking a significant step towards strengthening food safety systems across the world. The summit, organized by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), brought together food regulators from various nations to exchange perspectives and knowledge on crucial issues related to food safety and regulatory frameworks.

 

The event commenced with the gracious presence of esteemed dignitaries, including Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare, Narendra Tomar, and special guest Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Govt. of Nepal, Dr. Bedu Ram Bhusal. The session was also attended by Prof S P Singh Baghel and Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar, Union Ministers of State for Health and Family Welfare, adding to the significance of the summit.

 

Addressing the audience, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya emphasized the importance of safe and nutritious food in promoting good health and well-being. He highlighted how balanced and wholesome food acts as preventive care, safeguarding public health. The Union Minister stressed the need for food regulators to adopt an integrated 'One Health' approach, considering the health of climate, humans, animals, and plants in their regulatory systems.

 

With a focus on the ongoing G20 India Presidency, Dr. Mandaviya emphasized that 'One Health' remains a key priority for the Health Working Group. He also called for international cooperation and solidarity, aligning with the theme of India's G20 Presidency, 'Vasudev Kutumbhakam: One Earth, One Nation.' Considering agro-climatic diversities across regions, he urged for exploration of how regional differences can be integrated into global best practices for food safety.

 

The Union Minister emphasized the crucial role of soil health in ensuring the quality of food. He mentioned the recently announced PM-PRANAM scheme, which encourages balanced chemical use in food cultivation and promotes organic, natural, and alternative farming methods. Dr. Mandaviya appealed to countries worldwide to collaborate in addressing the global food shortage problem, emphasizing the philosophy of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' (the world is one family).

 

Narendra Singh Tomar, the guest of honour, highlighted the fundamental right to food and the need to ensure its availability and affordability for all. Stressing on the importance of farmers, he urged that they must be at the center of any food supply policies to protect their interests. Additionally,  Tomar advocated for the promotion of millets, citing their water-efficient nature, resilience to adverse climatic conditions, and high nutritional value.

 

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, congratulated the organizers through a recorded message, stating the importance of ensuring safe and nutritious food for everyone, everywhere.

 

During the summit, several essential initiatives were launched. The Food-o-Copoeia, a collection of food category-wise monographs, was released, serving as a comprehensive reference for applicable food safety standards and regulations. Another crucial database, 'SaNGRAH' - Safe food for Nations: Global food Regulatory Authorities Handbook, was introduced, providing information on Food Regulatory Authorities of 76 countries, their mandates, food safety ecosystems, and contact details.

 

A Common Digital Dashboard was unveiled, offering comprehensive information on standards, regulations, notifications, advisories, guidelines, contamination limits, and the latest developments by Food Regulators in India.

 

Furthermore, an exhibition featuring 35 exhibitors, including Food Business Operators (FBOs) and esteemed organizations like APEDA, MPEDA, EIC, Spice Board, Tea Board, and Coffee Board, was inaugurated during the summit. The exhibition provided a platform for exchanging ideas and information on food safety, food standards, food testing capabilities, product reformulation, and advancements in food technologies.

 

The summit also featured technical sessions focusing on various critical topics, including roles and responsibilities of global food regulators, challenges and solutions for global food safety, robust standard setting, and innovation in food emergency response.

Tamil Nadu has pipped Maharashtra and Gujarat to emerge as the top state among coastal states in the Niti Aayog’s Export Preparedness Index 2022.

 

The index is aimed at assessing the readiness of the states in terms of their export potential and performance.

 

Tamil Nadu is followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal and Kerala in that order in the ranking of coastal states, according to the government think tank’s report released on Monday.

 

Among hilly/Himalayan states, Uttarakhand has ranked at the top position. It is followed by Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura, Sikkim, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram in that order.

 

Haryana topped the chart among the landlocked regions. It was followed by Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

In the category of union territories/small states, Goa was ranked first. Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar and Ladakh were ranked second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

 

The index can be used by the regions to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyse potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the sub-national level. The ranking is based on four main pillars: policy, business ecosystem, export ecosystem and export performance.

 

The index is also aimed at promoting competition among all states (coastal, landlocked, Himalayan and UTs) to bring about favourable policies, ease the regulatory framework, create necessary infrastructure and assist in identifying strategic recommendations for improving export competitiveness.

 

Speaking at the release of the report, NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam said that states are fundamental stakeholders in the country’s exports 'because that is where the action is.' 'Entire ecosystem for export happens in states,' he said adding the report will help in raising awareness about the subject. He also said that the country needs to broad-base its exports.

Andhra Pradesh secured eighth place in the overall category in the country-level analysis of Export Preparedness Index 2022 released by NITI Aayog. The State stood ninth in the previous year.

 

The report categorised the States and Union Territories as Coastal and Landlocked. In the overall rankings, AP scored 59.27 points while Tamil Nadu topped the list with 80.89 points. Telangana, falling under the Landlocked Category, scored 61.36 points and stood sixth.

 

Among the Coastal Category States, AP scored 59.27 points and stood fifth among the eight States in the category. Visakhapatnam is the only district from the State, which found a place in the top 10 export districts of India with 1.80 per cent of exports. In all, eight districts from the State found a place in the top 100 export districts. According to the report, Visakhapatnam and East Godavari stood 15th and 24th in terms of export value.

 

'Developed as a part of Kakinada Development Project, top exports from both districts are engineering goods. Specifically, Visakhapatnam also exports organic and inorganic chemicals, drugs and pharmaceuticals, and marine products. East Godavari district has a large number of rice mills and falls under the Kakinada SEZ, and therefore exports rice and electronic goods as other principal commodities,’’ the report said.

 

The two districts are connected with Kolkata via land and have access to international waterways owing to their coastal proximity, resulting in ease of transportation which in turn facilitates trade.The report further said in tune with the vision of Districts as Export Hubs, the district export action plans have identified coconut-based products, alloys, cashew, coir, and sugar as potential exports.

 

'Towards that direction, the districts require information to disseminate knowledge in terms of value addition, global trade and management of products. Expanding its export basket, and creating a conducive environment to multiply its export value can prove beneficial for the State, which is gifted in terms of natural resources,’’ the NITI Aayog report stated.

 

The report observed that AP in the financial year 2022 recorded an export value of over USD 19 billion by exporting products such as floats, seafood, and iron products.

 

'The State has achieved this by creating a solid policy framework which enables export at the district level. In terms of export ecosystem, the State has the highest area under Export Promotion Zones, and Agri Export Zones, which provide a huge boost to its exports. Along with that, to facilitate exporters, the Andhra Pradesh government pro-actively organises capacity-building workshops and trade fairs. The presence of testing labs and research institutes in the State enables quality measures for its products which help it compete in the global markets. This enabling environment has led to a decent increase in its exports and consequently, export growth,' the NITI Aayog report added.

The US, UK, EU and Japan have opposed extending the temporary peace clause agreed upon at the 2013 World Trade Organization (WTO) Bali conference that prevents legal action against any developing nation that breaches the food subsidy limits specified in the agreement on agriculture.

 

At an agriculture negotiation meeting at the WTO on Monday, the US said India’s expansion of support to its rice and wheat farmers has negative spillover effects. India has invoked the clause thrice.

 

'India said that the strongest evidence supporting the necessity of public stockholding was in its own actions during the pandemic, when it mobilised its food stocks and provided food to 80 million people in 18 months’ span,' said a Geneva-based official.

 

Public stockholding is a policy tool used by governments to purchase, stockpile and distribute food when needed.

 

Developing countries’ food subsidies are protected by an interim peace clause which shields food procurement programmes against action from WTO members in case the subsidy ceilings—10% of value of food production in the case of India and other developing countries—are breached.

 

India, Indonesia, South Africa and China are among the 80 WTO member countries that have called for initiating text-based negotiations to find a permanent solution on public stockholding (PSH) for food security. Developing countries and the African Group have demanded a food security package at the 2024 conference.

 

Their joint proposal represents 6.6 billion people and more than 80% of the global population.

The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and AOAC INTERNATIONAL (AOAC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate and enhance the food safety analytical ecosystem in India. The MoU signing ceremony took place at the FSSAI headquarters in New Delhi, in the presence of esteemed dignitaries, including G. Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO of FSSAI, Satyen Kumar Panda, Advisor (Quality Assurance) FSSAI, Shrinvas Joshi, President, AOAC-India Section, Dr Ganesh Ramamurthi – President-Elect, AOAC-India Section, and Dr Saurabh Arora – Director, AOAC-India Section.

 

With the increasing global economic uncertainties, the commerce ministry is looking at fixing this fiscal year's export target in a range instead of a single figure, an official said. To set the target range, a detailed study on 200 countries and 31 commodity groups is in the process, the official said.

 

The target range would depend on parameters such as the USD 1 trillion merchandise exports target by 2030; import to GDP ratio of importing countries; export to GDP ratio of India that will tell the potential and past trends.

 

'We are not fixing any export target as a figure. In fact, my team has done an exercise, where we are saying that let us talk in terms of range. In the best scenario, the exports can be this much and in the worst scenario, it can be this much,' the official said.

 

For a monitoring purpose of exports every month, the official said a fixed number would be required and that could be a mid-value or an average may be accepted.

 

The ministry has though fixed an internal target which has been to export promotion councils and Indian missions abroad.

 

'But we will take some more time before we will come up with our exports targets because based on the current trends, it can not be right on our part to fix those targets as of now, so we are waiting and watching,' the official added.

 

A trade expert said that in 2022-23, India's merchandise exports were USD 450 billion, so the lower band of new target range could be USD 451 and even if one assumes a 10 per cent growth in 2023-24, then the upper band of the range could be around USD 495 billion.

 

In April this year, apex exporters body Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said that they are targeting to take the shipments to USD 500-510 billion during the current financial year.

 

India's exports contracted by 22 per cent, the steepest decline in the last three years, to USD 32.97 billion in June on account of global demand slowdown, especially in the Western markets like the US and Europe.

 

Cumulatively, exports dipped by 15.13 per cent to USD 102.68 billion during April-June this fiscal.

India expects two more rounds of negotiations for the conclusion of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) by the end of the year.

 

While the legal scrubbing of the Supply Chain Agreement - which was finalised in May - is on, discussions are moving fast on the clean economy and fair economy pillars, said people aware of the matter.

 

The fourth round of IPEF negotiations took place from July 9-15 in South Korea. India is yet to take a call on joining the trade pillar of the IPEF.

 

'There are two more rounds to go before it gets concluded. Discussions are on for pillars 3 and 4,' said one of the persons, who did not wish to be identified.

 

Pillar 3 in the IPEF relates to a clean economy while Pillar 4 deals with a fair economy.

The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) is organising the GI Fair India 2023 at India Expo Centre in Greater Noida from July 20-24.

 

GI Fair India is a one-stop-shop where one can see and buy the largest variety of India’s GI tagged products from regions far and wide, across the country. It is being supported by Ministry of textile and Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

 

Besides exhibitors from the several states and union territories of India, participating organisations include Tea Board of India; Spices Board India; Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority; Jammu & Kashmir Trade Promotion Organization (JKTPO); Uttarakhand Handloom and Handicraft Development Council (UHHDC); Uttarakhand Organic Commodities Board; Goa State Council for Science & Technology and many more.

 

Speaking about the upcoming fair, Dileep Baid, Chairman, EPCH, said, 'this show will offer a common platform to find Muzaffarnagar Gur; Sambhal Horn Craft; Mainpuri Tarkashi; teas, Gamosa and Muga silk from Assam and many more authentic products from across India.'

 

GI Fair aims to connect these invaluable native products, aptly called Legal Local, to connoisseurs and clientele in India as well as the global market. The Fair will be open from 10 am to 7 pm on all 5 days and the entry to the fair is free.