SME Times News Bureau | 24 Jul, 2019
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said
that there is no ban imposed by Japan and Saudi Arabia on India Cardamom shipments.
In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Piyush Goyal said the
Government of Saudi Arabia and Japan have not banned import of cardamom from
India.
However, Saudi Arabia Food & Drug Authority (SFDA)
had detained four import consignments of cardamom (small) from
India due to the detection of pesticide residue above the Maximum Residue Level
(MRL) specified by the SFDAin April-May 2018, he informed.
Thereafter, the exporters have
voluntarily stopped export of cardamom to Saudi Arabia, fearing detention due
to pesticide residue, he added.
The
Government, through the Spices Board, is conducting a series of campaigns in
the cardamom growing areas in India to popularize the Integrated Pest
Management (IPM) practices in cardamom among the cardamom growers and also
promote the use of bio-control agents for managing pests and diseases in
cardamom, the minister said.
Saudi Arabia
Foreign Ministry requested the Indian side to provide accreditation details of
the laboratories where tests are undertaken for pesticide residues in cardamom
before exporting to Saudi Arabia and the list of leading exporters and
establishments exporting cardamom to Saudi Arabia, which were provided
through the Indian Embassy at Riyadh on 9th August, 2018
by the Spices Board.
It was also
requested to enclose Laboratory Analysis Certificate confirming MRL compliance
specified by the SFDA issued by the Spices Board for pesticide residues in cardamom
with each export consignment of cardamom.
To comply
with this requirement of SFDA, the list of pesticides tested by SFDA in respect
of small cardamom has been obtained. Out of 41 pesticides tested by SFDA,
Spices Board’s Quality Evaluation Laboratory at Kochi has standardized 27
pesticides for testing and the remaining pesticides are being standardized.
A delegation from Saudi Arabia
Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) had visited Spices Board's Quality Evaluation
Laboratory in Kochi, spices export processing units and cardamom plantation in
December, 2018 and had discussion with the Spices Board's officials.
The delegation requested the
Board to send the details of pesticides used in cardamom by the
Indian farmers so that testing can be done for the same pesticides in cardamom
before exporting to Saudi Arabia.
The details were provided to the SFDA through the
Indian Embassy on 19th February, 2019. The Spices Board has been
advised to draw up a work plan immediately to address the issue of pesticide residue
in cardamom to resume the export of cardamom to Saudi
Arabia.