New Delhi: The Centre plans to invest about ₹100 crore to add about two dozen laboratories for testing organic products as well as upgrade existing labs, two people aware of the development told Mint. The move is aimed at enhancing the quality of organic food available in the domestic market and ensuring better pricing for the country’s 4.43 million organic farmers.
This comes as a response to the rapid expansion of India’s organic food market and the current limited capacity for testing organic products, said one of the persons cited above, who did not wish to be named. By fast-tracking sample testing, the Bureau of Indian Standards aims to keep pace with market growth.
As of 12 January 2024, an estimated 67 labs were equipped to handle organic food testing and certification process.
The BIS, under the ministry of consumer affairs, plans to fund states and institutes of central government to upgrade their food testing labs. The programme will be implemented in partnership with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), and over 90 labs are expected to be ready for organic products’ testing in the next three months, said the other person, who also requested anonymity.
Queries sent to the BIS director general, secretary, spokesperson of the consumer affairs ministry, and chief executive of FSSAI remained unanswered till press time.
India had the highest number of farmers practising organic farming in the world, while Australia had the largest area under organic agriculture (36 million hectares), according to a World of Organic Agriculture report 2021.
In 2022-23, Indian farmers produced 2.9 million tonnes of certified organic produce which includes food grains, oilseeds, perishables, cotton and tea. India exported ₹5,525 crore worth of organic produce in 2022-23, significantly higher than the estimated domestic sales.
As of 31 March 2023, total area under organic produce was at 10.17 million hectares.
But domestic consumption of organic food products remains limited due to steeper prices, which are driven by retail outlets demanding high margins, and costs incurred towards certification.
“Recently APEDA (Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority) banned some private agencies for their involvement in unethical practices. So it will be a good move by BIS and FSSAI for setting up their own labs for organic products. This will increase consumer confidence in organic products,” said Siraj Hussain, former agriculture secretary.
Financial and technological support will be extended to state-owned and central research institutes’ food labs, including those affiliated with the BIS, the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the National Test House (NTH), and more.
Funds will also be provided to laboratories in Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Haryana, encompassing 12 state labs and 12 central research institute labs. The remaining 66 labs, affiliated to the FSSAI, will be upgraded by the food regulator.
The BIS has greenlit the proposal to procure advanced equipment for these labs, a process expected to be finalized within three months, said the first official.
Among states, Madhya Pradesh is the top producer of organic food products, followed by Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Odisha.
India’s exports of organic food products largely find their way to the US, European Union, Canada, the UK, Switzerland, among others.
