Organic products exports rise over 80 times since 2002-03 to record $1.4 b last fiscal

Export of natural products and solutions from India grew 51 per cent to a report $1.04 billion in dollar terms throughout the 2020-21 fiscal in comparison with the past fiscal. The raise has appear soon after natural products and solutions shipments dropped by 9 per cent to $689 million in 2019-twenty from $757 in 2018-19.

“Exports throughout 2019-twenty were being afflicted by the Covid pandemic. Till then, exports of natural products and solutions witnessed a progress exceeding 25 per cent each year considering the fact that 2016-seventeen,” explained M Angamuthu, Chairman, Agricultural and Processed Food Merchandise Export Progress Authority (Apeda).

Since 2002-03, natural products and solutions exports have amplified by 80 situations from $thirteen million to $1.04 billion.

“Between 2016-seventeen and 2018-19, natural products and solutions exports amplified by 25 per cent, 40 per cent and forty seven per cent, respectively,” the Apeda Chairman explained. The authority functions as the secretariat for the National Programme for Organic Manufacturing (NPOP) that is implemented underneath the supervision of the Ministry of Commerce.

Attribute of exports

A big reason for natural products and solutions exports’ swift progress is mainly because India has been equipped to exhibit that it can fulfill the vital compliance at every single degree of dealing with of the product or service and steady offer, when contributing to the ecosystem’s sustainability.

“The strength and integrity attained all through the several years has paved the way for double digit progress of natural products and solutions exports. This has designed much better market penetration of Indian natural products and solutions in big importing nations,” Angamuthu explained.

A function of Indian natural products and solutions exports is that the US and European Union (EU) are between the big markets.

“During 2020-21, our natural products and solutions were being delivered to 58 nations with big kinds remaining the US, EU, British isles, Canada and Switzerland. Exports are now constrained to raw and processed agricultural products and solutions comprising oilmeals, oilseeds, cereals, millets, sugar, fruit pulps, purees, plantation crops, spices and medicinal crops,” he explained.

Special benefit

In the natural products and solutions sector, India enjoys a distinctive benefit of acquiring a huge-assortment of climatic and geographical ailments. It has regions that are most ideal for escalating a variety of kinds of field and horticultural crops.

According to agricultural experts, the have to have for an option these types of as natural products and solutions arose considering the fact that the green revolution had led to indiscriminate use of chemical compounds in pesticides and fertilisers.

Organic farming not only sustains the wellbeing of soils, ecosystems and the men and women but it brings together tradition, innovation and science to profit all stakeholders.

Although natural farming concepts are remaining adopted and practised in many elements of the country, the absence of certification prevented them from remaining labelled as natural products and solutions, the Apeda Chairman explained.

Institutional system

With need mounting for certified products and solutions in made nations, the Indian govt made an institutional system, the NPOP, underneath the Foreign Trade Progress Restrictions Act of the Directorate Common of Foreign Trade.

The adoption of an organised method through NPOP is verified through a third celebration and these types of products and solutions fetch a top quality in the world-wide market, Angamuthu explained, adding that natural certification and export commenced in India mostly to cater the organised agriculture trade sectors.

“This was primarily in the plantation sector whereby product or service handlers were being defined to make sure the resource of raw product. On the other hand, as need amplified for other products and solutions also in overseas markets, certification has expanded to other agricultural crops and products and solutions,” he explained.

‘A revolution’

The NPOP has made more than the several years, and it now encompasses compact and marginal farmers underneath the certification method. A grower team certification has been launched that will help a team of farmers to collectively get certification at an reasonably priced price tag. It will assistance them offer ample portions of certified products and solutions, the Apeda Chairman explained.

“A revolution has taken place in Indian natural farming as certification of cultivable land has expanded to 34 States and Union Territories. Underneath NPOP, 1.36 million farmers are certified, building India the country with the major quantity of producers in the earth,” Angamuthu explained.

In addition, small forest provides these types of as medicinal crops, products and solutions like stem, flower, bark, root, bud and fruit are also certified “as natural delivered the assortment from the forest location is accomplished with out impacting the sustainability”. Export of small forest provides caters the needs of ayurvedic, pharmacological and beauty industries, he explained.

Pioneer of Tracenet

There was a single obstacle that Apeda had to fulfill in natural products and solutions exports. As the location underneath certification amplified as also the products and solutions delivered from the country, the authority had to make sure that every single consignment could be traced back again to the farm.

“Thus, the application of technology was introduced into the certification as a tag and also a world-wide-web-primarily based traceability method, Tracenet. was released to assistance monitor the motion of any natural product or service from a single place to yet another. India is the pioneer in establishing these types of a traceability method for natural products and solutions in the earth.” Angamuthu explained.

At this time, initiatives are on to broaden the product or service types for natural livestock, poultry, aquaculture and apiculture. There is also need for natural animal feed in the natural livestock and poultry rearing sector, he explained, adding that all these have been introduced underneath NPOP.

Easing export strategies

“Several other types these types of as mushroom, seaweed, aquatic crops and greenhouse crops have also been bundled in NPOP,” the Apeda Chairman explained.

Recently, processed kind of fibres has also been bundled in the certification method alongside with natural cosmetics and own treatment products and solutions. The certification will be accomplished on a voluntary basis.

But the difficulty is that developing a handle method can take time in a certification method. On the other hand, certification bodies that will obvious their new product or service types have bought accreditation and this has aided to export natural dairy products and solutions to a couple of destinations, Angamuthu explained.

In check out of the mandatory certification need for domestic trade of natural products and solutions, farmers and all those doing work with them have been designed informed of the compliance demands, when subsequently tackling export requirements.

Apeda has also undertaken initiatives to simplicity the procedure of natural products and solutions exports by signing agreements with big importing nations. The EU and Switzerland have permitted NPOP as a single that is equivalent to EU and Switzerland criteria, consequently helping export of unprocessed plant products and solutions with out any other certification, Angamuthu explained.

Based on the EU acceptance, Indian natural products and solutions are also permitted into Britain, write-up its exit from the union.

Empowering States

As section of its initiatives to lower certification costs of natural products and solutions, Apeda has empowered P
oint out govt organisations to perform as certification bodies. This is primarily based on their competence and method founded for inspection and certification as per Intercontinental Firm for Benchmarks (ISO) norms.

“Of the 32 certification bodies accredited underneath NPOP, 12 are Point out Government organisations which are qualified to operate anyplace in the country,” the Apeda Chairman extra.