INDIA has asserted that it has one of the most stringent norms for pesticide residues in food items and dismissed the reports that the country’s food regulator permits higher pesticide residues limits in herbs and spices.
The Union Health Ministry has clarified that maximum residue limits are different for various food products based on risk assessment. It added that media reports claiming that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India allows ten times more pesticide residue in herbs and spices are false and malicious.
The Ministry’s comments came amid reported action by the Hong Kong food regulator and Singapore food regulator on some products of two leading Indian brands over alleged presence of pesticide Ethylene Oxide in their samples.
“The Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) of pesticides are fixed differently for different food commodities based on their risk assessments,” the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement.
In India, pesticides are regulated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare through the Central Insecticide Board and Registration Committee (CIB & RC). The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) examines data received from CIB & RC before recommending MRLs after risk assessment, also considering the dietary consumption and health concerns of all age groups of the Indian population. The CIB & RC have registered more than 295 pesticides in India, of which, 139 are registered for use in spices. A pesticide can be registered on many food commodities with differing MRLs, based on the risk assessment data.
“For instance, the use of Monocrotophos is allowed on many crops with different MRLs such as rice at 0.03 mg/kg, citrus fruits at 0.2 mg/kg, and coffee beans at 0.1 mg/kg.”
