India has succeeded in persuading the Codex committee on processed fruits and vegetables (CCPFV) to amend the quality standards laid down for international trade in several products of interest to India. These include canned bamboo shoots, packaged stone fruits, aqueous coconut products and some fresh frozen fruits.
The CCPFV was inclined in its meeting held recently at Texas, USA, to adopt stricter standards applicable to these products. Such a step would have proved a major hurdle for Indian exporters of these products to retain and expand their market.
Another significant gain for India has been its inclusion as a member in the working group on priority themes for the next meeting of the CCPFV. Consequently, coconut water has been listed among the priority items.
India has also been included in the working groups formed for laying down standards for canned tomato concentrate and canned vegetables.
Other working groups constituted for the items to be taken up in the CCPFV meetings to be held two years later have also been identified. The food processing ministry is considering to participate in these groups as well to protect Indian interests. Besides, the ministry is trying to identify and focus on issues for the next Codex committee to improve relevance of India in these discussions.
The Codex Laboratory set up at the Central Food Technology Research Institute (CFTRI), Mysore, has been asked to set agenda for the country for different Codex Committees. The ministry, on its part, is trying to generate data on volume of trade in each commodity and items critical for trade in India.
