IGIDR-IFPRI -Opportunities for Ensuring Safe Food, Anjani Kumar, IFPRI

Food Safety Issues in India: Opportunities and

Challenges

Anjani Kumar

International Food Policy Research Institute

IFPRI-South Asia Regional Office, NASC Complex, Pusa

New Delhi 110 012 India

E-mail: [email protected]

Web: www.ifpri.org


Changes in consumer demand and preferences

Increasing demand for greater food safety,

Increasing awareness among consumers and policy makers

NGOs, consumer groups, research institutes, media

Complex nature of food safety hazards,

Advances in contamination detection methods

Emergence of private standards driven by supermarkets and modern

value chains

Integrated approach to ensure food safety

Greater attention on compliance with FSM at farm level

Growing concerns of food safety


Past studies and gaps

Evolution and implementation of regulatory framework

Henson & Jaffee, 2006; Henson & Reardon, 2005; Buzbey & Frenzen, 1999; Buzbey,

Frenzen, & Rasco, 2001; Antle, 1999; Roberts & Marks, 1995.

Impact of SPS and TBT on trade

Hooker & Caswell, 1999; Maskus & Wilson, 2001a, 2001b; Otsuki, Wilson, &

Sewadeh, 2001.

Welfare effects of food standards

Calvin & Krissoff, 1998; Kumar & Kumar, 2003; Moenius, 2004; Otsuki et al., 2001;

Paarlberg & Lee, 1998.


Past studies and gaps

Consumers’ willingness to pay for food safety attributes

Roberts, 2007; Rozan, Stenger, & Willinger, 2004; Zhiang, Mao, & Gale,2007;Goldberg

and Roosen, 2007; Annett et al., 2008; Roy et al., 2010.

Cost of compliance-focused on processing

Gould, Smukowski, & Bishop, 2000; Jensen & Unnevehr, 2000; Mortlock, Peters, &

Griffith, 2000.

Majority of these studies carried out in developed countries

Studies in developing countries context are scarce

status of adoption

cost of compliance

determinants for adoption and

impact on performance


Potential Sources of Food Safety Hazards

Agri Input

Supply

Farming Assembly

Storage

Processing

Value addition

Wholesaling

Export/Import

Retailing

Consumption

Sale of banned or

restricted

pesticides

Contaminated

water and soils

Improper storage,

drying and pest

control

Contaminated water Improper storage Contaminated

water

Seed borne and

animal born

diseases

Improper pesticide

application

Poor waste

management

Use of banned food

additives/substances

Unhygienic

transport

Poor sanitation

Improper waste

water

management

Improper animal

health practices

Industrial

pollutants

Poor sanitation Improper handling

and packaging

Improper storage

Industrial

pollution

Unhygienic

handling and

transport

Cross contamination

Use of prohibited

chemicals

Improper packaging

Inadequate pollution

control and waste

management


Food safety and the Indian domestic market

Consumers

19th Century 20th Century 21st Century

Emphasis on staples

Food security

Food adulteration

Traditional recipes, locally

produced food

Knowledge of food benefits

limited

Eat to sustain body function

and enjoyment

Protect public from food

supposed to cause illness and

death

Diversification towards HVF

and perishables

Global food supply

Processed food-complex

products & ingredients

Increased awareness about

link between diet and health

Eat to enhance health and

quality of life

Demand for regulated safe

food and information


Food safety and Indian export market

Country Items

European communities Lack of harmonization of egg products

standards

Different MRLs for pesticides, drugs and other

contaminants

Russian Federation Problem in market access for bovine meat, egg

products, and ban on plant products

China Delay in finalization of protocols, Approval of

processing units for meat, market access for

basmati rice

Japan Stringent plant quarantine procedures, unfair

trade practices for flowers, ban on import of

fresh grapes


Food safety and Indian export market

Country Items

USA Mangoes (HCC), Litchi (AMF), Pomegranate, Grapes

((Use of Sulphur Pads), organic standards

Australia Ban on mango and other fruits (fruit flies and weevil)

New Zealand Ban on mango and other fruits (fruit flies and weevil)

Mexico Market access for Basmati rice


Why Regulate?

Ensure safety of food produced/manufactured

Ensure consumer gets what he pays for

Protect consumer from being misled


How?By ensuring

1. Hygiene and Safety of Food Manufactured

1. Safety of ingredients

2. Safe level of usage of Additives (chemicals)

3. Safe level of nutrient addition

2. Proper Consumer information and ways & means to Trace the Product - Labeling Regulation

3. Consumers are not misled – Claim Regulation


Responsibility lies with all stakeholders

1. Regulators /Advisors

2. Industry

3. Consumer

4. Scientists & researchers


Governance

Domestic market

Department of health

Export

EIC

APEDA/MPEDA

Import

Quarantine

Entry points

Nodal agencies


Measures for Food Safety Compliance

Export inspection council of India

Quality control and pre-shipment inspection to ensure minimum standards

1000 products have been notified

Export certification are mandatory for dairy, poultry, egg, meat and meat products

System of export inspection and certification

Consignment –wise inspection

System based approach for in-process quality control

Self-certification

Food safety management system based certification

……..


Challenges of Food Safety Compliance

Policy and regulatory environment

Smallholder agriculture

Weak extension systems

Poor infrastructure and services in the marketing system

Cultural issues

Inadequate grades and standards for domestic market and poor

enforcement

Dominance of informal markets

Lack of pro-activity in addressing food safety issues

Huge investment

Increase in cost which may affect competitiveness

To build trained manpower

Impact on trade flow

Social conflict


Impact on industry structure

Small firms may become suppliers to large firms and may

go out of business.

The standard appears to favour larger establishments, not

because of economies of scale but also because of the

infrastructure facilities required by such standards.


Challenges for smallholders

How to produce safe food

How to be recognized as producing safe food

How to be competitive

How to deal with asymmetry of information about

consumer demands and safety


Opportunities

National market of more than 1.3 billion people

Structural change in demand towards HVCs

Better market access for expanding global food trade

Higher price in world market

Expanding market of functional foods


Constraints/problems in implementation

Lack of Transparency

Complexity of SPS standards

Varying threshold limits

Insufficient participation in standard setting process

Irrelevance of the standard to the production environment

Domestic regulatory problems

Infrastructure and resource related problems


Determinants for Food Safety Compliance

Education/skill

Scale

Integration with modern chains

Collective action

Infrastructure

Price


Consumers

Ability

Willingness

Producers

Efficiency

Access to markets

Government

Funding aid programmes

Creating infrastructure

Who should bear the additional cost?


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Anjani Kumar

Policy Implications

Scale of production and compliance

Adoption intensity non-neutral to scale

Predominance of smallholders likely to continue

Motivation of encouraging smallholders for higher adoption of food safety practices

Cost of compliance and smallholders

Cost of compliance against interest of smallholder farmers

Economies of scale in the adoption of food safety measures could exclude

smallholders

Funding and policy support of the government to minimize the cost burden for the

smallholders

Adoption intensity and market price of produce

Positive association between price and adoption intensity

Expenditure incurred on compliance does have a payoff


Thank you