Basmati rice exporters have sought government intervention to help resume exports to Saudi Arabia, the second largest importer of basmati, which halted rice imports from India since June for non-compliance with its new stringent maximum level of pesticide residues in food items.

Indian authorities are set to initiate dialogue with the Gulf kingdom to seek mellowing of maximum residue level (MRL) norms that are likely to hit exports of mainly rice, buffalo meat and few other food items.

“The matter is being taken up with Saudi Arabia as the new MRL are not based on scientific facts and are too stringent to be fulfilled,” a senior official from Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) said.

Saudi Arabia’s new MRL norms are not India-specific, though. Rice export to the country has halted since June after a consignment was tested positively for not fulfilling the new criteria for residue detection. Saudi Arabia buys 7-8 lakh tonnes of rice, primarily basmati, from India. Exporters warn that the development will significantly shrink India’s share in the global rice market. India is the largest exporter of basmati, shipping 4 million tonnes of basmati in 2017-18.

It is difficult to fulfill the new Saudi Arabia’s guidelines and will cause a serious blow to international rice trade. The MRL norms are tough for even organic rice from the country. Exporters maintain that Saudi Arabia has adopted the MRL norms of the European Union that is strict and do not conform to medical facts or toxicology records. Rice exports to European Union faced similar hurdles earlier this year and currently, only limited quantities of organic rice are being exported to European countries.
 

Under Saudi Arabia’s new norms, level of fungicide tricycazole has been set at 0.01 mg per kg, down from the earlier limit of 1.0 mg per kg. Under the new procedure for import, Saudi Arabia is warranting certification about compliance of MRL guidelines on import shipments.

Source: Economic Times (https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/exporters-seek-government-intervention-as-saudi-arabia-halts-basmati-imports/articleshow/65164069.cms)