Govt looks to resolve EU grape exports deadlock

PUNE: The government of India is working on a war footing to resolve the deadlock in grape exports to the European Union ( EU).

After having got the EU to conduct safety checks of controversial chemical residue found in some Indian grapes, it has now started using diplomatic channels to resolve the issue with individual EU countries.

The EU is a major export destination for Indian grapes. However, European importers had stopped accepting Indian grape containers over the past ten days as residues of chlormequat, a plant growth regulator, were found on the table grapes exported from India.

Though the EU did not approach the Indian authorities, the Agriculture and Processed Food Products Development Authority (APEDA), the apex body for the sector, approached the EU with a request for a safety study for chlormequat.

Since the EU has not specified the maximum residue level (MRL) for chlormequat, the default level of 0.05 mg/kg becomes applicable to the substance.

In India, the maximum permissible level is 1 mg/kg. The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) quick safety study report was submitted on April 23 which stated: “No acute consumer health risk is expected if table grapes with a mean chlormequat residue concentration of 1.06 mg/kg are consumed.”