AHMEDABAD: India's spice exports face a decline of nearly 40 per cent in FY2025 if the issue of ethylene oxide or ETO contamination in spices for export is not resolved as soon as possible, the Federation of Indian Spices Stakeholders (FISS) said on Friday. Can come.
The statement comes in the backdrop of Hong Kong and Singapore banning the sale of popular brands MDH and Everest after their products were found to contain carcinogenic chemical ethylene oxide, leading to a mandatory recall of them from the shelves.
In 2023-24, India's spice exports were to total US$4.25 billion, accounting for 1 per cent of global spice exports.
Tejas said, “A lot of exporters have orders in hand and they have been put on hold to some extent after that episode. According to our estimates, if the problem is not resolved quickly, spice exports could be affected by 40 percent this year. Could." Gandhi, secretary of FISS, an association of about 600 spice traders, exporters and farmers from across the country.
Addressing a press conference on the issue, FISS President Ashwin Nayak said misinformation was being spread about ETO, which according to him is widely used across the world and Indian companies are involved in around 30 to 40 It has been exporting ETO-treated spices to the US for years. Now.
"ETO is not a pesticide that is sprayed directly on crops. ETO is a gaseous agent used only by approved organizations to remove or control harmful microbiological and bacterial elements such as E. coli coliform, aflatoxin and yeast from spices. Is.It is a widely used technology in most parts of the world,” Nayak told reporters.
“India's spice exports are valued at US$4 billion. We urge the Government of India to take immediate steps to ensure that export shipments are not stopped due to some myths spread about EtO treatment. We the Spice Board We urge the U.S. to test samples from each shipment to ensure it meets each country's criteria," he said.According to U Karthik, co-chairman of FISS, most countries have set their own maximum residue limits (MRL) of EtO. For example, the US allows spices with ppm (parts per million), while for EU countries it is 0.1.
"EtO evaporates at 10 degrees centigrade and is not harmful to humans. Notably, EtO is also used for sterilization of medical equipment. While some countries have already set MRL limits, Many have not.We learned that the Spice Board is contacting those countries to decide the limits,” said Karthik.
Gandhi said that the ETO issue is not as serious as it was portrayed in the media.
"When Hong Kong has not prescribed any MRL limit, how can they say that ETO was more than the prescribed limit? Although steam sterilization is an alternative to ETO, the cost is very high. While ETO is priced at Rs 3 per kg The cost of sterilization is around Rs 15 per kg, even in the US there are units that do sterilization for spices."
The statement comes in the backdrop of Hong Kong and Singapore banning the sale of popular brands MDH and Everest after their products were found to contain carcinogenic chemical ethylene oxide, leading to a mandatory recall of them from the shelves.
In 2023-24, India's spice exports were to total US$4.25 billion, accounting for 1 per cent of global spice exports.
Tejas said, “A lot of exporters have orders in hand and they have been put on hold to some extent after that episode. According to our estimates, if the problem is not resolved quickly, spice exports could be affected by 40 percent this year. Could." Gandhi, secretary of FISS, an association of about 600 spice traders, exporters and farmers from across the country.
Addressing a press conference on the issue, FISS President Ashwin Nayak said misinformation was being spread about ETO, which according to him is widely used across the world and Indian companies are involved in around 30 to 40 It has been exporting ETO-treated spices to the US for years. Now.
"ETO is not a pesticide that is sprayed directly on crops. ETO is a gaseous agent used only by approved organizations to remove or control harmful microbiological and bacterial elements such as E. coli coliform, aflatoxin and yeast from spices. Is.It is a widely used technology in most parts of the world,” Nayak told reporters.
“India's spice exports are valued at US$4 billion. We urge the Government of India to take immediate steps to ensure that export shipments are not stopped due to some myths spread about EtO treatment. We the Spice Board We urge the U.S. to test samples from each shipment to ensure it meets each country's criteria," he said.According to U Karthik, co-chairman of FISS, most countries have set their own maximum residue limits (MRL) of EtO. For example, the US allows spices with ppm (parts per million), while for EU countries it is 0.1.
"EtO evaporates at 10 degrees centigrade and is not harmful to humans. Notably, EtO is also used for sterilization of medical equipment. While some countries have already set MRL limits, Many have not.We learned that the Spice Board is contacting those countries to decide the limits,” said Karthik.
Gandhi said that the ETO issue is not as serious as it was portrayed in the media.
"When Hong Kong has not prescribed any MRL limit, how can they say that ETO was more than the prescribed limit? Although steam sterilization is an alternative to ETO, the cost is very high. While ETO is priced at Rs 3 per kg The cost of sterilization is around Rs 15 per kg, even in the US there are units that do sterilization for spices."
