KARACHI: Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) on Monday revealed that over 200 rejections/ interceptions/ rapid alerts were reported by European Union (EU) on account of the detection of more than permissible levels of Aflatoxins and Pesticide residues in the Basmati rice exported from Pakistan, in last two years.
In order to educate farmers on both pre-and post-harvest management of rice so as to minimize the chances of occurrence of Aflatoxins and Pesticide Residues in Basmati Rice, TDAP with the help of ReMIT and in collaboration with other stakeholders is planning to organize awareness campaigns in rice growing areas of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The European Union (EU) constitutes the largest destination market for Pakistan’s Basmati Rice exports. However, during the past 2 years, more than 200 rejections/ interceptions/ rapid alerts were reported by the EU on account of the detection of more than permissible levels of Aflatoxins and Pesticide residues in the Basmati rice exported from Pakistan.
As per TDAP, in 2021, the Ministry of Commerce and TDAP took a very serious note of this and launched an awareness campaign in collaboration with REAP and ReMIT/ ITC in all the provinces of Pakistan.
Resultantly, 162 alerts generated in 2021 sharply dropped to 41 until June 2022, whereas in the current financial year, only a few such interceptions have been reported so far.
The sharp drop in rejections/ interceptions is a result of collaborative efforts made by TDAP, MOC, REAP, Provincial Agricultural Departments, and ReMIT, TDAP said.
In order to sustain the positive impact of interventions made TDAP is again holding this awareness campaign
TDAP said in a statement that the awareness campaigns will ensure maximum participation of regulators, growers, and exporters of rice for their capacity building vis-à-vis on EU’s import laws, regulations, and procedures.
The activity would create Master Trainers from within the Provincial Agriculture Extension Departments, who would subsequently be able to routinely run such campaigns through their officers.
The seminars are being conducted in Larkana and Sukkur on July 17, Dera Jamali of Balochistan on July 18, Multan on July 24, Lahore on July 26, Sargodha on July 31, and KPK’s Swat on August 8.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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