Fungi, toxins, and basmati exports

Continuing on the thread of basmati exports, presence of chemicals and toxins can be a boon. As long as they are present in the competitor’s crops that is. This is the case with India, but first understanding fungi are in order.

There are good fungi such as yeasts and mushrooms and then there are harmful ones that cause diseases which are controlled by chemicals that destroy them. Tricyclazole is one such chemical. It is one of the cheapest fungicides available in India and is widely used to prevent diseases such as leaf and neck blast in basmati paddy varieties.

Alleging health concerns, European Union revised its maximum permissible residue level of Tricyclazole from 1.0 mg per kg to 0.01 mg per kg. Effective from January last year, this limited India’s exports and allowed Pakistan’s market share to increase as per Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP0 sources.
Mycotoxins are naturally occurring toxins produced by certain moulds and can be found in crops. Warm humid conditions accelerate their growth. One such mycotoxin is aflatoxin which damages DNA and increases incidence of liver cancer.

High levels of aflatoxins have been reported in rice from India. Toxin reviews is a medical journal which published an article regarding aflatoxin in rice around the world. As per the article, India has amongst the highest levels of incidence among rice producing countries. A survey covering 12 states showed that 16 percent samples exceeded the Indian permissible limit of 30 hg per kg. 61.5 percent of the samples reported aflatoxin levels above 5 hg per kg. While this is a dated study from 2006, it indicates high incidence of aflatoxins when EU allows maximum level of 4 hg per kg of rice.

Eurofins Global Control recently tested Pakistan’s rice for incidence of genetically modified organism (GMO), aflatoxins, pesticides, inorganic arsenic, among others. Out of the four samples, three came out as “satisfactory” and one as “good”. Eurofins is an international inspection company that works with countries to provide supply chain solutions.

Relative to Pakistan, India has a technologically advanced agriculture sector, more prone to using pesticides and fungicides manufactured domestically. Pakistan does not have a developed chemical pesticide market which has to be imported hence being too expensive for use. Thus, Pakistan has a comparative advantage in employing more organic farming which is why tricylazole limits are not a problem for basmati exports.

However, improper storage and drying of paddy under the sun increases the incidence of aflatoxins in rice. While the private sector has set up driers in their units, an influential source within the rice sector indicates that they cover only about 15 percent of crops on Punjab.

Sources in the rice sector indicate that aflatoxin levels will be further revised by the European Commission. Between the permissible limits of tricylazole and aflatoxins, Pakistan can increase basmati exports to EU further. However, government initiatives may be required to increase mechanical drying of paddies. Since warm humid conditions are required to decrease aflatoxin levels, antiquated methods of drying may hamper Pakistan’s exports