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US plans tight norms for food imports from India

Washington, August 4
Indian food companies seeking to enter American markets may soon face a tough screening process, as the US health watchdog FDA has proposed a new Foreign Supplier Verification Programme for such products.

The new rules, once adopted after an ongoing public consultation process, would apply to all foreign companies supplying food products for human as well as animals in the US and would vary as per the type of food product (such as processed foods, farm produce, and dietary supplements) and category of the importer.

The regulations would require importers, from countries including India, to go through a screening process that ensures that food being imported has been produced in compliance with the processes and procedures required for the US FDA (Food and Drug Administration) standards.

Around 15 per cent of all food consumed in the US is imported, while the ratio is even higher at 20 per cent for fresh vegetables and as high as 50 per cent for fresh fruit. According to the FDA, India is the second largest drug exporter and seventh largest food exporter to the US. At the same time, India also figures among the top countries in terms of import refusal of food products by the FDA.

Besides, several food-borne disease outbreaks have been traced to imported food, including outbreaks resulting from consumption of imported fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Amid recent concerns related to imported food, tighter rules have been designed to provide the same level of public health protection as those required under the hazard analysis and risk-based preventive controls and standards for produce safety sections of US Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Although FDA applies the same safety standards to domestic and imported food marketed in the US, the regulator has long taken different regulatory compliance approaches to the products produced domestically and abroad. — PTI

Health watch

• The US health watchdog FDA has proposed a new Foreign Supplier Verification Programme
• The new rules would apply to all foreign companies supplying food products for human as well as animals in the US
• The rules would vary as per the type of food product (such as processed foods, farm produce, and dietary supplements) and category of the importer
• The regulations would require importers to go through a screening process that ensures that food being imported has been produced in compliance with the US Food and Drug Administration standards