RAJYA SABHA

STARRED QUESTION NO. 80

TO BE ANSWERED ON 8^TH JULY 2009

MECHANISM TO CHECK GM FOOD PRODUCTS IN INDIA

*80. SHRI NANDAMURI HARIKRISHNA:

SHRI M.V. MYSURA REDDY:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY be pleased to state:

a) whether his Ministry is aware that Genetically Modified (GM) food is entering the country due to lack of regulatory mechanism;

b) whether it is a fact that when DGFT intercepts consignments of imported GM food, a mere undertaking from the importer that the food is not

GM is sufficient for release of goods;

c) if so, whether such cases have been detected during the last five years;

d) if so, the year-wise and product-wise details thereof; and

e) the threshold limit of GM content in India vis-à-vis other major countries of the world?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

(SHRI ANAND SHARMA)

a) to e): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 80 FOR ANSWER ON 8^TH JULY 2009 REGARDING “MECHANISM TO CHECK GM FOOD PRODUCTS IN INDIA”

(a) Import of Genetically Modified (GM) Food Products in India is governed by the rules for ‘Manufacture, Use, Import and

(b) Export and Storage of Hazardous Micro Organisms/Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells’, 1989 notified under

provisions of Environment Protection Act, 1986.

Accordingly, as per the provisions incorporated in the ITC (HS) Classifications of Export and Import Items (Schedule I),

import of any food, feed, raw or processed or any ingredient of food, food additives or any food product that contains GM

material and which is being used either for industrial production, environmental release or field application, will be allowed only

with the approval of the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) in Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government

of India. At the time of import, all consignments containing products which have been subjected to genetic modification,

will carry a declaration stating that the product is Genetically Modified. In case, a consignment does not carry such a declaration

and is later found to contain Genetically Modified material, the importer is liable to penal action under Foreign Trade

(Development and Regulation) Act, 1992.

GEAC has prescribed the procedure for import of GM foods in the country. For import of Living Modified Organisms

(LMOs) as Food, Feed and Processing (FFP), detailed environment clearance of GEAC needs to be obtained, for which

bio-safety and food safety studies need to be furnished. In case of GM processed food, the GEAC follows an “event based

approval” in a given crop. If the processed food contains any ingredient derived from LMO as Food, Feed and Processing

(FFP) or GM processed food derived from LMO, and if the LMO/product thereof has been approved by GEAC, no further

approval is required, except for declaration at the port of entry. In case, it does not have the approval of GEAC, the procedure

applicable in case of GM Processed Food derived from LMO is applicable. Thus, it is not correct to suggest that there is

a lack of regulatory mechanism for import of GM food.

(b) to (d) Import consignments at ports are examined by customs authorities and not by DGFT. The information relating to

interception of such consignment, if any, is being collected by Customs from its field formations and shall be submitted to the

House in due course.

(e) As on date, there is no threshold limit for GM content in India. A table relating to threshold level in other countries,

available

(f) with the Government, is enclosed at Annexure I.

ANNEXURE-I

ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (e) OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 80 FOR ANSWER ON 8^TH JULY 2009 REGARDING “MECHANISM TO

CHECK GM FOOD PRODUCTS IN INDIA”

Threshold Limit of GM Content in Major Countries, as of April 2006

Major Countries	Labeling type^a	Product /process	Coverage	Major exemptions	Threshold level	Degree of implementation
European Union	Mandatory, & national voluntary guidelines	Process	Food, feed, additives, flavorings, products derived from GM, restaurants	Meat and animal products	0.9%	Implemented
Brazil	Mandatory	Process	Food, feed, products derived from GM, meat, restaurants	Virtually none	1%	Not implemented
China	Mandatory	Process	List, incl. products derived restaurants	Outside of list	N/A (0%)	Partially implemented
Japan	Mandatory & voluntary	Product	List of food items	Processed products (soy oil)	5%^b	Implemented
Indonesia	Mandatory	Product	List	Outside of list	5%^b	Not/partially
Thailand	Mandatory	Product	List	Outside of list	5%^b	Not/partially
South Korea	Mandatory (+ voluntary)	Product	List	Processed products	3%^c	Implemented
Australia-New Zealand	Mandatory (+ voluntary)	Product	All products based on content	Processed products	1%	Implemented
Argentina	Voluntary	Product	Not specified- all products based on content			No specific law
South Africa	Voluntary	Product	Not specified- all products based on content			Implemented
Philippines	Voluntary	Product	Not yet specified		5%	Upcoming
Canada	Voluntary	Product	All products based on content		5%	Implemented
United States	Voluntary	Product	All products based on content		N/A	Draft guidelines

a: For substantial equivalent products only.

b: On three main ingredients in each product

c: On top five major ingredients in each product

Source: Haigh (2004), Carter and Gruere (2003a),USDA FAS Attaché Reports (2000-06)- As conveyed by Ministry of Environment and Forest

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