• APEDA was established by the Government of India under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act passed by the Parliament in 1985. The Authority replaced the Processed Food Export  Promotion Council (PFEPC).
• It works under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, GoI.

Composition:  

• Chairman, appointed by the Central Government
• The Agricultural Marketing Advisor to the Government of India, ex-official.
• One member appointed by the Central Government representing the Planning Commission
• Three members of Parliament of whom two are elected by the House of  People and one by the Council of States
• Eight members appointed by the Central Government representing respectively; the Ministries of the Central Govt.:

– Agriculture and Rural Development

– Commerce

– Finance

– Industry

– Food

– Civil Supplies

– Civil Aviation

– Shipping and transport

• Five members appointed by the Central Government by rotation in the  alphabetical order to represent the States and the Union Territories
• Seven members appointed by the Central Govt. representing:

• Indian Council of Agricultural Research
• National Horticultural Board
• National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation
• Central Food Technological Research Institute
• Indian Institute of Packaging
• Spices Export Promotion Council and
• Cashew Export Promotion Council.

• Twelve members appointed by the Central Government

Functions:  

• Development of industries relating to the scheduled products for export by  way of providing financial assistance or otherwise for undertaking surveys and feasibility studies, participation in enquiry capital through joint ventures  and other reliefs and subsidy schemes
• Registration of persons as exporters of the scheduled products on payment of such fees as may be prescribed
• Fixing of standards and specifications for the scheduled products for the  purpose of exports
• Carrying out inspection of meat and meat products in slaughterhouses, processing plants, storage premises, conveyances or other places where such products are kept or handled for the purpose of ensuring the quality of such products
• Improving packaging of the Scheduled products
• Improving marketing of the Scheduled products outside India
• Promotion of export-oriented production and development of the Scheduled products
• Collection of statistics from the owners of factories or establishments  engaged in the production, processing, packaging, marketing or export of  the scheduled products or from such other persons as may be prescribed  on any matter relating to the scheduled products and publication of the  statistics so collected or of any portions thereof or extracts therefrom;
• Training in various aspects of the industries connected with the scheduled  products

Products Monitored: 

• Fruits, Vegetables and their Products.
• Meat and Meat Products.
• Poultry and Poultry Products.
• Dairy Products.
• Confectionery, Biscuits and Bakery Products.
• Honey, Jaggery and Sugar Products.
• Cocoa and its products, chocolates of all kinds.
• Alcoholic and Non-Alcoholic Beverages.
• Cereal and Cereal Products.
• Groundnuts, Peanuts and Walnuts.
• Pickles, Papads and Chutneys.
• Guar Gum.
• Floriculture and Floriculture Products.
• Herbal and Medicinal Plants.
• In addition to this, APEDA has been entrusted with the responsibility to monitor the import of sugar.

Schemes: 

Financial Assistance Scheme: 

Development of Export Infra- 

1. It seeks to provide financial assistance to the exporters for setting up of infrastructure such as packhouse facilities with packing/grading lines, pre-cooling units with cold storages and refrigerated transportation etc., cable system for handling of crops like banana, pre-shipment treatment facilities such as irradiation, Vapour Heat Treatment (VHT), Hot Water Dip Treatment (HWDT) for compliance to Phyto Sanitary requirements of importing countries, processing facilities, etc.
2. It also intends to support equipment and technologies of various types of screening sensors to detect external/internal quality of the product as well.

Agri Exchange:  

Indian Agri Exchange portal is a single-window solution for Agriculture products exported from India. An attempt first of its kind has been endeavoured by APEDA, Govt. of India, where online trading is the specialty. In its stride, joint collaboration of UNCTAD and the Ministry of Agriculture has given the portal a shape. Globally buyers and sellers in the Agribusiness world has been given a platform to offer negotiate and transact a deal. Apart from this, it has been loaded with the latest statistics pertaining to India and the world.

Vision: 

To provide information matching the needs of the stakeholders of the  Agricultural Economy in general and Agricultural Commodities trade in particular. The only vision is to cater to the Agribusiness community and see them growing day and day by taking the benefit of the portal.

Benefits: 

• To Exporters:  

1. Portal provides the details about the importing countries interesting in Import from India, International Agricultural production, Export & Import statistics, International Prices, Importing Countries Regulations and Tariffs details etc.
2. 2. Moreover, Agri Exchange portal provides step by step details which are required for the export such as pre-shipment process starting from the quality and hygiene aspect, Packing, Labelling, Warehousing & Cold Storage’s facilities, Logistics, Export Documentation Process, Subsidies &  incentives extended by different Govt. Organizations, Drawing Sales  Proceeds through Letter of Credit along with buy/sell leads etc.

• To Buyers: 

1. It acts as a one-stop solution for Indian Agri commodity importers to get the awareness about the current scenario of Agri products in the country to facilitate them to take a view for sourcing Agri products from India to ease their import hassles.
2. This portal can now be leveraged better since the Farmer Acts have come into play, giving the farmers autonomy to sell their produce anywhere and everywhere. Export, which was mainly considered to be reserved for large farmers, can now be practised by small and marginal farmers. This platform can bridge the gap between small and marginal farmers and exporters,  making them relevant to global needs and demands.

Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) Agreement:  

The Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  (the “SPS Agreement”) entered into force with the establishment of the World  Trade Organization. It concerns the application of food safety and animal and plant health regulations.

Objectives: 

• While recognizing the right of Members to adopt sanitary and phytosanitary measures when scientifically justified, the SPS Agreement is intended to ensure that such measures needed to protect the safety of food and animal or plant life or health are not applied in a manner which constitutes arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination between Members (where the same conditions prevail) or a disguised restriction to international trade.
• The SPS Agreement of the WTO, therefore, sets the tone for the role of  SPS measures for governments to protect human, animal and plant life while ensuring that global trade is not unfairly hurt by these measures. The SPS Agreement forms the core on which SPS measures are introduced by governments to protect human, animal and plant life in their territories.

Scope: 

• Animal and plant life or health from the entry, establishment or spread of pests, disease-carrying or disease-causing organisms
• Human or animal life or health from food-borne risks (risks arising from additives, contaminants, toxins or disease-causing organisms in foods,  beverages or feedstuffs)
• Human life or health from diseases carried by animals, plants or products thereof
• Member’s territory from other damage arising from the entry, establishment or spread of pests.

These measures include sanitary and phytosanitary measures taken to protect the health of fish and wild fauna, as well as of forests and wild flora, from the risks stated above.

SPS Secretariat: 

• Objective — Ensuring that India’s exports of agricultural and processed food products increase through a better understanding of the emerging international standards and regulations.
• Functions — 

1. To ensure that the SPS measures adopted in various countries do not hamper export of APEDA products from the country by helping exporters improve capabilities in meeting the SPS measures adopted by various countries that are in line with international standards.
2. To keep it informed on any measures adopted in other countries that are not in line with the SPS agreement and raise these issues with India’s trade partners to remove any unfair barrier to exports from India.

• Scope of Work — The SPS secretariat would require strong technical expertise in all areas of India’s agricultural and processed food exports from the country. The technical experts should have the ability to study the scientific standards, regulations food laws and also propose changes to standards, regulations & food laws in India so that India can tap new and advanced markets for agricultural exports. The secretariat should have the ability to understand various market access issues that emerge across the globe and identify ways to mitigate any problem that is faced by exporters.