Ministry of Commerce & Industry has implemented the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) since 2001 with the following objectives:

1. To provide the means of evaluation of certification programme for organic agriculture and products (including wild harvest, aquaculture, livestock products) as per the approved criteria.
2. To accredit certification programmes of Certification Bodies seeking accreditation.
3. To facilitate certification of organic products in conformity with the prescribed standards.
4. To facilitate certification of organic products in conformity with the importing countries organic standards as per equivalence agreement between the two countries or as per importing country requirements.
5. To encourage the development of organic farming and organic processing.

Currently, 29 Certification Bodies are accredited for carrying out inspection and certification for process certification of organic products for exports from the country.

The quantity and value of certified organic products exported from the country during the last three years is as follows:

The promotion of exports of organic products is a continuous process. The newly introduced Agriculture Export Policy provides an assurance that no restrictions will be placed on export of organic products. The Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), an autonomous organisation under the administrative control of Department of Commerce, has been mandated with the export promotion of organic products. APEDA provides assistance to the exporters of organic products under various components of its export promotion scheme.

This information was given by the Minister of State of Commerce and Industry, C. R. Chaudhary, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

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MM/SB