India has one of the most stringent standards of maximum residue limits in the world: FSSAI

livemint.com:

FSSAI) on Sunday said that India has one of the most stringent standards of maximum residue limits (MRLs) in the world, and that these are fixed at different levels for different food commodities based on risk assessments. MRL is the maximum amount of pesticide residue expected to remain on food products when a pesticide is used according to label directions and is not a health concern for humans, the Indian food regulator said in a press statement.

The development came as some media reports claimed that FSSAI allowed 10 times more pesticide residue in herbs and spices. As per a report in The Economic Times, India diluted its pesticide norms for herbs and spices by increasing the maximum level of a pesticide residue allowed by 10 times.

In an order issued on 8 April, FSSAI raised the MRL for a pesticide in herbs and spices to 0.1mg/kg from 0.01mg/kg. The regulator cited “various representations" as the reason for this upward revision.

This assumes significance as the food safety authorities in Hong Kong and Singapore last month, banned four products of two popular Indian spice brands—Mahashian Di Hatti (MDH) and Everest, citing the presence of ethylene oxide, a cancer-causing agent which raises the risk of breast cancer and lymphoma, and the European Union’s food safety authorities flagged the presence of cancer-causing chemicals in 527 food products originating from India. Pesticides are regulated by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare through the Central Insecticide Board and Registration Committee (CIB & RC) constituted under the Insecticide Act, 1968, FSSAI said in the statement.