Embassy of India
Warsaw
PRESS RELEASE
“India ready to bite into Polish apples”
India has enabled a special dispensation to facilitate the import of Polish apples. A recent Government of India notification has revised phytosanitary conditions for Polish apples allowing ‘cold treatment’ as an alternative to fumigation. The notification is a game changer in strengthening Indo-Polish commercial relations and is expected to open wide the doors for export of Polish apples to India in large quantities, as also the import of high-quality fruits and vegetables from India.
2. The notification dated 23 August 2017 specifies that apples and other ‘pome fruit’’ may be exported to India under conditions of pre-shipment cold treatment at 0°C or below for 10 days; 0.55°C or below for 11 days; 1.1°C or below for 12 days plus in-transit refrigeration. An alternative has been provided for fumigation by Methyl Bromide at 32 g per cubic meter for 2 hrs at 21°C or equivalent thereof .The detailed Notification may be seen at the weblink http://www.agricoop.nic.in/sites/default/files/Gazette%20Notification%20No.%202752%20%2
3. Food sector cooperation has intensified between India and Poland in the recent past. The Indian Agriculture Secretary visited Poland in June 2016 to discuss smoother trade of agricultural products. Poland is a regular visitor to India for the AAHAR Food Festival while there has been serious participation from India in the Polagra Food Fair in Poland. Major food companies from India and Poland, such as AMUL and Bakoma, have concluded partnership agreements in the food processing sector. Poland has now been chosen as a focus country for a mega event – World Food India - scheduled to be held in November 2017 in New Delhi. Indian Minister for Food Processing Industries, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti visited Poland in July 2017 to promote this event.
4. This journey of positive engagement between the two countries in the food sector has reached another milestone with this special notification. The new dispensation for Polish apples not only provides Indians an opportunity to bite into some of the world’s finest apples, but also promises increased agriculture trade, especially in the fruit and vegetable segment.
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