India’s spice industry under fire: How can the authorities prevent another contamination scandal?
Earlier this year when India’s spice sector was besieged by two high profile contamination scandals, we asked experts in the country to weigh in with their recommendations on how the country could bounce back.
Carcinogenic ethylene oxide is a pesticide that was found in spice powders from major Indian brands Everest and MDH, putting the country’s spice industry under intense scrutiny.
This led to bans in Hong Kong and the Maldives, product recalls in Singapore, and more possible bans with stricter checks on India’s spices in Australia and the US.
Despite the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) emphasising its stringent regulations, overseas bans and domestic concerns have raised questions about the effectiveness of these measures.
Experts weighed in on whether India was sending the right message about its commitment to food safety, and what could be done differently to prevent future contamination cases.
Chemical concerns: Indonesia revising food packaging regulations in response to public apprehension
The Indonesian government announced it was revising food packaging regulations in response to consumer and academic concerns over the presence of dangerous chemicals entering the food supply chain.
Indonesia has conducted multiple revisions to local policies governing food packaging over the past decade, but as of 2023 no specific regulations were in place regarding certain harmful chemicals such as Bisphenol A (BPA) and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), more commonly known as the ‘Forever Chemicals’ due to their slow degradation rate.
A great deal of scientific evidence had already linked PFAS exposure to an array of health issues from cancer, cardiovascular disease, infertility, elevated blook pressure and more.
Last year, a report jointly conducted by the Nexus3 Foundation and the International Pollutant Elimination Network revealed that 91% of FMCG products including food paper packaging tested in Indonesia tested positive for PFAS, with a worrying 100% of microwaveable popcorn bags also testing positive.
The release of these findings triggered widespread consumer concern and feedback on social media platforms, which in turn appeared to have catalysed the local Agency for Food and Drug Control (BPOM) to take action, in the form of draft regulations for food packaging.
“This regulation will cover all food packaging materials including plastic, rubber and elastomer, paper and cartons, ceramic, glass, metal and composites, and multilayered packaging,” BPOM Head Rizka Andalucia stated via a formal statement.
Deforestation unrest: EU policy implementation hangs in the balance after industry pushback
The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) faced major pushback earlier this year from ministers and trade organisations within Europe, alongside continued pressure from palm oil producer nations in Asia.
The EUDR has long been facing major opposition and protests from producer nations of commodities such as palm oil and cocoa, as well as mounting challenges from within Europe itself.
On March 28 this year, an industry-wide cross-commodity letter was addressed to EC President of the Council for Environment and Minister for the Climate, the Environment, Sustainable Development and the Green Deal of Belgium Zakia Khattabi, calling for ‘urgent clarifications and workable solutions’ on EUDR implementation.
This was signed by a coalition of more than 20 European industry organisations spanning many areas of trade, including representatives on food trade in cereals, oils, rice, livestock, meat and more – all highlighting concerns over the upcoming enforcement in December 2024.
“Considering the significant adjustments that are needed from suppliers, operators and traders, we would like to express serious concerns regarding the pace of preparation of EUDR-related legislative acts, the mandatory systems and the guidance and clarifications required for implementation,” the coalition said in the letter, which FoodNavigator-Asia has viewed.
No label, no problem: South Korea looks to mandate label-free packaging for drinking water over next two years
The South Korean government announced plans to mandate label-free packaging for drinking water bottles, replacing this with a digital QR code system over the next two years.
South Korea has committed to a range of sustainability goals, including the slashing of plastic waste production by 50% and the doubling of recycling rates in the country from 34% to 70%, both by 2030.
The past few years have seen the Ministry of Environment (MoE) roll out a range of regulatory policies to this end, including the banning of hard-to-recycle plastics such as coloured PET from the recycling system as well as approving recycled PET plastic as material for new food packaging.
New developments saw the ministry calling for public comment on its latest initiative to mandate the use of label-free packaging for drinking water bottles, to be implemented after a two-year transition period.
“In order to reduce the amount of label waste in the country from drinking water bottles and improve the efficiency of recycling systems locally, we will introduce a new label-free QR code system for all such bottles,” MoE said via a formal statement.
Dairy dash: China’s final tariff removals open new opportunities for New Zealand brands
China’s removal of tariffs on all dairy products from New Zealand earlier this year, including milk powder used for both general consumption and processing to infant formula, could spell huge potential for brands that have a strong focus on quality and sustainability.
China and New Zealand signed a free trade agreement (FTA) in 2008, but with regard to dairy it took 16 years to finally see all tariffs removed.
According to New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade data, New Zealand was the first developed country in the world to enter into an FTA with China, since quadrupling exports there valued at over NZ$37bn (US$22.7bn) as of 2021, and seeing China become its biggest trade partner.
Various New Zealand dairy products have seen export tariff decreases over the years, but although many of these hit zero in 2019, duties were still in place for liquid milk, butter and cheese until 2021; and for milk powder until Dec 31 2023.
As of Jan 1 this year, all tariffs were officially declared to have been removed by the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand via a formal statement, which was warmly welcomed by New Zealand Trade Minister Todd McClay.
“All safeguard duties on milk powder [entering China] have been removed as of January 1 2024, which marks the final liberalisation of dairy access under the [China-New Zealand] FTA,” McClay announced via a separate statement.
Nutri-Grade in China: Shanghai launches traffic light labelling pilot for sugar-sweetened beverages
The local government of Shanghai, China launched a pilot traffic light labelling scheme for sugar-sweetened beverages, with grades to be implemented based on not only sugar but also saturated and trans-fat content.
The pilot was announced by the Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (SCDC) to cover both prepackaged RTD beverages for retail as well as freshly-prepared beverages such as those sold in tea shops and cafes.
The traffic light labelling scheme is similar to those used in other markets such as Singapore (Nutri-Grade) and the United Kingdom (Nutri-Score), and is quite similarly termed as 营养选择 which translates roughly to ‘Nutritional Choice’.
Similar to these other schemes, it utilised a green-to-red colour scheme and the letters A to D to designate the nutritional value of beverages, so the most highly-recommended items would have a dark green ‘A’ label, and the least-recommended ones would have a red ‘D’ label.
Labelling transformations: Thailand stresses science and safety for new nutritional labels and health claims rules
Thailand implemented new nutritional labelling policies for the food industry earlier this year, with the authorities also issuing more stringent ‘science-based’ guidelines for on-pack health claims.
Various South East Asian markets from Vietnam to the Philippines have been in the headlines over the past year for making upgrades to policies and guidelines to improve on-pack nutritional labels for foods and beverages.
Thailand also joined this list earlier this year, having gazetted a slew of regulatory decrees in January 2024 governing how food and beverages must display nutritional labels on product packaging.
“[The regulations as outlined in] this notification shall come into force after 180 days from its publication in the Government Gazette – so enforcement will start on [July 2 2024],” local Minister of Public Health Cholnan Srikaew said via a formal statement.
“All food and beverage products will then need to carry nutrition labelling in compliance with the format and provisions of displaying of nutrition information [as per the] Ministry of Public Health guidelines.
“Food products [manufactured] with labels compliant to previous regulations can still be sold, but the time limit given is not more than three years from the date of these regulations come into force - After this period, the nutrition labelling of all products must be displayed according to these new guidelines.”
Huge tax hikes: Vietnam proposes phased 100% alcohol tax rise, 10% for sugar-sweetened drinks
The Vietnamese government drafted new regulations proposing a phased increase on excise taxes for alcoholic beverages to 100% by 2030 as well as 10% for sugar-sweetened beverages, in attempts to curb overconsumption as well as boosting national income.
Vietnam is well-known for having very affordable alcoholic beverage prices, with beers in particular costing well below US$1 at most supermarkets and eateries.
The local government believes that such affordable prices have contributed to high consumption amongst consumers, and that it is now necessary to increase taxation on these drinks to ensure public health is not compromised.
“Higher taxation is necessary in order to reduce the consumption of alcohol in Vietnam,” the local Ministry of Finance said via a formal statement.
“The current tax law levies an excise tax of 65% on liquors with 20% ABV and above; 35% for drinks below 20% ABV and 65% for beers – these would be increased to 80%, 50% and 80% respectively under the new regulations in the short term by 2026.
“The plan is to gradually increase these taxes to 100%, 70% and 100% eventually by 2030 – all of these are in line with World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations to increase retail prices for alcohol by 10%.”
Final call: Vietnam gives food firms two years to transition to new nutrition labelling regulations
Vietnam has officially enforced its new nutrition labelling regulations, which will see some 40% of domestic manufacturers making on-pack changes over two years.
The Vietnamese government first announced in mid-2023 that it would be implementing regulations mandating the display of nutritional labelling according to national standards on all qualifying food and beverage products in the country.
Government documentation confirmed that the enforcement of these regulations was initiated, and that local food firms would be given a two-year transition period to make any necessary changes to their product labels.
“By December 31 2025, organizations and individuals that manufacture, sell or import foods under the governance and regulation of this Circular in Vietnam must specify the relevant nutritional components and corresponding values on the labels of their products, in accordance with the regulations in this Circular,” the Vietnamese Ministry of Health (MOH) stated via a formal statement.
“From January 1 2026, all organisations and individuals [will not be allowed to] manufacture, print, import or use labels that are not in tandem or accordance with this Circular.
“Nutritional labels must now include the content and value of the five nutritional components – Energy, protein, carbohydrate, fat and sodium; and certain products need to have additional nutrient information specified on the label as well according to local standards."
On the outside: China announces new labelling standards for pre-packaged foods to ensure visibility and clarity
The China State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced new regulatory standards earlier this year for pre-packaged food labels, urging food and beverage companies to comply in order to boost clarity for consumers.
China has made many updates to its food packaging regulations over the past few years surrounding labels, packaging quantity and materials.
State regulator SAMR announced earlier this year a new set of labelling standards that all food and beverage manufacturers have been encouraged to comply with.
“In accordance with China’s Food Safety Law and to facilitate consumers being able to clearly and easily identify information on the labels of all pre-packaged food products, food and beverage firms are now encouraged to optimise their product labels according to these new standards,” SAMR stated via a formal statement.
“This is particularly pertinent to convey important information such as production dates and shelf life, so these must be clearly displayed on the main display panel of both the product’s closest layer of packaging (minimum sales package).
“Importantly, if the product has multiple layers of packaging around the minimum sales package, this information must also be visible on the outermost package such that consumers have access to it.”
