Press Information Bureau

Government of India

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA)

17-January-2013 13:51 IST

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the proposal of the Department of Commerce for allowing the export of processed and/or value added agricultural products even in the event of restriction/ban on export of basic farm produce.  The various products to be allowed are as under: 

The export basket of India's major agricultural produce mainly comprise of raw/ primary, unprocessed or semi processed agriculture commodities/ products which are susceptible to restrictions/ bans owing to various reasons such as bad weather conditions, deficient/ delayed rainfall, food security issues etc. Generally such restrictions/ bans are made applicable across the products, whether processed or raw material.

The exports of processed and/or value added products constitute a very miniscule portion of the overall exports and hence their continuation would not affect the availability in the domestic market owing to very marginal processing capacity in the country. Always open policy of this sector will not only help reduce wastage of perishable products but also encourage value addition.

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SC/SK

Export allowance for processed agricultural products permitted despite bans on basic produce, to protect value chains and reduce waste. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved permitting export of processed and value added agricultural products even when basic farm produce exports are restricted or banned, listing eligible items such as various cereal flours and products, milk derivatives including casein, butter and cheese, value added onion products, and peanut butter. The justification is that processed exports constitute a very small portion of overall exports and thus will not affect domestic availability; permitting them aims to reduce perishability losses, support processing capacity, and encourage value addition while creating an exception to blanket export restrictions.