DHAKA: Fruit and vegetable exporters will not get the vital phytosanitary certificates for their produce unless they register with the Plant Protection Wing, a senior official of the agriculture ministry said yesterday.
The phytosanitary certificate (PC), or the plant health certificate, is one of the key documents for exports of agricultural produce.
“We have introduced the registration of exporters as we are failing to ensure the standards that the European Union wants,” said Anwar Faruque, additional secretary of the agriculture ministry.
He made the disclosure at a programme at the Department of Agricultural Extension, where 34 exporters were handed over registration certificates.
Between January and August this year, the EU rejected 160 consignments from Bangladesh for presence of pest or lack of PCs. The number is 76 percent of the total rejection notifications the country faced in 2014.
The use of fake PCs and doctoring of such documents by a section of errant exporters were the other reasons behind the EU’s rejections.
As per the conditions of registration, exporters will have to grow pest- and disease-free fruits, vegetables and betel leaves through contract farming.
Exporters will also have to get certification from the upazila agriculture officers that the produce collected from the contract growers is free from pest.
The plant health certificates will be issued based on physical inspections by officials of plant quarantine stations.
Faruque asked exporters to select major exportable items and choose zones for safe and pest-free cultivation of the selected fruits and vegetables.
They will also get the necessary support from the agricultural officials, he said.
