Beyond tariffs: India looks to better safety standards to ship more fruits to US

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Donald Trump

India is working on improving its safety standards to secure greater market access for fruits, including grapes, bananas and pomegranates, to the United States, shipments of which have a higher probability of facing rejections due to strict American norms.

While more Indian fruits in the US market are a part of the ongoing talks for a trade deal between the two countries, higher shipments, especially of grapes, to the US may take some time, a senior government official told Moneycontrol.

“One of the big-ticket items we have been asking for, which is not a tariff issue, is market access issue because the US barely accepts any Indian grapes since our disease control measures are not up to the mark for them,” this official said.

Apart from stricter safety standards, the distance from the US and the competition from Peruvian grapes also make it tougher for Indian variants.

“Ultimately, for perishable products like grapes, bananas and pomegranates, we are working on improving the standards of these products and we hope that in future, the US, too, will start accepting these products more and more,” the official said.

Indian farm exports to the US often run the risk of rejections due to stringent sanitary and phytosanitary measures mandating regulations, requirements, and procedures used to ensure the safety of agricultural products for people, plants and animals in that country.

The government is focussing on plugging any loopholes in such safety requirements, “because otherwise you have the mango scenario but for that we conducted an irradiation process but not every fruit can survive that process,” the official said.

In May, US authorities reportedly rejected at least 15 mango shipments from India, citing inconsistencies in the documentation related to the mandatory irradiation process.

The aim to carve out more access for Indian fruits in the American market comes amid a new goal for bilateral trade.

Termed as "Mission 500”, it looks to more than double total bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. India and the US are also negotiating a deal as a part of this aim, the mini version of which is likely to be finalised before July 9.

India exported fresh fruits, other than grapes and mango, worth $563.30 million to the world in the financial year 2024-25.

India is a major exporter of fresh grapes to the world with exports worth $353.50 million in FY25. However, the US, unlike the Netherlands, Britain, the United Arab Emirates, Russia and Bangladesh, is not one of the key markets for this fruit.

The major markets for Indian pomegranates and bananas include the Netherlands, UAE, and Bangladesh.

While the US too features as a key buyer of Indian pomegranates after purchases resumed in 2023, the shipments are not significant.

Indian exports of grapes, bananas and pomegranates to the US are marginal with shipments worth $0.73 million, $0.05 million, and $3.88 million, respectively, in FY25.