ISLAMABAD: Amid increasing interceptions of rice shipments abroad, including in the European Union (EU), and the Ministry of National Food Security & Research’s (M/oNFSR) failure to control these issues effectively, the government has reintroduced what it calls “new” minimum phytosanitary measures for rice exports.
These measures apply to countries where the Department of Plant Protection (DPP) lacks information on sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) import regulations.
The move is aimed at reducing interceptions related to Maximum Residue Limits (MRL) and Aflatoxin, maintaining Pakistan’s Plant Quarantine and Food Safety System, and ensuring sustainable market access.
Industry insiders reveal that these measures have already been in place for a long time. The requirements are as follows:
1. Mandatory Fumigation
The new circular mandates that every rice consignment be treated with Aluminium Phosphide (ALP) at the prescribed dosage to eliminate pests. However, this requirement had already been enforced by previous DPP officials. Notably, fumigation with ALP led to an interception in Italy due to the presence of the red flour beetle, indicating that stored grain pests have developed resistance to this fumigant.
Experts stress the urgent need to replace ALP with alternative treatments such as heat treatment, controlled atmospheric treatment, or gamma irradiation. Countries such as Australia, India, the USA, Russia, Mexico, and New Zealand have already replaced ALP with alternative treatments.
Additionally, concerns have been raised over Italy’s NPPO (National Plant Protection Organization) returning a rice shipment infested with the red flour beetle. Experts argue that this pest is not classified as a quarantine pest in the EU and that Italy could have permitted onshore disinfestation rather than rejecting the shipment outright.
2. Compliance with Global Food Safety Standards
The new circular requires exporters to ensure that rice shipments comply with MRL, Mycotoxin levels, and heavy metal testing as certified by PNAC-accredited laboratories, in line with the Codex Alimentarius Commission. However, sources claim this requirement has been in place since 2022 when the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) and M/oNFSR introduced third-party testing by SGS. Despite this, interceptions have continued.
3. Contaminant-Free Shipments
As per the circular rice shipments must be free from extraneous materials such as weed seeds and soil. Ironically, the current head of the quarantine department, under the influence of importers through intermediaries, framed Pakistan’s import conditions to align with those of Australia, India, the USA, Russia, New Zealand, and Mexico. However, these conditions were already part of Pakistan’s Plant Quarantine Rules and IPPC guidelines.
Despite introducing news measures, industry insiders reveal that the following policy measures have been disregarded by the federal ministry.
Two months ago, the Federal Minister directed Secretary Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry and Mr. Waqas Alam to obtain phytosanitary import conditions for Pakistani rice from all 185 contracting parties of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) via Pakistan’s official IPPC contact point.
Similarly, the minister ordered the acquisition of food safety conditions from all Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) contracting parties through the designated Pakistani Codex point within the DPP. However, despite the notification of the National Food Safety Committee in August 2024, the Secretary of M/oNFSR has yet to convene a meeting to discuss its implementation.
The Pakistani IPPC contact point sent official requests to importing countries for their phytosanitary import conditions before issuing phytosanitary certificates. Many countries responded with varied conditions.
However, instead of implementing these conditions per country, an inexperienced customs team imposed its own regulations, violating Rules 62, 63, and 64 of Pakistan’s Plant Quarantine Rules and IPPC/CAC provisions. Moreover, critical tests for mineral oil and GMO presence—both flagged in EU interceptions in 2023 and 2024—were ignored.
Despite federal ministerial directives, the DPP has failed to implement or maintain SPS conditions from its trading partners. Experts argue that rice interceptions will persist because M/oNFSR is deflecting blame by proposing the creation of a new food safety authority, mirroring the failed Punjab Saaf Pani Company model.
Impact on Pakistan’s rice exports:
These reintroduced phytosanitary measures are ostensibly aimed at reducing rice rejections and bans due to MRL and Aflatoxin concerns. However, industry insiders believe the real intent is to create a façade of action rather than addressing the root causes.
Pakistan’s rice exports have already suffered due to a severe shortage of technical officials for inspections, leading to delays in issuing phytosanitary certificates and causing missed transport vessels. Exporters are increasingly frustrated by these delays and the failure to appoint additional inspectors.
Background:
Earlier, an inquiry committee chaired by former Interior Secretary Shahid Khan—commissioned by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif—investigated the causes of rice interceptions in the EU. The committee blamed 17 DPP inspectors and former Director General Muhammad Tariq Khan for failing to require MRL and Aflatoxin reports when issuing phytosanitary certificates. However, the FIA’s investigation also implicated former DG Allah Ditta Abid after registering FIR No. 40/2024.
Quarantine and food safety experts argue that bureaucratic incompetence made these technical officials scapegoats without addressing the real causes of interceptions. These issues include poor agricultural practices, the use of unregistered pesticides, failure to observe post-harvest intervals, unhygienic storage and transport, and inadequate biosecurity in processing facilities. Responsibility for these shortcomings lies with provincial agricultural departments and food safety authorities, not the DPP.
Shahid Khan’s findings led to the arrest of 17 inspectors and the suspension of the DG, causing international embarrassment for Pakistan. Subsequently, Secretary M/oNFSR Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry assigned additional charge to Waqas Alam, a PAS Group officer, who, despite appointing unqualified personnel from the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), failed to control interceptions.
Recognizing his lack of expertise, Waqas Alam withdrew from his role within a month, shifting responsibility to exporters, requiring them to submit written undertakings absolving the DPP of liability. The subsequent appointment of BS-19 Customs officer Tahir Abbas also failed to curb interceptions, as the underlying issues remained unaddressed.
Predictably, January 2025 saw eight interceptions of Pakistani rice shipments on the EU’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), nearly identical to the nine interceptions recorded in January 2024. This highlights the ineffectiveness of M/oNFSR’s approach.
Now, in another bid to demonstrate action, M/oNFSR and DPP have reissued minimum phytosanitary requirements. According to an official circular issued on February 6, 2025, these “new” guidelines have been reimplemented—despite being longstanding regulations—and continue to violate established plant quarantine and food safety rules.
