Agmark
| Agmark ( Agriculture marketing ) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Certifying agency | Directorate of Marketing and Inspection,Government of India |
| Effective region | India |
| Effective since | 1937, 1986 (amended) |
| Product category | Agricultural products |
| Legal status | Advisory |
AGMARKis acertification markemployed onagricultural productsinIndia,assuring that they conform to a set of standards approved by theDirectorate of Marketing and Inspectionan attached Office of the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare under Ministry of Agricultural & Farmers Welfare an agency of theGovernment of India.[1][2][3][4][5][6][excessive citations]TheAGMARK Head Office at Faridabad (Haryana)is legally enforced in India by theAgricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act of 1937 (and amended in 1986).[1]The presentAGMARKstandards cover quality guidelines for 224 different commodities spanning a variety ofpulses,cereals,essential oils,vegetable oils,FruitsandVegetablesand semi-processed products likevermicelli.[1]
Etymology (origin)
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The term agmark was coined by joining the words 'Ag' to mean agriculture and 'mark' for a certification mark. This term was introduced originally in the bill presented in the parliament of India for theAgricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act.[7]
The entire system of Agmark, including the name, was created by Archibald MacDonald Livingstone, Agricultural and Marketing Advisory to the Government of India, from 1934 to 1941. He was supported by a staff of several hundred. The system was designed to benefit local growers throughout India who were, in the absence of a certification as to quality, exposed to receiving less for their produce from dealers than its true worth.[8]
Agmark Laboratories
[edit]The Agmark certification is employed through fully state-owned Agmark laboratories located across the nation which act as testing and certifying centres. In addition to theCentral AGMARK Laboratory (CAL)inNagpur,there areRegional AGMARK Laboratories (RALs)in 11 nodal cities (Mumbai,New Delhi,Chennai,Kolkata,Kanpur,Kochi,Guntur,Amritsar,Jaipur,Rajkot,Bhopal).[9]Each of the regional laboratories is equipped with and specializes in the testing of products of regional significance. Hence the product range that could be tested varies across the centres.[10]
Commodities and tests
[edit]The testing done across these laboratories include chemical analysis, microbiological analysis,pesticide residue,andaflatoxinanalysis on wholespices,ground spices,ghee,butter,vegetable oils,mustard oil,honey,food grains (wheat),wheatproducts (atta,suji,andmaida),gram flour,soybeanseed,jowar,bajra,bengal gram,ginger,oil cake,NON edible oil, oils and fats, animal casings,meatand other food products.[10]
See also
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References
[edit]- ^abc"Directorate of Marketing and Inspection. 'Promotion of Standardisation and Grading of Agricultural and Allied Produce'".Archived fromthe originalon 2011-11-11.Retrieved2011-11-25.
- ^":: Ministry of Food Processing Industries::".Archived fromthe originalon 26 April 2012.Retrieved29 May2015.
- ^"Slush and stench".The Hindu.Retrieved29 May2015.
- ^K. Santhosh."Nectar of kindness".The Hindu.Retrieved29 May2015.
- ^Staff Reporter."Minister inaugurates open auction system at market".The Hindu.Retrieved29 May2015.
- ^National Institute of Open Schooling. 'Wise Buying.'Archived2010-10-11 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1937 (Act No. 1 of 1937) (as amended up to 1986)".Archived fromthe originalon 2012-01-06.Retrieved2012-05-05.
- ^Archibald McDonald Livingstone 1890-1972, in conversation with 1970.
- ^"ADDRESSES OF THE CENTRAL AGMARK LABORATORY AND REGIONAL AGMARK LABORATORIES".Archived fromthe originalon 6 September 2004.Retrieved29 May2015.
- ^ab"TESTING, RESEARCH AND STANDARDISATION FACILITIES".Archived fromthe originalon 8 March 2003.Retrieved29 May2015.