JKTPO and Invest India (DPIIT) organised
Organic Certification program for Kishtwar Saffron Growers under ODOP
initiative
Jammu
and Kashmir Trade Promotion Organisation (JKTPO) under the guidance of Principal
Secretary to Government, Industries and Commerce, Prashant Goyal , and under supervision
of Managing Director JKTPO , Khalid Jahangir, organised the National Programme
for Organic Production (NPOP) Awareness Drive for organic certification of
Saffron, ODOP product of Kishtwar District in collaboration with Invest India
(One District One Product) team, DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry at
District office complex Kishtwar. The workshop organised with the vision to
provide training and certification to farmers who are already pursuing organic
farming but don’t have the necessary certification for their products
authenticity.
This
workshop is one of the initiatives of JKTPO for the promotion of ODOP products
in Jammu and Kashmir which includes conduction of Buyer Seller meets, participation
in national and international trade fairs/ exhibitions and capacity building
programs. The drive will
increase the export potential of saffron as organic certified products have
huge international market.
National
Progamme for Organic Production (NPOP) under Ministry of Commerce &
Industries, Government of India involves accreditation of Certification Bodies,
standards for organic production, promotion of organic farming and marketing
etc. The NPOP standards for production and accreditation system have been
recognized by European Commission and Switzerland for unprocessed plant
products as equivalent to their country standards. With these recognitions,
Indian organic products duly certified by the accredited certification bodies
of India are accepted by the importing countries.
This
was the second National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) Awareness Drive
after Pulwama for organic certification of Saffron organized by JKTPO. The
workshop was attended by more than 45 saffron producers of Kishtwar district,
and more farmers will come under organic certification. .
On
this occasion, Saffron Development Officer, Kishtwar, said: “there is a huge
demand of Kishtwar saffron in India and abroad due to its unique aroma and
flavour but farmers are not getting good prices due to less marketing linkages.
This organic certification of Saffron will boost the demand of saffron and will
help to increase the income of farmers.”