Ministry of Commerce And Supplies - Enhanced Integrated ...

N T I S2010Priority 1: PesticidesNepal already has some provision under The Pesticides Rules 2050 (1994) for the partial implementation ofthe requirements for the control of agrochemical residues. Rule 10 requires that:‘Any person, institution or body intending to carry out the business of selling, formulating or spraying thepesticides shall have to obtain a licence from the committee.’Rule 13 deals with the granting of licences to pesticide-spraying entrepreneurs:‘if any person, institution or body submits to the committee an application pursuant to Rule 11 (applicationfor a licence) above, for obtaining a licence to spray the pesticides for the commercial purpose, the committeemay, subject to the standards fixed by it in regard to the use of pesticides, if it deems fit to grant a licence aftermaking necessary inquiries in this regard, grant a licence of the pesticide spraying entrepreneur, in such a formas prescribed by the committee.’It is necessary for these rules to be extended so that all crop protection advisors and applicators within farms/smallholdings are also required to be licensed through appropriate certificates obtained by demonstrating thenecessary knowledge (i.e. via a formal examination against a defined curriculum).The curriculum should include crop protection information such as: Scouting and monitoring crops for pest and diseases; Knowledge of beneficial organisms and of integrated pest management (IPM); The correct application of only approved crop protection measures to avoid harmful side effects suchas destruction of beneficial organisms and pesticide residues above the maximum residue limit; How to store and dispose of pesticides correctly.An example of a basic curriculum is that of the Smallholder Guide for GLOBALGAP.* This document is onlya guideline and one more specific to Nepal needs to be drawn up to include national laws, principal nationalcrops as well as the specific complex of pests and beneficial organisms that exist in the country. However, theGLOBALGAP standard should be adopted, if possible.In addition to the requirement for training and certification, the Rules under the Pesticide Act need to bestrengthened as follows: Introduction of set requirements for on farm storage of pesticides as well as proper recording ofusage; A requirement that companies with pesticides currently registered in Nepal demonstrate throughscientifically obtained data that they currently comply with importing country requirements. Note thatthese may not equate with CODEX maximum residue limits (MRLs). India as an exporter to the EU maywell, for example, be complying with the United Kingdom Pesticide Safety Directorate MRLs, which areset quite a bit lower than those of CODEX, often at the limit of detection (LoD).Priority 2: MicrobiologyGenerally speaking, food-borne human pathogens are more serious that pesticide residues in terms of theirpotential for illness and morbidity. However, with the possible exception of honey, in trade terms certifiedfreedom from food-borne diseases and microbiological toxins appear to have a lower certification priority* Smallholder Guide for GLOBALG.A.P., Plant Protection Module, DRAFT version - Nov09, Based on “GLOBALGAP Control Points and ComplianceCriteria Integrated Farm Assurance” (V3.0-2_Sep07, English Version)304NEPAL TRADE INTEGRATION STRATEGY 2010BACKGROUND REPORT