CHANDIGARH, Dec 2: Leading food processing experts at the International Conference on "Fruits and Vegetable Processing" today stressed the need for induction of the state-of-the-art technologies in the Indian agro sector to cut down on the "abnormally high" rate of wastage of fruits and vegetables and to meet the international quality standards.Expressing surprise at the short shelf-life of fruits and vegetables, G. Boerio of Italian firm, Bertuzzi Alberto Spa, said that about 35 per cent of the fruit crop was being wasted during harvesting, storage, grading, transporting, packaging and distribution.Boerio said the Indian industry must induct new technologies to exploit its potential in the food processing sector. He said the enormous availability of raw material of excellent quality, the attitude of the Central and local governments regarding capital investments in this sector and the deregulation in the legal and bureaucratic permissions had created an ideal environment for this.Talking about the trends in quality in the food sector, F.J. Dastoor, chairman of International Standards Certification (South Asia) Private Ltd, said the Indian authorities were in a dilemma. "Compare our method of production, which uses excessive amounts of pesticide that leave large trace of residues in all sorts of foods, to the international standards that will be developed through genetic engineering, ensuring next to nil pesticide residue. If India wishes to continue exports of its products, it will need to comply with these standards," he pointed out. Dastoor said the authorities had also turned a blind eye to the problem of adulteration. The prevention of Food Adulteration Act was stringent but weak in its implementation.
