AGMARK is an imprint applied on agricultural / food products in India. Products that have Agmark installed are expected to meet certain set standards. These standards are approved by the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection, Government of India. The use of Agmark is enforced by the Agricultural Products Act 1936 which was amended in 1949.
The current Agmark standard provides quality guidelines for 205 different commodities, including pulses, grains, essential edible oils, fruits, vegetables and semi-processed products (eg vermicelli).
What is Agmark?
Agmark is a purport of food, which ensures the purity of food items. This mark is given by the Ministry of Food, Government of India, keeping in mind the standards set by the World Trade Organization. With the addition of this mark, the seller does not have to work hard to prove the purity of his product. The buyer can trust the quality and purity of the product just by looking at this mark.
Directorate of marketing and inspection
Under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1937 which was amended in 1986, it is engaged in promotion, standardization and grading of agriculture and related products. It is better known as Agmark Standards. Food Corporation of India uses test laboratories across the country to provide quality assurance as per food adulteration prevention standards and to effectively monitor food quality.
Parties who wish to have their commodities graded under AGMARK must first obtain an authorization letter. For this purpose, they should have adequate infrastructure to process the commodities and have access to an approved laboratory for determination of quality and safety factors. Interested parties have to apply to the nearest office of the Directorate in the prescribed form along with the prescribed documents. The parties have to provide details of infrastructure, processing facilities, laboratory details and the will to obtain certification certificate.
Agmark online system
It is being implemented to conduct quality control operations across the country. The system will be available 24 × 7. This will make the application process simple, quick and transparent. Through this online system, certification certificate (domestic), laboratory permission (domestic), printing press and service related information management system will be made available online. This online system is easy, reliable and inexpensive. In this system, applicants can pay through the website bharatkosh.gov.in and the receipt of payment made by the applicant can also be obtained.
Agmark full Form
The word Agmark was associated with the word ‘Ag’ for agriculture and ‘mark’ for the certification mark. The term was originally introduced in a bill introduced in the Parliament of India for the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act.
How to apply for Agmark registration / Certification
If we talk about Agmark Certification, then we will find that it acts as the quality Benchmark of the products and also ensures the authenticity of the products.
As we all know that the name of India is the second highest among the countries with the most population and the source of earning of the majority of the population living here is agriculture.
This is the reason that Agmark registration is very essential for selling and buying agricultural products in retail marketing.
India is a very large exporter of agricultural products, so according to the World Trade Organization, such products should be Agmark Certified.
The Directorate of Marketing and Inspection under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India has started the Agmark Certification Scheme for domestic trade and export of agricultural products.
Although the scheme is Voluntary, according to the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, Blended Edible Vegetable Oils and Fat Spread certification is mandatory under Agmark.
The responsibility of implementing this scheme has been given to the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (DMI).
It has 11 regional offices, 27 sub-offices and 11 regional laboratories in the country. The office address can be seen here. That is why individuals or companies who are willing to take the grading and certification of any Notified Commodity related to Agriculture under AGMARK.
They can directly contact their nearest DMI office. As far as the application form and the list of required documents are concerned, it can easily be obtained from the DMI office.
Applicants desirous of Grading and Certificate should have the necessary infrastructure like Access to a recognized laboratory or own lab. The approved chemist will check the raw material and finished goods before packing.
A Field Officer of DMI will continue his check on Certified and Graded Commodity.
Documents Required for Agmark Registration:
# Copy of the product test report from a laboratory recognized by the agmark authority.
# Copy of the documents related to the establishment of the company or establishment such as a copy of the registration issued by the Registrar of Companies.
# Copy of Memorandum of Association if the applicant is a company.
# If the applicant is a Partnership Firm, then a copy of Partnership Deed will be required, in which the rules of law related to the firm and partnership should be mentioned.
# Name of the product for which the applicant wants the standard.
# The name of the applicant should also be mentioned in the application form.
# Name and address of the institute.
# Product Sample
# Previous and present year productivity potential.
# Turnover of last year company
# Demand draft
# Office or factory drawing.
# Memorandum of the company, indicating the strengths and goals of the company.
# Machinery list.
# Trademark Registration Certificate.
The list of the above-mentioned documents given for Agmark Registration is not mentioned as the base for any particular object, so the Documents List can be transferred on the basis of a particular object.