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Home > Export Reference Manual > Standards, Labeling, and Packing
Export Reference Manual - Country Profile
The following is a sample country profile from International Trade Reporter's Export Reference Manual, Export Reference Guide on CD, and Export Reference Guide on the Web.
Standards, Labeling, and Packing
STANDARDS AND SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
India is a signatory to the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, commonly known as the Standards Agreement, negotiated under the Tokyo Round of multilateral trade negotiations. The agreement is designed to eliminate the use of standards and certification systems as impediments to trade.
The Standards Agreement does not dictate what the product standards must be, but it does call for open procedures in adopting standards and sets up a review procedure for settling disputes. Signatories are required to publish a notice of their proposed standards, to provide copies of these standards, if requested, and to allow countries to comment on them.
Standards (both voluntary and mandatory) and certification systems promulgated by central governments, state and local governments, and private sector organizations are subject to the Standards Agreement's provisions, although only central governments are bound directly by it. The agreement requires that signatories “shall ensure that” central government bodies comply fully with its provisions. With respect to regional, state, local, and private organizations, the agreement requires signatories to “take such reasonable measures as may be available to them” to ensure compliance.
If exporters have reason to believe that a standard of any signatory country unjustifiably impedes their exports, these concerns may be communicated to the Office of Standards Code and Information, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Building 820, Room 164, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899, (301) 975–4037; fax: (301) 926–1559. The office will facilitate the transmission of U.S. comments to the government of the foreign country concerned.
Food products are subject to guidelines laid out in the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act. The PFA Act specifies detailed standards for ingredients including additives, flavors, colors, pesticide residue, and fat content.
The manufacture, sale, and distribution of household electrical appliances must conform to specified Indian standards. Mining equipment and other equipment for use in places where flammable gases exist are subject to special regulations.
Standards drafted by the Bureau of Indian Standards affect a number of other commodities in the areas of agricultural and food products, civil engineering, chemicals, medical instruments, electronics and telecommunications, marine cargo movement and packaging, consumer products, textiles, electro-technical mechanical engineering, and metals. Many of these standards have been adopted by government agencies and other local industries, and U.S. exporters may want to become familiar with some of them. The BIS is in the process of harmonizing Indian standards with international standards.
Additional information is available from the Bureau of Indian Standards, Manak Bhavan, 9 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi 110002; telephone: (11) 3237991; fax: (11) 3234062.
For specific information regarding existing foreign agricultural standards and testing, packaging, and certification systems, exporters should contact the Office of Food Safety and Technical Services, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, South Agriculture Building, Room 5545, 14th Street and Independence Avenue S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250, (202) 720–1301; fax: (202) 690–0677. The National Center for Standards and Certification Information at the National Institute for Standards and Technology also maintains extensive files on existing foreign non-agricultural standards and their testing and certification systems. Further information is available from the National Center for Standards and Certification Information, National Institute for Standards and Technology, Building 820, Room 164, Gaithersburg, Md. 20899, (301) 975–4040; fax: (301) 926–1559.
Additional information on foreign standards is available to firms in the United States through the American National Standards Institute, 11 W. 42nd St., New York, N.Y. 10036, (212) 642–4900; fax: (212) 398–0023.
LABELING
Food product labels may be submitted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for review to determine if they meet local labeling requirements. Exporters should contact the Office of Food Safety and Technical Services, Foreign Agricultural Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Room 5545-S, Washington, D.C. 20250, (202) 720–9408; fax: (202) 690–0677. Exporters should consult with their customers in India for additional information.
Foreign merchandise bearing any name, trademark, or description must be marked with the country of origin, either on the goods themselves or on their containers. On American-made goods the words “Made in U.S.A.” in letters as large and conspicuous as any other English wording should be printed on every article, label, or wrapper bearing any words in the English language.
Origin requirements include the following: an indication of the country or place where the goods were produced; the name and address of the manufacturer; or if such goods were manufactured by one person for another and both were outside India, either an indication as specified above or the name and address of the person for whom the goods were manufactured. Labeling should be in English.
In general, the minimum size of the country of origin lettering should be not less than 2 millimeters in height or less than one-fourth the size of the largest letter appearing in the name, word, or trade description applied to the goods, whichever is larger. For certain other classes of goods, the minimum lettering should be as follows: (1) for drugs, medicines, and pharmaceutical products or cosmetics and toilet preparations, not less than 2 millimeters in height or less than the largest letter used in the display of the name of the manufacturer appearing at any place on the label, whichever is smaller; (2) for cigarettes, not less than 2 millimeters in height; (3) for chemicals in drums and other containers of a size up to 2 liters, not less than 2 millimeters in height; of a size from 2 liters to 8 liters, not less than 4 millimeters in height; of a size from 8 liters to 50 liters, not less than 10 milimeters in height; of a size above 50 liters, not less than 20 millimeters in height; and (4) for wood and timber in logs or pieces or plants or scantlings, not less than 20 millimeters in height.
Goods made or produced in one country and contained in packages made or produced in another country must specify both countries. Goods partly or wholly made or produced in one country and partly made, produced, finished, processed, embellished, or completed in another country or countries and goods made of indistinguishable parts or components from two or more foreign countries, may be labeled in the following manner: “Manufacture of different countries outside India,” “Product of different countries outside India,” “Made abroad,” or “Foreign made.”
The following goods are exempt from these country-of-origin labeling regulations: materials imported by the railways and marked with the name of the railway; samples or patterns readily distinguishable as such and valueless in themselves; articles intended for free distribution for advertising purposes; and goods imported for the personal use of individuals and not for trade purposes.
The information should be adjacent on the same label or part of the covering of the goods to which the name, trademark, or trade description is applied; it should not be on a separate label nor otherwise detachable, except under special circumstances as described below; and it should be applied conspicuously and indelibly. It should be repeated for all applications of the name or trademark, except when these are reproduced in such close proximity that one prominent counterindication will cover all.
When goods are so small or are of a shape or character that marking of the country of origin on the goods themselves would be impossible, impractical, or unduly costly, or if such marking would adversely affect the quality of the goods, the country-of-origin notation may be applied on the wrapper, container, or attached label.
Standards of weights and measures with regard to marking, labeling, and other requirements are in effect for packaged goods intended for retail sale, as well as for all such goods imported in India.
The following classes of goods must be marked with the country of origin on the goods themselves: electric and all kinds of assembled apparatuses and appliances; glass bulbs and globes, including electric incandescent bulbs; electric cells and batteries of every kind, including primary batteries for dry cells; flash lamps of the torch type; motorcar batteries; lanterns and lamps of every kind, including electric assembled; tiles of every kind; wood and timber in logs; iron ingots; piece goods of cotton, silk, staple fiber yarn and wool, including mixture piece goods, i.e., piece goods made of different kinds of yarns or piece goods made of yarns spun of mixtures of different kinds of textile fiber; fountain pen barrels; and assembled machinery of every kind.
Cotton and woolen yard goods must be marked correctly and conspicuously to show the length in standard yards or fractions. If in cut pieces, the number of pieces as well as the yardage should be shown, as “40 yards/3 pieces“ or “40 yds., 3 pieces.” The word “yards” or “yds.” should follow the numerals. The marking must be in a color different from that of the goods and may not be stamped on the inner fold of the goods, but it must be on the fabric itself, not removable except by washing.
The following classes of goods must be marked with the country of origin on the containers or coverings: parts, spare parts, and accessories of machinery, apparatus, and appliances of all kinds; electrical wiring accessories; certain ball and roller bearings; stationery goods; toilet preparations of every kind, including soaps and cosmetics; manufactures of wood; wood and timber in pieces, planks, or scantlings; yarns of cotton, silk, artificial silk, staple fibers, and wool, including yarn spun of mixtures with one or more kinds of textile fibers, as well as yarn consisting of strands of different kinds of yarn combined by the process of doubling or twisting; plates for motor vehicle batteries; cigarettes; chemicals, including dyes and dyestuffs; drugs, medicines, and pharmaceutical products; sewing machines; and safety fuses. Spirits, wines, and liquors must be marked on the labels of the bottles and on the packages.
MARKING
In general, all packages should be marked in large and conspicuous lettering using indelible ink or paint directly on the container, not on a tag or label. As appropriate, the weight, center of gravity, and sling or grab points should be marked as aides for proper handling. To discourage pilferage of valuable cargo, trade names that reveal the nature of the contents should not appear on the outside of the package.
On American-made goods, the words “Made in U.S.A.” must appear in large and conspicuous letters on every article, label, or wrapper.
Explosives should be marked clearly on the shipping container with the words “Upside,” “Downside,” and “Fragile.” For government orders, the shipping marks must show consignee order number as specified in the contract and port of entry.
PACKING
Shippers should give special attention to packing goods destined for India. Dampness, excessive heat, exposure to sun and rain on wharves, sweating in holds of vessels, and damage by insects and fungus growth are some of the conditions to which shipments are exposed. Waterproofing is necessary, and zinc- or tin-lined cases are recommended to ensure delivery of the merchandise in acceptable condition. The use of tarpaulin for bales is not desirable because it contains fat and, like tarred paper, melts in tropical regions. Such goods as machinery, which during rail transport in India may pass through desert regions, require greaseproof paper in addition to other packing. Sand and dust penetrate most ordinary coverings in India. The humidity is so great in some parts of the country that extra slushing is required to prevent machinery from corroding.
U.S. exporters should seek the advice of their Indian customers for further information on packing requirements.
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