Container ship loading at an export terminal
Destination Market

The Rules That Actually Bite

EU refusals of Indian spice consignments cluster around a short list, and every item on it is testable before shipment.

Contaminant maximum levels — aflatoxins, ochratoxin A, lead and cadmium — are set by Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/915, which replaced Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006. Pesticide residues fall under Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, which is also where the ethylene oxide limit sits that triggered extensive spice recalls across the bloc. Unauthorised colouring, principally Sudan I to IV, has no permitted food use at any level and is screened for separately.

On top of that, Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 lists products and origins subject to increased official controls at the border, and it is amended regularly. Indian chilli has featured on it. Assume a higher inspection rate on chilli than on turmeric and plan the paperwork accordingly.

What We Do Before Shipping

Every batch is tested by a third-party laboratory before the container is sealed: curcumin for turmeric, Scoville heat and ASTA colour for chilli, and for both — moisture, ash, heavy metals, aflatoxin and microbiological load. Chilli lots additionally carry Sudan dye screening.

The report ships with the consignment and names the batch, so it can go straight into your import file rather than being requested after the goods have landed.

Two things we do not do, stated plainly: we do not currently hold organic certification, so nothing we supply may be sold into the EU as certified organic; and specific maximum levels are revised periodically, so confirm the limits applicable to your product and arrival date with your own customs adviser rather than relying on any supplier's summary — including this one.


Practicalities

Consignments move as FCL in 20 ft or 40 ft containers, or LCL for smaller volumes, palletised and batch-marked so a pallet landing in Rotterdam still resolves back to a farm and a lab result.

Supplying EU importers
ItemDetail
Typical discharge portsRotterdam, Antwerp, Hamburg
Turmeric HS code0910.30
Chilli HS codes0904.21 whole · 0904.22 crushed or ground
Minimum order500 kg (1,000 kg polished turmeric)
Bulk packing25 kg PP bags · 50 kg jute · 40 kg jute bales (chilli)
Quote turnaround48 business hours
Bulk Order Enquiries

Ready to Source Against a Specification?

Tell us your grade, volume and destination port. You will have a costed quote, tied to a specific batch, within 48 business hours.