India, Sept. 26 -- If negotiated well, an FTA could bring multiple upside gains:

For the Indian food processing sector to fully leverage an FTA with the EU, several policy, institutional, and industry actions are crucial.

The FTA may need to include strong provisions for recognition/equivalence of Indian certifying bodies, labs, traceability and regulatory systems, along with articulation of a phased implementation of the new standards to give exporters time for upgrading.

Harmonisation of Indian regulations with international norms (Codex, international SPS agreements) may be needed. Moreover, a mechanism needs to be set up for early warning on EU regulatory changes. Most importantly, strengthening the capacity of regulatory authoriti...