Should Garlic Be Classified as a Vegetable or a Spice? High Court Issues Ruling After Nine Years of Legal Battle

Garlic, which enhances the flavor of meals, is also highly beneficial for health. However, there has been a controversy regarding its classification. For the past nine years, farmers and commission agents have been engaged in a legal battle over whether garlic should be categorized as a vegetable or a spice. 

Recently, the Madhya Pradesh High Court delivered a significant ruling that has provided benefits to both parties involved.

High Court Delivers Important Ruling

In the nine-year-long legal battle, both parties sought a clear categorization of garlic. The Madhya Pradesh High Court has now issued an important ruling, classifying garlic as a vegetable and also granting permission for its sale in the spice market.

2017 Order Upheld by Court

The bench of Justices S.A. Dharmadhikari and D. Venkataramani has upheld the 2017 order, stating that since garlic decays quickly, it can be classified as a vegetable. 

However, garlic will be allowed to be sold in both the vegetable and spice markets. This ruling will remove trade restrictions and benefit both farmers and traders.

The Dispute Over Garlic Classification

In 2015, the Madhya Pradesh Mandi Board included garlic in the vegetable category. Subsequently, the Agriculture Department revoked this order, citing the Agricultural Produce Market Committee Act (1972), and reclassified garlic as a spice. 

This led to complaints from farmers and traders who were suffering due to the lack of a clear classification.

In 2016, the Potato Onion Garlic Commission Agents Association challenged the Principal Secretary’s order before the Indore bench. The bench ruled in their favor in 2017. However, this decision only benefited the commission agents, leading to further losses for farmers. Consequently, a review petition was filed in July 2017. 

In January 2024, a bench of two judges included garlic in the spice category. Following this, garlic traders and commission agents requested a review in March, arguing that garlic is sold as a vegetable through agents.

The High Court’s order stated that, in the current case, farmers had requested permission for garlic to be sold as a vegetable through agents. However, the state government had classified it as a spice. 

Madhya Pradesh Market Board’s Joint Director, Chandrashekhar, noted that the order would allow commission agents to bid for garlic in vegetable markets. Farmer Parmanan Patidar from Mandasaur commented that having two options for selling their produce was beneficial and that garlic was already being sold at historically high prices.