The latest in the Board's campaign for quality upgradation is the introduction of the Spice House Certificate. The certificate is issued to those processors/exporters who have a genuine commitment to quality, and whose long-term objective is sustained export growth. The Spice House Certificate seeks to identify and recognise processors who have made investments in in-house processing facilities and infrastructure, and have the necessary competence to ensure consistent quality and reliability. These facilities cover all critical areas - cleaning, grading, processing, packaging and warehousing. A foolproof system of quality assurance should be employed at all stages of processing - from raw material selection to final shipping. The processors are also expected to maintain a high degree of sanitation in the plant, while the workers must observe absolute cleanliness and personnel hygiene.

Both the logo and the Spice House Certificate holders have quality upgradation as their ultimate objective, but with a basic difference in focus. Exporters of branded spices and spice products in consumer packs are the focal point of the logo programme. On the other hand, the certification programme aims at exporters of spices and spice products in bulk packing. The products covered by the certification programme include whole spices as well as value-added products like spice mixes, ground spices, curry blends, spice oils oleoresins and sterilized, dehydrated, pickled and candied spices.