Byadgi Chilli GI Tag: What It Means and How to Prove a Batch

Short answer: Byadgi (registered as 'Byadagi Chilli') is a registered geographical indication for chilli from Karnataka, application No. 129 in class 30, and the registered proprietor is the Spices Board, Kochi (IP India GI record 129). The GI protects the name for chilli from the area described in the application, which names the Dharwad, Haveri and Gadag districts. The GI does not show that any given bag came from there, or that it is free of aflatoxin or illegal dyes. A buyer who wants to believe a Byadgi claim will usually ask for three things: the seller's GI authorised-user registration (or the purchase trail back to an authorised user), a lab report naming the lot, and records that tie the lot to farms in the GI area.

What the Byadgi chilli GI legally covers

Registration. The public GI record shows (IP India, application 129, re-checked 15 October 2026):

The GI also appears in IP India's Part A list of registered GIs (register PDF, published 2 May 2026) and in the state-wise list of registered GIs as on 31 December 2025 (state-wise PDF). The Spices Board's own list of spice GIs, "as of 15/09/2026", lists the Spices Board, Kochi as custodian or proprietor and gives the same certificate date and validity (Spices Board GI list).

The area and the product. The Statement of Case filed with the application in 2008 (downloadable from the GI record) says:

• Byadgi chilli is grown widely in the "transition belt" of the Dharwad, Haveri and Gadag districts of Karnataka, mostly as a rain-fed crop, and it gives the growing area as roughly 14°48'N to 15°25'N and 75°24'E to 75°42'E, at 500 to 700 m. These coordinates are marked "(to be verified)", and the Statement of Case says a certified map furnished with the response to the examination report shows the growing regions.
• The main types are Kaddi (long, slender) and Dabbi (shorter, bulged at the calyx), with Dyavanur types as a variant of Dabbi.
• Its specification table lists colour of 150–160 ASTA units for Kaddi and 180–200 for Dabbi and Dyavanur types, pungency "negligible or nil", oleoresin of 12–14% (Kaddi) to 12–15% (Dabbi types), and wrinkled dried pods, deep red for Kaddi and deep red to chocolate for the Dabbi types.

An amended application and Statement of Case were filed in July 2010, after an examination report, and the record also lists the published GI Journal copy. We could not open the Byadgi pages of the Journal copy (the PDF the portal served on 14 October 2026 was damaged), so the figures above are from the 2008 filing. Check the published specification before quoting them on a pack.

The market is not the GI area. The same Statement of Case describes Byadgi town's market yard as the second-largest red chilli market in the country, and says farmers from Kurnool and Adoni in Andhra Pradesh also bring chilli there to sell. Chilli bought at the Byadgi market is therefore not automatically Byadgi chilli in the GI sense. The farm, not the market, decides.

Who may use the name

Under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999, a producer of the goods can apply to be registered as an authorised user (Section 17), and registration gives authorised users the exclusive right to use the GI on the goods (Section 21). The GI record for Byadgi chilli has 9 authorised-user entries listed, 4 of them with the status "Registered" and 5 with no status shown (GI record 129, checked 14 October 2026). A blank status does not tell you either way, so check the entry for the specific seller.

For the general method, see our guide on how to verify a GI product, or look up any food or agriculture GI in our India GI tag index.

What buyers and marketplaces accept as evidence

Nobody asks for "proof of Byadgi" in the abstract. They ask for a set of documents, each of which answers one question.

1. GI evidence: who is allowed to use the name

• Authorised-user registration for the producer, with the number in the form shown on the register (for example "AU/…/GI/129/…"), and a name and address that match the seller or their supplier.
• If the seller is a brand or trader that is not itself an authorised user: purchase invoices from an authorised user or from farmers in the GI area, with quantities that add up to what was packed.

2. Lab evidence: what is in this lot

Byadgi chilli is bought mostly for colour, so the colour value is the commercial test. Safety tests are what importers and regulators check.

The FSSAI floor. For chilli sold as food in India, FSSAI's standard for whole Chillies and Capsicum (Lal Mirchi) sets, among other limits, extraneous matter of not more than 1.0%, unripe and marked fruit of not more than 2.0%, broken fruit, seed and fragments of not more than 5.0%, and moisture of not more than 11.0% by weight. The pods must be free from mould, insects, extraneous colouring matter and mineral-oil coating (FSSAI Chapter 2.9, version 4, 1 Aug 2025). Chilli powder has its own limits in the same standard. There is no separate FSSAI standard for Byadgi chilli; the general chilli standard applies.

Exports. The Spices Board's Quality Evaluation Laboratories carry out mandatory testing of chilli and other listed spices exported by registered spice exporters to various countries. The tender lists tests such as aflatoxin, Sudan I–IV dyes, pesticide residues, ethylene oxide and physical parameters, plus Salmonella for chilli going to the USA. The Board notes that the requirements "may change from time to time" with importing-country rules (Spices Board, sampling agency tender, March 2025). Check the current Spices Board circular for your destination before you ship.

Why importers are strict. A study of 23 years of EU Rapid Alert notifications on herbs and spices (2000–2022) found that India was the most notified country of origin (23.6% of notifications) and chilli headed the list of the ten most notified herbs and spices. Salmonella, aflatoxin, Sudan 1 and Sudan 4 were among the top hazards, and about 71% of serious notifications on chilli related to aflatoxins (Eissa, Zidan and Sebaei, Journal of Food Safety, 2024).

What makes a lab report useful

• It names the lot number printed on the bag or carton, not just "Byadgi chilli".
• It states the method for colour and pungency, because results from different methods do not compare.
• It comes from a lab accredited for those parameters (NABL in India) and shows the sample date.
• It was taken after the lot was put together, so it describes what the buyer receives.

How to record Byadgi evidence for each batch

Three rules carry most of the weight:

1. Separate GI-area chilli from other chilli at every step. Once a lot is mixed with chilli from outside the Dharwad–Haveri–Gadag area, it can no longer honestly carry the name.
2. Record the farm, not just the market. A Byadgi APMC invoice shows where the chilli was sold, not where it grew.
3. Test the lot you sell. A colour or aflatoxin result for last season's lot says nothing about this one.

How a shopper can check a Byadgi chilli pack

1. Look up the GI. Open GI record 129 on IP India and confirm the status is "Registered" and the validity date has not passed.
2. Look for the seller in the authorised-user list. The same page lists authorised users. If the brand is not there, ask whose authorised-user registration covers the chilli.
3. Find a lot number on the pack. Without one, no document can be linked to what you bought.
4. Ask for the lab report for that lot. For whole chilli, the colour value and an aflatoxin and Sudan dye result are the useful ones. For powder, add moisture.
5. Be wary of colour alone. A very bright red powder is not evidence of Byadgi. Sudan dyes are added precisely to make chilli look redder, and only a lab test rules them out.

What a trace page can and can't prove

A trace page reached from a QR code on the pack can show the records above for that lot: the villages and farmer groups, harvest and drying dates, the aggregation record, the authorised-user certificate and the lab report. In IndiTrace, each confirmed record is fingerprinted on the Polygon blockchain, which shows the record has not been edited since it was confirmed.

IndiTrace records and anchors the evidence a seller provides. It does not test chilli, certify origin, grant or check GI status, or file anything with the Spices Board. The GI status and authorised users must be checked on the IP India register, and lab results with the lab that issued them.

The spices page shows how spice brands and farmer groups set up these batch records.

Questions

Q: Does Byadgi chilli have a GI tag? Yes. "Byadagi Chilli" is registered GI application No. 129 in class 30, with certificate No. 147 dated 27 January 2011, valid up to 31 July 2028, held by the Spices Board (IP India).

Q: Where is Byadgi chilli grown? The GI application names the Dharwad, Haveri and Gadag districts of north Karnataka. The name comes from Byadgi town in Haveri district, which has a large chilli market that also trades chilli from outside the GI area.

Q: What is the colour value of Byadgi chilli? The 2008 GI Statement of Case lists 150–160 ASTA units for the Kaddi type and 180–200 for Dabbi types. Colour varies by lot and with drying and storage, so ask for the lot's own lab result.

Q: Is Byadgi chilli hot? The GI filing describes its pungency as "negligible or nil". It is used mainly for colour.

Q: Which lab tests should come with a Byadgi chilli lot? Colour value (ASTA), capsaicinoids, moisture and the other FSSAI chilli parameters, aflatoxins, Sudan I–IV dyes and pesticide residues, with the lot number on the report. Exports to many destinations also go through the Spices Board's mandatory testing.

Q: Can any chilli sold at Byadgi market be called Byadgi chilli? No. The GI is about where the chilli was grown, not where it was traded. Farm and aggregation records are what link a lot to the GI area.

Sources

1. IP India, GI Registry public search, application No. 129 "Byadagi Chilli" (record re-checked 15 Oct 2026; authorised-user table, Statement of Case and Journal copy checked 14 Oct 2026): https://search.ipindia.gov.in/GIRPublicSearch/Application/Details/129
2. IP India, Part A Register: list of registered GIs of India (PDF, published 2 May 2026): https://ipindia.gov.in/storage/uploads/docs-operator/aa9ef4c8-ae0e-4717-9181-52b6a9479b82.pdf (listing page: https://ipindia.gov.in/geographical-indications-track-application-list-of-registered-geographical-indications-and-authorised-users-part-a-register-list-of-registered-gi-of-india)
3. IP India, state-wise registered GIs as on 31 December 2025 (PDF): https://ipindia.gov.in/storage/uploads/docs-operator/0dfdca05-ef05-4e45-bf5b-68b5eb5d8507.pdf
4. Spices Board, List of GI tags registered for spices (as of 15 Sep 2026): https://www.indianspices.com/sites/default/files/List_of_GItags_for_spices_BJ.pdf
5. Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 (India Code): https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/1981/1/a199948.pdf
6. FSSAI, Food Products Standards, Chapter 2.9 Salt, Spices, Condiments and Related Products, version 4 (1 Aug 2025), standard 2.9.3: https://www.fssai.gov.in/upload/uploadfiles/files/Chapter%202_9_Salt_Spices_Condiments%20and%20related%20products.pdf
7. Spices Board, Tender for selection of sampling agency (mandatory export sampling and testing), dated 13 March 2025: https://indianspices.com/indianspices/sites/default/files/Tender%20for%20Sampling%20Agency%2005032025%20(1).pdf
8. Eissa F., Zidan N.E.-H.A., Sebaei A.S. (2024), "Contamination of herbs and spices: A 23-year EU RASFF notifications analysis", Journal of Food Safety 44(3): https://doi.org/10.1111/jfs.13131
9. ISO 7541:2020, Spices and condiments: spectrophotometric determination of the extractable colour in paprika (ISO catalogue entry): https://www.iso.org/standard/70872.html
10. ISO 7543-2:1993, chillies and chilli oleoresins: determination of total capsaicinoid content by HPLC: https://www.iso.org/standard/14328.html
11. Regulation (EU) 2023/915 on maximum levels for certain contaminants in food: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/915/oj/eng