Agri body lauds Vizcaya leaders
By | Dec. 30, 2014 at 12:01am
BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya—Governor
Ruth Padilla and her husband, Rep. Carlos Padilla along with Director General
Dr. William Dar, of the International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid
Tropics (ICRISAT), have launched a Building Resiliency and Rural Livelihood
Development Project to improve productivity and income in the agriculture
sector.They are truly innovators in looking for opportunities to empower our
farmers,” said Dar following the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement in
Ammungan Hall of the provincial capitol. “ICRISAT will be your
partner.”According to Mrs. Padilla, the project aims to boost farm yield and
returns on investment on the part of planters.
“The implementation of a joint
resiliency program and rural livelihood development project here is expected to
boost agricultural productivity and income among farmers in the province,” she
said.Congressman Padilla has advocated countryside development through
infrastructure particularly bridges and farm-to-market roads, agriculture
geared to smallholders, mechanization and postharvest management among other
key concerns to cope with climate change.He said the project will be
piloted in Bagabag, Quezon, Diadi, Kasibu, and Dupaxdel Norte in coordination
with the Nueva Vizcaya State University, municipal governments and farmer’s
organizations.
Using Dar’s expertise, the
project’s components are soil analysis and mapping and agro-forestry and
watershed management among other activities in the scope of ICRISAT research
and development in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa with a wide array of partners
throughout the world.Covering 6.5 million square kilometers of land in 55
countries, the semi-arid or dryland tropics has over 2 billion people, and 644
million of these are the poorest of the poor.Tropical dryland areas are usually
seen as resource-poor and perennially beset by shocks such as drought, trapping
dryland communities in poverty and hunger and dependent on external aid.A
native of Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur, Dar took up horticulture, receiving his
doctoral degree from the University of the Philippines at Los Banos.
He served as the first director
of the Philippine Bureau of Agricultural Research after teaching at the Benguet
State University about the period of initiatives led by institutes, such as the
Philippine Rice Research Institute, PhilRice.Dar led the Philippine Council for
Agricultural Research and Rural Development and served on the boards of
institutions such as International Rice Research Institute before a short government
stint as Acting Secretary of Agriculture and as Presidential Adviser on Rural
Development of then President Joseph Estrada.
He was selected to head ICRISAT
in 2000 and authored the book, “Feeding the forgotten poor”.“I will share my
experience with Filipino farmers to transform dryland areas into productive,
sustainable and climate-smart farms through Inang Lupa social movement,” Dar
said in a statement.Under his leadership, the ICRISAT became a leading
agricultural research institute in terms of financial stability, with
income and investments since 2000, from $21 million to $85 million in 2014.
Source with thanks:http://manilastandardtoday.com/2014/12/30/agri-body-lauds-vizcaya-leaders/
China agrees to transfer high-yield rice technology to Bangladesh
Senior Correspondent,
Published: 2014-12-29
19:31:48.0 BdST Updated: 2014-12-29
23:19:28.0 BdST
The technology will help
Bangladesh to boost production, the foreign minister says.China will transfer technology of its indigenous high-yield rice
variety to Bangladesh as part of agricultural cooperation. Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, briefing journalists
about the just-ended visit of Wang Yi, said on Monday his Chinese counterpart
also informed him about taking “necessary steps” for setting up a rice research
centre in Bangladesh.He said the visit had been “very successful” as new areas
of cooperation emerged and believed that it had strengthened the existing
Dhaka-Beijing relations further.
“It’s a big development
(transferring technology of high-yield rice),” he said.He said Bangladesh would
need to increase food production by the day on this small arable land.He said
the technology transfer of a variety of rice would help in this regard.Ali
mentioned Bangladesh’s rice export to Sri Lanka, its first to any country, and
said they would also export to India’s north-eastern Tripura state to meet its
need.
He said China also endorsed
Bangladesh’s vision of acting as a bridge between South Asia and Southeast Asia
due to its strategic geographical location.It also assured Dhaka of helping it
to become a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and Asia
Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).Both sides also agreed to work closely
during next year’s multi-lateral discussions for adopting post-2015 development
agenda and climate change talks.They also stressed the need for quick
implementation of the proposed Bangladesh, China, India and Myanmar, or BCIM,
economic corridor.
During the bilateral meeting,
China proposed to initiate free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations to what the
foreign minister said narrow down the trade imbalance.Ali said they would
discuss with stakeholders before starting negotiations on the matter as some
analysts say FTA could widen the trade gap even further.He said the Chinese
side during the bilateral talks told them that they would address any concerns
when the talks begin.He said the Chinese foreign minister termed Bangladesh an
“important neighbour” and stressed on bilateral cooperation to strengthen the
friendly relations.Five priority areas of cooperation – trade, agriculture,
industry, energy, and infrastructure – have been identified.
China also welcomed Bangladesh’s
proposal of forming a joint working group on trade and industry and bilateral
investment forum.The issue of the Specialised Economic Trade Zone that
Bangladesh offered to China during Hasina's visit was also discussed.The
Chinese foreign minister said their companies were also eager to relocate
factories to Bangladesh.He promised Chinese cooperation in setting up power
plants and exploring oil and gas.
Source with thanks:http://bdnews24.com/economy/2014/12/29/china-agrees-to-transfer-high-yield-rice-technology-to-bangladesh
Russians See Costlier Food as No
Crisis
DEC. 29, 2014
KHOTKOVO, Russia — In the early days of 1992, prices here
exploded by an average of 350 percent as post-Communist Russia crash-landed into a free market economy.
Six years later, in August 1998, prices again gyrated wildly after the Russian
government devalued the ruble and defaulted on its debts.In comparison, this
year’s plunge in the value of the ruble seems positively tame, which may
explain the relative stoicism among shoppers here as they shuffled along
snow-covered paths, making the rounds of the shops and getting ready for the
long holiday season.That isn’t to say that inflation — now above 10 percent —
is not on everyone’s mind.
Several store managers said the same thing: Prices have been
going up with each delivery. In a store in the nearby village of Akhtyrka, the
sales clerk advised a couple of elderly shoppers to come back later, after she
had updated the price list.For consumers and retailers alike, Russia’s latest
economic crisis has come in stages. The first impact was felt last summer, when
Russia retaliated against the West for Ukraine-related sanctions by imposing a
ban on food imports from the United States, the European Union and several other
trading partners. The second blow came after the value of the ruble took a deep
plunge in mid-December, before bouncing back somewhat.
A third is expected as rising interest rates choke off
credit.Here in Khotkovo, a town of 23,000 people 60 kilometers, or about 35
miles, northeast of Moscow, tracking the impact of the self-imposed sanctions
is like proving a negative. A variety of goods — from basmati rice to imported
hard cheeses — have simply vanished, leaving consumers with fewer and less
desirable choices.A store on the main square that specializes in food from
Belarus, Russia’s western neighbor and an ally of sorts, dodged the first
bullet. Belarus never imposed sanctions, but now the drop in the value of the
ruble is having an effect, said the store’s manager, who declined to give his
name.He estimated that prices had over all increased 10 percent to 15 percent
in the last month, and like others, he didn’t dare venture a prediction for
2015.
After a decade of sustained economic growth, Russian consumers
are more resilient than they were in 1992 or 1998, and as they shop for their
traditional New Year’s Eve feasts, many are shrugging off the higher
prices.Housewives standing in line at a meat counter said they were prepared to
make do with less. Marina, who declined to give her last name, said that beef
prices — now at 600 rubles a kilo (roughly $5.40 a pound) — had probably gone
up at least 25 percent but that this wouldn’t stop her from serving it for the
traditional New Year’s Eve feast. “We’ll manage,” she said.Several shopkeepers
said they were running through old stocks, which would explain why such
anomalies as Finnish dumplings or Italian coffee can still be found on the
shelves.
Others explain that importers have figured out ways around the
ban, bringing European goods through Belarus, where they are relabeled and
brought across the border to Russia. Countries like Brazil have also stepped up
exports to Russia, although typically at higher prices.Ever since the food ban
was introduced last summer, the Russian government has used the opportunity to
encourage local producers to fill the gap. That has already had some effect: By
October, domestic meat production was up 12 percent, according to government
statistics.Until this crisis hit, Russian consumers said, they were not aware
of their dependence on imported food.
Now, as their currency loses value, putting Western goods out of
reach, they welcome government-backed efforts to step up domestic
production.“We were living in some kind of dream world,” said a man who
identified himself only as Alexei, who owns a food emporium on the edge of
town. “They should have made this effort long ago, instead of living off oil
and gas.”
Source with thanks: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/30/world/europe/russians-see-costlier-food-as-no-crisis.html
Amira Nature
Foods receives USD90m contract with repeat customer in EMEA region
Dec 30, 2014 (M2 EQUITYBITES via COMTEX) --
Amira Nature Foods Ltd (NYSE:ANFI),
a provider of packaged Indian specialty rice, announced on Monday that it has
entered into a USD90m contract to supply third party branded basmati rice to a
key repeat customer in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region.
Comments on this story may be sent to info@m2.com
Source with thanks: http://www.individual.com/storyrss.php?story=199931027&hash=dab595d67383c0dfab7b6472226e8476
Using Weedy Rice Traits to Boost
Cultivated Rice Yields
30 December 2014
US -
Genetic traits in weedy rice may someday be used to develop sturdy, high-yield
varieties of cultivated rice that will flourish in the face of climate change,
thanks to findings by scientists at the US Department of Agriculture
(USDA).This work, conducted by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) plant
physiologist Lewis Ziska and his colleagues.Ziska, who is with ARS's Crop
Systems and Global Change Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, studied several
rice cultivars to determine if changes in temperature and CO2 levels affected
seed yields. He also looked for visible traits that could signal whether a
plant cultivar has the genetic potential for adapting successfully to elevated
CO2 levels.
The
investigation included weedy red rice, which infests cultivated rice cropland.
Despite the plant's downsides, previous assessments indicated that weedy rice
growing under elevated CO2 levels had higher seed yields than cultivated rice
growing under the same conditions.Ziska monitored the different rice cultivars
at current and future projections of atmospheric CO2 and a range of day/night
air temperatures. He observed that on average, all the rice cultivars put out
more aboveground biomass at elevated CO2 levels, although this response
diminished as air temperatures rose.
For
seed yield, only weedy rice and the rice cultivar 'Rondo' responded to elevated
CO2 levels when grown at optimal day/night air temperatures of 84 °F and 70 °F.
In addition, only the weedy rice gained significant increases of aboveground
biomass and seed yield under elevated CO2 levels at the higher temperatures
expected for rice-growing regions by 2050.Seed yield is a trait linked to seed
head and tiller production. Tillers are stalks put out by a growing rice plant.
As the plant matures, the seed heads-where rice grain is produced-develop at
the end of the tillers. This suggests that crop breeders might someday be able
to use this weedy rice trait to develop commercial rice cultivars that can
convert rising CO2 levels into higher seed yields.
TheCropSite News Desk
Source with thanks:http://www.thecropsite.com/news/17168/using-weedy-rice-traits-to-boost-cultivated-rice-yields#sthash.dWw2lciL.dpuf
Rice import on the rise
Statistics from Ningbo Inspection
and Quarantine Bureau shows that up to Dec. 18 the bureau has inspected 167
batches of imported rice, of 105,300 tons and worth $45.92 million, up 0.92,
1.81 and 2.04 times respectively over last year. The import of rice from Ningbo
Port has been on the rise since two years ago. The total volume this year
exceeds 100，000 tons, surpassing the total of
2007 and 2013, the historical high. According to statistics, the imported
rice from Ningbo Port in 2014 is mainly from Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan and
Cambodia. 70% of the total is from Vietnam, which are mainly for sale or used
as production material. The huge price gap is the major cause for
the rapid increase of imported rice.
Since 2012, the rice price in China
is obviously higher than countries like Vietnam. The imported rice has price
advantage. As a result, the domestic food processing factories are more likely
to replace domestic rice with imported one, which leads to the rapid increase
of the rice import. Thanks to the geographical advantage of Ningbo Port and the
preferential polices by the Municipal Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, the
customs clearance of Ningbo Port has been optimized and thus attracted numerous
rice importers. Ningbo Port has become a major port for rice import in East
China
Source with thanks: http://www.ningbolife.com/index.php/nb-business-2/3905-rice-import-on-the-rise.html
Pakistani kebabs, Bangladeshi Hilsa
big hits at Kolkata fair
Kolkata,
Dec 30 (IANS): Grilled marinated chicken tikkas and smoking seekh kebabs from
Pakistan and rice dishes from Bangladesh with Ilish (hilsa fish) are not only
tasty but healthy too, according to chefs from the two countries who are here
for a fair.Two stalls from the neighbouring countries are not only rustling up
delicacies at the ongoing 27th Industrial India Trade Fair here, but also
dispelling myths about traditional foods.Be it the warm platters of aromatic
Sindhi Dum Biriyani, or the slow cooked chicken or mutton Nahari stew, the 15
dishes served at the kiosk of Pakistan's Warsi chain of restaurants are much in
demand.
Despite
the rich creamy texture, the items are surprisingly high on nutrition, said
chef Md. Arif of the Warsi restaurant that has outlets in Karachi, Lahore and
Faizabad."The cooking techniques that we use across the border, such as
grilling and slow cooking, ensure that the nutritive properties of poultry and
vegetables are retained," Arif, a resident of Karachi, told the media here.Arif
also swears by the combination of spices used.
"The
garam masala that we use is very different from the Indian version. When mixed
in proper proportions with powdered dry fruit, it doesn't heat up the body too
much.""In fact, in the chilly winter, spices and dry fruits are
necessary. Our families have been surviving on this for generations without any
side-effects," the 49-year-old Arif said about his family's secret spice
mix.
At
the other end, the smell of oil squeezed out from the prized Hilsa fish has
been a big draw.From Ilish biriyani to Ilish pulao and Ilish khichdi, the fish
reigns supreme at the Bangladeshi food outlet."We use all parts of the
fish in our cooking. While the khichdi and pulao have boneless fish pieces, the
biriyani has pieces with bones but no eggs. The oil that is used is also
derived from the fish," said Atanu Pandit of the Bangladeshi food
stall.This ensures no extra oil is needed during the cooking, and the fish in
itself is nutritious due to the presence of Omega-3 fatty acids."Ilish is
very good for the brain and nervous system. The fusion of rice and fish is
healthy. For the set-up here, we have used the Ilish caught in Bangladesh
rivers," said Pandit.
Source with thanks: http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=287254
Sacramento Valley’s
powerhouse rice crop one step closer to cap and trade
12/29/2014 7:23 PM
12/30/2014 12:10 AM
California environmental regulators are exploring how rice farmers
can reduce carbon emissions, paving the way for crops to become part of the
state’s greenhouse gas reduction program and affecting one of the Sacramento
Valley’s powerhouse agricultural industries. The California Air Resources Board
this month directed staff to begin the process for including rice in the
state’s cap-and-trade program, marking the first time crop farmers could
receive credits for reducing emissions through a change in growing practices.
To sell carbon emission allowances, rice farmers would be required
to flood their fields for shorter periods. This would reduce the rice straw
decomposition process that leads to the emission of methane, a potent
greenhouse gas. Most of the rice in the Sacramento Valley is grown by farmers
who flood their rice fields, typically to a depth of 4 to 5 inches, prior to
seeding.The board action is no small matter for rice growers in the Sacramento
Valley who grow most of the 550,000 acres of rice cultivated in the state.
Including a crop into the program would also resonate across the state since
the board would likely follow suit with other crops, said Robert Parkhurst,
director of greenhouse gas markets for the Environmental Defense Fund.
“We need more data,” Clegern said.Farmers would join the program
on a voluntary basis and would participate for a 10-year period, said Clegern.
Farmers would get paid a market price for each carbon credit sold at auction.
Each credit is equal to a ton of carbon dioxide.Other factors come into play
and complicate the issue, including the fate of migratory birds and the will of
duck hunters, both of which use flooded rice fields as surrogate wetland.
Shortening the time rice fields are flooded will remove crucial wetland habitat
for birds and force them to congregate in smaller areas, increasing the risk of
avian disease.
Questions also abound for rice farmers, who stand to receive a new
revenue stream but must consider impacts on crop production.“It’s unclear at
this time how many rice growers will change production practices to qualify for
the offsets,” said Paul Buttner, environmental affairs manager of the
California Rice Commission.
“At the current price of carbon, we would expect the revenue
potential would be quite modest – likely less than five dollars an acre,” said
Buttner.California’s cap-and-trade program was launched in 2013 as an outgrowth
of the state’s emissions-reducing law, Assembly Bill 32. The 2006 law seeks to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020.The price of carbon in
California’s cap-and-trade program has dipped markedly. In September 2012, the
price of a California carbon allowance future peaked at $23.75, according to
the market tracking firm Intercontinental Exchange.
As of Dec. 24, the carbon allowance future had fallen to $12.58.It
is the first such program in the United States that caps all greenhouse gas
emissions from major industries and includes penalties when those industries
are in noncompliance.The program allows industries and other entities that
produce greenhouse gases to offset what they produce by purchasing credits or
allowances from activity elsewhere that reduces greenhouse gas emissions. If
rice were approved for the program, it would join five sectors that include
U.S. forests, livestock, urban forests, ozone depleting substances and mines.
Most of California’s major greenhouse gas emitters – those that
emit more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year – are required to
comply with cap-and-trade regulations. Under AB 32, a company or utility may
only emit as much carbon as it has purchased allowances for, over a set period
of time.Purchases, sales or trades of offsets or allowances take place during
quarterly auctions run by the Air Resources Board. There have been eight such
auctions since the program began.California’s cap-and-trade program has already
operated in the agricultural realm through the livestock industry.
In that effort, methods have been put into place to quantify and
report greenhouse gas emission reductions on dairy, cattle and swine farms
where biogas control systems have been installed to reduce manure methane
emissions.The livestock effort started in January 2012 and has generated
712,000 offsets, according to CARB data.
Image:The
California Air Resources Board this month directed staff to begin the process
for including rice in the state’s cap-and-trade program, marking the first time
crop farmers could receive credits for reducing emissions through a change in
growing practices. RICH
PEDRONCELLI AP
Source with thanks: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/health-and-medicine/article5151954.html#storylink=cpy
China’s Low-Tech Smuggling Fad: Vietnamese Rice
Dec 30, 2014
How much? It’s likely that more rice is being smuggled from
Vietnam into China than the volume sent in legal shipments, the chief of
China’s cabinet-level State Council’s rural policy unit Chen Xiwen said at a
university conference over the weekend. That means there may be at least 1.2
million metric tons of rice smuggled into the mainland in the first 11 months
this year – a quarter of the total amount of rice the U.S. consumes in a year.
By official volumes, Vietnam is already China’s largest rice
supplier, accounting for slightly more than half of China’s total rice
imports.The contraband trade has already been partly responsible for triggering
“Green Wind,” aChinese government crackdown on illegal trade earlier this year that netted $1.16 billion in
tax evasion on all contraband recovered.High prices in China are drawing the
illegal rice cargoes. Rice in China is currently selling for about 4,000 yuan
($643) a ton, well above the 3,100 yuan ($498) that Vietnamese rice can fetch,
said Shanghai JC Intelligence Co. analyst Zhang Yan. It’s not the first time
this sort of arbitrage has encouraged Southeast Asian smugglers –sugar has in the past also seen similar trends.
Much of this price discrepancy is thanks to Beijing’s support
policy for farmers, who get to sell to the government at pre-fixed rates if
market prices fall below its floor. Analysts say the government isn’t likely to
change this policy anytime soon, given its political sensitivity among rural
communities. Mr. Chen couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.The volume of
rice smuggled, if made through legal channels, would tip China closer toward
breaching an import quota agreed with the World Trade Organization in 2000.
Currently, China officially imports around 2.2 million tons of rice, well below
the 5.32 million tons it set up as its import quota for the grain.
If smuggled rice is taken into account, China may have to slap
punitive tariffs of 65% on any amount imported outside the quota – compared to
1% within the quota – to meet its consumption needs.Even without policy
changes, it doesn’t mean the smuggling will continue forever. Vietnam’s rice is
in surplus now, so exporters can afford to keep illicit pipelines to China
full. “But if there’s a shortage and international prices go up, that won’t
last,” Ms. Zhang said.
Image: Rice is sold in a street of Hanoi, Vietnam, 07 October
2014
European Pressphoto Agency
Source with thanks: http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2014/12/30/chinas-low-tech-smuggling-fad-vietnamese-rice/
NFA assures ample supply of rice
December
30, 2014
Butuan City — The National Food Authority (NFA) yesterday
assured Caraganons of enough rice supply despite the effects of Typhoon
“Seniang” which left thousands of flood victims in the region.The NFA also
assured Caraganons that the bulk of rice supply now being kept at various NFA
warehouses and the NFA rice already in the market will remain to be sold at P27
per kilo for regular-milled and P32 for well-milled.Officials from the regional
office of NFA also assured of ample rice supply during the New Year’s Day
celebration.
The NFA also assured local government unit (LGU) officials and
their respective disaster risk reduction and management councils (DRRMCs) of
immediate assistance to flood victims brought about Typhoon “Seniang.”In
Surigao del Sur alone, the NFA reported that a total of 102,449 bags in stock
inventory were available in all their warehouses located in Cantilan, Bislig
City and Tandag City.NFA Provincial Manager May Sara Atomar said this bulk of
rice supply were broken down into local rice at 5,171 bags and imported rice at
97,278 bags.
Source with thanks: http://www.mb.com.ph/nfa-assures-ample-supply-of-rice/
Vietnam should stop cross-border trade with China: WTO Center
TUOI TRE
NEWS
UPDATED :
12/30/2014 15:01 GMT + 7
Import-export transactions
between the two countries should only be done via the official mechanism rather
than across the border, the WTO Center said in a report, which also outlines
many other strong suggestions to narrow Vietnam’s trade deficit with China.
Cross-border trading is a legal
international economic activity between people of two neighboring states. The
products usually are traded in small volumes and values, and require less
paperwork than official trading activities.The cross-border trading mechanism
has been designed to facilitate traders in border areas to manufacture and
exchange goods in small volumes, but the policy has in fact failed to attain
its objective, according to the WTO Center.
Many traders have made use of the
cross-border trade to dodge taxes, it elaborated.Vietnam’s trade deficit with
China widened to US$28.9 billion this year, up 21.8 percent from the $23.7
billion recorded last year, according to the General Statistics Office.The WTO
Center functions as a channel of online consultation, discussion and support
for Vietnamese business associations and enterprises about the World Trade
Organization and other legal international trade issues.The center provides
legal documents, updated information, publications and training materials on
WTO and other legal issues of international economic integration, according to
its website.
Many Vietnamese agricultural
products are mostly exported to China across the border.In 2013, for instance,
China imported 2.1 million tonnes of rice from Vietnam, most of which was done
via cross-border transactions, according to the Vietnam Food Association.In the first five months of this year, China’s imports of
Vietnamese rice rose 50 percent from a year earlier to 600,000 tonnes.However,
64 percent of the rice export contracts with China have been canceled, and
Chinese traders usually force Vietnamese exporters to sell at low prices, the
association noted.
Economic experts have attributed
the huge shipments of Vietnamese agricultural products to China to the low
requirements of the Chinese importers for product quality.The simple paperwork
and short distance of transport via cross-border trade are also a plus for
local traders to focus on selling goods to China.Muoi Son, a rice trader in the
southern province of Tien Giang, said he prefers selling to China across the
border as “it is an easy market with high demand.”Son admitted to a local
newspaper that he does acknowledge there are payment risks in cross-border
trade.“But we got used to this method so it’s hard to get rid of it,” he said.
Rough Rice January 2015 (ZRF15)
11.615-0.025 (-0.21%) 2:51A CST (CBOT)
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