National Rice Federation's Annual
Conference Held in LR
LITTLE
ROCK, AR - Rice growers, buyers and agri-business owners are in Little Rock
this week for the National Rice Federation's annual conference. Six states
across the country produce rice, with Arkansas being the largest grower. During
the conference, farmers from across the country are learning about the new farm
bill and changes technology can bring.
"They're
coming at us faster than they used to, the issue for farmers is for farmers to
adapt and see if they create value for their farm," says Dow Brantley,
Chairman of USA Rice Federation."International buyers are loving the idea,
and local farmers are going to love the idea too once they find out about
it," says Layne Fortenberry.A new Arkansas start up, Grainster is among
the technological options farmers are able to see at the conference. KARK
covered the online site's launch in August. CEO Layne Fortenberry says
grain buyers across the globe as far away as India and Rio De Jenero have
started to sign up for the so-called dating service for grain.
Rice stocks sufficient to offset any impact from ‘Ruby’ --
Alcala
THE AGENCY
responsible for procuring grain has assured that rice stocks will be sufficient
for the remainder of 2014 despite any damage to farms resulting from typhoon
Ruby (international name: Hagupit).
“The supply of rice we have right now is more than
enough and so far, there is no need to import right after the typhoon,” Renan
B. Dalisay, National Food Authority (NFA) administrator, said in phone
interview yesterday.He clarified, however, that the country is still poised to
import an initial 600,000 metric tons (MT) of rice for 2015 to boost its buffer
stocks for the lean months of June to August.BusinessWorld reported last month that the tender
process for the additional supply would start by January, ensuring the arrival
of shipments by June, in time for the lean period.Mr. Dalisay noted however
that the NFA Council has yet to give a go signal for an auction to procure the
imports.
The NFA Council, which includes the Agriculture
Secretary, makes import recommendations to the President, who then makes the
final decision.The Philippines imported around 1.8 million tons of rice over
the last 11 months, the biggest amount in four years -- including 1.5 million
tons this year and 300,000 tons representing last year’s residual imports -- to
replenish thinning stockpiles and bring down local retail prices.The NFA is
still authorized to import another 500,000 MT of rice this year, if need arises
depending on supply conditions and calamities, the possible onset of El Niño,
and output in the fourth quarter.
FARM DAMAGE
In a related development, Agriculture officials said yesterday that “minimal damage
and losses to the farm and fisheries sector” are expected following the
typhoon, which entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility over the
weekend.Data from the agency showed that reported farm damage due to typhoon
Ruby was at P1.02 billion -- involving 55,850 hectares of farmland.The main
affected areas have been identified as Bicol, Western and Eastern Visayas.
Of the total, rice accounted for the largest
production loss amounting to P840.5 million, equivalent to 48,054 MT.Corn had
P92.5 million worth of losses, while fisheries had P48.22 million.The remaining
consists of production losses in high value crops and livestock; as well as
damage to infrastructure and equipment.Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala,
in a statement, assured that the typhoon’s damage is expected not to be in the
same class as that dealt out by typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in
2013.
Mr. Alcala said the damage was worse last year since
typhoon Yolanda hit before farmers could harvest their crops.Mr. Alcala said
this time, the farmers were able to harvest mature crops before the typhoon
made landfall, while fishing communities were able to bring their boats to safe
places.“What we can [also] assure the public is that although Ruby is also a
destructive typhoon, we are ready to roll out further assistance, apart from
what had already been prepositioned,” Mr. Alcala said.The Agriculture
department prepositioned some 77,479 bags of rice and 17,554 of corn in
anticipation of possible supply disruptions due to the typhoon.
The top sources of fruits and vegetables -- like
Benguet and Nueva Vizcaya -- are not expected to be severely affected by the
typhoon, Mr. Alcala added.The poultry sector, on the other hand, may see
negative effects but not as worse as the damage due to typhoon Glenda
(international name: Rammasun).“Looking at its trajectory, typhoon Ruby will
not affect poultry production areas,” Mr. Alcala said.“As of now, our supply of
chicken is stable and the SRP (suggested retail price) has not changed, so we
hope we can maintain this. We will also facilitate in balancing the supply,” he
added.
NFA to raise rice imports to 600,000 MT
The Philippines’ state grains agency said yesterday it will
consider importing u p to an additional 600,000 tonnes of rice to boost buffer stocks
after Typhoon Hagupit (local name: Ruby) damaged crops and prompted the
release of emergency supplies.Crop losses this quarter from bad weather and a
projected drop in first-quarter output next year have put the Philippines, one
of the world’s biggest rice buyers, under pressure to boost imports in order to
maintain a healthy buffer stock in 2015.
Fresh demand from the Philippines could support softening rice
export prices in main suppliers Thailand and Vietnam.A team at the National
Food Authority (NFA) has recommended that a standing order to import 500,000
tonnes of rice in case of a natural disaster should be increased by 100,000
tonnes, NFA Administrator Renan Dalisay told Reuters.“We’re seeking a meeting
of the NFA Council to discuss the recommendation of the group in charge of
computing our requirements,” Dalisay said.The review would be carried out by a
panel of Cabinet members, chaired by Food Security Secretary Francis
Pangilinan.
The Department of Agriculture said initial reports showed nearly
20,000 tonnes of unmilled rice from standing crops had been damaged by strong
winds and rains from Hagupit, which battered the Philippines over the
weekend.Dalisay said it was too early to give a timetable for any rice purchases
or to say whether they would be made through tenders or
government-to-government deals.The NFA bought more than 1.8 million tonnes from
Vietnam and Thailand over the past 12 months, aggressively shoring up its
buffer stocks while releasing more rice into local markets to bring down retail
prices that hit record highs in recent months.
The agency was forced to import more, bringing in the biggest
annual volume in four years, after its stocks were almost depleted due to
relief efforts and crop losses following category-5 Super Typhoon Haiyan’ wrath
in November 2013.Dalisay said the NFA began releasing more rice stocks from its
warehouses last week to boost supply in areas expected to be hit by Hagupit,
including Samar island provinces where the typhoon first hit on Saturday.The
agency expects to release more stocks, with a number of local government
officials in areas hit by the typhoon seeking additional NFA supply, he
said.Any new shipments will be tariff-free and on top of an annual volume of up
to 805,200 tonnes that the private sector can bring in. The annual volume
attracts a tariff of 35 percent.
Ruby’s
damage on agri sector not as grave as Yolanda’s—DA chief
December 09, 2014
QUEZON CITY, Dec. 9 -- The Department of Agriculture (DA)
assured the public that with department's proactive response,
typhoon Ruby’s damage on agriculture is expected to be not as severe as what
the sector had experienced during the onslaught of Yolanda last year.In a statement, Secretary
Alcala stressed that initial figures on damages presented by Assistant
Secretary Edilberto De Luna and Undersecretary Emerson Palad of DA Field
Operations are much lower, compared during typhoon Yolanda.
De Luna and Palad reported that as of 2:00pm on December 8, total
cost of damages and production losses in crops and infrastructure reached P1.02
billion, involving 55,850 hectares of farmlands and with estimated production
losses of 56,090 metric tons in Bicol, Western Visayas and Eastern Visayas.The
volume of palay production affected is at 48,054 metric tons; 7,550 tons for
corn and 486 tons for high-value crops all valued at P941.04 million. For
fisheries, production losses amounted to P48.225 million, while damage
inflicted to the livestock sector amounted to P809,550.Damage to various
agri-fishery infrastructure and equipment P29.993 million.
According to Alcala, damage on agriculture was worse during
Yolanda because farmers had yet to harvest their crops. For typhoon Ruby,
farmers were able to harvest mature crops even before the typhoon had its
landfall while fishers were also able to place their boats into safety,
following DA’s and other government agencies’ advisories. “What we can
[also] assure the public is that although Ruby is also a destructive typhoon,
we are ready to roll out remaining assistance, aside from what had already been
prepositioned,” Alcala said.Secretary Alcala said that DA had
prepositioned a total of 78,479 bags for rice and 17,554 for corn
nationwide intended to lessen the impact of any weather disturbance.
Meanwhile, in a text message also on Monday, the National
Food Authority (NFA) said that its rice inventory on areas affected in regions
5 and 8 is enough to supply the needed volume of the main staple.For Region 8,
about 5.9 million cavans were currently at the area, while Region 4 has 236,557
cavans in its inventory, according to NFA’s Director Rex Estoperez.The National
Capital Region’s rice inventory stands at 1,190,816 cavans, while a total of
1,243,842 cavans were already distributed to relief agencies and institutions
including LGUs, according to NFA administrator Renan B. Dalisay, adding “today
the agency will also send additional rice to affected areas particularly in
Maslog, Samar.
With regard to supply of fruits and vegetables for the holiday
season, Secretary Alcala also assured the public that this will not be
significantly affected as the top sources of fruits and vegetables such as
Benguet and Nueva Vizcaya will not be seriously affected by the typhoon.Secretary
Alcala as well said that the poultry industry may be negatively affected but
not as worse as during typhoon Glenda, which has devastated southern Luzon
earlier this year. “Looking at its trajectory, typhoon Ruby will not
affect poultry production areas. As of now, our supply of chicken is
stable and the SRP has not changed, so hopefully, we can maintain this. We will
also facilitate in balancing the supply,” Alcala added.
Meanwhile, Atty. Asis Perez, Undersecretary for
Fisheries and BFAR Director, stressed that there might be a slight increase on
the price of seafood this holiday season because of the increased
demand.“Lapu-lapu and shrimp will be of high demand, because we usually prepare
red-colored food during Christmas. It’s not the supply but the demand that will
increase the prices, so we should not be surprised if there will be a slight
increase,” Perez explained.Secretary Alcala said that basing on the lessons
learned from typhoon Yolanda, DA has been conscious in mainstream mechanisms to
cope up with extreme weather events in its programs, hence reducing the
vulnerability of the agriculture sector to damage and losses. (DA)
On saving
our rice and minimising losses
“Rice quality has been an issue since long and there is a tough
competition among rice exporting countries in international market. There is a
need for improved rice production, harvesting and milling technology in the
country. Currently about 9,000 old re-assembled conventional wheat combine
harvesters are being used for rice harvesting and that are causing grain
shattering, breakage losses and low head rice recovery.
”This was stated by Pakistan
Agricultural Research Council (PARC) Secretary and PARC Agricultural
Engineering Division (AED) Director General Dr Munir Ahmad while addressing all
stakeholders including farmers, machinery service providers, rice millers, rice
exporters, manufacturers, and representatives of line departments on the
occasion of a day-long national seminar on “Rice quality and head recovery affected
by harvesting/threshing and milling practices” at a local hotel in
Gujranwala.Speaking on the occasion, National Agricultural Research Council
(NARC) Director General Dr Muhammad Azeem Khan said that by adopting new
improved harvesting machines, about 4-6 billion worth of losses in rice quality
could be saved annually.
He said PARC has developed
various crop productions technologies and innovations for the benefit of small
farmers. He said we are working with various stakeholders for transfer of new
innovations to the end-users to make the agriculture more profitable.Speaking
on the occasion, NARC Agricultural and Biological Engineering Institute (ABEI)
Director Dr Tanveer Ahmad said that due to traditional drying and storage
practices more often rice produced is affected by aflatoxin. Poor crop
conditions also affect rice head rice recovery. PARC has conducted a study
factors causing low head rice recovery.
The results showed that
conventional combines are causing low head rice recovery and paddy harvested by
head feeding combines and manual harvesting gave better head rice
recovery.After detailed discussion, some recommendations were suggested by the
participants of the seminar which include i) development of new improved rice
varieties; ii) introduction of high capacity head feeding combines; iii)
installation of rice kit on already operating conventional wheat combines that
are being used for rice harvesting; iv) Engineering Institute with
collaboration of Engro (Pvt) initiate a project to design and develop an
improved rice threshing kit for conventional combine harvesters; v) Government
legislation to restrict farmers and combine service providers not to harvest
paddy crop at higher moisture content; and vi) introduction of mechanical
dryers, etc.
Source with thanks :
http://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2014/12/09/business/on-saving-our-rice-and-minimising-losses/
Coastal Bangladesh turns
too salty for salt-tolerant rice
As the sea keeps rising due to climate change and affecting
coastal Bangladesh, turning the soil and groundwater saline, scientists have
been breeding salt tolerant varieties of rice, the main crop in the region. But
the sea keeps coming in and turning everything more and more saline, well
beyond the point that salt tolerant rice varieties can tolerate.The latest
salt tolerant rice variety – that the scientists released among Bangladeshi
farmers as recently as November 20 – can tolerate a salinity of up to 8 deci Siemens per metre (dS/m,
equivalent to 512 parts per million).But salinity is now well above that
level in more than half the arable lands in 19 affected coastal districts
of Bangladesh.
Researchers say none of the existing varieties of salt-tolerant
rice can survive and grow at the level of salinity that has affected both the
soil and the groundwater in some of the coastal districts.According to a
study conducted by the Bangladesh Soil Resource Development Institute (SRDI), out of 8.1 million hectares of arable land in
Bangladesh, 1.02 million hectares in 19 coastal districts are affected
by salinity.The study also shows that salinity in more than half the
arable land in five coastal districts has gone well past the 8 dS/m level. It
says out of the 560,000 hectares in five coastal districts – Khulna, Satkhira,
Bagerhat, Patuakhali and Barguna – the salinity level now ranges between 8.1
and 16 dS/m. Traditional varieties of most crops can withstand salinity of up
to 0.7dS/m only.
“The latest variety of rice we have released can tolerate up to
8 dS/m salinity. It will be damaged if the salinity increases even for a few
days,” Jiban Krishna Biswas, director general of Bangladesh Rice Research
Institute (BRRI),
told thethirdpole.net.He did hold out the hope that more salt tolerant
varieties could be bred in the future. BRRI scientists have already released
more and more salt-tolerant rice varieties eight times. But there is a limit to
this. Researchers say the tolerance cannot go beyond 12dS/m, a level now
surpassed in some areas of coastal Bangladesh.
The SRDI study found that in the last few years, an average of
6,200 hectares of fresh farmland is being affected by salinity every year. In
1973, 833,000 hectares of land in 19 coastal districts were salinity-affected.
Now, the figure stands at 1.02 million hectares.In 12 salinity-affected
areas, only a quarter of arable land remains under cultivation – that too in a
limited way.Some of the farmers who tried to cultivate salt-resistant rice
varieties earlier are unhappy with their experience. Nazmus Sahdat, a farmer in
Bagerhat district, said he tried one of the varieties in 2012. “Initially, the
sapling was growing well. But the crop was damaged in March and April when
water flow reduced and the river water became more saline,” he told
thethirdpole.net. Nowadays, most of the land in and around his village
remains barren.
Hydrologists say that even in areas where the soil has not
turned too saline yet, the groundwater has, due to seawater intrusion. This
makes it hard for farmers to irrigate their crops.As the seawater first
intruded through rivers and canals, farmers have extracted more and more
groundwater over the last two decades or so. As a result, aquifer levels have
fallen, hastening the process of seawater intrusion, experts say.Anwar
Zahid, deputy director of groundwater hydrology) at the Bangladesh Water Development
Board, told thethirdpole.net, “We’ve
found saline water in aquifers that are just 600-700 feet (183-213
metres) deep.
”Water is considered fresh as long as its salinity is within
1,000 micro Siemens per centimetre (700 parts per million). A recent study led
by Zahid found that in most coastal areas, salinity level was four to five
times higher than that. “In some areas, we have found the level of salinity has
reached up to 40,000 micro Siemens (per cubic centimetre) in shallow
groundwater,” he said.Apart from salinity increase, sea level rise is now
significant enough to measure in some parts of coastal Bangladesh. BWDB records
show that at Hiron Point in the Sundarbans, water level of the Passur River has
increased by 5.6 mm between 1977 and 2009.Ainun Nishat, hydrologist and
climate change expert, suggests that farmers grow other crops as they can no
longer grow rice in such salinity-affected land.
“There are some experiments are going on in some pockets of the
salinity-affected areas,” Nishat told thethirdpole.net. “There are some crops
like soybean, maize, barley, sugarcane and some varieties of lentils that are
being tried.”Asked if he or his neighbours had tried to grow any of these
crops, Sahdat – the farmer in Bagerhat district – said it was hard to get
those seeds.Officials in Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation – the government agency that distributes seeds – say that
currently they can provide only 21 per cent of the seeds needed in
salinity-affected areas.
The crisis is going to get worse, as Bangladesh will have to
grow food for an estimated 250 million people by 2050. The population is around
160 million now. Researchers say that by 2050, the country may be left with
only 4.8 million hectares of arable land. It has 8.1 million hectares now. On
top of that, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in its
2007 report that due to global warming,
rice yield in developing countries may decrease by 15 per cent by 2050.
Gene
critical to the development of low arsenic plants identified by scientists
Dec 08, 2014
by Joanne Milne
Identification
of gene could pave way for low arsenic crops such as rice (pictured)
Japanese
Rice Cookers a Hot Commodity Among Chinese
Dec 9, 2014
Japanese Rice Cookers a Hot Commodity Among Chinese
Chinese
tourists shop in the Akihabara district of Tokyo.
Profit at Zojirushi Corp.7965.TO -1.89%, a
Japanese maker of cooking and home appliances, is forecast to have more than
doubled in the fiscal year ended Nov. 20, thanks partly to strong demand for
its rice cookers, the company said.
“The Chinese really like Japanese
manufacturing, and they love the Japanese rice cooker,” Richard Whittall,
portfolio manager at Gordian Capital Singapore, said on the sidelines of last
week’s Nomura Investment Forum in Tokyo.
Mr. Whittall said surging demand
for rice cookers among Chinese tourists is one of the bright spots in the
Japanese stock market. Zojirushi’s shares have more than doubled so far this
year. The company expects profit to hit Y3.5 billion ($29 million) in the past
fiscal year.
“What I’m thinking every morning
is ‘What’s the next popular product for inbound demand?,’” he said.
Japan has seen a big surge in
foreign visitors as the yen has weakened against the U.S. dollar, with arrivals
this year reaching 11 million as of the end of October, topping theprevious
full-year record hit last year, according to Japan National
Tourism Organization. The number of Chinese
visitors hit 2 million during the same time period–an 80%
increase from the period a year earlier.
Still, tourists account for only
a portion of Zojirushi’s improving profits, the company said. The growing
popularity of its rice cookers in the Chinese market helped push overall sales
of cooking appliances up 12% in the quarter ended Aug. 20, it said.
Recipe: Green Garden Curry
Last
Updated: December 8, 2014 3:10 am
A highly flavorful yet delicate curry, bursting with bold notes of
that luscious basil of course, but assembled with finesse so that you taste far
more than just heat. Easily falling on the mild side of the spectrum,
this Green Garden Curry is all about soothing, warming, and invigorating
tastes, and not so much the sheer spice level itself. This recipe is
truly a season-less dish, equally delicious and accessible 365 days of the
year.
Ingredients:
·
1
Tablespoon Coconut Oil
·
3
Medium Shallots, Diced
·
4
Cubes Frozen Minced Garlic*
·
3
Cubes Frozen Minced Ginger**
·
1
Medium-Sized Fresh Jalapeno, Finely Minced
·
1
1/2 Tablespoons Lime Juice
·
3
2-Inch Long Stalks Dried Lemongrass or 1 Stalk Fresh, Bashed and Bruised
·
1
1/2 Teaspoons Cumin Seeds
·
1
Teaspoon Brown Mustard Seeds
·
1
Teaspoon Ground Coriander
·
1/2
Teaspoon Ground Fenugreek
·
1/4
– 1/2 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
·
1
Cup Full-Fat Coconut Milk
·
1
Cup Snow Peas
·
1/2
Cup Frozen Green Peas
·
1
Cup Shelled and Peeled Fava Beans, Fresh or Frozen
·
4
Cubes Frozen Chopped Basil**
·
Salt
and Ground Black Pepper, to taste
Brown Basmati Rice, to Serve
*1 cube is equal to 1 whole clove.
**1 cube is equal to 1 teaspoon.
Method:
1. Set a large saucepan over moderate heat and add the coconut oil in
first, allowing it to fully melt. Once liquified, introduce the shallots,
garlic, ginger, and jalapeno. Saute for 6 – 8 minutes, until the cubes have
broken down and the entire mixture is highly aromatic, as the shallots begin to
take on a golden-brown hue. Deglaze with the lime juice, scraping the bottom of
the pan to ensure that nothing sticks and all of the brown bits are
incorporated.
Next, introduce your whole but bruised lemongrass along with the
remaining spices. Stir periodically, cooking for 5 – 6 minutes until it smells
irresistible.
2. Pour in the coconut milk, turn down the heat to medium-low, and
bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the snow peas, green peas, and fava beans
next, stirring to combine, and let stew gently for 10 – 15 minutes, until the
snow peas are bright green and the fava beans are tender. Pop in the basil
cubes last, cooking just until they’ve completely dissolved and melded
seamlessly into the curry before removing the pot from the heat.
3. Season with salt and pepper according to taste, and serve
immediately over brown rice.
What Is the Glycemic Index and How It Affects You
December 8, 20145:32 PM MST
The glycemic index can be difficult to navigate.
http://pixabay.com/en/scale-diet-fat-health-tape-weight-403585/
The Glycemic index (also GI) is a ranking
system invented by Dr. David J. Jenkins and colleagues in 1981 at the
University of Toronto. It is a system that ranks the effects of carbohydrates
on an individual’s blood glucose level.Different carbs have different effects
on an individual’s blood glucose level. When you consume a carb such as white
bread, it will cause an insulin spike in the body and the blood glucose level
will go up. The GI index will show how much effect the food has on an
individual’s blood glucose level.
Generally, for weight loss, one will need to
avoid foods that have a high GI index.
Carbohydrates that are slowly digested and
broken, will release glucose into the blood stream gradually. These carbs have
a low glycemic index. A lower glycemic index means slower rates of digestion
and absorption of the sugars and starches in the foods.
•Spinach
•Tomatoes
•Asparagus
•Broccoli
•Cauliflower
•Celery
•Cherries
•Cucumber
•Grapefruit
•Peas
•Peppers
•Green beans
•Lettuce
•Low-fat yogurt
•Soy Beans
•Zucchini
Examples of high GI foods are –
•White bread
•White potatoes
•Brown rice
•Watermelon
•White rice
•Dates
•Puffed wheat
•Corn chips
•Waffles
•Rice cakes
•Candies
•Pretzels
Knowing the GI of the foods you consume will be
very helpful to your fat loss quest. If you are eating a lot of high GI foods,
you will be sabotaging your progress and these foods are also detrimental to
your health.If your blood sugar levels keep being raised repeatedly, your
endocrine system will be pushed to its limits. By choosing to consume low GI
carbohydrates, you will be enjoying several health benefits.
You will increase your body’s insulin
sensitivity and prevent diabetes. In the event you do have diabetes, you will
be better able to control it. A low GI diet reduces blood cholesterol levels,
risk of heart disease, minimizes carbohydrate cravings.You will feel less
hungry and whatever low GI foods you consume will keep you feeling full for a
longer period of time. It also prolongs physical endurance. For people trying
to lose weight, a low GI diet will prevent energy crashes and you will have a
lower tendency to gain weight.
In order to enjoy the benefits of a low GI
diet, you will need to substitute the high GI foods you consume with low GI
foods. It will take some sacrifices and initial discomfort but once you get
used to it and start seeing the benefits, you will adopt this diet happily.For
starters, you can substitute the normal sugary cereals that you consume for
breakfast with low GI cereals comprised of oats, bran and barley.Instead of
eating white bread and pastries which use white flour, you can eat wholegrain
breads and pastries made with stone-ground flour. Switch to brown rice or
basmati rice instead of white rice.
Replace white potatoes with sweet potatoes or
yams. Skip the mayonnaise, margarine and high calorie dressings. Eat fresh
fruits instead of drinking sweetened juices.All these are small changes that
make a big difference. Once you get used to the low GI diet, you will see
changes in your body that will amaze you. You will look better and feel better.
You weight loss progress will be unhindered and rewarding.
Amira collaborates with farmers to develop organic crops
Packed basmati rice provider
Amira Nature Foods has joined hands with 7,500 farmer families in India to
develop 12,000 hectares of land for organic crops.As part of this development,
Amira plans to deliver technical guidance, marketing linkage to the farmers and
also to expose them to organic and sustainable methods of farming, The Economic
Times reported.In November, Amira launched a range products at the organic food
show held at Kochi, Kerala. It includes organic rice, lentils & beans,
flour, spices, oil & ghee.
Amira Nature Foods chairman and
CEO Karan Chanana was quoted by the Economic Times as saying: "With this
launch we have further expanded our range of offerings in India."Organic
products category has seen a tremendous growth in the last couple of years and
Indian consumers are becoming more conscious about their health as well as the
environment."Recently, the company entered into a strategic partnership
with Snapdeal.com to be the first rice brand to be available on an online
platform in India.
On saving our
rice and minimising losses
“Rice quality has been an issue since long and there is a tough
competition among rice exporting countries in international market. There is a
need for improved rice production, harvesting and milling technology in the
country. Currently about 9,000 old re-assembled conventional wheat combine
harvesters are being used for rice harvesting and that are causing grain
shattering, breakage losses and low head rice recovery.
” This was stated by Pakistan
Agricultural Research Council (PARC) Secretary and PARC Agricultural
Engineering Division (AED) Director General Dr Munir Ahmad while addressing all
stakeholders including farmers, machinery service providers, rice millers, rice
exporters, manufacturers, and representatives of line departments on the
occasion of a day-long national seminar on “Rice quality and head recovery
affected by harvesting/threshing and milling practices” at a local hotel in
Gujranwala.Speaking on the occasion, National Agricultural Research Council
(NARC) Director General Dr Muhammad Azeem Khan said that by adopting new
improved harvesting machines, about 4-6 billion worth of losses in rice quality
could be saved annually.
He said PARC has developed
various crop productions technologies and innovations for the benefit of small
farmers. He said we are working with various stakeholders for transfer of new
innovations to the end-users to make the agriculture more profitable.Speaking
on the occasion, NARC Agricultural and Biological Engineering Institute (ABEI)
Director Dr Tanveer Ahmad said that due to traditional drying and storage
practices more often rice produced is affected by aflatoxin. Poor crop
conditions also affect rice head rice recovery. PARC has conducted a study
factors causing low head rice recovery.
The results showed that
conventional combines are causing low head rice recovery and paddy harvested by
head feeding combines and manual harvesting gave better head rice
recovery.After detailed discussion, some recommendations were suggested by the
participants of the seminar which include i) development of new improved rice
varieties; ii) introduction of high capacity head feeding combines; iii)
installation of rice kit on already operating conventional wheat combines that
are being used for rice harvesting; iv) Engineering Institute with
collaboration of Engro (Pvt) initiate a project to design and develop an
improved rice threshing kit for conventional combine harvesters; v) Government
legislation to restrict farmers and combine service providers not to harvest
paddy crop at higher moisture content; and vi) introduction of mechanical
dryers, etc.
Nigeria: Local Rice Producers Get
N1.56 Billion Funds From BoI
By Franklin Alli
The Bank of Industry and other
local investors have injected N1.56 billion on two rice mills and farms
promoted by the former Minister of Industry/ President Manufacturers
Association of Nigeria, Engr. Charles Ugwuh.The 42,000 capacity Tara Rice Mill
and its subsidiary 1,200 hectares of rice farm are located at Adani, Uzo Uwani
Local Government Area of Enugu state, while the first one is in Abakaliki with
a capacity of 30,000metric tonnes; the combined capacity being 72,000 metric
tonnes.BoI Managing Director, Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa justified the financing,
saying "This project is very unique in the sense that it is not just a
rice mill, he also has a 1,200 hectares of rice settlement and the whole idea
is that they plan to increase that to 5,000 hectares, so the sourcing of the
paddy that will be required by the rice mill is guaranteed.
"He noted that to turn the
country from a major importer into a net exporter of rice is part of President
Goodluck Jonathan's Transformation Agenda."So a lot of things are happening
and it is hoped that at the end of the day, Nigeria will significantly reduce
the amount of money spent importing food. Already the expenditure on processed
food has reduced from $6.9billion in 2009 to $4.3 billion currently. We believe
that in the short-term, at most medium term, we should be in the position to
not only eliminate food importation completely but actually ensure that Nigeria
can be a net exporter of food items," he said.
According to Charles Ugwuh, the
Tara mill had been tested, fully established and producing rice of high quality
with capacity to mill 42,000 tonnes of paddy per year or about 30 tonnes of
paddy per day."The value of the mill at cost is N1.56 billion out of which
BoI has provided N840 million and the local investors ploughed in the
rest.There are about 200 people who work here directly and then about 4,000
farmers who contribute the paddy that keeps the mill running. The quality is
excellent, Nigeria produces good quality paddy that does not get to stay in the
silo for years and so we mill current paddy that is produced within the
locality. We have a very good and nutritious paddy.
"Can you imagine what it
would be if it were to be 10, 000 hectares producing a huge volume of paddy and
massive job opportunities for farmers? This is the way forward for Nigeria and
if you do it for 30 or 40 mills scattered across the country, Nigeria will be
going forward. If we can increase the level of paddy production and the
quantity of rice that we mill in the country, it will be good for Nigeria.
However the major challenge still remains infrastructure," he said.He
commended the state government for having done quite well in the provision of
link roads to the farms and mill but added that more can still be done in terms
of providing power and water to the mills and farmlands.
Japanese
Rice Cookers a Hot Commodity Among Chinese
Chinese
tourists shop in the Akihabara district of Tokyo.
Wealthy Chinese, who have been snapping up luxury apartments in
Tokyo this year, are turning their attention to another Japanese
product: rice cookers.Profit at Zojirushi Corp.,
a Japanese maker of cooking and home appliances, is forecast to have more than
doubled in the fiscal year ended Nov. 20, thanks partly to strong demand for
its rice cookers, the company said.“The Chinese really like Japanese
manufacturing, and they love the Japanese rice cooker,” Richard Whittall,
portfolio manager at Gordian Capital Singapore, said on the sidelines of last
week’s Nomura Investment Forum in Tokyo.
Mr. Whittall said surging demand for rice cookers among Chinese
tourists is one of the bright spots in the Japanese stock market. Zojirushi’s
shares have more than doubled so far this year. The company expects profit to
hit Y3.5 billion ($29 million) in the past fiscal year.“What I’m thinking every
morning is ‘What’s the next popular product for inbound demand?,’” he
said.Japan has seen a big surge in foreign visitors as the yen has weakened
against the U.S. dollar, with arrivals this year reaching 11 million as of the
end of October, topping the
previous full-year record hit last year, according to Japan National Tourism Organization.
The number of
Chinese visitors hit 2 million during the same time period–an 80% increase from the period
a year earlier.Still, tourists account for only a portion of Zojirushi’s
improving profits, the company said. The growing popularity of its rice cookers
in the Chinese market helped push overall sales of cooking appliances up 12% in
the quarter ended Aug. 20, it said.
USA Rice Outlook Conference -
2014
Dec 8, 2014
Wiesemeyer discusses changes in
post-election Washington
JIM WIESEMEYER, center, senior vice president, Informa Economics,
Washington Bureau, answers questions at the USA Rice Outlook Conference's
opening reception. Wiesemeyer was the lead-off speaker at the conference's
general session.
The USA Rice Outlook
Conference drew one of its largest crowds in several years to the State House
Convention Center in Little Rock, Ark. Attendees heard the U.S. economy is
showing signs of improving and that the prospects for more rice acres and
slightly higher rice prices in U.S. rice are good in 2015.
Concerns about arsenic in food have grown in recent years with
high concentrations found in rice, fruit juices and even baby food.
A naturally occurring element found in soil and water, arsenic has
also been used as a pesticide, and is taken up by plants and can then enter the
food chain.The issue has led to scientific work to investigate how plants deal
with arsenic and research has identified that some plants are able to pump out
the poison, but not how they do this.In a paper published today (December 8) in
the journal PLOS Biology an international team led by the University of
Aberdeen has identified a gene critical to this process – a finding which could
be used to breed new varieties of crops that naturally accumulate less arsenic.
The
research team, which includes scientists from the Shanghai Institutes for
Biological Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural
University and Rothamsted Research, found that the gene HAC1 is used by the
flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana (Mouse-ear cress) to control arsenic
accumulation and that when it is removed, the concentration of arsenic in the
plants increased 300-fold.Identification of this key gene in the easy to work
with Mouse-ear cress now makes it simpler to identify the equivalent gene in
crops that large populations depend on for food, such as rice and wheat.
Professor
David E Salt from the University of Aberdeen led the study. He said:
"Arsenic is a poison well known to be dangerous to animals, including
humans and plants as it damages fundamental chemical processes in most living
systems."It is mainly found in two forms in soil – as arsenite As (III)
and its oxidised form arsenate As (V). Arsenate is dangerous for plants as
chemically it is very similar to phosphate – needed to manage energy within
cells – so they are unable to distinguish between a dangerous toxin and an element
essential for life."In order to survive, the plants need to find a way to
deal with the poison entering their roots and so they convert it from arsenate,
the form in which it is absorbed, to arsenite which can then be effluxed or
pumped out from the roots.
"Previous
research has identified that this process was happening but not how it was
happening and that is where we have taken an important step forward."The
researchers were able to pinpoint the gene (HAC1) encoding an arsenate
reductase that performs this conversion of As (V) to As (III) . They then
conducted a series of experiments which proved that when the HAC1 gene was
removed, the plants could no longer pump arsenic from their roots and the
concentration of arsenic in the plants increased dramatically.Professor Salt
added: "This finding means that we now understand more fully the mechanism
for arsenic tolerance in plants.
"Because
we now know what gene we are looking for, it will speed up the process for
detecting it in other plants."Particular crop varieties are often grown
because they have a good yield or suit particular conditions but not because
they have a high capacity to pump arsenic from their roots, meaning arsenic can
accumulate in their edible parts."Now we know the identity of the gene we
can use this information to breed new varieties of crops with a strong version
of the arsenate reductase but which also keep their favourable agronomic
properties. Putting this into practice would mean you have a good crop without
arsenic."
Photo: Identification of gene could pave way for low arsenic
crops such as rice (pictured)
2015
Leadership Development Program Class Announced
LITTLE
ROCK, AR -- Members of the 2015 Rice Leadership Development Program class were
announced yesterday during the annual Rice Awards Luncheon at the 2014 USA Rice
Outlook Conference. The
class is comprised of five rice producers and two industry-related
professionals selected by a committee of agribusiness leaders."The rice
industry enjoys strong leadership, and has a bright future. This program plays a critical role thanks to
the intensive training and the high caliber participants," said Rice Foundation
Chairman Todd Burich.The new rice-producer class members are Nicole Creason,
Jonesboro, AR; Hudgens Jeter, Stuttgart, AR; Paul Johnson, Welsh, LA; Nat
McKnight, Cleveland, MS; and Greg Van Dyke, Pleasant Grove, CA.
The
new industry-related class members are Dustin Harrell of the LSU AgCenter, and
Collin Holzhauer with Southern Rice & Cotton.The Rice Leadership
Development Program gives young men and women a comprehensive understanding of
the U.S. rice industry, with an emphasis on personal development and
communication training. During a
two-year period, class members attend four one-week sessions that are designed
to strengthen their leadership skills.John Deere Company, RiceTec, Inc., and
American Commodity Company are sponsors of the Rice Leadership Development
Program through a grant to The Rice Foundation, and the USA Rice Federation
manages the program.
Contact:
Chuck Wilson (870) 673-7541
Photo :From left: Chris Crutchfield (American
Commodity Co.), Todd Burich (The Rice Foundation), Greg Van Dyke, Dustin
Harrell, Paul Johnson, Hudgens Jeter, Collin Holzhauer, Nat McKnight, Nicole
Creason, and Chuck Wilson (USA Rice).
USA
Rice Outlook Conference -- Day Two
The Klein Report
LITTLE
ROCK, AR -- Today's general session opened with a briefing by USA Rice
Federation Vice President of Marketing and Communications Michael Klein on
consumer group research conducted earlier this year and how USA Rice is putting
that research to work by translating what people told us into effective messaging.
Mario Solorzano, president of the Central American Rice Federation
(FECARROZ), and a guest panel of FECARROZ representatives talked about the U.S.
rice market in Central America. FECARROZ
members include El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa
Rica. They reminded the audience of the
importance of the Central American market for U.S. rice exports and their
collective concern about the quality of U.S. rice being shipped into their
region due to poor quality and discrepancies in product analysis.
Central
American Rice Federation Panel
USA
Rice COO Bob Cummings followed with a discussion on the outlook for trade
issues and implications for the U.S. rice industry. U.S. government support for rice has reduced
significantly over the last ten years while the level of global government
support, particularly in China, India, Thailand, and Viet Nam, has increased
sometimes as much as 100 percent.
Cummings also noted that the International Trade Commission (ITC) is
conducting a study of factors influencing the global competitiveness of U.S.
rice, and announced that the 2014 Colombia TRQ will contribute $8 million to
rice research to be shared between the six rice-producing states.
Darci Vetter
United States Trade Representative Chief Agriculture Negotiator
Darci L. Vetter was introduced and briefed attendees on the Obama
administration's current work on TPP, T-TIP, and fast track authority. Vetter also thanked the USA Rice Federation
for their continued cooperation and advice as the U.S. government works to
increase market access for U.S. rice.
Contact:
Deborah Willenborg (703) 236-1444
Japan Announces 9th Ordinary
Import Tender in FY 2014
|
Announcement: 8
December 2014
Tender: 12
December 2014
Offer
details: 51,000
mt
Country Specified or Global
|
Non-glutinous milled rice
(medium grain)
|
Non-glutinous milled rice
(long grain)
|
TOTAL
|
U.S.A.
|
12,000
|
|
12,000
|
Thailand
|
|
14,000
|
14,000
|
Global
Tender
|
12,000
|
13,000
|
25,000
|
TOTAL
|
24,000
|
27,000
|
51,000
|
Shipping
period: (Medium grain) From 10 March
2015 to 20 April 2015
(Long
grain) From 1 April 2015 to 10 May 2015
|
CME
Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
|
CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice Futures for December
9
January 2015
|
$12.290
|
+ $0.245
|
March 2015
|
$12.540
|
+ $0.245
|
May 2015
|
$12.790
|
+ $0.245
|
July 2015
|
$12.990
|
+ $0.245
|
September 2015
|
$12.265
|
+ $0.245
|
November 2015
|
$12.165
|
+ $0.245
|
January 2016
|
$12.165
|
+ $0.245
|
|
Gene
critical to the development of low arsenic plants identified by scientists
Concerns
about arsenic in food have grown in recent years with high concentrations found
in rice, fruit juices and even baby food.
A naturally occurring element
found in soil and water, arsenic has also been used as a pesticide, and is
taken up by plants and can then enter the food chain.The issue has led to scientific
work to investigate how plants deal with arsenic and research has identified
that some plants are able to pump out the poison, but not how they do this.In a
paper published today (December 8) in the journalPLOS Biology an
international team led by the University of Aberdeen has identified a gene
critical to this process – a finding which could be used to breed new varieties
of crops that naturally accumulate less arsenic.
The research team, which includes
scientists from the Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences of the Chinese
Academy of Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University and Rothamsted Research,
found that the gene HAC1 is used by
the flowering plantArabidopsis thaliana (Mouse-ear
cress) to control arsenic accumulation and that when it is removed, the
concentration of arsenic in the plants increased 300-fold.Identification of
this key gene in the easy to work with Mouse-ear cress now makes it simpler to
identify the equivalent gene in crops that large populations depend on for
food, such as rice and wheat.
Professor David E Salt from the
University of Aberdeen led the study. He said: “Arsenic is a poison well known
to be dangerous to animals, including humans and plants as it damages
fundamental chemical processes in most living systems.“It is mainly found in
two forms in soil – as arsenite As (III) and its oxidised form arsenate As (V).
Arsenate is dangerous for plants as chemically it is very similar to phosphate
– needed to manage energy within cells – so they are unable to distinguish
between a dangerous toxin and an element essential for life.“In order to
survive, the plants need to find a way to deal with the poison entering their
roots and so they convert it from arsenate, the form in which it is absorbed,
to arsenite which can then be effluxed or pumped out from the roots.
“Previous research has identified
that this process was happening but not how it was happening and that is where we have
taken an important step forward.”The researchers were able to pinpoint the gene
(HAC1) encoding an arsenate reductase that performs this
conversion of As (V) to As (III) . They then conducted a series of experiments
which proved that when the HAC1 gene was
removed, the plants could no longer pump arsenic from their roots and the
concentration of arsenic in the plants increased dramatically.Professor Salt
added: “This finding means that we now understand more fully the mechanism for
arsenic tolerance in plants.
“Because
we now know what gene we are looking for, it will speed up the process for
detecting it in other plants.
“Particular
crop varieties are often grown because they have a good yield or suit
particular conditions but not because they have a high capacity to pump arsenic
from their roots, meaning arsenic can accumulate in their edible parts.“Now we
know the identity of the gene we can use this information to breed new
varieties of crops with a strong version of the arsenate reductase but which
also keep their favourable agronomic properties. Putting this into practice
would mean you have a good crop without arsenic.
”The
full paper can be viewed online
at http://www.plosbiology.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pbio.1002009
Notes for Editors
About
Rothamsted Research
We are the longest running
agricultural research station in the world, providing cutting-edge science and
innovation for nearly 170 years. Our mission is to deliver the knowledge and
new practices to increase crop productivity and quality and to develop environmentally
sustainable solutions for food and energy production. Our strength lies in the
integrated, multidisciplinary approach to research in plant, insect and soil
science. Rothamsted Research is strategically funded by the Biotechnology and Biological
Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). In 2013-2014 Rothamsted
Researched received a total of £32.9M from the BBSRC.
About Shanghai Institutes for
Biological Sciences (SIBS) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
SIBS is a leading biological
research institute in China. It was founded in 1999 by merging eight CAS
biological science institutes in Shanghai, some of which enjoyed a history of
excellent academic tradition spanning more than half a century. Focusing on human
health and the frontiers of biology, SIBS is dedicated to pursuing research
excellence. It encourages collaboration and a multidisciplinary approach as a
means of enhancing progress. SIBS’s constituent institutions are located
on seven campuses across Shanghai. The
Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology is one of them and
Prof. Daiyin CHAO who contributed to the above mentioned scientific discovery
is from the institute. For more information about SIBS, please visit http://english.sibs.cas.cn/.
Issued
by the Communications Team
Office of External Affairs, University of Aberdeen, King's College, Aberdeen
Tel: +44 (0)1224 272014
Image: dentification of gene could pave way for low arsenic
crops such as rice (pictured)
source with thanks:http://phys.org/news/2014-12-gene-critical-arsenic-scientists.html
Rice experts in Pakistan have
stressed for improved rice quality and modern harvesting and milling technology
in the country, according to local sources.Speaking at a national seminar on
"Rice quality and head recovery affected by harvesting/threshing and
milling practices,” the Secretary of Pakistan Agricultural Research Council
(PARC) noted that Pakistan lacks special rice combine harvesters and most of
the farmers have been using conventional wheat combine harvesters for rice
harvesting leading to increased grain shattering, breakage losses and low head
rice recovery.
Fiji's Agriculture Permanent
Secretary told local sources that the MoU would help the government
significantly reduce the annual import bill of around $40 million. He noted
that most of the rice fields in Fiji fall under economic depressed zones, which
are far from markets. “There is a need to develop those zones and convert them
into production and commercial areas in order to increase our local rice
production,” he added.The CSI Deputy Manager noted that they will introduce
newer technology to farmers as well as train them to use it and boost rice
production. He added that their aim is to increase the paddy per hectare yield
from the current 2.5 tons to over 8 tons.The Chinese government has approved
$10 million for the purpose and the project will commence from January 2015
through December 2016. The Fijian government has already identified some lands
for implementing the project.Fiji is a net importer of rice and imports about
70% of its rice consumption needs of around 44,000 tons annually. Fiji imports
rice majorly from Thailand and India. 
The Rice Policy and Management Committee, headed by
the Thai Prime Minister, has approved the on-farm pledging program for 2014-15
(October 2014 - September 2015) paddy main-crop fragrant and glutinous rice on
November 5, 2014, to limit downward pressure on prices during the harvest time,
according to USDA Post.The program is called “Farmer Loans to Delay the
Sales of Rice Paddy for MY2014/15 Main-Crop Fragrant and Glutinous Rice Paddy”
and is open till February 2015. The government expects to collect around 2
million tons of rice paddy under the program due to high intervention prices.The
government is planning to buy fragrant rice paddy at prices about 23% higher
than market prices and glutinous rice paddy at prices about 41% higher than
market prices and auction the collected rice in after February 2015 when the
program ends. The government is expected to spend about 29 billion baht (around
$921 million) on the program. The Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives (BAAC) will provide interest-free loans for farmers participating
in the program.The program is in line with the government's plan to delay sale
of around 2 million tons of rice to control price falls in the harvest season.The
Post forecasts Thailand to export around 10.5 million tons of rice in 2014 and
around 11 million tons in 2015. It expects Thai rice prices to remain
competitive for the remaining period of 2014 due to large main-crop supplies of
white and fragrant rice. Thailand exported around 1.2 million tons of rice in
October 2014, up about 59% from around 754,717 tons exported during the same
period last year, according to data from Thai Customs Department.USDA Post
estimates Thailand 2014-15 paddy rice production at around 30.5 million tons
(around 20.8 million tons, basis milled) from around 11.39 million hectares of
rice area.
USDA Post has forecasted South
Korea's rice imports to more than double to around 560,000 tons in MY 2014-15
(November - October) from an estimated 240,000 tons last year, and up about 37%
from USDA's official estimates of around 410,000 tons.The South Korean
government has decided to open its rice import market and impose tariffs of
about 513% on imports over and above its minimum market access (MMA) quota of
about 409,000 tons under WTO regulations. Imports under the MMA quota would
attract a tariff of 5%. However, the move is opposed by farmers and civic
groups saying the move would demean the local rice sector.The Post estimates
South Korea's MY 2014-15 milled rice production at around 4.24 million tons,
slightly up from an estimated 4.23 million tons last year; and about 1.4% up
from USDA's official estimates of around 4.18 million tons due to continued
favorable weather conditions until the completion of the harvest.However, South
Korea's rice acreage is expected to decline about 2% to around 816,000 hectares
in MY 2014-15 from an estimated 833,000 hectares last year due to conversion of
some agricultural land to develop commercial complexes. 
