Rice News Headlines...
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Rice Research to Production short course helps young scholars
advance their careers in rice science
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Rice Research To Production Short Course Helps Youthful Researchers
Propel Their Vocations In Rice Science
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Plant breeding, digital science - meeting world food demand
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We Went Black And Never Went Back: The Origin And Spread Of 'Emperor's
Rice'
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Low-cost hay displaces idea for feeding rice straw to cattle
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Silicon 'plant stones' for strong rice: Fertilizing & recycling
Si in Vietnamese fields
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Cambodian Rice Millers Begin Cracking US Market
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Haryana rice millers end strike
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APEDA Commodity News
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Vietnam expects higher prices for rice after Philippines bid
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Kharif acerage up despite poorest monsoon in 6 years
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More imports of rice expected as El Nino looms
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Vietnam Becomes Cuba’s Second Most Important Asian Partner
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Gov’t exporter sits out rice deal
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Thai rice illegally imported into Myanmar
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FCI starts paddy procurement today
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Grains Q3 Review And Q4 Outlook
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U.S. Rice Responds as El Niño Takes Its Toll in Central and South
America
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Hy-Vee Dietitians Urge Shoppers to Think Rice
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Weekly Rice Sales, Exports Reported
News Detail...
Rice Research to Production short course helps young scholars
advance their careers in rice science
Gene Hettel (All photos by G. Hettel) | Oct 1, 2015
Getting their feet wet in rice
paddies, three Asia Rice Foundation USA (ARFUSA) grant winners and other
scholars learn how rice is connected to the international community.
ARFUSA SCHOLARS working together:
Jenna Reeger (left) and Ana Bossa Castro watch Hussain Sharifi take a stab at
pollinating a rice plant during one of the RR2P course’s practical
activities.“The hands-on experience of producing rice has certainly been
relevant to my
research,” expounded Jenna Reeger, currently pursuing a PhD in
plant biology at Penn State University. “Understanding how farmers prepare
their fields and plant rice has certainly been enlightening thanks to traveling
around the Philippines to see different areas where rice is grown.
”This assessment of the
International Rice Research Institute’s (IRRI’s) 3-week short course on Rice research to production (RR2P)was
the consensus of three graduate students attending universities in the United
States and who also won recent Travel and Study Awards from ARFUSA. A unique
situation in which three
ARFUSA scholars participated at the same time in the RR2P, Ms.
Reeger was joined in the ninth annual edition of the course, held at IRRI headquarters
in the Philippines, by fellow 2015 winner Hussain Sharifi, a PhD student in the
Agro-Ecosystems Laboratory at the University of California at Davis, and 2014
winner Ana Bossa Castro, a PhD student in plant pathology at Colorado State
University.
Bringing a unique community of
students together
“The RR2P course is becoming quite popular with ARFUSA scholars and other young scientists from around the world who are looking to advance their careers,” said Jan Leach, distinguished professor at Colorado State University and one of the training coordinators for the course.
Something “cool” about IRRI
More interactions between scholars
and Banaue farmers.
Ms. Reeger, who is also a Penn State University Graduate Fellow, a
Graham Endowed Fellow, and Roche/ARCS Foundation Scholar, grew up on a small
vegetable farm in western Pennsylvania. “I learned about plants from a very
young age,” she explained. “Then I found I could study science involving plants
in college. I became interested in agriculture, which I believe is a major
concern that scientists should be focusing on.”Her main goal is to develop
drought-tolerant rainfed rice varieties that will provide more reliable yields
under drought stress and promote food security and financial stability for
rainfed rice growers. “I find IRRI to be a very unique place with so many
different people working on all the aspects of rice,” she said. “I think there
is something very special and ‘cool’ about this—a lot of people working
together to achieve the same goal.”
SHARING A light moment, Ms. Reeger
and Mr. Sharifi discuss their participation in the RR2P course.Regarding the
RR2P course, she relayed that the “high point” was the 3-day visit to the
Banaue rice terraces in Ifugao Province of northern Luzon. “The ancient rice
terraces are very beautiful,” she said, “and it was very interesting to talk
with the people who live there and observe how they grow rice on the terraces
with 2,000 years of experience.”Also during her time at IRRI, she was able to
interact with scientists working on breeding for drought tolerance and the
physiology of drought. “I met multiple times with Dr.
Amelia Henry, IRRI’s drought physiologist, to discuss her work and
to make plans for my return trip to IRRI—for which I am using my ARFUSA grant
to set up a field trial,” she pointed out.” The budding plant biologist is now
back at Penn State taking classes in her second year of graduate school, where
she is also president-elect of the Graduate Women in Science chapter at the
university.
First in the family to obtain a
college degree
Mr. Sharifi was born into a small-farm family in remote Bamyan Province of Afghanistan. He was the first in his family to obtain a college degree when he completed his BS in plant protection at Kabul University.
GAINING HANDS-ON experience, Ms.
Bossa Castro (left) and Mr. Sharifi (right), along with other RR2P course
participants, separate panicles in the rice bundles during their visit with
farmers in Banaue. Click photo for a video clip.
The RR2P course provided me with a great opportunity to be exposed
to many different topics and issues. More than that, a high point for me was
getting to know and become friends with all the course participants from 12
countries. I’m sure I will come across many of these people again as colleagues
at some point in my career.”Mr. Sharifi has a main interest in remote sensing.
“I think we should use this technology to develop appropriate tools for
extending available information to where we need to,” he said. “My time here at
IRRI has enabled me to interact with the GIS group and the crop modeling group
(Oryza2000) with Tao
Li and Ando
Radanielson, Adam
Sparks, and Steve Klassen. It is great that the
scientists here are so willing to take the time to talk to a young scientist
like me.” He has returned to U.C. Davis to finish his PhD research in early
2016. “I plan to pursue a career in international crop research with a focus on
rice cropping systems,” he concluded.
She came back!
Attending the RR2P course brought Ms. Ana Bossa Castro back to IRRI a second time. The Bogotá, Colombia, native was here last year to receive training and to consult with Hei Leung, principal scientist in IRRI’s Genetics and Biotechnology Division and a collaborator in her research on finding novel resistance sources to defeat bacterial diseases of rice. “I’ve worked as a research assistant at CIAT [International Center for Tropical Agriculture in Cali, Colombia] for a few years and I had been very interested in coming to IRRI and learning about the research done here,” she said. “When I got here for the first time last year, I was impressed by the fields and the labs, the genebank, and the genotyping facility.
This second time, I got the
chance to know more about the cutting-edge research done in different topics
and meet several scientists. Through the course, I had hands-on experience in
field practices and interacted with farmers. The trip to Banaue was an
enriching opportunity as I talked with local farmers and heard about their
traditional practices and their limitations in rice production. The RR2P course
allowed me to meet participants from 12 different countries, know about their
cultures, and exchange research experiences with them.”
PARTICIPANTS AND faculty involved
in the 2015 Rice Research to Production course at IRRI, 10-28
August.Originally, Ms. Bossa Castro was interested in molecular biology to
perhaps become involved in human cancer research; however, after taking a
college class in plant pathology, she became interested in food security and
feeding growing populations. “I changed my mind on what direction to take, but
still could be involved with molecular biology—and maybe it is just as
important as cancer research by benefiting even more people.
”During her work at CIAT, she was a
visiting scholar in the laboratory of Dr.
Stephen Dellaporta at Yale University on two
occasions. “There, I acquired and applied molecular techniques to make advances
in my project,” she said. “This gave me an opportunity to prove my creativity
and initiative to cope with new research experiences.”Ms. Bossa Castro believes
she is on track with her research to find new resistance genes for important
bacterial pathogens. “With continued collaboration with IRRI and CIAT, my main
goal is to contribute to the reduction of losses caused by these pathogens in
rice crops, which will help decrease poverty and malnutrition in developing countries.
I plan to become a principal investigator in molecular plant pathology to
achieve this goal.”
Unique RR2P course in its ninth
year
Including these three ARFUSA scholars, the ninth annual RR2P course held during 10-28 August 2015 attracted 26 participants hailing from 12 countries (Afghanistan, Cambodia, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nepal, Peru, the Philippines, Sierra Leone, and the U.S.). In addition to Dr. Leach, the course was coordinated by IRRI staff members Noel Magor, head of the Training Center; Dr. Leung; Jason Beebout, consultant; and Eugenio Castro, Jr., Training Center senior manager. Click here for more information about this course and other training opportunities at IRRI.
Gene Hettel is the executive director of ARFUSA and
editor-in-chief of Rice Today. Click
here for more information about ARFUSA and its Travel and Study Grants.
Rice Research
To Production Short Course Helps Youthful Researchers Propel Their Vocations In
Rice Science
“The
hands-on experience of delivering rice has absolutely been important to my
examination,” explained Jenna Reeger, at present seeking after a PhD in plant
science at Penn State University. “Seeing how ranchers set up their fields and
plant rice has surely been illuminating on account of going around the Philippines
to see distinctive regions where rice is developed.”This appraisal of the
International Rice Research Institute’s (IRRI’s) 3-week short course on Rice
examination to creation (RR2P) was the accord of three graduate understudies
going to colleges in the United States and who additionally won late Travel and
Study Awards from ARFUSA.
An
extraordinary circumstance in which three ARFUSA researchers took an interest
in the meantime in the RR2P, Ms. Reeger was joined in the ninth yearly release
of the course, held at IRRI home office in the Philippines, by individual 2015
champ Hussain Sharifi, a PhD understudy in the Agro-Ecosystems Laboratory at
the University of California at Davis, and 2014 victor Ana Bossa Castro, a PhD
understudy in plant pathology at Colorado State University.
http://www.auburntimes.com/rice-research-to-production-short-course-helps-youthful-researchers-propel-their-vocations-in-rice-science/5882/
Plant breeding, digital science - meeting world food demand
Sep 30, 2015 | Delta
Farm Press
LSU AgCenter plant breeder Adam Famoso, left, and Susan McCouch
examine Famoso’s rice crosses in a greenhouse at the LSU AgCenter Rice Research
Station. (Photo by Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)
The center includes researchers from various departments in the
LSU AgCenter, LSU A&M and other state universities, said Mike Stout, L.D.
Newsom Professor in Integrated Pest Management in the
AgCenter Department of
Entomology.The symposium is part of the collaboration between AgCenter and A&M
campus faculty members to produce solutions for the challenges to agriculture,
Stout said.“We’re increasing cooperation in all biosciences across all
Louisiana universities,” he said.McCouch called on the researchers to develop
models that integrate digital information with physical information to predict
performance in new plant lines.“Fundamental problems don’t change at all, but
they can be addressed through new technology,” she said. “Nobody can do it
alone. It takes a lot of collaboration.”McCouch visited the LSU AgCenter Rice
Research Station near Crowley and spoke to the station faculty.
Susan McCouch of Cornell University, left, examines
work being done by LSU AgCenter researchers Herry Utomo, center, and Ida
Wenefrida in a laboratory at the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station. (Photo by
Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)
Adam Famoso, an AgCenter rice breeder who worked with McCouch at
Cornell, said she developed the first genetic map of rice DNA. “She has really
pioneered the marker technology.”McCouch said information technology capable of
handling huge volumes of data is needed to process information in order to make
predictions that can be used by breeders to make successful crosses.Technology
exists that allows editing of a plant’s genetic structure to improve its
agronomic traits, she said. It is not considered genetic engineering because it
does not involve the introduction of foreign genetic material into a plant’s
DNA.
“We’re anticipating in 15 years, this will be mainstream,” she
said.Much of McCouch’s work at Cornell has been focused on rice in Southeast
Asia and Africa, but she said she would like to develop relationships with U.S.
public universities to pass along her work. “Much of what we have developed is
ripe for the picking,” she said.The use of genetic marker technology by plant
breeders will be needed to meet the increasing demand for more food and the
limited arable acreage in developing countries, McCouch said. Abundant land and
water in the U.S. will allow American farmers to produce more food for export
to countries where agricultural systems do not produce enough for growing
populations.Several of McCouch’s projects, funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, address problems in third-world countries. For example, one project
is aimed at developing drought-resistant rice in India, where water sources are
often unreliable. Another project’s goal is overcoming iron toxicity of rice in
Sub-Saharan Africa.
We Went Black And Never Went
Back: The Origin And Spread Of 'Emperor's Rice'
By News Staff | October 1st 2015
07:00 AM
Black rice has a rich cultural history; called
"Forbidden" or "Emperor's" rice, it was reserved for the
Emperor in ancient China and used as a tribute food. In the time since, it
remained popular in certain regions of China and recently has become prized
worldwide for its high levels of antioxidants. Despite its long history, the
origins of black rice have not been clear. Black rice cultivars are found in
locations scattered throughout Asia. However, most cultivated rice (species Oryza sativa) produces white grains, and the wild
relative Oryza
rufipogon has red
grains.
The color of rice grains is determined by which colored pigments
they accumulate (or fail to accumulate, in the case of white rice). For
instance, the pro-anthocyanidins that give wild rice grains their characteristic
red color are not produced in white rice due to a mutation in a gene
controlling pro-anthocyanidin biosynthesis. The color in black rice is known to
be due to anthocyanin pigments, but how these came to be made in the grains was
not known.
A paper to be published this week in The Plant Cell reveals the
answer to the long-standing question of how black rice became black and,
moreover, traces the history of the trait from its molecular origin to its
spread into modern-day varieties of rice. Researchers from two institutions in
Japan collaborated to meticulously examine the genetic basis for the black
color in rice grains.
They discovered that the trait arose due to a rearrangement in a
gene called Kala4, which activates the production of anthocyanins. They
concluded that this rearrangement must have originally occurred in the tropical
japonica subspecies of rice and that the black rice trait was then transferred
into other varieties (including those found today) by crossbreeding.
According the study's lead scientist, Dr. Takeshi Izawa,
"The birth and spread of novel agronomical traits during crop
domestication are complex events in plant evolution." This new work on black rice helps
explain the history of domestication of rice by ancient humans, during which
they selected for desirable traits including grain color.
http://www.science20.com/news_articles/we_went_black_and_never_went_back_the_origin_and_spread_of_emperors_rice-157281
Low-cost hay displaces idea for feeding rice straw to cattle
POSTED: 09/30/15, 5:20 PM PDT | UPDATED: 1 DAY AGO
Jason Halley — Enterprise-Record
File Photo
About
this time last year, rice growers and cattle ranchers were looking at an
interesting partnership: Could rice straw, if handled at the very green stage,
be used as cattle feed? The term for this type of feed is “strawlage.”Fast
forward one year and the idea has been sent to the back 40. However, strawlage
will still be studied this year by the University of California.In theory,
strawlage makes a lot of sense. Rice straw is a by-product of growing rice,
cattle ranchers always want low-cost cattle feed.Yet, rice straw is generally a
very poor option for cattle.For whatever reasons, once rice straw dries to a
certain point, the fiber can sit in a cow’s stomach, undigested for up to three
days.
That’s
three days the animal could be eating something with more nutrients.
Researchers
have tried to find out why this takes place, but haven’t pinpointed the
cause.However, rice straw is still a decent feed if it is fed to cattle before
it dries.Researchers still haven’t given up on the concept.One idea tested last
year was to create larger rice straw bales, four feet long and three feet wide,
that were handled in a way to keep them green and full of moisture. This
included covering the straw with a tarp.Glen Nader, a recently retired
University of California farm adviser, has been working on the strawlage
project for several years.In experiments last year, it was learned that the
large bales worked well when they were new. As time went on, they got mushy,
Nader explained, and were difficult to manage on a cattle ranch.
The
research project has been turned over to Josh Davy, who handles livestock and
natural resource advising for the Cooperative Extension office in Tehama
County.This year, Davy will keep the research going at University of California
research facility in Browns Valley in Yuba County.
HAY PRICES DIP
Ranchers
weren’t interested in feeding cattle rice straw because the price of oat and
other hay dropped by about half this year, Nader said.In a drought year, most
would think the price of hay would be high. However, Nader said when many farmers
faced lack of water they switched from irrigated crops to a winter cereal crop,
which would rely on natural rainfall.There was just enough rain in the month of
April to make those crops fairly successful, he explained. However, there were
so many growers who were fairly successful, that ordinary hay is now plentiful
and cheap.Cattle ranchers would prefer to have rain so that grass grew
naturally on the hillsides and in pastures. Yet, inexpensive bales of hay is
better than costly bales of hay.
Those April
rains were not the only factors, Nader said. The American dollar is relatively
high vs. other world currency, which has lessened the demand for American hay.
Also, the Chinese market, where hay is exported, has dropped off. There also
aren’t as many cattle in the United States due to years of drought in
California, and before that years of drought in Texas and the Midwest.All of
these factors have meant the landowner who took a chance and grew hay, did not
make that much return on their effort.In most cases, Nader estimated California
growers will break even after harvest and baling costs.This certainly doesn’t
encourage landowners to grow dryland hay again next year. Nader predicted they
won’t and the cost of cattle feed will rise again
More strawlage researchAs for the research on
strawlage, Daly, of the Tehama County farm adviser’s office, said he’s moving
forward.
This year he’ll try three different treatments
for the rice straw:
• Applying a treatment for bacteria
• Adding molasses and a treatment for bacteria
• Treatment with ammonia (which raises the
protein level).
Rice, cattle and drought are a combination that
are sure to occur again in the future, Davy said.
This year he’ll focus on cattle in Browns
Valley, evaluating the weight gain and how much animals eat of each of the
strawlage combinations.
Contact reporter Heather Hacking at 896-7758.
http://www.chicoer.com/general-news/20150930/low-cost-hay-displaces-idea-for-feeding-rice-straw-to-cattle
Silicon 'plant stones'
for strong rice: Fertilizing & recycling Si in Vietnamese fields
CREDIT: HANS-CHRISTIAN MARXEN
Recent research showed that silicon (Si) is an important
nutrient enhancing the endurability of rice plants, however, what controls on
Si availability in soils still remain poorly studied. Researchers of the LEGATO project tested the effects of Si fertilization on Si uptake and growth
of rice and on decomposability of the produced straw in Northern Vietnam. The
study was published in the journal Plant and Soil.Silicon
quite literally pumps up the strength of a rice plant. Rice takes up Si with
the soil solution and forms amorphous Si dioxide bodies within the plant
tissue, the so-called phytoliths (literally translated "plant
stones").
These phytoliths make the plant stem and leaves stronger and
more rigid. Thus, a sufficient Si supply enhances the plants' resistance
against heavy rain and wind and against attacks of pests and fungi.Undoubtedly,
an indispensable element for sustainable rice production, the processes which
control Si availability in the soil remain rather understudied. In their paper
Anika Marxen from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental
Research - UFZ and her team study rice soils in
Vietnam in order to understand these processes, providing scientific base for
future recommendations for sustainable rice production.Silicon is contained in
most soil minerals and mineral weathering slowly releases the important element
into the soil solution. In Vietnam, soils are strongly weathered due to high
temperatures and precipitation which means that Si availability is very low.
The study shows that Si application to the soil increased Si uptake
by rice and rice grain yield. When the produced rice straw (that is Si-rich) is
left on the field after harvest, a large proportion of the Si is released
during straw decomposition and is available for the upcoming rice crop. Thus,
Si is recycled and Si supply for rice plants can be maintained on a high level
with one single fertilizer application for many cropping seasons.
Lignin, a hardly degradable carbon compound in plant cells, has
the same function than phytoliths have, which is to give the plant stability.
The formation of lignin is energetically much more expensive for the plant than
the formation of phytoliths. Therefore, increased Si availability and uptake by
rice probably lowers lignin formation and thus fastens decomposition and nutrient
release of the produced straw. Hence, Si fertilization might also exert effects
on the cycling of other important nutrients, with yet unknown consequences for
rice plant growth."Our study showed positive effects of Si fertilization
on rice growth and decomposability of the produced straw, however Si cycling
must be understood in more detail before applying Si fertilizer at a large
scale. More research is certainly needed, but these first steps seem to take us
in the right direction," comments Anika Marxen.
###
Original Source:
Marxen A, et al. (2015) Interaction between silicon cycling and
straw decomposition in a silicon deficient rice production system. Plant and Soil. DOI: 10.1007/s11104-015-2645-8
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-10/pp-ss100115.php
Cambodian Rice Millers Begin Cracking US
Market
Khmer Times/May Kunmakara
Wednesday, 30 September 2015
PHNOM PENH (Khmer Times) – Domestic rice millers are
preparing to compete against their Thai rivals for a share of the US market as
the European Union market becomes increasingly competitive, they say.The move,
which will see the Kingdom’s premium rice competing with Thai jasmine rice,
which dominates rice imports by the US, is part of an overall strategy to
diversify export markets, rice exporters say.Song Saran, president of Amru Rice
(Cambodia), a leading milled rice exporter, told Khmer Times that exports to
the EU and other markets were not increasing fast enough due to intense
competition and the fact that these markets are not growing.“The EU market has
already reached its peak and there is little room to expand there. But we see
plenty of room for growth in the US market.
We
need to increase our competitiveness to expand fast,” Mr. Saran said. Mr.
Saran said Amru will export 1,000 tons of rice to the US this year and plans to
double this amount next year. Although the US places no import tax on Cambodian
rice, its price is similar to that of Thai jasmine rice due to the lack of
competitiveness in the value chain here. “We have to compete on brand, price
and quality,” he said. Thailand has been exporting rice to the US for more than
25 years and has established a strong brand there, he added. Khan Khunthy,
CEO of BriCo – a domestic rice miller that exports fragrant and jasmine rice to
the EU and US – is also planning to expand exports to the US. BriCo began
exporting to the US about one year ago, he said. Mr. Khunthy said his
company has exported about 6,000 tons of rice in the first nine months of this
year to the EU and the US. The amount is three times what it exported in the
same period last year, he added. “My company has been in the [US] market
for nearly a year. The market is really big, but Thai rice dominates the
market,” he said. “If you talk about jasmine everyone there knows Thai rice
because they have been marketing and branding it for nearly 20 years.”
Mr. Khunthy also noted that Thailand’s government has had a budget for marketing its rice globally, but Cambodia does not. “The US market has great potential and is huge, but to get a share of this premium market requires us to have clear branding and marketing,” he added. Economist Srey Chanthy agreed that domestic rice millers will face immense challenges competing with Thai rice in the US market. It is “very difficult to compete with Thailand,” he said. “Maybe Cambodian [exporters] should capture a niche market, like organic rice, or conduct aggressive marketing campaigns and target Cambodian communities as a start,” he said.
Cambodia’s Jasmine rice has been named “The World’s Best Rice” for three years in a row, since 2013, but Mr. Khunthy said this has not appeared to benefit domestic exporters. “We don’t have any branding yet,” he said. “We were named ‘World's Best Rice’ for three straight years. We should do branding based on that, but we don’t have a national strategy to do this,” he said. “We [companies] do a lot of branding, but it is not synchronized. We need better [industry] leadership.” Over the first nine months of the year Brico exported about 500 tons of rice to the US and will export another 500 tons by the end of this year, said Mr. Khunthy.
Data from the Agriculture Ministry shows Cambodia exported 342,136 tons of milled rice over the first eight months of this year, up 40 per cent over the same period last year. The export price of Cambodian rice is estimated to be about $800 a ton. About 70 per cent of the total went to the EU. Just 1,197 tons were exported to the US. Cambodia’s share of the global rice export market was just 1.1 percent last year, compared to 22 percent for Thailand, according to export tracking website World’s Top Exports. Although Cambodia’s exports were small, they rose at the fastest pace of any exporter last year, the website said.
Image:Baskets of rice at a wholesaler in Phnom Penh.
Cambodian rice exporters say they are beginning to target the US market, where
the potential for growth is massive. KT/ Fabien Mouret
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/16340/cambodian-rice-millers-begin-cracking-us-market/
Haryana rice millers end strike
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, Karnal
|
Updated: Oct 01, 2015 17:38 IST
A farmer with his unsold paddy
produce at the new grain market in Karnal during the rice millers’ strike. (HT
FILE PHOTO)
Sensing unrelenting mood of the state government, the Haryana
Rice Millers and Dealers Association (HRMDA) on Wednesday announced to end its
four-day-old strike with immediate effect.Association office-bearers said that
no pre-condition was laid by them for withdrawing the strike.“Our delegations
met the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators in Ambala and Kurukshetra
districts where it was assured that the Haryana government would consider our
demands patiently. We are convinced by the assurance and decided to start paddy
purchase for the government,” HRMDA general secretary Jitender Kumar told HT on
Wednesday evening.
Millers were on the war path to press for their demands,
including revocation of central sales tax (CST) and recovery by the excise and
taxation department. Relaxation in moisture norms during purchase of paddy was
among their other demands.After a meeting with the additional chief secretary,
food and civil supplies, SS Prasad here on Monday, the association had refused
to accept the official assurance of finding appropriate ways to look into their
demands.HRMDA had then categorically announced to boycott paddy purchase for
the government till their demands were accepted.Government buys non-basmati
varieties for distribution to the poor families under the public distribution
system (PDS).Refusing to accepts terms and conditions of the association,
Prasad had said on Monday that the government would rope in rice exporters for
custom rice milling.
“Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar had a meeting lasting more
than four hours where it was agreed that the state government would agree to
work on the fair demands and suggestions. Later, a meeting with the food and
supply minister and secretary-level talks were held to find a solution, but
only a small section of the millers were opposed to the deliberations,” Prasad
had told reporters on Monday.However, as the state government did not show any
signs of holding further talks, the millers met the BJP legislators at various
places and offered to withdraw agitation.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/haryana-rice-millers-end-strike/story-ZQyMBkhNIuD3se6RkBV5VK.html
APEDA
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Vietnam expects higher prices for rice after Philippines bid
VietNamNet Bridge - The sale of 450,000 tons of rice to the
Philippines under a government-to-government contract is expected to increase
Vietnam’s rice price in domestic and world markets.
Vietnam won the bid to provide 450,000 tons of 25
percent broken rice to the Philippines on September 17, but it has not
influenced the domestic price. Experts believe, however, that it will help
increase domestic consumption and maintain export prices.Lam Anh Tuan, director
of Thinh Phat Company, a member company of the Vietnam Food Association (VFA),
said that Vietnam received a contract to sell rice to the Philippines at $426.6
per ton with deliveries at Philippine National Food Agency (NFA) storehouses.
This means the FOB price at Vietnam’s ports is over $350 per ton.Tuan believes
this is a good price compared with the price of $315-325 per ton offered by
Vietnamese businesses to foreign importers under commercial contracts.
He said the bidding price is even higher than the price of 5 percent broken rice exports, at $325-335 per ton. However, the domestic price remains low.Nguyen Dinh Bich a renowned rice expert, believes the rice price in Mekong River Delta will move up but only very slightly, because Vietnam would have to deliver only 125,000 tons from now to the end of the year.IR 50404 rice, which is used to process rice exports to the Philippines, is being sold at VND6,100 per kilo at the Ba Dac wholesale Market in Tien Giang province. The price has stayed unchanged since September 17.Merchants are buying fresh IR 50404 from farmers in Tien Giang province at VND4,100 per kilo.
The price has been stable since September 17.However,
Tuan of Thinh Phat is optimistic about what the bid with the Philippines can
bring, saying this would help export prices stay firm. This would also help
farmers sell the summer-spring inventory rice.“As we have got the contract with
the Philippines, foreign importers will have no reason to force the prices
down,” Tuan said.An analyst also noted that, with the contract with the
Philippines, big stocks may have been lifted. Vietnamese farmers are preparing
for the third crop of the year, but the output will not be large and it will be
sold domestically. “I believe China will come back and buy Vietnam’s
rice,” he said. “Chinese went away just to try to press the prices down. But as
they have heard Vietnam can now sell rice, they will rush to come back.”VFA
member companies have sold 67,000 tons of rice this month.
Kharif acerage up despite poorest monsoon in 6 years
TOMOJIT BASU
Bleak picture With the deficit rainfall, kharif crop yields
could get affected. KR Deepak
NEW DELHI, OCT 1:
The Ministry has already
estimated that the first consecutive monsoon shortfall since 1987-88 will take
a toll on foodgrain output.The first advance estimates released last month
expect a 2 per cent slide to 124.05 million tonnes (mt) from 126.3 mt the year
before.As per India Meteorology Department (IMD) data, the monsoon ended with a
14 per cent deficit with rainfall pegged at 76.06 centimetres.Out of 36
sub-divisions, 17 reported deficient rainfall between June 1 and September
30.Among mainly rain-fed areas, east Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, east Madhya Pradesh,
Marathwada, central Maharashtra, north interior and coastal Karnataka,
Telangana, and Goa and the Konkan coast were the hardest hit.
The Central Water Commission
estimates that storage levels in 91 major reservoirs tracked by it are at 95.69
billion cubic metres (bcm), about 61 per cent of total capacity. The figure is
77 per cent of the average over the last decade.“The total storage capacity of
these 91 reservoirs is 157.799 bcm which is about 62 per cent of the total
storage capacity of 253.388 bcm which is estimated to have been created in the
country,” said a statement released by it this week.The storage situation is
particularly worrisome in the southern States where the Commission estimates
levels at 34 per cent of total capacity.
Crop outlook
(This article was published on October 1, 2015)
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/driest-monsoon-in-six-years-but-kharif-sowing-still-up/article7712471.ece
More imports of rice expected as
El Nino looms
10/1/2015
BusinessWorld
BusinessWorld
THE PHILIPPINE government may import more rice in the second quarter of next year in
anticipation of an intensified El Nino which could affect farm output and
prices, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan yesterday
said.Mr. Balisacan yesterday said in a news conference on the sidelines of the
Philippine Economic Briefing that the government has already factored in more import volume for the first two quarters next year to
mitigate upward pressure on rice prices after official projections were altered
to reflect a longer dry spell."We don't know the exact number yet but we
have some provisions already because the areas that will be adversely affected
and the intention of the farmers to plant will come in the next couple of
months," Mr. Balisacan said.
"What I'm trying to say is that at the very
least, we know there is going to be a shortfall and we are making the minimum
buffer that we need to ensure no sharp price increases but that would not
preclude us from ordering more (foreign rice) if necessary," he
added."We are already prepositioning our level of imports. We have already
decided to import more for this year and already provisioned more import volumes for the first two quarters of next year.
We are putting a system that would allow us to monitor closely the movement of
prices as well as a system to assist our framers, particularly for those who
will be adversely affected."National Food Authority bid out the supply of
250,000 MT of well-milled 25% broken rice for this year; and 500,000 MT of the
same variety next year, with Vietnam and Thailand bagging the contract to
supply the staple.Delivery of the procured grains will be staggered, with the
first 125,000 MT due by the end of November and another 125,000 MT by the end
of December. Next year's shipments will involve 175,000 MT each by the end of
January and February, and the 150,000 MT balance by the end of March.
Stocks procured in September brought the total
volume of rice contracted for this year to 1.787 million MT. This includes the
500,000 MT imported in February and 250,000 MT in June, both via the
government-to-government procurement scheme. It also covers private sector importation under the minimum access volume (MAV) commitment
for this year. The government in July contracted 187,000 MT under the
MAV-omnibus origin scheme and 600,000 MT under the MAV-country specific
quota.Mr. Balisacan said the additional provision was meant to ensure the
supply of rice is adequate."What we want to do is to err on the oversupply
side because we have learned that when the supply is compromised, prices can
shoot up as they did in 2014 and 2013. We don't want that thing to happen
again," Mr. Balisacan said.
Vietnam
Becomes Cuba’s Second Most Important Asian Partner
October 1, 2015 |
By Pilar Montes
The president of Vietnam at the
conclusion of his visit to Cuba. Foto: granma.cu
HAVANA TIMES — The Vietnamese, traditionally regarded as the
poor brothers-in-arms who fought against the French and the United States and
won, will surely be seen in a different light by Cubans after the Vietnamese
President’s visit to the island, which came to a close this October 1.This
outdated image of Vietnam is in part owed to the distance between the two
nations and, to a great extent, the lack of precise information regarding the
country’s political and economic achievements – about how, with a stoic
discipline worthy of imitation, they have managed to reconstruct a ruined
country in only three decades.
Vast areas of the country were incinerated (along with thousands
of their inhabitants, particularly the most vulnerable) by Agent Orange. Cuba
sent medical and agricultural aid, helping the country restore its poultry and
coffee industries.I still remember how Vietnamese students in East European
boarding schools, humbly seeking to earn a degree, lived in groups of two on a
single stipend, sharing articles of clothing to save money and return home with
the electrical appliances one could not find in their impoverished nation.
Today, however, they are paying Cuba back for its solidarity
with experts on rice, soy and maize. Vietnam has become the world’s second
largest exporter of rice and the first exporter of coffee, while the Cuban
economy still struggles to become more efficient (blaming everything on the US
blockade).Vietnam is making investments abroad and comes to Cuba in search of
knowledge and medications, the only two areas where the island has achieved
greater development.
SIX AGREEMENTS
Vietnamese firms and banks signed six agreements with Cuba in
Havana as a result of the 1st Bilateral Business Forum, before Vietnamese
President Truong Tan Sang, Cuban Vice-President Ricardo Cabrisas and officials
from both governments.Around fifty businesspeople accompanied the Vietnamese
leader on his visit to Cuba, scheduled to end today. They met with their
counterparts on the island for the 55th anniversary of relations between the two countries.President
Truing Tan Sang addressed forum participants and acknowledged that the reform
of Cuba’s economic model (begun in 2009) has created favorable conditions for
foreign investors, such that more Vietnamese entrepreneurs are sure to become
interested in investing in Cuba.
Tan Sang added that Vietnam will continue to offer Cuba
technical support to improve its rice production, and that he will visit the
plantations where Vietnamese experts are working. In this connection, he said
that 400,000 tons of rice had been produced in the country and that an
additional 300,000 were still to be imported. “To continue broadening
cooperation, we will also work together in soy and maize plantations,” he
added.The Vietnamese leader said that trade with Cuba was still beneath its
full potential and explained that Vietnam exports some 200 million dollars in
products per year and imports a mere 10 million. “We have to do more in terms
of cooperation and investment,” he stated.Vice-Chair of the Council of
Ministers Ricardo Cabrisas underscored the benefits of Vietnam’s support for
Cuba’s food program, particularly rice production.
Cuba’s bio-pharmaceutical sector stands out for exporting to
Vietnam medications that contribute to the development of the country’s public
health sector. In this connection, Cabrisas reported that BioCubaFarma is now
working together with Vietnamese companies.With these new agreements, Vietnam
has become Cuba’s second most important economic partner in Asia (behind
China). According to the Chair of Cuba’s Chamber of Commerce Orlando Hernandez
Guillen, in the first half of 2015 alone, trade with the land of Ho Chi Minh
has grown by nine percent.Vietnam’s Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development
signed separate agreements with the Cuban National Bank and the Cuban
International Financial Bank to broaden relations in the agricultural sector.
Another agreement provides for the creation of a joint venture
company that is to build a 5-star hotel in Havana, under the management of
Cubanacan.Similarly, agreements for the creation of a joint venture in the
Mariel Special Development Zone were also signed. The company will produce and
market detergent by the Cuban company Suchel-Int. Cuba’s oil company CUPET and
PetroVietnam also signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at increasing oil
production on the island.
Gov’t exporter
sits out rice deal
Employees at a rice warehouse in Phnom Penh stack bags
of rice earlier this year for processing. The Cambodia Rice Federation is
seeking a part of Indonesia’s 1.5 million tonne rice tender. Heng Chivoan
Thu, 1 October 2015
ndonesia, the world’s third-biggest rice consumer, is
looking to place a mammoth government-to-government order to import 1.5 million
tonnes of rice, but state-owned rice exporter Green Trade said yesterday that
it has no plan to enter a bid.Heang Vutha, director-general of Green Trade,
said he was not contacted by the Indonesian government and had been unaware of
the prospective rice deal. However, the volume requested and the
November-through-January delivery date ruled out any Cambodian participation.“We
will not have enough rice for them, and the timeframe they have set is too
short,” he said, adding that Green Trade only has the capacity to deliver 2,000
tonnes of milled rice per month.Indonesia’s vice president last week said his
country plans to import 1.5 million tonnes of rice to avert a spike in prices
as the effect of the El Nino weather phenomenon cut into domestic supply.“We
are forced to import because of the drought,” Indonesian Vice-President Jusuf
Kalla told local media.
“We’re taking rice issues very seriously. We could
delay imports of chilies or shallots, but when it comes to rice, we’re not
playing around.”Bulog, Indonesia’s state rice procurement agency, was
reportedly looking to Thailand and Vietnam to fill the order.But Thailand’s
rice exporter association told the Bangkok Post this week that Indonesia might
have to import from other countries as well, as neither Thailand nor Vietnam
had the capacity to deliver 1.5 million tonnes within the given timeframe.Kim
Savuth, vice president of the Cambodian Rice Federation (CRF), said the
Cambodian government should give the private sector a chance to participate.He
said the CRF, which represents nearly 100 rice millers and exporters, has
surplus stock and could help fill the order on its behalf.“If the government
can negotiate a contract with Indonesia, we have plenty of rice to supply to
them,” he said.
However, the private sector is not waiting for an
introduction. Song Saran, CEO of Amru Rice and a CRF member, said the
federation plans to send a letter to Bulog expressing its intent to supply a
portion of the rice contract.“We have the right to negotiate with them
directly, without Green Trade,” he said.“Commerce Minister Sun Chanthol has
granted approval to the CRF to work directly with Bulog, and our members met
already to discuss exporting rice to Indonesia.”Saran said CRF members had a
combined total of 100,000 tonnes of rice in storehouses, though much of this
was already earmarked for other export contracts.He estimated that 60,000
tonnes of rice could be exported by the Indonesian government’s deadline.Indonesia
has not said whether it would be willing to divide the supply contract into
smaller orders.In September, Green Trade declined to participate in a tender by
the Philippine government to import 750,000 tonnes of rice, saying it could not
compete on price with neighboring Thailand and Vietnam.
It sat out the government auction having already lost
two consecutive bids to its rivals.Higher transport and milling costs cancel
out the comparative advantage in milled rice that Cambodia enjoys due to its
low farm-gate prices of paddy rice. But beyond cost is a question of supply.“The
most important is whether we have enough rice to export or not?” said Ly May,
manager of Meng Hong Leap Logistics Co.She said her cargo transport firm has
the resources to ship about 40,000 tonnes of rice a month by sea, but questions
whether rice millers can supply even that amount to fill the Indonesian order.
Cambodia exported 369,000 tonnes of milled rice
during the first nine months of 2015, a 37 per cent increase over the same
period a year earlier, according to data released yesterday by the Secretariat
of One Window Service for Rice Exports.Exports rose despite a 31.7 per cent
drop in September shipments, compared to one year earlier.While the European
Union continues to be the largest export destination for Cambodian rice,
accounting for 64 per cent of shipments, China is the single largest importing
country, receiving 78,000 tonnes last year.
Thai rice
illegally imported into Myanmar
By Khin Wyne Phyu Phyu
| Thursday, 01 October 201
As domestic rice prices increase, cheaper and higher quality rice
is now being illegally imported from Thailand, Myanmar rice traders say.
Speculation over rice shortages since nationwide flooding in July and August increased
transportation costs in some areas, and high production costs for farmers have driven up rice prices around the country. To still the hunger
for cheaper grains, an illegal trade in rice from Thailand has sprung up in September.“Rice trade from Thailand
to Myanmar started this year with good-quality rice for lower prices than
domestic rice,” said U Than Oo, secretary of Bayinnaung market in Yangon and a
rice trader.Myanmar rice prices are now between K28,000 and K30,000 per 50-kilogram
bag, while the same sized bag from Thailand costs about K25,000 to K26,000, he
said.The type of rice imported from Thailand is the same quality as Sin Thwe
Lat rice from Myanmar. It is not as soft as domestic rice and has a stronger
taste, which is more popular with Myanmar consumers.“Their price is lower than
that of Yangon-produced rice and is pure, of good quality and contains no
broken rice,” said U Chan Thar Oo, a rice trader from Muse.Thai rice enters the
Myanmar market illegally through the Myawaddy border gate but Myanmar rice
traders hope that the trade will die out during the harvest season.
“Thai rice is sold here now that our rice has become expensive,
but the sellers will disappear when our new rice is harvested. They have no
permit so this is only for the short term,” said U Min Thein, chair of the Muse
Rice wholesale centre.The domestic rice price fluctuates depending on the amount of grains stored by millers during the
harvesting season. In the aftermath of floodingthat damaged about 700,000 acres of farmland since July, the Myanmar Rice Federation opened shops across the
country to ease speculation about rice shortages and stabilise prices, in
addition to a temporary ban on exports until October 15.“We can get a good price for our rice if we store
more, but we need to store it properly,” said the owner of Zwel Rice Shop from
Shwe Pyi Thar township.
Myanmar’s rice exports are largely dependent on Chinese demand.
Farmers can sell their rice directly across the border to China, even if the
quality of the rice is not high.“Thai traders can’t threaten our export market
– we are a bigger supplier to the Chinese market. While they have good-quality
rice, it is expensive. Myanmar rice is cheap and is purified after the rice
arrives [in China],” said U Than Oo.Although most rice traders don’t seem to be
concerned about the imports of Thai rice, U Chan Thar Oo, the rice trader from
Muse, is worried that Myanmar’s rice trade will fall behind.
“Farmers use insecticide and fertilizer without thinking of the
consequences and lands are destroyed because of floods. If we can’t change that
situation, it will be difficult to yield hundreds of baskets from an acre of
paddy field,” U Chan Thar Oo said.Thai farmers are able to keep their prices
lower because of the use of advanced farming technologies, compared to the methods used by Myanmar farmers.“Their
agricultural technology is better than ours. They get 200 baskets out of 1
acre, whereas here, the harvest is about 80 baskets per acre,” said U Chan Thar
Oo.
http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/16764-thai-rice-illegally-imported-into-myanmar.html
FCI
starts paddy procurement today
Posted at: Oct 1 2015 12:55AM
Paddy stocks at the grain market in Thanesar on
Wednesday.
Tribune News
Service
Chandigarh,
September 30
State Food and Supplies Minister
Karan Dev Kamboj has said for the convenience of farmers, the Food Corporation
of India (FCI) would start paddy procurement from tomorrow.He said the state
government was aware all the grievances of rice millers and solution had also
been found to their problems. In this regard, two meetings under the
chairmanship of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had already been held with
rice millers. They were satisfied with the decisions taken by the state
government, he maintained.
Kamboj said more than 12 demands of
rice millers were fulfilled at their meeting. These included reducing their
security fee, installation of cameras and tarpaulin etc. “Apart from this, the
state government has also written to the Centre to consider the tax being
levied on the dispatched goods.”In the current procurement season, 56,350
metric tonnes (MT) of paddy arrived in the state mandis till yesterday.As on
September 29, Ambala had received the maximum amount of paddy at 25,572 MT. Of
the total arrival, 426 MT have arrived in Jind, 13,308 MT in Karnal, 2,279 MT
in Kurukshetra, 8,295 MT in Panchkula and 6,650 MT in Yamunanagar.He added that
out of the total arrival, government procurement agencies had purchased 43,831
MT. The rice millers and dealers had purchased 12,699 MT.
Rice millers call off strike, claims govt
Chandigarh: A delegation led by Jaipal Jain,
Executive President, Haryana Rice Millers and Dealers Association, met CM
Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday and decided to call off their strike with
immediate effect. Also, the association assured to procure paddy in mandis of
the state on government rates. Jain said the govt heard all their demands and
assured them of positive action. The state has made some amendments in 2013-14
policy according to which millers would pay only Rs 6 lakh as security instead
of Rs 10 lakh. — TNS
Grains Q3 Review And Q4 Outlook
Oct. 1, 2015 6:21 AM
Grain prices move lower in Q3.
A third straight year of bumper
crops weighs on price.Rice is the superstar.Wheat is the weakest grain.El Nino
could affect prices going forward.After rallying on the final day of trading in
the second quarter of 2015, grain gave up most gains throughout the third
quarter as excellent growing conditions led to a third straight year of bumper
crops. The September U.S. Department of Agriculture World Agricultural Supply
and Demand Estimates report validated big supplies in corn, soybeans and wheat.
The only positive thing about the report for price was that the USDA lowered
estimates for ending stocks in corn.
A composite of the grain sector
fell by 5.74% in Q3. There are some years when weather affects crop production.
We saw that during the drought of 2012, which sent the price of corn, soybeans
and wheat to dizzying heights. In 2014, the weather cooperated and the crops
were enormous. It appears that the 2015 crop in the U.S. for corn, wheat and
soybeans is a repeat of 2014 and that ample supplies will be available to the
market after the harvest, which is beginning now.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/3544336-grains-q3-review-and-q4-outlook
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U.S. Rice Responds as El Niño Takes Its Toll in Central and
South America
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Countries throughout South America have also been hit hard by El
Niño. Venezuela, which has suffered major crop shortages, has turned to
the U.S. to fulfill its consumption needs. Total rough rice sales to
Venezuela are at nearly 150,000 MT within just the past two months. At
the same time, Panamanian farmers had to reduce rice planting by 50 percent
because of water shortages and U.S. sales rose to 60,000 MT. Guatemala
and Honduras have imported nearly 20,000 MT each this year. As noted
earlier this month (seeUSA Rice Daily,
September 9, 2015), Honduran drought conditions led to a rice
shortage and an allowance for imports of 25,000 MT of U.S. rice above the
tariff rate quota amount.
"The substantial reduction in local production in the
region has led to a surge of U.S. rice exports in a short time period,"
said Brian King, chairman of the USA Rice Western Hemisphere Promotion
Subcommittee. "Our sympathies go to the farmers in these countries
as we know all too well how unpredictable Mother Nature can be."
Contact: Sarah Moran (703)
236-1457
U.S. rice exports
surge
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Hy-Vee Dietitians Urge Shoppers to Think Rice
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ARLINGTON, VA -- This September, USA Rice partnered
with supermarket registered dietitians (SRDs) at Hy-Vee, a chain with 236
supermarkets located throughout Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. All month long, Hy-Vee SRDs
spread the word about U.S.-grown rice and National Rice Month (NRM) online,
in stores, and through local media outlets
In the September issue of Hy-Vee's Healthy Bites e-newsletter, USA Rice's Cranberry Pecan Rice Pilaf was featured as a 'Dietitian Recipe of the Month.' The newsletter promoted NRM as well as the health benefits and culinary versatility of rice to more than 90,000 subscribers and was also published on the Hy-Vee website that receives more than 800,000 unique visitors per month. "Since Hy-Vee has an in-store dietitian at each of their locations, we made sure they received USA Rice's recipe cards and SRD toolkits to use while interacting with shoppers," said Paul Galvani, chairman of the USA Rice Retail Subcommittee. "One dietitian even created a short Facebook video right from the rice aisle - she called out NRM and discussed the health and affordability of U.S. rice." As part of the NRM promotion, the Hy-Vee corporate dietitian team provided all in-store dietitians with a 'Think Rice for Family Meals and Sides' media pitch to use with local media outlets. Several news article placements and one local TV segment called attention to NRM and featured content from USA Rice's SRD toolkit. All together, these placements exposed more than one million consumers to the health, economic, and culinary benefits of U.S.-grown rice. "Hy-Vee is a food retailer known for its health and wellness initiatives, so partnering with their dietitians to promote U.S. rice was quite valuable," said Galvani. "This is just one example of how USA Rice partners with retail grocers to communicate our message. Hy-Vee dietitians are trusted champions of U.S.-grown rice and we thank them for their support and promotion of National Rice Month."
Contact: Katie Maher (703) 236-1453
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Weekly Rice Sales, Exports Reported
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WASHINGTON, DC -- Net rice sales of 70,500 MT for
2015/2016, up 19 percent from the previous week and 5 percent from the prior
four-week average, were reported for Japan (24,100 MT), Mexico (23,200 MT),
Haiti (11,500 MT), unknown destinations (5,900 MT), and Canada (2,100 MT),
according to today's Export
Sales Highlights report.
Decreases were reported for Taiwan (400 MT).
Exports of 42,200 MT, down 55 percent from the previous week and 60 percent from the prior four-week average, were reported to Haiti (15,200 MT), Japan (12,000 MT), Mexico (3,100 MT), South Korea (2,900 MT), and Canada (2,400 MT). This summary is based on reports from exporters from the period September 18-24, 2015. |
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CME
Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
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Purple bran rice defies convention: healthy,
tasty
September 30, 2015 8:35 am
If I presented you with a bowl of steaming purple rice, would
you eat it?
Most of us are accustomed to white or brown rice as a staple in
our diet. But according to plant breeder Anna McClung, we are missing out.
“It’s all about what we’re used to,” said McClung. “If what we’ve known is
white, uniform rice, that’s what we will want.”
McClung knows her rice. She’s director of the Dale Bumpers
National Rice Research Center in Stuttgart, Ark., whose mission is to maintain
and improve national rice varieties.
The Research Center curates a rice bank of over 18,0000
varieties of this globally important crop. McClung and her colleagues are
caretakers of the rice collection, and explorers of natural genetic diversity.
They identify useful traits like disease resistance, high yields, and pest
resistance. They mix and match up rice varieties using traditional plant
breeding to maximize these characteristics. Just as heirloom tomatoes pass
through generations of farmers, rice varieties are carefully preserved or
crossed with other varieties to capture favorable genes.
Rice comes in a brilliant array of colors: red, brown, and yes,
purple. The common white rice ubiquitous in stores and restaurants has been
stripped of its bran layer. Bran is the hard outer layer of rice. Removing the
bran means losing the rice’s color, nutrients, fiber, and protein. What remains
is mostly starch, which quickly breaks down into sugar in the gut.
“There’s been a shift in the U.S. away from white rice because
of health concerns,” said McClung. “We’re looking at rice varieties that can
deliver nutrition.” This is a challenge for rice breeders, especially if these
healthier rice varieties aren’t quite as tasty as conventional rices, or take
longer to cook.
The quest for a perfect balance of health and taste led McClung
to purple rice. Specifically a variety dubbed “IAC 600” gifted from a Brazilian
collaborator. This rice originated in China, where purple rice has been
venerated for centuries as a healthful variety, brought out for special
occasions and for the sick. Like many highly pigmented foods (think blueberries
and grapes), purple rice is rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants are chemicals
that fight off the free radicals that damage cells and can lead to cancer and
other health problems. Purple rice is chock full of antioxidants, comparable to
broccoli and other highly acclaimed disease-fighting foods.
The rice also happens to be delicious. “Not only is IAC 600 a
deep, gorgeous purple, it’s some of the best tasting rice I’ve ever had,” said
McClung, “Its aromatic like basmati rice, and has a nutty flavor.”
One of the biggest impediments to getting purple rice to
commercial markets is that it’s incredibly high maintenance. It has to be
isolated from other rice at every step of production — planting, harvesting,
processing, packaging. If mixed with other varieties, the rice’s identity is
compromised. Producers don’t necessarily want to take on the risk and hassle of
keeping the rice isolated. And as rice is a globally traded commodity, the
established rice stakeholders aren’t interested in promoting unique rice varieties.
http://www.midwestproducer.com/news/crop/purple-bran-rice-defies-convention-healthy-tasty/article_c9266dbc-67ab-11e5-909d-933c642448c0.html?utm_source=USA+Rice+Daily%2C+October+1%2C+2015&utm_campaign=Friday%2C+December+13%2C+2013&utm_medium=email
Trade analysts to discuss U.S.
competitiveness in rice export markets
Oct 1, 2015Delta
Farm Press
“Major factors affecting competitiveness, such as cost
structures, level of product quality, and status as reliable suppliers will be
discussed for the United States and other major rice producing and trading
countries,” says Dr. Bobby Coats, professor of economics and agribusiness at
the university and moderator of the webinar series.
Marin Weaver
“Major factors affecting competitiveness, such as cost
structures, level of product quality, and status as reliable suppliers will be
discussed for the United States and other major rice producing and trading
countries,” says Dr. Bobby Coats, professor of economics and agribusiness at
the university and moderator of the webinar series.
Presenters will be John Giamalva, Marin Weaver, and Lesley
Ahmed, international trade analysts at the U.S. International Trade Commission
in Washington.John Giamalva was a project leader for the Commission report on
the global competitive of U.S. rice. Previously, he worked in the Applied
Economics Division at the Commission as an economist assigned to various
antidumping and countervailing duty investigations and was detailed as an aide
to Commissioner Koplan for three years.
Before coming to work at the Commission, John was employed as a
research Associate at the University of Arkansas conducting research on
consumer willingness to pay for food safety. John is a graduate of Louisiana
State University and the University of Arkansas.Marin Weaver was a project
leader for the Commission report on global competitiveness of the rice industry
and has also worked at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as the
director for the Generalized System of Preferences program and at the U.S.
Department of Commerce as an international trade analyst conducting antidumping
duty investigations.She is a graduate of the University of Richmond and the
London School of Economics and Political Science.
Lesley Ahmed covers the USITC’s grain and cereal product
portfolio, contributing to trade analysis on these and other agricultural
commodities. Lesley has also worked for the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
as an agricultural economist and as the International Trade Program manager for
the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. She received her M.S. and B.S. in
Agricultural Economics from Purdue University.
To read the USITC’s report on Rice: Global Competitive of the
U.S. Industry, visithttp://www.usitc.gov/publications/332/pub4530.pdf.
http://deltafarmpress.com/rice/trade-analysts-discuss-us-competitiveness-rice-export-markets?utm_source=USA+Rice+Daily%2C+October+1%2C+2015&utm_campaign=Friday%2C+December+13%2C+2013&utm_medium=email
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