Friday, December 18, 2015

17th December 2015 Daily Global Regional Local Rice E-Newsletter -Rice News Today

Today Rice News Headlines...
*      RICE SECTOR: PAKISTAN OPPOSES INDIA-LED COUNTRIES' PROPOSAL
*      Stripper front fits no¬-till bill
*      Turning rice farming waste to useful silica compounds
*      Rice numbers may shake out differently, but result is same: Part II
*      Gov’t eyes 300-400K MT add’l rice imports in ’16 amid El Niño
*      Vietnam exports around 6.55 tons of rice in 2015: VFA
*      Mali: rice harvest shoots up by 13% from 2014
*      Mali produces 2.45 mln T of rice as 2015/16 harvest nears end
*      Rice Importers Shun Lagos Ports
*      Arkansas Farm Bureau Daily Commodity Report
*      APEDA Rice commodity News
*      Agents Back Lifting of Ban on Rice Importation through Land Borders
*      LSU AgCenter, LSU College of Agriculture, Southern Ag Center announce faculty, staff award winners

News Detail...

 

RICE SECTOR: PAKISTAN OPPOSES INDIA-LED COUNTRIES' PROPOSAL


December 17, 2015
Pakistan has reportedly opposed India-led countries' proposal to purchase crops from farmers which can massively hit Pakistani rice sector, well informed sources told Business Recorder. Commerce Minister, Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan is leading Pakistani delegation at the 10th World Trade Organisation (WTO) that began on December 15 in Nairobi (Kenya). "India-led countries are urging a permanent solution for public stockholding issue that will allow them to purchase crops from farmers and we fear that this would hurt Pakistan particularly our rice sector," sources quoted the Minister as stating.
Pakistan, source said, has taken a firm stance that it will never accept any solution that is harmful to its farmers. The Commerce Minister held meetings with like-minded countries on this issue and in his speech will state that Pakistan's Basmati exports have dipped by half during the last five years. The issue of market access for agricultural goods is an essential part of the DDA negotiations on agriculture. A substantial improvement in market access for all agricultural and food products are politically essential for the success of the agreement on agriculture. Improvement in market access is by and large the most important of the three pillars for Pakistan in negotiations.
The fastest growing area in agriculture and food products is the trade occurring between developing countries. Since Pakistan has already made a considerable progress in unilaterally liberalising its agriculture trade, it is in its own interest to push for substantial tariff cuts by other developing countries. These benefits will come at virtually no cost to Pakistan. Thus Pakistan is expected to propose limited special and differential treatment for developing countries, especially for the high income developing countries. Under the existing agreement on agriculture, Pakistan can introduce virtually any amount of green box programs, such as research and development, marketing assistance, domestic food aid, infrastructure and input subsidies.
 In addition, Pakistan can introduce new amber box programs, as long as they do not exceed the 10% de minimus level. In order to gain policy space, Pakistan can push for large reductions in domestic support in developed countries; Pakistan would need this political cover to defend the tariff cuts that it may be forced to accept. The cuts in domestic support in the EU & US may provide benefits to Pakistani exports, the sources added. Commenting on export subsidies, the source said Pakistan expects that an outcome on export competition in Nairobi should constitute a very significant and meaningful outcome. Apparently, benefits to Pakistan for their elimination may, in fact, be negative because of NFIDC status, however, Pakistan is now self sufficient in staple food supplies, rather "we face issues of competitiveness of agriculture commodities due to price depressions," sources added. 
The Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM) allows developing countries to raise tariffs temporarily to deal with import surges and price falls. The SSMs are invoked to protect the poor and vulnerable farmers with smaller triggers and bigger tariff increases. Pakistan has no offensive interests in SSM, as this can be used against its exports by developing countries; therefore, Pakistan will not push it too much. Politically, China and Turkey are pushing for SSM so Pakistan will not come to the forefront to oppose this decision. Bangladesh, on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group, presented a draft submission that outlines the group's priorities in negotiations with fellow WTO members ahead of the organisation's 10th ministerial conference.
 Four elements of interest to LDCs - namely, duty-free quota-free (DFQF) market access, more favourable rules of origin, the operationalisation of the services waiver, and cotton - led to the adoption of decisions during the WTO's last ministerial conference in Bali, Indonesia two years ago. Since then, the group's focus has mainly consisted in turning some of these outcomes into legally-binding decisions. According to the draft document, WTO members agreed last month at a dedicated session of the organisation's Committee for Trade and Development that the secretariat would complete a study on the implementation of Hong Kong ministerial decision on DFQF market access by mid-November 2015. This study will serve as a tool to provide "necessary inputs towards finding convergence" in implementing DFQF market access "in time" for the Nairobi conference, the draft submission says. 
"Preference granting countries shall make DFQF market access binding through appropriate scheduling," the document suggests. The 2013 Bali decision on DFQF market access called on developed and developing country members in a position to do so "to improve" their existing DFQF coverage if they have not yet provided such market access for at least 97 percent of products originating from LDCs. Last year, some countries - China, India, and Chile - made announcements in that regard, with Chile submitting a formal notification. Many LDCs benefit from non-reciprocal preferences, which are granted primarily by developed countries. Applying DFQF to all LDCs, however, could effectively result in some of these countries losing some of the competitive advantages that these preferences have provided.
 With no substantial progress on DFQF in recent years, the debate has focused largely on potential gains under a 97 percent DFQF scheme versus full coverage and on related rules of origin. According to some informed sources, the LDC Group is proposing to resolve the DFQF issue for all LDCs by conducting a tariff line analysis with regards to clothing. The objective is to determine which tariff lines should be included under DFQF while preserving preferences under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the Cotonou Partnership Agreement. These allow the US and the EU, respectively, to provide trade preferences to specific LDCs. "If the issue surfaces in Nairobi Ministerial, which is not evident as of now, Pakistan would reiterate its stance earlier taken in Hong Kong Ministerial and would strongly resist any decision in this regard," said an official document.
The draft submission also praised the results of indications made at the high-level meeting held this past February regarding the planned preferential treatment to LDC services and service suppliers, in line with the 2013 Bali decision on the operationalisation of the services waiver, as well as the notifications submitted so far. Ahead of the Nairobi ministerial, the document further encouraged the actual notification of preferences to the Council for Trade in Services (CTS), including information about "preferential treatment made available, the sectors or sub-sectors concerned and the period of time during which the member is intending to maintain those preferences." Some sources indicated that LDCs have also been exploring ways of extending the waiver beyond market access.
Though there is a provision in the waiver decision to allow such an extension, notifications so far - with a few exceptions - have restricted themselves to Article 16 of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), which deals with market access. Non-market access measures are not automatically covered, but can be authorised by the WTO CTS. The LDC Group's draft submission links the definition of "preferential treatment" in the context of the services' waiver to "the removal of restrictions, and/or the provision of, special access or procedures, in favour of LDC suppliers over non-LDC suppliers, unless the preference is accorded to LDCs drawn from other pre-existing or future preferential arrangements." In this vein, the document encourages preference-granting members which have already notified to improve their notifications. 
According to some experts familiar with the draft submission, the inclusion of a paragraph related to the reduction of administrative procedures and fees for visas, work permits, resident permits, and licenses in favour of LDC service suppliers and independent professionals appears to be important, though is likely to be very sensitive to address. In cases where preferential treatment was given to LDCs based on existing commitments or from their applied regimes that contain restrictions, the document stipulates that WTO members "shall remove such restrictions for LDCs.
" The document also calls for a modification of the duration of the services waiver so that notified preferences can apply for 15 years from the date of notification. Pakistan has no objection on the services waiver for LDCs. The draft submission also calls upon preference-granting countries to streamline and simplify preferential rules of origin (RoO) so that these are no more barriers to LDCs to fully avail their non-reciprocal market access opportunities. An informal open-ended consultation on preferential rules of origin for LDCs held on Tuesday reportedly examined a formal proposal on the subject from the LDC Group, in the context of the overall Nairobi ministerial preparations.
However, sources familiar with the meeting noted that reactions to the rules of origin proposal were mixed, with some delegations raising concerns that the terms were too ambitious given the few weeks remaining before the ministerial conference. Other questions that were raised included whether some of the proposal's elements would entail creating legally-binding obligations, along with whether the terms of the proposal were significantly different to what is covered in the 2013 Bali decision on the subject. "If any ministerial decision is proposed, Pakistan would analyse the situation and then decide, however, as of now, no such proposal is in the pipeline. Generally, Pakistan has no defensive interests in this proposal," the sources added. The draft submission also refers to the difficult issue of cotton, calling for a "satisfactory solution" on the subject as part of the Nairobi decisions.
 The document raises four points related to DFQF market access for cotton and cotton-by products specifically; the reduction and elimination of domestic support and cotton export subsidies; as well as technical and financial assistance". Regarding food security, the draft submission calls for a ban on applying export restrictions by any non-LDC WTO member on foodstuffs imported by LDCs if the exporting member is a net exporter of the foodstuff concerned. The text also provides for an exemption of the de minimis calculation for purchase of food at administered prices by LDCs under public stockholding schemes for food security purposes. Pakistan has not yet fully committed to DFQF on cotton; however, we have given positive signals to DFQF on C4 proposal and have also highlighted Pakistan's efforts to regularise its cotton sector. 
http://www.brecorder.com/agriculture-a-allied/183/1256620/

Stripper front fits no­-till bill

TOM MCKENNY
17 Dec, 2015 01:00 AM
THEY'RE cheaper on fuel, easier on harvesters and process more grain than straw, and may fit the bill in no­-till, but they’re not for everyone.That’s the feedback from a series of demonstrations of a Shelbourne Reynolds stripper front run by the east coast distributor, NSW Deere dealer Hutcheon and Pearce that took insouthern NSW and Victoria.Farmers from Victoria’s Streatham district watched the front in action stripping an Oxford barley crop last week.
Fitted with a rotating front drum with six rows of stripping fingers rather than a standard draper style feeder, the Shelbourne has been extensively used in rice for many years in Australia but is making in­roads into conventional cereal crops with interest coming from no-tillers wanting to maximise the preservation of standing stubble.
Hutcheon and Pearce sales consultant Myles O’Kane said the fronts were a rice harvesting favourite as they minimise the amount of trash going through the header ­which in rice often still sports shades of green.“The Shelbourne has a combing action with fingers guiding the crop into a keyhole which strips the head off,” he said.The hydraulically driven rotating stripper drum has six rows of stainless steel combing fingers that are fitted in replaceable 60cm sections.Mr O’Kane said the drum was “designed to run as slow as possible at around 450 to­ 500 rpm”, was designed for cereal crops and would suit no­-till systems.“It is a cereal front and you look at the machine as a tool in your cropping system -­ it is not a direct replacement for a draper front -­ it is another purpose built tool.”The demonstration at Streatham saw a Shelbourne XCV42 (42’ / 12.8 m) designed to suit 12.2/36 metre CTF application, fitted to an Emmett’s supplied John Deere S680. The demo program has generated keen interest according to Mr O’Kane.“Everyone has been pretty excited by the results it is leaving - they like the idea that you are not putting all the straw through the harvester and throwing it out the backside," he said.

Tom McKenny is the national machinery writer for Fairfax Agricultural Media

http://www.farmweekly.com.au/news/agriculture/machinery/general-news/stripper-front-fits-notill-bill/2749692.aspx

Turning rice farming waste to useful silica compounds

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
The researcher who developed the process says it could save approximately six tons of carbon emissions per ton of silica compounds produced. He estimates the cost of the technique to be 90 percent less than the current process, with virtually no carbon footprint.Developed by Richard Laine, a professor of materials science and engineering, the new technique is believed to be the first simple, inexpensive chemical method for producing high-purity silica compounds from agricultural waste.Much of the world's agricultural waste contains silica, and the search for a practical way to extract it stretches back 80 years.
 While the new process could be used to produce silica and silicon-containing chemicals from many types of agricultural waste, Laine focused on using the hulls left over from processing rice.The hull is the outermost layer of the rice grain. It's removed when rice is processed. Hundreds of millions of tons of the hulls are produced around the world every year. Many are burned to produce electricity, and the ash that's left over contains high levels of silica. Some of this ash is used in construction or as insulation, but much of it is dumped in landfills.But while the world is awash in silica-rich rice hull ash, getting that silica out has proven to be a major challenge. The difficulty stems mostly from the incredibly strong chemical bond between silicon and oxygen, one of the strongest that exists in nature.
Laine found two easy and inexpensive ways to break that bond: ethylene glycol, or antifreeze, and ethanol, or grain alcohol. The antifreeze combined with a small amount of sodium hydroxide weakens the chemical bonds between the silica and the rice hull ash at the beginning of the process, dissolving the silica into a liquid solution.The solution is then heated to 390 degrees Celsius, forming a polymer of silica and antifreeze. While this stage does require energy, it's more than offset by the energy produced when the rice hulls are burned at the beginning of the process. And because the carbon released when the hulls are burned was previously absorbed by the rice plant, the process is considered carbon-neutral. The heating produces a silica-antifreeze polymer that's then filtered to remove the ash.
Grain alcohol is then added at the end of the process. It's chemically similar to antifreeze, so it easily swaps in to replace the antifreeze, which is then recycled. The liquid silica can then be distilled out of this second solution and used to make a high-purity precipitated silica product for industrial use.Laine has formed a Michigan company, Mayasil, to commercialize the technology. Headquartered in Ann Arbor, It's in the process of building a 'pre-pilot' plant that will be used to develop a scaled up manufacturing process. If the scale-up is successful, Laine predicts that it will fundamentally change the way silica products are made and used."I think eventually, we'll be producing high-purity silica and other silicon compounds right next to the rice fields," Laine said. "It will be possible to process rice and produce high-grade silica in a single location with little or no carbon footprint. It's really very exciting."
###
Laine recently received the 2015 Michigan Green Chemistry Governor's Award from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for his work on this. Mayasil is a spinoff of Mayaterials, a company Laine founded in 2003 i
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-12/uom-trf121715.php

Rice numbers may shake out differently, but result is same: Part II

Dec 17, 2015Forrest Laws  | Delta Farm Press
The Rice Outlook Conference typically includes state outlook reports where Extension economists look at their crystal balls and try to figure out what growers will plant the following year. Unfortunately, most of the crystal ball gazing is producing negative numbers for 2016, says Texas A&M University’s Joe Outlaw. It’s not just rice, but other crops aren’t looking any better at this juncture, he says
http://deltafarmpress.com/rice/rice-numbers-may-shake-out-differently-result-same-part-ii
Gov’t eyes 300-400K MT add’l rice imports in ’16 amid El Niño

By: Ben O. de Vera
@BenArnolddeVera
Philippine Daily Inquirer
01:40 AM December 18th, 2015
 THE GOVERNMENT may have to import a lower volume of excess rice ranging between 300,000 and 400,000 metric tons in the first half of 2016 on improved domestic production prospects, the country’s chief economist said on Thursday.“We have the results of the latest survey of the areas or hectares actually planted [with rice] and farmers’ intention to plant. This was done after Typhoon ‘Lando.’ It turned out that the expected production for the first quarter of next year and even the harvest this year would be higher than what was initially estimated,” National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Director-General and Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan told reporters.
Earlier, Balisacan said the government may have to import up to 1.3 million metric tons of rice on top of the 500,000 metric tons already ordered for the first half of 2016.“We don’t need that much of rice imports now. We probably need to import around 300,000 to 400,000 metric tons,” Balisacan said.This intervention formed part of the Roadmap to Address the Impact of El Niño (Rain), aimed at mitigating the dry spell’s impact on food supply, ensuring stability of food prices, as well as providing assistance to farmers and households in affected areas.
The budget needed to be spent on El Niño mitigation projects may reach P19 billion, Balisacan said.The Neda chief said President Aquino approved the budget for Rain last week, of which P6.6 billion was already appropriated in the 2015 budget while the rest would be sourced from government savings.Balisacan added that also to be part of Rain are an assistance package for affected farmers and well as a cash for work program.“There will be additional sources of income for farmers or rural population who would be adversely affected by the drought. With these interventions, we would expect to generate an additional 200,000 or 300,000 metric tons [of rice], so that in effect reduces substantially the need to import,” he said
http://business.inquirer.net/204284/govt-eyes-300-400k-mt-addl-rice-imports-in-16-amid-el-nino#ixzz3ufFLYZ3o
Vietnam exports around 6.55 tons of rice in 2015: VFA
The Vietnam Food Administration (VFA), the country's food safety watchdog, said that Vietnam exported nearly 6.55 tons of rice of all kinds, of which high-grade white rice and fragrant rice accounted for 47 percent.VFA said that the country is likely to export around 1.5 million tons of corss-border rice to China. High-grade and fragrant rice continued keeping high proportion in export of the agricultural produce.
For instance, in the first 11 months of the year, high-grade white rice accounted for nearly 28.5 percent of the whole amount of rice for export, an increase of 36.5 percent compared to same period of 2014 and fragrant rice was 23 percent of total amount of rice for export, an increase of 18.5 percent compared last year.Major market for Vietnam rice export is nation in Asia with the percentage of 74 percent. Price of exported rice maintains US$375 per ton, an increase of US$35 a ton compared to October. VFA predicted it is a difficult year for the country’s rice export because of low demand in the first two month of 2016.In addition, it will face fierce competition with Thai’s rice in stockpile.
http://www.saigon-gpdaily.com.vn/Business/2015/12/116807/

Mali: rice harvest shoots up by 13% from 2014


Mali has produced 2,451,321 tonnes of rice as it approaches the end of the 2015/16 harvest, up 13 percent from last season but short of an initial forecast, government statistics showed on Thursday.The landlocked country, the second-largest rice producer in Africa behind Nigeria, will largely finish harvesting this month and continue marketing its production next year.The remaining harvesting is unlikely to add significantly to the season's total output.
"The increase this year is generally explained by good rain, an increase in planted land, new strains like 'Nerica', the use of more fertiliser especially with the help of subsidies," said Balla Keia, head the rural development ministry's statistics division.Last season, the West African country produced 2,166,830 tonnes of paddy rice and had projected a record 2,599,450 tonne rice crop, with a surplus of 285,000 tonnes above expected domestic consumption.
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/world/Mali-rice-harvest-shoots-up-by-13-from-2014-401590

Mali produces 2.45 mln T of rice as 2015/16 harvest nears end

Thu Dec 17, 2015 12:27pm GMT
 BAMAKO Dec 17 (Reuters) - Mali has produced 2,451,321 tonnes of rice as it approaches the end of the 2015/16 harvest, up 13 percent from last season but short of an initial forecast, government statistics showed on Thursday.The landlocked country, the second-largest rice producer in Africa behind Nigeria, will largely finish harvesting this month and continue marketing its production next year.The remaining harvesting is unlikely to add significantly to the season's total output.
"The increase this year is generally explained by good rain, an increase in planted land, new strains like 'Nerica', the use of more fertiliser especially with the help of subsidies," said Balla Keia, head the rural development ministry's statistics division.Last season, the West African country produced 2,166,830 tonnes of paddy rice and had projected a record 2,599,450 tonne rice crop, with a surplus of 285,000 tonnes above expected domestic consumption. (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo; writing by Makini Brice; editing by Joe Bavier and Jason Neely)

Rice Importers Shun Lagos Ports

17 Dec 2015
Comptroller-General of Customs, Colonel Hameed Ali (retired)

John Iwori
As the Yuletide countdown begins, Nigerian importers have shunned the nation’s seaports situated in Nigeria’s commercial centre, Lagos, THISDAY checks have revealed.Lagos is home to Nigeria’s busiest port, Apapa. It is also home to the largest port in the country, Tin Can Island Port (TCIP), Apapa, among other terminals dedicated to specific cargoes.THISDAY checks showed that Nigeria’s staple food and the most sought after commodity in this period of the year, rice is no longer imported into the country through the nation’s seaports, especially the ones situated in Lagos.It was gathered that most importers now prefer using the international land borders, particularly Seme and Idiroko.
This followed the decision of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to lift the ban on the use of the international land borders to import rice into the country.Already, NCS has revealed that not less than N1.2 billion has been raked in as revenue generated from rice imports through the land borders in October and November 2015.It also said a total quantity of rice imported through the land borders stood at 17.596 metric tons (MT). The amount generated has given credence to the decision of the NCS to allow importers and licensed customs agents to use of Nigeria’s international borders to import the staple commodity into the country.CS said in a statement that these figures were disclosed at a strategy session convened by the Comptroller-General of Customs, Colonel Hameed Ali (retired).
Ali was said to have convened the meeting at NCS Headquarters, Abuja which was attended by the top echelon of the service to review revenue performance for 2015.According to the statement, two months ago, the Comptroller-General of NCS had approved the removal of the restriction placed on importation of rice through the land borders.“The removal was predicated on the large scale rice smuggling through the land borders, resulting to huge revenue loss and distortions in the price of the item in the local markets .
The huge collection in just two months has vindicated our position. If we had stuck to our previous directive, this much quantum of rice would still have been smuggled anyway, and we would have lost over a billion naira revenue as this critical period of our economic downtown,” NCS said.Meanwhile, data collated by the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) and obtained by THISDAY showed the vessels and various cargoes expected in the country from now till January 1, 2016.The data popularly called “Shipping Position” showed that out of the 30 vessels expected within the period under review, none of them is laden with rice.
The Shipping Position, also revealed that within the period under review none of the vessels is carrying the staple commodity.According to the data, three key terminals in Lagos Port Complex (LPC), Apapa known for the handling of bulk cargo including rice were not any vessel laden with the commodity. The terminals, ENL, ABTL and GDNL were not expecting to receive rice in the period under review.The NPA document shows that the ENL Terminals would receive 12,895 MT of general cargoes, which are not likely to include rice. Other cargoes expected at the bulk terminals include 3,496MT of fish and 27,500MT of bulk fertiliser expected to arrive at ENL Terminals this month.
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/rice-importers-shun-lagos-ports/228265/
Arkansas Farm Bureau Daily Commodity Report
            Rice
High
Low
Long Grain Cash Bids
- - -
- - -
Long Grain New Crop
- - -
- - -


Futures:
High
Low
Last
Change
Jan '16
1099.5
1086.0
1095.5
+5.5
Mar '16
1126.0
1113.0
1122.0
+5.0
May '16
1155.5
1150.0
1152.0
+5.5
Jul '16
1170.0
1170.0
1178.0
+4.5
Sep '16
1175.0
1175.0
1178.5
+1.5
Nov '16
1180.0
+1.5
Jan '17
1180.0
+1.5

Rice Comment

Rice futures may be attempting to stabilize after the recent downturn which took over $1.50 off the market in a matter of a few short days. January is holding just below $11 but could retest support at the recent low of $10.76. Below that level, support is the contract low of $10.20. The domestic cash market is quiet and export demand is slow as well, which is typically the case around the holidays. Global rice stocks are forecast to decrease for the third year in a row as consumption is expected to outpace production, which means there could be some upside potential in this market
APEDA Rice commodity News
International Benchmark Price
Price on: 17-12-2015
Product
Benchmark Indicators Name
Price
Rice
1
CZCE Early Rice Futures (USD/t)
396
2
Pakistani 100%, FOB Karachi (USD/t)
318
3
Pakistani 15% Broken (USD/t)
315
Wheat
1
CZCE Wheat Futures (USD/t)
404
2
NYSE Liffe Feed Wheat Futures (USD/t)
166
3
NYSE Liffe Milling Wheat Futures (USD/t)
191
Sultanas
1
Australian 5 Crown, CIF UK (USD/t)
2879
2
South African Orange River, CIF UK (USD/t)
2569
3
Turkish No 9 standard, FOB Izmir (USD/t)
1900
Source:agra-net
For more info
Market Watch
Commodity-wise, Market-wise Daily Price on 17-12-2015
Domestic Prices
Unit Price : Rs per Qty
Product
Market Center
Variety
Min Price
Max Price
Maize
1
Davangere (Karnataka)
Local
1300
1450
2
Rahata (Maharashtra)
Other
1350
1375
3
Dahod (Gujarat )
Yellow 
1475
1525
Paddy(Dhan)
1
Pulpally (Kerala)
Other
1800
2000
2
Dehgam (Gujarat)
Other
1320
1375
3
Sainthia (West Bengal)
Common
1030
1050
Orange
1
Ropar (Punjab)
Other
1000
1800
2
Chala (Kerala)
Other
2000
2100
3
Mechua (West Bengal)
Other
2300
2700
Cauliflower
1
Thodupuzha (Kerala)
Other
2800
3200
2
Shillong(Meghalaya)
Other
1700
2300
3
Ahmedabad (Gujarat)
Other
1000
1600
For more info
Egg
Rs per 100 No
Price on 17-12-2015
Product
Market Center
Price
1
Pune
443
2
Chittoor
418
3
Hyderabad
403
Source: e2necc.com
Other International Prices
Unit Price : US$ per package
Price on 17-12-2015
Product
Market Center
Origin
Variety
Low
High
Onions Dry
Package: 50 lb sacks
1
Atlanta
Texas   
Yellow
13.50
13.50
2
Chicago
Nevada  
Yellow
13
14
3
Dallas
Colorado
Yellow
15
16.75
Cabbage
Package: 50 lb cartons
1
Atlanta
Georgia
Round Green Type
10
10
2
Detroit
Texas
Round Green Type
16.50
16.50
3
Miami
Georgia
Round Green Type
12
14
Grapefruit
Package: 4/5 bushel cartons
1
Atlanta
Florida
Red
22
22
2
Chicago
Florida 
Red
19.50
23
3
Miami
Florida
Red
17
18
Source:USDA

Agents Back Lifting of Ban on Rice Importation through Land Borders

17 Dec 2015
Association of Licensed Customs Agents

Sandra Ukele
Licensed customs agents in the country have hailed the decision of the Comptroller-General of Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), Colonel Hameed Ali (rtd) to lift the ban on rice importation through the land borders.Describing it as a “welcome development”, the customs licensed agents said the move would help Nigeria curtail the losses arising from the old policy.
They, however, stated that rice millers are now importing the staple commodity into the country instead of producing it.
The agents, under the auspices of the Association of Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Seme Chapter told journalists in Seme that the idea behind the new pronouncement by the CGC should be encouraged.They argued that the move was a way of creating the needed job opportunity in the country and boost the nation’s economy through farming in this sector besides helping to diversify the economy from depending on oil.According to the agents, the only way to stop smuggling of the product was to stop the millers of the same staple food from turning themselves into importers rather than concentrate on their milling business.
One of the agents who did not want his name in print said: “I think we should not look at this issue from any sentiment but from logical point of view. My view is that I do not think anybody will go through the borders to incur extra cost unless there is an intention to defraud government. I think as of now this process of going through the land borders does not do that.“We must support our local farmers. We strongly advise the Customs to suspend the lifting of ban on rice through land borders and continue to operate through the sea borders.” Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) PAKRISTO Maritime Company Limited Mr. Patrick Ozobialu said: “When you talk about rice production in a country, it is not something you start today and tomorrow you start getting result. It is a gradual thing.
It takes over a ten years planning."But now you cannot say because you want to stop the importation of rice through the land border. That means they should be coming in through the sea.  And through the sea you know that it is only one man that is licensed to bring rice through there So what they are saying is that rice should not come through any other source except through the sea and we know that it is only one man that is importing rice through the sea and now he is using a proxy in the senate to champion this his course.”

Ozobialu added: “I it should not be sold more than N6,000. So you see when one  a civil servant collects N18,000 minimum wage, he goes to market to buy a bag of rice at either N9,800 or N11,000 how would the person buy other things needed in the house and does such worker meet up with other necessities of the family? But normally with crayfish and pepper you can prepare this staple food for the family but if we are paid such ridiculous amount as wages and we buy rice at N11,000 then how much would be left for other expenses?”

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/agents-back-lifting-of-ban-on-rice-importation-through-land-borders/228259/

LSU AgCenter, LSU College of Agriculture, Southern Ag Center announce faculty, staff award winners

By Maddy Williams | mwilliams@ktalnews.tv
Published 12/17 2015 04:47AM
Updated 12/17 2015 04:47AM
   Writer: Craig Gautreaux
BATON ROUGE, La.—

 The LSU AgCenter, the LSU College of Agriculture and the Southern University AgCenter announced the winners of their annual faculty and staff awards at a ceremony held Dec. 16 at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden.Jimmy Meaux, Calcasieu Parish county agent, was the recipient of the Floyd S. Edmiston Award for his exceptional work with the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service. Meaux spent 20 years working with youth during the early part of his career but is now primarily responsible for agricultural and natural resources within his parish, including work with row crops and animal enterprises such as crawfish and cattle.

The Extension Excellence award went to Terrebonne Parish county agent Barton Joffrion. He has spent his entire 39-year career in the parish. He started as a 4-H agent, served as a fisheries agent and now is primarily doing horticultural work. Joffrion played an instrumental role in establishing an urban forestry board in Houma and is working on a research project with area Master Gardeners pertaining to the crape myrtle bark scale.Dustin Harrell, the LSU AgCenter rice specialist stationed at the H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station in Crowley, received the G&H Seed Company Inc. Research Award. Harrell helped identify a nutrient deficiency problem in Louisiana rice fields that was causing significant yield loss and came up with recommendations to rectify the problem. He has also done extensive work in ratoon stubble management leading to higher yields on ratoon or second-growth rice crops.
 The recipient of the Doyle Chambers Research Award was Eric Webster, a weed scientist with the AgCenter. He is responsible for developing rice weed management strategies, which in Louisiana are unique because of the abundance of fields that are used for both rice and crawfish production. Webster is also responsible for testing new rice varieties and their susceptibility to damage from herbicides.The Denver T. and Ferne Loupe Extension Team Award was presented to the Louisiana Master Farmer Program group. Team members are Ernest Girouard, Master Farmer coordinator; James Hendrix, northeast region Master Farmer agent; Allen Hogan, southern region Master Farmer agent; and Donna Morgan, central region Master Farmer agent. The Louisiana Master Farmer program was established by an act of the Louisiana legislature, and more than 200 farmers have completed the program and are certified Master Farmers.

The Rice Sheath Blight Resistance Team was named the Tipton Team Research Team Award winners. Members of the team are plant pathologists Don Groth and Jong Ham, rice breeder Steve Linscombe and agronomist Jim Oard. The group is responsible for developing new rice varieties that are resistant the sheath blight, the most common and prevalent disease found in rice produced throughout the southern U.S. The team also makes recommendations on rice growing methods that can reduce the incidences of sheath blight.
 Vermilion Parish 4-H agents Shannan Waits and Hilton Waits received the 4-H Youth Development Faculty Award. The two were instrumental in the development of a new service-learning project called Keeping Louisiana on the Map. The project focuses on raising environmental awareness of coastal erosion and includes activities such as beach sweeps, wetlands planting and field trips to important coastal research centers.
 Two staff members were recognized for their efforts. Carol LeDoux, administrative program specialist for the H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station and Southwest Region in Crowley, received the Ganelle Bullock Outstanding Service Award. Gerry Romero, a research associate at the Central Research Station in Baton Rouge, was named the winner of the Outstanding Service Award for Associates.
 Richard Keim, associate professor in the AgCenter’s School of Renewable Natural Resources, was the winner of the 2015 Article of the Year for Louisiana Agriculture magazine with his article on water management on Catahoula Lake and the implications of woody vegetation. Also, service awards were presented to two faculty members for their three years of service on the magazine’s editorial board. They are Dustin Harrell, agronomist and state rice specialist, and Michael Blazier, a forestry associate professor at the Hill Farm Research Station in Homer.
 For the Southern University Ag Center, Fatemah Malekian, professor in nutrition and food science, was named the winner of the Chancellor’s Outstanding Research Scientist Award. Kenyetta Nelson-Smith, associate specialist in community and economic development received the Chancellor’s Outstanding Specialist Award. The winner of the Chancellor’s Outstanding Faculty Award was Andra Johnson, assistant director of research in the School of Agriculture, Research, Extension and Applied Sciences at Alcorn State University.
 Receiving the LSU College of Agriculture Teaching Awards were Kayanush Aryana, professor in the School of Animal Sciences; Jeff Beasley, associate professor in the School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences; Brian Marx, professor in the Department of Experimental Statistics; Georgianna Turri, associate professor in the School of Nutrition and Food Sciences; and Maud Walsh, a professor in the School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences.

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