News Headlines...
·
Prices of imported rice,
maize slide at Mile 12 market
·
NFA tells rice traders to
guard vs extortion
·
Ready-to-serve rice cups as
easy as ABC to prepare for back-to-school meals
·
Trilochan Mohapatra takes
charge as IARI's new director
·
Ugandan rice farmers visit
Mwea to learn new skills
·
Rice institute teaches
1,000 delta farmers
·
For rice, gray skies meant bleak
prospects
·
Partnership to accelerate
rice research and product development in China
·
Dow licenses genome-editing
method for use in Chinese rice research
·
Study Shows How Rice Plants
Defend Against Invading Pathogens
·
B2B contacts a must to
expedite Pakistan-Brunei trade’
News Detail...
Prices of imported rice, maize slide at Mile
12 market
The prices of imported rice and maize on Friday slightly
decreased at the Mile 12 market in Lagos State for the week ended, August 28,
a commodity index sheet made available by Novus Agro Nigeria Ltd said on
Friday.The index showed that the price of a 50kg bag of imported rice which now
sells for N8,567 was sold at N8,700.While the price of a paint bucket
measurement remained the same at N800 at the market.It also showed that the
price of a 100kg bag of maize reduced by about N500; it now sells for N6,000 but
was sold at N6,433 the previous week.However, the price of a paint bucket
measurement remained the same.Meanwhile, other agricultural commodities like
Garri, Sorghum, Drum Beans and Soya Beans sold at the same price as last week.A
100kg bag of soya beans is now selling at N15,000 at the same price as last
week; the paint bucket measure also remained the same at N550.
A 60kg bag of white garri also remained the same as last week at
N6,000, while the paint bucket measurement sold at N300.The prices of 100kg
bags of groundnut and sorghum sold at the same as last week at N25,000 and
N6,500 and the paint bucket measurement at N1,000 and N350 respectively.While a
100kg bag of drum beans also did not change in price as it remained the same at
N23,000, while a paint bucket measurement sold at N800.Also, the prices of a
100kg bag of onions and a 25 litres of palm oil remained the same at N9,083 and
N6,800, while a 2kg bag and a bottle of palm oil sold at N308 and N220
respectively.Obiajuru Luya, Strategy Manager of the agro company, said that the
enforcement of some Federal Government policies on imported rice could be the
reason for the reduction in prices.
“The reduction in the price of imported rice may not be
unassociated with the recent ban on forex trading for rice importation. As
well, the sealing of the warehouses of major rice importers by the Nigerian
Customs Service could have impacted on the prices. This led to the influx
of many other products at the time, so, the effects are probably manifesting in
the prices of the products,’’ Luya said.She added that the old stocks of maize
were running out and most markets did not have the new stock yet.
http://businessdayonline.com/2015/08/prices-of-imported-rice-maize-slide-at-mile-12-market/
NFA tells rice traders to guard vs extortion
ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted
at 08/28/2015 6:26 PM
MANILA -- The National Food Authority (NFA) warned rice traders
to be vigilant against people claiming to be NFA officials trying to extort
money in exchange for import permits.NFA Administrator Reynan Dalisay said no
person in the agency is authorized to collect such fees.The NFA has received
reports that someone is using Dalisay's name to extort money from rice traders
who applied to import rice under the minimum access volume (MAV)
importation.Dalisay added that as long as rice importers have complied with
documentary requirements, they can expect their permits to be processed and
released.For 2015, MAV total import volume is 805,200 metric tons under the
country specific quota (MAV-CSQ) and omnibus origin (MAV-OO) with a 35% tariff.
The volume of importation and general guidelines were published in a newspaper,
and are available through the NFA website.
Also available in the website are information on the eligibility
requirements, allowed rice varieties, issuance of certificate of eligibility
(COE), validation of documents, processing fee and other procedures.Rice
importation under the MAV is pursuant to Republic Act No. 8178 also known as
the Agricultural Tariffication Act where the government adopts "the use of
tariffs in lieu of non-tariff import restrictions to protect local producers of
agricultural products, except in the case of rice, which will continue to have
quantitative import restrictions."The MAV is the quantity of a specific
agricultural product that is allowed to be imported in a MAV allotment year at
the in-quota tariff rate or at a lower tariff as committed by the Philippines
to the World Trade Organization (WTO) under the Uruguay Round Final Act.
The MAV for rice is exclusively imported by the NFA in
accordance with PD No. 4 and Philippine commitments under the Uruguay Round
Final Act. Under the law, the NFA can allocate MAV rice importation quota to
the private sector.Dalisay said that a list of importer-applicants for MAV,
along with other information as to the volume, source country, authorized
representative and status of their application are published in the NFA
website.He also appealed to all rice traders to report to the NFA office any
person claiming to be the NFA administrator, or any information against
extortion or bribery involving the agency.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/business/08/28/15/nfa-tells-rice-traders-guard-vs-extortion
Ready-to-serve rice cups as easy as ABC to prepare for back-to-school meals
August 27, 2015. 3:08 pm • Section:
Life
Looking for quick and easy dishes for the busy back-to-school time
that’s almost upon us?
How about rice that’s done in just
one minute? That’s how long it takes to prepare Minute Rice Ready To Serve
Cups, which are available in six varieties — Basmati, Whole Grain, Oriental
Style, Vegetable Medley, Long Grain and Wild Rice .Some varieties feature plain
rice that can be enjoyed on their own or as a base for a meal, such as the
Basmati and Whole Grain. Others, such as Oriental Style, contain additional
ingredients like peas, sweet red pepper, mushrooms and onions in a light
soy-flavoured base. A favourite among kids is the Vegetable Medley, which
blends peas, carrots and corn with long grain rice.They cost about $2.75 for a
sleeve of two 125-gram microwaveable cups.Cooking with Minute Rice Ready to
Serve Cups is as easy as ABC. Here are some recipes to whet your appetite:
Chicken Vegetable Rice Crunch
MINUTE RICE photo
Minute Rice Chicken Vegetable
Rice Crunch
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
1 Minute Rice Ready to Serve Cup – Vegetable Medley
Quantities of your choice of:
Cooked shredded chicken
Ranch dressing
Chopped nuts
Sliced celery
Sliced radish
Shredded lettuce
Pita bread
Instructions:
1. Heat Minute Rice Ready to Serve Cup – Vegetable Medley in microwave, per
package instructions.
2. Transfer to bowl, and add cooked shredded chicken and ranch dressing.
3. Stir in chopped nuts, sliced celery, sliced radish and shredded lettuce.
4. Stuff into pita halves
Cranberry Pecan Rice MINUTE RICE
photo
Minute Rice Cranberry Pecan
Basmati Rice
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
1 Minute Rice Ready to Serve Cup – Basmati Rice
Quantities of your choice of:
Dried cranberries
Toasted pecans
Melted Butter
Orange zest
Instructions:
1. Heat Minute Rice Ready to Serve Cup Basmati Rice in microwave, per package
instructions.
2. Add dried cranberries, toasted pecans and butter.
3. Stir-in orange zest.
Chicken Wild Rice MINUTE RICE photo
Minute Rice Chicken and Wild
Rice Salad
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
1 Minute Rice® Ready to Serve Cup – Long Grain & Wild Rice – Chicken
Flavour
Quantities of your choice of:
Diced fully cooked chicken breast
Sliced fresh snow peas
Sliced red onion
Mandarin orange segments
Sesame orange salad dressing (store bought)
Instructions:
1. Heat Minute Rice Ready to Serve Cup – Long Grain & Wild Rice – Chicken
Flavour in microwave, per package instructions.
2. Add diced chicken breast, snow peas and sliced red onion.
3. Stir in mandarin orange segments and sesame orange salad dressing.
Optional:
Serve on a bed of salad greens
http://blogs.leaderpost.com/2015/08/27/ready-to-serve-rice-cups-as-easy-as-abc-to-prepare-for-back-to-school-meals/#sthash.078Qfu4Q.dpuf
Trilochan Mohapatra
takes charge as IARI's new director
Posted
on: 05:57
PM IST Aug 29, 2015
New Delhi: Indian Agricultural Research
Institute (IARI), which played a major role in the country's Green Revolution,
has appointed Trilochan Mohapatra as its new director after remaining headless
for more than a year.Mohapatra, previously head of Odisha-based Central Rice
Research Institute, has taken charge as the new director of IARI with effect
from Friday.
Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), which played a major
role in the country's Green Revolution, has appointed Trilochan Mohapatra as
its new director."It is a big responsibility. This premier institute has
done tremendously well so far. But there is more to be done and our efforts
will be on how best IARI can contribute to the nation building to uplift farmers' condition and remain globally
competitive," Mohapatra said after assuming charge.Mohapatra, who has been
working in the area of molecular genetics and genomics, has published over 145
research papers in national and international journals of repute.
He has developed the first high-yielding basmati rice variety
resistant to bacterial sequencing of rice and tomato.IARI's last director was H
S Gupta, who after retirement, served the farm institute on extension till
March 2014. Since then, IARI has had two acting directors, K Vijayaraghavan
(former Joint Director - Extension) and Ravinder Kaur (Project Director of the
institute's Water Technology Centre).
Ugandan
rice farmers visit Mwea to learn new skills
By Munene Kamau
Updated
Monday, August 31st 2015 at 00:00 GMT +3 Share this
story: Efforts of an entrepreneur to improve the rice sector in Mwea have won
praise from many quarters, with farmers from Uganda visiting the area to learn
from the experience. After witnessing the exploitation of rice farmers, Charles
Njiru came up with an arrangement that has not only revolutionised the sector
but also improved the earnings for farmers. Mr Njiru introduced a godown where
rice farmers can preserve and dry their paddy before taking it for milling. He
said farmers who hitherto would sell their paddy from the field, were now able
to preserve their harvest and sell it when the prices went up. He later
introduced a rice mill. Currently, he has accommodated more than 2,000 rice
farmers who transact their rice business at Nice Rice Millers.
The busy facility located in Ngurubani market is now
well known and traders from all over Kenya and East Africa buy their rice from
the factory. See also: Governor Oparanya dismisses CORD rallies, asks them to
offer solutions “His model has attracted farmers from Uganda, who spent the
entire weekend learning of the success from the miller with the intention to
emulate the same in their country,” said David Njogu. The value-chain actors
from Uganda will be in Kenya for four days and apart from visiting Nice Rice
Millers, they will also interact with rice farmers in Mwea Irrigation Scheme. A
representative of Eastern Rice Millers Company in Tororo, Uganda Josiah Okeljo
said they handle over 90 per cent of lowland rice produced in the country and
would copy Njiru’s model to improve rice processing in Uganda
Rice
institute teaches 1,000 delta farmers
|
|
Around 1,000 farmers in the Mekong Delta received training in the
best rice cultivation and crop protection practices from the Cuu Long Delta
Rice Research Institute (CLRRI) and US conglomerate DuPont in Can Tho on
Thursday. — Photo baotainguyenmoitruong.vn
|
CAN THO (VNS)— Around 1,000 farmers in the Mekong Delta received
training in the best rice cultivation and crop protection practices from the
Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute (CLRRI) and US conglomerate DuPont in
Can Tho on Thursday.Farmers from Can Tho and the provinces of Long An, Dong
Thap, An Giang, Kien Giang, Hau Giang, and Soc Trang were taken to experimental
fields belonging to the two, and they also held discussions with researchers,
agronomists and experts from CLRRI and DuPont.On the agenda were crop
protection technologies, integrated pest management, stewardship principles,
proper use of personal protective equipment, label awareness, harmful effects
of fake products, and resistance management.
"Empowering farmers through agriculture technology
and information is crucial," Dr Ngo Luc Cuong, former principal researcher
in plant protection at CLRRI, said. "Farmers should be equipped with
knowledge and understanding of how to use crop protection products while
minimising environmental impacts."The safe use of the products is also an
important element underpinning sustainable agriculture."At the
experimental fields, the farmers were taught to clearly identify differences in
leaf colour and thickness, durability of the leaves and estimate potential
productivity."To meet the agricultural productivity challenges in Viet
Nam, the public and private sectors must work closely together to achieve
sustainable solutions," Sittideth Sriprateth, managing director of DuPont
Viet Nam, said."With the extensive knowledge of CLRRI's and DuPont's
experts, we have obtained some positive results initially. We will continue to
collaborate for further intensive researches." — VNS
http://vietnamnews.vn/society/275142/rice-institute-teaches-1000-delta-farmers.html
For rice, gray skies meant bleak prospects
(Photo: Submitted photo)
After
consecutive, prosperous years, Louisiana rice growers are struggling with a
crop that needed more sunshine.Steve Linscombe, professor and director of the
LSU Agcenter’s Rice Research Station near Crowley, said 2015’s output is no
disaster, but after a record-setting rice crop in 2013 and one almost as good
in 2014, this year represents a downturn.“We’re going to be off,” perhaps 10
percent, Linscombe said, although he said rice growers in north Louisiana,
which accounts for 20 percent of the crop, are still harvesting. Rice growers
in southern Louisiana, meanwhile, have largely gathered what they’ve sown, and
are reckoning with smaller yields and lower prices.
That’s
a disappointment, but after spring weather, it was not unexpected, Linscombe
said. At the Rice Research Station in March, April and May, more than half the
days had measurable rainfall or, worse, cloud cover. The greater problem was
the cloud cover.“We always do better when we have to pump water in the summer,”
he said. “That means we are getting a lot of sunshine.“You want radiant energy.
Any plant does better with sunshine.”But the rain was also problematic and caused
some damage to the crop. An indirect problem was additional problems with
disease, especially blast, more than in the previous three years. Part of the
expected yield decrease will be linked to that, Linscombe said.Rice Station
statistics show 410,902 acres were planted in 2013, 456,047 the following year.
Both were good years, with the average yield 7,600 pounds per acre in 2013 —
that was a record setter — and 7,539 the following year.
This
year, Linscombe said, the expectation is that the yield will be down some 8
percent to 10 percent.Rice farmers oftentimes have some backup plans, Linscombe
said, including a rotational crop like soybeans, crawfish and beef cattle.
Beef, he said, was the traditional choice 50 years ago; soybeans replaced it.
But soy, he said, can be erratic: This year’s crop may not be as good as last.
Crawfish,
he said, is what many area rice growers depend upon. He said that not many will
put all of their acreage into crawfish, but it has become an important part of
the rice infrastructure.Sometimes, he said, they will “seed a field.” Rice is
planted in March or early April, and if the fields flood at the end of crawfish
season, in June, they’ll “seed” them to encourage crawfish development later in
the year. Or they might flood the fields in autumn, and hope for a crawfish
crop that will come in early spring through June or even July.The state’s
biggest rice producers are in Acadia and Jefferson Davis parishes, Linscombe
said. Vermilion and Evangeline also have substantial crops.
http://www.theadvertiser.com/story/money/business/2015/08/28/rice-gray-skies-meant-bleak-prospects/71353044/
Partnership to accelerate rice
research and product development in China
Dow AgroSciences LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of
The Dow Chemical Company, has entered into a collaboration agreement with the
Institute of Crop Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
(ICS-CAAS). Under the agreement, Dow AgroSciences grants ICS-CAAS a
royalty-free, non-transferable research and commercialization license for its
proprietary Exzact Precision Genome Editing Technology to be used in rice in
China. Dow AgroSciences and ICS-CAAS scientists will collaboratively develop an
industry-leading rice genome editing technology platform. The Exzact
Precision Genome Editing Platform will enable ICS-CAAS scientists to capitalize
on their significant investment and technical expertise in rice genomics,
transcriptomics, proteomics, and cell biology as well as accelerate integration
of the scientific knowledge generated in rice to rapidly develop valuable
products for China.
Dow AgroSciences has developed the Exzact Precision
Technology platform under an exclusive license and collaboration agreement in
plants with Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. Dow AgroSciences and ICS-CAAS scientists
will work together to make sure that the expertise and strengths of both
parties are best combined to accelerate rice research and product development
in China. This is part of Dow AgroSciences’ commitment to providing innovative
and sustainable solutions to bolster food security and food safety in China.ICS-CAAS
indicates this collaboration is a milestone, which will accelerate the
development of rice genome editing technology platform in China.
It will have significant impact in developing new
agronomic traits in rice.“Our collaboration with ICS-CAAS, a world-renowned
agricultural science research organization, is one with great promise,” said
Tim Hassinger, President and CEO of Dow AgroSciences. “We have a long-term
commitment in China as a strategic partner for agricultural sustainability and
best practices. The Exzact Precision Technology collaboration with CAAS is a
strong example of this commitment, which will significantly enable Chinese
scientists to improve rice research and product development, thus benefiting
China’s long term food security.
http://www.agprofessional.com/news/partnership-accelerate-rice-research-and-product-development-china
Dow licenses genome-editing method for use in
Chinese rice research
Dow AgroSciences LLC said late last week that it has
granted the Institute of Crop Sciences at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural
Sciences (ICS-CAAS) a research and commercialization license to use Dow's
EXZACT genome-editing technology to produce genetically modified rice in China. Under the terms of the agreement, Dow will give
ICS-CAAS a royalty-free, non-transferable license to use Dow's EXZACT Precision
Genome Editing Technology. Dow AgroSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of the
Michigan-based Dow Chemical Company, will be collaborating with ICS-CAAS
scientists to develop a rice-genome-editing platform.
ICS-CAAS scientists will use Dow’s EXZACT technology
to increase their expertise in rice genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and
cell biology. That could accelerate the integration of scientific knowledge
about rice to rapidly develop valuable rice products for the Chinese market.
Tim Hassinger, president and CEO of Dow AgroSciences, said the collaboration on
genetically modified rice holds great promise. “We have a long-term commitment in China as a
strategic partner for agricultural sustainability and best practices,”
Hassinger said. “The EXZACT Precision Technology collaboration with CAAS is a
strong example of this commitment, which will significantly enable Chinese
scientists to improve rice research and product development, thus benefiting
China’s long-term food security.”
http://cropprotectionnews.com/stories/510635872-dow-licenses-genome-editing-method-for-use-in-chinese-rice-research
Study Shows How Rice Plants Defend Against
Invading Pathogens
Aug,
30, 2015, 02:50 PM
Certain
types of plants are programmed to fight pathogens, while other plants do not
have this ability, according to a model known as the "gene-for-gene"
hypothesis developed by scientists Harold Henry Flor.And now new research from
the John Innes Center in the UK have created a detailed model of the
hypothesis, demonstrating how a plant is able to sense pathogens, writes Nature World
News.
"We
know that plants have sensors to detect pathogens but we knew little about how
they work," Professor Banfield, lead researcher from the John Innes Centre
(UK), said in a statement.Their study looked into how a sensor protein found in
rice (called Pik) binds with AVR-Pik, a protein from the rice blast pathogen.
The pathogen
is a fungus devastating to rice plants.The team used the X-ray crystallography
facilities at Diamond Light Source in Oxfordshire, to identify the points of
contact between the plant and pathogen proteins at the molecular level. This is
the first time imagery has been done for plant and pathogen proteins using the
gene-for-gene model."Harold Flor predicted that plant sensors discriminate
between different pathogen types, but at the time he had no knowledge of the
molecules involved. It is remarkable that his ideas have now crystallized into
detailed molecular models," said first author of the study, Dr. Abbas
Maqbool.
The team
also found that the strength of the bond between the Pik sensor and the
pathogen AVR-Pik protein affects the strength of the plants response, meaning
that plant responses can be engineered to effectively fight pathogen invaders."Once
we understand how these plant sensors detect invading pathogens, we can devise
strategies to 'boost' the plant immune system and help protect rice and other
important food crops from disease," Professor Banfield said.The study was
published in eLife.
http://www.designntrend.com/articles/59934/20150830/study-shows-rice-plants-defend-against-invading-pathogens.htm
B2B contacts a must to
expedite Pakistan-Brunei trade’
* Brunei high commissioner says investors from his country will
like to benefit from huge trade potential of Pakistan*LCCI president says now
is the right time to invest in Pakistan owing to the country’s
investment-friendly policies
August 29, 2015
LAHORE: The Brunei high commissioner on Friday has said that
business-to-business (B2B) contacts were important to increase bilateral trade
between Pakistan and Brunei, adding that the chambers of commerce and industry
of both countries should expedite relations to achieve the desired
results.Brunei High Commissioner Dato Mahmud Saidin expressed these views while
talking to Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) President Ijaz A
Mumtaz at his office. LCCI Vice President Mahmood Ghaznavi and executive
committee members were also present.
The high commissioner said that Pakistan and Brunei would have to
make joint efforts to strengthen their economic ties, as despite having
excellent relations, the volume of mutual trade is very small.He said that his
country views Pakistan as one of its brothers and economic partner, adding that
the investors from Brunei would certainly like to take benefit of huge
potential in Pakistan.He said that the Pakistani entrepreneurs could initiate
joint venture with their Brunei counterparts in various sectors. It is high
time for the joint business ventures, as the business community in Brunei is
quite impressed with the Pakistan’s growth, he added.He said that the exchange
of trade delegations between the two countries would definitely boost the
volume of bilateral trade and the LCCI should arrange a visit to Brunei as
early as possible.The LCCI President Ijaz A Mumtaz, in his address, said that
Pakistan has got special place to fully facilitate Brunei under the defence
cooperation agreements, adding that both countries have common perception about
harmony and peace.
He said that Pakistan and Brunei are members of Organisation of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and maintain cordial diplomatic relations based on
historical affiliation. However, the bilateral trade figures hardly reflect
these relations, he added.He said, “The total worth of Pakistan exports to
Brunei in 2013 was just $0.4 million that increased to $0.7 million in 2014.
The major items of exports are aluminium tables, fruits and vegetables, fresh
and frozen fish and rice. Similarly, Pakistan’s imports from Brunei are
virtually negligible.”
The LCCI president said that Brunei is a small country and its
economy heavily depends on the exports of crude oil and natural gas. He said
out of total exports of Brunei, petroleum based products have a share of more
than 90%. Secondly, nearby countries like Malaysia, Singapore and China are
major importing countries to Brunei that fulfil more than 50% of other
requirements.Mumtaz said Pakistan is a producer of finest quality of textiles
items, surgical goods, sports goods, leather products, carpets and rugs and
Brunei should consider importing such commodities from Pakistan.
“There is a lot of scope for Brunei to make investment in Pakistan.
Brunei can make direct investment in Pakistan in sectors like infrastructure,
banking, insurance, oil and gas, automobiles, construction and hotel
industries. They can also enter into joint ventures with Pakistani counterparts,”
the LCCI president added.
He said that it is the right time to invest in Pakistan owing to
the country’s economic performance and investment friendly policies of the
government.Mumtaz said that Brunei has sufficient capital and plans to further
widen the economic base beyond oil and gas, adding that Pakistan could help
Brunei through cooperation agreements that could include sharing of knowledge
and technical know-how, supplies of labour force, machinery and raw
materials.He proposed that there should be active collaboration among the
chambers of commerce and industry of both the countries and stressed the need
to initiate a consultative.
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