Riceplus Magazien is a quarterly magazine that publishes research articles including industry realted for the rice sector.It shares global and regional articles on rice.Riceplus Magazine also publishes two digital magazines on daily basis namely Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter & Exclusive ORYZA Rice E-Newsletter for entire global agriculture community.For more information visit on www.ricepluss.com
Oryza Overnight Recap – Chicago Rough Rice Futures Hammered Once Again
Overnight as Sellers Follow-through on Yesterday’s Action; Soy and Corn
Supported After Yesterday’s Rally
Chicago rough rice
futures for Nov delivery are currently noted 20 cents per cwt (about $4 per
ton) lower at $12.395 per cwt (about $273 per ton) ahead of early floor trading
in Chicago. The other grains are seen trading with mixed results overnight;
soybeans are currently seen trading about 0.4% higher, wheat is listed about
0.1% lower and corn is currently noted 0.4% higher.
U.S. stock index
futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Wednesday amid earnings from big
name financial companies and some top-tier data releases that will be closely
watched by investors for hints on the strength of the U.S. economy. Earnings
could be a particular challenge for stocks this quarter, with analysts
expecting a 4.8% decline in S&P 500 profits, according to Thomson Reuters.
So far, there's been a trickle of reports, but the season gains momentum
Wednesday with results from the major financials and others. On the data front
U.S. retail sales barely rose in September as cheaper gasoline weighed on
service station receipts, while producer prices posted their biggest decline in
8 months. August business inventories data are also due at 10:00 a.m. and the
U.S. Federal Reserve's latest Beige Book at 2:00 p.m. Chinese inflation data,
released overnight also weighed on sentiment, cooling more than expected last
month, adding to concerns about the health of the world's second-biggest
economy. The weak data weighed on Asian and European stocks, with major indices
in Europe falling in the region of 1% in mid-morning London trade. Gold is
currently trading about 0.7% higher, crude oil is seen trading about 0.6%
lower, and the U.S. dollar is currently trading about 0.5% lower at 8:15am
Chicago time.
California Rice Growers Estimate 2015 Output to Fall 8% y/y to 1.55 Million
Tons
Oct 14, 2015
Californian rice
growers, who are midway through this year's harvest are expecting the state's
rice output to decline to around 1.55 million tons, down about 8% from around
1.68 million tons in 2014, according to Capital Press.
The decline in output
may be attributed to a decline on acreage as well as yields. Californian
farmers planted rice in about 148,000 hectares of land compared to about
172,400 hectares last year due to water shortages. The state is enduring the
fourth year of drought, which has led to a significant decline in water levels
in most of the reservoirs.
The yields are also
expected to decline to about 7 tons per hectare, down from about 7.22 tons per
hectare last year.
Meanwhile, water
shortages are likely to impact migratory bird habitat this winter, according to
the state's Farm Bureau. Californian farmers normally create about 120,000
hectares of managed wetlands during the rice-growing season. But last year they
could create only 40,000 hectares of wetlands. This year, the Bureau expects
them to create about 20,000 hectares.
Most of the rice
growers are expecting prices to increase. If prices don't increase they are
concerned that their margins would suffer severely.
California is the
second largest rice producing state in the U.S. after Arkansas and
typically contributes to about 25% of the total rice grown in the U.S.
annually. The state's rice sector employs about 25,000 people grows
medium-grain rice and most of the rice grown here is exported.
Currently, export
prices of the U.S. medium grain rice stand at around $835 per ton, down about
9% from around $915 per ton at the beginning of this year.
Indonesia Will Decide on Rice Imports after November 2015, Says Minister
Oct 14, 2015
Indonesia, which has
signed purchase contracts with Vietnam and Thailand to import rice in case of a
need, will decide about the imports in November at the earliest or in December,
according to Reuters.
The Coordinating
Minister for Economic Affairs told reporters that the decision would be taken
after looking at the harvests, which will continue till the end of October
2015.
"We have reached
agreements with Vietnam and Thailand. Based on the agreements, Indonesia will
decide on the time of the imports. When we put forth a request, they need a
month to dispatch," he was quoted.
Though the Agriculture
Minister has been saying that the agency has about 1.7 million tons of stocks
and they are sufficient till the end of the year, increasing rice prices have
become a cause of concern. "The price of rice has increased by 10 percent
over the last two months. It indicates that the stocks are decreasing,"
the Minister said.
Indonesian rice
production is likely to be impacted by a drought-inducing El Nino phenomenon,
which is expected ti be stronger than that than that experienced in the
1997-1998 period.
Oryza Afternoon Recap - Chicago Rough Rice Futures Continue to Crater on
Lack of Action in Cash Market; Grains Reverse Course as Traders Book Profits
Following Yesterday's Rally
Oct 15, 2015
Chicago rough rice
futures for Nov delivery settled 45 cents per cwt (about $10 per ton) lower at
$12.145 per cwt (about $268 per ton). The other grains finished the day in the red
as well; Soybeans closed about 0.4% lower at $9.1050 per bushel; wheat finished
about 2.1% lower at $5.0825 per bushel, and corn finished the day about 1.4%
lower at $3.7900 per bushel.
U.S. stocks traded
mixed Wednesday as investors digested earnings reports and economic data. U.S.
retail sales barely rose in September as cheaper gasoline weighed on service
station receipts, while producer prices posted their biggest decline in 8
months. August business inventories remained unchanged while economists expected
a 0.1% increase. The U.S. Federal Reserve's latest Beige Book is scheduled for
release at 2:00 p.m. Overseas, equities were lower after weaker-than-expected
Chinese inflation data added to concerns about the health of the world's
second-biggest economy. In early afternoon trade, the Dow Jones Industrial
Average declined 99 points, or 0.58%, at 16,983. The S&P 500 traded down 3
points, or 0.15%, at 2,000, with consumer staples leading four sectors lower
and materials the greatest advancer. The Nasdaq traded up 8 points, or 0.16%,
at 4,804. Gold is trading about 0.1% higher, crude oil is seen trading about
0.1% higher, and the U.S. dollar is seen trading about 0.1% lower about
1:15pm Chicago time.
Tuesday, there were
2,084 contracts traded, up from 765 contracts traded on Monday. Open interest –
the number of contracts outstanding – on Tuesday decreased by 2221 contracts to
12,471.
Nigeria to Collaborate with Brazil to Develop Rice Sector, Boost Production
Oct 14, 2015
The governments of
Nigeria and Brazil have decided to work together to enhance agricultural
research in Nigeria as well as boost food production and security in the
country, according to local sources.
The Permanent
Secretary of Nigeria's Agriculture Ministry told local sources that the
collaboration would enhance investment in agricultural research in the country.
He noted that they are keen on transforming the working structure of
Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN) on the lines of its Brazilian
counterpart.
The work plan especially
involves the development of the rice sector, which seeks to achieve
self-sufficiency in production. The Ministry is keen on borrowing ideas from
Brazil to achieve the task. The collaboration would particularly seek to
improve rice cooperatives, rice value chain, rice milling equipment and
agribusiness activities.
"The partnership
would see Nigeria attains self-sufficiency in agricultural production with the
application of technology, to improve its economy, said the Vice President of
Nigerian-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce & Industry.
Brazil has also
reportedly offered to export rice to Nigeria and has sought the government to
relax the barriers on rice importation. However, the Nigerian Investment
Promotion Commission (NIPC) Executive Secretary noted that Nigeria is seeking
Brazil's support in improving the quality and quantity of rice production in
the country as Nigeria itself is a major market.
“We want to borrow a
leaf from Brazil to be a major producer, consumer and be the net exporter in the
areas where we have the comparative advantage," she said.
A trade delegation
from Brazil that visited Nigeria early this week noted that Brazil's
investments in Nigeria would focus on rice production, housing, and waste
recycling.
Thailand Cancels Sales of 345,472 Tons of Rice from Previous Auction
Oct 14, 2015
The government of
Thailand has cancelled sales of around 345,472 tons of stockpiles rice made in
the auction conducted on September 29, 2015, because prices have increased
since the auction, Reuters quoted the Commerce Minister.
Thailand will retain
sales of around 100,000 tons made to four bidders, according to the Permanent
Secretary for Commerce. She told reporters that sales made to about twelve
bidders are cancelled due to low prices offered.
This is the seventh
auction this year and eleventh one after the military government took over in
May 2014. . It sold around 4.56 million tons of stockpiled rice raising around
48.6 billion baht (around $1.36 billion) in the ten auctions conducted since it
took over in May 2014.
The military
government still holds 13.5 million tons of rice in its stockpiles.
Export quotes of Thai
5% broken rice have been increasing over the past few weeks due to increasing
demand from the Philippines and other importing nations. They stand at around
$360 per ton, up about $10 per ton from the end of September.
TPP Ensures Gradual Elimination of Rice Import Tariffs in Member Countries
Oct 14, 2015
The Trans-Pacific
Partnership (TPP) deal finalized last week has reportedly ensured that tariffs
on rice imports will eventually be eliminated by the member countries in the
next ten years, according to a statement by the USDA.
Japan, Malaysia,
Vietnam and the U.S. have agreed to alter or gradually remove tariffs on rice
imports.
Japan, which has been
adamant on increasing duty-free rice imports from the U.S. has agreed to
initially allow 50,000 tons of duty-free rice imports from the U.S. and
gradually increase up to 70,000 tons by thirteenth year. Japan will reportedly
increase imports from the U.S. by 2,000 tons from the fourth year of the
agreement. Japan will also modify its quota administration to enhance the
transparency and effectiveness of the new country specific quota (CSQ). It has
also agreed to immediately eliminate its 36 yen per kilogram (12.7% ad valorem
equivalent) tariff on other animal feeds, containing rice.
Malaysia will
eliminate tariffs on rice, currently ranging from 15-40%, in ten years and lock
in tariffs on rice products at zero percent.
Vietnam will eliminate
its tariffs on rice, which are currently at 40% with immediate effect. It will
also eliminate its tariffs on rice products, currently as high as 35%, in eight
years or before.
The U.S. will
eliminate tariffs on rice products, currently as high as 11.2%, in zero to 15
years.
Vietnam Plans to Develop National Rice Brand Based on
Jasmine Rice Type
Oct 14, 2015
The Vietnam Food
Association (VFA) is planning to develop a national brand for Vietnam's rice
based on the jasmine type, local sources quoted the Chairman of the VFA.
He told local sources
that they selected the jasmine rice type because the fragrant rice exports of
the country have increased significantly in recent years. The proportion of
fragrant rice exports in the country's total rice exports has reportedly
increased to 26% in the first nine months of 2015 from a meagre 3% in 2007.
Price of fragrant rice also has consistently increased to current $600 per ton
from about $460 per ton in the past.
The VFA Chairman noted
that building a national brand would take time. They need to invest in
large-scale fields for fragrant rice production to secure stable supply, he
said. The VFA is planning to collaborate with a number of corporate partners to
develp such fields.
Vietnam exported about
4.35 million tons of rice in January 1 - September 30, 2015, down about 9% from
about 4.8 million tons of rice exported in first nine months of 2014, according
to data from the VFA. The average rice export price so far in this year stands
at about $420.77 per ton (FOB), down about 2.6% per ton from about $432 per ton
recorded during same last year.
Export quotes for
Vietnam 5% rice have increased during the past month due to new demand from the
Philippines. They currently stand at around $355 per ton, up about 9% from
around $325 per ton last month. However, they are still 19% lower from their
year-ago level of around $440 per ton.
Thailand Rice Sellers Alter Some of Their Quotes Today; Other Asian Quotes
Remain Unchanged
Oct 14, 2015
Thailand rice sellers
lowered their quotes for 100% rice and 5% broken rice varieties by about $5 per
ton each to around $365 - $375 per ton and $355 - $365 per ton respectively.
They increased their quoted for Hom Mali rice by about $5 per ton to around
$815 - $820 per ton. Other Asian rice sellers kept their quotes unchanged.
5% Broken Rice
Thailand 5% rice is
indicated at around $355 - $365 per ton about $5 per ton premium on Vietnam 5%
rice shown at around $350 - $360 per ton. India 5% rice is indicated at around
$355 - $365 per ton, about $50 per ton premium on Pakistan 5% rice shown at
around $305 - $315 per ton.
25% Broken Rice
Thailand 25% rice is
indicated at around $330 - $340 per ton, about 5% discount on Vietnam 25% rice
shown at around $335- $345 per ton. India 25% rice is indicated at around $315
- $325 per ton, about $35 per ton premium on Pakistan 25% rice shown at around
$280 - $290 per ton.
Parboiled Rice
Thailand parboiled
rice is indicated at around $365 - $375 per ton. India parboiled rice is
indicated at around $335- $345 per ton, about $70 per ton discount to Pakistan
parboiled rice last shown at around $405 - $415 per ton.
100% Broken Rice
Thailand broken rice,
A1 Super is indicated at around $305 - $315 per ton, at par with Vietnam 100%
broken rice shown at around $305 - $315 per ton. India's 100% broken rice is
shown at around $300 - $310 per ton, about $25 per ton premium on Pakistan
broken sortexed rice shown at around $275 - $285 per ton.
South Korea's 2015 Rice Output May Increase Slightly on Better Yields, Says
Ministry
Oct 14, 2015
South Korea's rice
production is estimated to increase about 0.4% to around 4.258 million tons,
basis milled, in 2015 from around 4.241 million tons in 2014 due to higher
yields, local sources quoted the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural
Affairs.
"Overall output
is expected to increase marginally as the average yield from each unit area of
10 hectares is predicted to rise," the Ministry was quoted.
"Favorable weather conditions from June onward and almost no crop damage
caused by parasites and typhoons are raising expectations of better yields this
year," it added.
Based on data from the
Statistics Korea, the Ministry noted that the country's average yield is
estimated to increase to around 5.33 tons per hectare this year, up about 2.5%
from around 5.2 tons per hectare last year. The paddy rice acreage in the
country has declined to around 799,344 hectares, down about 2% from around
815,506 hectares, according to the Ministry.
The Ministry noted
that it is planning to introduce measures for stabilizing market prices of
rice. Some of these measures include encouraging private processing units to
buy more rice, strengthening monitoring of imported rice and regulating the
country's stockpile.
The country's current
rice reserves stand at around 1.32 million tons. The Ministry is expecting the
demand for rice at around 3.97 million tons in 2016. The government is
currently facing the challenge of falling consumption and increasing stocks.
The government opened
its rice import market starting January 1, 2015 and decided to impose tariffs
of 513% on rice imports over and above its mandatory rice imports of 408,700
tons under the World Trade Organization (WTO) minimum market access (MMA)
quota.
Brazilian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Elvado
Silva Junior, has made a strong case to Federal Government on the need to
remove the barriers on rice importation, adding that doing so would boost
Nigeria’s food security for its teeming population.Junior, who led a
delegation of 20 companies to Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC)
in Abuja, said that Brazil was keen on exporting its quality rice to Nigeria.The
Envoy said: “The main target of Brazilian investors is on rice importation. We
wish to bring our high quality rice to Nigeria and we will appreciate if the
Nigerian Government can relax its barriers on rice importation. Brazil is
desirous of offering its rice to Nigeria as a continental proportions and the
cutting-edge technology employed in industrial processes.
”“Brazil has a highly qualified and innovative
rice industry that boasts a high technological standard, with a focus on
exclusive and efficient service to the most demanding requirements of international
food supply. Brazilian companies offer expressive flexibility in meeting specific
needs sought by consumers from different countries, based on logistical and
consumption characteristics”, he added.In her remarks, the NIPC’s Executive-Secretary,
Mrs Uju Hassan-Baba noted that Brazil had a lot to offer Nigeria in terms of
technological transfer and innovation, adding that Nigeria is a major market
itself.“We want to borrow a leaf from Brazil to be a major producer, consumer
and be the net exporter in the areas where we have comparative advantage.
“The NIPC has remained in the vanguard for
enhancing Nigeria’s business climate having reestablished its role as the
pivot and flagship of investment promotion and facilitation in Nigeria, the
Commission now enjoys tremendous goodwill, recognition and respect from
various stakeholders”, Baba added.The Vice President of Nigerian-Brazilian
Chamber of Commerce &Industry, Mr Ladan Jubril expressed optimism that the
partnership would see Nigeria attains self-sufficiency in agricultural
production with the application of technology, to improve its economy.Jubril
said the Federal Government was making serious efforts aimed at liberalizing
investors’ entry and at strengthening protections for foreign investment,
promote openness and generally made investment environments more favourable for
inward Foreign Direct Investment.The trade volume between Nigeria and Brazil
was $12million in 2014, with Nigeria’s export value to Brazil totalling $8million
compared to Brazil’s exports valued at $4 million to Nigeria
Rice has been one of the very best performers in the agricultural
sector since early summer. While the rest of the sector kept declining, this
one market made a real trend turnaround and spent the past four months moving
up. In the face of a sectoral bear market, this strength has been remarkable.
Weekly
rough rice futures continuation:
Create your own charts with SaxoTraderGO click hereto learn
more
Source:
CSI Data
Do you see those tiny red bars by the end? Those are the current, ongoing
pullback. This appears to be a completely normal correction after a strong
rally. Such pullbacks are usually high-probability entry points, given a
sufficient trend strength to begin with.
Daily
rough rice futures continuation:
Source:
CSI Data
In the daily chart you can see how this is the second time in this bull phase
that we've experienced a pullback.The previous one
triggered an identical buy signaland now we're attempting to pull the same rabbit out of the
hat.
Last
time ended well, and we have good probabilities this time around as well.
Management and risk description
Buy on current levels in the November rice future, RRX5. At this
point, the overwhelming part of the open interest is in this month. Set a fixed
stop and target in the market from the start, for a known risk and potential
reward.
As you can see in the dashboard, the rice market remains in contango but it's
not steep enough to really matter. The volatility is on normal levels and the
long term trend is intact.
S. Korea's rice
output to edge up 0.4 pct this year
2015/10/14 13:46
(ATTN:
ADDS more details in para 10)
SEJONG, Oct. 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's rice
production is expected to rise slightly in 2015 from last year due to greater
yield per cultivated land, the agriculture ministry said Wednesday.The
country's rice output is forecast to reach 4.258 million tons, up 0.4 percent
from 4.241 million tons harvested in 2014, according to the Ministry of
Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs."Overall output is expected to
increase marginally as the average yield from each unit area of 10 hectares is
predicted to rise," the ministry said, citing related data from Statistics
Korea.For this year, each 10 hectares of cultivated paddy should yield 533
kilograms of rice, up 2.5 percent from 520 kilograms tallied for last year, it
said.The forecast yield is significantly higher than the 496 kilograms per 10
hectares which has been the average for the past few years.
A farmer harvests rice at a paddy in Yangyang,
Gangwon Province, on Sept. 2, 2015. (Yonhap file photo)
The
increase comes despite a drop in the number of paddies growing rice this year.
Last year, farmers raised rice on 815,506 hectares of land, while for this year
the areas used fell 2 percent to 799,344 hectares."Favorable weather
conditions from June onward and almost no crop damage caused by parasites and
typhoons are raising expectations of better yields this year," the
ministry said.While less arable land caused output to fall steadily until 2012,
there were small and steady gains in output in 2013 and last year.The ministry
said the government plans to come up with measures to stabilize market prices
of the staple grain.
These will include getting private rice
processing plants to buy up more grain, strengthen monitoring of imported rice
and regulate the country's rice stockpile.At present, the state's rice reserve
stands at 1.32 million tons with policymakers predicting demand for the staple
grain to reach around 3.97 million tons for the whole of 2016. This can lead to
more rice being held in silos and not being consumed, which translates into
more costs for the government.The country maintains a sizable rice reserve to
deal with emergencies and sudden fluctuations in global grain prices.Asia's
fourth-largest economy is self-sufficient when it comes to growing enough rice
to feed its 50 million citizens, although it imports almost all other farm
produce from abroad to meet demand.
Indonesia to import rice to counter El
Nino-induced drought
Rabu, 14 Oktober 2015 21:26 WIB |
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government is preparing to import rice
due to the El Nino-induced drought, stated Coordinating Minister for Economic
Affairs Darmin Nasution.
"We have reached agreements with Vietnam and Thailand. Based on the
agreements, Indonesia will decide on the time of the imports. When we put forth
a request, they need a month to dispatch," Minister Nasution affirmed
here, Tuesday.He quoted the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agencys
forecast that the current El Nino might be stronger than that experienced in
the 1997-1998 period when Indonesia was forced to import tons of rice.Indonesia
is reeling under the impacts of the El Nino phenomenon as the rice stocks have
dwindled, and the rice supply to regions is limited, thereby leading to a hike
in the price of the commodity."The
price of rice has increased by 10 percent over the last two months. It
indicates that the stocks are decreasing," he noted.
The government has decided to import rice as the countrys stocks
currently reach 1.7 million tons. Due to the prevailing weather conditions, the
government plans to distribute 13th and 14th rice rations this year to the
poor."We will wait until December, or November at the earliest, as rice
harvests will still be carried out in October," Nasution noted.In the
meantime, in September 2015, Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman had stated
that the ongoing drought would not affect the nations rice supply and made
assurance that the government did not need to import rice."Rice stocks are
secure for the next six months. State-owned Logistics Board (Bulog) has 1.7
million tons of rice in stock," the minister said after witnessing a rice
harvest in Mekarsari Village, Banyusari Sub-district, Karawang District, West
Java, in September.According to Amran, if rice production is boosted every
year, Indonesia would become self-sufficient in the next three years.In order
to boost rice production, the minister said the government had also signed a
cooperation agreement with the Bogor-based Institute of Agriculture (IPB) to
plant new varieties of rice.(*)
MANILA-- The Philippines is eyeing to increase the volume of rice
imports to 1.5 million metric tons in the first half of 2016 to boost buffer
stocks and keep local prices stable, as the adverse effect of El Niño continues
to intensify, a government press release said.Socioeconomic Planning Secretary
Arsenio Balisacan said the inter-agency El Niño Task Force will propose an
additional 1 million MT of rice imports to President Benigno Aquino III
probably within this week.“We have more or less indicative figures… For 2016,
we have an already approved provision of 500,000 MT for the first quarter but
based on our analysis of the current data, we may need to increase or import
another 1 million MT to maintain a 45-day buffer stock,” Balisacan said.
He said the expected increase in rice imports assumed that the El
Niño will be as intense as those in the 1997 to 1998 phenomenon that, along
with the Asian financial crisis, reduced the country's agricultural output by
25 percent.Balisacan said El Niño will peak starting December until February
and its impact is expected to last until June next year.“That's (rice imports)
what we proposed. It's going to be deliberated on by the NFA (National Food
Authority) council and it is not yet decided… These are indicative numbers,
they can change, these will undergo a series of validation,” he added.Balisacan
said the El Niño Task Force hopes to bring in about 1 million MT of rice next
year, which includes those under the minimum access volume (MAV) private sector
rice importation scheme.
The remaining volume of rice imports may be brought in by the NFA
directly.“Learning from the (past) El Niño (events), learning from the
2013-2014 (experience), we have to make sure that we have adequate supply; and
timely importation is crucial. Because what we want to avoid is that domestic
prices are shooting up while world prices is still relatively stable,” he said.For
2015, Balisacan said the country expects to bring in 850,000 MT of rice by the
fourth quarter, bringing total imports to over 1.9 million MT this year.
Already 840,000 MT of rice arrived in the country in the first
semester, and an additional 232,000 MT in the third quarter.“Some provinces
will be affected much longer than the others. There are 66 provinces that would
suffer severe drought,” he noted.Citing the state weather bureau, Balisacan
said there are already seven provinces experiencing drought including the
provinces of Quirino, Aurora, Quezon, Bohol, Siquijor, Camiguin and Misamis
Oriental.“This month or next, probably about 16 provinces will be affected. And
by the time we reach second quarter of next year, we will already have 66
provinces. It's quite significant and that excludes Metro Manila,” he
added.*PNA
Think Rice with the Gerard family from
Cape Girardeau, Missouri
ARLINGTON, VA -- Fields of gold extending into the horizon,
combines rolling across vast acres of farm land, and diverse wildlife drifting
in and out of view among swaying stalks of rice -- these characteristic signs
of harvest are familiar to rice farmers, but are foreign to most Americans who
are far removed from the agricultural industry.
Most people don't even realize rice is grown here! During the recent harvest, pictures and
videos from farmers in all six rice-producing states flooded social media sites,
and with consumers' increasing interest in understanding where and how their
food is grown, USA Rice saw an educational opportunity to use these images to
provide an exclusive glimpse into the world of rice farming in the United
States during National Rice Month.
USA Rice compiled
images of harvest submitted by members and shared them on Facebook, Twitter,
and Instagram to help consumers visualize the journey of rice from farm to
table. This effort was aided by a new
initiative that put the spotlight on a different rice farmer each week. The "Meet Your Rice Farmer" posts shared
fun facts about the farmer, including a favorite family rice recipe.
"Social media
provides the public with a unique opportunity to gain an inside perspective on
what life is like on a rice farm just by scrolling through pictures using their
smart phone," said Michael Klein, USA Rice vice president of
communications and marketing. "A
fleeting glance at an image of a family on their farm has the ability to
resonate with consumers, who will hopefully make the connection that the people
who grow their food are also their friends, family, and neighbors."
During National Rice
Month, USA Rice additionally shared graphics highlighting the nutritional
benefits of rice and the economic contribution rice farmers make to the
agricultural industry. All graphics were
accompanied by text reinforcing the many positive attributes of the rice
industry and encouraged consumers to continue supporting U.S. rice farmers.If
you have any pictures from this year's rice season that you would like to share
on USA Rice's social media platforms, please email cklem@usarice.com.
Contact: Colleen Klemczewski (703) 236-1446
USARiceOutlook
Contest: Week One
Tweeting? Farming? Or both!
ARLINGTON,
VA -- Mark Isbell, a rice farmer from Little Rock, Arkansas is the first
finalist selected in the #USARiceOutlook social media contest. A weekly
winner will be announced every Wednesday untilNovember 4, and will be
in the running for the grand prize of a free registration to USA Rice's
Outlook Conference in New OrleansDecember 9-11.
For
contest eligibility, participants can retweet or share USA Rice's posts about
the Outlook Conference, or they can create their own original content using
the hashtag #USARiceOutlook. Members can share what they are looking
forward to most at Outlook, which speaker they are most excited about, their
favorite part about New Orleans, etc. Creativity is encouraged!
"I'm
really excited to see USA Rice using Twitter to create a stronger community
within the rice industry while also reaching out to consumers around the
world," said Isbell, a recent graduate of the Rice Leadership Program.
"Many may not realize what a strong agricultural community there
is on Twitter, and how this simple tool gives us a way to not only hear and
see what is going on around the world, but to speak back, even from the seat
of a tractor. I encourage everyone to participate in the
conversation."
Follow
@usaricenews on Twitter for more exciting updates about the 2015 USA Rice
Conference and remember to tweet us using #USARiceOutlook!
WASHINGTON,
DC -- The Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporationtodayannounced the following prevailing world market prices of milled
and rough rice, adjusted for U.S. milling yields and location, and the
resulting marketing loan gain (MLG) and loan deficiency payment (LDP) rates
applicable to the 2015 crop, which will become effective today at7:00 a.m., Eastern
Time (ET). Prices are unchanged from the previous announcement.
World Price
MLG/LDP Rate
Milled Value ($/cwt)
Rough ($/cwt)
Rough ($/cwt)
Long Grain
14.92
9.42
0.00
Medium/Short Grain
14.43
9.68
0.00
Brokens
9.00
----
----
This week's prevailing world market prices and MLG/LDP rates are based on the
following U.S. milling yields and the corresponding loan rates:
U.S. Milling Yields
Whole/Broken
(lbs/cwt)
Loan Rate
($/cwt)
Long Grain
55.01/13.46
6.50
Medium/Short Grain
61.81/8.43
6.50
The next program announcement is scheduled forOctober 21, 2015.
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice
Futures
CME
Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures forOctober 14
Month
Price
Net Change
November 2015
$12.145
- $0.450
January 2016
$12.425
- $0.455
March 2016
$12.710
- $0.445
May 2016
$12.940
- $0.350
July 2016
$13.145
- $0.280
September 2016
$12.515
- $0.245
November 2016
$12.515
- $0.245
Rice growers midway through
drought-diminished harvest
Published:October
13, 2015 3:20PM
IM HEARDEN/CAPITAL PRESS
Worker Virgilio Chavez harvests rice in a field just east of
Willows, Calif., on Oct. 12. California’s rice acreage is diminished this year
because of the drought, but growers say they’re seeing decent yields and
quality from the rice that was planted.Rice growers are about halfway
through their harvest of a drought-diminished crop, as some acreage had to be
left unplanted because of water shortages. From the rice that was planted,
growers are reporting decent yields and quality.
WILLIAMS,
Calif. — Rice growers in California are midway through a harvest that will be
shorter than usual for the many who fallowed portions of their acreage because
of the drought.Growers report decent yields and quality from the rice that’s in
the ground — plantings they say total roughly 370,000 acres statewide, a steep
drop from the 431,000 acres of rice harvested last year.Among those already
winding down their harvests is Leo LaGrande, a Williams area farmer who left
one-quarter of his land bare.“It’s probably going to be a short season for
everyone,” LaGrande said. “A lot of acreage was left out because of water
cutbacks.”California rice growers are expected to produce 34.1 million
hundredweight, down 8 percent from last year, the National Agricultural
Statistics Service predicts. The yield forecast was 6,300 pounds per acre, down
3 percent from 2014.Rice was one of several field crops in California showing
sharp acreage declines because of the drought, according to NASS. Harvested
acreage of corn in the Golden State is estimated at 65,000, down 32 percent
from a year ago, NASS reported.
Early
this spring, farmers told the agency they’d be seeding rice on 408,000 acres,
but an updated field crop report in July estimated that rice acreage in
California would top out at 385,000.Water availability for growers has varied
widely. Some irrigation districts will have water available until Nov. 1, while
others have had their diversions curtailed, leaving some water users to rely
more heavily on groundwater where it is available, the California Farm Bureau
Federation reported.Marysville area grower Charley Mathews had enough water
this year to plant all his fields, and he said his yields have been good.“I’m
about halfway” through harvest, said Mathews, a member of the USA Rice
Federation’s executive committee. “There’s a few (growers) finishing, but
there’s still quite a bit out there.”
Willows,
Calif., grower Larry Maben also managed to get all of his fields planted, he
said..“Most of the people around here had to leave some out,” Maben said. “A
lot of people have already finished with harvest, and a lot are close to being
finished. I’m a little over halfway. … We’re progressing.
“Most of
the people are saying they’ve got a really good crop,” he said. “To me it looks
like it’s a little bit off. It’s just the variability.”Water shortages will
likely diminish migratory bird habitat this winter, as ducks and other species
typically rest on water that’s been put on fields for crop decomposition, the
state Farm Bureau notes. While California farmers typically create about
300,000 acres of managed wetlands, last year they created only about 100,000
acres and this year it could be as low as 50,000, according to the CFBF.
Last
year, favorable yields and more widespread sales of rice straw for animal feed
and erosion control helped offset losses of acres for growers, but many are
hoping that prices for rice improve in the coming months so they can continue
to make ends meet.“It’s going to be an interesting year to see how the market
responds,” LaGrande said. “If the market responds to less acres, the price
would hedge to the north, but there are driving factors keeping it down.
There’s competition from the South and world supplies are up. It’s going to be
a challenge.“If the price can’t move … what you’re going to see from the banks
next year is a request of more skin in the game from everyone,” he said. “The
margins to start with aren’t big. It’s going to get tougher, there’s no doubt
about it.”
The Organic Center to serve as the study's outreach partner to scientists, organic
sector
WASHINGTON,Oct. 14, 2015/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Organic
Center is pleased to announce that a research team it is collaborating with has
been awarded an important research grant from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) to advance organic rice production inthe
United States. The grant is funded by USDA's
Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI).The grant – worth$555,000– will help increase organic rice
production in the southern regions of the U.S. through the development of
economically viable organic practices. The grant, which was officially
announced on Tuesday by the USDA, will go to researchers at Texas A&M AgriLife
Research & Extension Center at Beaumont,Texas A&M University'sDepartment of Soil and Crop Sciences,
USDA's ARS Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center,University of ArkansasRice Research and Extension Center,University of Arkansas at Pine BluffDepartment of Agriculture, and The
Organic Center.
The
Center's role in the project will be to communicate the findings of the
research to the scientific community, organic growers and organic industry
members."We are thrilled to be involved with this important project,"
said Dr.Jessica Shade, Director of
Science Programs at The Organic Center. "There is a critical need for
information on organic rice systems to help expand production and meet the
demand of this high-value market."
Organic rice practices tailored for the
Southern U.S.
This
first phase of a three-year project will develop a multi-disciplinary approach
to developing Integrated Pest Management strategies for organic rice production
in theSouthern United States.
The popularity of organic rice has skyrocketed in the past 20 years. Organic
rice acreage in the U.S. has increased almost six-fold since 1995, with up to
half of the acreage in the South. Despite this rapid expansion, however,
domestic rice production has not kept up with market demand, and imports of
foreign organic rice have risen.One of the reasons why organic rice acreage is
not expanding more rapidly is a lack of knowledge about tools that best support
organic rice production.Riceis grown in a unique flooded system,
and research being done specific to rice systems focuses solely on conventional
production.This project will address these issues by developing economically
viable organic rice production practices for the Southern U.S. that will allow
producers to grow organic rice more sustainably and profitably in the South.
This
regional integrated organic rice project involves nine researchers from two of
the country's major rice-growing states –Texasand
Arkansas–and combines expertise in plant pathology (Dr. Xin-Gen [Shane]
ZhouofTexas A&M), breeding/genetics (Dr.Anna McClungof USDA's Agricultural Research
Service), nutrient management (Dr.Fugen
DouofTexas A&M), economics (Dr.Bradley Watkinsof theUniversity of Arkansas- Fayetteville),
weed science (Dr.Muthu
BagavathiannanofTexas A&M), entomology (Dr.Mo WayofTexas A&M), agronomy/crop science (Dr. Bihu
Huang of University of Arkansas-Pine
Bluff), agronomy/soil science (Dr.Sixte NtamatungiroofUniversity of Arkansas-Pine
Bluff), and outreach communications (Dr. Shade of The Organic
Center).
Overall,
the research team will devote approximately 80% of their time on research and
20% on extension."Results from this project will empower growers to make
informed choices on inputs that will result in sound pest management, higher
and more consistent yields, improved milling and grain quality, and enhanced
soil quality," saidTodd
Linsky, chairman of the Board of Trustees for The Organic
Center. "This will help the market for domestically produced organic rice
to continue to expand, and will sustain rural communities in areas where
conventional rice acreage has been decreasing."
The
Organic Center at work
In addition to the rice project, The Center now
is collaborating in several other critical research projects, including the
comparison of soil health on organic and conventional farms and seeking organic
solutions to citrus greening. Earlier this year, it released an important
report on the benefit of organic farming practices to pollinator populations.The
news of the grant award came the week after members of The Organic Center's
Board of Trustees gathered at theUniversity of California,
Berkeley, for the group's annual retreat to receive scientific briefings
on the collaborative research The Center is a part of and to discuss future
research priorities of The Center.For more information on The Organic Center
and the science behind organic food and farming, visitwww.organic-center.org.
The
Organic Center's mission is to convene credible, evidence-based science on the
health and environmental benefits of organic food and farming and to
communicate the findings to the public. The Center is an independent non-profit
501(c)(3) research and education organization operating under the
administrative auspices of the Organic Trade Association.
ABUJA –
Federal government Wednesday said it has plans to stop the importation of rice
in the next two years, however stating that the policy would not be enforced
until it has developed local industries to produce maximally for local
consumption.The plan was communicated to State House Correspondents by Zamfara
State Governor and Chairman of Nigerian Governors Forum, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari
after a joint meeting with the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, the Governor,
Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mr. Godwin Emefiele and permanent secretaries of
federal ministries at the presidential villa, Abuja.
Yari stated that with the emerging political
will power of the present government and the availability of arable land,
Nigeria can sustain itself with rice production.He regretted that so much money
had gone into rice importation which he said could be produced locally.
“The
meeting was on the new policy on agriculture and food sustainability. We
discussed how we can boost rice production in Nigeria and start thinking about
how we are going to put policy in place on how rice importation will be banned
in the country.“We have the potential. We have the human resources. We have the
arable land to grow rice. In the next two years, we will not need to bring rice
from outside Nigeria. We are going to ban it.“It is only in Nigeria, a country
of millions of people, that there is no food security. We discussed the policy
with the relevant permanent secretaries and CBN governor.
“The
policy is going to be in place and we gave our commitment that we are ready to
support the government policy in ensuring that Nigeria becomes self-sufficient
in food production in the next two years.“Nigeria is currently a major importer
of rice. Now, the political will is in place to stop it. We in about nine
states are going to be seriously engaged in massive rice production.“We are
hoping that in the next two years, rice importation into Nigeria will be
banned. We are committed and the political will is in place”, Governir Yari
said.
The Punjab government’s decision to reimpose 7% taxes on
basmati procurement has not gone down well with traders. (HT Photo )
The Punjab government’s decision to reimpose 7%
taxes on basmati procurement has not gone down well with traders.The taxes
being collected by the state mandi board with effect from October 1 include 2%
market fee, 2% rural development fund and 3% Punjab infrastructure development
fund (PIDF). Traders say this move has made things worse for the rice industry
in the state, which is already passing through an unprecedented phase of
decline.Ravinder Singh Cheema, vice-chairman of the Punjab Mandi Board, said
the government had no option but to reimpose the taxes as about 80% of
the crop coming in the mandis of Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur and Amritsar
during the kharif marketing season was basmati, adding that the tax waiver
meant no income for the market committees. “We want to support our local
offices also,” Cheema added.
The mandi board supervises the procurement of
foodgrains in more than 1,700 grain markets of the state. The revenue generated
from procurement is used on rural development and the upkeep of mandis.According
to top government functionaries, the tax waiver had led to a benefit of Rs
1,000 per quintal, but it was favouring importers, especially from Gulf
countries, who purchased basmati from Punjab traders.
However, the waiver of 5% purchase tax would
continue. Also, the waiver of 2% market fee, 2% rural development fund and 3%
PIDF would continue for mega projects in which Rs 10 crore or more have been
invested in rice shelling and processing mills. There are 15 such set-ups in
Punjab which shell and trade about 25% of the basmati.Ashok Sethi, director,
Punjab Rice Millers and Exporters Association, said the 1509 variety of basmati
had poor cooking quality and higher percentage of breakage, leading to
near-boycott of this variety. “We tried to convince farmers, but they failed to
understand that the industry was not in favour of the 1509 variety after its
failure during the 2014-15 kharif season,” he added.
In the current season, a total of 7-8 lakh
tonnes of the 1509 variety have arrived in mandis of the state so far. The
prices of this variety fell to Rs 1,200-1,300 per quintal, forcing the
government to offer minimum support price of Rs 1,450 per quintal on paddy.Sethi
said the export policy announced by the central government recently had not
enthused the rice industry and its failure to issue a notification to allow 3%
interest benefit on export bank limits, after its lapse for more than 15
months, had got the thumbs-down from exporters.
He demanded that the state government and the
Centre protect the agro processing industry in Punjab by offering concessions
and incentives through the bailout package and reduced bank lending.
Uttam demands release of water from Nagarjuna Sagar
Hyderabad,
Oct 14 (INN): Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president N. Uttam Kumar
Reddy demanded that the State Government immediately release water from the
Nagarjuna Sagar Left Canal.Addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan on
Wednesday, Uttam Kumar Reddy said standing crops, spread across one lakh acres
of land, would be lost if water is not released on immediate basis. He said
several farmers have ended their lives due to adverse seasonal conditions and
therefore, immediate steps need to be taken to protect others from losing their
crops. He threatened that the Congress party would launch mass agitation if
water was not released from Nagarjuna Sagar Left Canal.Uttam Kumar Reddy also
said that nearly 3,000 rice mills were on the verge of closure which would
snatch livelihood of about 10 lakh people. He said that the rice mills were
badly hit due to low cultivation and consequently drop in exports. He demanded
that the State and Central Governments immediately announce some bailout
package for rice millers.
A study by scientists from Peking University
and University College London has provided an outline of the development of
rice cultivation in central China between the seventh and first millennium BCE.Zhenhua
Deng, Ling Qin and Yu Gao, from the School of Archaeology and Museology at
Peking University, and Alison Ruth Weisskopf and Dorian Q. Fuller from the
Institute of Archaeology at UCL, focused on the Baligang site in Nanyang Basin,
in what is now Central China. A Neolithic site on the Northern tributary of the
Yangtze River, Baligang provides a long arhaeobotanical sequence from the
seventh to the first millennium BCE, offering insight into the development of
rice and millet agriculture in the region.
Published in the open access journal Plos One,
the study has the potential to clear up some long held ambiguities about the
origins of farming practices in the region which is now China. Archaeologists
generally agree that the prehistoric agricultural history of the region can be
divided into two traditions: a northern one based on the cultivation of millet,
and one centred around the Middle and Lower Yangtze basin based on rice.The
relationship between these two agricultural traditions is less transparent
however, as the study explains, “Some have argued for a single origin, with
either rice agriculture spreading north and encouraging millet domestication,
or early millet farming in the north spreading south and kick-starting millet
cultivation. Others have argued for more than (one) independent center of
millet domestication across north China, unconnected to Middle and Lower
Yangtze basin rice domestication episodes.
”For their study, the scientists collected
flotation samples from pits and cultural layers during excavation seasons in
2004 and 2007. In total, 1700 litres of soil from 123 samples were floated in a
flotation tank at the site, before plant remains were collected through sieves
with 0.3 mm mesh. Following drying, samples from the 2004 study were sent for
analysis at UCL’s facilities, while the 2007 samples were analysed at Peking
University.Selected seed and crop specimens were then chosen for direct radio
carbon dating using Accelerated Mass Spectrometry (AMS), which was combined
with other data to form a chronology for the history of rice cultivation in the
Baligang region. “Over the course of excavations, the chronology was initially
based on material cultural affiliation. Fifteen dates were carried out on wood
charcoal in support of this. In addition 18 radiocarbon dates were direct AMS
dates on identified seed remains recovered from the archaeobotanical samples
described in this paper.”Thanks to the broad chronological scope of the data
extracted from Baligang, the authors of the study have been able to construct a
detailed picture of subsistence farming strategies in the region.
They
have confirmed, based on morphological characteristics of the rice, that rice
had been domesticated in the region before 6300 BCE, although a lack of
evolution in grain shape suggests that the people there were still a long way
off from forming an agricultural economy.The researchers have put together a
broad overview of rice cultivation in the region around Baligang during the
Neolithic period and beyond. “Baligang provides a long sequence that registers
many of the key trends in the Neolithic agriculture of central China.
” The effects of cultural factors have been
charted, showing how the development of agricultural economies progressed in
China. “As a response to cultural changes, crop assemblages varied in different
periods along with the interaction between north and south China, with more
millets grown in periods under the cultural influence of the north.”Nevertheless,
as is so often the case and as the authors of the study confirm, their results
still leave a host of questions unanswered. “The tantalizing new evidence for
domestication of rice at Baligang site before 6300 BC require data from other
sites and periods to be put into an evolutionary trajectory from rice gathering
to domestication.”
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons user:
Jialiang Gao
Vietnam's
5-pct broken rice hits $360/T on Manila demand
Wed Oct 14, 2015 3:37am GMT
HANOIOct 14 (Reuters) - Vietnam's 5-percent broken
rice jumped to $360 a tonne on Wednesday, the highest since July 15, after the
Philippines said it was studying a proposal to purchase 1 million tonnes more
rice, traders said.Rice prices in Vietnam,
the world's third-largest exporter of the grain, have recovered from their
eight-year lows hit in late August, but the gain this week may prevent foreign
buyers from signing company-to-company deals, traders said."Exporters are
also reluctant to sell now, expecting further price gains," a trader at a
foreign firm in Ho Chi Minh City said. (Reporting by Ho Binh Minh; Editing by
Joseph Radford)
INCREASING food
production to feed more than 100 million Filipinos has become more challenging
due to changing weather patterns, as well as the continuous conversion of farm
lands. The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) said it doesn’t help
that farmers also have to deal with the “inherent disadvantages” of the
Philippines.
In
Photo: Manuel Chase M. Castaño III, science research analyst, Be RICEponsible
Campaign; Dr. Calixto M. Protacio, executive director, DA- PhilRice; Jaime
Manalo, head, Development Communications Division; and Dr. Santiago Obien,
special technical assistant to the National Rice Program, during the BM Coffee
Club Forum.
As rice is the staple food of Filipinos,
farmers are under pressure to expand rice output every year. Paddy-rice output
needs to keep pace with population growth, pegged at nearly 2 percent annually.According
to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country’s population
increased at the rate of 1.9 percent annually, on the average, during the
period 2000 to 2010.
This means that there were two persons added per year for every 100
persons in the population.Meanwhile, annual per-capita consumption of rice was
pegged by the PSA at 114.27 kilograms. This means that each Filipino consumes
about 2.2 kg of rice per week.Because of the importance of rice to the
Filipinos’ diet, the Philippines has 2.6 million hectares of land devoted to
rice. The average farm size is at 1.04 hectares, while harvest area is at 4.7
million hectares.Dr. Santiago R. Obien, senior technical adviser of the
Department of Agriculture’s (DA) National Rice Program, said farmers’ adoption
of technological innovations would help them become more productive.One such
technology is hybrid-rice seeds, which would allow farmers to grow more rice
and consequently earn more. The country’s hybrid-rice varieties, Obien said,
are the best outside of China, as yield could average 8 to 10 tons per hectare,
and can reach up to 12 tons.“As a farmer’s yield increases, his cost of production
decreases. This would allow farmers to increase their profits,” Obien told
reporters and editors during a forum, dubbed as the BM Coffee Club, held
recently in Makati City.
Economies
of scale
PhilRice
Executive Director Calixto M. Protacio and Obien both agree that there should
be farm areas consolidated and managed by fewer farmers to again make farming a
“financially appealing and viable venture.”
In
economically advanced countries, Obien said only about 3 percent of the total
population are farmers. Korean farmers in 1960 used to make up 53 percent of
their population. Now, there are only 16 percent of these farmers, and they are
rich.Obien also noted that the number of farmers in Thailand is also declining,
as many of them are being recruited by factories. Some of these farmers ask
their neighbors to take care of their farms.“If one farmer has 4 hectares of
land and two of his friends who also have 4 hectares each go into other
industries and ask him to cultivate their land, that farmer now has 12 hectares
to harvest. With bigger land, that farmer can now buy a tractor and a
[vehicle]. It just shows that we need less farmers to be rich,” Obien said.
For his
part, Protacio said there is a need to achieve economies of scale for farmers
to make them more productive and competitive. He said farmers with a small land
cannot afford to adopt innovations to make farming efficient and increase their
output.
“Clustering,
or land consolidation, is good. You have to establish economies of scale. In a
way, the idea is to go back to the concept of landlords. We are looking at this
as a rural-transformation idea. We found that to be able to become a
millionaire, a farmer has to have at least 20 hectares of land,” he said.
In their
study, “The Size Distribution of Farms and International Productivity
Differences” published in 2011, Tasso Adamopoulos and Diego Restuccia focused
on the differences in average farm sizes among countries. They found that the
average farm size for poor countries is 1.6 hectares, while rich countries have
an average farm size of 54.1 hectares.
“Richer
countries have fewer small farms and more large farms than poorer countries. In
the poorest countries, over 90 percent of farms are small and almost none of
the farms are large; whereas in the richest countries, small farms account for
about 30 percent of farms and large farms for nearly 40 percent,” the study
read.
A recent
study by Krishna H. Koirala and Ashok K. Mishra of the Louisiana State
University and Samarendy Mohanty of the International Rice Research Institute,
titled “Impact of Land Ownership on Productivity and Efficiency of Rice
Farmers: A Simulated Maximum Likelihood Approach,” revealed that a 1-percent
increase in farm size could result in an increase in the value of rice
production by about 0.4 percent.
CARP’s
woes
The
Philippine government, nonetheless, still has a commitment to grant landless farmers
and farm workers ownership of agricultural lands by the end of the Aquino
administration. Farm lands are becoming more fragmented into smaller areas as
they are being turned over to small farmers.
Republic
Act (RA) 6657, or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law, was enacted by
President Corazon Aquino in 1988, authorizing the Department of Agrarian Reform
(DAR) to undertake the distribution of an estimated 7.8 million hectares of
agricultural lands.
The law
was aimed to promote social justice and to establish “owner cultivatorship” of
economic-size farms as the basis of Philippine agriculture.
“To this
end, a more equitable distribution and ownership of land, with due regard to
the rights of landowners to just compensation and to the ecological needs of
the nation, shall be undertaken to provide farmers and farm workers with the
opportunity to enhance their dignity and improve the quality of their lives
through greater productivity of agricultural lands,” RA 6657 stated.
However,
Obien said the government has failed to follow the distribution of land with
the provision of farm inputs and machineries. He said the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) of the government has not served as a plan for
productivity.
“It [CARP]
was simply a social-justice system. That’s the problem. It should not have been
that way. It should have been a systematic program so that farmers can become
more productive,” Obien said.
“The
government, upon the release of the land, should have also provided the farmers
with machineries, facilities, inputs and electricity, among others, so that
they can be progressive. The Japanese call it land reformation, not land
reform. However, nothing was given to our farmers,” he added.
Protacio
said the initial idea for the CARP was for cooperatives to take over the
farmlands and consolidate them into large units. He said, however, that because
of the individualistic nature of Filipinos, it did not work.
In 1996
the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) also published a study,
titled “Issues in Revitalizing the Philippine Sugar Industry.” The study
revealed that the sugar industry had to contend with declining productivity.
“Implementing
the land-transfer scheme of CARP had been slow due to the government’s
administrative and financial constraints. And then there is the strong
opposition from the landowners. Nonland-transfer schemes, which include land
lease or rental, profit sharing and corporate stock distribution, have proven
to be unattractive to landowners,” the study read.
“Such
delay and uncertainties discourage CARP farmer-owners to invest in farm
improvements, lower collateral value of agricultural land, and reduce credit
flow to agriculture. In the end, low productivity becomes inevitable,” it
added.
A study
published by the International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural
Sciences (ISSAAS), titled “Farm Size and Its Effect on the Productive
Efficiency of Sugarcane Farms in Central Negros,” showed that average optimum
land size should be around 41 hectares, which is lower than the optimum size
(50 hectares) stated in the report of the Presidential Task Force on the Sugar
Industry.
“[Big
farms] are also the more favored in terms of technology and access to
information and extension services. Modernization of farm practices can improve
productive efficiency, however, this is difficult to achieve at present due to
the limited financial capability of the farmers,” the report read.
To boost
the productivity of sugarcane farms, the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA)
rolled out a program, which sought to consolidate small farms into larger areas
while still preserving individual ownership of the land, in 2012.
“Block
farming is the consolidation of the management of small farms of less than 5
hectares, into a bigger but contiguous unit of at least 30 hectares for
purposes of improving farm productivity, while individual ownership is
preserved,” SRA Administrator Ma. Regina Martin said in a statement.
Data
from the SRA showed that about 85 percent of the sugarcane farms in the country
have areas of 5 hectares or below. The SRA said this is due to the natural
course of land subdivision by inheritance, sale and the CARP.
According
to the SRA, sugarcane is a plantation crop and its cost efficiency is best
achieved through bigger farm sizes of at least 30 hectares. However, with the
implementation of the CARP, farm sizes were fragmented into small land holdings
of less than 5 hectares, wherein farm owners could no longer take advantage of
economies of scale.
Present
land owners also do not have the financial capability to provide farm inputs,
which results in low productivity, the SRA said.
Since
its implementation in 2012, SRA said the 19 pilot block farms have registered
an average increase of 29 percent in farm productivity in crop year 2013 and
2014. Sugar production in the pilot farms in that crop year reached 65.29 tons
cane per hectare, as compared to 50.78 tons cane per hectare recorded in 2012.
This
increase in productivity translated to an estimated average increase of
farmers’ income by P39,815 per hectare, at 1.96 50-kilogram per tons cane
(LKG/TC) and a composite price of P1,400 per LKG-bag of raw sugar.
Aside
from consolidating small farms into an aggregate of at least 30
hectares—through agrarian reform beneficiaries organizations—the SRA also
offers coached and guided farm management, technical assistance and capacity
building for the farmers in a block farm. The DA also provides irrigation
systems, farm-to-market roads and farm inputs necessary for the production of
sugarcane.
The
program has now become one of the main programs under RA 10659, or the Sugar
Industry Act of 2015. The SRA said there are 130 block farms that have enrolled
for accreditation to date, with a total area of about 7,000 hectares.
Protacio
said the SRA’s block farming scheme could also be adopted by other sectors.
Agriculture
Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, for his part, said the DA has also put up block
farms for the rice sector. He said, however, that it has not been as successful
as the program rolled out for sugarcane farmers.
“What’s
important is we integrate our palay farmers. We have partnered with the DAR in
implementing block farming in some areas,” Alcala said.
“Agrarian-reform
communities should have been created long ago. They should have started block
farming long ago. Block farms have the advantage because they have all these
tools and resources to use so that they can be progressive,” Obien said.
