Farmers protest,
say getting less than MSP
Roads
blocked across Muktsar district; protesters allege unholy nexus
Farmers block the Muktsar-Jalalabad road by staging a dharna on Tuesday. Tribune photo
Archit Watts
Tribune News Service
Muktsar, October 11
Irked over poor arrangements for procurement, a
large number of paddy growers today protested at different places by blocking
the roads in Muktsar district, alleging a nexus among rice millers, commission
agents and officials of procurement agencies.
The farmers claimed that the rice millers and
commission agents were not paying them the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,510
per quintal for their paddy crop. “The rice millers are paying between Rs 1,400
and 1,430 per quintal, saying the crop’s moisture content was high and terming
it of low quality. We have approached the authorities concerned a number of
times in the past few days, but to no avail,” said farmers of Attari, Noorpur
Kirpal Ke, Mangat Ker, Gulabewala and Khappianwali villages. They blocked the
Muktsar-Guruharsahai road over the issue.
Similarly, farmers of Sohnewala village blocked
the Muktsar-Jalalabad road. At Jhabelwali village, some farmers burnt their
crop at the Focal Point to lodge a symbolic protest against the state
government. Farmers at Killianwali in the Lambi Assembly segment stopped the
traffic on the Malout-Dabwali National Highway.
Congress MLA from Muktsar Karan Kaur Brar said,
“The farmers are sitting in mandis for the past 10 days, but the officials
concerned are least bothered about their problems. The rice millers are not
paying the MSP to buy the crop. If the situation continues to remain same, the
number of protests will only increase.”
Similarly, Jagjit Singh ‘Honey
Fattanwala’, a Congress leader, said, “Some rice millers are telling farmers
that the quality of the crop was inferior and they will be paid Rs 1,430 per
quintal. The CM should personally look into the matter.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/farmers-protest-say-getting-less-than-msp/308298.html
Trade deficit widens 5pc as import
rises
Star Business Report
Trade deficit widened 5 percent in the first two months of the
fiscal year on the back of a surge in imports.
At the end of August, trade deficit stood at $525 million, which
was $500 million a year earlier, according to central bank data.
In case of growth, both import and export increased at an equal
pace but trade deficit shot up as the amount for imports was more. Imports
increased 7.43 percent but exports rose 7.65 percent. In terms of amount,
exports raked in $5.71 billion during the July-August period and imports cost
$6.23 billion.
In case of imports, food import rose 53.98 percent. Rice imports
dropped 91 percent in the first two months but wheat imports soared 115
percent.
Intermediate goods import rose 10.12 percent and capital goods
17.43 percent.
As a result of a big fall in remittance, the surplus in the
current account balance in the first two months fell to about half compared to
last year's.
In the first two months of fiscal 2016-17, current account surplus
was $700 million, down from last year's $1,343 million, according to Bangladesh
Bank data.
The current account surplus decreased due to the slump in
remittance inflow, said a central bank official.
In the first two months of the fiscal year, remittance fell 15.67
percent.
However, the overall surplus in the first two months of the
current fiscal year was same as the corresponding period in the last fiscal
year.
During the July-August period, the overall surplus stood at $1.19
billion, while it was $1.26 billion in the same period last fiscal year. Since
foreign direct investment and medium and long-term loans went up, the overall
surplus ended up being more or less the same as last year's, the BB official
said.
In the first two months of fiscal 2016-17, FDI rose 9.3 percent
year-on-year to $435 million. Medium- and long-term loans shot up 6.2 percent
to $257 million. On the other hand, loan repayment decreased 4.26 percent from
a year earlier, which had a positive impact on the overall surplus.
http://www.thedailystar.net/business/trade-deficit-widens-5pc-import-rises-1297684
Good News! Price Of Rice Set To
Crash By November
Nigerians will finally be able to
purchase rice without much strain on their pockets as the Federal Government on
Monday, 10 October, announced that the price of rice would begin to go down
from November this year.This, according to the government, is as a result of
the fact that more Nigerians had gone back to their various farms, adding that
at the coming harvesting season next month, the price of rice would start to
fall.
The information was passed across by
the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, while
addressing members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development
at the headquarters of the Ministry in Abuja.
Chief Ogbeh made it known that the
government would not be involved in the importation of rice as speculated in
some quarters, maintaining the importation of rice will not receive the
encouragement of his ministry because it would be in the detriment of local
production of the commodity.
FG Declares The Price Of Rice Will
Fall By November
The Minister re-stated that the
Federal Government was not in support of rice smuggling noting that the Seme
border had become a notorious route for the smuggling of contraband products
into the country.
He said:“We will not encourage rice
importation and there is no way our ministry or government can be involved in
importing rice when we are working hard to be self-sufficient in local
production. By November when the full-scale harvest starts, rice prices will
fall.”
Although there was a warning from
the government early September, that the price of rice might hit N40,000 per
bag, it is presently being sold around N20,000.
The Minister of State for
Agriculture and Rural Development, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, revealed that
the $22 billion annual food import bill had led to the hike in the price of
rice and other commodities.
He emphasised that if Nigerians do
not produce some of the items being imported before December, the price of rice
could increase to N40,000 a bag
http://buzznigeria.com/rice-price-fall-november-fg/
Paddy farmers risk losses as prices fall
By Htoo
Thant | Wednesday, 12 October 2016
Paddy prices in
the capital are falling on weak demand and the drop risks damaging the market,
farmers and traders said.
Farmers plant rice in a paddy field.Staff
The market
price for 100 baskets of stored manaw thukha paddy in Nay Pyi Taw was almost
K850,000 in September, but has since fallen to around K600,000, U Nay Soe, a
rice seller in Pyinmana township, told The Myanmar Times.
Rice merchants
in Myanmar’s capital facing lower prices for stored paddy are in turn lowering
the price at which they are buying newly harvested paddy from farmers. The
price for 100 baskets of monsoon paddy harvested this month is only K400,000,
say farmers – much less than last year.
Nay Pyi Taw
farmers hoping to sell fresh paddy are worried because when the price of 100
baskets falls much below K500,000 they risk losses.
“An acre of
paddy costs at least K200,000 to K250,000 for seeds, harrowing, harvesting and
wages,” said local farmer U San Win, adding that an acre produces perhaps 60 or
70 baskets.
This puts the
cost of producing 100 baskets of paddy across a fairly wide range of K280,000
to K410,000. In order to be confident of making any kind of profit, the market
price needs to be at least K500,000, said U San Win.
But demand from
China, the main destination for most of Myanmar’s milled rice exports, has
crumbled recently. Senior figures in the Myanmar rice industry say the drop is
down to China’s attempt to clamp down on illegal cross-border trade.
Local rice
miller Ko Nay Soe said that because China is not importing rice the market is
almost entirely local. Millers buy paddy from farmers, and sell the finished
rice to traders that export to China. But with Chinese demand weak millers are
buying much less paddy than usual, said Ko Nay Soe.
The latest
monsoon crop has only just started being sold, and the supply of new paddy will
be plentiful in November and December. With demand weak the market is already
in bad shape. If Chinese demand continues to slump then paddy prices will be in
even worse shape in December, said Ko Nay Soe.
“Some [farmers]
are [already] harvesting paddy but there are no brokers to buy it,” farmer Ko
Myo Win from Aye Chan Thar village group in Lewe township said. Merchants
selling paddy stored from earlier in the year are not faring much better.
October typically sees high prices for stored paddy, as supplies from the
previous harvest start to dwindle. But with the price for 100 baskets of stored
manaw thukha paddy at around K600,000, merchants are making almost no profit on
the price they originally paid, said Ko Myo Lin Aung, who stores paddy in
Pyinmana township.
Consumers are
benefitting however, with the price of a bag of milled manaw thukha rice on the
local market falling from K28,000 in September to K20,000 this month. U Ba Gyi,
a farmer in Kyoonoo village in Pyinmana township, notes that the prices of
other crops is also down relative to earlier in the year. Industry insiders say
that Chinese border authorities have tightened controls over the import of a
range of agricultural products including maize, sugar and beans.
“The price of
beans and corn is also falling,” said U Ba Gyi. “Farmers are disappointed.”
Corn prices in
Nay Pyi Taw are less than half what they were at this point last year. The
price of a basket of black sesame beans has fallen from a high of K60,000 this
year to between K35,000 and K45,000 depending on the quality.
Mung beans are
down from a year high of K30,000 a basket to between K20,000 and K25,000.
Translation by
Khine Thazin Han
http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/23057-paddy-farmers-risk-losses-as-prices-fall.html
Compensation for rice crops from
flood increased to 3,000 baht per household
By Thai PBS
October 12, 2016
The cabinet on Tuesday agreed to increase the compensation for
damage to rice crops by flood from 1,000 baht to 3,000 baht per each household.Prime
Minister Prayut Chan-ocha also said that the government was considering how to
help owners of farmland which was used as water retention area to absorb excess
water discharged from dams by the Royal Irrigation Department.He asked members
of the public to understand the government that it cannot afford to help every
flood victim even if the government wants to help.
He also noted that most of the flooded farmland are located outside
the protection of flood walls and, hence, flooded every now and then during the
monsoon season.The prime minister went on saying that, in the near future, the
government would regulate the farming sector to ensure there is enough water
for farmers for cultivation.Farmers, for instance, should not start cultivation
at the same time throughout the country because, in such a case, there may not
be enough water for all of them
http://www.pattayamail.com/thailandnews/compensation-rice-crops-flood-increased-3000-baht-per-household-151562
China places first order for Thai
rice under last Dec’s G2G deal
PETCHANET PRATRUANGKRAI
THE NATION October 12, 2016 1:00 am
CHINA has agreed to place the first
purchase order for 100,000 tonnes of Thai rice under a government-to-government
(G2G) contract for a total of one million tonnes, which was signed last
December.The order is for new-crop 5-per-cent white rice at a free-on-board
price of US$399 (Bt14,085) per tonne for 25-kilogram sacks, and $394 per tonne
for 50kg sacks.Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said yesterday that
shipments of the first order under the G2G contract with China would be made
this month and next.
She said the prices agreed were
"quite good" as they reflected the market price and were higher than
those of rival rice-exporting countries, such as $332 per tonne for Vietnamese
rice and $335 for Pakistani rice."China's purchase is a positive sign for
new-crop rice during the harvest season. This will help increase sales of Thai
rice and ensure that prices do not fall sharply during the main-crop harvest
season," she added.
To continue releasing stockpiled
rice, the ministry will conduct a roadshow mission to promote sales in many
countries, Apiradi said, adding that Thailand will also join the bidding to
supply the Philippines, which is expected to hold an auction for the purchase
of more foreign rice in the near future.
Meanwhile, the Kingdom is revamping
its Thai jasmine-rice export standard, expanding it to more grades and giving
each a different name in order to promote strong growth of Thai Hom Mali Rice
exports in particular, as well as ensure differentiation between Thai fragrant
rice and other countries' grains.Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general of the
ministry's Foreign Trade Department, said Thailand needed to revise its
jasmine-rice export standard in order to increase export opportunities in
response to the differing needs of consumer groups across markets.
"The new standard will better
serve consumers in different markets, as consumer behaviour has changed. Some
markets may prefer a high-quality grade of jasmine rice at any retail price,
while others may still prefer jasmine rice, but at a lower price due to their
purchasing power," she explained.
The new standard will come into
effect in December, with the ministry introducing three grades for Thai jasmine
rice.
For the upper market, there will be
92-per-cent jasmine rice, with this premium grade called Thai Hom Mali Rice.For
the middle market, there will be 80-per-cent jasmine rice, which will be called
Thai Jasmine Rice, Thai Fragrant Rice or Thai Aromatic Rice.
This category will focus on competing with other countries'
fragrant rice, serving as a "fighting brand" for Thai jasmine rice as
its price will be lower than that for Thai Hom Mali Rice, Duangporn said.For
the lower market, the Commerce Ministry will open an opportunity for other Thai
fragrant-rice combinations in order to serve the different demands of each
market.However, the government will stringently control rice quality, with
traders not being permitted to call combination fragrant rice Thai Hom Mali
Rice, she stressed.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/China-places-first-order-for-Thai-rice-under-last--30297424.html
Vietnam exporters upbeat as
Philippines set to import more rice
By Dam Tuan
October 12, 2016 | 01:00 am GMT+7
The increasing demand for the staple grain prompted the
Philippines to buy more from regional suppliers. The Philippines has allowed
its businesses to import an extra 293,100 tons of rice from Vietnam to ensure
food security in the between-crop period, according to the Vietnam Food
Association (VFA).
The businesses are also permitted to buy a
similar amount from Thailand, 50,000 tons from China, India and Pakistan as
well as other countries.The total volume is 805,200 tons and the delivery time
is set as no later than February 28.
VFA Chairman Huynh The Nang said that this is
an opportunity for Vietnamese exporters to boost sales.
The Philippines will buy additional rice from
Vietnam to meet its demand in 2017. Photo from doanhnghiepvn.vn
|
Previously, in late August 2016, Vietnam won a
bid to supply 150,000
tons of the grain, mostly the 25 percent broken rice variety, to the
Philippines with an offer of $424.85 per ton. The country beat out Thailand and
Cambodia.The Philippines annually imports about 1 million tons of the staple
grain, or even higher, in order to bolster stockpiles that can be severely
depleted in cases of adverse weather conditions and natural calamities.
The country is hit by an average of 20 typhoons
each year. In 2010, the Southeast Asian country bought a record 2.45 million
tons, according to data compiled by Thomson Reuters.
Vietnamese rice exports can be affected in the
last three months of 2016 due to supply excess in the market. The country has
shipped about six million tons, down 5 percent compared to the same period last
year, according to VFA.
US$314 million to restructure rice industry by 2020
About 25 programs will be implemented with the total capital of
VND7 trillion ($314 million) to restructure the rice industry towards added
value increase and sustainable development, according to a rice restructuring
project by 2020.
Rice harvest in Dong Thap province
(Photo: SGGP)
The project was announced by the
Cultivation Department at a seminar in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on
October 11.Talking about the project which is planning rice industry until
2030, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s agency said that it
will focus on planning and infrastructure development.Low yielding rice areas
will be transferred into other crops, crossbreeding researches will be
conducted and authorized agencies will map out rice development policies
suiting new situation.
In addition, the programs will
expand large scale production in accordance with market demand, boost
mechanization and processing, build brand names and step up market development
connectivity.One of major works of the project is to develop irrigation system
and upgrade traffic and electricity network for modern production.The Mekong
Delta, the Red River Delta and the South Central Coastal Region will need
thousands of billion of dong for the restructuring project in the phase of
2017-2020.
According to plan, the country will
maintain rice farming over about 3.8 million hectares to ensure food security
and improve the use efficiency of these areas.Rice farming will concentrate on
high quality varieties for both local consumption and exports.
http://www.saigon-gpdaily.com.vn/National/2016/10/121056/
Strapped for dollars and flooded
with rice, Egypt to import more anyway
* Egyptian
farmers garner surplus but won't sell* Government plans to import 500,000 tonnes amid dollar shortage
* Traders awaiting results of import tender on Wednesday
By Eric Knecht and Maha El Dahan
CAIRO/ABU DHABI Oct 12 Egypt is looking to import large quantities of rice this month as farmers refuse to sell the government their crops despite a plentiful harvest and an extreme shortage of dollars that should make buying from abroad a last resort.
Egypt's 2016 rice paddy production is estimated at 5.1 million metric tonnes versus annual consumption of about 3.95 million tonnes, a United States Department of Agriculture report this week stated.
Farmers have however refused to sell their crops to the government, arguing that 2,400 Egyptian pound ($270.27) per tonne state-mandated price is too low. That has forced up local prices and made supplies at local outlets scarce in recent weeks.
Egypt's state grain buyer GASC will on Wednesday hold an international purchase tender for at least 100,000 tonnes of white medium-grain rice, the start of a government campaign to purchase 500,000 tonnes of the grain.
The tender comes despite an acute dollar shortage that has sapped the country's ability to purchase from abroad and forced its central bank to ration dollars for essential commodities, the result of a 2011 uprising that chased away tourists, foreign investors and their hard currency.
Unlike wheat, sugar, and other staple commodities which the North African country imports to meet demand that outstrips local production, its bountiful rice crop far exceeds domestic needs. However, the price dispute means it has to import.
"Farmers don't want to sell because in the previous years they saw that they sold cheaply and then prices increased and they didn't profit," said Mostafa al-Naggari, head of the rice committee of Egypt's agricultural export council.
"In the free market (the price of rice) is around 2,900 Egyptian pounds ($326.58) and the government is offering 2,400, so there is a huge gap," Naggari added.
Temporary rice shortages and price spikes have become common since the government failed to purchase stocks during its 2015 harvest, an omission that allowed speculating traders to buy up and hoard the country's entire crop, sending prices soaring upward until the state called for tenders.
"The farmers are keeping in mind everything that happened last year...they sold the crop very cheap and the traders made a lot of money. This year the farmers want to store it," said one rice trader.
Wednesday's tender may be tactical, traders said, a shot across the bow to farmers holding stocks in hopes that they will release them to the market.Prices fell by roughly 10 percent since the government announced its purchase tender last week, but this could jump back up if the tender isn't completed, the rice trader said.
"I don't think they will even buy....but the farmers are waiting, and if the government doesn't book every time, they will increase the price again," he said. ($1 = 8.8799 Egyptian pounds) (Reporting by Eric Knecht and Maha El Dahan; Editing by Keith Weir)
Rice Prices
as on :
13-10-2016 01:59:30 PMArrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market.
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
Rice
|
||||||
Sainthia(WB)
|
190.00
|
1.06
|
3462.50
|
1860
|
1870
|
-
|
Birbhum(WB)
|
178.00
|
-1.11
|
4168.40
|
1880
|
1880
|
2.17
|
P.O. Uparhali Guwahati(ASM)
|
95.50
|
15.48
|
4232.00
|
2230
|
2230
|
6.19
|
Srirampur(ASM)
|
60.00
|
20
|
2100.00
|
3000
|
3000
|
0.67
|
Beldanga(WB)
|
48.00
|
-4
|
3300.00
|
2550
|
2550
|
9.68
|
Lanka(ASM)
|
40.00
|
NC
|
2860.00
|
2000
|
2000
|
12.68
|
Gazipur(UP)
|
26.00
|
-18.75
|
2999.00
|
2170
|
2160
|
8.50
|
Dibrugarh(ASM)
|
13.00
|
52.94
|
1624.60
|
2450
|
2450
|
-
|
Chandoli(UP)
|
9.00
|
20
|
108.50
|
2175
|
2170
|
15.08
|
Muradabad(UP)
|
9.00
|
NC
|
516.70
|
2370
|
2410
|
8.22
|
Sheoraphuly(WB)
|
8.00
|
-11.11
|
423.15
|
2875
|
2875
|
15.00
|
Mirzapur(UP)
|
7.00
|
-6.67
|
1601.10
|
2175
|
2170
|
9.57
|
Raiganj(WB)
|
7.00
|
-6.67
|
879.00
|
2750
|
2750
|
-5.17
|
North Lakhimpur(ASM)
|
6.00
|
-21.05
|
1839.90
|
1900
|
1900
|
NC
|
Karanjia(Ori)
|
4.80
|
-20
|
400.60
|
2800
|
2800
|
-3.45
|
Lakhimpur(UP)
|
2.70
|
35
|
184.75
|
2230
|
2250
|
2.06
|
Kalyanpur(Tri)
|
2.50
|
-10.71
|
13.10
|
2900
|
2900
|
16.00
|
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/article9214751.ece
10/12/2016
Farm Bureau Market Report
Rice
High
|
Low
|
|
Long Grain Cash Bids
|
- - -
|
- - -
|
Long Grain New Crop
|
- - -
|
- - -
|
Futures:
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rice Comment
November rice charted a bearish key reversal
in today’s trade. The monthly supply/demand report showed increased beginning
stocks, and production resulting in a net increase in ending stocks for the
16/27 marketing year. Ending stocks are now forecast to be 120.7 million metric
tons. Export sales were 43,100 tons for the week, down slightly from a week ago
and certainly not enough to spark buying interest. November is hovering around
support at $10.
Lifting of QR to limit rice
output–Piñol
October 12, 2016
The Department of Agriculture (DA) warned that the lifting of
the quantitative restriction (QR) on rice next year would discourage farmers
from planting the staple and widen the country’s rice-supply shortfall in 2018.Agriculture
Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said the Philippines would also be hard pressed to
beef up its stocks by importing rice in 2018 due to the projected tightness in
global rice supply. Manila imports an average of 1 million metric tons of rice
annually to boost its stocks, especially during the lean months.Citing rice
trader Jeremy Zwinger, Piñol said production problems that will confront China
and the huge importation of Egypt could result in a global rice shortage in
2018 and 2019.
“So, if the production of China is threatened and Egypt will
import 500,000 metric tons of rice, then lifting the QR would make it difficult
for us to import rice should there be a shortfall in local production,” Piñol
told reporters on Tuesday.
The DA chief said removing the rice-import quota next
year would also make it more difficult for farmers to produce enough rice to
meet the requirements of Filipino consumers.
In light of Zwinger’s projection of a global rice shortage,
Piñol urged the country’s economic managers to consider extending the QR on
rice.“If we won’t [extend] it and the projection happens and our farmers would
do away with planting rice, then we have a big problem,” he said.
Piñol said the DA has started its consultation with rice farmers
nationwide to get their views on the lifting of the QR next year.According to
the World Trade Organization General Council Ruling, the Philippines should
subject rice imports to ordinary customs duties right after the QR-waiver
extension expires on June 30, 2017.
To do this, Congress needs to amend Republic Act (RA) 8178,
which allowed the Philippines to retain the nontariff barrier on rice,
according to Agriculture Undersecretary Segfredo R. Serrano.
Undersecretary Maia Chiara Halmen Reina A. Valdez of the Office
of the Cabinet Secretary said the National Economic and Development Authority
(Neda) has started drafting a bill to amend RA 8178, or the Agricultural
Tariffication Act, to replace QR with tariffs.Earlier, an official of the Neda
told the BusinessMirror that the agency would recommend to the President a
tariff ranging from 40 percent to 50 percent once the country converts the
rice-import quota into tariffs.The QR, a nontariff barrier, has allowed Manila
to limit the volume of imported rice that will enter the Philippine market.
The Neda and some economists have pushed for the removal of the
rice QR to make the staple more affordable to the poor.
Solons thumb down removal of
rice QR
October 12, 2016
Lawmakers on Wednesday expressed
their opposition to the decision of economic managers not to push for the
extension of the quantitative restriction (QR) on rice, which will expire next
year.
House Committee on Economic
Affairs Chairman and Bohol Rep. Arthur C. Yap and Party-list Rep. Tomasito S.
Villarin of Akbayan said removing the rice-import quota will make it more
difficult for farmers to compete in Asean.
“My concern is that, when you
lift the QR, it will open up the Philippines to more rice imports. While this
will benefit millions of consumers, I feel we should prepare to address the
dislocation of [farmers] who will not be able to compete,” Yap told the
BusinessMirror in an interview.
Yap, a former agriculture
secretary, said the government should consider deferring the removal of the QR
for a year, so it could implement the necessary measures to mitigate its
adverse impact on rice farmers.
“I think we should ask for a one-year deferment. I will ask the
[national government] to submit a list of possible farmers who will be
affected, so they could be included in the Conditional Cash-Transfer Program of
the government,” he said.
“The government could also
consider putting in place microfinancing schemes and assist them in accessing
the shared services facilities of the Department of Trade and Industry,” Yap
added.
The lawmaker noted that Manila
could make a “special request” to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to allow
“special treatment” for commodities that are critical to a country’s food
security.
Yap also said President Duterte
should certify as urgent several bills that seek to help farmers.
“The President has promised that
he will provide free irrigation water so maybe the bill reforming the National
Irrigation Administration (NIA) must be certified as urgent,” he said.
“Crop insurance in the country is
also not enough, that is why amendments to the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp.
[PCIC] must be certified as urgent, as well. There is also a bill seeking to
institutionalize the Agricultural Guarantee Fund Pool,” Yap added.
There are several House bills
seeking to reform the NIA and the PCIC. Amendments to the PCIC aim to allow the
agency to offer index-based insurance coverage and engage in reinsurance to
increase its funding source.Proposals to institutionalize the Agricultural
Guarantee Fund Pool seek to include postproduction in its coverage.
“If the government wants to lift
the QR, then these measures must be in place. But even if these measures are
prioritized and certified as urgent, the government’s social protection
programs must be implemented for affected sectors,” Yap said.
‘Magnificent 7’
Villarin said his group in the
House of Representatives, dubbed as “Magnificent 7,” will reject the
recommendation of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) to
scrap the rice-import quota.
“Primarily, the DA [Department of
Agriculture] should decide on this and not the Neda. With the lifting of the
QR, the National Food Authority will be toothless in terms of rice imports. But
I hope the Neda should change its mind,” he said in separate interview with the
BusinessMirror.
“For the longest time, we’ve been
buying from other rice-producing countries. Are we now saying that we can
compete with them?” Villarin added.
The lawmaker urged the House of Representatives
to immediately table for discussion his House Resolution 392, which seeks to
clarify the implications of lifting the QR on rice next year.
Villarin said Agriculture
Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol told him during the DA’s budget briefing that he is
personally not in favor of lifting the restrictions on imported rice and would,
instead, ask for an extension of two more years.
“Ideally, such period of
extension will give authorities time to spur long-awaited developments in the
agriculture sector, allow small farmers to stabilize their production and to
compete with fellow producers, both within and outside the country,” he said.
“I fully support efforts to help
our farmers profit from plowing their fields,” Villarin added, “but the first
step in helping our farmers is to tell them the truth about the real and
growing challenges in their field.”
Earlier, Piñol said the QR must
be extended for two more years to allow Filipino rice farmers to compete with
their Asean counterparts. The DA chief also said that, if the QR is eventually
lifted and more rice imports would enter the rice market, Filipino farmers
would be discouraged from planting the staple, as rice from neighboring
countries is cheaper.
Earlier, Socioeconomic Planning
Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the removal of the QR quota next year is a
“done deal,” as three members of the core economic cluster have already agreed
on the scrapping of the rice-import quota.
“The Neda and the DA must
disclose to the public the policy adjustment the administration will make in
order for the affected sectors to cope with the lifting of the QR on rice,”
Villarin said.
He added that the Tariff
Commission and other appropriate agencies should also reveal how the current
tariff and nontariff regimes for rice has fared in terms of providing actual
protection to the country’s rice farmers.
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/solons-thumb-down-removal-of-rice-qr/
2 commission agents, three
rice-shellers in Bathinda lose licence
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, Bathinda
|
Updated: Oct 12, 2016 14:53 IST
The farmers on Tuesday briefed officials regarding financial
exploitation at the hands of arthiyas and millers. (HT Representative Photo)
The licences of two of the commission
agents (arthiya) and three rice millers have been suspended following the
allegations of paying less to the farmers in Muktsar. On the recommendations of
KJS Cheema, special principal secretary to chief minister (CM) Parkash Singh
Badal, the malaut market committee initiated the action against Shiv Shakti
rice mill, Goyal rice and general mill and BS rice and general mill; along with
two commission agents — Malwa Krishi Udyog and Amar Singh/Balraj Singh of
Mahuhana purchasing centre.
The complainant farmers of the
district appeared before Cheema during a meeting of officials to oversee
procurement season on Tuesday and briefed him of financial exploitation at the
hands of arthiyas and millers.
Ajaypal Singh, secretary market
committee, said the farmers alleged that they were paid Rs100 to Rs 135 less
than the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,510.“The licenses were immediately
suspended, and both commission agents and rice millers were debarred from rest
of the procurement season. They were even asked to pay dues of the farmers
immediately. Besides, an appropriate disciplinary action will be initiated
against them,” he said.
Meanwhile, during his visit to
several grain markets in Muktsar district, Cheema said the CM had asked senior
officials of state government to oversee the procurement process in the field
so that farmerrelated problems are solved at the earliest.“No official,
commission agent or miller will be spared if any negligence is found on his
part,” Cheema said, while specifically warning commission agents and millers
against any financial embezzlement.
He also exhorted farmers to
immediately report to concerning sub-divisional magistrate if any of the
officials harassed them over less or high moisture content.The district
administration also flagged off 10 awareness vans in villages and grain markets
to appeal farmers not sell their crop below MSP rate.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/2-commission-agents-three-rice-shellers-in-bathinda-lose-licence/story-596nn052eHVh6T0FHuFG4N.html
Thais to Sell
100,000 Tons of Rice to China
BANGKOK (Reuters) –Thailand will
sell 100,000 tons of rice to China within the next month, the commerce ministry
said on Tuesday, while it also approved new measures to stabilize rice prices.Thailand,
the world’s second-biggest rice exporter, will sell 100,000 tons of five
percent broken white rice to China following a government-to-government deal
which the two agreed last year.
The amount, to be sold at $394 to $399 per ton, is the first lot of China’s planned purchase of one million tons of Thai rice, said Minister of Commerce Apiradee Tantraporn.“Big orders from other countries will support new rice that’s coming out into the market,” she said.Thailand and Iran agreed to resume bilateral trade on Monday, with Thailand aiming to export 700,000 tons of rice to Iran per year.Thailand’s rice industry welcomed the agreement.
“Iran is an old market we have
always wanted to return to,” Charoen Laothamatas, president of the Thai Rice
Exporters’ Association, told Reuters.Thailand will also supply 100,000 tons of
rice to the Philippines in a deal struck in September.The ministry will hold
talks with China to accelerate sales of the remaining 900,000 tons, Ms.
Apiradee said.Shipping for the first lot will start sometime this month or
next, she added.Thailand aims to export 9.5 million tons of rice in 2016 and
has already exported 6.2 million tons up to August. The Commerce Ministry said
last month Thailand should harvest 23.55 million tons of rice between October
and December this year.
The government also approved measures at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday aimed at taking rice off the market to stabilize Thai rice prices at a time of high supply.The measures include a revised rice storage scheme worth 1.31 billion baht ($37.56 million), which offers interest rate cuts on loans from a state-run agriculture bank to attract more rice millers to buy rice for storage.Millers who store rice for 60 to 180 days will get a three percent interest rate cut per year, while those who store it for 90 to 180 days will get a four percent cut.Another measure involves offering loans, from 300,000 baht ($8,600) to 300 million baht ($8.60 million), to farmers, farmer groups, local enterprises and agricultural cooperatives to withhold their harvest and postpone selling it into the market.The government said it expected both programs to take 10 million tons of rice off the market.
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/30739/thais-to-sell-100-000-tons-of-rice-to-china/
China OKs MoU for 200,000 Tons of
Rice
China formally agreed to purchase 200,000 tons of rice
annually from Cambodia to help the country’s rice farmers and millers grappling
with falling prices and struggling to compete with the influx of cheaper rice
from neighboring countries, said an official in the Ministry of Commerce
yesterday.Soeng Sophary, spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce said
representatives from her ministry and China National Cereals, Oils and
Foodstuffs Corporation agreed on the draft memorandum of understanding (MoU)
for China to start purchasing the 200,000 tons of rice.
Ms. Sophary told Khmer Times, the
MoU came into effect on Tuesday, two days before China’s President Xi Jinping’s
official visit to the Kingdom.“This agreement was made to pave the way for
Cambodia to export 200,000 tons of rice yearly to the Chinese market,” she
said.Chinese Premer Li Keqiang, in his meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister
Hun Sen in Laos early last month, pledged to double China’s annual purchase of
100,000 tons of Cambodian rice to 200,000 tons, starting from next year. China
also pledged a loan of $300 million to Cambodia’s rice millers for building
warehouses with drying facilities.
“The more rice we sell, the more
income we will get. This will greatly help revitalize our rice sector,” said
Ms. Sophary.“The Ministry of Commerce, in the interest of the country’s
economy, is constantly finding markets to export to,” she added.Hun Lak, vice
president of the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF), clarified that that the
agreement to sell 200,000 tons of rice to China was negotiated before the fall
in market price of the grain.“Soon after the negotiations, the market price of
rice fell – before the Pchum Ben holidays,” said Mr. Lak.
“The rice exported to China is
fragrant ‘Sen Kro Oup’ rice and it is priced between $560 and $600 a ton,” he
said. “Though the price is high, Chinese consumers are keen to have this rice
as they say it tastes good.”Mr. Lak said CRF was working with the Ministry of
Commerce to seek more markets for Cambodian rice.“We are negotiating with
Indonesia and Timor-Leste. Recently, we have had orders from Malaysia,” he
said.
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/news/30744/china-oks-mou-for-200-000-tons-of-rice/
Hope on the Horizon:
UAR Projects 25% Growth in Global Rice Trade by 2025
But there's hope on the horizon. University of Arkansas Distinguished Professor and L.C. Carter Endowed Chair Dr. Eric Wailes made some promising projections during a recent speech at the Arkansas Rice Expo, based on a number of market factors. Wailes shared that rice worldwide faces large amounts of protectionism and is one of the most policy-distorted crops in the global market, saying, "That was made clear in last year's U.S. International Trade Commission report on the prospects of U.S. rice exports. They noted a number of countries that have significant import barriers that affect the opportunities for Arkansas and U.S. exporters."
In terms of global market growth and new opportunities for U.S. rice to be exported, Wailes points to developing countries in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa with rapidly growing GDPs. "Looking at the African markets, you have high population growth, high income growth, and rice is an ascendant food in many countries. It's a new, novel food that was once thought of as a luxury good. But now it's becoming affordable, certainly at the prices we're currently facing," he said. In terms of market growth in the coming years, Wailes said, "I think the total global trade market will increase by another 25 percent over the next 10 years."
The topic of competition for the growing market was raised and he included references to climate change, U.S. trade policies, and emphasized the importance of the U.S. having to "focus on developing and producing a competitive, high-quality rice crop."Dr. Wailes has spent an extensive amount of time researching a Cuban market for U.S. rice and growing Mexican and Latin American markets where we could potentially increase U.S. rice exports. Congress and the Administration will ultimately be the gate keepers setting trade policies that either help or hinder the industry's global competitiveness and allow the U.S. to increase export markets.
WASDE Report Released
WASHINGTON, DC -- The 2016/17 U.S. rice crop is reduced 1.1 million cwt to 236 million on lower yields. The average yield forecast is lowered 37 pounds per acre to 7,532. A reduction in Arkansas is partially offset by increases in California, Mississippi, and Texas. The long-grain crop is reduced 900,000 cwt to 177 million but still the largest since the 2010/11 record. Medium- and short-grain production is lowered 300,000 cwt to 59 million. Total rice exports are down 3 million cwt to 112 million reflecting a slow export pace to date and increased international competition. Ending stocks are raised 1.9 million cwt to 61 million, the largest since 1985/86. The all rice season-average farm price is unchanged at a range of $10.20 to $11.20 per cwt.
Global rice supplies for 2016/17 are raised 4.5 million tons on higher beginning stocks and production. Production is increased 1.5 million tons to 483.3 million and remains record large. Thailand production for 2016/17 is raised 1.6 million tons on beneficial precipitation and good reservoir recharge for irrigation, which led to increased dry-season rice area. Egypt and Australia production are raised 600,000 tons and 200,000 tons, respectively. However, these increases are partially offset by a 500,000-ton reduction for Brazil and a 300,000-ton reduction for Sri Lanka. Global exports for 2016/17 are raised 300,000 tons and global consumption for 2016/17 is lowered 600,000 tons. With total supplies rising and total use declining, world ending stocks are raised 5.1 million tons to 120.7 million.
Read the full report here.
Crop Progress: 2016
Crop 89 Percent Harvested
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Price of rice
set to fall in November
11 October 2016, 21:37
Abuja - The Federal Government confirmed on Monday that the price
of rice is set to fall from November with more Nigerians returning to their
farms to focus on agriculture, Punch reports.
The Minister of Agriculture and
Rural Development, Adu Ogbeh said that the government could not be involved in
the importation of rice and stressed that it would not encourage the
importation of rice as it would be detrimental to local production.
“We will not encourage rice
importation and there is no way our ministry or government can be involved in
importing rice when we are working hard to be self-sufficient in local
production. By November when the full-scale harvest starts, rice prices will
fall,” the minister said.
News24 reported
that the Federal Government denied that they have been importing genetically
modified rice which was made known during a news conference by the
Director-General National Biosafety Management Agency, Rufus Ebegba.Ebegba
states that no genetically modified rice has been released into the country and
no GMO rice has been released anywhere in the world either.
Digital Map Of
Entire Philippine Road Network Halfway Towards Completion
HERE, a
cloud-based location platform company in partnership with the Philippine Road
Board, is halfway towards its mission of mapping 45,000 km worth of routes.
Asian Scientist Newsroom | October 12, 2016 | Technology AsianScientist (Oct.
12, 2016) - HERE, a cloud-based location platform company, has announced that
its high-tech data capture vehicles have reached the halfway point of its
mission to create the first ever comprehensive digital map of the Philippine
road network. Since October 2015, over 50 percent of routes totalling 45,000 km
have been covered by six HERE data capture cars.
HERE is the technology partner of the US$5.4 million
project, which is managed by Geodata Systems Technologies. HERE will provide
the Philippine Road Board with a highly detailed 3D and 360° real-world view of
its road network. Data capturing includes identification of 57 specific
attributes and assets, from road width and length, to road surface conditions,
guardrails, street signs and traffic lights. Under the agreement, HERE will
monitor and update the road network map on an ongoing basis with its Reality
Lens solution, allowing the Road Board to visualize and measure changes down to
an accuracy of 2.5 cm.
The HERE Reality Lens solution will enable the
Philippines Road Board to see real-world data through access to hi-res, 360˚
street-level imagery; map street level features without having to leave the
office; and accurately measure height, width, length and area of the built
environment to review and plan ahead. At this point, the HERE team is confident
of completing the project ahead of the two-year schedule, with approximately
five percent of the total road network likely to remain unmapped due to
security issues or access limitations. Read more from Asian Scientist Magazine
http://www.asianscientist.com/2016/10/tech/digital-map-philippine-road-network-here/
Philippines imports more VN rice
Update: October, 12/2016 - 10:21
HÀ NỘI – Philippine enterprises can import an additional 293,100
tonnes of rice from Việt Nam to ensure food demand in the 2017 between-crop
period is met, the Việt Nam Food Association (VFA) said.The enterprises were also permitted to buy a similar quantity of rice from Thailand and 50,000 tonnes from China, India, Pakistan and other countries, with a total volume of 805,200 tonnes.
Delivery was set before February 28, 2017.
VFA Chairman Huỳnh Thế Năng said this was a chance for Vietnamese businesses to boost rice consumption which was currently gloomy
In late August 2016, Việt Nam won a bid to provide 150,000 tonnes of rice to the Philippines at US$424.85 per tonne.
Experts said Việt Nam would still face difficulty in exporting rice in the last three months of this year due to supply being higher than demand for rice in the market.
In the first nine months of this year, the export of rice, which was a key farm produce in the country, dropped 16.4 per cent in volume and 12.5 per cent in value to 3.76 million tonnes and $1.69 billion, respectively, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reported.
China remained the largest importer of Vietnamese rice with a 35.5 per cent market share, followed by Ghana with 11 per cent and Indonesia with 9.4 per cent. — VNS
http://vietnamnews.vn/economy/344283/philippines-imports-more-vn-rice.html#bQBGCGTizPx5ivv2.97
FA-Davao imports 166, 000 sacks of
rice from Thailand
Edegary Roncal, National Food
Authority Davao City field office manager, announces their importation of some
20,000 metric tons of Thailand rice due to the recent dry spell that hit the
Philippines. (Medel V. Hernani/davaotoday.com)
DAVAO CITY, Philippines — The
National Food Authority in this city has imported 166, 000 sacks of rice from
Thailand which would be distributed across Davao region and several parts of
North Cotabato, an official said Monday.
Edegary Roncal, NFA Davao new
managing head, told Kapehan sa Dabaw the new stock of imported rice arrived
earlier this month at the Terminal Facilities and Services Corporation
(TEFASCO) this city.
Roncal said that 166,000 imported
rice were part of the estimated 400,000 sacks of rice or equivalent to 20,000
metric tons being unloaded at the TEFASCO port.
“This is just the first volume
that we have received, that is the part of the 250,000 metric tons which was
contracted with the Philippine government this remaining months of the year
2016,” she said.
Roncal said the 60 percent of the
imported sacks of rice were sourced from Vietnam while the remaining 40
percent came from Thailand suppliers.
She attributed the import of rice
to the dry spell that struck the country earlier this year. “If we can
recall, few months back, we have experience severe crop damage due long drought
season all through out the country and because of that definitely our expected
volume locally from our farmers needs to be augmented as our food
requirement was severely affected so we need to import.”The government, Roncal
added, opted to import which will form part of the buffer stocks at the end of
2016 and until the first quarter of 2017.
“Right now, we are experiencing
main crop harvest of ‘ alay’ now but due to the recently concluded
damaged from the dry season, the expected harvest for the remaining month of
the year coming from the main crop season is not sufficient to supply our food
buffer stock inventory at the end of 2016,” she said.Roncal announced that the
next foreign vessel loaded with sacks of imported rice will arrive this week
not later in Oct. 15- (davaotoday.com)
http://davaotoday.com/main/economy/nfa-davao-imports-166-000-sacks-of-rice-from-thailand/
Strapped for dollars and flooded
with rice, Egypt to import more anyway
CAIRO/ABU DHABI Oct 12
Egypt is looking to import large quantities of rice this month as farmers refuse
to sell the government their crops despite a plentiful harvest and an extreme
shortage of dollars that should make buying from abroad a last resort.Egypt's
2016 rice paddy production is estimated at 5.1 million metric tonnes versus
annual consumption of about 3.95 million tonnes, a United States Department of
Agriculture report this week stated.Farmers have however refused to sell their
crops to the government, arguing that 2,400 Egyptian pound ($270.27) per tonne
state-mandated price is too low.
That has forced up local prices and made
supplies at local outlets scarce in recent weeks.Egypt's state grain buyer GASC
will on Wednesday hold an international purchase tender for at least 100,000
tonnes of white medium-grain rice, the start of a government campaign to
purchase 500,000 tonnes of the grain.The tender comes despite an acute dollar
shortage that has sapped the country's ability to purchase from abroad and
forced its central bank to ration dollars for essential commodities, the result
of a 2011 uprising that chased away tourists, foreign investors and their hard
currency.
Unlike wheat, sugar, and other
staple commodities which the North African country imports to meet demand that
outstrips local production, its bountiful rice crop far exceeds domestic needs.
However, the price dispute means it has to import."Farmers don't want to
sell because in the previous years they saw that they sold cheaply and then
prices increased and they didn't profit," said Mostafa al-Naggari, head of
the rice committee of Egypt's agricultural export council."In the free
market (the price of rice) is around 2,900 Egyptian pounds ($326.58) and the
government is offering 2,400, so there is a huge gap," Naggari added.
Temporary rice shortages and
price spikes have become common since the government failed to purchase stocks
during its 2015 harvest, an omission that allowed speculating traders to buy up
and hoard the country's entire crop, sending prices soaring upward until the
state called for tenders."The farmers are keeping in mind everything that
happened last year...they sold the crop very cheap and the traders made a lot
of money.
This year the farmers want to
store it," said one rice trader.Wednesday's tender may be tactical,
traders said, a shot across the bow to farmers holding stocks in hopes that
they will release them to the market.Prices fell by roughly 10 percent since
the government announced its purchase tender last week, but this could jump
back up if the tender isn't completed, the rice trader said."I don't think
they will even buy....but the farmers are waiting, and if the government
doesn't book every time, they will increase the price again," he said. ($1
= 8.8799 Egyptian pounds) (Reporting by Eric Knecht and Maha El Dahan; Editing
by Keith Weir)
Thailand to Sell 100,000 T
Rice to China, Announces Steps to Stabilize Price
Bangkok. Thailand will sell 100,000
tonnes of rice to China within the next month, the commerce ministry said on
Tuesday (11/10), while it also approved new measures to stabilize rice prices.
Thailand, the world's second biggest rice exporter, will sell
100,000 tonnes of 5 pct white rice to China following a
government-to-government deal which the two agreed last year.The amount, to be
sold at $394-$399 per tonne, is the first lot of China's planned purchase of 1
million tonnes of Thai rice, said Minister of Commerce Apiradee Tantraporn."Big
orders from other countries will support new rice that's coming out into the
market," she said.
Thailand and Iran agreed to resume bilateral trade on Monday,
with Thailand aiming to export 700,000 tonnes of rice to Iran per year.Thailand
will also supply 100,000 tonnes of rice to the Philippines in a deal struck in
September.The ministry will hold talks with China to accelerate sales of the
remaining 900,000 tonnes, Apiradee said.Shipping for the first lot will start
some time this month or next, she added.
Thailand aims to export 9.5 million tonnes of rice in 2016 and
has already exported 6.2 million tonnes up to August.The commerce ministry said
last month Thailand should harvest 23.55 million tonnes of rice between October
and December this year.The government also approved measures at a cabinet
meeting on Tuesday aimed at taking rice off the market to stabilize Thai rice
prices at a time of high supply.
The measures include a revised rice storage scheme worth 1.31
billion baht ($37.56 million), which offers interest rate cuts on loans from a
state-run agriculture bank to attract more rice millers to buy rice for
storage.Millers who store rice for 60 to 180 days will get a 3 percent interest
rate cut per year, while those who store it for 90 to 180 days will get a 4
percent cut.Another measure involves offering loans, from 300,000 baht ($8,600)
to 300 million baht ($8.60 million), to farmers, farmer groups, local
enterprises and agricultural cooperatives to withhold their harvest and
postpone selling it into the market.The government said it expected both
programs to take 10 million tonnes of rice off the market
http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/international/thailand-sell-100000-t-rice-china-announces-steps-stabilize-price/
Mono-crop affects IP farm practices
NAGA CITY, Camarines Sur:
Mono-cropping and migration have contributed to the demise of upland
traditional agricultural practices of Bicol’s indigenous peoples (IPs), a
research project of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PRRI) in Los Banos,
Laguna, showed.Jacqueline Canilao of the PRRI said their research, titled
Anthropological and Socio-economic Characterization of Bicol’s Agta Indigenous
Peoples, began in 2012 and covered four IP communities in Albay and Camarines
Sur provinces.
Mono-cropping or cultivation of a
single commercial crop like corn and outward migration of young Agtas from the
four communities to the lowlands in search of employment hastened the
disappearance of upland agricultural practices and crops like rice.
The study showed that the desire
for quick return of capital in market-driven crops like corn, the high cost of
farm inputs to cultivate this cash crop, the near absence of roads and the lack
of job opportunities compelled the young Agtas to abandon farming as a source
of livelihood altogether and leave an ageing and dwindling number of farmers.Canilao
said the lessons PRRI learned in its Palayaman project in Mindoro prompted the
research on the Bicol IPs.In Mindoro, change and improvement of the IPs’ lives
does not only depend on the introduction of new farming technologies but also
draws from their traditional socio-cultural practices, that is, in the
diversity of agricultural products as well as traditional, local and scientific
knowledge.
The results of the study are
contained in four coffee table books: Voices of San Pedro, Modern Gatbo,
Growing Danao and Understanding Joroan, Misibis and Mayong, which were launched
here and attended by some 40 Agta IPs from the four communities.
San Pedro is a mountain barangay
(village) in Iriga City, Gatbo is in Ocampo, Camarines Sur; while Danao,
Joroan, Misibis and Mayong are located in Albay, particularly in Malinao, Tiwi
and Cagraray Island, respectively.
Rice policies must take focus off populism 13
Oct 2016 at 04:30
Yingluck Shinawatra understood how to use the rice-purchase
scheme to get elected, but never had a firm hand on the programme's
sustainability.
Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra has cried
foul about the compensation, sought by the current regime, for damages caused
by her government's loss-ridden rice-pledging scheme. She should instead have
paid heed to concerns over irregularities and the scheme's lack of
sustainability when she was in power.
The total cumulative loss generated by the scheme, a
major policy disaster for the country, provides a basis for the current
government to seek damages from her, other politicians, and bureaucrats
involved. It was the fruit of an extreme populist policy which has not in the
end helped improve farmers' livelihoods in a sustainable manner.
In defending the alleged dereliction of duty made
against her, the former premier insisted the scheme was meant to boost farmers'
livelihoods and increase market prices of unmilled rice. However, massive
losses incurred indicate that the scheme was not a sustainable solution.
A study by the Thailand Development Research Institute
(TDRI) found that the scheme caused a total loss of over 500 billion baht from
2011-2014. If it had continued, we are unsure what further losses would have
been incurred and for how long the state would have had to shoulder this
financial disaster.
Even though the Yingluck government projected that the
scheme would eventually drive the market price of rice to 15,000 baht per
tonne, the current value stands at only 8,000 baht.
Findings by the Finance Ministry's subcommittee
inspecting the accounting of several government rice subsidy schemes, led by
former permanent secretary for finance Rangsan Sriworasart, revealed that the
country's 15 rice subsidy programmes over a period of 11 years before the 2014 coup,
had accumulated massive losses totalling 699 billion baht.
Four schemes were initiated by the Yingluck government
and caused a loss of 536 billion baht within just two years. The other 11
programmes had been initiated by its predecessors and accumulated a total loss
of 163 billion baht.
Those losses were caused by the government's buying
price of pledged rice at prices 50% above the market price. In addition,
damages were incurred by irregularities and fraud associated with the project.
A panel formed by the current government to determine
the compensation, chaired by Manas Jamveha, former director-general of the
Comptroller-General's Department, initially ruled that Ms Yingluck was
delinquent in her duties and should be held liable for 293 billion baht in
damages.
The committee later cut the amount to 178 billion baht
as it recommended that compensation should instead be sought for losses
incurred during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 rice harvest seasons; the periods
where the then government was notified by both the National Anti-Corruption
Commission (NACC) and the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG) of potential
irregularities and fraud in the scheme. The panel ruled that Ms Yingluck, as
the highest authority overseeing national rice policy, must be held liable for
20% of the losses, or a sum of 35.7 billion baht.
A loss of 115 billion baht incurred during the
2011-2012 growing season and the 2012 double-crop season was excluded because
the panel believed that the government only received broad recommendations from
the two agencies during this period so it did not have sufficient information
about the potential losses.
In fact, the Yingluck government should have realised
the possible problems associated with this programme without waiting for such
warnings from either agency. The Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives (BAAC), the long-time lender to this and other rice subsidy
schemes, informed her administration in advance that the project could run into
a number of problems.
The bank even proposed recommendations to prevent any
problems that could arise from false claims of farmers' subsidy entitlements,
inaccurate information given by rice millers and the fraudulent sale of rice
stocks. These projected problems did actually happen.
The first farm subsidy policy was initiated in
Thailand in 1982. It was designed to increase prices of paddy. Farmers were
allowed to pledge their unmilled rice to the BAAC during the beginning of the
harvest season when supply was usually high and prices were down.
What these
governments have in common was the failure to help farmers realise the risks in
their investment, learn how to enhance their productivity, and become more
competitive. Those policies did not help uplift their livelihoods in the long
term.
Somporn Isvilanonda, an economist at the Knowledge
Network Institute, had repeatedly proposed that policy-makers should focus on
cost reductions and efficient farm management as the keys to enhancing
productivity. His proposed measures included the reduction of chemical use and
the adoption of the sufficiency economy to cut costs and mitigate risks in the
farming process.
Mass production should be shifted to farming that
creates a niche based on rice varieties. For example, a strong focus should
have been given to organic rice breeds with unique and high quality. Policy
makers should also capitalise on existing studies that can help farmers improve
rice quality.
However, if rice continues to be used by politicians
as a political commodity, it will be unable to reach its true potential for a
niche market. It will be used as part of populist policies without sustainable
measures to truly uplift the
Of rice and diplomacy
12 Oct 2016 at 04:20
The
government worked hard to make its Asia Cooperation Dialogue 2016 a success.
The country, particularly the Thai public, proved to be a generous host, in
regards to the plight of residents who encountered traffic congestion as a
result of massive road closures. Just the traffic jams alone left much of
Bangkok unimpressed with the foreign leaders who flew in.
So
far as the traffic jams, motorists and commuters have the right to be upset.
The government certainly had to take steps to aid the movements of so many
prominent ministers, including heads of government. But the dislocation and
utter inconvenience was poorly planned and carried out. Instead of a long
notice of areas restricted to traffic, Bangkok got a terse announcement on
Saturday, meaning most drivers didn't even know about the diversions until they
drove into them. It was poor planning.
So
far as the actual "summit", Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha set the
right tone. In fact, our leader turned many opportunities presented by the ACD
into positives. Some will undoubtedly yield good results.
The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, meanwhile, proved up to the task of organising and
catering to the guests from abroad, and meetings including those under
bilateral frameworks like the Thailand-South Korea friendship, ended with
satisfactory outcomes.
The
actual summit meetings which ended on Monday were broken into two, one for
governments and one for the private sector. Gen Prayut's main appearance was as
they keynote speaker at last Saturday's main business meeting. He waded in
quite boldly, and won headlines with his main proposal. While the local and
global economies are struggling, it is the perfect time for the private sector to
dive in with investments, either private or jointly with the government.
There
is no question the premier is right. Large investments right now would
kickstart the areas where the money is needed. Moreover, it would provide the
confidence needed to encourage further investment.
Realistically, Thailand has no other road to recovery. The economy
at present is bolstered and supported by government spending. Thai credit is
still good, but government spending always has a finite limit. Many countries
have been ruined by government over-spending, then printing money without
backing. Gen Prayut has proposed that private enterprise bring real investment
into the economy.
One of the opportunities mentioned above was the arrival at the ACD
of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. He was ready to talk business, and Gen
Prayut was very much in favour. He and the Iranian leader had talks on the
weekend that could result in a rapid reversal of a Thai ban on rice sales to
Tehran.
It should be noted that over the past 10 years, all the top Asian
rice exporters have had serious issues with Iran over payments for shipped
rice. Vietnam and Pakistan have stopped all rice shipments to Iran unless
Tehran paid cash -- which it refused to do. Earlier this year, India was also
involved in a similar dispute, and India has been cutting back on all Basmati
rice sales to Iran, not just sales on credit.
Because of its poor payment record, there must be careful
negotiations and conditions on rice sales to Iran. But there is little doubt
that Iran under its moderate president wants to rebuild both political and
economic ties with Thailand.
The Islamic Republic News Agency and Thai spokesmen agreed on the
achievements of the Rouhani-Prayut meetings. Both agreed it is time for a new
chapter in Tehran-Bangkok relations. With Saudi Arabian relations apparently
doomed to stagnate forever, this could be the premier achievement of the ACD.
Rising Dominance of Estate
Crops and Varied Usage Patterns for Agricultural Machinery in Indonesia to
Drive the Demand for Agricultural Equipments: Ken Research
(MENAFN Press) •To upgrade industries
and climb the technological ladder, a strong partnership with the private
sector will be crucial for the country.
•The growing GDP, improving
investment in infrastructure and low labor costs will provide a significant
thrust to the manufacturing sector over the coming years.
•The agricultural machinery market
in Indonesia is estimated to reach over USD 740 million by 2020
Ken Research announced its latest
publication on “Indonesia Agricultural Machinery Market Outlook to 2020 -
Integration of Small Farm holders and Government Support to Foster Growth”
provides a comprehensive analysis of the agricultural machinery market in
Indonesia. The report covers aspects such as the market size on the basis of
sales volume and revenue for Tractors, Combine Harvesters, Rice Transplanters
and Tractor Implements. The segmentation for Tractors, Combine Harvesters and
Rice Transplanters has been created on the basis of Horsepower while the
segmentation for Tractor Implements has been showcased by products. The report
also covers the market share, competitive landscape and working business model
of major manufacturers, along with warranty policies and distribution channels
of agricultural equipments. The report also covers farm ownership by different
food and estate crops with expected changes in cropping pattern in the coming
years. In addition to this, the report also covers the country overview,
government regulation and agricultural overview of Indonesia. GDP, Per Capita
Income and Population Demographics are analyzed in country overview. Land under
cultivation, Changes in cropping patterns, farm holding structure and scale of
mechanization are covered in agricultural overview. Regulatory policies, the
import duty structure, subsidies and financing options are covered in
government regulation. This report will help industry consultants, agricultural
machinery manufacturers and dealers, retail chains, potential entrants and
other stakeholders to align their market centric strategies according to the
ongoing and expected trends in the future.
The sales of agricultural machinery
and implements are projected to reach over 230,000 units by 2020. 2 wheel
tractors market in terms of revenues is likely to dominate in the future. 4
wheel tractors market is anticipated to report second position in the market in
terms of revenues in 2020. This will be followed with Tractor implements, combine
harvesters and rice transplanters.
In rice growing and in other small
size farms, small scale two wheel tractors are most popular due to its
adaptation to the local economic conditions and management scales. The
sustained popularity of hand tractors for land preparation and ideal soft soil
conditions will augment its sales in future. Java will continue to be the area
with the highest demand and sales of hand tractors in the country.
The demand for four wheel tractors
will continue to arise from Sumatra and Kalimantan in the future, due to the
above average farm holding size in these regions. Moreover, the higher
production for palm oil, rubber and sugarcane in these regions has also boosted
the demand for 4 wheel tractor sales
The level of mechanization in
harvesting in Indonesia is still very low as a majority of farmers still use
manual methods. Combine harvesters are mainly demanded by a limited target
audience and farmers and agricultural cooperatives and this trend is expected
to continue in the future. The level of mechanization with respect to
transplanting is still very low as farmers prefer to engage in manual methods
of transplanting as this involves only cost of labor been employed on the farm.
The sale of rice transplanters is projected to increase in the coming years.
Indonesia is on the path towards self-sufficiency in terms of rice production
and consumption due to which a majority of farmers in the country are expected
to continue rice farming. The growth in sales of two wheel and four wheel
tractors is complemented with the growth in tractor implements as a majority of
farmers purchase tractor implements along with new tractors. The sale of
tractor implements has been estimated to reach is anticipated to grow in tandem
with the sales of 2 wheel and 4 wheel tractors.
“It is advisable for new entrant to
provide great after sales support services such as on site mechanics support
even during the peak seasons or timely commitment of services or otherwise free
spares. Moreover, the farmers in Indonesia have lower credit worthiness due to
limited farm income, which refrain them to purchase farm machinery. In lieu to
this, the farm equipment companies should instigate separate leasing department
that can provide farm machinery to the farmers with limited finance”, according
to Research Analyst, Ken Research.
Key Topics Covered in the Report:
Country Overview: Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) of Indonesia, Key Factors Driving Growth in GDP, Contribution to
GDP: Agriculture, Manufacturing and Service Sector, Population Demographics,
Logistics Cost
Agricultural Overview: Total Land
under Cultivation, Distribution by Major Crops, Rice, Sugarcane, Cassava and
Rubber, Palm Oil and Maize, Changing Cropping Patterns in Indonesia and Factors
Driving Change
Farm Holding Structure in Indonesia:
Number of Farms and Farm Holding Size, Nature of Ownership, Food and Estate
Crops
Regulatory Policies Impacting Farm
Holding Structure: Regulatory Structure, Import Duty Structure, Certification
Requirements, Subsidies, Government Taxes, Finance Options
Agricultural Practices: Extensive
and Intensive Farming, Scale of Mechanization, Irrigated and Non-Irrigated Land
Market for Tractor and Agricultural
Implements: Indonesia Agricultural Equipment Market, Tractor Market, Rice
Transplanter Market, Combine Harvester Market, Tractor Implements Market
Key Factors Driving Growth of
Agricultural Equipment Market
Market Share and Competitive
Landscape of Leading Manufacturers in Indonesia Agricultural Equipments Market
Competitive Landscape of Leading
Manufacturers in Indonesia Agricultural Equipments Market
Price Range for Agricultural
Equipments
Geographical Distribution of
Category Wise Sale of Tractors and Combine Harvesters
Working Model of Major OEM’s in
Indonesia Agriculture Equipment Market
Custom Hiring Market
Export-Import of Agricultural
Equipments in Indonesia
Future Projections for Indonesia
Agricultural Equipment Market
Customer Insight: Decision Making
Process for Procurement of Agricultural Equipments, Usage Pattern for Major
Agricultural Equipments in Indonesia
Analyst Recommendations
Key Products Mentioned in the Report
Four Wheel Tractors
Power Tillers
Combine Harvesters
Rice Transplanters
Tractor Implements (Rotavator, Disc
Plough, Disc Harrow, Land Leveler, Sprayers/ Spreaders)
Companies Covered in the Report
PT Kubota Machinery Indonesia
Yanmar Indonesia
Quick Tractors (CV. Karya Hidup
Sentosa)
PT Rutan (Agrindo)
Traktor Nusantara (Massey Ferguson
and Tym)
PT Satrindo Mitra Utama (John Deere)
Altrak 1987 (New Holland)
Maxxi
Galaxy
Tanikaya
For more information on the report,
refer to the link below:
https://www.kenresearch.com/agriculture-and-animal-care/agriculture-equipment/indonesia-farm-tractor-market-report/53418-104.html
Related Reports:
Vietnam Agricultural Machinery
Market Outlook to 2020 - Government Initiatives to Increase Mechanization and
Enhancing Credit Availability to Drive Future Growth
Thailand Agricultural Machinery
Market Outlook to 2020 - Changing Labour Force Pattern and Improving Credit
Conditions to Foster Future Growth
India Agricultural Equipment
Industry Outlook to 2018 - Growing Potential of Rice Transplanters Market
Contact Us:
Ken Research
Ankur Gupta, Head Marketing &
Communications
Ankur@kenresearch.com
91-901537824
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