Wednesday, November 09, 2016

8th November,2016 daily global,regional and local rice e-newsletter by riceplus magazine

Pakistan produces 1.2bln broiler chickens annually

November 05, 2016

KARACHI: Pakistan has become the world’s 11th biggest producer of broilers, producing 1.2 billion meat-type chickens annually on ‘a critically balanced diet’, an industry official said on Friday.

A spokesman of the Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA), in a statement, said the broilers available in local markets are fed on the same genetic nutrients as of US, Europe, India, Brazil, Argentina and China and denied that they were fed on hormones.

The spokesman, however, said a broiler chick gains more than 2.2- kilogram in weight in five weeks in US, Brazil and Argentine because of the availability of low priced-edible oils and feed grains with higher energy content. It takes around six weeks for a broiler chick to gain the same weight, he added.

“Since the chicken gains weight faster in US, it should be questioned whether they too give hormones and steroids,” he said. “A knowledgeable producer avoids using animal by-products as feed for they are a source of Salmonella and other bacterial contaminants, which would cause a greater loss to the producer than any benefit.”

Mostly, chicken diet constitutes of corn, broken rice, wheat bran, rice polishing, corn by-products, oil seed meals and vegetable oil. Giving a reason behind the rapid output, he elaborated that a tremendous progress has been made in the fields of poultry genetics, nutrition, housing, management practices and disease control and eradication.

He said there are three major poultry genetic companies operating in the world, conducting research on disease-resistance breeds, improving digestive system for better absorption of nutrients to reduce feed cost.

The PPA official, citing a research study, said broiler weight has been gaining between two and three percent per annum since 2005. “In 1957, a day old chick weighed 34 grams; in 1978 it weighed 42 grams and in 2005 it weighed 44 grams,” he said. “A 28-day broiler weighed 316 grams in 1957, 623 grams in 1,978 and 1,396 grams in 2005.”

The official said modern poultry houses in Pakistan have controlled environment with fans, lighting and heating to tap the optimum genetic potential. He said a critically balanced diet is fed and formulated on a computer to give a balance between energy, protein and essential amino acids. “A deficiency or an imbalance of any one of the nutrients would affect the optimum genetic potential,” he added.

The spokesman said egg laying strain chicken or desi chicken, which have a different genetic material than the meat type, are fed with nutrition far superior than the one given to the meat type

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/162382-Pakistan-produces-12bln-broiler-chickens-annually

Farmers risk lives to harvest basmati rice along IB

Bein-Glard (Samba), Nov 7, 2016 (PTI)

Harvesting the paddy crop particularly the aromatic basmati rice cultivated near the International Border in R S Pura border belt amid relentless shelling by Pakistani Rangers has made farmers sitting ducks of the firing from across the border.

Most areas in and around the R S Pura belt are extremely fertile and best suited for basmati cultivation. A total of 17,742 hectares having standing paddy crop has been affected due to the shelling and firing by the Pakistani Rangers.

The paddy crop grown in the area is worth Rs 130 crore. "The basmati rice grown in Jammu and Kashmir is now under threat from Pakistan", an official of the Agriculture department said, adding, farmers are anxious that "if there is no one to harvest, the crop will die in fortnight".

With the crop ripe, farmers have been risking their lives to harvest the paddy.

54-year-old Sham Lal has rushed to his fields along with few family members to cut the paddy growing close to the International Border in R S Pura border belt of Jammu district.

"We are helpless. We cannot afford to lose our crops. Our family is dependent on these crops. We are risking our lives to harvest these standing crops", Lal said.Like Lal, several marginal farmers living along the borderline are working overtime to speedily complete harvesting of the crops.Bein Gallar Sarpanch Ram Paul, whose hamlet was shelled by Pakistani Rangers few days ago, says farmers in border areas are forced to risk their lives to harvest their ripe crops as they depend on them for livelihood.

"In the absence of labourers and machines, they are reluctant to come with their families and undertake harvesting.The border farmers have taken it on themselves to harvest their standing crops and in the process have become sitting ducks for the Pak Rangers", Paul said.However, like them the farmers owning big agriculture land are not so lucky as they await paddy cutting machines and labourers, who have fled the farmlands following Pakistani shelling and firing and are reluctant to return to commence farming in the border belt of Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts.

Jabowal Sarpanch Avtar Singh said farmers owning bigger farmlands are helpless in this situation as on one side the Pak troops resorted to shelling and firing and on other side labourers and machine operators have refused to join them in harvesting."We await labourers and machines. Security forces say the sound of the tractor instantly invites the sounds of the gun from across the other side of the International Border", he added.Singh said that in case of manual harvesting, it will take weeks but if machines for harvesting comes to their fields along with labourers, it will take few days. "There is a threat to the ready-to-harvest paddy from shelling as it can result in fire which may perish the whole fields", he said.

Kali Dass, sarpanch of Bhudwal hamlet along the LoC in Pallwanwala sector, feels it is a curse for him to live in the area as they are targeted every time during the harvesting time."We are unfortunate people. We were uprooted during three wars, Kargil war, Operation Parakaram and every time when Indo-Pak relations", he said.

"People particularly youth go to villages in the morning from their camps and carry out harvest work till evening. Situation is bad for us.We don't known when we will become victims of Pak shelling and firing during farming", he said, adding but "We have no choice but to risk our lives if we have save our only resource-- paddy".Officials said most areas in and around the R S Pura belt are extremely fertile and best suited for basmati cultivation.

As per estimates each hectare of this fertile land produces not less than 18 quintals of Basmati.A total of 17,742 hectares of area having standing paddy crop has been affected due to shelling and firing by the Pakistani Rangers, official said. The majority of the affected area falls in Jammu district followed by Samba and Kathua districts.

Vietnamese rice prices rise on low stocks

November 06, 2016

Vietnamese rice prices rose on Wednesday due to low stocks while prices eased in India and Thailand on thin demand and rising supplies, traders said. Indicative prices of Vietnam's 25-percent broken rice advanced to $340 a tonne, free-on-board (FOB) basis, from $335 a week ago, and the 5-percent broken rice rose to $350-$355 a tonne, against $350 last Wednesday."There is not enough broken rice to make the 25-percent broken grade," a trader at a foreign firm in Ho Chi Minh City said. However, lower price of Thai rice has made Vietnamese rice look less attractive, a trader in Bangkok said. "If buyers decide to buy rice now, it will be Thai rice," he said.

China, Vietnam's top rice buyer, resumed cross-border purchases last month, but has not yet imported much, traders said. "There are some supplies from a minor crop coming, and given Thai prices have fallen, Vietnam is in a very difficult position," the first trader said. African buyers have switched to cheaper grain offered by Pakistan and Thailand, traders added.Thai benchmark 5-percent broken rice dropped to $345-$350 a tonne on Wednesday, FOB basis, from $350-$354 last week, as supplies mounted. At $345, the price is in the zone of the lowest in 13 months hit on Monday. "There is little demand coming from foreign markets," a trader in Bangkok said, adding that buyers could start taking Thai rice when prices dipped further.

Thailand's annual harvest is currently underway, with 80 percent of output expected to be reaped in November, the commerce ministry has said. The average price of Pakistan's 25-percent broken rice stood at $331 a tonne during January-September, below Vietnam's price of $335 of the same grade, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. In India, the world's biggest exporter of the grain, prices of 5-percent broken parboiled rice dropped $6 this week to $358-$368 a tonne on sluggish demand and rising supplies from new season crop."Supplies have started from the new season crop in most key producing states, but export demand is still weak," said an exporter in Kakinada in India's southern state of Andhra Pradesh. "Prices could fall further in coming weeks as supplies are expected to build up," he added.

http://www.brecorder.com/agriculture-a-allied/183/100435/

The right price of rice

MOHAMMAD HUSSAIN KHAN

With the peak harvest season underway, supply of rice and paddy prices are showing a decline.Barring the initial harvest stage, when farmers could get a somewhat attractive price for an early lower Sindh crop, rates in upper Sindh’s paddy market varied between Rs750-850/40kg by the third week of October.This year paddy was grown on 745,000ha in the province — against the target of 750,000ha this year and 719,000ha last year.Harvesting of the crop is in full swing in paddy growing upper Sindh, where it is the only crop of the kharif season. By and large, apart from old varieties of basmati-9, ‘subdasi’, Shahkar, Shandar, KSK282, irri-6 etc, China’s hybrid seed is used for getting better yields.

Paddy grower, Gada Hussain Mahesar says hybrid seed has been preferred for domestic consumption by many growers ever-since it was introduced. Mahesar points out that the hybrid variety lacks aroma and taste and that’s why it is not exported to the Gulf region. The seed can also not be stored by farmers for the next season’s sowing.

________________________________________

Dr Syed Nadeem Qamar maintains that the provincial government doesn’t control exports nor does it fix the price for the paddy crop. Gone are the days when the federal government used to interveneby lifting the crop

Whereas, he says, irri-6 tastes better, has a long grain size and can be stored. It was most sought after in Dubai and Saudi Arabia for these reasons, he added.Farmers say that upper Sindh’s landowners, Ameer Bux Pahore and Ishaq Mughairi, estimate that for producers to earn and save something the price should be Rs1,200/40kg for super basmati and Rs1,000/40kg for irri-6. They say the cost of production for coarse variety is Rs29,000 per acre with an average of 50-55 maunds per acre yields.While the hybrid seed gives more yield, it’s seed is costly (Rs1,000/1kg) when compared to Rs1,200/40kg of indigenous varieties.

While Mughairi blames cartels for making millers’ matters worse, a rice miller, from Mughairi’s home district, Qamaruddin Sheikh says millers are incurring losses too. “I sold a100kg bag for Rs3,700 to an exporter from Karachi on Oct 30”, he says, while anticipating that the rate would drop even further in next few days.

With the peak season’s supply from upper Sindh, super basmati still managed to get a rate of Rs1,500/40kg and the aromatic variety — grown in Kirthar range — Rs1,100/40kg, till mid October.

Farmers say the miller-exporter nexus ultimately hits the growers’ income. Rice millers buy 41kg of crop for a price set for 40kg. Millers also make growers pay offloading charges at Rs10/bag; and with no mechanism defined to determine moisture in the crop, growers have to accept the millers’ price.

In a meeting held in Karachi on Oct 17, which was chaired by the provincial agriculture minister with rice millers attending, it was decided that no deduction would be made on any crop that undergoes mechanised thrashing. Moisture has been allowed in acceptable limits and unloading charges are paid jointly by farmers and millers — Rs5 each. However, this is not being followed.

Sindh Chamber of Agriculture (SCA) president Dr Syed Nadeem Qamar maintains that the provincial government doesn’t control exports nor does it fix the price for the paddy crop. Gone are the days when the federal government used to intervene by lifting paddy through the Trading Corporation of Pakistan and Pakistan Agriculture Storages and Supplies Corporation, he says.

Paddy has almost been completely harvested in the lower Sindh region.

Price for the crop that is stocked by rice millers usually increases in the winter season when exporters place new orders. The rates go up to Rs1,100/40kg. Until July this year paddy was bought at Rs1,250/40kg, while the February rate was Rs950.

SCAs’ Bux Sathio claims he sold his paddy in lower Sindh for Rs1,060 in early September.

Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, November 7th, 2016

http://www.dawn.com/news/1294641/the-right-price-of-rice

CBN pledges more support for rice farming

ON NOVEMBER 6, 20169:57 AMIN NEWSCOMMENTS By Babajide Komolafe The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has pledged to increase its support for rice farming across the country. CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele made this promise while inspecting rice farms in Itane, Ketar Fulani and Gwadan Gwaji villages in Kebbi State. Mr. Emefiele, who expressed satisfaction with the yield of farmers that hearkened to the clarion call to embrace farming as a business venture rather than mere subsistence, stated that major objectives of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) had been largely achieved.

According to him, the objectives of the ABP include assisting rural small holder farmers to grow from subsistence to commercial production level, increase capacity utilization, creating jobs, reduce poverty, and increase banks’ finance to agricultural sector among others. Accompanied by the Governor of Kebbi State, Senator Atiku Abubakar Bagudu and the representative of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, Emefiele said that the ABP was yielding result due to farmers’ access to the correct seedlings, pesticides and fertilizer as well as the support from the State government.

He also expressed confidence that the target of ensuring that Nigeria feeds herself would be achieved. He therefore called on the farmers in the state to always forward their challenges to the Bank and other authorities for quick solution, even as he assured them of the continued support of the CBN. He thereafter enjoined members of the media to inspect the rice farms and report objectively. While noting that the refusal of some farmers to register for the Bank Verification Number (BVN) had militated against their getting access to the ABP facility, the CBN Governor urged all farmers in the country to register for their BVN.

He also assured that the ABP facility would be spread to many people as far as they got registered for the BVN, which he noted was on-going. Also speaking, the Governor of the State, Senator Bagudu, who doubles as the Chairman of the National Task Force on Rice and Wheat, said the objective of the tour was to see how farmers and processors in the country were responding to the call by President Muhammadu Buhari as well as the impact of funds provided under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP).

While attributing the bumper harvest being recorded in all the 31 rice-producing states across the country to the political motivation by President Buhari as well as intervention efforts of the CBN and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, he said the goal of making Nigeria self-sufficient was on course. Gov. Bagudu hinted that the state government was ready to provide paddies to millers on credit but urged the Federal Government to provide more silos in the state as many farmers were still holding paddies at their homes. He commended the CBN for its intervention and assured the Bank that his government would continue to collaborate with the CBN to ensure the objectives of ABP are met. Equally speaking, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, represented by the Director in the Ministry, Alhaji Azeez Musibau Olumuyiwa, assured of the Ministry’s commitment to work with the CBN to ensure the success of the agricultural intervention programmes, in line with the aspirations of the Federal Government.

Responding, the Chairman, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), Kalgo Local Government chapter, Alhaji Aliyu Itane, denied the allegations that politicians were the ones benefitting from the programme. He clarified that only genuine farmers, who were screened and met all the necessary requirements of accessing the ABP facility, were benefitting from the programme. While fielding questions from journalists, other farmers expressed their appreciation to the CBN Governor, and said that the ABP had increased their output and created jobs in the area. They also called on the state government to construct roads to the farms that would enable them repatriate the farm produce to the markets easily. “The Itane farm has a coverage land area of 89 kilometres and to rice farmers in the area there is no economic recession.

What is recession?” Alhaji Aliyu, one of the farmers, queried. Meanwhile, farmers in the Zuru Emirate council have embraced soya bean production at commercial level as a way of diversifying agricultural activity in the state. The soya production, which is presently being anchored by a private firm, ICMG, in partnership with Kebbi State Government, has leveraged on the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme and BVN platform to register and capture over 5,000 farmers across three districts. The ICM group, which will also serve as the off-taker, provides the farmers with improved seedlings, fertilizer and extension services

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2016/11/cbn-pledges-support-rice-farming/

Traders, millers mop up rice in Kebbi

By Ismail Adebayo, Birnin Kebbi | Publish Date: Nov 6 2016 2:30AM

Given the bountiful harvest that has been recorded by farmers this year in Kebbi, the state has become haven for local, conventional millers and grain traders from Sokoto, Kano, Zamfara, Ebony, Lagos, Maiduguri, Niger and other parts of the country, Daily Trust on Sunday gathered.

Our correspondent reports that the state has continued to witness the influx of rice, wheat and millet buyers from Niger and Benin Republic since April this year.

Following this, a bag of paddy rice now sells for N15,000, against the initial price of N10,000. Under the Anchor Borrowers arrangement, government is expected to buy a bag of paddy rice from the registered farmers at the rate of N113,000 per ton. However, the farmers now prefer to sell their paddy rice directly to the millers and traders who continue to besiege farm locations in local government areas of the state.

It would be recalled that some weeks back the state government raised alarm on how some individuals within and outside the state were going directly to the farms to buy up rice.

This practice, it said contravened its agreement with the farmers.

While briefing journalists after the State Executive Council meeting in Birnin Kebbi, the Commissioner for Lands and Housing, Alhaji Abubakar Chika Ladan, said government would take appropriate measures to ensure that the farmers did not default on the loan they were given to produce rice, wheat and soya beans.

Some of the farmers who spoke to Daily Trust on Sunday said buyers from different parts of the country had been coming in large numbers to buy up their grains, particularly rice.

A rice farmer who is also the secretary of the rice and wheat farmers association, Alhaji Muhammed Bello Barade said, “what these buyers do now to bye-pass government is that they follow the farmers to their farms. They give them large sum of money to buy up everything as they are being harvested. Some are even buying up the rice before they are harvested. They come here from Kaduna, Sokoto, Kano, Jigawa, Maiduguri and even from the South-East and other parts of the country.

The chairman of the rice farmers association in Kebbi State, Alhaji Sahabi Augie, also told our correspondent that since April, the state has been witnessing influx of grain buyers from different parts of the country and neighbouring countries such as Niger Republic and Benin Republic.

He added that the initial agreement between government and the farmers under the Anchor Borrowers scheme was that after giving them loan, fertilizer, generator and pumping machine, they would pay back by selling their produce to government.

“However, with the influx of buyers and conventional millers from different areas of the country, farmers now prefer to sell to the third party rather than to government. We feel we would be short-changed if we sell to government at the agreed price. This made us to change our agreement with government. Now farmers have the option of either paying back to government in cash or with paddy rice. This is to safeguard them from being short-changed”, he said.

To actualize its one million metric tons of rice projection by the end of this year, the state government in collaboration with the federal government has stepped up measures to achieve its target.

Last week, the Secretary to the Federal Government, Engineer David Lawal Babachir, paid a two day visit to Kebbi to ascertain the level of its rice production. The following week, the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, was also in the state. During their visits they were taken round some rice and wheat farms in Bunza, Bagudo, Argungu,Yauri and Zuru local government areas of the state. On Saturday, last week, Governor Atiku Bagudu also toured some rice farms in the state to ensure the actualization of the one million metric tons projection by December of this year

http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/traders-millers-mop-up-rice-in-kebbi/170317.html#rolTHHJQ7LErTiMJ.99

Rice prices fall to 3500 KPW per kilo due to harvest season and import spike

Seol Song Ah | 2016-11-07 16:56

North Korean residents preparing the harvest at a collective farm in
Namchon, Chongdan County, South Hwanghae Province.
Image: Rodong Sinmun

Rice prices in some regions of North Korea have reportedly fallen by approximately 1000 KPW over the last few days. The price of rice has generally hovered around 5000 KPW per kilo since Kim Jong Un took power, but recently dropped to 3500 KPW due to an increase in supply from the harvest season and rice imports.

A Daily NK source in North Hwanghae Province reported on November 3 that the price of one kilo of rice was about 4800 KPW in the middle of last month, but has now fallen to 3500 KPW over the last few days.

"People are happy about the price drop," she said.

"Although rice prices in the markets around the northern regions (North Hamgyong Province, Ryanggang Province) are continuing to average 5000 KPW per kilo, it’s being sold at 3500 KPW per kilo in the rural areas of North and South Hwanghae Provinces. It’s believed that this was caused by a fairly good harvest in the agricultural zones of the provinces of North and South Pyongan and North and South Hwanghae, which was better than last year."

In North Korea, rice prices fluctuate in accordance with grain production. During the harvest season, prices tend to drop when increasing volumes of rice enter the market, most of which occurs via embezzlement channels set up by officials.

"During the harvest season, officials in charge of the farms embezzle a proportion of the rice for themselves and sell it at the market, which seems to be the reason for the recent decline in rice prices," the source said.

In addition, public sentiment towards the change in prices also has an impact on prices. Rumors have been spreading among the residents that large volumes of rice will be donated by UN agencies, prompting vendors to try and sell their own product more quickly.

There has also reportedly been an influx of imported rice into the market, further driving up competition.

Addressing this phenomenon, VOA (Voice of America) reported that since the Kim Jong regime came to power, North Korea imported the largest volume of rice from China on record (on monthly basis) in September. According to an analysis of recordings from the Chinese General Administration of Customs by Kwon Tae Jin (director of the Center for Studies on North Korea and Northeast Asia at the GS&J Institute), the volume of Chinese grain imported into North Korea in September reached a total of 18,877 tons.

"Upon seeing the imported rice being sold in the market, local merchants have dropped their prices to try and sell all of their product. The wholesale dealers and vendors in the rice trade all seem a bit confused by the rapid fluctuations in price," added a source in South Hwanghae Province.

However, this phenomenon may only be a temporary occurrence, as rice prices in other regions remain relatively stable. As the rice influx circulates among the other regions, it is thought that prices will stabilize.

Cho Bong Hyun, the deputy director of IBK Economic Research Institute further commented that, "the regime seems to be distributing large amounts of imported rice to placate the population, but there are issues with the sustainability of this practice. Unless the total volume of incoming rice remains steady, the price declines seen will not be sustained for long."

Food processing and export enterprise Sơn Thuận in Kiên Giang Province frequently exports rice to markets in Ghana, as well as to Timor L’este and other countries in Southeast Asia. The enterprise owns four modern rice polishing lines with total capacity of 48,000 tonnes per year. - VNA/VNS Photo Trọng Đạt

HÀ NỘI – Việt Nam and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) hope to boost cooperation in developing genetic resources and choosing technology to improve rice quality, experts have said.
The IRRI genebanks, wild rice introgression population, structured genetic population and breeding lines represent a critical resource for generating the critical traits and climate-smart varieties that Việt Nam needs to fulfill its vision, said Matthew Morell, IRRI director general.
He was speaking at a meeting with officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on rice production development held in Hà Nội on Friday.
“IRRI can assist partners in Viet Nam to minimise yield gap and decrease over-use of pesticide, fertiliser, water, labour and seeds,” Morell said, adding that IRRI studies could help the country reduce loss during rice harvesting, drying and processing and optimise the supply and quality of the product.
IRRI would work with farmers to facilitate their market access and higher returns through farmers’ cooperatives, branding strategies and providing market and trade information, Morell said.
Lê Quốc Doanh, deputy minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, thanked the IRRI for its assistance to Việt Nam since 1963, saying it had provided thousand of varieties to the country every year. In addition, thousands of researchers and scientists from Việt Nam have been trained or received support by the institute.
At the meeting, experts from domestic research institutes expressed hope of continued cooperation with IRRI in using genetic resources, personnel training and studies on post-harvest and intensive processing technologies as well as studies on rice markets, including China.
According to Lê Huy Hàm, Director of the Việt Nam Agriculture Genetic Institute, as one of five countries likely to be most affected by climate change, Việt Nam has a great demand for drought and salinity-resistant rice varieties.
Samarendu Mohanty, an economist from IRRI, said Việt Nam was facing stiff competition from Thailand and Cambodia in the world rice market. Thus, he said, the country should focus on establishing a base in the African market and increase market share in the American and European markets to deal with the competition.
Nguyễn Xuân Định, deputy head of Crop Production Department under the MARD, said the ministry had set forth a plan to restructure rice production by 2020, with a vision to 2030, in order to improve production effectiveness and raise the stake of Vietnamese rice on the global market. Specifically, the ministry would focus on setting up rice research programmes, renewing policies and enhancing capacity for rice trading enterprises and associations. — VNS

Read more at http://vietnamnews.vn/society/345730/vn-should-sell-rice-to-africa-experts.html#UG6qzRBojiVYUsrq.99

Thailand unveils $514 million in rice loans as political tensions bubble

A farmer loads paddy onto a truck as he harvests his rice field in Suphan Buri province, north of Bangkok, Thailand November 2, 2016. REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

Thailand's rice committee announced new loan schemes worth $514 million on Monday to help rice growers struggling with falling prices as farmers of the grain become the new battleground between the junta and the opposition ahead of 2017 elections.
Tumbling rice prices have sent the ruling junta scrambling to roll out rescue packages as both the military government and the opposition try to woo politically powerful rice farmers ahead of the vote expected by late next year.
Farmers will receive 10,500 baht ($299) for every tonne of white paddy stored, Thailand's Minister of Commerce Apiradee Tantraporn told reporters.
Farmers who store Thai Pathum Thani fragrant rice will receive 11,300 baht ($322) per tonne.
"The overall budget is set at 18 billion baht ($514 million)," said Apiradee.
"This is to help relieve grievances farmers are facing while the main crop is being harvested," she said.
Prices in Thailand hit a 13-month low last week, hurting farmers in the world's second-largest rice exporter.
With the rice harvest season underway, the military government last week said it would offer loans worth $1.3 billion to jasmine rice farmers, on the condition that they store the grain for six months to slow down market supply.
Ousted former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, whose government was overthrown in a May 2014 military coup, attacked the military government's recent rescue packages on Friday and said the measures were no different to her government's rice policy.
The government in turn has warned Yingluck against politicizing the rice issue.
Yingluck currently faces criminal negligence charges in court over her administration's rice policy, which paid farmers well above market rates for their rice.
The scheme was popular with rice farmers in the agrarian northeast but cost billions of dollars in losses to state coffers.
Yingluck and her billionaire brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, are loved by the rural and urban poor. But the Shinawatras are hated by the country's elite who accuse them of corruption, accusations they deny.
On Saturday Yingluck sold sacks of rice priced at 20 baht ($0.57) per kilogram at a shopping mall in Bangkok in her latest attempt to reach out to supporters.
"It was a really successful event," Chayika Wongnapachant, Yingluck's niece and aide, told Reuters.
"Rice prices have plummeted and that's the truth. Yingluck is merely trying to highlight the issue."
(Reporting by Amy Sawitta Lefevre, Pracha Hariraksapitak and Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Tom Hogue

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-thailand-rice-idUSKBN1320C9

http://www.elevenmyanmar.com/business/6491

Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- Nov 08, 2016

Nagpur Foodgrain Prices - APMC/Open Market-November 9

Nagpur, Nov 9 Gram prices zoomed up again in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and

Marketing Committee auctions here on increased buying support from local millers amid weak

supply from producing region. Healthy rise in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and repeated enquiries

from South-based millers also helped to push up prices, according to sources.

    FOODGRAINS & PULSES

     GRAM

   * Desi gram recovered further in open market on renewed demand from local traders amid

     tight supply from producing belt.

     TUAR

   * Tuar varieties ruled steady in open market here but demand was poor.

   * Lakhodi dal and Batri dal moved down in open market here on poor demand from local

     traders amid good supply from producing region.

   * In Akola, Tuar New - 5,800-6,000, Tuar dal (clean) - 10,600-11,500, Udid -

     9,700-10,000, Udid Mogar (clean) - 11,400-11,700, Moong -

     6,100-6,300, Moong Mogar (clean) 6,800-7,200, Gram - 9,500-9,900,

     Gram Super best bold - 12,800-13,100 for 100 kg.

   * Wheat, rice and other commodities moved in a narrow range in scattered deals,

     settled at last levels.

 Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg

     FOODGRAINS                 Available prices     Previous close

     Gram Auction                7,400-9,650         7,400-9,400

     Gram Pink Auction            n.a.           2,100-2,600

     Tuar Auction                n.a.                5,400-6,000

     Moong Auction                n.a.                6,400-6,600

     Udid Auction                n.a.           4,300-4,500

     Masoor Auction                n.a.              2,600-2,800

     Gram Super Best Bold            13,000-13,500        13,000-13,500

     Gram Super Best            n.a.            n.a.

     Gram Medium Best            12,200-12,600        12,200-12,600

     Gram Dal Medium            n.a.            n.a

     Gram Mill Quality            10,400-10,600        10,400-10,600

     Desi gram Raw                10,050-10,250       10,000-10,200

     Gram Yellow                 13,400-13,800        13,400-13,800

     Gram Kabuli                13,800-15,100        13,800-15,100

     Gram Pink                        13,100-13,600        13,100-13,600

     Tuar Fataka Best-New             11,500-11,800        11,500-11,800

     Tuar Fataka Medium-New        10,700-11,000        10,700-11,000

     Tuar Dal Best Phod-New        8,800-9,300        8,800-9,300

     Tuar Dal Medium phod-New        7,800-8,400        7,800-8,400

     Tuar Gavarani New             6,000-6,100        6,000-6,100

     Tuar Karnataka             6,200-6,300        6,200-6,300

     Tuar Black                 11,500-12,200        11,500-12,200

     Masoor dal best            6,400-6,500        6,400-6,500

     Masoor dal medium            6,000-6,200        6,000-6,200

     Masoor                    n.a.            n.a.

     Moong Mogar bold (New)        6,800-7,200         6,800-7,200

     Moong Mogar Medium            6,100-6,500        6,100-6,500

     Moong dal Chilka            6,300-6,600        6,300-6,600

     Moong Mill quality            n.a.            n.a.

     Moong Chamki best            6,200-7,000        6,200-7,000

     Udid Mogar best (100 INR/KG) (New) 11,000-12,100       11,000-12,100

     Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG)    9,500-10,500        9,500-10,500

     Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG)        7,300-7,600        7,300-7,600

     Batri dal (100 INR/KG)        6,100-6,500        6,300-6,700

     Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg)          4,600-4,700         4,600-4,800

     Watana Dal (100 INR/KG)            2,800-2,900        2,800-2,900

     Watana White (100 INR/KG)           3,400-3,600           3,400-3,600

     Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG)    4,000-4,500        4,000-4,500

     Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG)        2,100-2,200        2,100-2,200

     Wheat Mill quality (100 INR/KG)    1,950-2,150        1,950-2,150

     Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG)         2,000-2,200        2,000-2,200

     Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG)    2,500-2,700        2,500-2,700

     Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG)   2,150-2,400        2,150-2,400

     Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG)    n.a.            n.a.

     MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG)    3,500-4,000        3,500-4,000

     MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG)    2,600-3,100        2,600-3,100

     Rice BPT best New(100 INR/KG)    2,800-3,250        2,800-3,250

     Rice BPT medium (100 INR/KG)        2,300-2,650        2,300-2,650

     Rice Luchai (100 INR/KG)         2,200-2,500        2,200-2,500

     Rice Swarna best (100 INR/KG)      2,100-2,450        2,100-2,450

     Rice Swarna medium (100 INR/KG)      1,800-2,000        1,800-2,000

     Rice HMT best New (100 INR/KG)    3,450-3,800        3,450-3,800

     Rice HMT medium (100 INR/KG)        2,600-3,000        2,600-3,000

     Rice Shriram best New(100 INR/KG)    4,200-4,500        4,200-4,500

     Rice Shriram med New(100 INR/KG)    3,800-4,100        3,800-4,100

     Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG)    8,700-13,300        9,000-13,500

     Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG)    6,300-7,800        6,500-8,000

     Rice Chinnor best New(100 INR/KG)    5,300-5,600        5,300-5,600

     Rice Chinnor med. New (100 INR/KG)    4,900-5,100        4,900-5,100

     Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG)        1,900-2,200        1,900-2,200

     Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG)         1,700-1,850        1,700-1,850

WEATHER (NAGPUR)

Maximum temp. 32.6 degree Celsius, minimum temp. 12.0 degree Celsius

Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a.

Rainfall : Nil

FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperature would be around and 32 and 12 degree

Celsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available

(For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, butincluded in market prices

http://in.reuters.com/article/nagpur-foodgrain-idINL4N1D932B

Rice exports earn $193m

Submitted by Eleven on Sun, 11/06/2016 - 15:27

Writer:

EMG reporter

Myanmar earned about US$193 million from exporting around 560,000 tonnes of rice and broken rice until October 21 this fiscal year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

It exported 416,160 tonnes of rice earning US$151 million and 143,490 tonnes of broken rice for US$42 million.

Around 6,010 tonnes went overland to China from October 15 to 21, earning US$2.18 million, around 3,900 tonnes less than the previous week’s exports.

And during the same period, the country exported 1,530 tonnes of broken rice overland to China from October 15 to 21, earning US$480,000, 1,350 tonnes less than the previous week’s export.

The country exported US$1.64 million worth of rice and US$1.9 million worth of broken rice by sea from October 16 to 22.

In the previous fiscal year, the country exported about 1.4 million tonnes of rice and broken rice and is expected to export 1.5 million tonnes of rice during this fiscal year.

Translated by Tun Tun Win

Former agriculture minister honoured

The International Rice Research Institute has honoured former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat for his “ardent support” to the Vietnam-IRRI collaboration.

The former minister is now Vice Chair of the Economics Commission of the Party Central Committee.

Under his leadership of the ministry, several milestone initiatives were reached in partnership with IRRI, most notably a multi-stakeholder effort that helped refine a national strategy to restructure Vietnam’s rice industry.

The restructuring aimed to improve the incomes of Vietnamese rice farmers in the face of global rice market challenges and climate change. The national strategy is now part of the ministry’s master plan for developing the rice industry.

The Vietnam-IRRI partnership started in 1963. The long-standing collaboration has seen the development of high-yielding – and more recently, climate-resilient – rice varieties for the country, sustainable farming practices, conservation of rice diversity, climate-smart agriculture, particularly in the vulnerable Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, and the hosting and training of more than 850 Vietnamese scholars and course participants.

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/society/166517/social-news-7-11.html

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Abakaliki Rice Mill Limited agrees to relocate to new site

POSTED BY NAN ON NOVEMBER 7, 2016 IN BUSINESS, ECONOMY | LEAVE A RESPONSE

The state government has also acquired the United Nations International Development Organisation modern-rice mill located at the new site

The Abakaliki Rice Mill Limited has finally agreed to relocate from its present site to a new mill as directed by the state government.The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that the relocation issue pitched the company against the immediate past Ebonyi State Government, which made it seek litigation at the National Industrial Court.

The company withdrew the matter from court and decided to engage in dialogue with the present administration.

The state government has also acquired the United Nations International Development Organisation modern-rice mill located at the new site.The House of Assembly recently passed a law to back the acquisition but under the condition of relocating to the new mill for optimum efficiency.

Joseph Ununu, the Company’s Chairman, told NAN on Sunday that the decision was taken because of the government’s “humane” approach to the issue.Ununu said: “The present government’s relocation policy has a humane face unlike the previous one, which had no sincere plans for the relocation.“The present government dialogued with us and made provisions in addition to creating an environment conducive for our business to thrive.”According to Ununu, the government allowed the millers to acquire the new mill with powers to manage and make necessary refunds within six years.

He said: “The previous government in contrast ordered us to relocate within one month or face demolition and even failed to provide an operational mill for us.“The present mill has abundant land for requisite ventures, which made the millers happy and ready to cooperate with the government.”Ununu noted that the relocation would not be immediate because structures at the new mill are not completed though arrangements are in place for the completion.He said: “We would relocate as soon as the structures are ready and it is imperative to note that we have commenced operation at the facility.“We are happier because the government authorised us to retain the present structure, rehabilitate and make it a rice market, where people across the globe would purchase the produce.”

NANhttp://theeagleonline.com.ng/abakaliki-rice-mill-limited-agrees-to-relocate-to-new-site/

Pakistan Soldiers Targeting rice fields worth Rs 125 crore in danger across Indo-Pak border

Pakistan Soldiers ceasefire rice fields worth Rs 125 crore in danger across border

As the soldiers of Pakistan rice fields are meant to attack the Indian Farmer which will hurt the India’s basmati rice crop and will ensures the Pakistan Rice crop with flowers. As a result, farmers working on the fields have been made to vacate the area. The paddy now stands neglected. Ashok Malhotra, Director of Agriculture, Jammu and Kashmir, feels that the government must counter the Pakistani aggression by taking urgent steps to protect the rice farmer and rice fields, but says the appeals have so far gone unanswered. If the crop remains uncultivated this year, India would lose approximately Rs 125 crore.

As the rice fields to be harvested within 10 days otherwise the crops will die soon. Most of the area in and around the RS Pura region is extremely fertile and best suited for basmati cultivation, but shelling and firing have destroyed the crop for the last 3 years

http://fitnhit.com/news/pakistan-soldiers-targeting-rice-fields-worth-rs-125-crore-in-danger-across-indo-pak-border/94963/News >

Rice prices fall to 3500 KPW per kilo due to harvest season and import spike

Seol Song Ah | 2016-11-07 16:56

North Korean residents preparing the harvest at a collective farm in Namchon, Chongdan County, South Hwanghae Province.

"People are happy about the price drop," she said.

There has also reportedly been an influx of imported rice into the market, further driving up competition.

http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk01500&num=14169

Rice imports to stabilize food prices–Neda

By Cai Ordinario

NOVEMBER 6, 2016

The timely arrival of rice imports are expected to help keep food prices stable in the October-to-December period, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and Neda Director General Ernesto M. Pernia said the stable inflation prices in October is expected to continue. While domestic demand is anticipated to remain robust, Pernia added that supply conditions, particularly of food, are expected to improve.“This should help keep commodity prices steady. Rice prices will be kept stable by the timely arrival of rice imports under the government-to-government procurement scheme,” Pernia said.

The steady rate was seen despite food inflation slightly increasing to 3.5 percent in October, from 3.1 percent in the previous month. Pernia said Typhoons Lawin and Karen were partly to blame for this, as vegetable prices went up. The two typhoons battered Northern Luzon, where Metro Manila sources its highland vegetables.

The high vegetable prices caused the vegetable index to post a 12.6 percent growth in October.

“But inflation for January to October averaged at 1.6 percent, well below the target range of 2 percent to 4 percent set by the government for this year. We expect inflation for full-year 2016 to settle below the target range but upside risks remain,” Pernia said.Risks include the possible rally in oil prices, depreciation of the peso against the US dollar, pending petitions for electricity rate increase and tropical cyclones.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) reported a 65-percent chance of La Niña developing in the fourth quarter and last until February 2017.

“Given the larger possibility of more frequent and stronger rains, the agriculture sector needs to implement adaptation measures to protect the income of farmers and keep food price inflation at bay,” Pernia said.

“We aim to strengthen the agricultural sector though a comprehensive agricultural development program, a major component of the proposed Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022,” he added.Nonfood inflation in October remained at 1.5 percent as mild price increases were registered in majority of nonfood indices, such as housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels; transport; communication; education; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services.Core inflation, which excludes selected volatile food and energy prices, likewise, remained stable at 2.3 percent in October

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/rice-imports-to-stabilize-food-prices-neda/

Hybrid rice ‘could feed 70 million more people a year’

By Deng Xiaoci Source:Global Times Published: 2016/11/7 0:13:40

Hybrid rice techniques could help feed 70 million more people worldwide every year, according to China's "father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping, defying experts who question the quality of hybrid rice and ask whether quantity should take priority over quality. Hybrid rice can enhance regular crop yields by about 20 percent, Yuan told the China-Central and Eastern Europe (CCEE) agriculture ministers' meeting on Saturday in Kunming, Southwest China's Yunnan Province.

"Rice is the staple food for more than half of the world's population," Yuan said, adding that rising populations mean the world will need to produce about 60 percent more rice by 2030 than it did in 1995 to feed them. Yuan said that a one-hectare rice field can currently sustain 27 people, a number which has to reach 43 by 2050 to meet the world's food needs.

At present, as much as 50 percent of China's total rice fields use Yuan's hybrid rice species, producing 60 percent of China's rice. China's total rice output rose from 5.69 billion tons in 1950 to 19.47 billion tons last year. This annual yield is enough to feed 60 million people, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

"Hybrid rice will play an important role in the new century in terms of food safety and the furtherance of world peace," Yuan said on Saturday.

Statistics from the official website of the UN's World Food Program showed that some 795 million, or about one in nine people globally, do not have enough food to lead a healthy active life.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang sent a congratulation letter to the CCEE meeting on Saturday, in which he said that "China is willing to align its development strategies with the Central and Eastern European countries and share development experiences to further promote the level of agricultural cooperation and bring benefits to the people of all these countries."

According to Yuan, more than 4,000 agricultural technicians and officials from over 100 countries have received training from the China National Hybrid Rice R&D Centre in central Hunan Province, and they have popularized the knowledge of hybrid rice planting, as well as research and development technologies.

Experts sow concerns

In spite of developments in hybrid rice techniques and the expansion of hybrid rice's use globally, though, concerns have been raised by some experts over its quality.

"Increases in crop yield should not come at the expense of a plant's resistance to diseases, adversity or quality," Na Zhongyuan, a director with the Yunnan Institute for Ecological Agriculture, told the Global Times.

Na said that Yuan's hybrid rice needs more chemical fertilizers to maintain its high output, which could have a detrimental effect on the environment. In some regions, planting areas for hybrid rice have shrunk in recent years due to the high costs of seeds, fertilizer and manpower, Na added.

"In spite of its high yield, the low quality of hybrid rice limits its usage because of the relatively high requirements of pesticide and fertilizer," Li Guoxiang, a researcher at the Rural Development Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday. Li said some consumers complain that hybrid rice does not taste as good as regular rice and, despite a periodic surplus of rice yields in recent years, the quality of the product remains low.

To advance a more environmentally friendly development, "we should alter our strategies from only pursuing quantity to much better quality," Li said.

The combination of "high quality" and "high quantity" is very difficult, but not necessarily contradictory, Yuan said at the World Life Science Conference in Beijing on Wednesday.

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1016264.shtml

South Koreans spend less on rice: report

Published : 2016-11-07 15:16
Updated : 2016-11-07 15:16

South Koreans, particularly those living in the capital region, are spending less on rice, marking an over 15 percent drop in expenses for rice consumption last year, a government report said Monday.Throughout the year, households in the capital region on average spent around 126,000 won ($110) on plain rice, 19,000 won on brown rice and 11,000 won on glutinous rice, totaling some 165,000 won. It was down 15.6 percent from 2014, according to the report by the Gyeonggido Agricultural Research & Extension Services.
The decline in spending is largely due to the continued decrease in rice consumption and a drop in the prices of rice, the organization said.The price of rice per kilogram was 3,204 won last year, 4.9 percent lower than the 3,370 won of 2014. The number of purchases also dropped from 6.4 times in 2010 to 5.6 times last year.Rice oversupply is the main reason for the price decrease, as the country’s rice production reached a six-year high of 4.33 million tons in 2015 on a bumper harvest, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

“More efforts need to be put in to develop rice that suits the diversified tastes of consumers,” the research department of the institute said.Meanwhile, the country’s stock of rice has continued to increase, with the amount of rice Korea is obligated to import each year -- in return for postponing the opening of the rice market upon negotiations with the World Trade Organization -- reaching 409,000 tons as of 2014. The amount has surged by eight times over the past 20 years.

According to the Agriculture Ministry, the country’s total stock of rice reached 1.75 million tons as of June, which is twice the optimal level of 800,000 tons recommended by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. To better manage the oversupply of rice, the government has been taking measures to foster rice consumption such as by running campaigns that emphasize the healthy aspects of rice, holding special sales, supporting research and development of food and beverages that use rice.

Local governments are seeking to handle the oversupply by bolstering exports.

Icheon in Gyeonggi Province, for instance, famous for producing high-quality rice, exported some 100 ton of Icheon Rice to China in May. Icheon Brand Management, which manages rice harvested in the area, plans to export a total of 400 tons by the end of this year.

By Kim Bo-gyung (lisakim425@heraldcorp.com)

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20161107000667

Thailand and Vietnam urge farmers to plant less rice

A rice-drying yard at an export rice plant in Thailand's central Chainat province. Thai officials are trying to ecourage farmers to switch to corn production by offering interest-free loans and guaranteeing prices for the crop.

NOV 7, 2016, 5:00 AM SGT

The grain-exporting nations are encouraging growers to switch crops and consolidate production as prices fall

Falling rice prices have caused an outcry in Thailand - the world's second largest exporter behind India - prompting the government to rush out soft loans that help farmers withhold sales.But these falling prices are also making regional exporters consider planting less of the grain.

Thailand last month unveiled plans to plant corn on 320,000ha of rice fields over the next seven months. This is around a quarter of the land used last year in the second rice planting season of the crop year. To nudge farmers to switch, the government is dangling interest-free loans and has guaranteed prices for the corn, its Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives told The Straits Times.

Vietnam, the world's third largest rice exporter, approved a strategy earlier in May to restructure its rice industry by integrating production and developing a national brand that can command higher prices.

It also wants to convert 700,000ha to 800,000ha of its roughly 4 million hectares of rice fields to mixed or other uses.

The idea is to earn more by dedicating less land to rice, so as to help paddy farmers weather the vagaries of the global commodity market.

"Rice farming is no longer an economic activity, it's a social safety net for families," said the World Bank's lead agriculture economist Steven Jaffee, who is familiar with the situation in Vietnam.

"They make their money by doing something else."

Increasingly, these rice-farming families stay afloat only because some members leave to work in the city, leaving the grandparents and grandchildren to till the land.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation expects a record harvest of 749.7 million tonnes this year.Between 2013 and last year, overall prices of higher grade Indica rice, commonly grown in South-east Asia, dropped 18 per cent despite a contraction in production.Vietnam exported 6.61 million tonnes of rice last year and Thailand 9.78 million tonnes, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

While paddy production is a source of food security, recent developments have given pause to the notion that more is better.Small-scale paddy farmers in Vietnam resort to growing three crops throughout the year to maximise their income, but use high levels of fertiliser and pesticides, said Dr Leocadio Sebastian from the International Rice Research Institute.Dam-building in the upper reaches of the Mekong River, the lifeblood of the region, is also disturbing the sensitive ecology that nourishes rice fields downstream.

Earlier this year, a drought caused the loss of 1.29 million tonnes of Vietnam's crop.Rice specialist Pham Thi Kim Dung from Vietnam's Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, the agriculture ministry's think-tank, said: "Rice brings much lower profitability compared with other agricultural commodities when Vietnamese farmers receive little support from the government."So the plan to reduce the amount of land for rice-planting and... keep the most suitable areas for paddy cultivation is expected to help farmers gain more from less."

More than nine million households - the majority of rural households - are involved in Vietnam's rice industry, so "the job is very important to keep stability in rural areas", said Ms Dung.In Thailand, where about one-third of its workforce is employed in agriculture, concerns over restive farmers in the populous north and north-east pushed the government to pledge an extra 20 billion baht (S$792 million) of aid last week - the latest batch of rice subsidies handed out by successive governments over three decades.

Economists like Mr Viroj Na Ranong from the Thailand Development Research Institute argue that it simply keeps an unsustainable number of people in farming.In the long run, say experts, the solutions lie in higher-value grains and integrated and environmentally sensitive farming.While rice farmers are not about to give up their trade, the changes being attempted now could well determine whether the next generation will keep it going

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/thailand-and-vietnam-urge-farmers-to-plant-less-rice

J-K: Farmers risk lives to harvest basmati rice along IB

S bunkers among fields in Jammu

Mon, 7 Nov 2016-04:05pm , Bein Gallar , PTI

"We are risking our lives to harvest these standing crops", said.a farmer.

Harvesting the paddy crop particularly the aromatic Basmati rice cultivated near the International Border in RS Pura border belt amid relentless shelling by Pakistani Rangers has made farmers sitting ducks of the firing from across the border. Most areas in and around the RS Pura belt are extremely fertile and best suited for basmati cultivation.

A total of 17,742 hectares having standing paddy crop has been affected due to the shelling and firing by the Pakistani Rangers. The paddy crop grown in the area is worth Rs 130 crore."The basmati rice grown in Jammu and Kashmir is now under threat from Pakistan", an official of the Agriculture department said, adding, farmers are anxious that "if there is no one to harvest, the crop will die in fortnight".

With the crop ripe, farmers have been risking their lives to harvest the paddy.54-year-old Sham Lal has rushed to his fields along with few family members to cut the paddy growing close to the International Border in R S Pura border belt of Jammu district. "We are helpless. We cannot afford to lose our crops. Our family is dependent on these crops. We are risking our lives to harvest these standing crops", Lal said.

Like Lal, several marginal farmers living along the borderline are working overtime to speedily complete harvesting of the crops. Bein Gallar Sarpanch Ram Paul, whose hamlet was shelled by Pakistani Rangers few days ago, says farmers in border areas are forced to risk their lives to harvest their ripe crops as they depend on them for livelihood. "In the absence of labourers and machines, they are reluctant to come with their families and undertake harvesting.The border farmers have taken it on themselves to harvest their standing crops and in the process have become sitting ducks for the Pak Rangers", Paul said.

However, like them the farmers owning big agriculture land are not so lucky as they await paddy cutting machines and labourers, who have fled the farmlands following Pakistani shelling and firing and are reluctant to return to commence farming in the border belt of Jammu, Samba and Kathua districts.

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-farmers-risk-lives-to-harvest-basmati-rice-along-ib-2271028

FG yet to remit N63.34b pension fund – PENCOM

Posted on Nov 8, 2016 in Columns | 0 comments

From Magnus Eze, Abuja

The Federal Government is still having outstanding accrued rights due its employees that retired between 2015 and October 2016 amounting to N63.34 billion.Director General of National Pension Commission (PENCOM), Chinelo Anohu-Amazu who disclosed this at a function organised by the National Union of Pensioners (NUP) in Abuja also said the total registered participants in the Contributory Pensions Scheme (CPS) have increased to 7, 240,196 as at September 2016.The DG further said that a total of 174, 844 persons have retired under the CPS since inception.Represented by Director of Surveillance at the commission, M.B Umar, she said the number comprised 140,532 retirees on monthly programmed withdrawal and 34,312 retirees on monthly annuity, adding that the monthly pension payment of the retirees were N4.67 billion and N1.72 billion respectively.According to her, despite the success recorded, the CPS has some challenges especially in funding of accrued rights of Federal Government employees.

Agric: Rice revolution has begun, says CBN Governor

From Uche Usim, Abuja

Central Bank of Nigeria Governor (CBN), Godwin Emefiele said that rice revolution has begun with about 13 states latching strongly on the Rice Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (RABP) launched by President Muhammadu Buhari last year in Birnin Kebbi.

He expressed the apex bank’s determination to work with many states’ farmers to bridge the rice sufficiency gap, create employment and tackle food shortage in general.

Speaking at the weekend in Ogoja, Cross River State in company of the Governor, Ben Ayade and his Kebbi State counterpart, Bagudu Atiku, Emefiele hailed the rice and wheat revolution projects, describing them as one of the most effective vehicles needed to transport Nigeria out of the food shortage debacle.

The CBN Governor disclosed that about N3 billion had been disbursed to Cross River State under the programme, stressing that thousands of farmers, rice millers and other players in the food chain will benefit from the scheme.

He added that about N23 billion had so far been disbursed under the scheme.“I thank farmers for joining this let’s feed-our-people train. We are already doing well. We just have to be patient. I was reading in the papers where someone said it will take us five years to be self sufficient in rice production.“I want to tell you that that person has a bad news. The rice farmers association has said that economic saboteurs are there in rice production and we all need to stand against them. I can tell you that we are going to rise above this and we will produce rice, tomatoes, wheat and other agricultural produce to feed our people. We do not have a choice but to move in that direction.”, the CBN Governor stated.

Also speaking at one of the farms, the Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade explained that the state remains focused to ensuring the success of the programme.

He assured that the CBN’s N3 billion support will not only be used to produce rice, but also establish mills for processing it and silos for storage.“We’ll have a mill that will have a provision for vitaminised rice. It’ll come from the broken pieces which can be vitaminised and given to children so that they can grow tall and healthy.

“So in Cross River state, the 78,000 farmers that we will be working with will have the benefit of processing all the rice they will be harvesting at the mill. Also at the moment 80 per cent of the rice farmed in Cross River State ends up processed at the Ebonyi mill and processed into Abakiliki rice. But all of that will stop with the intervention of the CBN loan through the Anchor Borrowers Programme”, Ayade stated.

In his remarks, the Kebbi State Governor and the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Rice and Wheat Production, Atiku Bagudu expressed joy at many state governors’ interest in ensuring food sufficiency in the country.“I’m happy by the effort of farmers in different states towards making Nigeria food sufficient especially in rice production.

It’s good the President is providing adequate financing to our agricultural sector so that we will be self sufficient in some crops and then even begin to export them. The CBN ha created the RABP financing effort across states. Governors keyed in by ensuring that land is made available and farmers and food processors will be encouraged to go into rice and wheat production to create income and employment”, he noted.

NUC gives recognition to Borno State University

From Fred Ezeh, Abuja

National Universities Commission (NUC) yesterday gave recognition to the new Borno State University located in Maiduguri, with a presentation of letter of approval by the Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Rasheed Abubakar.Prior to the presentation of the letter at the NUC headquarters in Abuja, Prof. Rasheed expressed his appreciation to the state government for its desire and commitment to the restoration of the educational reputation and credibility of the state that was destroyed by the activities of Boko Haram.

He said, “Boko Haram insurgents were literally expressing their ignorance and opposition to education but thanks to federal and state governments resistance efforts that have yielded positive results.”For successful establishment and running of the institution, NUC urged the state government to eschew mediocrity, promote excellence and professionalism in order to continually enjoy the support of NUC which is the apex Nigerian university regulatory body.

http://www.nigeriatoday.ng/2016/11/fg-yet-to-remit-n63-34b-pension-fund-pencom/

Thailand's junta and ousted PM Yingluck seek rice farmers' support ahead of 2017 election

By Reuters November 7, 2016 / 13:14 ICT

Thailand's politically powerful rice farmers are becoming the new battleground between the country's junta and ousted Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, with both trying to woo their support amid concerns of a flashpoint ahead of 2017 elections.

Yingluck on Friday attacked the military government's recent rescue packages worth at least USD1.70 billion (THB59.92 billion) aimed at stabilizing low rice prices as it tries to maintain stability ahead of the general election.

"The military government's latest rice measures are no different from the rice pledging policy (of my government)," Yingluck told reporters outside a Bangkok court on Friday.

The military overthrew Yingluck in 2014, charging her government with corruption. She is currently in court fighting charges of criminal negligence over her government's rice subsidy scheme which paid farmers above-market rates rice.

Critics say the scheme, which helped sweep her to power in 2011, hemorrhaged billions of dollars. Last month authorities fined Yingluck THB35 billion over her government's rice scheme.Thailand is the world's second-largest rice exporter.

Yingluck cannot run in the 2017 election because the junta banned her from politics for five years but that hasn't stopped her from making a series of cross-country trips that her team says are aimed at keeping her in the public eye.

For more than a decade, Thailand has been rocked by clashes between supporters of Yingluck and her brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted in a 2006 coup, and those who back the royalist-military establishment.

On Thursday, Yingluck visited rice farmers in the northeastern province of Ubon Ratchathani. Thailand's rice farmers have traditionally supported the Shinawatra family.

"Low rice prices are a truth and a burden for the people which should be a burden for, and the responsibility of, every government," Chayika Wongnapachant, Yingluck's niece and aide, wrote on Twitter, along with photographs of a tearful Yingluck next to farmers in Ubon Ratchathani.

Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd warned the former prime minister not to use farmers for political gain. "I believe people will be uncomfortable with the fact farmers' problems are being used as a political tool," Sansern said.

Manas Kitprasert, head of the Thai Rice Millers Association, resigned on Thursday after Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said this week that rice millers and politicians were colluding to drive down rice prices for political reasons.Manas denied the accusations

http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2016/11/07/thailands-junta-and-ousted-pm-yingluck-seek-rice-farmers-support-ahead-2017-election

Abakaliki rice mill agrees to relocate to new site

· In NIGERIA

· News Agency of Nigeria

The company withdrew the matter from court and decided to engage in dialogue with the present administration.

The state government has also acquired the United Nations International Development Organisation modern-rice mill located at the new site.

The House of Assembly recently passed a law to back the acquisition but under the condition of relocating to the new mill for optimum efficiency.Joseph Ununu, the Company’s Chairman, told NAN on Sunday that the decision was taken because of the government’s “humane” approach to the issue.Ununu said: “The present government’s relocation policy has a humane face unlike the previous one, which had no sincere plans for the relocation.

“The present government dialogued with us and made provisions in addition to creating an environment conducive for our business to thrive.”According to Ununu, the government allowed the millers to acquire the new mill with powers to manage and make necessary refunds within six years.He said: “The previous government in contrast ordered us to relocate within one month or face demolition and even failed to provide an operational mill for us.

“The present mill has abundant land for requisite ventures, which made the millers happy and ready to cooperate with the government.”Ununu noted that the relocation would not be immediate because structures at the new mill are not completed though arrangements are in place for the completion.He said: “We would relocate as soon as the structures are ready and it is imperative to note that we have commenced operation at the facility.“We are happier because the government authorised us to retain the present structure, rehabilitate and make it a rice market, where people across the globe would purchase the produce.

https://www.today.ng/news/nigeria/211192/abakaliki-rice-mill-agrees-relocate-site

Brown Rice Market Revenue and Value Chain 2016-2026

NOVEMBER 7TH, 2016

Rice is one of the major staple food, consumed across the globe by more than half of the total world’s population. Rice is produced and milled globally, yet major percentage of total rice produced is consumed in the countries where it is produced, but growing demand in some areas is driving the international rice trade between the regions. Most of the rice is consumed and produced in Asia and Central-Asian countries like India, Pakistan and Thailand accounts for approximately 90% of world rice production. Due to high export of rice to other countries, the current share in global rice consumption of these countries is slightly lesser than the total production.

Brown rice is the edible whole grain rice, with its outer hull removed. Since, brown rice goes through less processing, it is high in nutritional values as compared to whole white rice. Due to increasing preference towards healthy eating habits and increasing health consciousness, brown rice market is expanding at higher CAGR, compared to overall rice market. Brown rice demand is picking up in the major importing countries, which is attracting the interest of major producers to focus on producing brown rice.

Request Free Report Sample@ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-1934

Brown Rice Market Segmentation:

Brown Rice market can be segmented on the basis of length, type and regions that constitute the key markets.

Brown Rice on the basis of length can segmented into long-grain brown rice, medium-grain brown rice and short-grain brown rice. Long-grain brown rice when cooked, becomes firm and offers fluffy texture remain separate, whereas medium-grain offers more sweet and nutty flavour and remains more tender when cooked. Short-grain offers sweeter taste than medium and long grain brown rice and offers chewier and denser texture.

Brown Rice on the basis of type can be segmented into sweet brown rice and brown basmati rice. Sweet rice is also known as sticky rice or glutinous rice, highly consumed in Southeast Asian countries.

Geographically, brown rice market can be segmented by regions into North America, Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe, Asia-Pacific, Japan and Middle East & Africa. Asia-pacific is the most dominant market in terms of production and consumption. Thailand is the world’s largest exporter of rice, including brown rice, followed by Vietnam and India. Major importing countries are dispersed and top 10 importing countries only account for less than 50% of global rice imports. Major countries consuming brown rice are Indonesia, Philippines, Iran, Nigeria and few European countries. Latin American countries are expected to exploit the availability of land and water emerge as the major producer and exporter of rice, during the forecast period.

Request For TOC@ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-1934

Brown Rice Market Drivers:

Brown Rice market is increasing with respect to the growth of rice trade between the countries. Brown market is projected to expand at a higher pace compared to rice market, due to shifting preference towards healthy eating habits and nutrients provided by brown rice, such as vitamins (B), phosphorus, and magnesium, makes it a preferred choice for many health conscious customers. Due to increasing demand, the manufacturers are focusing on launching new brown rice brands and making renewed efforts to attract health-conscious people. Demand for brown rice is also emerging from various Middle-East and African countries, driving the growth of brown rice market. Innovation in packaging and changing food preference such as emergence of ready-to-eat food product will result in introduction of ready-to-cook brown rice, during the forecast period. In majority of countries where brown rice was earlier preferred by only diabetic patients, is now getting traction from growing number of fitness conscious consumers. Increasing per capita consumption of rice in countries where it is not a staple food is also expected to support the growth of brown rice market

Brown Rice Market Key Players:

Brown Rice market is a part of global rice market and major supplier are concentrated in Asia-Pacific region which manufactures, market and export brown rice on large scale. Few of the major players in brown rice market are T.K. Ricemill and Ash, Asia Golden Rice Co.,Ltd., Daawat, Shiva Shellac And Chemicals, Amira Nature Foods Ltd., Chandrika Group of Mills, Riviana Foods Inc., Ebro Foods, Agistin Biotech Pvt. Ltd., and SunFoods, LLC

http://www.medgadget.com/2016/11/brown-rice-market-revenue-and-value-chain-2016-2026.html

50 Miagao farmers benefit from RCM app

November 07, 2016 Leonard T. Pineda I

ILOILO CITY, November 7 (PIA) --- Over 50 farmers from the municipality of Miagao are expected to benefit from the Rice Crop Manager (RCM) conducted recently by the Department of Agriculture (DA).The RCM, a decision-support application that can be accessed via a smartphone or a computer with Internet connection, was conducted to farmers in barangays Igsoligue, Nam-o Sur, and Nam-o Norte.The RCM application enables them to provide a one-page actionable recommendation that matches their respective clienteles, who are rain-fed and irrigated lowland rice farmers, with location-specific cropping practices and needs.

The RCM can be used by extension workers, crop advisors, and service providers to interview a farmer and provide advice to a farmer and aims to increase a farmer’s income.Through the application, agricultural extension workers can assist farmers in their rice productions through the provision of recommendations on nutrient, pest, weed and water management, depending on the variety that they are going to use, and their area of production.Other factors that would aid in providing recommendation are through the information that they provide regarding their yield from the previous season and the site-specific conditions of their field.The RCM app, developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) for the Philippines, aims to contribute to the implementation of modern farming by providing farmers with personalized crop and nutrient management recommendations that match their location-specific rice-growing conditions. (LTP/PIA-Iloilo

http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/2421478506646/50-miagao-farmers-benefit-from-rcm-app#sthash.7rv2eLSH.dpuf

11/7/2016 Farm Bureau Market Report

Rice

	High	Low
Long Grain Cash Bids	- - -	- - -
Long Grain New Crop	- - -	- - -

Futures:


ROUGH RICE

	High	Low	Last	Change

Nov '16	960.5	960.5	958.0	-6.0
Jan '17	992.0	979.5	980.5	-8.0
Mar '17	1012.5	1005.5	1006.5	-7.5
May '17	1033.5	1033.5	1030.5	-7.5
Jul '17			1048.5	-7.5
Sep '17			1058.0	-7.5
Nov '17			1058.0	-7.5

Rice Comment

Rice futures were lower across the board today. January has found support at the contract low of $9.60 for the time being. USDA announced last week the final marketing year average price of $11.10/cwt for long grain rice, meaning rice farmers will receive a PLC payment of $2.90/cwt on their rice. The southern medium/short grain rice marketing year average price was set at $11.20/cwt, resulting in a $2.80/cwt payment for eligible medium/short grain acreage.

Yellow Rails and Rice Festival Delivers for Birders

By Randy Jemison

THORNWELL, LA -- One hundred and twenty-seven bird enthusiasts from 27 states, and Australia and Canada gathered here in the Yellow Rail Capital of the World November 1-5 for the eighth annual Yellow Rails and Rice Festival. The festival brings birders together with rice growers to highlight the role of Louisiana's working wetlands in bird conservation while providing participants a unique venue to view the elusive Yellow Rail.On Thursday enthusiasm quickly turned to frustration when festival organizer and rice farmer Kevin Berken's combine suffered major mechanical damage during a preliminary pass around the field. Harvest operations were temporarily suspended until neighboring farmer Paul Johnson, a member of the 2015 Rice Leadership Development program, came to the rescue with a backup combine. Despite the delay, patience paid off as 30 Yellow Rails were sighted that day.

Although the Yellow Rail is fairly widespread it is rarely seen so bird enthusiasts welcome the opportunity to catch sight of the migrating Rails as they arrive in southern Louisiana at the same time the ratoon rice crop is being harvested.Berken said, "What started out as a two-day event in 2009 has grown as folks take advantage of being in the heart of Cajun Country in Louisiana's southwest prairie region. It's an area known for rich history and culture, not to mention mouth-watering regional cuisine, and this festival has added great birding to the list of local attractions."USA Rice is one of 50 organizations that sponsor the festival. The Louisiana Rice Growers Association provided gift bags of Louisiana-grown rice to festival participants.

PhilRice turns 31

The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), the country’s lead agency in rice research and development, will celebrate its 31^st anniversary on November 5-8.With the theme Rice science and innovation for inclusive growth, the Institute’s anniversary will kick-off the celebration with the official opening of the National Rice Awareness Month (#BROWN4good Challenge Accepted: We do four goodness by eating brown rice) followed by the Santiago R. Obien seminar series on research management and institution on November 7.PhilRice will also honor more than 100 of its staff members during the employees’ recognition or Dangal ng PhilRice on November 8. Key officials of the Institute and Dr. V. Bruce J. Tolentino, deputy director general for communication and partnerships of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), will award plaques and certificates to the recipients of external, scientific productivity, scholastic, loyalty, and outstanding employee awards.

As a research Institution, PhilRice advances various frontiers of rice science by producing scientific publications written by its researchers and scientists. These were published in some of the most reputable journals in the world such as the Journal of Food Agriculture and Environment, International Journal of Ecology and Conservation, Philippine Journal of Crop Science, and the Philippine Agricultural Scientist. Since 1985, the Institute with its Central Experiment Station in the Science City of Muñoz in Nueva Ecija, has developed more than 70 rice varieties. It radiates its impacts through its branch stations located in Batac City, Ilocos Norte; San Mateo, Isabela; Los Baños, Laguna; Ligao City, Albay; Murcia, Negros Occidental; RTRomualdez, Agusan del Norte; Central Mindanao State University, Bukidnon; and Midsayap, North Cotabato.

PhilRice launches book on Bicol indigenous farmers

NAGA CITY ― Researchers from PhilRice Los Baños (LB) launched a coffee table book in this City titled Anthropological and socioeconomic characterization of selected indigenous farming communities in the Bicol Region, Oct. 12.The said publication is a result of a 2012-2014 study Anthropological and Socioeconomic Characterization of Bicol Agta Indigenous Peoples (IPs) conducted by PhilRice LB in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office (DA-RFO) and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) in the Bicol region.

The book that comes in four volumes documents farming practices, social conditions, and economic status in four IP communities in Camarines Sur and Albay. It features the following: 1) Tingog Kan San Pedro (Voices of San Pedro); An Makabagong Gatbo (A Modern Gatbo), Nagtatalubong Danao (Growing Danao); and Pagsasabot sa Joroan, Misibis asin Mayong (Understanding Joroan, Misibis, and Mayong).

PhilRice LB embarked on this initiative as part of the station’s project with IPs to better understand the cultures of local communities before implementing development interventions.

“Knowing that the historical development of each IP community is unique, further understanding of their anthropological and socioeconomic conditions is important so we can create appropriate and effective recommendations for development projects in these communities,” said Mario M. Movillon, project lead and chief science research specialist of PhilRice LB. Primarily, the researchers identified factors that can affect the willingness and ability of indigenous farmers to adopt the Palayamanan®, a diversified farming system being promoted by PhilRice.

The study found that “the communities’ characteristics, locations, influences, and aspirations have affected their way of living and agricultural practices ― exhibiting various degrees of transition towards modernity.”

The book also presents results of anthropological and socioeconomic analysis across all sites that demonstrated different geographical conditions, rice and agri-based farming practices, disposals, market access, traditions, beliefs, and aspirations. These factors will be considered in enhancing the capabilities of the IP farmers through the Palayamanan approach to increase their farm productivity.“This free publication is written in English, Filipino, and Bicolano to represent international, national, and regional language that can cater to a wider audience,” said Jacqueline O. Canilao, one of the authors.“We presented this in a reader-friendly manner so people can have a better understanding and appreciation of the ways of living and culture of the IPs in Bicol,” she added.The book will be available in selected libraries of schools, universities, and agencies such as the NCIP and PhilRice central and branch stations.

PM says aid for farmers not limitless

Rice panel agrees to new B18bn subsidy

• 8 Nov 2016 at 05:16 7,372 viewed26 comments

• WRITER: CHATRUDEE THEPARAT, WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI AND PHUSADEE ARUNMAS

As the bill for rice subsidies rises, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha warns farmers not to get used to such help.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has called on farmers not to simply rely on the government's financial aid, saying the state coffers must be used to take care of people nationwide.Gen Prayut was speaking after chairing the National Rice Policy Committee's (NRPC) meeting, which decided Monday to spend an additional 18 billion baht on a fresh subsidy scheme for farmers growing rice other than the hom mali variety.The government last week launched a subsidy scheme worth more than 20 billion baht to help hom mali farmers suffering from falling rice prices in the North and Northeast, sparking anger among farmers from other parts of the country who grow different strains, yet who want equal treatment.

Gen Prayut said the government is placing emphasis on helping farmers suffering from tumbling rice prices without discrimination. However, the government cannot afford to use all the state's money to help farmers.

Farmers must cooperate with the government to rethink their methods, such as changing crops or using more sustainable and self-sufficient methods in a bid to be less reliant on the government.• depend on many factors'

"In the past, we only solved the problem at the downstream level, mainly via price subsidies, which has has made farmers reliant on these programmes. This has led to difficulty in tackling the real underlying problems," said Gen Prayut."This government is focused on upstream, where several issues must be fine-tuned, including changing rice cultivation practices and the use of water, downsizing farmland, farm zoning and reducing farm costs."Gen Prayut said any help people can offer farmers to sell their rice at decent prices is welcome.

"If they do this with good intentions, that would be a blessing."

An official of the Science and Technology Ministry demonstrates a rice-milling machine developed for households and small communities. It is capable of de-husking between 38-70 kilogrammes of rice an hour.

His remarks came after former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra on Thursday visited the northeastern provinces of Ubon Ratchathani and Surin, where she bought rice from farmers despairing about falling prices. She resold the grain at a shopping mall on Saturday.The cabinet will decide today whether to approve the new 18-billion-baht subsidy scheme to help farmers amid the price slump.

Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said the scheme is concerned with the 2016/17 harvest of white rice paddy and Pathum Thani fragrant rice.She said farmers would receive a total of 10,500 baht per tonne of white rice paddy for storing their rice in barns for a designated period. About 661,885 growers are expected to join the programme.Of this, 7,000 baht per tonne will be paid by the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC), plus 1,500 baht for storage costs and 2,000 baht for harvesting and quality improvement.

For Pathum Thani fragrant rice farmers, they will each receive a total of 11,300 baht per tonne; 91,208 growers are expected to join the scheme.The BAAC will pay 7,800 baht per tonne to farmers, who will also receive 1,500 baht for storage costs and 2,000 baht for harvesting quality improvement costs.

Ms Apiradi said most of the farmers who grow these two kinds of rice are in the Central Plains.As for those who do not have barns, the government will encourage growers in the Central Plains to contact agriculture cooperatives in their areas for ways to store rice, said the minister.Unlike farmers in the Northeast, most of the rice farmers in the Central Plains have no barns for storing rice because they usually sell their rice immediately after harvest.Also Monday, , the Revenue Department (RD) dismissed reports it would examine transaction records of rice mills going back three years.

Citing the RD's order announced on Friday, RD director-general Prasong Pontaneat said the agency only asked its staff to examine quantities and prices of rice bought and sold by millers from Oct 1 this year.

This came after the RD found that the volume of rice sold by millers was lower than the figure published in the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry's records.The RD will also ask millers to improve their system of recording rice trades, Mr Prasong added."There will be no tracing back for three years as reported in some media," he said.

Meanwhile, army and administrative officers inspected rice mills in Muang and Satuk districts of Buri Ram province in an effort to prevent them from exploiting farmers.President of the Thai Agriculturist Association, Suthep Kongmak, said that representatives of rice growers will travel to Government House to express their gratitude to the prime minister and the government for helping farmers.The visit is likely to take place next week, he said."The paddy prices under the subsidy scheme are at an acceptable level. The cost of rice cultivation is now at 4,600-4,800 baht per rai," said Mr Suthep.

Sharing farms would be one answer to farming more efficiently, Mr Suthep said, as it would reduce the cultivation cost from 4,800 baht per rai to 3,200 baht.Meanwhile, the maize policy and management committee on Monday agreed on a measure to stall imports of wheat, which hinders the domestic purchase of maize, a Commerce Ministry source said.The move came after maize and cassava growers expressed concerns over the impact of increasing imports of wheat on the prices of maize and tapioca chips, which continue to drop.

The meeting also discussed ways to help maize growers who have no documents certify their land rights, the source said.

Numerous factors dent rice prices

• 8 Nov 2016 at 07:00 1,969 viewed1 comments

• NEWSPAPER SECTION: BUSINESS | WRITER: PHUSADEE ARUNMAS

While the government and farming industry have blamed each other for the sharp drop in rice prices, a leading economist says the tumbling prices, particularly for premium fragrant rice, stem from diverse factors.Somporn Isvilanonda, a senior fellow at the Knowledge Network Institute of Thailand, believes the tumbling prices, particularly for premium fragrant rice, can be attributed to issues at home and abroad."Over the past several months, demand and supply for hom mali rice and other aromatic varieties have changed, resulting in reduced prices," he said."One of the key reasons is shrinking consumption by premium rice consumers like the US, Asia, Africa and the Middle East," Mr Somporn said. "Their weak economies have led them to buy other lower-grade rice and cereals, including Vietnam's aromatic rice, which is much cheaper."

Some 3.5 million tonnes of milled rice (excluding basmati rice from India and Pakistan) is traded globally. Around 60% of that comes from Thailand, 37% from Vietnam and the rest from Cambodia, he said.Vietnam's aromatic rice prices are currently quoted at about $570-650 per tonne.Thai hom mali rice fetched, on average, $1,008 per tonne on the export market in 2015. Late last year prices dropped to $980 per tonne, further hitting $770 a tonne in September and then $725 by the end of October.

Mr Somporn said speculation among millers, traders and exporters is also to blame for tumbling rice prices.Millers in the Northeast and Central regions are the primary holders of hom mali rice stocks, while exporters normally buy rice once they secure orders," he said."Therefore, holding large stocks leads millers to face higher risks from price volatility than exporters. Under current conditions, certain groups of millers are possibly suffering from hefty losses from such speculation," said Mr Somporn.He added that many millers who failed to dispose of their existing rice stocks have suffered as stocks amassed, keeping them from buying rice from this year's main crop.

More importantly, millers do no have the ability to fix their own selling price, as exporters normally fix buying prices via rice brokers.The buying prices set by rice brokers fell to only 15-17 baht per kilogramme in October, considerably lower than 24-25 baht per kg set earlier this year.Millers who are the key paddy buyers from farmers hence have to cut their buying prices for paddy accordingly.On the supply side, the new harvest of hom mali rice, particularly in the Northeast, has contained up to 30% moisture because of the considerable rainfall during the harvest season, forcing a shift to using harvesters and threshers instead of labours.

"With high moisture plus drastic changes in the rural paddy trading system caused by the previous government's rice pledging scheme, which killed central markets and drying grounds to reduce moisture, farmers have to rely on rice mills after harvest," he said.

There is also the knock-on effect of reduced quality."With relatively high-moisture rice, millers have to use drying machines to reduce the moisture. The drying process dissolves the aromatic substances in the hom mali paddy, eliminating once the paddy is milled," he said. "That's why Thai people themselves complain that hom mali rice is not as aromatic as in the past."More importantly, Mr Somporn said genuine hom mali rice is becoming scarce and existing state-run rice seed centres cannot provide enough quality seed supply to farmers.

In addition, the varieties collected by the farmers or sold on the market are mostly substandard, he said."The future of Thai hom mali rice is being burdened by those factors," said Mr Somporn. "If the export market lacks confidence in aromatic quality of Thai hom mali rice, it will be difficult to recover the prices we've enjoyed earlier. We're afraid that non-organic hom mali growers in the Northeast will be hardest hit from the price slump. It will be difficult to survive in a long run if the price fall is prolonged."Duangporn Rodphaya , director-general of Foreign Trade Department, concurred that the falling rice prices were due to the massive supplies, high moisture and the sluggish global economy

Revenue Dept warns rice millers to update records

7 Nov 2016 at 17:50
WRITER: WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI

The Revenue Department has advised rice millers and other businesses to ensure their tax data is updated before the new electronic tax collection system is introduced.Revenue Department director-general Prasong Poontaneat said reports the department is back-auditing the tax returns of rice millers over the last three years were incorrect.

The department is in the process of improving its tax collection system. It was policy to advise the various business groups, including rice mills, to get their data up to date before the new system begins working, he said. The system was designed to detect incorrect recording of data.
The department had, therefore, sent a letter to rice millers advising them to improve their data recording because rice sale records of rice mills submitted in the past were often different from those collected by the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry.
In a letter issued on Friday, the department ordered its officials to advise the rice mills to update their data on the quantities and prices of rice from Oct 1 only, not three years retroactively as some stories had said.

Speculation blamed for the slump in rice price

6 Nov 2016 at 07:24 3,297 viewed4 comments
NEWSPAPER SECTION: NEWS

Grain of truth: The price of rice has fallen to the lowest levels in decades this season. Researchers say price speculation has caused the slump.Speculation among traders and exporters is mainly to blame for tumbling rice prices during this harvest season, according to a senior researcher of Thailand Development Research Institute.
TDRI distinguished fellow Nipon Poapongsakorn said if traders and exporters had access to a reliable database of the country's actual rice stock and more accurate projections of the seasonal supply to come, the prices would never have been this volatile.
Mr Nipon made the conclusion in a research article called "Why Hom Mali rice prices have fallen sharply? Who are scapegoats?"
Mr Nipon said since September, the price of unmilled Hom Mali rice unprecedentedly decreased by 13% from 12,090 baht per tonne to 10,500 baht in late October, which is the lowest price in nine years, compared to only 2% decrease of the price between June and September.
The plunge in paddy rice prices was driven by the future price quoted for milled Hom Mali rice for December that had dropped to US$548 (about 19,200 baht) per tonne. That figure, quoted on Oct 28, came as the spot price stood at US$720 per tonne.
As a result of the sharp drop, the price of new-crop milled Hom Mali rice in November, the first month of the current harvest, had dropped to 1,330 baht per picul (about 22,171 baht per tonne) compared to 1,750 baht per picul (29,172 baht per tonne) in the same period of last year.
Picul is a unit of weight used in China, Japan and Southeast Asia that is fractionally heavier than 60 kilogrammes.
Mr Nipon said the reason the future price quotes for Hom Mali rice had plunged was that most traders and exporters had expected the rice supply would increase exponentially after the new harvest, while the demand would remain the same or even shrink when compared to that of last year.
He said the traders had expected the rice prices in December to fall well below the future price quotes for rice in October. The higher than usual supply of Hom Mali rice this year was also to blame for the low rice prices, he said.
Mr Nipon said the main factor that caused the rice supply to surge this year was the high level of rain in the Northeast, which had brought a higher yield of per rai.
The rice from previous harvests remained at a high volume in major rice millers' warehouses as many traders earlier this year had expected the rice price would surge due to the effect of El Nino.

Revenue Dept warns rice millers to update records

7 Nov 2016 at 17:50
WRITER: WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI

The Revenue Department has advised rice millers and other businesses to ensure their tax data is updated before the new electronic tax collection system is introduced.

Revenue Department director-general Prasong Poontaneat said reports the department is back-auditing the tax returns of rice millers over the last three years were incorrect.
The department is in the process of improving its tax collection system. It was policy to advise the various business groups, including rice mills, to get their data up to date before the new system begins working, he said. The system was designed to detect incorrect recording of data.
The department had, therefore, sent a letter to rice millers advising them to improve their data recording because rice sale records of rice mills submitted in the past were often different from those collected by the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry.
In a letter issued on Friday, the department ordered its officials to advise the rice mills to update their data on the quantities and prices of rice from Oct 1 only, not three years retroactively as some stories had said.
PM speeds up help for rice farmers

6 Nov 2016 at 05:00
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has called an urgent meeting with the National Rice Policy Committee to draw up relief measures for rice farmers before a new supply of grains hits the market this month.The meeting was promptly called following a report that a farmer in Phichit committed suicide by hanging himself due to falling rice prices, a ministry source said.
Teerapat Prayurasiddhi, Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry permanent secretary, said Gen Prayut, who chairs the committee, is concerned about rice prices and wants to ensure that aid measures will be implemented in a comprehensive manner.

HELPING HANDS: A soldier carries rice sold by Nong Chok farmers to a military unit in Prachin Buri, while ex-PM Yingluck Shinawatra sells her rice at a store on Ram Intra Road.He said the meeting, scheduled for tomorrow, will focus on white rice prices and the annual rice harvest that begins this month. The meeting will also follow up on the implementation of the fresh subsidy programme.
The move comes a week after the cabinet resolved to launch a subsidy programme to help farmers suffering a slump in rice prices.Under the scheme, farmers will receive 13,000 baht per tonne for Hom Mali paddy.Of the 13,000 baht, 9,500 baht will be paid to farmers to store their paddy for a certain period of time, while the rest of the subsidy covers other costs including quality maintenance and storage.
A source at the Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives Ministry said the meeting was prompted by the death of a Phichit rice farmer who allegedly committed suicide due to stress over heavy debts.Supakit Punplaek, 43, a resident of tambon Wang Samrong in Bang Mun Nak district, was found hanged in his rice field on Friday morning.According to the source, the prime minister is very concerned about the situation because rice from the most recent harvest will be released soon. Without good preparation, a new supply could further drive down prices.Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd yesterday sympathised with Supakit's family but played down a connection between the death and rice prices.
He said provincial authorities paid a visit to Supakit's family and offered condolences and were ready to provide assistance.
However, Lt Gen Sansern said Supakit made a living fixing air conditioners and grew rice as a second job.The spokesman declined to respond to Pheu Thai politicians' criticism of the government's handling of the rice price fall, saying Gen Prayut urged restraint to avoid friction and told concerned authorities to focus on addressing the problems.
Agriculture Minister Chatchai Sarikulya has ordered authorities to inspect rice production in 28 key provinces and come up with estimates on the supply of the current harvest, the source said.Meanwhile, former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday helped sell 10 tonnes of milled rice in just one hour.Ms Yingluck, accompanied by key Pheu Thai members, brought 10 tonnes of rice she had purchased from farmers during her visit to a northeastern province for distribution at a shopping mall in Bangkok.Ms Yingluck had brought 10 tonnes of grain and sold them at 20 baht a kilogramme, the same price at which she bought them from the growers.
Direct-selling rice markets booming

• 6 Nov 2016

• WRITER: PRASIT TANGPRASERT, ASSAWIN WONGNOR-KAEW

A happy customer shows her purchases at the rice market in Nakhon Ratchasima on Sunday. (Photo by Prasit Tangprasert)

NAKHON RATCHASIMA/LAMPANG - People have responded warmly to the farmer-to-consumer rice markets popping up all over the country, with at least two provinces reporting brisk sales on the first day.

In Nakhon Ratchasima, farmers from 17 districts brought seven tonnes for sale at the Thao Suranaree Monument in Muang district on Sunday, the second day of the market.On Saturday, they sold 4.5 tonnes for almost 140,000 baht.The types of rice sold were hom mali, brown rice and rice berry and the prices were in a range between 22-30 baht a kilogramme.

Since there was no middleman involved, the prices are lower than market prices and people flocked to the market.Thong-in Khunnara, 57, a Korat buyer, said after she learned about the government's plan to open markets for farmers to directly sell the produce to buyers, she rushed to buy the grain.She bought 50 kg of hom mali rice and five kg of brown nice for 1,550 baht in total on Sunday. "I'm so proud to do my part in helping farmers. Besides, I could buy rice quite cheaply. What I bought today will last us two months."

The provincial agriculture office said on Saturday, the first day of the market, 4.59 tonnes were bought for 140,030 baht.The popular varieties were hom mali and brown rice (3.69 tonnes) and rice berry (280 kg).

In the northern province of Lampang, a rice market was opened at Kaad Thung Kwian, a large folk products market in Hang Chat district.The management of the privately owned market even held a promotion campaign offering a draw for free electric appliances -- two refrigerators, 12 fans and 12 rice cookers -- to those who buy three bags or more.Chuchai Chansakao, manager of Kaad Thung Kwian, said he used his own money to buy the prizes because he wanted to help farmers.

Band-aid solutions hide real rice problems

Ex-prime minister Yingluck Shinwatra jumped on the Good Samaritan bandwagon - irking Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in the process. (Photo by Apichit Jinakul)

It is quite heartening to see the government and private sectors come up with ways and means to help rice farmers, the so-called impoverished backbone of the country who are now in hot water as the price of rice has dropped to its lowest level in a decade. The price of Hom Mali paddy, Thailand's premium grade rice, averages 10,550 baht/tonne based on the government's credit extension scheme which helps rice farmers by setting the pledging price at 90% of the market price of Hom Mali varieties.Well-intentioned though they may be, the projects initiated by several private entities to help the farmers appear to be of a charitable nature and short-term.

Take for example Rangsit University's initiative to allow farmers' children studying at the university to use rice to pay their tuition fees and open a market on campus on Friday and Saturday to allow farmers to meet potential buyers so they can settle rice deals without going through middlemen. I wonder how many farmers can afford to send their sons and daughters to the private university.Then there is the case of Namsin Insurance Company which has come up with an idea to allow farmers to sell rice packs at its 29 branch offices and encourage its staff to buy the packed rice for their own consumption and as New Year's gifts.

PTT public company, meanwhile, will spare space at its 500-plus petrol stations throughout the country to allow farmers or farmer groups to sellpacked rice. Some have suggested this should be done on a long-term basis so farmer groups can have a channel to sell their rice, milled and packed by themselves, without going through rice millers.

Even former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra jumped on the Good Samaritan bandwagon to give moral support to farmers in Ubon Ratchathani -- or for whatever real purpose. She is a politician and you know the nature of politicians. As a free citizen, Ms Yingluck has every right to visit farmers.During the visit, she told the welcoming farmers that if she is once again in government, she would help all farmers, conveniently ignoring the fact she is banned from politics for five years for alleged dereliction of duty by failing to stop massive losses from her rice-pledging scheme. She also bought several packs of rice, each contains 5 kilogrammes of grain, for members of her entourage.

It came as no surprise that this stunt irked Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who later told politicians -- without specifically naming Ms Yingluck -- to stop exploiting farmers' plight for political motives. Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd also needled her, suggesting she should not just buy five or six packs of rice for a photo opportunity, but buy rice from all farmers if she really wants to help.The prime minister appears to have jumped the gun with his quick tongue accusing some rice millers of colluding with local politicians to suppress Hom Mali prices even before most of the paddy is harvested. His accusation pressured the Thai Rice Millers Association president and the group's entire board to resign. The prime minister apologised later and asked him to stay. But it was too late.

So, the next time he accuses anyone of doing something nasty, he should get the facts right for a start.

Let us hear from an eminent rice expert, Nipon Poapongsakorn of the Thailand Development Research Institute, about the actual cause of the Hom Mali price slump.Mr Nipon admits there might be collusion going on to suppress the rice price, but it was not the real cause. He also criticised the way the government sent military personnel and officials to check warehouses of rice millers suspected of involvement in price collusion as unreasonable.He blamed panic price speculation by exporters as the actual cause of the price slump. He said some exporters had clinched forward rice deals with overseas customers by setting the future price at US$548 (19,190 baht) per tonne for the first lot of rice to be delivered in December from the November crop, while the spot price then was $720.

Although the future price is not public knowledge, it is known among exporters, who then panicked and started making forward rice deals with their customers, further suppressing the domestic price.Mr Nipon said price speculation among exporters and millers is a normal part of the market mechanism. But he noted any suggestion of speculation could be blown out of the water if there is a lack of reliable information. He suggested the creation of a rice futures market and a reliable system of forecasting rice production.Mr Nipon's explanation about the actual cause of the rice price slump is further evidence that farmers have absolutely no say in dictating the price of rice. That is why they have always been at the wrong end of the rice trade and why they are always poor, while most millers and exporters just get richer and richer. Yes, there are some rich farmers, but they are landlords who lease their farmland to the landless.

The government's credit extension scheme for farmers to delay the sale of their crop, the Yingluck government's rice-pledging scheme or the Democrats' rice price guarantee scheme are or were all short-term solutions, like a pain killer to ease the aches but which does not cure the illness.These schemes can go on year after year, but most farmers remain poor. They must think out of the box and one of the approaches is mixed farming or sufficiency farming.As a wise man once said, do not give fish to a poor man because he will beg for more. Instead, give him a rod and teach him how to use it so that he can fish for himself and won't beg again.

Self-sufficiency by 2017: Farmers, experts speak

By Vincent A. Yusuf (Abuja) & Ismail Adebayo (Brinin-Kebbi) | Publish Date: Nov 6 2016 2:54AM

Daily Trust on Sunday examines why there are so many talks about domestic rice production by politicians and the factors which might halt the nation’s journey to self-sufficiency in 2017.

Women working on harvested paddy
Last year, the global production of paddy rice was estimated at 749.8 million tonnes, translating to about 499.9 million tonnes of milled rice, according to the United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). This volume was produced mostly in the Asian countries. Nigeria is the largest consumer and producer of rice in Africa, one of the world’s leading rice importers. According to Rice Authority, a Philippine online platform for global rice importers and exporters, Nigeria imports about 1.4 million tonnes (4.8% of global rice imports).
Statistics from FAO shows that “Nigeria produced approximately 2 million metric tons of milled rice and imported roughly 3 million metric tonnes,” in 2008.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) puts the figure of Nigeria’s spending on rice importation between 2012 and 2015 at over N474 billion.
The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, at the press conference on forex ban on rice import in Abuja last year, said the country spends about N3.1 trillion annually importing rice and other crops.
Speaking in a round table forum in Abuja recently, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh stressed that “by 2017, Nigeria will be self-sufficient in rice production. We are getting close as there is improvement on what we have been getting; and this will boost our economy.”
Ogbeh again assured Nigerians of self-sufficiency in rice by 2017 during a visit to Coscharis Rice Farm in Anaku, Ayemelum Local Government of Anambra state.
Will Nigeria achieve self-sufficiency in rice in 2017? Daily Trust on Sunday puts that question to a number of rice farmers and experts for their thoughts.
Rotimi Williams is a 35-year-old rice farmer and owner of Kereksuk Rice Farm based in Tunga, Nasarawa state. He told Daily Trust on Sunday that Nigeria would not achieve self -sufficiency in rice in the near future unless government steps up huge investment in key areas of the rice value chain.
The farmer advised government to prioritise the value chain and place more emphasis on quality seed and actual production than milling because the big millers are more concerned with imports than backward integration.
According to the him, the quality of rice produce by smallholder farmers in the country, still falls below the standard and must be strengthened with quality inputs if government is serious about achieving the target of closing the import gap and begin export.
Similarly, Mahesh Nimje, the General Manager, Project Coordination, Olam Rice Farm Rukubi, Nasarawa State stressed that 2017 is certainly too close to realize that targets. For him, five years with more complimentary programmes like the CBN’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programmes will be realistic.
2017 is too far – RIFAN
But Alhaji Aminu Goronyo, the National President Rice Farmers Association (RIFAN) in an exclusive interview with Daily Trust on Sunday reiterated that if the paddy produced this year is milled properly, there is no need to even import rice, adding that “in fact, the 2017 is too far.”
“By 2017, we will have produced more than enough and start exporting. We have already signed MoU with the Rice Millers Association to mill 3 million metric tonnes of what we produced this year,” Goronyo said.
What government needs to do now is to build the capacity of small and medium scale mills in the country to be able to mill quality rice in the country, he advised.
Segun Atho is the National Vice President (South-west) of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN). He said the 2017 dateline can be met if government matches words with serious action.
He believes the 12 million registered rice farmers alone can meet that target if they are supported massively.
“Our challenges at the moment have to do with lack of tractors, good seeds, affordable fertiliser and other farm machines. The last time we got seed and fertiliser was in 2014 and we don’t want to get these inputs in the open market because of quality and price issues,” he pointed.
Good news from Kebbi, Niger
Alhaji Sahadi Augie a rice farmer in Kebbi told Daily Trust on Sunday recently that unprecedented success recorded in this year’s harvest across Kebbi State would not only meet the rice needs of the country, but will also meet, within a short time, that of West Africa.”
“I must say that the harvest was very good for us. It has never been like this before. I am very optimistic that we will surpass the 1 million metric tones target very soon. This is because this year we harvested rice in Kebbi in the way we have never harvested it before,” he said. Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi last week assured the Federal Government of his commitment to achieving the one million tonnes of rice targeted by the end of 2016.The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, during a recent assessment tour of Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, said that Kebbi and Niger states may generate two million metric tonnes of rice at the end of the season and reduce level of rice importation.
Emefiele who visited the Zone A rice plantation of Baddegi, Bida local council of Niger State, said the Anchor Borrowers Programme (APB) of the bank, will soon help Nigeria to achieve rice self-sufficiency, adding that other states working under the ABP to take Nigeria’s rice production in excess three million metric tonnes by 2017.
The Kano State Governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, during the launch of this year’s rice harvest programme at Samawa and Kadawa in Garun Mallam, said farmers in the state are expected to produce an estimated 1.2 million tonnes of rice this year as harvest has begun.He targets 2 million metric tonnes of paddy rice in 2017 with more commitment from farmers and the administration’s support.
Issues affecting farmers
For Ibrahim Jatua, a rice farmer, access to fertiliser remains a huge challenge. “My farm is weak” he said, “you can hardly reap anything significant if you do not apply fertiliser but the cost this year was something many of us could not handle, so I couldn’t do much.”But Audu Danjuma. who gets between 19 to 25 bags annually, has little challenge with fertiliser as his farm is still fertile. His problem is how to get good seeds and deal with weeds.
“The seed I used last year did not do much. The rice grew so tall but could produce much seeds. I’m yet to harvest my rice-maybe it will do better,” Danjuma said.
Besides seed and fertiliser, he wants government to end the conflict between herdsmen and farmers because it is taking toll on farming activities.Audu stated that his uncle could not cultivate rice this year because of the experience he had last year when the crisis broke out in one of the villages where he cultivated rice. “Fear couldn’t let him,” he said.Mr. Atho also wants government to intervene in bank lending issues, stressing that most commercial banks in the country don’t want to fund agriculture and when they do, the interest rates are killing. He opines that if banks can fund the sector at a single digit interest rates, many will scale up production leading to food security

http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/business/self-sufficiency-by-2017-farmers-experts-speak/170346.html#aMMTLSVgQyXXDotk.99

Theresa May enjoys sumptuous curry and gold leaf rice pudding on India visit

^·

Theresa May arrives in India CREDIT: AFP

· Michael Wilkinson, political correspondent

7 NOVEMBER 2016 • 12:33PM

Theresa May was served a multi-course Indian banquet for her working lunch with prime minister Narendra Modi.

Mrs May is visiting India to pave the way for the UK's first post-Brexit trade deal.

The two prime ministers took a break out of their busy schedule to enjoy lunch.

The full menu

Appetiser

Kumbh Galouti Nazakat with Burhani Jhag and Chutney Soil

Starters

Mahi Dariya (fish marinated in buttermilk)

Silbatte Ke Shammi Kebab (pan grilled lamb)

Paneer Angaar (cheese kebab)

Hara Kebab (spinach)

Soup

Pista Shorba (pistachio soup)

Mains

Jhinga Dum Nisha (prawns in spiced cream)

Murgh Handi Qorma (chicken in onion gravy)

Guncha wa Kheema (cauliflower florets)

Dal Maash Qaliya (moong lentils with spinach)

Dumpukht Gosht Biryani (lamb with basmati rice)

Paneer Dum Anari (cottage cheese with pomegranate)

Dum Ki Bharwan Gucchi (mushrooms)

Kathal Dum Biryani (jackfruit with rice)

Desserts

Shahi Tukra (fried bread with java berry, saffron and pistachio)

Kulfi Badshah Pasand (cardomon ice cream)

Phirnee (rice pudding with gold leaf).

Theresa May has offered a deal with India which could see more visas for the country's nationals to come to the UK in return for an increase in the number of illegal migrants sent back.

The Prime Minister's offer came during extended discussions with Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, who has been putting pressure on Mrs May to open the door for more Indian students and skilled workers.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/07/theresa-may-enjoys-sumptuous-curry-and-gold-leaf-rice-pudding-on/

Market expands for Cordillera heirloom rice

posted November 06, 2016 at 12:01 am by Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY—Consumers, buyers and farmers alike contribute in expanding the market of one of Cordilleran’s pride—the traditional or heirloom rice.

As healthy foods become preferred dietary options worldwide and as people become more health-conscious, the market for such organic products continues to broaden. According to International Rice Research Institute’s Dr. Bob Zeigler, “consumers are even ready to pay extra money for high-quality foods that are rich in specialized nutrients.”

Based on the baseline nutrition analysis of selected heirloom rice varieties done in 2014 at IRRI, heirloom rice is rich in iron, sodium, calcium, niacin, potassium, niacin, folic acid, proteins, carbohydrates, and antioxidants, which are being sought after by health practitioners.

According to heirloom rice farmers, the demand for heirloom rice is growing, resulting in shortage of supply.

Rowena Sawil, an heirloom rice farmer from Kalinga, said that there are times that they cannot meet the demand of buyers due to lack of supply. On the other hand, the situation may also mean the sprouting of opportunities for other farmers.

Sonia Pengosro of Benguet Heirloom Rice Terraces Farmers Agriculture Cooperative said that the return to the traditional practice of planting heirloom rice will contribute to the preservation of culture and tradition. It also helps in the rejuvenation of the environment.

The Department of Agriculture Cordillera, IRRI and PhilRice and the farmers are currently working together to conduct studies regarding the nutritional value, genetic diversity, grain quality and development process toward Geographical Indication (GI) Registration of the different varieties of heirloom rice.

“The GI registration will command a 100 percent increase in the value of heirloom rice in the Cordillera due to its ethnodiversity. It is also a way of promoting traceability of the product; the farmers and locale,” said Dr. Digna Manzanilla, co-project leader of the Heirloom Rice Project.

Meantime, the DA continues to promote heirloom rice in the local and international markets.

“Maraming salamat at naisali itong heirloom rice sa HVCDP. Dito ma-recognize uli in the whole world ang heirloom rice ng Cordillera,” said Wasig Sacla, an organic farmer, as he and his fellow organic farmers thanked the DA-CAR, IRRI, PhilRice and DA Secretary Emmanuel Piñol for their unceasing efforts to promote and preserve the region’s heirloom rice.

During the Regional Heirloom Rice Market Encounter and Organic Agricultural Investment Forum cum Exhibit led by the Agri-business and Market Assistance Division of DA last October 26 and 27, organic farmers, heirloom rice farmers, buyers, local officials, and heirloom rice key spokespersons from DA-CAR, IRRI, PhilRice addressed the issues regarding the conservation, preservation and market of the region’s heirloom rice for its sustainable development.

http://thestandard.com.ph/news/-provinces/220713/market-expands-for-cordillera-heirloom-rice.html

Beware of Wonder Banks, NDIC Warns Nigerians

November 8, 2016

Managing Director of the NDIC, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim

As promoters of wonder banks and other ponzi schemes in the country continue to lure members of the public to mouthwatering offers, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has warned members of the public not to patronise such investment schemes.

The MMM investment scheme is one of the Ponzi schemes in the country.Also, in line with the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) which is aimed at reducing the percentage of adult Nigerians lacking access to formal banking services from 46.3 percent in 2010 to 20 percent in 2020; the NDIC has expressed its desire to play a crucial role in ensuring that small savers are protected.Speaking at the special day event of NDIC at the ongoing Lagos International Trade Fair with the theme: ‘Positioning the Nigeria Economy for Diversification and Sustainable Growth,’ the Managing Director of the NDIC, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim said: “I wish to sound a word of advice caution to members of the public on the activities of illegal funds managers, otherwise known as ‘wonder banks’.

“It is worrisome to note that despite repeated advice, many unsuspecting members of the public are still falling victims to the mouth watering interest being offered by these illegal fund managers. For the avoidance of doubt, these illegal funds managers or ‘wonders banks’ are neither licensed by the CBN nor under the NDIC deposit insurance coverage. Members of the public are therefore advised to patronise only banking institutions that display the NDIC sticker: ‘Insured by NDIC’ in their banking halls or entrances.”Commenting further on its financial inclusion initiatives, the NDIC boss noted that the corporation has also partnered the National Universities of Commission (NUC) to introduce a pilot scheme on two courses on the Deposit Insurance (DIS) in seven selected universities in the country.

Ibrahim explained that in furtherance of the aforementioned public awareness strategies, the corporation recognises the importance of participating in the Lagos international trade fair, adding that the fair provides a platform for the corporation to interact with depositors and other stakeholders.“The corporation has published various books which include, the financial literacy in Nigeria: A study Report’, Perspectives on the Nigeria Financial Safety-net” under the NDIC’s catch them young initiative, the corporation initiated the publication of two books titled: “This little piggy” for primary schools and “The Money Tree” for secondary schools.”Ibrahim who was represented by the Deputy Director Claims Resolution, Mr. Asumo Bello, stated that following the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensing of non-interest banking institution (NIBIs) and the 21 mobile money operators (MMOs), the corporation equally extended deposit insurance coverage to subscribers of these banking products to the maximum limit of N500,00 per depositor.

He added that the corporation has developed frameworks of Pass-Through Deposit Insurance Scheme (PTDIS) and Non Interest Deposit Insurance Scheme (NIDIS) to the MMOs and non interest “bank subscribers respectively with a maximum insured limit of N500.000 per subscriber.”Ibrahim further stated: “The maximum deposit insurance coverage (MDIC) per depositor per bank has progressively increased from N50,000 in 1989 to its current N500,000 per depositor per DMB. Similarly, the insured limit for the Microfinance Banks (MFBs) and primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs) in 2009 was increased from N100,000 to N200,000 per depositor per MFB/PMB in 2010.“However, on August 4, the Hon. Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, approved an upward review of the deposit to ensure insured limit for depositors of PMBs to N500, 000 in order to ensure coverage of over 90 percent of depositors in the banking sub sector

Pak targets rice fields across border, crops worth Rs 125 crore in danger

DECCAN CHRONICLE

PublishedNov 6, 2016, 8:47 am IST

UpdatedNov 6, 2016, 9:12 am IST

In RS Pura, the sound of the tractor instantly invites the sounds of the gun from across the other side of the border.

Locals say that this firing from the Pakistani side with an intention to destroy rice crops is now an annual affair. (Photo: PTI/Representational Image)

Srinagar: 40,000 acres of basmati rice in Jammu and Kashmir is now under threat from Pakistan.

According to a report in DNA, firing and shelling from Pakistani soldiers have caused rice farmers to flee, ensuring that crop cultivation of basmati rice on the Indian side of the International Border (IB) is next to impossible.

In RS Pura, the ‘rice bowl’ of India, the sound of the tractor instantly invites the sounds of the gun from across the other side of the border.

Locals say that this firing from the Pakistani side with an intention to destroy rice crops is now an annual affair. It is meant to attack the Indian farmer, hurt India's basmati rice crop, and ensure that Pakistan's rice crop flowers. As a result, farmers working on the fields have been made to vacate the area. The paddy now stands neglected.

"If there is no one to harvest, the crop will die in 10-12 days," a local farmer was quoted as saying.

Most area in and around the RS Pura region is extremely fertile and best suited for basmati cultivation, but shelling and firing has destroyed the crop for the last 3 years.

If the crop remains uncultivated this year, India would lose approximately Rs 125 crore.

Ashok Malhotra, Director of Agriculture, Jammu and Kashmir, feels that the government must counter the Pakistani aggression by taking urgent steps to protect the rice farmer, but says the appeals have so far gone unanswered.

Moreover, the Border Security Force (BSF) presence in the area does not allow farmers to use machines on their fields. Manual harvest will take a much longer duration, as at least 20 per cent of the crop will get destroyed, said the report.

Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura, J&K Agriculture Minister, confirmed that there will be loss of crops this year, added the report In Jammu district, the farmers have not been able to harvest crops on 13,322 hectares and in Samba district standing crops on 3770 hectares

Rice Market Research Report Now Available at Research Corridor

By ganeshkumar / Tuesday, 08 Nov 2016 12:45AM

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http://www.rundirectmagazine.com/rice-market-research-report-now-available-at-research-corridor/34887/

Rice pledging scheme deja vu

6 Nov 2016 at 05:00
NEWSPAPER SECTION: NEWS | WRITER: ALAN DAWSON

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha eyes packaged rice at a farmers' stand. The premier has become an instant expert on rice pricing. (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha)

In the early 1980s, as a post-Vietnam war peace took shape in Southeast Asia, Thailand made an important decision. To be more correct, Thailand decided not to decide about rice.

In purely logical terms, a la Mr Spock, it was time to shift the back-breaking burden of rice growing to poorer neighbours in order to move the economy along to modern development including advanced agriculture.
In purely cultural terms, rice was -- well, rice is -- the sustenance of the nation, grown by men and women who are the backbone of the nation, and the nation in turn is the first of the three institutions: nation, religion, king.
In the end, the idea that dirt-poor neighbours Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia could grow rice while Thai farms developed into modern, first world-worthy centres of innovation and technology never was put up for serious discussion.
Ergo: Dirt-poor farmers, subsidised food, political venality and problems both predictable and unforeseen.
In the "predictable" category are political crises. This is not the first time there have been two, parallel rice brouhahas entertaining the nation simultaneously, but it is arguably the most serious, and it could get much testier and angrier before it's settled.
The root cause is worldwide overproduction of rice. This is especially true and especially important in Thailand, the world's leading rice salesman.
But the government for completely understandable political and populist reasons wants to ignore the "worldwide" part. If there is a world glut of rice, there's no way to blame profiteering rice millers and merchants.
And it couldn't be the fault of politicians (English translation: Lord Voldemort na Dubai) because while Voldemort can control Thai dastards, not even he can control rice harvests and markets around the world.
For the second time since the coup that sought to extinguish populism forever, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had to reach into the government's money bags to address serious poverty among farmers.
Like the problem with rubber growers, the premier really has no choice but a populist programme with two so-familiar aims: bail out the farmers in the short term and try to control the market in the long.
The female ex-premier was confident that paying farmers large amounts for their rice would eventually raise world prices. Wishing doesn't make it so.
Gen Prayut now is equally confident that if he locks up rice stocks -- new rice, at that -- the artificial shortage will raise prices. His contradiction, arguably even bigger than the Pheu Thai dichotomy, is that consumer prices are already high and aren't going lower. Ever. And if he thinks his soldiers can run rice mills and rice marketing, he's going to be disappointed, to say the least.
There is an election due next year. When the emerging pro-military party claims credit for saving the rice farmers, it will just be a factual statement, right? It won't be politics or power greed at all. Bonus: claim credit for saving the rubber farmers, too.
The new constitution which will soon come into force bars populism. So the political party dedicated to making Gen Prayut the unelected prime minister in 2018 will have to try to argue that throwing hundreds of billions of baht (currently 127 billion but rising faster than a Phetchaburi flood) into a scheme to boost farmers' income and trying to control the price of a vital commodity don't add up to populism.Meanwhile (heavy emphasis on "mean"), newspaper columnists and other cynics note the parallel tracks. On one rail, the government has set up a programme to help and pay rice farmers. On the other, the government is strongly pursuing scores of people from the previous government for setting up a programme to help and pay rice farmers.
"It's not the same thing" is the stock reply of both the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Truth. Comparisons are never exact. And it is a fact that no one in the red shirt government ever said "Let them eat cake" or anything similar, while someone in the green shirt government did.Gen Prayut's rice problem has barely started. The ability of the state-owned Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives to finance another gigantic handout -- the scheme's estimated cost went from 35 billion to 127 billion baht in three days -- is debatable.
But it gets worse. The initial programme is all about fragrant rice -- khao hom mali aka jasmine rice -- because it is harvested first. Close on its heels are the harvests of ordinary rice, and then the glutinous, or sticky rice, khao niao.Those farmers' rice also is currently worth peanuts and those farmers also will need -- no, will noisily demand -- subsidies.The prime minister acerbically criticised the female ex-premier last week and told her to take her complaints to court. That was an unintended gaffe because the dual rice issues now are in court, but not the judicial one.The court of public opinion counts for a lot and has brought down governments of all stripes, democrats and dictators included, without any regard to their self-awarded amnesty.

Asbah to soon launch fortified rice, invest over Rs 50 cr

Press Trust of India | New Delhi November 7, 2016 Last Updated at 15:42 IST

Asbah, a brand owned by DCP India Pvt Ltd, today said it will invest over Rs 50 crore to launch new product 'fortified rice' in the domestic market. A relatively new brand launched in India in August 2016 sells basmati rice, dalia, poha, suji and maida here. It also exports basmati rice.

"We have really progressed and our products are being sold in major cities. As part of our expansion, we are focusing on fortification of rice. We are investing more than Rs 50 crore," DCP India Pvt Ltd Director Gaurav Jain told PTI. The funds will be sourced through equity and debt. A separate unit will be set up at Sasiabad, Haryana, he said, adding that the new product be ready in the next six months.

The company has already done research and development with the government's Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Now, food safefy regulator FSSAI has also come up with fortification norms. "Earlier, fortified products were not allowed to sell in the absence of fortification norms. FSSAI's has notified fortification norms. We are going to be the first to take benefit of it and deliver a fortified rice product in the market," Jain said. Jain explained that the company would use broken rice and grind it to make powder and add protien, iron and zinc to it as per FSSAI norms. The powder would be converted into rice grain form using a separate machine.

"This will be ready within six months. It will be blended with original rice and will cater to poor section of society to ensure nutrition," he said. A separate unit with machine with 5 tonnes per hour capacity would be set up Sasiabad, Haryana for this purpose. To boost export of dalia, poha, suji and maida under Asbah brand, Jain said that the company has invested Rs 2 crore to improve shelf life of these items for export purpose.

"We have ordered a machine, which will help in reducing the moisture level and get the shelf life up to one year. Then we will start export of these products," he said. Haryana-based DCP India Pvt Ltd, which has been trading of commodities for last 45 years, has recently entered into processing of agri-commodities under the brand Asbah.
It has a processing unit for basmati rice at Sonipat with a capacity to handle 42,000 tonnes a year. It has similar capacity for dalia, poha, suji and maida at same place.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/asbah-to-soon-launch-fortified-rice-invest-over-rs-50-cr-116110700891_1.html

1 comment:

EAPCETJune 27, 2017 at 10:59 PM
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Wednesday, November 09, 2016

8th November,2016 daily global,regional and local rice e-newsletter by riceplus magazine

Pakistan produces 1.2bln broiler chickens annually

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/162382-Pakistan-produces-12bln-broiler-chickens-annually

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Vietnamese rice prices rise on low stocks

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By Ismail Adebayo, Birnin Kebbi | Publish Date: Nov 6 2016 2:30AM

http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/general/traders-millers-mop-up-rice-in-kebbi/170317.html#rolTHHJQ7LErTiMJ.99

Rice prices fall to 3500 KPW per kilo due to harvest season and import spike

Thailand unveils $514 million in rice loans as political tensions bubble

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