Indus Civilization Farmers
Cultivated Rice Over 4,000 Years Ago, Archaeological Evidence Suggests
New research on three
archaeological sites of the famed Indus Valley civilization (3000-1500 BC) in
north-west India has revealed that domesticated rice farming in South Asia
began far earlier than previously believed, and may have developed in tandem
with — rather than as a result of — rice domestication in China.
A flood-prone
rice field being plowed by a farmer using water buffaloes. Image credit:
International Rice Research Institute / CC BY 2.0.
Evidence for very early rice use has been known from the site of
Lahuradewa in the central Ganges basin, but it has long been thought that
domesticated rice agriculture didn’t reach South Asia until towards the end of
the Indus era, when the wetland rice arrived from China around 2000 BC.
A research team led by University
of Cambridge archaeologists found evidence of
domesticated rice in South Asia as much as 430 years earlier.The team’s
findings, published in the Journal of Archaeological Science and the journal Antiquity, also confirm that Indus farmers were the
earliest people to use multi-cropping strategies across both seasons, growing
foods during summer (rice, millets and beans) and winter (wheat, barley and
pulses), which required different watering regimes.“The nature and timing of
rice domestication and the development of rice cultivation in South Asia is
much debated,” the authors said.
“In northern South Asia there is presently a significant gap
(about 4,200 years) between earliest evidence for the exploitation of wild rice
(Lahuradewa, 6000 BC) and earliest dated evidence for the utilization of fully
domesticated rice (Mahagara, 1800 BC).”
“The Indus Valley civilization,
also known as the Harappan civilization, developed
and declined during the intervening period, and there has been debate about
whether rice was adopted and exploited by Indus populations during this
gap.”The researchers found evidence for an entirely separate domestication
process in ancient South Asia, likely based around the wild species Oryza nivara.“This led to the local development
of a mix of ‘wetland’ and ‘dryland’ agriculture of local Oryza sativa indica rice agriculture before the truly ‘wetland’ Chinese rice, Oryza sativa japonica arrived around 2000 BC,” said co-lead author Dr. Jennifer Bates,
from the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of
Cambridge.
“While wetland rice is more
productive, and took over to a large extent when introduced from China, our
findings appear to show there was already a long-held and sustainable culture
of rice production in India as a widespread summer addition to the winter
cropping during the Indus Valley civilization.”
The team sifted for traces of ancient grains in the remains of
several Indus villages within a few miles of the site called Rakhigari: the
most recently excavated of the Indus cities that may have maintained a
population of some 40,000.
As well as the winter staples of wheat and barley and winter
pulses like peas and vetches, the archaeologists found evidence of summer
crops: including domesticated rice, but also millet and the tropical beans urad
and horsegram, and used radiocarbon dating to provide the first absolute dates
for Indus multi-cropping: 2890-2630 BC for millets and winter pulses, 2580-2460
BC for horsegram, and 2430-2140 BC for rice.Millets are a group of small grain,
now most commonly used in birdseed, which the authors describe as “often being
used as something to eat when there isn’t much else”.Urad beans, however, are a
relative of the mung bean, often used in popular types of Indian dhal today.
In contrast with evidence from elsewhere in the region, the
village sites around Rakhigari reveal that summer crops appear to have been
much more popular than the wheats of winter.“This may have been down to the
environmental variation in this part of the former civilization: on the
seasonally flooded Ghaggar-Hakra plains where different rainfall patterns and
vegetation would have lent themselves to crop diversification – potentially
creating local food cultures within individual areas,” the scientists
explained.
“This variety of crops may have been transported to the cities.
Urban hubs may have served as melting pots for produce from regional growers,
as well as meats and spices, and evidence for spices have been found elsewhere
in the region.”“While we don’t yet know what crops were being consumed at
Rakhigarhi, it is certainly possible that a sustainable food economy across the
Indus zone was achieved through growing a diverse range of crops, with choice
being influenced by local conditions,” Dr. Bates said.
“It is also possible that there was trade and exchange in staple
crops between populations living in different regions, though this is an idea
that remains to be tested”.“Such a diverse system was probably well suited to
mitigating risk from shifts in climate,” said co-lead author Dr. Cameron
Petrie, also from the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at the
University of Cambridge.“It may be that some of today’s farming monocultures
could learn from the local crop diversity of the Indus people 4,000 years ago.”
_____
J. Bates et al. Approaching rice
domestication in South Asia: new evidence from Indus settlements in northern
India. Journal of Archaeological Science, published online November 21, 2016; doi:
10.1016/j.jas.2016.04.018
C.A. Petrie et al. Feeding ancient cities in
South Asia: dating the adoption of rice, millet and tropical pulses in the
Indus civilisation. Antiquity 90 (354): 1489-1504; doi: 10.15184/aqy.2016.210
This article is based on a press-release from the University of
Cambridge.
http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/indus-civilization-rice-04400.html
Govt welcomes rice millers’ decision to
call-off strike
Source: The Hitavada Date: 28 Nov 2016 10:48:27
Staff Reporter,
RAIPUR,
Nov 27,
State Government has welcomed the calling-off
of strike by Chhattisgarh Rice Millers’ Association. Extending her gratitude to
the rice-millers, Richa Sharma, Secretary, Chhattisgarh Food, Civil Supplies
and Consumer Protection department, has hoped that the rice millers will
cooperate with the state government in custom milling works so that sufficient
availability of rice for public distribution system is maintained and poor
continue to get rice supply through ration shops
http://thehitavada.com/Encyc/2016/11/28/Govt-welcomes-rice-millers--decision-to-call-off-strike.aspx
C'garh govt
blacklists 290 rice mill owners on strike
government has blacklisted atleast
290 rice millers who were on strike opposing the custom milling policy of the
state since early this month. "The
state government has initiated action against rice millers who are on strike.
So far,290 rice millers were blacklisted for not cooperating in the custom
milling," an official statement said here last night.
Chief Secretary in-charge N K Aswal and Secretary Food department Richa Sharma were informed about the action during a meeting yesterday here at Mantralaya. Both the officers through video-conferencing, interacted with district collectors wherein they reviewed the progress of ongoing paddy procurement and custom milling in each district.
During the meeting, officials informed that paddy procurement is going on through 1,988 procurement centres of 1,333 cooperative societies in the state since November 15.
Meanwhile, they also informed that the state government had assurd the rice millers (who are on strike) to think over their demands but some of them were not taking interest in custom milling, the release said.
Finally taking a tough stand, the state government initiated action against the rice millers under the Essential Commodities Act-1955 and Chhattisgarh Custom Milling Procurement order 2016, officials said.
"In this Kharif season, so far 27 rice mills were raided and then sealed. Besides, 290 rice millers were blacklisted from undertaking custom milling works," the release said. Notably the Rice Millers' Association, the biggest rice millers' business body in Chhattisgarh, is on an indefinitestrike since November 10 in support of their four-point demands, including higher rates for custom milling, rollback high price of gunny bags and lower the required quantity of custom milled rice from 67 kgper 100 kg of paddy to 56 kg.
Chief Secretary in-charge N K Aswal and Secretary Food department Richa Sharma were informed about the action during a meeting yesterday here at Mantralaya. Both the officers through video-conferencing, interacted with district collectors wherein they reviewed the progress of ongoing paddy procurement and custom milling in each district.
During the meeting, officials informed that paddy procurement is going on through 1,988 procurement centres of 1,333 cooperative societies in the state since November 15.
Meanwhile, they also informed that the state government had assurd the rice millers (who are on strike) to think over their demands but some of them were not taking interest in custom milling, the release said.
Finally taking a tough stand, the state government initiated action against the rice millers under the Essential Commodities Act-1955 and Chhattisgarh Custom Milling Procurement order 2016, officials said.
"In this Kharif season, so far 27 rice mills were raided and then sealed. Besides, 290 rice millers were blacklisted from undertaking custom milling works," the release said. Notably the Rice Millers' Association, the biggest rice millers' business body in Chhattisgarh, is on an indefinitestrike since November 10 in support of their four-point demands, including higher rates for custom milling, rollback high price of gunny bags and lower the required quantity of custom milled rice from 67 kgper 100 kg of paddy to 56 kg.
http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/c-garh-govt-blacklists-290-rice-mill-owners-on-strike-116112700266_1.html
Why rice imports couldn’t continue - Emefiele
By Hamisu Muhammad | Publish
Date: Nov 28 2016 2:00AM
Why rice imports couldn’t continue - Emefiele
By Hamisu Muhammad | Publish Date:
Nov 28 2016 2:00AM
Central Bank Governor, Godwin
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said with the dwindling foreign reserve, the
country cannot continue to import rice, hence President Muhammadu Buhari’s
directive to focus on agriculture especially rice production.Speaking during a
visit to Ebonyi State, Mr. Emefiele appreciated the state government for
responding to the President’s call, saying despite lack of fund from the Anchor
Borrowers’ Programme, the state government used its own money to improve
production.
Though the farmers were unable to
access the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) support due to challenges in
registering the farmers, the CBN governor, however reassured that with the dry
season farming about to start, farmers in Ebonyi would access the facility. Mr.
Emefiele said with the support and commitment of the Ministry of Agriculture,
machines would be available to farmers for harvest in the coming year. He also
assured the farmers that challenges such as irrigation funding would be
addressed.The minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbe, has described the
Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, as
revolutionary in his economic management strategy.According to Chief Ogbe, the
CBN governor has etched his name in the annals of Nigeria’s economic management
history as revolutionary with the rice revolution he started across the
country. The Ebonyi State governor, Engr. Dave Umahi, also commended the CBN
governor for managing the economy of the nation in the face of global dwindling
resources occasioned by plummeting oil prices
http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/business/why-rice-imports-couldn-t-continue-emefiele/173522.html#rEdMuJUu1jditqhJ.99
·
Arroyo wants
info on rice, corn, sugar imports bared to public
Former
President and now Congresswoman Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. AP File Photo
MANILA — Former president and now Pampanga
Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo wants the government to publish all information on
imports of basic commodities like rice, corn and sugar to prevent supply
manipulation.She said full disclosure of government contracts on basic
commodities would “help prevent collusion and cartel, serve as a check against
over-importation of basic commodities such as rice and corn, and aid in the
collection of tariffs per metric ton.”
“The people have the right to know the
factors that influence food supply and prices,” Arroyo, also one of the House
deputy speakers, said in a bill she filed recently.
Her proposed House Bill 4141 orders the
agriculture and trade departments and the National Food Authority to publish
all information on importation permits granted for basic commodities such as
rice, corn and sugar.The information should include the name and address of the
importer, name and address of the supplier, country of origin of the import per
shipment, date of contract of import, contracted price, and value or cost of
import.Arroyo said “classified information” would be exempted from publication
such as those deemed to be of national security interest, involved in law
enforcement or crime investigation and those considered by the Department of
Foreign Affairs to possibly jeopardize the country’s diplomatic relations.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/848445/arroyo-wants-info-on-rice-corn-sugar-imports-bared-to-public
Hybrid rice
leads to bumper crop in Iloilo
Thanks to hybrid rice seeds, the
rice harvest in Iloilo soared in this year’s wet season, with some farmers
yielding over 10 metric tons per hectare, provincial agricultural officials
said.With 10,000 hectares now “organically grown” on hybrid rice, the yield
average of 12 farmers using SL-8H seeds rose to 10.71 metric tons per hectare,
they added.Despite the severe El Niño drought, Iloilo remains a rice surplus
province, especially as farmers ventured into SL-8H hybrid rice that sent their
yield average to 4.09 MT per hectare.
This is an overall increase of
nearly one MT (0.86) per hectare compared to the 2015 average of 3.23 per
hectare, based on Philippine Statistics Authority data, for the entire Iloilo,
according to Assistant Provincial Agriculturist Elias V. Sandig Jr.The trend to
plant hybrid rice in Iloilo rose as a farmer registered a high yield last
year.“In 2015, Marilyn Duco of Patlad, Dumangas obtained an average yield equivalent
to 14.51 MT per hectare from SL-8H hybrid seeds at 14 percent moisture
content,” said Sandig.
Iloilo farmers have also adopted
what is realized now as a superior fertilization technique—Crop Stand
Fertilizer Management.“An honest to goodness campaign was made to accept SL-8H
with instruction to adopt Crop Stand Fertilizer Management. A total of
10,000 hectares (of hybrid area) was realized,” said Sandig.Applying fertilizer
based on crop stand means that fertilizer is applied in reduced amounts.
It is applied only when the color of rice plant is light yellow,
signifying a need for fertilizer.“To date, the 12 top SL-8H farmers had an
average production of 10.71 MT per hectare equivalent to 9.713 MT per hectare
at 14 percent moisture content,“ said Sandig.
Iloilo farmer Teresita S. Setiar
of Leganes reaped the highest yield equivalent 17.921 MT per hectare at 14
percent moisture content. She used organic fertilizers with reduced
artificial fertilizer, Sandig added.“Suffice to say that it is only in Iloilo
where hybrid rice is grown organically,” he said.With the hybrid rice, those
who were able to plant only once a year are now able to harvest twice as much.
“Some areas are just rainfed, so farmers don’t plant during the dry season. But
with their high yield—double from hybrid rice—it’s as good as they would have
planted two times a year,” said Rich Recoter, SLAC hybrid rice specialist.From
his rain-fed 6,000-square meter farm, Andres Corras Jr. got this last wet
season an equivalent of an average of 9.68 MT per hectare.
Allan Tabefranca got a yield of
8.5 tons per hectare from 8,000 square meters. He is in an irrigated area
and even used direct seeding, which means he had lesser cost than if he
transplanted seeds.“Our campaign is that using the same technology of rice
planting, you just change the seed, but your expense is the same. The
seed is for free, so they get a higher income. Because of this, they have
been convinced to go into hybrid,” said Iloilo Provincial Agriculturist
Ildefonso T. Toledo.With proper fertilization management, hybrid rice in
irrigated areas in Iloilo as of October 2016 produced 4.77 MT per hectare.
This is higher by 1.28 MT compared to the July to September 2016 inbred
average yield of 3.491 MT per hectare.
Farmers have traditionally
avoided the use of hybrid rice in the wet season due to bacterial leaf blight
infestation or BLB. But fertilization based on crop stand has apparently
eliminated this problem.“It’s the first time for many farmers to plant hybrid
in the wet season,” said Geron E. Magbanua, also of the Iloilo provincial
agriculture office.”And (impressively), there are farmers who harvested 10 tons
(per hectare) as shown by the contest (Palayabangan introduced by the
Philippine Rice Research Institute).”One Ilonggo farmer, Ramon Dagohoy Jr. got
13.95 MT per hectare from his irrigated, transplanted SL-8H.“From his
2.2-hectare area, he got a total of 615 cavans at 47 kilos per bag summing up
to 279 bags (13.95MT) per hectare,” said Magbanua.Despite these increased yields,
Iloilo’s rice production is expected to reach only 700,000 MT for 2016 owing to
the impact of El Niño during the first semester of the year.
Without hybrid rice, production
would have been even lower for Iloilo. Hybrid rice area in Iloilo in 2015 was just
at 4,500 hectares.Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority, Iloilo produced
877,076 MT of rice in 2015 with an average of 3.23 MT per hectare. It ranks
fifth in rice production, after Nueva Ecija (1.580,620 MT), Isabela (1,256,390
MT), Pangasinan (1,081,157 MT) and Cagayan (884,334 MT).
The province has a total of
135,964 hectares of ricelands consisting of 48,860 hectares of irrigated
ricelands, 85,779 hectares of rainfed ricelands and 1,325 uplands devoted to
rice, tilled by 110,000 farmers.
http://thestandard.com.ph/news/-provinces/222523/hybrid-rice-leads-to-bumper-crop-in-iloilo.html
The Rice
Research and Extension Center: Making real-world challenges the focus
Posted: Saturday, November 26, 2016 4:00
pm
STUTTGART. — As the nation’s
number-one rice producer, the economy of Arkansas places a premium on every
aspect of the crop’s production, from the the availability of unique and hardy
varieties, to the financial success of our producers in the field, to the
impeccable quality of the finished product
http://newtoncountytimes.com/news/the-rice-research-and-extension-center-making-real-world-challenges/article_147a2c76-b1ad-11e6-8d2f-7bc1d904ce86.html
Ancient rice
These grains of rice were dated to approximately 15,000 years
ago after being excavated in south central South Korea about 20 years ago. A
museum has been established to support research on the discovery.
Posted: Sunday, November 27, 2016 12:00 am
GOSHEN COUNTY, Wyo. × Ancient bones and stone tools in
Goshen County, Wyo., tend to draw inquiring minds from around the world. One of
the most recent is Yung-jo Lee, President of the Institute of Korean
Prehistory, professor emeritis of Chungbuk National University, and honorary
director of Goyang Gawaji Prehistoric Rice Museum.The Prehistoric Rice Museum
was established to ×—-
continue research in a discovery made by
Yung-jo Lee and Jong-yoon Woo, a fellow archaeologist, also associated with the
IKP.
In 1997, archaeologists were
working at a site, when a few grains of ancient
rice were uncovered. ×—-
research has established two types of rice were identified, Proto Rice and
Quasi Rice.Dates ranged from 12,500 BP to 17,300 BP. Further testing identified
109 grains of Quasi Rice, and 18 of Proto Rice. This indicates the Quasi Rice
was one of the main food sources of that time.
Another study on the Proto Rice
identified traces of cut marks by external force, which has been interpreted as
human activity. This would indicate the rice was a domesticated crop, and
possibly by tools excavated at the site.
The rice has been named Cheongju
Sorori Rice for the site where it was discovered.Data indicates the
biostructure of the Sorori Rice does not correspond to conventional japonica,
indica, or javanica. It is now called Oryza sativa, japonica(proto) and
indica(proto).According to information provided by Yung-jo Lee, recent DNA
analyses have revealed that the Cheonju Sorori Rice had evolved to rice found
at the Gwaji Site, Goyang in the bronze Age through the Neolithic, which has
dates of 5,020 and cs.3,00BP.
“Future research is highly expected
to provide us with critical information on evolution and diffusion of protoe
rice, asa well as on its orgin, especiallly through compartive research with
caes in China.”Prior to the discovery of the Cheongju Sorori Rice, the oldest ×— of rice were believed
to have been found in China.
Chungbuk Province is southeast of
Soeul, in central South Korea
http://www.starherald.com/farm_ranch/ancient-rice/article_7e8ffc52-ef4b-59d1-8175-86325b6075c6.html
Matia asks BADC to promote indigenous crop
varieties
She was addressing a discussion at BADC Bhaban
in the capital city on Thursday. The meeting was organised to celebrate the
55th founding anniversary of the BADC, a state-run organisation engaged in
promoting agriculture.Praising the role of BADC in supporting farmers to grow
more staple food-grain, the agriculture minister said BADC should move ahead with
the policy introduced by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur
Rahman.
She also suggested that the country develop
three new high-yielding varieties from the African varieties by replicating
those in the BADC's own seed multiplication farms.Criticising the move of
winding up the BADC, the minister said the present government would strengthen
further the BADC so it could play a significant role in attaining food
security.Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture Ministry
Mokbul Hossain and Agriculture Secretary Mainuddin Abdullah also spoke on the
occasion.
Experts stress expansion of flood-tolerant paddy
cultivation
DAE move to farm crop on 410 plots in Jamalpur
RANGPUR, Nov 25 (BSS): Agriculture experts at a
farmers' field day have stressed expanded cultivation of flood-tolerant paddy
to increase rice production in attaining sustainable food security amid adverse
impacts of climate change.RDRS Bangladesh, an NGO, organised the event at
research plots of flood-tolerant BRRI dhan51, BRRI dhan52, BINA dhan11 and BINA
dhan12 rice and local 'Bozra' rice variety of four farmers in Noyagram village
under Ulipur Upazila of Kurigram Thursday afternoon, said a press release.The
NGO assisted 50 farmers of Chilmari and Ulipur upazilas in Kurigram to expand
cultivation of these rice varieties this season with support of International
Rice Research Institute under Stress Tolerant Rice for South Asia and Africa
(IRRI-STRASA) project.
The main objective of arranging the event was
to exhibit farming technologies for flood-tolerant rice farming to popularise
cultivation of those suitable for flood-prone and low-lying areas.Deputy
Director of the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) for Kurigram Mokbul
Hossain attended the event as the chief guest with Project Coordinator of
Climate Change Project of RDRS Bangladesh for Kurigram Shafiul Islam in the
chair.Ulipur Upazila Agriculture Officer Ashok Kumar Roy, Members of local
Buraburi Union Parisahd Rezia Khatun and Lal Mian and Sub-assistant Agriculture
Officer Asharf Ali were present as special guests.Farmer Rezaul Karim posted a
yield rate of 4.25 tonnes of paddy after harvesting BINA dhan11 in presence of
the experts who also monitored the ripe paddy fields.Farmers Kajibar Rahman,
Abu Bakar and Shajahan Ali shared their experience about cultivation of these
flood-tolerant rice varieties having submergence tolerance capacities for over
two weeks to get better yield than local 'Bozra' variety rice.
They also termed cultivation of BINA dhan11 and
BRRI dhan52 rice varieties as more suitable as early harvest of the same would
allow cultivating subsequent mustard, wheat and maize on the same land.The
chief guest called upon the farmers to expand cultivation of flood-tolerant
rice varieties to increase rice production by overcoming crop losses being
caused by floods every year in the country.Another report adds from Jamalpur:
Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) has taken a programme to bring 410
demonstration plots under cultivation of zinc-enriched boro paddy in the
district this year.
According to the DAE, there will be 200
demonstration plots on three varieties of zinc-enriched boro paddy and 210
demonstration plots on one zinc-enriched variety of boro paddy.Under another
demonstration programme, farmers will get seeds of BRRI Dhan-62, BRRI Dhan-64
and BRRI Dhan-74 free of cost and also will get other facilities.The office
sources said, 50 plots of BRRI Dhan-62, 100 plots of BRRI Dhan-64 and 50 plots
of BRRI Dhan-74 will come under the demonstration programme.On the other hand,
farmers will get only BRRI Dhan-62 seed free of cost for cultivation on 210
demonstration plots.
The sources said each farmer will get 3.0
kilogrammes of seeds for cultivating on a plot.DAE sources said zinc is a vital
nutrient for human health. In the absence of zinc 44 per cent females aged
between 15 years and 19 years become short. Besides, zinc is essential for
pregnant mothers for developing babies' merit and mental skill.Training officer
of DAE, M Abu Hanif, said each of the plots would be of 50 decimals of land.
Selection of farmers for the programme was continuing, he added
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2016/11/25/54297/Experts-stress-expansion-of-flood-tolerant-paddy-cultivation
Chinese farmer sets new world records in hybrid
rice output
HENGYANG, Hunan – A Chinese
farmer has made a series of new world records in hybrid rice output, the
central Hunan provincial government announced at a press conference yesterday. Yuan
Longping, dubbed as “father of hybrid rice”, set a new world record in output
of double-cropping rice in south China’s Guangdong, which achieved an annual
yield of 1,537.78 kilograms of rice per mu (about 0.07 hectares) of farmland.
Yuan’s team have managed 42
hybrid rice test fields in 16 provincial regions across China, including Yunan,
Sichuan, Shaanxi, Guangdong, Chongqing and Hunan since the beginning of the
year, the Shanghai Daily reported.In two other projects in Hebei and Yunan, the
crops have yielded as much as 1,082.1 kilograms per mu and 1,088 kilograms of rice
per mu. Both have broken previous world records for the highest yield in
high-latitude areas as well as output on 100 mu of farmland.Other projects in
Shandong, Hubei and Guangxi all broke previous regional records in China.Hybrid
rice, also known as super rice in China, is produced by crossbreeding different
kinds of rice. About 65 percent of Chinese depend on rice as a staple food.Yuan,
who developed the world’s first hybrid rice in 1974, had also set three world
records in hybrid rice yield in 1999, 2005 and 2011.
“Super rice has a bright future
in raising grain production. China has solved the problem of food shortages on
our own, people in other countries are also benefiting. Super rice will play a
larger role in food security and world peace in the future,” said Yuan, who
added that his team is working on a new generation of hybrid rice, which is
expected to breed rice of higher yields and better quality.
Rice millers exceed limits in Bargarh
November 26 2016
Bargarh: Massive irregularities during paddy
procurement process in the district were suspected with the district
administration issuing notices to primary agricultural cooperative societies
(PACS) over the issue. The rice millers have managed to lift paddy beyond the
target set by the district administration due to the negligence of PACS
authorities, it was learnt. On behalf of the food supplies and consumer welfare
department, district civil supplies officer (CSO) Vivekananda Korkara Thursday
served a notice on the PACS which is in charge of Thuapali and Kalapani market
yards of the district. He sought to know from concerned officials as to how
rice millers like Sri Shyamji Agro Rice Mill and Siddheswar Rice Mill managed
to get away with paddy beyond their permissive limit.Sri Shaymji Agro has
already lifted 919.5 quintals of paddy against a target of 500 quintals from
Thuapali market yard while Siddheswar Rice Mill collected 5,324.94 quintal of
paddy in place of 5,000 quintals from Kalapani yard.
The PACS authorities turning a blind eye to the
situation clearly indicates the unholy nexus between the officials and rice
millers, some farmers alleged.Meanwhile, CSO Korkara asked the chief executive
officer of Sambalpur district central cooperative (SDCC) bank and deputy and
assistant registrar of cooperative societies to ensure that no rice millers
collect paddy beyond their limits. Paddy procurement began in Bargarh November
15. In the first phase, 42 PACS were given a target to buy 8.71 lakh quintal of
paddy from farmers. The rice millers of the district were asked to set their
targets on custom milling basis and the PACS were informed over the matter.The
millers managing to exceed their limits during paddy collection has raised questions
over the transparency during procurement procedure. PNN
http://www.orissapost.com/rice-millers-exceed-limits-in-bargarh/
Rice-millers threaten boycott of
milling operations in Punjab
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, Patiala
|
Updated: Nov 26, 2016 16:38 IST
After the opposition of rice millers, the agencies concerned
suspended the work of weighing and went on an indefinite strike. (HT
The Punjab Rice Millers
Association has threatened to boycott milling operations due to ‘harassment’
over weighing of rice being supplied to some government agencies under the
supervision of agency officials.Members of the association, on Friday, claimed
that the FCI had already issued directions to weigh all the rice on the bridge-scale,
instead of checking only 10% bags manually.After the opposition of rice
millers, the agencies concerned suspended the work of weighing and went on an
indefinite strike.
Tarsem Saini, president of the
union, said that the decision of the Punjab State Warehousing Corporation
(PSWC) and the Origo, hired under the peg scheme, for the preservation of rice
at the Food Corporation of India stores/hired complexes has increased the
burden of rice-millers to weigh as every bag is to be weighed in front of the
personnel of the agencies.He said, “If the stalemate continues, it would not be
possible to accomplish the task of milling within the stipulated period as the
paddy arrival is 25 to 30% more than the last year’s arrival. And, the state
government will be responsible for the situation.”He added, “The staff of the
agencies were creating obstacles for smooth conduct of milling operations with
the motive of harassing the millers.”He appealed the state government to
resolve the matter immediately so that milling is not delayed
http://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/rice-millers-threaten-boycott-of-milling-operations-in-punjab/story-6LaZmQYBIFcPOxnTiKYTDP.html
Xmas:A Case For Nigerians To Buy Local Rice
BABALOLA YUSUF
— Nov 27, 2016 5:04 am
Against the backdrop of widespread concern of
presence of expired foreign rice in the market, BABALOLA YUSUF writes that
Christmas draws nearer; there is need for Nigerians to be wary of buying
foreign rice.Nigeria is the Africa’s leading consumer of rice and one of the
largest rice importers in the world. Statistics had shown that Nigeria imports
about 3 million metric tons of rice annually.But, since the government
restricted importation of rice from the border point to seaports, smuggling of
rice into the country has increased astronomically with an estimated 1 million
metric tons (20 million 50KG Bags of rice) suspected to enter the country
illegally through its porous borders on an annual basis.
According to statistics, the three million
metric tons of rice consumed yearly amounted to about 60 million 50kg bags of
rice that are legally imported while over 800 million metric tons are smuggled
into the country.Nigeria spent N630 billion, or about $3.8 billion, to import
agricultural products in 2012. In 2011, Nigeria was the world’s second biggest
importer of rice, bringing in about 2.5 million tons of rice.But, early 2013,
in an effort to regain food self-sufficiency, the government increased the tax
on imported rice from 50 to 110 percent, a 60 percent hike. The tax was meant
to encourage locally produced and processed rice and wean the country off
imported rice but it rather encouraged smuggling and loss of revenue to
government as major rice exporters from South and Southeast Asia in other to
evade huge tax began diverting shipments to Nigeria’s neighbouring
countries—namely Benin Republic to the west and Cameroon to the east—whose
governments suddenly began earning millions of dollars in duties.
Since it was practically nearly impossible for
domestic rice producers to build the level of capacity required to mill and
process enough rice in time to have a significant effect on the market,
smuggling especially of rice that has passed its shelf life become order of the
day for rice importers and vendors in the country.
Shelf life of polished Rice
Smuggled white rice isn’t believed to be good
for consumption because it has a storage life of 8-10 years at a stable
temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Sadly enough, most of the smuggled rice
has used over 10 years in the silos of the developed countries before being
shipped into Nigeria for consumption.
Customs raised the alarm on influx of Expired
rice into Nigeria
The Comptroller-General of Customs, Col. Hameed
Ali (rtd), recently said 99 per cent of rice smuggled through the land borders
are not fit for human consumption.He said samples of some of the rice seizures
made over a period were referred to NAFDAC to ascertain their condition but
were certified that rice smuggled through the borders was unfit for human
consumption.Corroborating the Customs CG, the Customs Area Controller,
Oyo/Oshun Command, Comptroller Tope Ogunkua warned that expired rice flood
Nigeria markets.
He said the consuming public should be vigilant
when they want to purchase rice in the market to ensure that they do not
consume expired rice.
According to Ogunkua, the command has continued
to discover so many bags of expired rice out of the many lorry loads of the
commodity which it has impounded saying that it was an indication that the
smugglers have continued in their attempts to bring expired rice into Nigeria.He said “despite
the policy banning importation of rice through the border, people still bring
in the rice through the borders. In fact the number of importers trying to do
so has increased now and that is why we have so many lorry loads of rice in our
compound while there are still some in the Barracks. We are also battling them
very well and that is why we are able to make all these seizures”.He explained
that consumers need to continue to be extremely careful when they go to buy
rice especially as we move into the festivity period; they must ensure they
inspect the rice they want to purchase very well, whether they want to buy in
bags or out of the ones that have been poured into the basins to be retailed.
Why Customs placed ban on polished rice through
the land borders
The Customs had said it played ban on rice
through the land borders in order to exercise control over what Nigeria
consumed.According to a former Comptroller, Federal Operations Unit, FOU A of
the Nigeria Customs Service, Mohammed Dahiru, rice was banned through the land
borders by the Federal government in other to control what should be brought
into the country.He said the FOU A has done enough to curb smuggling if rice
through the land border.“I believe we have been able to achieve greater
percentage of suppressing smuggling and if somebody is to be objective and be
fair to customs FOU A, I believe it will be a pass mark because what is in the
FOU A warehouse both open and other warehouse is good testimony that FOU is
working. It is full to the brim for rice.
Ingenious ways polished rice is smuggled into
Nigeria
Smugglers of rice are said to have device
ingenious way of carrying out their illegal activities as according to a
source, the smugglers often package the rice in a disguise form to make it look
like other goods that were not outlawed.“We have seen rice conveyed in open
wooden canoes across our creeks and water ways with generous amount of dirty
waters splashing on them. We have seen some mixed with other grains bags to
deceive customs; some are stuffed inside any available crevice and compartments
of vehicles, including the engine area.“The concealed rice is thereafter
re-bagged half cooked and presented in our markets for sale as imported rice.
Bags of rice meant for Nigerians’ consumption is being conveyed in coffins
inside make shift ambulance vehicles. Often time, importers in the borders have
to wait for months for the green light from corrupt customs officials before
they gamble their ways across the borders.
“Rice being a perishable product, lose valuable
shelve life in non-conductive strong conditions. We have strong evidence
linking some reputable importers to cases of re-bagging expired rice to prolong
their shelve life,’’ he added
How to identify expired polished rice
Since rice has an indefinite shelf life if kept
dry, it is hard to tell if it has gone bad. One thing to watch for is the
presence of the rice weevil, a tiny reddish-brown bug. If you see these moving
in your product, you should discard the entire container and disinfect the
container and the surrounding shelves.Expired brown rice, on the other hand, is
easier to spot. Brown rice may become oily and give off a rancid odour because
of its essential fatty acids that go bad as they oxidize.
According to www.oureverdaylife.com, an online
site, rice may be described as expired if the bran oil has started to go
rancid, the smell will be obvious – dank and musty, with a nose-crinkling
sharpness. There are also visible signs of deterioration. The rice grains may
look discoloured and oily. The grains may even start to stick together in
clumps. Depending on the degree of moisture the rice has been exposed to, there
may be visible mould.
But, a rice vendor at Sango Market, Chukwudi
Nonso said the easiest way to identify expired rice is by firstly rubbing in
between palms. He said if it successfully turns into dust then the cereal has expired.
He also noted that another way to identify a
rice that has passed it’s shelve life is when it refused to sink when poured
into water he said instead of the rise to sink inside the water, a substantial
amount would be seen floating on the water.” Nonso said.
Implications of eating expired polished rice
Though some expiry dates relate to product
taste, in some cases eating expired rice triggers food poisoning. Symptoms and
health effects vary depending on the type of poisoning.However, common signs
include cramping in the stomach area, frequent vomiting, fever, dizziness,
dehydration and persistent diarrhoea. The symptoms may last a few hours, days
or weeks depending on the severity of the condition. Rice stored past its
use-by date in poor conditions can even become contaminated with the serious
bacterial infections salmonella or listeria.
One obvious sign of rice well past its expiry
date is the growth of mould. Mold includes several types of fungi. Their spores
land on the food from the air and start to grow. Some moulds produce toxic
substances as they develop. Mycotoxins can cause itchiness, nausea, dizziness
and sometimes headaches.
Why Nigerians should patronize Local rice
against polished rice
Now that an alarm over safety of foreign rice
has been raised, it is high time Nigerians embraced local rice especially
because of its health benefits.It was established that reason many people
prefer the polished rice to the locally-made unpolished rice in Nigeria is the
stress they go through in picking the latter before cooking it, compared to the
polished rice which is very clean and ready for boiling and also can be cooked
in less than 20 minutes compared to the unpolished rice.But then, local rice is
self-preserving and one of the foods that add value to the lives of health
conscious people including those who are diabetics.
According to an expert, Osaretin Albert, both
the white and brown rice contain similar amounts of energy, carbohydrates and
protein. Local rice however contains higher amounts of vitamins and minerals;
the cellulose of local rice not only increases the fibre content but also
contains a variety of colour pigments that is beneficial for health.Local rice
variety contains higher proteins at raw cooked and soaked states as compared to
imported rice. It was also found that local rice contains rough surface and
more phosphorous and fibre which help in the reduction of the risk of bowel
disorder, fight constipation among others.
Smuggled rice are substandard – NAFDAC
The National Agency for Food Drug
Administration and Control (NAFDAC) warned that rice smuggled into through the
land borders are substandard.The Acting Director-General, NAFDAC, Yetunde Oni said that records showed that
rice imported through the seaports were registered as good quality as
pronounced by satisfactory reports from NAFDAC laboratories while those
smuggled through the land borders were unregistered and largely substandard.She
said, “NAFDAC is poised to joining hands with Customs to increase surveillance
and monitoring activities at all border posts to curb the menace of rice
smuggling through the land borders.“
http://leadership.ng/business/561342/xmasa-case-for-nigerians-to-buy-local-rice
Farmers’ field day promotes
edible landscaping
LIGAO CITY, ALBAY ― PhilRice’s branch station in Bicol featured edible
landscaping (EL) as a mixture of agricultural “beauty and utility” during their
farmers’ field day, November 9.
With the theme, AgriTurismo: Bukiring kay ganda, dagdag
kita sa magsasaka, the event was
attended by over 400 farmers, academicians, and local government officials from
the provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, and Sorsogon.
EL is a small-scale crop
production system that integrates food plants within an ornamental or
decorative setting. Edible plants such as vegetables, fruits, and herbs
substitute ornamental plants used in traditional landscaping.
Some of the food plants that can be
integrated with EL are medicinal plants, culinary herbs such as stevia, Italian
oregano and basil, high value crops such as lettuce and cabbage, and those
included in pinakbet, a traditional
Filipino food.
In Bicol’s EL
model, papaya trees were planted in the surroundings as wind breakers. It also
used zinnia and marigold as aesthetics while bamboo poles were installed as
trellises for ampalaya and upo.
“Other than
aesthetics, edible landscaping allows farmers to reap healthy foods from their
backyard and it may even be used to augment their livelihood,” said Gilbert
Morente, science research assistant of PhilRice Bicol.
Morente added that EL can be done by farming
families in the vicinity of their households with just about 200 square meters
of lot.
“In EL, we do not necessarily mean that what
we have are all edible plants. We can use flowering plants that can either
attract beneficial insects or repel harmful organism,” Morente clarified.
EL is in line with the Intensified
Rice-Based Agri-Bio Systems (IRBAS) program of PhilRice that promotes farm intensification,
crop diversification, food security, and sustainability.
Glenn De Peralta, senior science research specialist, added that the EL
project primarily aims to “establish an agritourism site that emphasizes
educational and recreational components of field visit activities.”
The staging of this
season’s Lakbay Palay also featured
modern rice technologies such as the Minus-One Element Technique (MOET) and the
Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD). Rice varieties for different ecosystems and
farm machines were also showcased to the participants.
Rice husks as sustainable energy resource
Agricultural wastes such as rice
husks are now used as a source of energy that helps advance the agriculture
industry, particularly on rice mechanization and post production operations.In
a presentation given by Engr. Eden C. Gagelonia of PhilRice during the 9th
ASEAN Plus Three (China, Japan, and Korea) Forum on Biomass Energy held in
Chengdu, China, on November 8-11, it was reported that the Philippines produces
an average of 2 million metric tons of rice husks annually. Rice husks are sold
at P1.80/kg. Gagelonia said that in the past, these “wastes” were just being
dumped at the back of rice mills or burned on road sides.
“A kilo of rice husk basically
contains about 3,000 kcal of heat energy and can provide sufficient amount of
clean gaseous fuel when gasified,” Gagelonia explained.“Converting this
available biomass waste into energy by gasification can provide about 25 PJ of
energy which can be utilized for various heat and power applications,
especially in rice farming and rural-based operations,” she added. Rice biomass
also helps in the restoration of the soil and contributes to carbon
sequestration for greenhouse gas mitigation.Gagelonia also revealed during the
forum that PhilRice developed a rice husk gasifier engine system that converts
biomass into different applications such as thermal (cooking, baking drying,
and steam generation), mechanical (irrigation pump and rice mill), and
electrical power (lighting and power supply infrastructures). Gasifiers also
provide clean energy for domestic and cottage industry.
Furthermore, wastes produced by
the gasifier can be used by farmers as soil conditioner and as element for
organic fertilizer. To strengthen the application of decentralized system of
biomass energy, Gagelonia suggested that the government must formulate
supportive policies for the adoption and adaptation of the developed
technologies in the locality.For more information on PhilRice machines that use
biomass energy, click here or contact the PhilRice Text Center at
0920-9111398.
Philrice
Young ‘techno-preneurs’ develop device to combat crop heat stress
What started
as a thesis proposal is now a startup business for a group of young
entrepreneurs who developed a device to help solve crop heat stress in the
country.“Crop heat stress is a condition that greatly affects growth, survival
and crop yields, and this is due to the intense heat coming from the sun that
causes drought and the powerful light that affects the proper photosynthesis process
of the crops,” explained Engr. Franch Maverick Lorilla, one of the developers
of the device. Lorilla along with Jan
Rey Altivo, Rexon Lacaba, and Ket Villacensio from Davao City invented the Heat
Stress Analyzer – a sensor connected to a mobile app that alerts farmers with
heat stress presence and suggests measures to care for the crops.“This device
provides an accurate method to assess the condition of the crop rather than the
‘feel method’, which is the traditional way farmers still use today,” Lorilla
said.
The device
monitors the environment condition of the crop by measuring important
parameters such as heat levels, light intensity, relative humidity, and soil
moisture. It analyzes the data through the mobile app and warns farmers when their
crops are being affected by too much heat stress. It also provides statistics,
historical trends, and recommendations based on analytics to help users make
smarter decisions. The analyzer is also equipped with pre-installed irrigation
systems on the field and other automation components such as sprinklers,
exhaust fans, and growing lights to automatically control crop heat stress.“As
of now, we are still continuing the improvement of the analyzer’s technology
with the funding provided by the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID). When the patent is granted, then we are ready for
commercialization,” Lorilla revealed.
In 2015,
Lorilla’s team established CloudFarm Innovations Inc. after winning a startup
competition from a non-profit organization called IdeaSpace. Since then, the
group has been testing their device in 6 farms including banana and cacao
seedling farms in Davao and a lettuce farm in San Pablo, Laguna.“The device has
the potential to help analyze heat stress of rice. At the moment, we are also
testing some ICT tools through our FutureRice farm here at PhilRice,” said
Nehemia Caballong, PhilRice ICT specialist. The Heat Stress Analyzer was
presented by Lorilla during the 3rd Agrihackathon Symposium at PhilRice, November 15. The event aimed to
equip future ICT practitioners with knowledge, experience, and motivation to
develop ICT support for agriculture.
Philrice
