Rice Field Day returns to Biggs
The California Cooperative Rice Research
Foundation, the University of California, and the United States Department of
Agriculture will hold the annual Rice Field Day on Wednesday, Aug. 30, at the
Rice Experiment Station here.Registration and poster viewing will begin at 7:30
a.m. and will be followed by the general meeting.
The business meeting will include reports by
the chairman and treasurer of the California Cooperative Rice Research
Foundation, the Rice Research Trust, and the California Rice Research Board. It
will conclude with the presentation of the California Rice Industry Award.
From 9:30 to noon, field tours will be
conducted of the research nurseries focusing on breeding, disease resistance
and weed control, as well as a rice equipment display. The tours will be
followed by a luncheon at noon. There is no charge for this event.The Rice
Experiment Station is located 2.5 miles west of Highway 99 on Highway 162 toward
Butte City.Further information can be obtained at www.crrf.org or by calling
the Rice Experiment Station at 868-5481
http://www.dailydemocrat.com/article/NI/20170815/BUSINESS/170819904
Government
directs support to rice farmers
Tue, 15 August 2017
in 2015.Vireak Maigovernment announced
yesterday that it would “intervene” to support the price that farmers receive
for their paddy rice, though without instituting a price floor or direct
subsidies that would jeopardise a free market.Vongsey Vissoth, secretary of
state at the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), told representatives of the
private sector and agricultural cooperatives that the government would take
action to prop up the price that local rice farmers receive for their harvest.
He said even though Cambodian
farm-gate prices on paddy rice were cheaper than those of neighbouring countries,
the price that farmers actually received for the paddy was very low. Moreover,
the market price tends to drop off just ahead of the harvest, pressuring
desperate farmers to sell their paddy at a slim margin.
“Whenever the harvest season is
approaching the price of paddy rice always slumps,” he said.
Chan Sophal, executive secretary
of Farmers and Water Net, a Kampong Thom-based agricultural NGO, said rice was
a challenging sector for farmers, even when they followed the government’s
guidelines on cultivation.
“We cannot understand why local
rice millers reject to buy our paddy rice from us, while brokers are ready to
buy it,” she said, adding that the brokers are able to purchase the paddy at a
lower price because local millers reject to buy it.
Cambodia produced about 5 million
tonnes of surplus paddy rice last year, with an estimated 3 million tonnes
exported through informal channels.
Vissoth said poor infrastructure
and high transport costs resulted in a high mark-up on rice paddy, though
hinted that “price-makers” – including millers, brokers and traders – could be
“playing with prices” to take higher profits at the farmer’s expense.
He said the government has
already approved a $50 million package of low-interest loans to rice millers
for purchasing rice paddy and has earmarked an additional $30 million to
provide loans to millers for the construction of storage and drying facilities.
The measures support Cambodian rice millers and exporters so that they can
offer better prices to local farmers, he noted, but now the government will
focus on supporting the farmers themselves.As part of a new initiative, the
government will act as an intermediary in negotiating rice prices and will
facilitate transport to help farmers lower their logistics costs.
“Provincial governors and
authorities will actively intervene in the market failure,” he said.
“Authorities will be responsible for keeping tabs on price-makers to ensure
that the price they offer is fair to farmers, and also to provide assistance in
transportation, building new infrastructure and preventing unofficial fees from
being charged on transport.”Vissoth said provincial authorities could dip into
the provincial budget to provide these facilities to farmers, and should also
provide free transport to help farmers get their rice paddy to local buyers or
markets.
“This is a short-term
intervention in order to stabilise prices for farmers,” he said. “The policy
will put pressure on price-makers to raise the prices they offer farmers.”Song
Saran, CEO of rice miller and exporter Amru Rice, said he welcomed the
government’s announcement as it would address some of the factors that were
depressing rice prices.“It is the right direction to address the real issues of
the sector to prevent a market failure,” he said, adding that reducing
transport costs would improve margins.“We [millers] cannot control the price of
paddy rice as it is based on the market’s supply and demand,” he added
Over 26mn ton
wheat, 9.6mn ton rice to be produced in 2017-18
ISLAMABAD:
About 26.5 million tons of wheat will be produced during the crop season
2017-18 to fulfill the domestic requirements of country as well as for
exporting. According to an official
document, the wheat production in the country during last season was recorded
at 25.750 million tons showing an increase of 0.24 percent as compared to last
year. Meanwhile, about 9.6 million tons
of rice would also be produced in the country to tackle with the domestic
consumption as compared the production of 6.849 million, it added.
Rice
output during previous crop season had witnessed 0.71 percent increase as
against the set targets, it added. The
maize production targets was set at 6.200 million tons, where as about 13.6
million cotton bales production was fixed for the crop season 2017-18, it
added. The government has fixed at
target to produce about 70.39 million tons of sugarcane crop to fulfill the
domestic requirements of the sugar.
It
was that about 73.60 million tons of sugarcane was produced during the crop
season 2016-17 which was up by 12.41 percent as compared to the production of
2015-16, it added. Meanwhile, maize
production during last crop season was recorded at 6.13 million tons showing an
increase of 16.30 percent, it added. In
order to fully materializing the targets, the government has announced several
measures including provision of subsidized fertilizers, availability of
certified seed and agricultural credit for farmers.
Date: 15-Aug-2017
A farmer harvests rice at a paddy
field in Phnom Penh’s Russey Keo district in 2015.Vireak Mai
The
government announced yesterday that it would “intervene” to support the price
that farmers receive for their paddy rice, though without instituting a price
floor or direct subsidies that would jeopardise a free market. Vongsey Vissoth,
secretary of state at the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), told
representatives of the private sector and agricultural cooperatives that the
government would take action to prop up the price that local rice farmers
receive for their harvest.
He
said even though Cambodian farm-gate prices on paddy rice were cheaper than
those of neighbouring countries, the price that farmers actually received for
the paddy was very low. Moreover, the market price tends to drop off just ahead
of the harvest, pressuring desperate farmers to sell their paddy at a slim
margin. “Whenever the harvest season is approaching the price of paddy rice
always slumps,” he said. Chan Sophal, executive secretary of Farmers and Water
Net, a Kampong Thom-based agricultural NGO, said rice was a challenging sector
for farmers, even when they followed the government’s guidelines on
cultivation.
“We cannot understand why local rice millers
reject to buy our paddy rice from us, while brokers are ready to buy it,” she
said, adding that the brokers are able to purchase the paddy at a lower price
because local millers reject to buy it. Cambodia produced about 5 million
tonnes of surplus paddy rice last year, with an estimated 3 million tonnes
exported through informal channels. Vissoth said poor infrastructure and high
transport costs resulted in a high mark-up on rice paddy, though hinted that
“price-makers” – including millers, brokers and traders – could be “playing
with prices” to take higher profits at the farmer’s expense.
He
said the government has already approved a $50 million package of low-interest
loans to rice millers for purchasing rice paddy and has earmarked an additional
$30 million to provide loans to millers for the construction of storage and
drying facilities. The measures support Cambodian rice millers and exporters so
that they can offer better prices to local farmers, he noted, but now the
government will focus on supporting the farmers themselves. As part of a new
initiative, the government will act as an intermediary in negotiating rice
prices and will facilitate transport to help farmers lower their logistics
costs. “Provincial governors and authorities will actively intervene in the
market failure,” he said.
“Authorities
will be responsible for keeping tabs on price-makers to ensure that the price
they offer is fair to farmers, and also to provide assistance in
transportation, building new infrastructure and preventing unofficial fees from
being charged on transport.” Vissoth said provincial authorities could dip into
the provincial budget to provide these facilities to farmers, and should also
provide free transport to help farmers get their rice paddy to local buyers or
markets. “This is a short-term intervention in order to stabilise prices for
farmers,” he said.
“The
policy will put pressure on price-makers to raise the prices they offer
farmers.” Song Saran, CEO of rice miller and exporter Amru Rice, said he
welcomed the government’s announcement as it would address some of the factors
that were depressing rice prices. “It is the right direction to address the
real issues of the sector to prevent a market failure,” he said, adding that
reducing transport costs would improve margins. “We [millers] cannot control
the price of paddy rice as it is based on the market’s supply and demand,” he
added.
Flooding maroons half a million in
dists as rivers burst banks
Published : 15 Aug 2017, 00:27:50 |
Updated : 15 Aug 2017, 18:21:12
Death toll rises to 27, govt steps
up relief effortsMajor rivers in Bangladesh are now flowing much above the
danger level, setting off a second round of flooding during monsoon this year,
report agencies.Onrush of water from upstream areas coupled with monsoon rain
affected 20 out of 64 districts claiming at least 20 lives amid fears of an
impending severe deluge as major rivers continued to surpass bank lines,
officials and experts said.
The Flood Forecasting and Warning
Centre said new areas were being inundated as water continued to rise amid
monsoon rain and onrush of upstream water.Rising water-level was recorded at 69
out of the 90 monitoring points of the rivers across the country, said the
flood forecasting agency's Executive Engineer Sazzad Hossain."It's flowing
above the danger line at 27 points."
The situation will worsen as the
Jamuna River in Jamalpur was flowing a record 126cm above the danger level on
Monday. The surge of river water broke the previous record -- 121cm above the
danger level-last year.The water-level of the river in parts of the northern
district of Sirajganj was flowing between 96cm and 100cm above the danger
level.
Water in the Padma in southwestern
Faridpur was also flowing 16cm above the danger level.
The Jamunashweri River in northern
Rangpur was flowing 126cm above the mark while the Kangsha River in
northeastern Netrokona 181cm above the danger level.Mr Hossain said the flood
situation might worsen over the next few days.Over half a million people across
Bangladesh were affected by the fresh floods, the disaster management ministry
said on Monday.
So far, 27 people have died in the
floods with some 586,000 people affected. As many as 368,586 people have taken
refuge in shelters.The trend of rising water may continue over the next 48
hours, and the floods in northern districts of Kurigram and Lalmonirhat will
spread to Gaibandha, Bogra, Sirajganj and Jamalpur as well as the central and
south-central part of the country.
The
Met office forecasts light to moderate rains and thunder shower coupled with
gusty winds in most areas of Rajshahi, Rangpur, Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna,
Barisal, Chittagong and Sylhet Divisions.Meteorologist Md Shahinul Islam said
the rains may ease starting on Thursday.Railway tracks in most parts of
Dinajpur district went under floodwater, halting train services.
In Lalmonirhat, bodies of four
people, who were washed away by floodwater at East Barua village in Sadar
upazila, were recovered early Monday.The deceased were identified Mozammel
Haque, 45, Asma Begum, 38, Abu Hanif, 36, and Alif , 7 of the same village.Kulaghat
UP chairman Idris Ali said the four people went missing while going to a
shelter centre from their home on Sunday afternoon and locals recovered their
bodies in the early morning.
The flood situation in Lalmonirhat
worsened as six embankments collapsed due to strong current in the Teesta and
Dharla rivers, inundating fresh areas of the district.The road and train
communications between Lalmonirhat and Burimari remained suspended for the
second consecutive day due to severe erosion at different places.
People in the flood-hit areas were
suffering from scarcity of food and drinking water. Only 160 tonnes of rice and
Tk 450,000 (4.50 lakh) in cash were allocated for over 100,000 flood-affected
people.Mustafizur Rahman, executive engineer of Water Development Board at
Dalia Division, said Teesta River was flowing 5 centimetres above the danger
mark at Dalia point while Dharala River was flowing 135 centimetres above the
danger level at Kulaghat point on Monday morning.
To control the water, the Teesta
Barrage Authorities opened its all gates the at Dalia point, he added.Many of
flood victims claimed that people in 63 chars and char villages remained
marooned by floods over the last five days but they got insufficient government
relief, forcing most of them to starve.
Rajpur Union Parishad chairman
Mofazzal Hossain said in last five days, 50 houses were devoured by the river
while the flood situation in 17 villages under his union worsened. But the
administration allocated only 130kg rice for 25,000 flood-affected people.Saniajan
UP chairman Abdul Gafur echoed the same adding that he received only 75kg rice
and a poor amount of dry food for 6,000 flood victims.
Waterborne diseases were spreading
in the flood-hit areas. District Civil Surgeon Dr Amiruzzaman said about 54
medical teams were working in the flood-hit areas. However, no activities of
medical teams were seen while visiting the spots.More than one hundred schools
were closed as floodwaters entered inside the buildings.Rail communication of
Dinajpur with Dhaka remained suspended since Sunday night as railway tracks in
Dinajpur Sadar upazila went under water.
The flood situation in Dinajpur
remained unchanged as waters of both the Punorbhava and Atrai rivers were
flowing 80 centimetres above the danger level on Monday morning, said sources
at Water Development Board in the district.The flood situation in Kurigram
worsened further on Monday following rise of the water level of the Dharala and
Brahmaputra rivers.
The Dharala was flowing 132cm above
the red mark and the Brahmaputra 68cm above the danger level.However,
floodwater started receding from inundated areas in Panchagarh, Thakurgaon,
Dinajpur, Nilphamari and Lalmonirhat districts since Sunday night.
An FE report adds: The government
intensified its relief efforts for the flood-hit people on Sunday, as the
natural disaster took a serious turn, officials said. Under the moves it has allocated 10,630
tonnes of rice, 60,000 packets of dry foods and Tk 31 million for the flood-hit
people in 20 districts. Out of the relief, 1,200 tonnes of rice and Tk 6.0
million have already been distributed among the flood-affected people.
A total of 586,000 people in 358
unions of various districts across the country have so far been affected by
flood.Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya
informed the media about the government's preparations on the disaster
management at a press briefing in the capital on Monday. The minister said Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina is monitoring the flood situation, and giving directives to the
officials concerned to tackle the situation.
"The ministry is also
cautiously monitoring the flood situation in various districts."He further
said MoDMR has attached senior-level officials to the flood-hit districts to
ensure better coordination for handling the natural disaster and proper
distribution of relief materials among the affected people.
The minister said he has given
directives to all the DCs of the flood-affected districts to open shelter
centres and constitute medical teams.He urged the medical teams to visit all
the flood-hit areas, so that the people there can get proper healthcare
services.
Mr Maya also called upon the
officials of Department of Public Health Engineering to make usable the
tube-wells that have been submerged in flood water as well as to provide ample
water purification tablets to the affected people.
talhabinhabib@yahoo.com
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2017/08/15/79828/Flooding-maroons-half-a-million-in-dists-as-rivers-burst-banks
CL farmers coop bats for fair
rice allocations
Published August 15, 2017, 10:01 PM
By Freddie C. Velez
San Miguel, Bulacan — A farmers
cooperative in Region 3 yesterday appealed to the National Food Authority (NFA)
to provide them with fair allocations from the rice importations that the
country would procure for the lean rice months of July-September.
The Federation of Central Luzon
Farmer’s Cooperative headed by its president Simeon Sioson of this town is
hoping that the minimum access volume (MAV) rice importation for this year will
not replicate the rice allocation made in 2015.
The FCLFC president explained
that in the 2015 MAV rice importation program, only 10 of farmers’ cooperatives
were allocated 12,500 metric tons while big-time traders got 176,000 metric
tons.
In a letter sent to NFA
Administrator Jason Laurena Aquino dated June 12, 2017, Sioson identified the
big-time traders as Alchemo Philippines Inc., Arvin International Mktg. Inc.,
and Philmico Foods Corporation.
Cauliflower has become a popular substitute for rice
·
Ellen
Lund Tribune correspondent
·
Aug
15, 2017 Updated 15 hrs ago
I was a bit surprised by a recent
news item that reported Trader Joe’s was limiting the amount of cauliflower
rice that each of their customers could buy. The article stated that each
customer was allowed only 2 bags of this precious commodity. A bit more
research showed that this policy wasn’t at all Trader Joes – only a few stores
were involved and none in the Midwest. I suppose there are areas where this
product is so popular it is hard to supply the need.
If you aren’t familiar with
cauliflower rice, it is simply cauliflower that is broken down to the size and
shape of rice. For those trying to control their intake of carbohydrates, it
has become a popular substitute for rice.
I became aware of cauliflower
rice when I purchased my Veggie Strip Maker from Pampered Chef on the advice of
my favorite consultant, Cindy Slykhuis. The Veggie Strip Maker makes absolutely
perfect cauliflower rice. I simply wash my cauliflower thoroughly after I cut
off the base leaves and the bottom of the core. Then I cut it in half and run
it over my Veggie Strip Maker and the resulting cauliflower rice’s texture and
size is beautiful.
A good old box grater can also be
successfully used to grate the cauliflower into rice-like pieces. I have one
problem with my old-fashioned metal grater – I often end up grating my knuckles
or tips of my fingers because I try to grate as much product as I can. The
heavy duty plastic Veggie Strip Maker keeps my knuckles safe. I haven’t used my
box grater since I purchased it.
Cauliflower is a wonderful
vegetable – low in calories and full of nutrition and fiber. It contains the
anti-cancer compound sulforaphane and plant sterols that keep cholesterol from
being absorbed in your bloodstream. It is high in Vitamin C, B vitamins, and
minerals like manganese, copper, iron, calcium and potassium. You want to
incorporate this vegetable into your family’s diet.
Now cauliflower does give off a
strong odor as it is cooked. I have a candle in my kitchen that I burn whenever
I steam it to alleviate that who-just-cooked-cauliflower smell when you walk in
the house. However, the finished rice is very bland and that makes it a great
substitute for white rice.
I have made Pampered Chef’s
recipe for Hawaiian Fried Cauliflower Rice more than once and we love it.
Pampered Chef also has a Cauliflower Pizza recipe that I have not tried yet,
but Cindy says it is awesome. She hasn’t steered me wrong even once!
But my current favorite
cauliflower rice dish is Lime Cilantro Cauliflower Rice. Lime Cilantro Rice is
one of my favorite dishes. I enjoy it topped with black beans and avocadoes but
I don’t make it often because I do try to moderate my consumption of white rice
and I don’t enjoy this particular dish with brown rice.
So as I was thinking about ways
to use cauliflower rice, I immediately thought of my favorite white rice dish.
I typed lime cilantro cauliflower rice into my search engine and got a plethora
of responses. After reading a few possibilities, I just got out my own favorite
rice recipe and modified it to work with cauliflower. I made it last week and
ate a lovely bowl of my favorite lime rice with no worries about carbohydrate
overload.
Try any or all of these “rice”
recipes to incorporate more delicious cauliflower into your diet. I’d be
willing to bet that your family won’t know the difference until you tell them.
Quote of the Week: We often forget that everything we see, animate or
inanimate, is a visual manifestation of the work of our invisible God. We have
become so accustomed to trees, mountains, sky, air, water, flowers, animals,
vegetables and people that we no longer see them for what they are – God’s
work. — Mother Angelica
How biotechnology can help Nigeria reduce agricultural import bill
Collins Nnabuife Agriculture
Genetically Modified Organisms
(GMOs) which are a critical component of biotechnology have been proven to be
the technology that will help improve agricultural productivity, eradicate
hunger, grow the economy and improve the livelihood of farmers.
Rice
Since Nigeria has been skeptical in
adopting the technology, it has been spending N517 billion annually importing
rice. The Ministry of Agriculture requested N2.98 billion to fight army worm
infestation on Maize production; it also spends $4 billion annually importing
textile materials and so on.
These products are being imported
into the country due to inability of the country to produce enough to meet the
local demand, which is largely caused by non-availability of good seeds for
farmers.
In Nigeria, a total of 7 million
metric tonnes of rice is consumed annually, while a total of 2.7 million metric
tonnes is produced locally by the farmers. That means about 4.3 metric tonnes
is imported into the country to meet the local demand.
Rice production in Nigeria has
suffered serious setback due to certain climatic conditions which are not favorable
to rice production, and the inability of the farmers to access fertiliser to
improve soil nutrient or improved seeds.
It is against this background that
the African Agriculture Technology Foundation (AATF) is currently working with
partners to introduce and disseminate the Nitrogen-Use Efficient, Water-Use
Efficient and Salt Tolerant (NEWEST) rice.
Soil nitrogen deficiency has been
cited as a major constraint to rice production. Nitrogen deficiency is mostly
acute in the highly weathered upland areas where an average yield of only one
tonne per hectare, which is about 25 per cent of yield potential, has been
recorded.
A major concern that constrains rice
production in nitrogen deficient soils is the inability of farmers to buy
fertilisers to address this constraint; and when they buy, they can hardly
afford the required application rate for optimal yield.
The aim of the Nitrogen-Use
Efficient, Water-Use Efficient and Salt Tolerant (NEWEST) rice project is to
develop and disseminate farmer preferred and locally adapted rice varieties
with enhanced nitrogen-use efficiency, water-use efficiency and salt tolerance.
AATF is working with partners to
develop and disseminate this farmer preferred rice varieties with enhanced
nitrogen-use efficiency, water-use and salt tolerance.
The benefits of NEWEST rice project
include production of additional 1.3 million tonnes of rice in Africa each
year, reducing the current deficit by 10 per cent. Self-sufficiency in rice
will redirect limited foreign exchange used to import rice.
If the Nigerian government
facilitates the adoption of this NEWEST rice project, the 4.3 million metric
tonnes of rice deficit in the country will be covered, and the N517 billion
spent on rice importation annually will be saved and channeled into other
sectors of the economy.
Maize
Army Worm in the recent past became
a nightmare for maize farmers in Nigeria as it ravages an entire farm in hours.
According to the Deputy Director of
Horticulture in the Nigeria’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr
Mike Kanu, the pest if not controlled could cause 90-95 per cent severe damage
on maize within 48 hours.
This pest had become a yearly
visitor to the Nigerian maize farms, damaging farmers’ investments. This year
alone, a total of 22 states were affected in its recent attacks and the
Ministry of Agriculture requested for N2.9 billion for the containment of the
pest.
This N2.9 billion will be used to
procure chemicals to control the pest and possibly be used to carry out
sensitization of farmers across the country. But the question is how long are
we going to continue budgeting money to contain the pest and can’t we find a
permanent solution to the pest?
The Water Efficient Maize for Africa
(WEMA) Project is a Public-Private Partnership that started since 2008, to
develop and deploy royalty-free, African drought tolerant and insect-pest protected (climate-smart) white maize
varieties for small scale farmers.
This maize variety was basically
developed for drought tolerance, but during the outbreak of army worm in
Africa, it was discovered that the maize was unintentionally resistant to army
worm.
The project is currently being
implemented in six countries in East and Southern Africa including Ethiopia,
Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique and South Africa.
Nigeria is not a beneficiary of this
technology because it has not yet shown interest in adopting the technology to
fight army worm, yet it spends billions of naira fighting the pest.
According to the scientist in charge
of WEMA at AATF, Dr Sylvester Oikeh in a recent interview with Nigerian
Tribune, “We have visited the Minister of Agriculture in Nigeria to let make
him aware of this technology and tell him that we are developing another phase
of the project which is called the Tela Maize which is basically transgenic,
and the minister showed interest.
“In this new project of transgenic
maize, before a country will participate, it has to show interest, so we urged
the Nigerian government to express interest and benefit from this technology by
writing a letter to the investor that there is interest from the government of
Nigeria. The whole idea is that they want commitment, they don’t want to invest
when the government is not committed.
“So, my prayer is to have the
government of Nigeria showing interest by writing to the investor declaring
their interest to promote the technology. The moment we get that, we include Nigeria and the Tela Maize will be
deployed to Nigeria to protect against army Worm.
So, it is pertinent that the
Ministry of Agriculture take appropriate steps to get this maize variety in the
hands of farmers, and save the N2.9 billion or more it will spend pending when
this pest visits maize farms in the future.
Cowpea
According to the National
Coordinator, USAID-sponsored Cowpea Outscaling Project, Dr Nafi’u Abdu, Nigeria
needs 2.6 million metric tonnes of cowpea annually, but it produces about 2
million metric tonnes, while 600,000 tonnes is imported to compliment the local
production in order to meet up with demands.
Poor seeds and weather conditions
have been a contributory factor to why Nigeria which is one of the major
producers of cowpea, still imports the product to meet local demand.
Also, many factors both biotic and
abiotic have been reported to have greatly reduce cowpea productivity in
Nigeria.
The pod borer (Maruca vitrata) which
perennially damages cowpea pods in the farms is among the major constraints
faced by Nigeria in cowpea production. 70-80 per cent damage is recorded in
severe infestation.
Farmers in Nigeria have not adopted
the use of insecticide for controlling the pest due to financial constraints,
as the chemical is expensive for the farmers to purchase.
Meanwhile, it was learnt that the
farmers who have adopted the insecticide or chemical control method have been
exposed to serious health hazards.
The deployment of a cowpea product
that is capable of protecting itself from attacks by Maruca will make it easier
and cheaper for farmers to produce cowpeas in areas where this pest is a
problem.
The aim of the Pod-borer Resistant
Cowpea Project is to develop and disseminate farmer-preferred and locally
adopted Maruca-resistant cowpea varieties in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Pod-borer Resistant Cowpea
Project is a Public Private Partnership coordinated by AATF to promote
technological interventions that will optimize cowpea productivity and
utilization in Sub-Saharan Africa, which Nigeria is part of.
The partnership is about developing
and testing cowpea varieties with a genetic trait that would make the plant
resistant to the borer and at the same time provide farmers with an alternative
to costly and hazardous insecticide spraying.
The project further aims at
transferring the BT gene, which confers resistance to the pod, into improved
cowpea varieties.
Currently, the project is being
implemented in three countries in sub-Saharan Africa which includes Nigeria,
Burkina Faso and Ghana.
The project is also conducting
studies on safety for food, feed and environmental risks assessments for
regulatory approvals in the target countries before them seeds are released to
farmers.
If this cowpea variety is adopted by
Nigerian farmers, the 600,000 metric tonnes deficit in cowpea production will
be bridged, and the environmental effects of chemical usage in farms will also
be reduced and the farmers will have physical cash in their hands.
Cotton
It has been reported that Nigeria
spends about $4 billion importing textile materials, but BT cotton which has
helped Burkina Faso in their textile industry could also help Nigeria in saving
the $4 billion and channel it into other things.
Nigeria is targeting to improve its
textile industry, but the current cotton variety used by farmers cannot help in
such expected industrial revolution, instead, the government is encouraged to
adopt the use of BT cotton which has helped improved the textile industries of
some countries, to also help Nigeria’s textile industry.
From all indications, it is obvious
that the Nigerian government needs to expedite actions towards the adoption of
biotechnology in order to grow the agricultural sector.
Rice
production in Nigeria hits 15 million tonnes — Official
August 15, 2017Muhammad Ahmad
Local rice production in Nigeria has now reached 15 million
metric tonnes annually, the government has claimed.It said the development
means the country will now be saving about N300 billion it used to spend
annually on importation of the commodity.The Director of Agriculture at the Kano
office of the Federal Ministry of Agricultural, Muhammad Adamu, made the claim
on Tuesday while inaugurating the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria, (RIMAN)
in the state.
He said in Kano alone, 1.2 million metric tonnes He said in
Kano alone, 1.2 million metric tonnes of rice was produced in 2016.He said with
the significant increase in local productions and the efforts to make the local
variety qualitative and more attractive to Nigerians, the country expects to
begin exporting rice to West African countries by 2018/2019.Mr. Adamu said
about 34 states in Nigeria are producing rice, with many now producing three
times in a year.
He disclosed that investigation carried out by the Federal
Government revealed that rice imported to Nigeria are 10-15 years old and and
are preserved with chemicals which can cause cancer to consumers.In his
remarks, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Rice Miller’s Association,
Peter Dama, said, the association was established to promote local milling of
rice that is fresh, healthy and nutritious.
He said the association is willing to collaborate with the
Nigeria Customs Service to stem smuggling of expired rice into Nigeria.Mr. Dama
added that the association intended to work closely with regulatory agencies
and policymakers to ensure standard in local rice milling.The Customs officer
in charge of rice enforcement, Ado Hassan, warned that Custom officers caught
conniving with rice smugglers would have themselves to blame.
He said that in less than one year, the zonal command of the
agency confiscated 800,000 bags of rice in Kano and Jigawa states.He said about
9000 bags of the rice are still in the stores of the agency, adding that most
of the rice were being given to internally displaced persons after been
certified fit for consumption by the National Agency for Food and Drugs
Administration and Control, NAFDAC.
http://www.premiumtimesng.com/agriculture/agric-news/240287-rice-production-nigeria-hits-15-million-tonnes-official.html
Food import to double
Govt to raise the volume to 17 lakh tonnes to improve food reserve
amid flooding in northern region
The government is going to double the amount of food grains it
planned to import a few months ago amid high rice prices, fast depleting stocks
and a flood ravaging crop fields in the north.
Ahead of a stocktaking meeting of Food Planning and Monitoring
Committee on the tight food situation tomorrow, officials told The Daily Star
that public sector import for 2017-18 fiscal year would be increased from nine
lakh tonnes to 17 lakh tonnes of food grains.
They told The Daily Star that the meeting is likely to approve
rice import target of 12 lakh tonnes, instead of the existing plan of six lakh
tonnes, and five lakh tonnes of wheat, instead of the previously set three lakh
tonnes.
Six ministers and 10 senior secretaries would sit for a meeting of
the committee tomorrow to decide how to tackle the situation.
The country's food security took the first hit this year when
flash floods devastated paddy fields in the north-eastern haor regions, wiping
out 10 lakh tonnes of potential Boro harvest.
The matter was further complicated with fungal attack (rice blast)
that ruined harvests of many farmers.
However, the government was slow to respond. It took over two
months to reduce the rice-import duty.
With granaries not replenished fast enough, rice prices increased
by 47 percent than that of last year, ministry sources said.
The Food Planning and Monitoring Committee is comprised of
ministers for food, finance, commerce, agriculture, LGRD, and disaster
management and relief, and 10 secretaries, including the cabinet secretary.
It is the committee's responsibility to monitor food security with
secretarial and policy support from the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit
(FPMU) of the food ministry.
Worried over food security and feeling the need for an urgent
stocktaking ahead of what appears to be a devastating flood, the FPMU held an
appraisal session yesterday, a government holiday for Janmashtami.
After the June 20 decision to cut rice import duty to 10 percent
from 28 percent, as much as 2.5 lakh tonnes have been imported by traders.
It is projected that until the next rice crop (Aman) is harvested
in November, private traders would import up to 15 lakh tonnes, the sources
said.
The prime minister also hinted more imports. Speaking on Sunday at
the Bangladesh National Nutrition Council meeting in Dhaka, Sheikh Hasina said
the government was procuring food grains from the international market to face
the challenges caused by the ongoing flood.
"We've already procured food grains from various countries
and more are coming … ," she said.
Tomorrow's meeting would review the current flood situation. Rice-price
volatility would largely depend on the next harvest of the staple and if the
flood prolongs, Aman crops would be hurt, sources said.
Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury told this correspondent on
Sunday that a good harvest of rain-fed Aus rice is expected to make at least 27
lakh tonnes of rice available in the market soon.
She hoped for a good Aman harvest as well, provided floods do not
do major damages.
Director General of the FPMU, Naser Farid, told The Daily Star
that if the floodwater receded by August and the deluge did not drag on beyond
the first week of September, farmers planting Aman would get a scope for
recovering from earlier losses.
The decision to increase food grains import is being taken at a
time when the government has a stock of 2.7 lakh tonnes of the staple but would
have to distribute 4.5 lakh tonnes between September and November among 50 lakh
ultra-poor under a programme.
Under the programme initiated late last year, the underprivileged
are sold rice at Tk 10 per kg.
A food official said, "We're lining up rice and wheat imports
in a way that allows us to deliver the 4.5 lakh tonnes to the ultra-poor, at
least 50,000 tonnes more to people in the haors, and one lakh tonne as
gratuitous relief [GR] to flood victims."
As the government's Boro procurement drive fell flat with only a
fifth of the targeted 10 lakh tonnes achieved so far, the official said, it now
needs to import more rice to keep a sufficient carryover stock for the
future.
The sources said learning from 2016-17's low food stock, the food
ministry was vouching for a better reserve so that year-end stock in public
granaries remain close to 10 lakh tonnes. Last fiscal year, the year-end rice
stock dropped below three lakh tonnes, the lowest in six years.
Market sources said prices continuously showed an upward trend
since the flash flood in the haors. Traders and rice millers further pushed the
prices up by refraining from importing rice with 28 percent duty.
The government then could not go for market intervention because
of low food stock.
Bangladesh, the world's fourth-biggest producer of rice with over
3.4 crore tonnes output, uses almost all its production to feed its population.
It often requires imports to cope with shortages caused by natural disasters
such as floods and droughts.
But since 2011, the government did not need to import rice
although rice traders have done so, mostly from India.
However, since May, the food directorate has floated international
tenders to buy 3.5 lakh tonnes of rice and had also made a deal with Vietnam
government to bring in 2.5 lakh tonnes more.
The government has also signed two more memorandums of
understanding (MoU) with Cambodia and Thailand but has not finalised the prices
yet.
Sources yesterday told The Daily Star that the food ministry was
expecting to strike a deal with Cambodia in the next 10 10 dayshttp://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/food-import-double-1448695
Nigeria To Save N300bn Annually From Rice Import
BY BAYO AMODU and RUTH TENE NATSA, Abuja
Nigeria will be saving about N300 billion it spends annually on
importation of rice as local production of the commodity has now reached 15
million metric tonnes, the federal ministry of Agriculture disclosed yesterday.The
director of Agriculture at the Kano office of the ministry, Muhammad Adamu, who
gave the hint, while inaugurating the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria
(RIMAN) in the state, said in Kano alone, 1.2 million metric tonnes of rice was
produced in 2016.
He noted that, with the significant increase in local production
and the effort to make the local variety qualitative and more attractive to
Nigerians, the country expects to begin exporting rice to West African
countries between 2018 and 2019.Adamu said presently, 34 states in Nigeria are
producing rice, with most of them now producing three times in a year.He
disclosed that investigation carried out by the federal government revealed
that rice imported to Nigeria stay up to10-15 years and are preserved with
chemicals that are capable of causing cancer.
In his remarks, the chairman of the Board of Directors of Rice
Miller’s Association, Peter Dama, said the association was established to
promote local milling of rice that is fresh, healthy and nutritious.According
to him, the association is willing to collaborate with the Nigeria Customs
Service to stem smuggling of expired rice into Nigeria.Dama added that the
association intended to work closely with regulatory agencies and policymakers
to ensure standard in local rice milling.
On his part, the Customs officer in charge of rice enforcement,
Ado Hassan, warned that any Customs officer caught conniving with rice
smugglers will have themselves to blame.
He said in less than one year, the zonal command of the agency
confiscated 800,000 bags of rice in Kano and Jigawa States.Noting that about
9000 bags of rice are still in stores of the agency, he stated that most of the
bags were being given to internally displaced persons after being certified fit
for consumption by the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and
Control (NAFDAC).
Meanwhile, the federal government has announced that it will
stop issuing fish importation quota to importers, saying the venture was no
longer sustainable.Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development,
Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said this during a meeting with the Ijebu Development
Initiative on Poverty Reduction (IDIPR) in Abuja, yesterday.The minister
pointed out that stopping the trade will help boost local production of fish
and other aspects of agriculture in the country.Noting that the current deficit
in fish in Nigeria is over two million tonnes, he urged citizens to invest to
boost fish production and create jobs in the sector.Lokpobiri said, “We
realised that fish import is no more sustainable and what we did was to
encourage those that import it to think of the backward integration by reducing
the quota year by year in agreement with the CBN.
“Very soon, we are not going to give quota for fish importation.
We want everybody to set up their fish farms, employ our people and create jobs
for our people.“When we came last two years, Nigeria was producing about
700,000 tonnes of fish but this has increased to about 1.2 million tonnes which
means that there has been increment of 400 tonnes. This increase represents
more than 50 per cent of what we were producing”.Lokpobiri who commended the
IDIPR for contributing to fish production in the country, advised other states
to emulate the community’s agricultural initiative.
He said the federal government will soon complete and commission
the fish feed mill located at Eriwe village farm in Ijebu community of Ogun
State.The minister quoted the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO) as saying that Ijebu community has the highest number of fish clusters in
the world.Earlier, the Chairman, Board of Directors of the initiative, Prof.
Olanipekun Alausa, listed some challenges hindering the agricultural initiative
to include inadequate access to loans and lack of modern agricultural tools for
mechanised farming.
Alausa who said the initiative was currently supplying food
items to nine local government areas in the state appealed for more support
from the federal government to enhance the initiative’s performance.
He said the scheme, which was established in 1999 as a
non-governmental organisation, was geared towards community development to
reduce poverty and improve the livelihood of people, using agriculture and
micro-credit among others.The chairman said the scheme was involved in poultry,
piggery, bee-keeping and cocoa farming to ensure poverty reduction and contribute
to agricultural development in the country.His words: “We want provision of
access roads in the farm villages, access to direct credit and government’s
grants toward our poverty reduction programme.The change in the life of the
poor is visible as the needs and well-being of women and other disadvantaged
groups in our community are being met.
“Hundreds of young graduates now see agriculture as a thriving
business and cluster innovation farming platform has been proved beyond doubt
that it is capable of making fortune”.
Rice millers to support NCS in
curbing rice smuggling
By
Royal News on August 15, 2017
Rice
millers to support NCS in curbing rice smuggling
By
Aisha Ahmed
The
Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN), has promised to provide useful
information to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in its efforts to curb the
smuggling of rice into the country.The RIMAN’s Chairman, Board of Trustees, Mr
Peter Dharma, gave this assurance in Kano on Tuesday at the inaugural meeting
of the association.He said that Nigerians had, over the years, been losing
enormous resources to the smuggling of food items into the country.
Mr
Dharma also pledged that the association would support the Federal Government’s
programme value chain of local rice cultivation, milling, processing and
production.“Our association will work closely with the regulatory and policy
makers to ensure standards in local rice milling,” he said.The chairman also
stated that the association would support research into renewable energy
source, which he said, the association would recommend to its members in the
near future.
Speaking
on the occasion, the Area Commander of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr Yusuf
Abba, hailed RIMAN’s plan, as according to him, it will yield some economic
benefits to the country.Abba, who was represented by the Deputy Comptroller
Enforcement of the service, Mr Ago Hyacinth, said smugglers should no longer be
allowed to sabotage the nation’s economy.Mallam Muhammed Munir, a director at
the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the Federal
Government’s injection of money into the sector, would facilitate employment
opportunities for citizens.NAN reports that the association at the inaugural
meeting, discussed the various issues surrounding rice production in the
country. (NAN)
http://www.royalnews.com.ng/2017/08/15/rice-millers-to-support-ncs-in-curbing-rice-smuggling/
GUuyana exporting rice to Cuba
CMC,
15 August 2017
GEORGETOWN – Guyana says it will make its first shipment of rice
to Cuba in September following a series of negotiations over the past few
months, the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) has announced.GRDB general
manager Allison Peters said this is just one of the new export markets
negotiated over the past months.“There is also a shipment off to Cuba and we
are going to start that off in the third week of September<’ she said,
adding “we have started sending paddy to Panama for this year; we have started
in … early July.”Guyana has started exporting paddy to Mexico under a US$17.7
million deal.
“Well so far to Mexico
more than one shipment has been sent, I think three shipments have been sent so
far totalling over 35 000 tonnes and more shipments are expected to go,” the
general manager said.Peters said that another contract is expected to be signed
within the next few weeks for the exportation of paddy to Panama. She said,
since the country is now securing more rice markets, the product must be
increased to meet these new demands.Paddy production for the first crop of 2017
was recorded at 518 667 metric tonnes and the authorities here project that
rice production will increase by 1.3 per cent in 2017. (CMC)
http://www.nationnews.com/nationnews/news/99675/guyana-exporting-rice-cuba
The new
midlife nutrition rules: 15 questions to fix your eating habits
On my way to meet James Collins at his Harley Street clinic, I duck into a high street sandwich chain for lunch.
It’s gone midday and I’m an office worker, so naturally I’m feeling a) hungry,
b) even more hungry because I didn’t have time for breakfast this morning, and
c) panicked because I’m running late.
Fortunately, I’m well trained in this particular emergency. I
know exactly what to do. I grab a chicken and avocado sandwich (one of my five,
right?), a mango smoothie (mark that up as two), and a chocolate brownie (a
reward for previous good decision making). Then I scoff the lot in the time it
takes to travel two stops on the Tube.
Later, feeling guilty and a bit heavy, I tell Collins, a leading
nutritionist with more than 15 years experience, about my preparation for our
meeting. “That was a high-carb, high-fat, high-energy lunch,” he says gently.
“It would be wrong to say that’s a bad...
Floods affect crops of 2 lakh
hectares
Vegetables damaged on 20,000 hectares
Vining
vegetables in fields such as this one in Dhakadakkhin area of Sylhet's
Golapganj upazila have died as flood waters did not show any signs of receding
for some 25 days, causing some 50-60 farmers there to lose out on their
investment of around Tk 40,000 each. The photo was taken around a week ago.
Photo: Sheikh Nasir
Ongoing floods have inundated 2 lakh hectares of land containing
transplanted aman in 23 districts, posing a threat to the livelihoods of
hundreds of paddy farmers.
The onrush of water from upstream has also inundated vegetables on
20,000 hectares of land, said a senior official of the Department of
Agricultural Extension (DAE) yesterday.
Aman makes the second biggest contribution to the country's rice
production after boro, accounting for 38 percent of the annual production of
3.47 crore tonnes recorded in 2015-16.
The DAE officials said a part of the transplanted aman could be
saved if the water recedes within two to three days of the inundation.
If the water stays longer, the crops are likely to be affected.
But the vegetables cannot be recovered, according to some agriculturists.
Water in the rivers upstream started to recede yesterday.
That in the Surma-Kushiyara is likely to continue to fall in the
next 48 hours, according to the Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre yesterday
morning.
The DAE officials said the water level in rivers in Dinajpur,
Thakurgaon and Lalmonirhat declined whereas it rose in those in districts such
as Rangpur and Sirajganj.
“We are taking stock of the situation every three hours. We have
asked field level officials and workers to stay at their stations and monitor
the situation by opening control rooms,” said DAE Director General Md Golam
Maruf.
The DAE also advised farmers to harvest aus if 80 percent of the
grain has matured.
Harvested during the monsoon, aus has been planted on 10.79 lakh
hectares of land this year, up from 9.41 lakh hectares in 2016-17, according to
data from the DAE and the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.
The DAE has targeted to grow aman in 53.05 lakh hectares in
2017-18. Farmers bagged 1.36 crore tonnes of aman rice in 2016-17, according to
the BBS.Maruf said the DAE has aman seedlings on 50 acres at hand to meet
emergency needs of farmers. “We also have enough seeds of late varieties of
paddy in our stock that can support farmers,” he said.Agronomists said
seedlings which have been recently transplanted most likely could not be
recovered. But growers who planted submergence tolerant varieties might not be
affected that much.
Md Ansar Ali, director for research of the Bangladesh Rice
Research Institute, said the submergence tolerant varieties of aman can
withstand inundation for up to 10 days. “A lot will depend on how
long the flood lingers. The flood water from Nepal is yet to enter Bangladesh,
and we do not know at the moment how many days the submergence will persist,”
he said.
He, however, said there was still time to transplant aman. “What
we need to do is to make seedlings available to farmers in the affected areas.
If we can do that, there will not be that much of an impact,” said Ali.This is
the second time this year that the country's major crops have been hit by
calamities.In April, flooding in the northeastern haor areas damaged 10 lakh
tonnes of Boro crop, according to an estimate of the US Department of
Agriculture.
Vietnam,
Uruguay Tackle Agricultural Methane Emissions
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Countries with large agricultural
sectors are engaging in research partnerships to reduce agricultural methane emissions
to meet their mitigation commitments under the Paris Agreement.In Vietnam,
participants to a workshop discussed policy implications of two research
projects on paddy rice production.The Government of Uruguay is entering into a
research partnership to develop measures to reduce methane emissions from
livestock production.
2 August 2017: The majority of
methane emissions in agriculture comes from two sources: paddy rice production
and enteric methane emitted by ruminants. Countries with large agricultural
sectors, like Vietnam and Uruguay, face the challenge to develop Nationally
Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs) to reduce these emissions.
Moving from Paddy Rice Science to
Mitigation Policy in Vietnam
Vietnam has the highest methane
emissions from paddy rice production in the Southeast Asia region. In its
Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement, the country
committed to reducing its GHG emissions by 8%. Achieving this objective will
require significantly reducing agricultural methane emissions. In partnership
with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), a member of the CGIAR
System Organization, Vietnam recently held a policy workshop with the theme,
‘NAMA Formulation in Support of NDC Implementation in the Rice Sector of
Vietnam,’ to discuss the results of two IRRI projects.
The first project titled, ‘Reducing
Methane Emissions from Paddy Rice Production in Vietnam,’ produced an online
kiosk that makes available management strategies, data on the suitability of
farming technologies, and practices and policy actions from Bangladesh,
Colombia and Vietnam. The second project aims to support policy makers in
making informed decisions on, among other issues, climate-change adaptation
policies that provide institutions and decision makers with data and tools to
identify vulnerable geographic areas and implement suitable climate-smart
technologies.
Conducted as a pilot project in
Vietnam and Myanmar, the project’s recommendations will be made available to
policy makers in other member countries of the Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN). In reviewing the results of these projects, workshop
participants highlighted the need to identify opportunities to fund
rice-focused NAMAs and establish innovative financing mechanisms and incentives
for projects within NAMAs.
The Workshop was held on 20 June
2017 in Hanoi, Vietnam. [CGIAR Press Release. Stakeholder Workshop][Project
Webpage. GHG Mitigation in Rice][Project Webpage. Linking Climate Change
Science and Policy in Southeast Asia]
Reducing Emissions of Enteric
Methane from Dairy and Beef Production in Uruguay
In Uruguay, methane emissions from
beef production account for 55% of the country’s GHG emissions. Uruguay’s NDC
therefore includes a specific target to reduce enteric methane intensity per
kilogram of beef by 33% to 43% by 2030. To achieve this reduction, the country
is partnering with the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the Global
Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA) and the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) to implement the project titled,
‘Reducing Enteric Methane for Improving Food Security and Livelihoods.’ The
project aims to transform the ruminant production systems of resource-poor
framers to increase livestock productivity, while reducing GHG emissions. These
dual objectives can be achieved through a combination of herd and health
management, nutrition and feeding management strategies, and genetics. These
measures are estimated to reduce emissions intensity by 23%-42%. The approach
contributes both to climate action (SDG 13) and to improving food security and
promoting sustainable agriculture (SDG 2).[CCAC Press Release][FAO Project
Website – Reducing Enteric Methane for improving food security and livelihoods]
Imports rise 9pc as economy heats
up
Star Business Report
“Lots of machineries, from spinning to textile, re-rolling mills,
auto rice mills, paper mills and power plants, are being imported,” said Mirza
Elias Uddin Ahmed, additional managing director of Jamuna Bank.
In 2016-17, the import of capital machinery soared 37.39 percent
from a year earlier to about $4.85 billion, propelled by power and energy,
garment, pharmaceuticals, telecom, food-processing and packaging sectors.
Industrial raw material imports rose 3.52 percent year-on-year to
$16.22 billion.
A senior BB official said the import of intermediate goods such as
coal, hard coke, clinker and scrap vessels also increased in addition to raw
materials for the garment and textile sectors. “It's a good sign for the
economy that the import of machineries and raw materials is on the rise,” Ahmed
added.
A senior treasury official of Prime Bank echoed the same.
Industrial activities are rising and the growth in import
indicates that production, development and employment will increase in the days
to come, he added.
The import of petroleum products based on the settlement of
letters of credit increased 3.3 percent to $2.52 billion in 2016-17. Food
grains -- rice and wheat -- imports grew about 3 percent from a year earlier to
$1.15 billion.
Rice import has increased significantly in recent months,
according to Ahmed.
The central bank took a number of steps in the last couple of
months of 2016-17 to increase the rice import to boost stock and stabilise the
price level of the staple such that inflationary pressures can be contained.
The efforts paid off as food inflation in July declined 0.56
percentage points to 6.95 percent -- the lowest in three months. The decline in
the food inflation most likely resulted from a moderation in rice prices,
brought about by a surge in imports.
Bangladesh signs big rice deal
Two weeks after Bangladesh and Cambodia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Phnom Penh to purchase rice from Cambodia, on Monday of this week Bangladesh signed a deal to buy 250,000 tonnes of milled rice from Cambodia.The purchasing agreement was made after the officials from state-owned Green Trade Company and the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF) flew to Bangladesh last week to negotiate in detail on the purchasing agreements between Bangladesh and Cambodia based on the government-to-government MoU.
CRF president Sok Puthyvuth said yesterday that Bangladesh was interested in Cambodian rice and wanted to have a relationship with Cambodia.He said that after Bangladesh signed an MoU with Cambodia on August 2, officials from the CRF and Green Trade flew to Bangladesh to negotiate directly.He said that there were tough negotiations and competition with Thailand, India and Vietnam also wooing Bangladesh to purchase rice from them.
However, Bangladesh chose Cambodia.Bangladesh, the world’s fourth-biggest rice producer, has emerged as a major importer of the grain this year after flash floods in April hit domestic output. As a result, the country is facing dwindling stocks and high local prices.“We will work with the CRF’s members, Green Trade and Rural Development Bank to strengthen the export soon,” Mr Puthyvuth said.“We want the export to take place as soon as possible,” he said. “We are not worried as Bangladesh gave us enough time,” he added.
He said that CRF will talk with its members on the amount to export to Bangladesh and would get feedback soon on their ability to export to Bangladesh. “Prices will be based on the market price but we will continue to talk to find a win-win solution between Cambodian farmers and Bangladesh,” Mr Puthyvuth said.“At the moment, the price we are offering Bangladesh is competitive compared with Vietnam, Thailand and India.
“In the next five years, the price will be higher as Cambodia modernises its agriculture, particularly the rice sector,” Mr Puthyvuth said.On August 2, the Cambodian Commerce Ministry and Bangladesh signed the MoU to sell about a million tonnes of rice in the five years to 2022.
Sok Sopheak, under-secretary of state at the Ministry of Commerce, said the quality of rice and pricing were crucial for Cambodia to compete with Thailand and India who had also signed MoUs with Bangladesh.He said costs on such aspects as logistics and terminal handling charges would be kept as low as possible.Song Saran, CEO of AMRU Rice, welcomed the agreement with Bangladesh, saying it opened new markets for Cambodia.“The private sector is keen to make this agreement work. We will ensure the Bangladeshis that the rice they get from us will be the best quality,” he said.
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/5078380/bangladesh-signs-big-rice-deal/
Gov’t to intervene in rice sector
Sok Chan / Khmer Times Share:
The government, with a budget of $50 million for emergency loans
and $30 million for building silos and warehouses, will intervene to stabilise
rice prices during the up-coming harvest season to ensure that the livelihoods
of farmers, millers and exporters are protected.Vongsey Vissoth, secretary of
state for the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said at a workshop yesterday
that government intervention was needed because an oversupply of rice was
expected due to better climate and there was a lack of silos and warehouses in
the country to store the surplus.
“Our intervention is to build
silos and warehouses and we would also give out loans to purchase rice from
farmers,” Mr. Vissoth said.“All provincial governors have to facilitate between
rice millers and their intermediaries to prevent the price of rice from falling
due to an oversupply,” he added.
Mr Vissoth said that for the
2017-2018 rice harvest season, government had allocated $50 million for
emergency loans to rice millers and another $30 million to build silos and
warehouses in Battambang, Kampong Thom, Prey Veng and Takeo provinces.He added
that he also wanted all local authorities and all provincial governors to help
transport the harvested rice from the fields to warehouses, if roads could not
be built on time.
“All border officials, local
authorities and Camcontrol officers must facilitate the export of rice to
neighbouring countries and also help stem out rice smuggling through illegal
border crossings,” said Mr Vissoth.Norng Veasna, vice president of Cambodia
Rice Federation (CRF), welcomed the government’s move.He said that private
sector also needed to join hands with the government to help stabilise rice
prices and boost exports.
“We call on all CRF members to
purchase rice from farmers and also contact the Rural Development Bank to apply
for loans, in case they lack working capital to purchase paddy rice from
farmers,” said Mr Veasna.“We don’t want the price of our
premium fragrant rice to fall below 900 riel ($0.23) per kilo,” he added.
Mr Vissoth pointed out that from
2010 till 2016, rice production was on the average of about 3 million tonnes a
year.However, he said, rice production this year is expected to be more than 10
million tonnes due to better weather.“Our rice is cheap compared to
neighbouring countries but when it arrives in the rice mills for processing and
later transported to the port for export, all kinds of costs are added. At the
end of the day, the price is higher than neighbouring countries,” said Mr
Vissoth.
“So our issue is on the post-
harvest scenario. Clearly, it is a market failure in the rice sector.”Hun Lak,
CRF’s vice-president, told Khmer Times recently that the
current crisis in Cambodia’s rice sector was caused by domestic and external
market factors.Mr Lak pointed out that high electricity rates were eating
significantly into the production costs of rice millers.“We are trying to find
ways to lower the cost of electricity. We want the electricity rate to be
reduced to less than 400.60 riel (10 cents) per kilowatt hour for the
agricultural sector,” he said.
Residents in rural areas pay
higher electricity rates than those living in town, who pay 20 cents per
kilowatt hour. In comparison, farmers in Vietnam pay about 10 cents per
kilowatt hour.Mr Lak said Cambodia needed to learn from its neighbors on how to
lower rice production costs, despite falling exports.
“When we look at Vietnam and
Thailand, we see that they have lower production costs than us. They can lower
the price of their rice, when global prices are depressed, and still survive.
We, however, seem to have a problem with that,” he said.
http://www.khmertimeskh.com/5078092/govt-intervene-rice-sector/
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