Chronic agricultural weakness
By Editorial
The layperson may assume that the
agriculture sector is where strength may lie in Pakistan — and they would be
wrong. In reality, the agriculture sector has been underperforming for years
and has now faded to one of the lowest levels of productivity in the world
according to the Pakistan Business Council. The sector made up a 19.5 per cent
share of the GDP in 2016 an at the same time as ranging between 29 per cent and
52 per cent lower than the world’s best averages. The reasons are well-enough
known and are typical of the underachievement felt in all sectors of the
economy and not only in agriculture.
The numbers are grim. Pakistan produces 3.1
tonnes of wheat per hectare compared to 8.1 tonnes in France; and 2.5 tonnes of
cotton compared to 4.8 tonnes in China. Sugarcane — 63.4 tonnes in Pakistan and
125.1 tonnes in Egypt. Rice — Pakistan 2.7 tonnes compared to 9.2 tonnes per hectare
in the US. No crop sees Pakistan at parity or even close to parity with other
producers.
Low yields impact right across the economy,
hitting industrial production which contributes to higher costs. Exports are
not what they could be, with rice and maize, sugar and sugar by-products as
well as confectionery all below par in terms of potential. Agriculture is still
a leading employer with 42 per cent of the labour force directly or indirectly
working the land. Despite this as much as 50 per cent of output is wasted
because of the unavailability of a cold chain, logistics in the form of
inefficient crop extraction and poor processing.
Galloping urbanisation plays a part as the
flight from the land to urban centres accelerates. This is driven as much by a
poverty of potable water and health and education services as anything else. An
agricultural daily wager may make as little as Rs100 compared to the Rs800 he
may make as a labourer in many cities. A powerful magnet. As ever there is no
quick fix but as things stand matters can only deteriorate further. The
culprits? Underinvestment and a fading rural feudalism. The times they are a
‘changin’.
Iranians keen to promote agri trade
with Pakistan
January
24, 2018
INP
ISLAMABAD - A delegation of Iranian
entrepreneurs of West Azerbaijan province of Iran, led by Behnam Tajodinni,
head of the Agriculture Commission of the Urmia Chamber of Commerce &
Industry, visited Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry Tuesday and
showed keeninterest to develop strong trade
relations with Pakistan in agriculture products.
Speaking on the occasion, Behnam Tajodinni said
that West Azerbaijan was the third largest province of Iran with one of the
highest producers of agricultural commodities. He said the province was
producing annually 6 million tons of fruits & vegetables, 1.2-million-ton
apple, 380,000 ton grapes and 280,000 ton apricots with 326 cold storage
facilities with storage capacity of 1 million tons. He said the province was
also on top in producing honey and was a hub of import and export activities in
Iran. He said the province has great potential to promote cooperation in agriculture
sector with Pakistan. He stressed that the agriculture sector businessmen of
both countries should develop close cooperation to promote bilateral trade of agro
products between Iran and Pakistan.
Behnam Tajodinni said that about 32 Iranian
trucks loaded with agriculture products were stuck up on Pakistani border in
Balochistan for the last 10 days and added that Pakistan has not informed them
why the trucks were stopped. He said such measures were discouraging efforts to
improve bilateral trade between the two countries. He said both countries
should revise high tariffs on agriculture products to facilitate the
entrepreneurs in further improving bilateral trade. He also invited ICCI
delegation to visit Urmia Chamber of Commerce & Industry and explore new
avenues of mutual cooperation with Iranian counterparts.
Sheikh Amir Waheed, president of ICCI, said
Pakistan and Iran enjoyed good relations, but given the size of the economies
of both countries, their bilateral trade was far below the actual potential. He
stressed that both countries should encourage frequent exchange of trade
delegations and focus on organising single country exhibitions on reciprocal
basis to explore new areas of mutual collaboration. He said despite signing a
preferential trade agreement with Pakistan, Iran was maintaining high tariffs
on many Pakistani products.
including textiles, clothing, leather
goods, footwear, fruits & vegetables and rice, which was a major hurdle in
promoting trade with Iran. He stressed that Urmia Chamber of Commerce &
Industry should take up this issue with Iranian authorities to revise high
tariffs.
Muhammad Naveed, Senior Vice President ICCI
said that Pakistan and Iran should establish border markets that would greatly
help in improving bilateral trade and curb illegal trade as well.
https://nation.com.pk/24-Jan-2018/iranians-keen-to-promote-agri-trade-with-pakistan
Pakistan’s
food exports increase 16.81%
By DND
January 25, 2018
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Food
exports from the Country witnessed an impressive growth of 16.81 during the
first half of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period of
last year.
The food exports rose to
$1,932,269 million during July-December (2017-18) against the exports of
$1,654,245 million during July-December (2016-17), according to latest data of
Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The commodities that contributed
in overall food trade from the Country included rice exports of which grew by
18.32 percent from $712,832 million last year to $843,388 million during the
current year. Among rice commodities, the exports of basmati rice increased by
4.52 percent while that of other rice commodities increased by 22.88 percent.
The exports of fish and fish
preparations from the Country also increased by 9.08 percent by growing from
$183,446 million to $200,097 million while the exports of vegetables increased
by 6.52 percent, from $58,871 million to $62,709 million.
During the period under review,
the tobacco exports from the Country increased from $3,991 million to $20,625
million, showing growth of 416.79 percent while the wheat exports witnessed
increase of 100 percent by going up from zero exports to $0.045 million.
Exports of oil, seeds, nuts and
kernals increased by 10.35 percent from $20,243 million to $22,339 million
while sugar exports also increased from zero exports last year to $181,209
million, showing 100 percent growth.
Meanwhile, the food products that
witnessed negative growth in trade included fruits, exports of which declined
from $198,143 million to $180,288 million, showing 9.01 decline while the
exports of leguminous vegetable (pulses) decreased by 100 percent .
Exports of spics from the Country
also decreased from $37,478 million to $36,421 million, showing decrease of
2.82 million while the exports of meat and meat preparations decreased by 6.21
percent, from $104,401 million to $97,915 million.
Other than these commodities, the
exports of all other food products also witnessed decline of 14.08 percent by
falling from $334,312 million last year to $287,233 million this year.
Meanwhile, on year-on-year basis,
the food exports from the Country witnessed 31.18 percent growth during the
month of December 2017 compared to the same month of last year.
The food exports during December
2017 were recorded at $439,285 million against the exports of $334,860 million
last December, according to the PBS data.
On month-on-month basis, the food
exports from the Country also witnessed increase of 4.92 percent in December
2017 when compared to the exports of $418,697 million in November 2017, the
data revealed.
MCCLURE, Ill. — Cahokia high
protein rice with strawberries and cream is one of Blake Gerard’s favorite
breakfasts these days.
“What’s amazing to me is that
there’s 6 grams of protein in each serving. That’s twice as much as other
rice,” said Gerard, an Alexander County farmer and now a food entrepreneur.
This makes Cahokia Rice as
nutritious as almonds, spinach, oatmeal or mixed nuts. But what gets Girard
cooking is his rice’s high quality flavor and appearance on a plate — its bite
is crisp and non-chalky while the long grain is opaque, long and consistent in
shape.
Gerard added this specially-bred
rice into his crop rotation last year. While he already grows soybeans (85
percent) and wheat (5 percent), his seed rice and Cahokia rice account for 15
percent of his crops.
Yet another differentiation of
Cahokia Rice from all the others is that it is grown only in Illinois and even
takes its brand name from the Cahokia American Indians who once lived on his
farmland. In fact, the Blake Gerard Farms in McClure is the northern-most
location east of the Rockies to grow rice.
Tired of floodwater destroying
his corn crop, Gerard planted his first rice in 2000. Unlike most other rice
growers who benefited from generational knowledge, he often turned to other
rice farmers in Missouri for information and learned from his mistakes.
Because his acreage is well
isolated from other rice fields, Gerard first started with seed rice and
conditioned it for bagging and distribution at another business he helped start
in 2005 — River Bend Rice in Cairo.
Here’s what else makes Cahokia
Rice unique:
A special rice variety — During Gerard’s tenure with U.S. Rice Farmers as a
former chairman and board member, he came in contact with rice researchers at
Louisiana State University and secured an agreement for exclusive growing and
production rights on a particular variety. It is a non-genetically modified
variety developed with old fashioned breeding practices, Gerard said.
Botanically different — Lending to Cahokia’s doubled protein content is this
rice variety’s preference for a cooler growing season. The Illinois location in
the north, where there are much cooler nights, allows the rice grain to turn
fully opaque — not chalky white, like most other rice. The opaqueness is an
indicator of the impact of those cooler nights as the starches pack tighter
into the kernels.
Local product — Cahokia Rice is marketed, distributed and sold by two
staff working in southern and central Illinois, as well as southeast Missouri.
The rice is milled and packaged at southeast Missouri facility.
In Illinois, it can be found at
retailers in Carbondale, Effingham and Champaign. Plans also call for reaching
out to chefs serving locally-raised food this year.
http://www.agrinews-pubs.com/news/for-blake-girard-the-rice-is-right/article_1af2bcd4-e343-528d-a274-98ac2f792fe7.html
Nuclear Package' Helps Farmers Increase Rice
Yields and Income in Northern Malaysia
Thursday
25 January 2018 16:45 CET
Miklos Gaspar, IAEA Office of Public Information
and Communication
Malaysian rice
farmer Muhammad Helmi Mohd Noor is applying biofertilizer produced using
irradiation. He has seen his yields increase by 40% since adapting products and
practices developed by Nuklear Malaysia. (Photo: M. Gaspar/IAEA)
Kubang
Anak Gajah Village, Kedah, Malaysia – An integrated approach
that includes a new rice variety, biofertilizer and plant growth promoter has
made all the difference to rice farmer, Muhammad Helmi Mohd Noor and his
neighbours in this northern Malaysian village. They saw their yields – and with
it their income – increase by 40% in the last two growing seasons thanks to
what they call the “nuclear package”: a set of products and services developed
by the government’s nuclear agency, Nuklear Malaysia, to help the country’s
rice farmers cope with low soil fertility and changing weather patterns,
including more erratic rainfall and longer dry spells.
“Even
when there is no water for a few days or weeks, this new rice can grow,” Mohd
Noor said.
Developed using nuclear
techniques, the new rice variety called NMR152 is used by 25 farmers while
undergoing the last phases of testing by agriculture authorities, who have in
the meantime begun to multiply the seeds on special breeding plots, to have
enough available for all farmers in the northern, rice growing area of the
country once approval has been granted in the next 12 to 18 months. “This
variety has survived both periods of draught and submersion in water for 8
days, while other varieties died,” said Abdul Shahrizal, Agriculture Officer at
the Centre of Excellence of Rice in neighbouring Perak province. “We are
working hard to produce the seeds needed for large scale use.”
Workers
at Malaysia's Centre of Excellence of Rice working on a rice field used to
multiply a rice variety with favourable traits developed using irradiation.
(Photo: M. Gaspasr/IAEA)
Rice
is a major staple food in Malaysia and a source of income for 300,000 farmers.
Competition for water, extreme weather events, inadequate nutrients and
fertilizer and lower yielding traditional rice varieties have compelled the
need to develop new varieties and farming practices. The IAEA, in cooperation
with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), assists
countries around the world, including Malaysia, in adapting their agriculture
practices to climate change by disseminating knowledge and best practices,
providing training and fellowship programmes as well as laboratory services for
researchers.
Cooperation
between Nuklear Malaysia and agriculture authorities is key to the success of
the project. Researchers at the nuclear agency developed the new variety by
irradiating seeds, mimicking and accelerating the natural process of
spontaneous mutation, and then selecting the variety with useful traits. But Nuklear
Malaysia does not have the plots or the mandate to multiply the seeds and make
them available to farmers beyond a pilot project. “When farmers in the wider
area see the difference between their yield and ours, they want to plant the
new variety also,” Mohd Noor said. It will likely take two growing seasons
before there is enough supply of seeds that it can be released to farmers,
Shahrizal added.
Nurturing
the right variety
Having
favourable agronomic traits is a good start, but it takes more than the right
variety to cope with changing weather and increase yields.
The
farmers also receive an organic plant growth promoter and plant elicitor known
as oligochitosan produced using irradiation at Nuklear Malaysia. This product
is derived from chitin, which is found in household and agricultural waste such
as the shells of crawfish, shrimp, crabs and lobsters. Chitin is turned into
chitosan through a chemical process and is degraded into oligochitosan using
gamma or electron beam irradiation. Its use as growth promoter reduces the need
for pesticides and fertilizer by some 30%, explained Shyful Rahman, an
agronomist with Nuklear Malaysia in charge of the project in Kedah.
This is important not only
because it saves farmers additional expenditure, but also because it could help
restore biodiversity in the region. “Many local species, including fish have
receded or completely disappeared from the area as a result of fertilizer use,”
he said. “When I was a child, we used to go fishing almost every day. I hope I
can do that again when I retire.”
Isotopic
techniques are used to determine the amount of fertilizer required and further
optimize its use: By using the 15N isotope, which has the same
chemical characteristics as ordinary nitrogen but includes an extra neutron,
scientists can track how much fertilizer the plant absorbs, so that farmers
only add to the soil what is necessary and when it is necessary. In the case of
Hassan and his neighbors, this has reduced fertilizer use by a further 20%.
Another
product, pyroligneous acid, also known as liquid smoke for its smell, is
produced by the condensation of the smoke from the process of producing
charcoal. Charcoal or activated charcoal in particular are well known to
capture and bind radioactive material in contaminated soil. Liquid smoke
is a natural fungicide, byproduct of charcoal production and it has been used
to inhibit several fungal plant pathogens.
“With this complex approach, we
are not only helping farmers earn more but are also improving the resilience of
Malaysia’s rice production systems to climate change,” Rahman said.
Asia Rice-Prices soar in top exporters as Indonesia shops,
fresh deals beckon
In India, rates were also buoyed
by hopes that Philippines and Indonesia will buy more rice in the coming months
to build inventories.
Indonesian state food procurement
agency Bulog bought about 346,000 tonnes in an international tender last week,
to be sourced from Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan and India.
“Prices (in India) have jumped,
but even at higher levels, buyers are ready to make purchases. They fear prices
could rally further,” said M. Adishankar, executive director at Sri Lalitha, an
exporter located in southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
India’s 5 percent broken
parboiled rice price jumped by $12 to $444-$448 per tonne, the highest level
since September 2011, when the country lifted a four-year-old ban on
non-basmati rice shipments.
“The market is expecting more
buying from Indonesia and Philippines. Bangladesh and African countries are
also active in the market and buying mainly from India,” said an exporter based
in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.
Surplus supplies in all exporting
countries have been depleting and that could push prices higher by another
$10-15 in coming weeks, the exporter said.
Bangladesh, which has emerged as
a major importer of the grain since 2017 after floods damaged its crops, has
approved the purchase of 100,000 tonnes of parboiled rice in a domestic tender,
a food ministry official said on Thursday.
The winning bidder will supply
the rice from India, the official added.
Meanwhile, Vietnam’s benchmark
5-percent broken rice rose to $450 a tonne, FOB Saigon, the highest in
more than three years. Last week, prices ranged $420-$430.
Traders said despite higher
prices, sellers are reluctant to commit to new deals as stock is low at the end
of the crop season while harvesting is scheduled in late February or early
March.
The market is also eyeing deals
from the Philippines, which plans to import 250,000 tonnes to boost thinning
stockpiles.
Thailand’s benchmark 5 percent broken
rice rose to a peak since June 2017, at $440-$448, free-on-board (FOB)
Bangkok, versus $415-$420 last week.
“Indonesia purchased about
120,000 tonnes from Thailand and there are talks of the country importing an
additional 150,000 tonnes from us,” said a Bangkok-based trader.
“It has been the single biggest
factor for the hike in rice prices. There are no other impending deals at the
moment and supply is constant.”
https://www.brecorder.com/2018/01/25/395296/asia-rice-prices-soar-in-top-exporters-as-indonesia-shops-fresh-deals-beckon/
Can Rice from
Australia's Crocodile-Infested Waters Help Feed More People?
January 25, 2018 9:37 AM
ROME, ITALY —
Wild rice growing in northern
Australia's crocodile-infested waters could hold the key to breeding a more
nutritious grain that is drought and pest resistant, according to scientists
who have just mapped its genetic family tree.
International researchers,
including Robert Henry from the University of Queensland, examined 13
domesticated and wild rice species globally, raising hopes about breeding
commercial rice from Australian variety Oryza meridionalis.
Rice is a staple food for over
half of the world population and consumption levels are rising, according to
the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
Henry said this Australian rice
was found to have valuable traits that could be bred into commercial rice.
"[This could have] a really
positive impact on the human health on a large scale," Henry told the
Thomson Reuters Foundation in a telephone interview.
Henry, whose work was part of a
paper published this week in Nature Genetics, said researchers
found the Australian rice shared the same ancestor as an Asian rice species
consumed by millions of people today but evolved three million years ago.
He said it had probably been
overlooked until now due to its location.
"Some of the best rice sites
are where there are a lot of dangerous crocodiles," he said.
Rod A. Wing, co-author and
director of the Arizona Genomics Institute at the University of Arizona, said
wild rice species globally provide "a virtually untapped reservoir of
genes" that can be used to improve current rice species.
Since 2003, Wing has been leading
global research into 25 wild rice species that are genetically similar to two
rice species consumed globally today with the next research to focus on a wild
rice that grows in saltwater.
"The world population could
be 10 billion by 2050 and the question is how do we feed our world without
destroying it," Wing told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone.
He said genetic information could allow the world "to make
crops that are higher yielding, more nutritious" but do less harm to the
environment by using less water or pesticides.
AgriLife Research Unmanned Aerial
Systems program receives update
From traditional crop production
to livestock, Texas A&M AgriLife Research scientists from across the state
provided updates on a multitude of unmanned aerial systems, or UAS, projects
recently in College Station.
The AgriLife Research UAS program
is one of the largest in the U.S., according to faculty and administrators. The
research program is utilizing both fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft as part
of research activities at centers in Weslaco, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, College
Station and Amarillo.
“We are progressing at a steady
pace in all aspects of our UAS research program,” said Misty Vidrine, AgriLife
Research UAS program coordinator in College Station. “We have the capability of
developing intelligent pattern recognition models that can allow both the
farmer and the rancher to make production management decisions, predict yield
and detect abiotic and biotic crop stress in the field. These UAS modeling
tools can dramatically help with improving the profitability of an operation.”
Program areas are broad,
but tie back to either plant breeding or precision agriculture, Vidrine said.
Researchers involved in the multidisciplinary project include biological and
agricultural engineers, soil scientists, plant breeders, plant pathologists,
plant physiologists, remote sensing scientists, geospatial scientists, civil
engineers, mechanical and aerospace engineers, entomologists, animal
scientists, rangeland specialists, social scientists and agricultural
economists.
Dr. Megan Clayton, Texas A&M
AgriLife Extension Service range specialist in Corpus Christi, gave an overview
of work done in the livestock program.
“What we’ve found (through
this technology) is we can improve the sustainability of grazing management,”
Clayton said. “We’ve found we can soon provide tools to managers, which can
suggest stocking rates, develop models, and test forage and herbage mass
predictions, all types of datasets that can assist in livestock operations.”
The recent meeting was an update
on work conducted in 2017. There was optimism among scientists at the meeting
and excitement continues to build on what lies ahead with regards to
breakthrough technologies to assist Texas farmers and ranchers and beyond in
achieving higher yields and production, according to attendees.
“This research program overall is
one of the most unique anywhere,” said Dr. Alex Thomasson, AgriLife Research
biological and agricultural research engineer in College Station.
Researchers at the meeting
also expressed optimism over new discoveries in wheat production. The wheat
research has focused on different environmental conditions, such as drought,
utilizing both ground and aerial data.
“The statewide wheat breeding
program uses a remote sensing approach to utilize ground- and aerial-based
measurements to evaluate wheat lines for reaction to biotic and abiotic
stresses and maximize phenotyping efficiency,” said Dr. Amir Ibrahim, AgriLife
Research wheat breeder in College Station.
Dr. Lee Tarpley, AgriLife
Research plant physiologist at Beaumont, provided an update on a research
project focused on grain crops. The specific objectives of the research is to
evaluate leaf nitrogen and stress levels in rice as well as leaf water
potential in both rice and corn. Tarpley said the work will help farmers be
proactive and save money.
“We would like to be able to
provide site prescriptions to improve crop profitability,” Tarpley said. “We’d
like to be specific enough to allow remedies to be applied before economic
losses occur.”
Tarpley said farmers typically
treat entire fields when a specific crop disease is diagnosed. Through their
research, they hope to develop tools to be site specific, lowering the cost of
expensive crop inputs and improving crop revenues.
For more about the agency’s UAS research activities, visit
https://uasag.tamu.edu/.
http://www.southwestfarmpress.com/livestock/agrilife-research-unmanned-aerial-systems-program-receives-update
Prices of rice, other agri
commodities up slightly
By Leslie Gatpolintan, Philippine News Agency on January 25,
2018
MANILA — Prices of rice and other
selected agricultural commodities rose slightly in third week of January 2018,
the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Thursday.
The PSA said a price increase of
PHP1 per kilo of special and premium rice was noted in Tuguegarao City and Naga
City; and of premium rice in Kidapawan City and Butuan City. However, it went
down by PHP1 in Tacloban City.
Price of well-milled rice gained
PHP3 per kilo in Kidapawan City and by PHP2 in the National Capital Region and
Naga City.
Price mark-ups ranging from
PHP0.50 to PHP3 per kilogram of regular milled rice were observed in six
regional centers while price was lower by PHP1 in Tuguegarao City.
The PSA said only few regional
centers showed price adjustments in meat, with price uptick of PHP10 per
kilogram of beef with bones noticed in Cagayan de Oro City, and of pork lean
meat in Batangas City.
Increases ranging from PHP2 to
PHP20 per kilogram of dressed chicken were recorded in Cagayan de Oro City,
Baguio City and Cotabato City.
Beef with bones was sold cheaper
by PHP10 in Butuan City, while prices of pork liempo went down by PHP10 in San
Fernando City.
The report also noted varied
price movements for monitored fish species in some regional centers; while
vegetables register mixed price adjustments this week.
The PSA monitors prevailing
weekly retail prices in 17 trading centers.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1022968
NFA bats
for rice importation to replenish depleting stocks
By Madelaine
Miraflor
While
economic managers already decided that the country could survive sans a new
batch of imported rice, the state-run grains agency National Food Authority
(NFA) is still pushing for the immediate replenishment of its “fast-depleting
buffer stock” via importation.
This is for the agency to be able
to effectively fulfill its mandate of food security and price stabilization in
the wake of increasing prices of other basic commodities, NFA said.
RICE
SURPLUS OR SHORTAGE? – While there appears to be sufficient stock of National
Food Authority (NFA) rice at the grains agency’s warehouse on Visayas Avenue in
Quezon City, the government has already authorized the importation of rice via
government to private (G2P) scheme. (Mark Balmores | Manila Bulletin file
photo)
Just this week, NFA Council, the
inter-agency policy-making body of NFA, disapproved the agency’s request to
import 250,000 metric tons of rice in view of the “stable” commercial rice
prices and “bright” local production forecasts.
“Even if commercial rice prices
are stable, regular NFA rice patrons are still looking for it [cheaper NFA
rice] because of the average P9 per kilogram difference in price. Removing NFA
rice from the market is like taking away the lowest-priced brand of rice whose
quality is comparable to higher-priced commercial rice,” NFA administrator
Jason Aquino pointed out.
Right now, NFA sells rice at
P27/kg and P32/kg, while commercial rice varieties of comparable quality are
sold at P36/kg to P41/kg.
Millers warned against tapioca price violation
THE
HANS INDIA | Jan 26,2018 , 12:09 AM IST
Joint Collector Mallikarjuna
speaking with the sago millers and tapioca farmers at a meeting to provide the
MSP for the tapioca farmers
Kakinada: District Joint Collector A
Mallikarjuna ordered the sago rice millers in the district that they should
purchase tapioca for Rs 1,200 per putty.
He
conducted a meeting with all the sago rice millers and tapioca farmers at the
Vidhana Gowthami Hall on Wednesday night.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that the Central government did not declare the MSP (Minimum Support Price) for the tapioca. He stated that to support the tapioca farmers and to provide the MSP to the farmers in Peddapuram and Jaggampeta mandals, they organised the meeting with the sago millers.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that the Central government did not declare the MSP (Minimum Support Price) for the tapioca. He stated that to support the tapioca farmers and to provide the MSP to the farmers in Peddapuram and Jaggampeta mandals, they organised the meeting with the sago millers.
“The
sago millers had been making small pills made of maize and selling the pills as
the sago in the market, because of this feat of the sago millers, the tapioca
farmers were occurring losses,” informed the official. He said that the tapioca
farmers seeked fixation of prices to Rs 1,500 per putty. “However, after
discussions with the farmers and the sago millers, we have decided the price at
Rs 1,200 per putty,” he announced.
Stating
that the administration had decided the tapioca price at Rs 533 per quintal, he
warned the millers of severe action if any miller purchases for less than the
fixed price. District Rice Millers Association president Ambati Rama Krishna
Reddy, Civil Supplies District Manager Krishna Rao, DSO Prasad, Legal Metrology
Assistant Controller Madhuri and Tapioca farmers participated in the
meeting.
Grain gain: China’s rice exports to Africa surge
That rapid growth in sales to African nations is expected to
continue in 2018, as buyers there increasingly turn to China as stockpiles are
almost depleted in rival supplier Thailand.
China in 2017 sold just over 781,000 tonnes of rice to almost 40
African countries including Ivory Coast and Senegal, up from around 74,000
tonnes the year before, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
That accounted for nearly 70 percent of China’s total shipments of the
commodity, versus 19 percent in 2016.
West Africa’s Ivory Coast overtook South Korea to become the top
destination for China’s rice in 2017, with total purchases of 309,200 tonnes.
“China has very high stocks of rice. The state is taking various
measures to destock,” said Chen Xiaoshan, an analyst with Zhuochuang, a
commodities consultancy in China’s eastern province of Shandong.
“The Belt and Road Initiative policy also boosted the chances to
export rice to these African countries,” Chen said, referring to a Chinese
project to promote trade links with Asia, Africa and Europe through billions of
dollars in infrastructure investment.
The pace of exports may stoke concerns in the international
market about China selling excess grain abroad after years of stockpiling. In
2016, the United States complained to the World Trade Organization about
Beijing’s support for the country’s wheat, corn and rice farmers.
China has around 94 million tonnes of rice stockpiles,
two-thirds of the world’s excess inventory and enough to feed India for a year.
A lot of that was accumulated through years of the government buying the grain
from farmers at a minimum price when the market price dropped below that level.
But last year Beijing cut minimum prices for rice and wheat for
the first time, marking the start of an overhaul of the subsidy programme.
Analysts expect another cut to rice prices in 2018.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said earlier this month that
it expected Chinese sales of old-crop rice, especially to West Africa, to
continue to expand as Thailand’s old-crop government stocks are nearly
depleted.
Thailand has sold most of the about 18 million tonnes of rice
built up during a rice-buying scheme introduced by a previous government.
“This year, we no longer have any old rice in the state
stockpile, so it is likely that China will take this African market from us,”
Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters
Association, told Reuters on Thursday.
“This will also depend on how much old rice China has in its
stockpile.”
South Korea bought 167,270 tonnes of rice from China in 2017,
Thursday’s data showed, making it the second-largest buyer of the grain. That
was down 4.7 percent from 2016.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu; additional reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat in BANGKOK; Editing by Joseph Radford and Christian Schmollinger)
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu; additional reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat in BANGKOK; Editing by Joseph Radford and Christian Schmollinger)
MPR speaker hopes government would not import rice
Reporter: antara
Chairman of the People`s
Consultative Assembly (MPR) Zulkifli Hasan. (ANTARA PHOTO/Irwansyah Putra)
Jakarta
(ANTARA News) - Chairman of the People`s Consultative Assembly (MPR), Zulkifli
Hasan, has reminded the government not to import rice before the harvest time,
as it may cause the price of rice to drop during the harvest season.
"The decision to import rice before the harvest time creates injustice, because it will harm local farmers," Hasan stated at the Parliament Building in Jakarta on Thursday.
He called on President Joko Widodo to prevent rice imports ahead of the harvest period, as it would be detrimental to local farmers, whose incomes are already limited.
According to him, if rice imports are done before the harvest, then the rice stock will increase sharply. This will result in drastic drop in rice price, resulting in loss for local farmers.
"I appeal to the president to avoid any incidental policies that could disrupt the main policy of the government," he noted.
On the occasion, he also reminded the government to be careful while making decisions about the provision of rice stock.
According to him, although the government is trying to reduce increase in rice price, it still can create new problems by importing rice.
Hasan pointed out that even if the government is forced to import, the rice should not be stored directly in Indonesia but in the country of origin, until the very precise time to bring it to Indonesia.
"This is in order to prevent farmers, who are in the harvest time, from being affected by the drop in rice prices," he pointed out.
(A014/INE)
(T.A014/A/KR-BSR/A014)
"The decision to import rice before the harvest time creates injustice, because it will harm local farmers," Hasan stated at the Parliament Building in Jakarta on Thursday.
He called on President Joko Widodo to prevent rice imports ahead of the harvest period, as it would be detrimental to local farmers, whose incomes are already limited.
According to him, if rice imports are done before the harvest, then the rice stock will increase sharply. This will result in drastic drop in rice price, resulting in loss for local farmers.
"I appeal to the president to avoid any incidental policies that could disrupt the main policy of the government," he noted.
On the occasion, he also reminded the government to be careful while making decisions about the provision of rice stock.
According to him, although the government is trying to reduce increase in rice price, it still can create new problems by importing rice.
Hasan pointed out that even if the government is forced to import, the rice should not be stored directly in Indonesia but in the country of origin, until the very precise time to bring it to Indonesia.
"This is in order to prevent farmers, who are in the harvest time, from being affected by the drop in rice prices," he pointed out.
(A014/INE)
(T.A014/A/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Kalla responds to farmers` opposition to rice import
plan
Reporter: antara
Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
(ANTARA /Puspa Perwitasari)
Makassaar,
S Sulawesi (ANTARA News) - Vice President Jusuf Kalla has responded to the
farmers, especially those from Java island, after they voiced opposition to the
government`s plan to import rice.
Kalla on Thursday stated that the government's plan to import rice had been assessed carefully and thoughtfully.
"The government will not take any risks. If it falls short of stocks (domestic rice stock), it will add stock," he explained, after receiving the Honorary Doctorate Degree (Honoris Causa) from the State Islamic University (UIN) Alauddin Makassar, on Thursday.
The farmers in some areas in Java Island as well as in Klaten (Central Java), Bojonegoro (East Java), to Demak, Central Java, have opposed the rice import plan.
The farmers had cited the approaching harvest season as the reason for opposition. In addition, the costs incurred by farmers are also huge.
"The government does not want to take risks, if it falls short of stocks it will be added," he stated briefly.
The VP has previously asserted the government?s decision to import 500 thousand of rice because of the shortage in the supply of rice in the country.
The lack of domestic rice production is due to weather conditions, which affect the quality of rice.
In the meantime, the chairman of the People`s Consultative Assembly (MPR), Zulkifli Hasan, has reminded the government not to import rice before the harvest time, as it may cause the price of rice to drop during the harvest season.
"The decision to import rice before the harvest time creates injustice, because it will harm local farmers," Hasan stated at the Parliament Building in Jakarta on Thursday.
He called on President Joko Widodo to prevent rice imports ahead of the harvest period, as it would be detrimental to local farmers, whose incomes are already limited.
According to him, if rice imports are done before the harvest, then the rice stock will increase sharply. This will result in drastic drop in rice price, resulting in loss for local farmers.
"I appeal to the president to avoid any incidental policies that could disrupt the main policy of the government," he noted.
On the occasion, he also reminded the government to be careful while making decisions about the provision of rice stock.
According to him, although the government is trying to reduce increase in rice price, it still can create new problems by importing rice.
Hasan pointed out that even if the government is forced to import, the rice should not be stored directly in Indonesia but in the country of origin, until the very precise time to bring it to Indonesia.
"This is in order to prevent farmers, who are in the harvest time, from being affected by the drop in rice prices," he pointed out.
Kalla on Thursday stated that the government's plan to import rice had been assessed carefully and thoughtfully.
"The government will not take any risks. If it falls short of stocks (domestic rice stock), it will add stock," he explained, after receiving the Honorary Doctorate Degree (Honoris Causa) from the State Islamic University (UIN) Alauddin Makassar, on Thursday.
The farmers in some areas in Java Island as well as in Klaten (Central Java), Bojonegoro (East Java), to Demak, Central Java, have opposed the rice import plan.
The farmers had cited the approaching harvest season as the reason for opposition. In addition, the costs incurred by farmers are also huge.
"The government does not want to take risks, if it falls short of stocks it will be added," he stated briefly.
The VP has previously asserted the government?s decision to import 500 thousand of rice because of the shortage in the supply of rice in the country.
The lack of domestic rice production is due to weather conditions, which affect the quality of rice.
In the meantime, the chairman of the People`s Consultative Assembly (MPR), Zulkifli Hasan, has reminded the government not to import rice before the harvest time, as it may cause the price of rice to drop during the harvest season.
"The decision to import rice before the harvest time creates injustice, because it will harm local farmers," Hasan stated at the Parliament Building in Jakarta on Thursday.
He called on President Joko Widodo to prevent rice imports ahead of the harvest period, as it would be detrimental to local farmers, whose incomes are already limited.
According to him, if rice imports are done before the harvest, then the rice stock will increase sharply. This will result in drastic drop in rice price, resulting in loss for local farmers.
"I appeal to the president to avoid any incidental policies that could disrupt the main policy of the government," he noted.
On the occasion, he also reminded the government to be careful while making decisions about the provision of rice stock.
According to him, although the government is trying to reduce increase in rice price, it still can create new problems by importing rice.
Hasan pointed out that even if the government is forced to import, the rice should not be stored directly in Indonesia but in the country of origin, until the very precise time to bring it to Indonesia.
"This is in order to prevent farmers, who are in the harvest time, from being affected by the drop in rice prices," he pointed out.
Senate keen on up to 50% rice
tariff
(The Philippine Star) | Updated January 26, 2018 - 12:00am
Sen. Cynthia Villar, who chairs the Committee on Agriculture and
Food, said lawmakers would likely consider up to 50 percent rice tariff, based
on the latest Senate hearing. File
MANILA, Philippines — The
Philippines may impose up to 50 percent duty on imported rice as lawmakers
finalize the amendments to the Agricultural Tariffication Act, which replaces
quantitative import restrictions with tariffs.
Sen. Cynthia Villar, who chairs the
Committee on Agriculture and Food, said lawmakers would likely consider up to
50 percent rice tariff, based on the latest Senate hearing.
“It will be around 35 percent for
ASEAN and maybe up to 50 percent outside. We hope we can finish this in the
first quarter. If not, we hope to finish it by May,” Villar told
reporters on the sidelines of the EcoWaste Management opening ceremony
yesterday.
The Agricutlural Tariffication Act
needs to be amended as the government moved toward the removal of QR.
Lifting of the QR is expected to
give the government an additional revenue of P25 billion.
“We will give the income from the
tariff to PhilRice (Philippine Rice Research Institute) to encourage farmers to
use inbred seeds because it can produce up to six metric tons per hectare from
the current four metric tons,” Villar said.
The Philippines is among the
largest rice importers in the world, bringing in over one million MT of the
staple annually.
The WTO granted the Philippines an
extension of its QR on rice importation until June 30, 2017 to allow local
farmers to prepare for free trade.
QR is a non-tariff measure that
limits the volume of imports of a specific product.
In 1995, the WTO first allowed the
Philippines to impose a 10-year QR on rice importation. In 2004, it was
extended to 2012, and renewed in 2014.
In 2014, the WTO granted Manila’s
petition for an extension of its special tax treatment on rice on the condition
that it raises the annual import volume from 350,000 MT and lower the tariff to
35 percent from 40 percent.
Fake news, fake Rolexes, and…fake
rice?
The business that seems to be
booming these days is fake something-or-other: fake news, with which our
president seems obsessed; fake truth, generated in great abundance in D.C.;
fake catfish (yuck!); fake Rolexes/Coach handbags, and assorted other
cost-an-arm-and-a-leg fashion stuff that you can buy online and on a street
corner for a steal; fake “facts” about GMOs, genetic engineering, and other
anti-agriculture scare propaganda, and on and on.
Now, for cryin’ out loud, we
gotta worry about fake rice. Yeah, I know, you’d think rice is rice is rice,
and anybody oughta be able to tell rice when they see it or eat it. Apparently
not.
But…there is genuine concern
in the U.S. rice industry about food products that appear to be rice, can be
mistaken for rice, but never saw a rice field.
Arkansas Rice Federation
Executive Director Lauren Waldrip Ward recently testified before the state’s
Joint Senate and House Committee on Agriculture about the industry's
concern over a current food trend in which vegetables —are being
"riced" and marketed as a "more healthy" form of rice.
Non-rice products are stocked on
grocery shelves alongside rice, which is often confusing to the consumer. Many
of these products don’t include a single grain of rice.
Some companies are marketing
these products by identifying them as "riced vegetables," she says,
while others are marketing vegetables and other non-rice products as
rice. The non-rice products are stocked on grocery shelves alongside rice,
which is often confusing to the consumer.
Many of these products, Ward
says, don’t include a single grain of rice. Among them, Cauli Rice, Miracle
Rice, Better Than Rice, and Green Giant's Cauliflower Fried Rice. Some of the
packaging, he notes, is designed and displayed to mislead, and
advertisements directed to consumers with messages reading "Move
over, rice" are likely causing confusion among consumers.
The Better Than Rice products
are, according to info on the web, made from something called Konnayaku flour,
derived from a corm of a tropical plant known as konjak. Online reviews range
from ecstatic to “weird slimy, fishy taste,” to “awful taste and texture no
matter how you cook it,” to “it is so disgusting, seriously.”
"Our industry has made
significant investments developing and building the brand we have for rice.
These companies have made it clear that they intend to capitalize on that very
brand. Our farmers are proud of the quality associated with the rice they
grow, and we must continue to preserve that image while also protecting
consumers.”
Consumers “have a right to know,
honestly and transparently, what they are purchasing and these fake rice
products are designed to mislead them,” Ward says. “We don't want consumers who
want to purchase rice to be tricked into buying something other than rice. Rice
is a grain — not a shape. "
Members of the committee asked about actions being taken at the
federal level by the Food and Drug Administration and
expressed strong interest in supporting those efforts. "We'll do
whatever is necessary to combat this issue," said Senator Blake
Johnson, R-Corning.
http://www.deltafarmpress.com/rice/fake-news-fake-rolexes-and-fake-rice
S. Korea's per-person
rice consumption hits fresh low in 2017
2018/01/25 12:00
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SEJONG, Jan. 25 (Yonhap) -- Per capita rice consumption in South
Korea hit a fresh record low last year amid rapid changes in eating habits,
government data showed Thursday.
The average annual consumption of rice per person fell to 61.8
kilograms last year, down 0.2 percent from the previous year's 61.9 kg,
according to the data by Statistics Korea.
Rice is a key staple food for Koreans, but its consumption has
been on a steady decline since the early 1980s, when it posted around 130 kg.
Compared with 1970, when consumption hit a record high of 136.4 kg, rice intake
has more than halved in 2017.
Daily rice consumption per person also dropped to 169.3 grams
last year from the 169.6 grams tallied in the previous year, the data showed.
Consumption of non-rice grains edged down 2.2 percent on-year to
9.1 kg in 2017 from 9.3 kg a year ago, accounting for 12.8 percent of the
country's total grain consumption, the statistical agency said.
A growing number of South Korean people have been reducing their
rice intake and diversifying their diets with other alternative grains like
wheat, barley, beans and corn.
(END)
http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2018/01/25/0503000000AEN20180125003600320.html
Resilient rice project to target top two producers, China and
India
KUALA LUMPUR (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Representatives of a
pilot project that promotes socially and environmentally responsible rice
growing said they aim to expand into India and China, the world’s largest rice
producers. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the
Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) worked with more
than 80 partners to create the world’s first “global rice sustainability
standard”.The standard provides a framework to drive government policy, as well
as a working definition to be used by the private sector to monitor their own
sustainability goals.The sustainability standard has been tested over the past
two years in nine countries, mostly in Southeast and South Asia.“This is a
fledgling project still - our next task will be to upscale,” said Wyn Ellis,
coordinator for the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP).The SRP is a coalition of
more than 80 representatives from non-governmental organizations, and the
private and public sectors, which launched the sustainability standard in
2015.“We will need to be moving into China and into India quite soon - those
are our priorities in future,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.The
standard promotes improvements in rice farming using more than 40 requirements
and “performance indicators”, which authorities and companies such traders and
supermarkets can use as best practice guidance.These include measures against
abuses such as child labor. The standard also aims to make rice growing more
environmentally friendly by, for example, restricting the use of pesticides.Members
of the SRP hope that the standard will also be used in a certification scheme
to help consumers choose ethical rice. Governments may also use it to promote
sustainable rice farming and meet emissions targets.Water management is crucial
factor in achieving those targets.Up to 40 percent of the world’s irrigation
water is used for rice production, while up to 10 percent of global methane
emissions come from rice fields, according to the SRP.During pilot testing, the
standards helped reduced the water used in rice farming by 20 percent, cut
greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent and increased farmers’ incomes by 10
percent.“It is huge,” said Bruce Tolentino, deputy director general at IRRI,
referring to the sustainability standard, which he hoped could be expanded
globally.The world produced more than 500 million tonnes of milled rice in
2017, with China, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Thailand among the
top growers.The grain is the main staple for 3.5 billion people but as the
world’s population continues to grow, output will need to rise by about 25
percent over the next quarter century, IRRI estimates.
Reporting by Michael Taylor, Editing by Jared Ferrie; Please
credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters,
that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights,
climate change and resilience. Visit news.trust.org
Husker researchers explore economic potential
for sweet sorghum ethanol in western Nebraska
·
IANR
Media
·
Jan
24, 2018 Updated 12 min ago
January 24, 2018
Lincoln, Neb. — A team at the
University of Nebraska–Lincoln is exploring sweet sorghum ethanol as a future
income source for dryland agriculture in western Nebraska.
Sweet sorghum is a cultivar of
sorghum primarily developed for the harvest of juice. Due to its high sugar
content and stability during periods of drought, researchers have identified
the crop as a potential ethanol feedstock crop on non-irrigated farmland in
western Nebraska. Ethanol feedstocks are the plant materials which can be
converted to ethanol. In this case, the sugar syrup from sweet sorghum stalks
would be fermented to make ethanol.
Corn currently serves as the
leading feedstock for ethanol production in the U.S. For sweet sorghum to
compete with corn for ethanol production, not only must it be more lucrative
than corn for farmers to produce, but it also must be more economical than corn
for ethanol plants to process. Considering factors such as yield and the cost
of processing, researchers estimate that the current sorghum to ethanol pathway
is a barely break-even prospect in western Nebraska.
“Under the typical conditions
considered, there are insufficient benefits to farmers and ethanol plants to
make the sweet sorghum ethanol pathway an attractive economic opportunity,”
said Richard Perrin, Jim Roberts Professor in the Department of Agricultural
Economics. However, according to Perrin, the researchers found that there are a
few potential considerations that would improve the viability of the pathway.
Currently, the U.S. Renewable
Fuel Standard (RFS) mandates consumption of specific levels of renewable fuels
made from various categories of feedstocks. Under the markets created by the
RFS, ethanol plants would be almost certain to obtain a premium for sweet
sorghum ethanol compared to corn ethanol. The current level of that premium
makes the pathway much more economical. However, according to the researchers
the volatility of this market premium and the contentious political opposition
to the RFS make this benefit risky.
Another consideration which could
increase the potential of the sweet sorghum ethanol pathway, is an increase in
yields. A separate $13.5 million multi-institutional research project led by
Nebraska may provide the necessary yield increases. That effort aims to improve
sorghum as a sustainable source for biofuel production
“If the research efforts raise
biomass yields by 20-30 percent, or shows that yields are actually 20-30
percent higher than our estimate, the benefits to both the producer and the
ethanol plant would be sufficient to make adoption of sweet sorghum for ethanol
a sustainable possibility,” Perrin said.
Joining Perrin in this research
effort were Lilyan Fulginiti, professor in the Department of Economics, Ismail
Dweikat, professor in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture and Subir
Bairagi, post-doctoral fellow at the International Rice Research Institute.
Details of this research were
reported in the January issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
Richard PerrinJim Roberts Professor
Department of Agricultural Economics
402-472-9818
rperrin@unl.edu
This article originally appeared
on IANRnews.unl.edu:
http://www.starherald.com/farm_ranch/extension/husker-researchers-explore-economic-potential-for-sweet-sorghum-ethanol-in/article_51b2bbf1-8c1c-5510-8336-605d0c5fd5cc.html
Japanese Farmer-Philosopher On How Indians Can Benefit From
'Fukuoka Way' Of Farming
Jan 25, 2018, 16:41 IST | Gaurav Sarkar
During A Brief
Halt In The City, Author Larry Korn, Revolutionary Japanese Farmer-Philosopher
Masanobu Fukuoka's Student, Explains How Indians Can Benefit From 'Fukuoka Way'
Of Farming
Larry Korn translated the Japanese Farmer s book One Straw Revolution. Pic/Suresh Karkera
Be it Maharashtra Tamil Nadu or any other part of the country,
the agriculture industry is plagued by a lot more than rising prices of manures
and pesticides. While acres of crops are destroyed every year due to floods and
drought-like situations, farmer suicides across the country are also at an
all-time high. With such situations in the backdrop, author Larry Korn, the late
revolutionary Japanese farmer-philosopher Masanobu Fukuoka's student, says that
a journey back to the past may help in harvesting a better future.
Korn's itinerary
In conversation with mid-day, Korn, who helped Fukuoka translate his immensely popular book in English, One Straw Revolutionary, admits that he is looking forward to visiting farmlands and other places his guru had frequented in Fukuoka's early days as a philosopher. Apparently, back in the '80s, Fukuoka visited India five times to spread the ideology of natural farming among farmers. In the city before heading to Wanwadi near Pune, where he intends to participate in a gathering of natural Indian farmers, Korn says, "At the event in Wanwadi, participants will try to formulate plans to take the system of natural farming ahead. Following this event, I will conduct a weeklong workshop session in Karnataka to explain the benefits of Fukuoka's style of farming. Indians can benefit a great deal from this way of farming as it will reduce cost of production, too."
In conversation with mid-day, Korn, who helped Fukuoka translate his immensely popular book in English, One Straw Revolutionary, admits that he is looking forward to visiting farmlands and other places his guru had frequented in Fukuoka's early days as a philosopher. Apparently, back in the '80s, Fukuoka visited India five times to spread the ideology of natural farming among farmers. In the city before heading to Wanwadi near Pune, where he intends to participate in a gathering of natural Indian farmers, Korn says, "At the event in Wanwadi, participants will try to formulate plans to take the system of natural farming ahead. Following this event, I will conduct a weeklong workshop session in Karnataka to explain the benefits of Fukuoka's style of farming. Indians can benefit a great deal from this way of farming as it will reduce cost of production, too."
Fukuoka's farming technique
Korn describes himself as a "through-and-through LA-bred youngster" who headed to Japan at the age of 23, to learn and experience farming practices in the nation. "I had just graduated out of Berkley College in 1970 when I headed to Japan, where I learnt and got acquainted with farming tools and practices for two years. After years of hearing about Fukuoka's revolutionary farmland, in 1972, I embarked on a journey to visit Shikoku Island and meet Fukuoka. A lot of things stood out when I first saw his farm. Fukuoka did not plough the soil at all, there was no tillage system. He did not flood his rice fields or use any kind of machinery and fertilisers/pesticides for crops. Yet, he reaped better harvest than farmers in Japan, who employed the so-called 'modern' methods of farming. In fact, he managed the good produce after harvesting rice and barley on the same field every year. He also maintained a ground cover of soil-building plants on the surface of the orchards and the rice field, throughout the year."
Korn describes himself as a "through-and-through LA-bred youngster" who headed to Japan at the age of 23, to learn and experience farming practices in the nation. "I had just graduated out of Berkley College in 1970 when I headed to Japan, where I learnt and got acquainted with farming tools and practices for two years. After years of hearing about Fukuoka's revolutionary farmland, in 1972, I embarked on a journey to visit Shikoku Island and meet Fukuoka. A lot of things stood out when I first saw his farm. Fukuoka did not plough the soil at all, there was no tillage system. He did not flood his rice fields or use any kind of machinery and fertilisers/pesticides for crops. Yet, he reaped better harvest than farmers in Japan, who employed the so-called 'modern' methods of farming. In fact, he managed the good produce after harvesting rice and barley on the same field every year. He also maintained a ground cover of soil-building plants on the surface of the orchards and the rice field, throughout the year."
Korn says Fukuoka's approach involves relying on Nature's unique
ability to produce things on its own. "We need to return to our roots,
literally. Fukuoka's point was that if we can restore the landscape to it's
original form, we can rely on Nature's ability to keep producing to its maximum
capacity. Farmers around Fukuoka used all sorts of machinery and pesticides,
but they still couldn't match the quality and quantity of Fukuoka's
produce."
So, why don't modern pragmatic countries adopt Fukuoka's method
of farming? "People are used to conventional forms of farming. But, fact
remains that our primitive ancestors lived in harmony with Nature for thousands
of years without contaminating it with fertilisers and pesticides. It's time
that we return to our roots, too."
https://www.mid-day.com/articles/japanese-farmer-philosopher-on-how-indians-can-benefit-from-fukuoka-way-of-farming/18978185
Rice paper village keeps ancient
craft alive
Update: January,
26/2018 - 09:00
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|
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Stack that paper: Racks of rice paper at a factory.
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Home to the Thuận Hưng rice paper village, the ward has around 50 professional rice paper businesses.
No one knows when the rice paper making began here, but households in the area say they have been making the item for around 200 years, a craft passed down from generation to generation.
Since demand has always been steady for their products in this part of the country, villagers often start the day at 2am, finish work at 4pm, and don’t go to bed until around 8pm. During the peak season, which starts three months before Tết, they may even have to stay up all night.
At times, demand soars so high the workers can barely keep up with production schedules and have to turn down new customers.
The village households specialise in making different kinds of flavoured rice paper: plain, salted, sweetened and coconut, all of which can be used to wrap spring rolls, dip in water, grill, or eat raw.
Plain rice paper is especially popular during Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday, as it is used as offerings to ancestors and as treats for guests.
“We only use rice, clean river water, and other ingredients like salt or sugar. Strictly no preservatives or chemicals, only natural ingredients,” said Nguyễn Hữu Nghĩa, who has owned his rice paper business for 30 years.
Despite the simple recipe, making good rice paper is a demanding skill and requires precision in selecting the right kind of rice as well as finesse in cooking and handling the rice paper.
First, rice is soaked in river water and then ground. The cook then pours and spreads the batter into a circular shape onto a piping hot griddle which sits on top of a pot of steaming, boiling hot water. The batter is covered with a rattan “hat”, which helps to trap the heat and cook the paper in less than 10 seconds.
Since the freshly cooked rice papers are extremely fragile, the cook has to gently remove the paper with a cylindrical bamboo roll wrapped in cloth and transfer it to a cooling rack.
Freshly cooked rice papers normally take around half an hour to dry if under bright sunlight, or a few hours otherwise. Most households have to stop working when it rains.
Quality rice paper is expected to be smooth and crispy, with a satisfying crunch when bitten, yet soft and chewy when dipped in water.
The businesses also provide jobs for the village, since most households need extra workers to cope with demand. On average, workers make VNĐ70,000 - 120,000 (US$3 - 5) per day.
Two households invested in rice paper factories with automated machinery and production lines to great success, but others are hesitant about bringing in technology.
A typical household can make around 32 kilos of rice paper per day. Each household can make from VNĐ200,000 to 700,000 per day, depending on their output.
About 60 per cent of the rice paper businesses operate on a daily basis, while the rest only work during the peak season to pursue better-paying jobs the rest of the year.
Rice paper making is a tiring and time-consuming job that pays relatively poorly, but the local villagers are determined to keep the traditional craft alive.
“Our family has been making rice paper for three generations now and our daughter is now making rice paper for a living,” said Hà Thị Sáu, who has been in the business for 30 years.
Little competition exists between the businesses even though many of them are clustered together and share tips with each other.
In 2008, Cần Thơ City recognised the village as a place of attraction deserving of value and preservation.
But, despite its rich history and popularity, Thuận Hưng village is not a famous tourist attraction and only occasionally visited by people on their way to other well-known places.
To create better awareness of its special product and tourism potential, the local authority is looking at plans to create a brand for Thuận Hưng rice paper by 2019, according to the deputy chairman of Thuận Hưng People’s Committee. — VNS
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Roll it up: A sheet of coconut rice paper being rolled and taken
off the griddle.
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image:
http://image.vietnamnews.vn//uploadvnnews/Article/2018/1/22/DN011908431105807AM.jpg
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Prepping product: Dried rice paper is ready for packaging.
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image:
http://image.vietnamnews.vn//uploadvnnews/Article/2018/1/22/DN011908-Steaming26105807AM.jpg
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Getting steamed: The owner of a rice paper business steams rice
paper.
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image:
http://image.vietnamnews.vn//uploadvnnews/Article/2018/1/22/DN011908-Lineuprack449105806AM.jpg
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Roll up, roll up: Racks of rice paper lined up along the road. —
VNS Photos Việt Dũng
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Grain gain: China’s rice exports to
Africa surge
26 January,2018 Downloads
* Ivory Coast overtakes S.Korea as top export destination in 2017 *
Chinese stocks of rice could feed India for a year * One Belt, One Road scheme
helps boost sales to Africa -analyst * Stockpiles shrink in rival exporter
Thailand By Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu BEIJING, Jan 25 (Reuters) - China’s
rice exports to Africa surged last year, customs data showed on Thursday, with
the world’s second-largest producer of the staple grain pushing to clear
bulging state and commercial warehouses as it overhauls government support for
its farming sector.
That rapid growth in sales to African nations is expected to
continue in 2018, as buyers there increasingly turn to China as stockpiles are
almost depleted in rival supplier Thailand. China in 2017 sold just over
781,000 tonnes of rice to almost 40 African countries including Ivory Coast and
Senegal, up from around 74,000 tonnes the year before, data from the General
Administration of Customs showed. That accounted for nearly 70 percent of
China’s total shipments of the commodity, versus 19 percent in 2016. West
Africa’s Ivory Coast overtook South Korea to become the top destination for
China’s rice in 2017, with total purchases of 309,200 tonnes. “China has very
high stocks of rice. The state is taking various measures to destock,” said
Chen Xiaoshan, an analyst with Zhuochuang, a commodities consultancy in China’s
eastern province of Shandong. “The Belt and Road Initiative policy also boosted
the chances to export rice to these African countries,” Chen said, referring to
a Chinese project to promote trade links with Asia, Africa and Europe through
billions of dollars in infrastructure investment. The pace of exports may stoke
concerns in the international market about China selling excess grain abroad
after years of stockpiling. In 2016, the United States complained to the World
Trade Organization about Beijing’s support for the country’s wheat, corn and
rice farmers. China has around 94 million tonnes of rice stockpiles, two-thirds
of the world’s excess inventory and enough to feed India for a year. A lot of
that was accumulated through years of the government buying the grain from
farmers at a minimum price when the market price dropped below that level. But
last year Beijing cut minimum prices for rice and wheat for the first time,
marking the start of an overhaul of the subsidy programme. Analysts expect
another cut to rice prices in 2018. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said
earlier this month that it expected Chinese sales of old-crop rice, especially
to West Africa, to continue to expand as Thailand’s old-crop government stocks
are nearly depleted.
Thailand has sold most of the about 18 million tonnes of rice built
up during a rice-buying scheme introduced by a previous government. “This year,
we no longer have any old rice in the state stockpile, so it is likely that
China will take this African market from us,” Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary
president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, told Reuters on Thursday.
“This will also depend on how much old rice China has in its stockpile.” South
Korea bought 167,270 tonnes of rice from China in 2017, Thursday’s data showed,
making it the second-largest buyer of the grain. That was down 4.7 percent from
2016. (Reporting by Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu; additional reporting by
Panarat Thepgumpanat in BANGKOK; Editing by Joseph Radford and Christian
Schmollinger)
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles-coal-russia/exclusive-despite-sanctions-north-korea-exported-coal-to-south-and-japan-via-russia-intelligence-sources-idUSKBN1FE35N
Rice News Today. All rights reserved Organic farming: U’khand to set up 10,000 clusters,
plans 2 laws
Date: 26-Jan-2018
The Uttarakhand government would
develop nearly 10,000 organic clusters in the mountain region even as a move
“is on” to legalise organic farming, agriculture minister Subodh Uniyal said
Thursday
Deep
Joshi
Hindustan Times, Dehradun
Hindustan Times, Dehradun
Farmers at a field in Dehradun. The Organic Agriculture Bill,
once enacted, would provide legal backing to the government’s initiatives aimed
at developing the hill region as a full-fledged organic state. (HT File)
The Uttarakhand government would develop nearly 10,000 organic
clusters in the mountain region even as a move “is on” to legalise organic
farming, agriculture minister Subodh Uniyal said Thursday.
“The Centre has agreed in principle to allocate a budget of Rs
1500 crore to develop 10,000 organic clusters in the state. It is one of
several steps initiated by the Centre to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s
vision to develop Uttarakhand as an organic state so that local farmers’ income
could be doubled by 2022,” Uniyal said.
Modi had made an announcement to this effect while laying
foundation stone for the Kedarnath reconstruction projects last year.
Uniyal said funds “have started flowing in to pave the way to
give a fillip to organic farming even as the state government had initiated
steps” to legalise the alternative agricultural system.
“In that connection, we will soon introduce two dedicated laws,”
he said adding the Organic Agriculture Bill and the Nursery Management Bill
would be enacted in the assembly’s budget session that would commence by March
end.
The Organic Agriculture Bill, once enacted, would provide legal
backing to the government’s initiatives aimed at developing the hill region as
a full-fledged organic state. “It would be mandatory for private parties, who
would be roped in to provide plants and seeds to farmers, to register
themselves under the proposed law,” said Uniyal adding, the rule would ban the
use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides in areas selected for organic
farming.
Besides, the proposed law would have strict provisions for
penalising those who would be caught using chemical fertilizers or insecticides
while growing organic crop of any kind. “Besides, under that law, it would be
mandatory for farmers to get their products certified by the designated
agencies,” he said. The provisions would also be applicable to the agencies
that “provide plants and seeds etc to farmers or those (agencies) that undertake
value addition of organic farm produce.”
All such legal measures would help establish “our agricultural
produce” as a distinct brand. “That will help us achieve our objective to
establish the mountain state as an exporter of organic produce internationally”,
Uniyal said. “Export of organic produce will fetch huge foreign exchange hugely
benefiting our farmers doubling their income by 2022 in keeping with the Prime
Minister’s vision.”
Similarly, the proposed Nursery Management Bill would also have
strict provisions. “Once this bill is enacted, those who dupe farmers by
supplying substandard saplings or seeds will be severely penalized,” he said
adding, the government had already declared 10 blocks as “fully” organic.
Other 10,000 organic clusters would be developed under the
Prampara Krishi Vikas Yojna, a centrally-funded scheme. “This project will be
implemented in a five lakh acre area and will boost the income of five lakh
farmers. Under this scheme, separate clusters of organic seeds, vegetables, fruits
of different kinds, varieties of agricultural crops including Basmati rice
besides those of herbs and medicinal plants would be developed. Besides, plans
were afoot to develop 500 clusters of high density apples. “Our aim is to be at
par with neighbouring Himachal Pradesh in apple production,” Uniyal said.
Besides, the state government would soon introduce a project
under which an Integrated Model of Agriculture Village would be developed.
Under that project, each cluster would be equipped with facilities such as cold
storage and sorting-grading units etc. “These clusters will also be equipped
with farm machinery banks so that farmers can use state-of-the-art farm
equipment to enhance the agricultural productivity,” Uniyal said.
Grain
gain: China's rice exports to Africa surge
Reuters Staff
JANUARY 25, 2018
* Ivory Coast overtakes S.Korea as top export destination in 2017
* Chinese stocks of rice could feed India for a year
* One Belt, One Road scheme helps boost sales to Africa -analyst
* Stockpiles shrink in rival exporter Thailand
By Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu
BEIJING, Jan 25 (Reuters) - China’s rice exports to Africa surged
last year, customs data showed on Thursday, with the world’s second-largest
producer of the staple grain pushing to clear bulging state and commercial
warehouses as it overhauls government support for its farming sector.
That rapid growth in sales to African nations is expected to
continue in 2018, as buyers there increasingly turn to China as stockpiles are
almost depleted in rival supplier Thailand.
China in 2017 sold just over 781,000 tonnes of rice to almost 40
African countries including Ivory Coast and Senegal, up from around 74,000
tonnes the year before, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
That accounted for nearly 70 percent of China’s total shipments of the
commodity, versus 19 percent in 2016.
West Africa’s Ivory Coast overtook South Korea to become the top
destination for China’s rice in 2017, with total purchases of 309,200 tonnes.
“China has very high stocks of rice. The state is taking various
measures to destock,” said Chen Xiaoshan, an analyst with Zhuochuang, a
commodities consultancy in China’s eastern province of Shandong.
“The Belt and Road Initiative policy also boosted the chances to
export rice to these African countries,” Chen said, referring to a Chinese
project to promote trade links with Asia, Africa and Europe through billions of
dollars in infrastructure investment.
The pace of exports may stoke concerns in the international market
about China selling excess grain abroad after years of stockpiling. In 2016,
the United States complained to the World Trade Organization about Beijing’s
support for the country’s wheat, corn and rice farmers.
China has around 94 million tonnes of rice stockpiles, two-thirds
of the world’s excess inventory and enough to feed India for a year. A lot of
that was accumulated through years of the government buying the grain from farmers
at a minimum price when the market price dropped below that level.
But last year Beijing cut minimum prices for rice and wheat for the
first time, marking the start of an overhaul of the subsidy programme. Analysts
expect another cut to rice prices in 2018.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said earlier this month that it
expected Chinese sales of old-crop rice, especially to West Africa, to continue
to expand as Thailand’s old-crop government stocks are nearly depleted.
Thailand has sold most of the about 18 million tonnes of rice built
up during a rice-buying scheme introduced by a previous government.
“This year, we no longer have any old rice in the state stockpile,
so it is likely that China will take this African market from us,” Chookiat Ophaswongse,
honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, told Reuters on
Thursday.
“This will also depend on how much old rice China has in its
stockpile.”
South Korea bought 167,270 tonnes of rice from China in 2017,
Thursday’s data showed, making it the second-largest buyer of the grain. That
was down 4.7 percent from 2016. (Reporting by Josephine Mason and Hallie Gu;
additional reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat in BANGKOK; Editing by Joseph
Radford and Christian Schmollinger) https://www.reuters.com/article/china-economy-trade-rice/grain-gain-chinas-rice-exports-to-africa-surge-idUSL4N1PJ2ZW
Rice basmati goes up on buying by stockist
25 JANUARY 2018 Last Updated at 2:13
PM
New Delhi, Jan 25 Rice basmati
prices rose by up to Rs 200 per quintal at the wholesale grains market today on
increased buying by stockists.
However, wheat slipped on
adequate stocks position.
Traders said increased buying by
stockists against tight stocks position on fall in arrivals from producing
belts pushed up rice basmati prices.
In the national capital, rice
basmati common and Pusa-1121 variety went up by Rs 100 and Rs 200 to Rs 8,300-
8,400 and Rs 7,000-7,100 per quintal, respectively.
On the other hand, wheat dara
(for mills) prices edged lower by Rs 10 to Rs 1,795-1,800 per quintal. Atta
chakki delivery followed suit and traded lower by a similar margin to Rs
1,805-1,810 per 90 kg.
Following are today's quotations
(in Rs per quintal):
Wheat MP (desi) Rs 2,080-2,280,
Wheat dara (for mills) Rs 1,795-1,800, Chakki atta (delivery) Rs 1,805-1,810,
Atta Rajdhani (10 kg) Rs 260-300, Shakti Bhog (10 kg) Rs 255-290, Roller flour
mill Rs 960-970 (50 kg), Maida Rs 990-1,000 (50 kg)and Sooji Rs 1,050-1,060 (50
kg).
Basmati rice (Lal Quila) Rs
10,700, Shri Lal Mahal Rs 11,300, Super Basmati Rice Rs 9,800, Basmati common
new Rs 8,300-8,400, Rice Pusa (1121) Rs 7,000-7,100, Permal raw Rs 2,325-2375,
Permal wand Rs 2,375-2,425, Sela Rs 2,800-3,000 and Rice IR-8 Rs 1,975-2,025,
Bajra Rs 1,200-1,205, Jowar yellow Rs 1,375-1,425, white Rs 2,750-2,850, Maize
Rs 1,340- 1,345, Barley Rs 1,480-1,490.
https://www.outlookindia.com
Cabinet purchase body approves
rice, fertiliser imports
Sun Online Desk
24th January, 2018 09:44:27
Cabinet
Committee on Public Purchase on Wednesday approved 15 proposals including
import of 100,000 metric ton of non-Bashmoti parboil rice from India.
Indian
firm Rashid Automatic Rice Mills will supply the bulk rice at a cost of Tk
422.59 crore (Tk 42.25 per kg) at the 54 centres through three packages.
The
Indian firm was selected by an open international tender, said Cabinet Division
additional secretary Mustafizur Rahman while briefing newsman on the outcomes
of the meeting.
Finance
Minister AMA Muhith presided over the meeting as chief of the committee.
The
committee approved a number of separate proposals for fertiliser import by
Agriculture Ministry and Ministry of Industries, reports UNB.
As per
the proposals, the Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation (BADC) will
import 25,000 mt of TSP fertiliser from Groupe Chimique Tunisien (GCT) of
Tunisia under the state-to-state agreement while it will import a same quantity
of TSP fertiliser from OCT of Morocco under the similar deal between the two
nations.
The
Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) will import 45,000 mt of
granular urea fertiliser from international market in two lots.
Local
Poton Traders will supply 25,000 mt fertiliser at Tk 73 crore while another
local firm Hydrocarbon Ltd will supply 20,000 mt at Tk 58.40 crore
The BCIC
will also import another 25,000 of fertiliser from UAE under the state-to-state
deal at a cost of Tk 52 crore as each metric ton will cost $250.
The
committee approved a proposal of Home Ministry to extend the current deal with
British firm De La Rue for supply of extra 5 million machine readable passport
(MRP) booklets and 5.5 million lamination foils at a cost of $11.49
million.
The
committee approved a proposal of the Energy Ministry to import 245,000 metric
tons of different petroleum products from different international sources for
six months period from January-June in 2018 in which the government has to
spend Tk 245 crore for premium purpose.
Of this,
diesel will be 109,000 mt, Jet A1 Fuel 110,000 mt and furnace oil will be
26,000. The price of the petroleum will be fixed at the time of import
order.
A
proposal Education Ministry to build a 10-floor academic building for Noakhali
University of Science and Technology received the nod of the committee.
A local
joint venture firm won the contract to construct the building at as cost Tk
115.70 crore.
Energy
Ministry’s different proposals for import of different drilling equipment and
services received the nod of the committee.
.
http://www.daily-sun.com/post/284321/Cabinet-purchase-body-approves-rice-fertiliser-imports
Rice exports surge despite fraud; but government can still play
a bigger role
25 JAN 2018
Workers
moving sacks of rice at Bayintnaung Wholesale Market. Nyan Zay Htet/The Myanmar
Times
Despite higher incidences of trading fraud, rice exports are
expected to increase in 2018 on the back of demand from China, the largest
importer of Myanmar rice, as well as other countries like Bangladesh and Sri
Lanka, rice traders said.
Last year, fraudulent traders made off with some K10 billion in
rice revenues, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) and Myanmar Rice Federation
(MRF). The most recent incident of fraud involves A.S.O Company, which charged
merchants in advance for rice supplies worth K5.6 billion, the Bayintnaung
Commodity Depot said. The supplies were never delivered.
A.S.O Co had been involved in the rice trade for two years, but
it had not registered as a member with the MRF, Myanmar Rice Merchants
Association and Bayintnaung Commodity Depot, The Myanmar Times understands.
U Aung Swe Oo, who owns A.S.O Co, is allegedly missing but still
within the country after being accused of swindling the money, the Bayintnaung
Commodity Depot announced on January 6 and 19. His family members fled Myanmar
between January 2 and 5, data from the immigration department shows. A total of
64 complaints, including one by a foreign company, have been filed.
In a separate incident, 50 rice traders from Mandalay and
Sagaing reported missed export payments from China worth K5 billion after their
Chinese partner was allegedly arrested and unable to receive the
supplies.
Rising exports
The number of fraudulent incidents is taking place at a time
when rice exports are at their highest level in 60 years. Since the start of
the 2017-18 fiscal year on April 1, 2017 up until January 5, Myanmar exported
more than 2.6 million tonnes of rice. By the end of the fiscal year on March
31, the MOC expects total exports to reach 3 million tonnes, backed by China
and new demand from Bangladesh, which has committed to importing a million
tonnes of Myanmar rice this year.
Local consumption has also been on the rise, with the rice
prices up by K10,000 per 50 kilograms compared to K2,000 in the export market.
Myanmar currently produces 13 million tonnes of rice, around 60 percent of
which is consumed locally.
Meanwhile, more farmers are entering the rice production
business. “Since the pulse and bean sector collapsed, more farmers have
switched to producing rice as they see strong demand for this crop,” said U Sai
Kyaw.
As such, the government should take steps to prevent fraud and
draw up clear policies for efficient and transparent trading of rice. “Rice is
the most important crop for exports so the government should play a greater
role in supporting an effective and efficient market for the trade,” said U Tin
Hlaing Win, chairman for the Paddy Producing and Distribution Association in
Mandalay.
For example, the government can provide warehouses for local
storage and improve trade financing support for local traders who are currently
at the mercy of Chinese traders. Due to the lack of storage facilities and
trade financing, traders are forced to store rice supplies in China and accept
credit based on Chinese terms.
U Sai Kyaw, an official of the MRF, added that a clear export
policy should be drawn up with procedures on how rice should be traded with
international buyers. “We need an export policy which provides access to
information on traders such as their background as well as prices for each
season. This will help prevent fraud,” he said.
Government support
For its part, the government on Tuesday set a target loan amount
totaling K65 billion for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the rice
sector. The MRF, with the applied SME loans, plans to allocate the financial
resources into eight sectors, including seed production, export business,
joint-venture formation, upgrading machineries, setting up rice mills and power
supply, among others.
In addition, the MRF is drafting a working programme for
the rice sector, in terms of finances, management and other issues which SMEs
are facing. Implementation is expected to begin in April.
The construction of rice and paddy warehouses and related
machineries will be set as priorities, thus those projects will be given
special consideration for loans. The MRF expects that 20 percent of all the
loans will be dedicated to warehouses, whereas 18pc will go to construction of
energy plants and 17pc will have reserved for upgrading rice machineries on the
field.
Meanwhile, the MOC, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and
Irrigation and the MRF will meet to restructure the rice market, U Toe
Aung Myint, permanent secretary of the MOC told The
Myanmar Times Tuesday.
https://www.mmtimes.com/news/rice-exports-surge-despite-fraud-government-can-still-play-bigger-role.html
Rice prices soar in top exporters as Indonesia shops, fresh
deals beckon
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Rice prices in top exporter India jumped
to their highest in about 6-1/2 years on strong demand from Asia and Africa,
exporters said, while rates for the staple hit multi-month highs in Thailand
and Vietnam following recent purchases by Indonesia.
A
farmer winnows rice in a field on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, November 4, 2016.
REUTERS/Amit Dave/Files
In India, rates were also buoyed by hopes that Philippines and
Indonesia will buy more rice in the coming months to build inventories.Indonesian
state food procurement agency Bulog bought about 346,000 tonnes in an
international tender last week, to be sourced from Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan
and India.“Prices (in India) have jumped, but even at higher levels, buyers are
ready to make purchases. They fear prices could rally further,” said M.
Adishankar, executive director at Sri Lalitha, an exporter located in southern
Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.India’s 5 percent broken parboiled rice
price jumped by $12 to $444-$448 per tonne, the highest level since
September 2011, when the country lifted a four-year-old ban on non-basmati rice
shipments.“The market is expecting more buying from Indonesia and Philippines.
Bangladesh and African countries are also active in the market and buying
mainly from India,” said an exporter based in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.Surplus
supplies in all exporting countries have been depleting and that could push
prices higher by another $10-15 in coming weeks, the exporter said.
Workers
unload bags of rice from a truck before loading them onto a boat at Sunda
Kelapa port in Jakarta, Indonesia, November 21, 2016. REUTERS/Iqro
Rinaldi/Files
Bangladesh, which has emerged as a major importer of the grain
since 2017 after floods damaged its crops, has approved the purchase of 100,000
tonnes of parboiled rice in a domestic tender, a food ministry official said on
Thursday.
The winning bidder will supply the rice from India, the official
added.Meanwhile, Vietnam’s benchmark 5-percent broken rice rose to $450 a
tonne, FOB Saigon, the highest in more than three years. Last week, prices
ranged $420-$430. Traders said despite higher prices, sellers
are reluctant to commit to new deals as stock is low at the end of the crop
season while harvesting is scheduled in late February or early March.
The market is also eyeing deals from the Philippines, which plans to import
250,000 tonnes to boost thinning stockpiles.Thailand’s benchmark 5 percent
broken rice rose to a peak since June 2017, at $440-$448, free-on-board (FOB)
Bangkok, versus $415-$420 last week.“Indonesia purchased about 120,000 tonnes
from Thailand and there are talks of the country importing an additional
150,000 tonnes from us,” said a Bangkok-based trader.“It has been the single
biggest factor for the hike in rice prices. There are no other impending deals
at the moment and supply is constant.”
Reporting by Suphanida Thakral in Bangkok, Rajendra Jadhav in
Mumbai, Mai Nguyen in Hanoi, and Ruma Paul in Dhaka, editing by David Evans
https://in.reuters.com/article/asia-rice/rice-prices-soar-in-top-exporters-as-indonesia-shops-fresh-deals-beckon-idINKBN1FE1SP
Rice production to surpass consumption through
March: Agriculture Ministry
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta | Thu,
January 25, 2018 | 03:23 pm
The Agriculture Ministry has said it expects
rice production to exceed projected consumption in January, February
and March, as the harvest season had commenced across the country.
The head of the ministry’s food
security agency, Agung Hendriadi, said in a statement released on
Thursday that rice stocks would reach 2.8 million tons in January, followed by
5.4 million tons in February and 7.4 million tons in March.
“At a total consumption of 2.5 million tons per
month, I can assure that in the next three months, we will record surplus rice
stock,” he said as reported bykompas.com.
Agung said that surplus production was
estimated at 329,000 tons in January, 2.9 million tons in February and
4.97 million tons in March, adding that the figures were calculated
according to the crop area of rice fields.
Farmers had already harvested 854,000 hectares
of rice fields to date and were expected to harvest 1.6 million hectares
in February and 2.25 million hectares in March.
To ensure food security, Agung added,
the farmers were to plant at least 1 million hectares of rice.
“Insya Allah (God willing),
with the support of tractors and improvements in irrigation networks,
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/01/25/rice-production-to-surpass-consumption-through-march-agriculture-ministry.html
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