14 July,2018 Daily Jang Lahore Edition
Elections for
Leadership at RMA and USA Rice PAC
By Deborah Willenborg
IRVING, TX -- At USA Rice's
July Business Meeting here this week, the USA Rice Millers' Association (RMA)
announced the election of Keith Gray, Vice President of Supply Chain at Riviana
Foods, as chairman, and Keith Glover, President & CEO of Producers Rice
Mill, as vice chairman. Each will serve
a two-year term that begins August 1, 2018.
Chairman-elect Gray presented outgoing RMA Chairman Alex Balafoutis
with a plaque to commemorate his tenure, and thanked Balafoutis for his
outstanding service and dedication to the organization.The USA Rice Political
Action Committee (PAC), a grassroots, bipartisan, industry-specific PAC, also
re-elected California rice farmer Sean Doherty as chairman and Mississippi rice
farmer Kirk Satterfield as vice chair.
But where can he send it?
The Trump
Effect on Trade
By Lesley Dixon
WASHINGTON, DC -- The last several months in international trade
have been unpredictable and often contentious as many of the U.S.'s largest
trading partners react to the Trump Administration's recent tariffs. As the U.S. exports 50 percent of its rice
crop each year, any disruption in trade has a major impact on the profitability
and viability of farmers, millers, merchants, and others in the U.S. rice
industry.
Just after midnight on Friday, July 6, the U.S. government enacted
tariffs threatened by President Trump against China, putting a 25 percent
border tax on $34 billion worth of Chinese imports. This recent round of tariffs is an effort by
the Trump administration to punish China for what it sees as intellectual
property theft, and follows on the heels of tariffs levied against steel and
aluminum imports from many origins including China, Mexico, Canada, and the
European Union earlier this year.
China swiftly responded with $34 billion of retaliatory tariffs
against a range of U.S. goods and commodities.
President Trump has threatened more tariffs of up to $500 billion on
Chinese imports in response.
Although China's tariffs have threatened large parts of the U.S.
agriculture sector, they do not directly impact rice sales, since China does
not currently accept U.S. rice exports.
The bitter back-and-forth retaliation could, however, potentially set
back the U.S.'s recent progress with the Chinese government to open up their
enormous market to U.S. rice.
"The trade dispute with China will negatively impact our
ability to sell into the Chinese market in the short-term," said Todd
Burich, with ADM Rice, Inc. and member of the USA Rice International Policy
Committee. "I think it may be
difficult for the U.S. rice industry to navigate an agreement with the Chinese
government in such a contentious atmosphere."
Closer to home, Mexico, the U.S.'s top rice market, has levied
retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. in response to the Trump administration's
duties against aluminum and steel imports.
While rice is not on that list, Mexico did temporarily remove tariffs on
rice from Asian origins, which presents an opportunity for some of the U.S.'s
toughest competitors to swoop into this important market. Retaliatory tariffs from Canada valued at
$12.5 billion have also gone into effect, targeting products from districts
represented by Republican lawmakers.
Rice is not on Canada's retaliation list either, however, the
tension between the three neighbors caused by the trade dispute is compounded
by failure to conclude negotiations to "modernize" the North American
Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Ongoing
negotiations among the three countries have missed multiple deadlines, and the
President has threatened several times in the last year to exit the agreement.
"We are advocating that the partners of NAFTA come to a
solution right away," said Burich.
"It's unclear when that will happen, but there probably won't be a
resolution until 2019, after our midterm elections."
Looking east, U.S. rice has been directly targeted by retaliatory
tariffs from the European Union of 25 percent, including milled and semi-milled
long and medium grain, and broken rice.
This is already affecting shipments to Europe.
Meanwhile, Turkey has also announced increased import duties on
U.S. rice. Exports to Turkey are
variable and extremely price sensitive, and any additional duty on U.S. rice in
the face of competing suppliers from Russia and Southeast Europe is likely to
greatly harm this export market.
The U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement is another deal the Trump
administration has plans to retool.
According to Carl Brothers, senior vice president & COO of
Riceland Foods, the U.S.-Colombia trade deal has been a huge benefit to U.S.
rice. "The agreement opened a new
market, and the management of access by auctioning the certificates has
generated millions of dollars for U.S. rice research. We want to preserve this key benefit."
"Agriculture is perhaps the sector most impacted by
retaliation to the Trump administration's steel and aluminum tariffs,"
said USA Rice COO Bob Cummings.
"Many in the rice industry are already experiencing consequences,
while others see the administration's trade policies as a necessary hardline,
and that once the storm has been weathered the U.S. will be in a stronger
position on international trade matters.
In the meantime, USA Rice continues to advocate for a resolution of
trade disputes that preserves NAFTA, opens the Chinese market to U.S. rice, and
eliminates the retaliatory tariffs that unfairly target rice producers."
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has said that the Trump
administration is crafting a strategy to keep U.S. farmers from being harmed by
retaliatory tariffs.
Rice plants evolve to adapt to flooding
Date:July
12, 2018
Source:Tohoku
University
Summary:
Although
water is essential for plant growth, excessive amounts can waterlog and kill a
plant. In South and Southeast Asia, where periodic flooding occurs during the
rainy season, the water depth can reach several meters for many months.
Temporal morphological changes of rice in deepwater
conditions.
Credit: Copyright Takeshi Kuroha,
Keisuke Nagai, and Motoyuki Ashikari
Although water is essential for
plant growth, excessive amounts can waterlog and kill a plant. In South and
Southeast Asia, where periodic flooding occurs during the rainy season, the
water depth can reach several meters for many months.
Rice varieties known as
"deepwater rice" have developed a unique strategy to ensure their own
survival. Deepwater rice grows normally in shallow water but in heavy floods
increases its height in keeping with rising water levels, to enable the plants
to ride out lengthy floods.
A research team comprising
Takeshi Kuroha at Tohoku University, Motoyuki Ashikari at Nagoya University,
Susan R. McCouch at Cornell University and colleagues in Japan and the U.S.A.,
have discovered a gene in rice that is critical to its survival in flood
conditions. They have also shed light on its molecular function and
evolutionary history.
The research group identified the
SD1 (SEMIDWARF1), as a key gene responsible for the deepwater rice's response.
The SD1 encodes a biosynthesis enzyme of gibberellin -- a plant hormone. The
gene orchestrates the deepwater rice response via a unique gain-of-function
allele. When submerged, rice accumulate ethylene, a gaseous plant hormone.
Deepwater rice amplify a signaling relay in which the SD1 gene is
transcriptionally activated by an ethylene-responsive transcription factor,
OsEIL1a.
The resulting SD1 protein directs
increased synthesis of gibberellins, largely one of gibberellin species, GA4,
which promote vertical growth in the plant. Further analysis revealed that this
conditionally functional variation evolved first in a wild ancestor and was
then a target of selection during the domestication of cultivated rice adapted
to deepwater environments in Bangladesh.
The SD1 gene is well-known as the
Green Revolution gene in rice, where a loss-of-function allele of SD1 confers
short plant height, providing lodging resistance and increases the harvest
index, generating greater grain yields under high input agricultural systems.
A transcriptional
gain-of-function allele of the same gene enables deepwater rice to adapt to
flooding via the opposite phenotypic response -- an increase in plant height.
The ability of SD1 to function in such diverse roles in cultivated rice highlights
the inherent plasticity of plant response to its environment.
"Extreme weather events
caused by climate change could affect food production worldwide," said
Kuroha. "Farmers will need to diversify their methods and the cryptic
genetic variation found in wild rice genes may offer adaptive solutions for
growing resilient crops."
Story Source:
Journal Reference:
1.
Takeshi
Kuroha, et al. Ethylene-gibberellin signaling underlies
adaptation of rice to periodic flooding. Science,
2018 DOI: 10.1126/science.aat1577
Tohoku University. "Rice plants evolve to adapt to
flooding." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 12 July 2018.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/07/180712141631.htm>.
Why India
Needs to Ditch its Rice Dependency
·
July
12, 2018
·
Follow
Steve at @stevenbwriting
India is one of world’s largest producers of rice. While that has created a substantial
economic growth, new research highlights how it has also created significant
hardships that India must now tackle.
·
reducing
undernourishment in India
·
promoting sustainable
water use
As the research notes, rice
production on the scale currently seen across Asia, and specifically in India,
means these promises are still not being met.
“If we continue to go the route
of rice and wheat, with unsustainable resource use and increasing climate
variability, it’s unclear how long we could keep that practice up,” says Kyle Davis, lead author of the study. “That’s why
we’re thinking of ways to better align food security and environmental goals.”
The researchers looked at India’s
population and their current health issues. India, like other nations on the
Asian continent, has seen a significant population boom. That can be good for a
nation, so long as all its people are getting their basic needs met.
TDAP invites
applications for int’l exhibition
Social media is furious at Trump’s behaviour with the
Queen, see for yourself
Mali ang Math mo! Piñol hits Robredo for
using rice cost for politicking
Jul 13, 2018
Images from Facebook: MannyPinol / VP Leni Robredo
Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol
is wiling to give Vice President Leni Robredo a briefing on the real state of
the country’s agriculture sector after she used rice prices to attack the
Duterte administration.
Piñol said Robredo’s “wrong rice
Math” was an injustice to farmers in the country.“Two days ago, Vice President
Leni Robredo in a press conference, made an off-the-cuff computation on the
increase in the cost of rice which she claimed was hurting Filipino consumers
using it as a proof that the administration has done little to address rising
prices,” Piñol said in a Facebook post.“Not only was her ’40 x 4 = 1,600′
ridiculously and atrociously wrong, it actually showed her lack of profound
understanding of the true state of Philippine Agriculture and the poverty that
pervades in the farming and fisheries sectors,” he said.
He said Robredo also perpetuated
the injustice inflicted on farmers and fishermen who often get the blame
whenever prices of rice, fish, meat and vegetables increase. “Going back to the
issue of why the price of rice has gone up, the basic and simple answer is it
is because the Cost of Living has gone up,” he said.Piñol said Robredo should
have asked for briefing from the Department of Agriculture before using the
rice issue to get back at the President.
“Even this late, however, I am
still offering to give Vice President Robredo a briefing on the State of
Philippine Agriculture to help her realize that the ‘Laylayan ng Lipunan’ that
she fondly talks about and says have been neglected by government are actually
the farmers and fishermen, the very people whose lives will be affected if
shecontinues to use the price of rice and other food commodity as a political
issue,” he said.
Rice exports post healthy
growth in Fiscal Year 2018
Rice exports from Pakistan posted a healthy growth of 28 percent
to reach two billion dollar mark in the last fiscal year (FY18). According to
Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP), Pakistan has exported total
4.023 million metric tons of rice amounting to $ 2 billion during FY18 compared
to some 3.44 million metric tons rice amounting to $ 1.6 billion exported in
FY17, showing a significant growth of 27.7 percent in terms values and 17
percent in terms of quantity.Rafique Suleman Senior Vice Chairman has said that
this growth was also become possible due to the recent two tenders of
Indonesian authority BULOG for total 200,000 metric tons of Pakistani rice,
which fetched a remarkable foreign exchange for our country. Although last year
REAP has achieved a milestone but this fiscal year exported may face multiple
challenges, he added.
He informed that Kenya has been the largest buyer of Pakistani non basmati rice and Pakistan has exported 439,000 metric tons of rice amounting to $ 171 million during the last fiscal year. "Previously, there was a preferential duty in Kenya for Pakistani rice but Kenya has imposed import duty of 35 percent OR $200 (whichever is higher) of which rice exports to Kenya is declining. He requested Ministry of Commerce, to coordinate Kenyan Government for imposition of preferential duty, so that trade balance between both countries should be stable.
China used to be the 2nd largest buyer of non basmati rice; however exports to china are also on decline. Pakistan has exported 272,000 metric tons of rice during FY18 compared to 589,000 metric tons of rice in FY17. "In the context of CPEC, there are billion dollars investment opportunities and there is need that government of Pakistan must initiate talks with China to include Pakistan in the duty regime like ASEAN countries, so that rice exports to China may again increase", he demanded.
Rafique has also shown serious concerns on the recent reports of shortage of water. He said that other countries like Thailand, Vietnam, China etc. avails 2-3 rice crops in a year and their annual rice production is approximately 100 million tons, whereas our annual rice production is hardly 7 million tons, that is why our rice export is stagnant to some 4 million tons since last many years. He said that after the construction of New Dams, Pakistan can preserve the water like other countries and can also get more than one crop of rice per years which will make revolution in our agricultural industry. "We may generate huge quantity of very low cost electricity which will be useful to cover the shortfall of energy crisis of our country. Every province of the country will be able to get additional millions of acre feet water after the construction of new dams", he added.
He was of the view that it's the need of hour that government of Pakistan should allow rice sowing in more lands, so that we can get more rice to export more rice to get more foreign exchange.
He has shown his concern that there is no Research and Development work has been made in rice trade. "Our Research Departments are really sleeping and Pakistani rice exporters are importing hybrid rice seeds from China on self-made basis to get better yield. We are doing the job, which have to be done by the concerned government departments", he added.
Rafique said that Pakistani rice exporters are putting their extra ordinary efforts for fetching valuable foreign exchange for the growth of economy of our beloved country and making huge investment for installing world's latest rice machinery and most modern technology for value addition in rice. REAP has already requested State Bank of Pakistan for allowing Islamic Financing facility for storage of Agricultural produce.
He informed that REAP is continuously sending trade delegation to various countries for the forceful marketing of Pakistani rice. In this regard, a delegation is planned to visit Brazil, Argentine and Chili. Rafique emphasized that few years back exports of basmati rice were one million tons, whereas in last fiscal year Pakistan has only exported half a million tons basmati rice. One of the largest buyers of Basmati rice was Iran, but due to the non availability of banking channel, Pakistani rice exporters could not export basmati rice to Iran, he mentioned. He also requested the government for appointment of educated and efficient Commercial Secretaries/ Counselors in Pakistani Missions abroad in important rice buying countries. As due to the negligence of some Commercial sections of our missions, Pakistani rice exporters are facing severe hardships in those countries, he added.
On domestic side, these are also multiple challenges. For example, he said, in some cases, exporters have to call back their rice containers return to Pakistan. Unfortunately, Custom department demands overall tax of some 7.5 percent for release of returned commodity container. This is not justified as exporters have already observed huge losses in terms of ports and shipping charges. He appealed the government to waive this huge tax to rice exporters, as despite the 2nd largest export trade this sector has been neglected.
Rafique Suleman Senior Vice Chairman has said that the $2 billion milestone has been achieved by the consistent efforts of Chaudhary Samee Chairman REAP, Hamdullah Khan Tareen Vice Chairman REAP under the leadership and guidance of Abdul Rahim Janoo Former Chairman REAP.
He informed that Kenya has been the largest buyer of Pakistani non basmati rice and Pakistan has exported 439,000 metric tons of rice amounting to $ 171 million during the last fiscal year. "Previously, there was a preferential duty in Kenya for Pakistani rice but Kenya has imposed import duty of 35 percent OR $200 (whichever is higher) of which rice exports to Kenya is declining. He requested Ministry of Commerce, to coordinate Kenyan Government for imposition of preferential duty, so that trade balance between both countries should be stable.
China used to be the 2nd largest buyer of non basmati rice; however exports to china are also on decline. Pakistan has exported 272,000 metric tons of rice during FY18 compared to 589,000 metric tons of rice in FY17. "In the context of CPEC, there are billion dollars investment opportunities and there is need that government of Pakistan must initiate talks with China to include Pakistan in the duty regime like ASEAN countries, so that rice exports to China may again increase", he demanded.
Rafique has also shown serious concerns on the recent reports of shortage of water. He said that other countries like Thailand, Vietnam, China etc. avails 2-3 rice crops in a year and their annual rice production is approximately 100 million tons, whereas our annual rice production is hardly 7 million tons, that is why our rice export is stagnant to some 4 million tons since last many years. He said that after the construction of New Dams, Pakistan can preserve the water like other countries and can also get more than one crop of rice per years which will make revolution in our agricultural industry. "We may generate huge quantity of very low cost electricity which will be useful to cover the shortfall of energy crisis of our country. Every province of the country will be able to get additional millions of acre feet water after the construction of new dams", he added.
He was of the view that it's the need of hour that government of Pakistan should allow rice sowing in more lands, so that we can get more rice to export more rice to get more foreign exchange.
He has shown his concern that there is no Research and Development work has been made in rice trade. "Our Research Departments are really sleeping and Pakistani rice exporters are importing hybrid rice seeds from China on self-made basis to get better yield. We are doing the job, which have to be done by the concerned government departments", he added.
Rafique said that Pakistani rice exporters are putting their extra ordinary efforts for fetching valuable foreign exchange for the growth of economy of our beloved country and making huge investment for installing world's latest rice machinery and most modern technology for value addition in rice. REAP has already requested State Bank of Pakistan for allowing Islamic Financing facility for storage of Agricultural produce.
He informed that REAP is continuously sending trade delegation to various countries for the forceful marketing of Pakistani rice. In this regard, a delegation is planned to visit Brazil, Argentine and Chili. Rafique emphasized that few years back exports of basmati rice were one million tons, whereas in last fiscal year Pakistan has only exported half a million tons basmati rice. One of the largest buyers of Basmati rice was Iran, but due to the non availability of banking channel, Pakistani rice exporters could not export basmati rice to Iran, he mentioned. He also requested the government for appointment of educated and efficient Commercial Secretaries/ Counselors in Pakistani Missions abroad in important rice buying countries. As due to the negligence of some Commercial sections of our missions, Pakistani rice exporters are facing severe hardships in those countries, he added.
On domestic side, these are also multiple challenges. For example, he said, in some cases, exporters have to call back their rice containers return to Pakistan. Unfortunately, Custom department demands overall tax of some 7.5 percent for release of returned commodity container. This is not justified as exporters have already observed huge losses in terms of ports and shipping charges. He appealed the government to waive this huge tax to rice exporters, as despite the 2nd largest export trade this sector has been neglected.
Rafique Suleman Senior Vice Chairman has said that the $2 billion milestone has been achieved by the consistent efforts of Chaudhary Samee Chairman REAP, Hamdullah Khan Tareen Vice Chairman REAP under the leadership and guidance of Abdul Rahim Janoo Former Chairman REAP.
FDA Blacklists DANA RICE
GNA
A press statement signed and
issued to the Ghana News Agency by Mrs Delese Darko, the Chief Executive
Officer of the FDA, stated that the FDA had intensified its Surveillance
activities across the country, including markets, ports and borders to ensure
the product did not find its way into the Ghanaian market.
She entreated the public to
verify from the Authority, any information relating to the FDA's mandate before
circulating or forwarding such information on social media. She said persons
with any additional relevant information on the DANA RICE or any other FDA
related issue should contact them through any of the following contacts;
0299802932, 0299802933 and on Short Code: 4015, free on all networks except
GLO.
Rice survives long-term floods due to newly
discovered genetic mechanism
A farmer
inspecting a crop of deep water rice.
By Krishna
Ramanujan |
Provided
Deepwater
rice elongates with rising flood waters, up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) per
day, and can reach up to 23 feet (7 meters) tall to keep shoots above water.
The chart shows a comparison in growth between normal rice (top) and deepwater
rice (bottom) when submerged over a week.
A team of Cornell and Japanese researchers has
discovered a new genetic mechanism that allows certain rice plants to survive
monthslong floods. When the plant becomes submerged, a rare form of a gene
triggers rapid growth to keep shoots above rising water.
In a study published July 13 in Science, the
team identified a rare allele (a mutation) of the semi-dwarf 1 (SD1) gene that
orchestrates adaptation to deep water. By identifying the allele, breeders may
target it to develop new varieties adapted to long-term flood conditions.
“If the water only rises one foot, the plant
only grows one foot; if the water rises 20 feet, it can grow to stay ahead of
that water,” said Susan McCouch, Cornell professor of plant breeding and
genetics and a senior author of the study. Takeshi Kuroha, a plant biologist at
Tokohu University, Japan, is the paper’s first author along with Diane Wang
Ph.D. ’17, a former graduate student in McCouch’s lab, who is currently a
postdoctoral associate at the University at Buffalo. Motoyuki Ashikari, a rice
geneticist at Nagoya University, Japan, is also a senior author.
Researchers and breeders have been interested
in understanding how to breed plants that naturally sense their environment and
respond dynamically to changes in that environment; deep water rice provides an
excellent example of that. The allele allows rice plants to grow rapidly under
deep water, but only when they are submerged. Otherwise, the plants grow
normally.
Through genetic analysis, the team determined
that the allele evolved first in a wild rice, Oryza rufipogon, in Bangladesh
and was domesticated there by ancient farmers who wanted to grow rice through
sustained deep-water floods. To this day, farmers in Bangladesh, Thailand,
India, Vietnam and other places that experience long seasonal floods grow
cultivated varieties of O. sativa that survive in deep water. Farmers may wade
chest-deep or take boats to harvest the grains from the top of the water.
“As climate change triggers radical shifts in
weather patterns, other forms of cryptic genetic variation found in wild gene
pools may offer adaptive solutions to help breeders fine-tune modern rice
varieties to withstand the challenges of future growing conditions,” said
McCouch.
During the genetic analysis, McCouch and
colleagues were initially surprised to find the rapid elongation trait mapped
to a region of the chromosome that was associated with dwarfed plant stature.
Decades ago, researchers identified a “loss-of-function” allele of the SD1 gene
that reduces stem and leaf elongation during the plant’s vegetative stage but
does not affect growth during the reproductive stage. As a result, the plant
puts less energy into producing leaf and straw material, and more energy into
producing grain, which enhances yield. The “loss-of-function” SD1 allele was
exploited by breeders to enhance grain yield during the Green Revolution – a
period in the 1960s and 1970s where research and technology increased
agricultural production worldwide. The flood-tolerant SD1 allele is a
“gain-of-function” allele which directs increased expression of gibberellin, a
hormone that promotes stem elongation, and allows the plant to grow rapidly to
survive deep water conditions.
For plants with this “gain-of-function”
mutation, SD1 gene expression is triggered by a build-up of ethylene gas in the
water that occurs when a plant is submerged. The plant chemically senses the
ethylene gas which triggers a genetic response that activates the expression of
the SD1 gene; the protein the gene expresses then causes a rapid increase in a
unique form of the hormone gibberellin, GA4, which promotes rapid stem
elongation and growth of the plant.
The “gain-of-function” allele at SD1 is
referred to as the deep-water haplotype. The researchers traced this haplotype
to wild populations of O. rufipogon in Bangladesh, where it first evolved.
The study was funded by the Japan Science and
Technology Agency, the Canon Foundation, the National Science Foundation and
the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
STORY
CONTACTS
Krishna Ramanujan
No rain in the forecast causes
concern for Arkansas farmers
The Arkansas heat is putting stress on the crops.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - The lack
of rain in Arkansas is drawing concern from farmers who are running out of
water to irrigate fields. University of Arkansas Rice Extension Agronomist,
Jarrod Hardke, said the heat is also putting stress on the crops.
"The biggest point is not
actually the day time temperatures, but the night time temperatures that don't
allow the plants to adequately cool themselves,” Hardke said. "It's very
difficult maintain with this heat and how fast the water's being used and
evaporating.” He said rice farmers are managing for now, but he said the
drought is starting to worry him.
Hardke said farmers are keeping
their rice fields flooding in order to maintain, but it is starting to get hard
to keep up because of the lack of rain in the forecast.
"We will absolutely see
growers who run out of water and are not able to maintain enough moisture to
maximize yield,” Hardke said. "We're running through that at a very rapid
pace.” He also said farmers have about 30-35 days left of adequate moisture.
Soy Bean Agronomist, Jeremy Ross,
said the soybeans are even under more stress.
"Half of our crop is just
starting to get into that time where if we have any stress, we can potentially
have some significant decreases in yield,” Ross said. He is worried the high
temps could create some serious damage. "Larger percentage of the crop is
going into reproduction in the next three weeks, looking at the long term
forecast, it doesn't look like we're going to break this cycle.”
Hardke said harvesting season for
rice doesn't start until next month, so he said farmers are working hard to
make sure they have enough irrigation capacity to make it until then.
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Gloomy forecast for Vietnam’s rice exports in second half of
2018
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By Trung Chanh
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Friday, Jul 13, 2018,18:45 (GMT+7)
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FAO estimates North
Korean rice output in 2018 at last year's level
2018/07/13 10:22
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SEOUL, July 13 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's rice production in the
fall of 2018 is estimated to be similar to last year's volume of about 1.6
million tons, an American broadcaster said Friday, citing a report from the
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
Voice of America said the FAO also estimated the North's corn
output to remain almost unchanged from last year at about 2.4 million tons.
According to the FAO, North Koreans are expected to consume 58.4
kilograms of rice and 81 kg of corn per person this year, which means the
per-capita daily consumption of rice and corn amounts to just 380 grams,
compared with the U.N. recommendation of 600 grams.
In June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a similar
report, estimating the North's rice output this fall at 1.6 million tons, up
slightly from 1.55 million tons a year earlier.
The U.S. department, which uses satellites and other research
methods to monitor the North's crop cultivation, forecast that Pyongyang's rice
imports would reach 80,000 tons this year.
NFA’s announcement to import rice causes commission of graft —
Pangilinan
July 13, 2018, 9:08 PM
By Mario Casayuran
Sen. Francis Pangilinan
said Friday the announcement by the National Food Authority (NFA) to
import rice causes the commission of graft.
Pangilinan, president of the
opposition Liberal Party (LP), issued the statement following an NFA
announcement that it is considering importing another 500,000 metric tons (MT)
of rice due to the depletion of the agency’s stocks.NFA administrator Jason
Aquino said his office would propose to the interagency NFA Council the
importation of the 500,000 MT during the next Council meeting.
But Pangilinan fired off the following questions:
But Pangilinan fired off the following questions:
Who benefits from a premature
disclosure to import huge volumes of rice? Rice traders who make a killing in
the sudden spike in rice prices as well as corrupt government officials who
receive kickbacks because of this artificial price spike. The premature
announcement of rice imports will only exacerbate increase in rice prices to
the detriment of the buying public, many of whom are poor.
Why is this so? The Philippines
is one of the world’s largest importers of rice. Thus, when international rice
traders get advance information regarding these plans, their response is to
increase rice prices in anticipation of our purchases. This can be seen as
price manipulation.
What should have been done? The
plan to purchase or import rice should be a closely guarded secret and public
disclosure made only when the bidding process is to be undertaken.
How else is the rice-buying
public, especially the poor, disadvantaged by the early announcement? The
expensive purchase of rice imports by government places the country deeper into
debt since NFA rice purchases are paid through government borrowings.
The announcement has already been
made, what can be done? Reject high bids. As chairperson of the NFA Council, we
rejected bids that were too high. We rejected bids 4 times in a span of 1 year
and a half. In the first instance, rice prices went down by 30 dollars per ton
the week after the rejection. Overall, we saved the government P6 billion in
rice imports and slashed the average price of rice imports by as much as 120
dollars per metric ton from 2010 prices.
Aquino had said his office is
planning to submit the proposal as soon as possible.
‘’We do not want a repeat of what
happened [in the past month,’’ he said.
The plan of NFA to import was
made during the launch of NFA Kontra Abuso hotline last Thursday.
Aquino expected that once
approved, ideal arrival would be October to December because during this time
prices in the world market are low.
‘’We can get the best deals from
foreign suppliers – low price but still good quality. It’s a win-win for us,”
he added.
The NFA proposal is designed to
boost its buffer stock inventory which is currently at 2.5 days only or about
1.6 million bags when it is supposed to have a 30-day buffer stock during the
lean season.
NFA data showed that total
consumption would reach 14.1 million MT this year but production is seen to
reach only 12.26 million MT. This means that the 1.8 million MT shortfall will
have to be imported.
“Unless they increase our buying
price, we would need to resort to importation. We are also proposing for the
increase in preparation for the lifting of the quantitative restriction,”
Aquino said.
Chinese
officials inspecting Indian mills for imports of non-basmati rice: Indian
government source
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Chinese
officials have been inspecting Indian rice mills to import non-basmati rice, a
senior Indian government official told reporters on Friday.Beijing is also
examining India’s proposal to export raw sugar to China, said the official who
declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.China
is a leading importer of rice and sugar, while India is the world’s biggest
exporter of rice.
JULY 13, 2018 / 1:23 PM
|
Gloomy forecast for Vietnam’s rice exports in second half of
2018
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By Trung Chanh
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Friday, Jul 13, 2018,18:45 (GMT+7)
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NFA’s announcement to import rice causes commission of graft —
Pangilinan
July 13, 2018, 9:08 PM
By Mario Casayuran
Sen. Francis Pangilinan
said Friday the announcement by the National Food Authority (NFA) to
import rice causes the commission of graft.
Sen. Kiko Pangilinan (via kikopangilinan.com |
Manila Bulletin)
Pangilinan, president of the
opposition Liberal Party (LP), issued the statement following an NFA
announcement that it is considering importing another 500,000 metric tons (MT)
of rice due to the depletion of the agency’s stocks.
NFA administrator Jason Aquino
said his office would propose to the interagency NFA Council the importation of
the 500,000 MT during the next Council meeting.
But Pangilinan fired off the following questions:
But Pangilinan fired off the following questions:
Who benefits from a premature
disclosure to import huge volumes of rice? Rice traders who make a killing in
the sudden spike in rice prices as well as corrupt government officials who
receive kickbacks because of this artificial price spike. The premature
announcement of rice imports will only exacerbate increase in rice prices to
the detriment of the buying public, many of whom are poor.
Why is this so? The Philippines
is one of the world’s largest importers of rice. Thus, when international rice
traders get advance information regarding these plans, their response is to
increase rice prices in anticipation of our purchases. This can be seen as price
manipulation.
What should have been done? The
plan to purchase or import rice should be a closely guarded secret and public
disclosure made only when the biddi
ng process is to be undertaken.
How else is the rice-buying
public, especially the poor, disadvantaged by the early announcement? The
expensive purchase of rice imports by government places the country deeper into
debt since NFA rice purchases are paid through government borrowings.
The announcement has already been
made, what can be done? Reject high bids. As chairperson of the NFA Council, we
rejected bids that were too high. We rejected bids 4 times in a span of 1 year
and a half. In the first instance, rice prices went down by 30 dollars per ton
the week after the rejection. Overall, we saved the government P6 billion in
rice imports and slashed the average price of rice imports by as much as 120
dollars per metric ton from 2010 prices.
Aquino had said his office is
planning to submit the proposal as soon as possible.
‘’We do not want a repeat of what
happened [in the past month,’’ he said.
The plan of NFA to import was
made during the launch of NFA Kontra Abuso hotline last Thursday.
Aquino expected that once
approved, ideal arrival would be October to December because during this time
prices in the world market are low.
‘’We can get the best deals from
foreign suppliers – low price but still good quality. It’s a win-win for us,”
he added.
The NFA proposal is designed to
boost its buffer stock inventory which is currently at 2.5 days only or about
1.6 million bags when it is supposed to have a 30-day buffer stock during the
lean season.
NFA data showed that total
consumption would reach 14.1 million MT this year but production is seen to
reach only 12.26 million MT. This means that the 1.8 million MT shortfall will
have to be imported.
“Unless they increase our buying
price, we would need to resort to importation. We are also proposing for the
increase in preparation for the lifting of the quantitative restriction,”
Aquino said.
BANGKOK, July 13
(Xinhua) -- Thai rice exporters are working with farmers to promote
production of a new strain of rice to help raise Thai rice competitiveness in
the world market.
Charoen Laothamatas,
president of Thai Rice Exporters Association, told Xinhua that Thailand needs
to produce what the market wants, "not what we want to produce."
He said Thai farmers
currently produce mostly hard-texture rice, which is favored by consumers in
the Middle East and India.
As producing more of
soft-texture rice could help sell higher volume to countries such as China,
Charoen said the project of promoting soft-texture rice with Thai farmers
will start in August this year in central region of the country, which is the
key rice-growing region with the best irrigated land.
"This is a pilot
project," he said, adding that he expected the production will be about
4,000-5,000 tons of soft-texture rice from the initial phase.
The project will be
funded by Thai Rice Exporters Association.
|
Rice Prices
as on :
13-07-2018 11:21:56 AM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Cachar(ASM)
|
80.00
|
33.33
|
2520.00
|
2400
|
2400
|
9.09
|
|
Gauripur(ASM)
|
43.60
|
-22.14
|
1923.60
|
4500
|
4500
|
NC
|
|
Lakhimpur(UP)
|
32.00
|
33.33
|
282.00
|
2270
|
2310
|
4.61
|
|
Devariya(UP)
|
28.00
|
12
|
1800.50
|
2145
|
2150
|
0.47
|
|
Sahiyapur(UP)
|
17.50
|
NC
|
2275.00
|
2160
|
2160
|
-
|
|
Barhaj(UP)
|
14.00
|
-91.25
|
276.00
|
2160
|
2160
|
-
|
|
Mahoba(UP)
|
10.60
|
-34.57
|
405.10
|
2270
|
2195
|
-
|
|
Alappuzha(Ker)
|
10.00
|
NC
|
70.00
|
6750
|
6850
|
50.84
|
|
Auraiya(UP)
|
7.00
|
16.67
|
957.70
|
2300
|
2350
|
4.55
|
|
Khurja(UP)
|
6.00
|
-14.29
|
702.00
|
2600
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Mirzapur(UP)
|
6.00
|
33.33
|
646.50
|
2215
|
2210
|
-
|
|
Dibrugarh(ASM)
|
5.50
|
-3.51
|
513.90
|
2920
|
2920
|
29.78
|
|
Mugrabaadshahpur(UP)
|
2.30
|
15
|
4.30
|
2250
|
2250
|
-
|
|
Balarampur(WB)
|
1.81
|
-0.55
|
59.48
|
2660
|
2640
|
13.19
|
Bernas unit
urges govt to review rice delivery permits
The Edge
Financial Daily
July 13, 2018 10:40 am +08
July 13, 2018 10:40 am +08
This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily,
on July 13, 2018.
KUALA LUMPUR: Syarikat Faiza Sdn
Bhd, a 51% subsidiary of the country’s sole rice importer PadiBeras Nasional
Bhd (Bernas), is asking the government to review the issuance of permits to
deliver rice products interstate and intercity, claiming the current system is
slowing down its business.
“We are not talking about the
approved permit (AP) as that comes under Bernas. We are talking about the
permit required to deliver products among cities and states,” Syarikat Faiza
managing director Faiza Bawumi Sayed Ahmad told reporters after meeting with
the Council of Eminent Persons yesterday.
According to Faiza, the
government introduced the permit system for food security reasons during the
colonial era, as rice is considered the country’s staple food.
“Now that the communists are no
longer in the country, the government should consider reviewing the issuance of
this particular permit.
“Perhaps this permit is still
valid to curb rice smuggling, but it is slowing down business. For our part, we
are required to deliver to the outlets in time and any delay caused by issues
related to this delivery permit will result in us being penalised,” she
lamented.
Under the agriculture ministry,
the government issues a licence to qualified persons or entities to trade and
sell rice products in a retail market, starting with 10,000kg.
Faiza declined to comment on the
government’s move to terminate Bernas’ monopoly in the rice industry. “I have
no comment on that, as that is at Bernas’ level,” she said.
Shortly after his appointment as
the agriculture and agro-based industry minister, Salahuddin Ayub announced
that the Cabinet had agreed to terminate Bernas’ monopoly to protect the
interests of local paddy farmers.
First 'low' in the series forms, may bring heavy rain to Bengal,
Odisha
Satellite image as of 4.30 pm IST
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JULY 13
The first of the two anticipated
low-pressure areas has formed over the North-West Bay of Bengal, which promises
to change the complexion of the monsoon over East and Central India.
India Met Department (IMD) has
predicted a mostly westerly track for the system after it dumps heavy rain over
Odisha and Bengal, before tracking across Chhattisgarh, East and West Madhya
Pradesh.
Worthwhile successor
It might die out over there, only
because a heavily endowed successor would have made its way into Bengal and
Odisha, intensifying into a depression or even deep depression by July 23.
Earlier, the US Climate Prediction Centre had said that the familiar tracks
that 'low's are known to tread over North India would stay active until July
27/28.
The hyperactive twosome are
expected to help reduce the rain deficit over East India, including Odisha and
Bengal, which are known to be the playgrounds for monsoon 'low's. While the
rain deficit has been climbing up over the East, Saurashtra and Kutch to the
West looked to improve its position thanks to late but intermittent showers
being reported from there.
The rainfall deficit thus far
during the season stands reduced to 70 per cent in Saurashtra and Kutch but in
East India, the comparably smaller deficit had been inching up. IMD said that
heavy to very heavy rain with extremely heavy falls were observed at isolated
places over East Gujarat region, while it was heavy to very heavy over
Saurashtra & Kutch overnight on Friday.
Saurashtra downpour
Heavy to very heavy rain was also
reported from Uttarakhand, East Rajasthan, Konkan & Goa, Madhya
Maharashtra, South Interior Karnataka and Chhattisgarh during this period. It
was heavy rain over Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, West Rajasthan, East Uttar
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Vidarbha, hills of Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Meghalaya,
Kerala and Interior Tamil Nadu.
IMD said that the successor 'low'
is expected to take shape by July 19 (Thursday next). It could intensify
rapidly and become a depression/deep depression over Bengal itself.
It could bring a belt of heavy to
very heavy or even extremely heavy rainfall over the North-Eastern States,
Bengal, Odisha, Jharlhand, and Bihar by July 23. It would still have a few more
days of active live left, with its track of onward movement determining the
spread of rainfall.
IMD seemed to emphasise on the
shape of things to come by saying that the all-important monsoon would lie
along its normal position into the next week, facilitating enhanced rain
activity. It also seemed to bet on the possibility that the monsoon might
revive over East and North-East India after two to three days, with the
initiation of the depression/deep depression.
Published on July 13, 2018
Rice
Imports By Benin, Niger Republic Rises
July 13, 2018
By YUSUF BABALOLA …
As Nigeria slams restriction Foreign rice imports by neighbouring
Benin Republic, Niger and Cameroon from Thailand has increased sporadically
while import to Nigeria decreases, LEADERSHIP investigation has shown. Analysts
have argued that the sharp increase was fuelled by the federal government’s
policy on imported rice in Nigeria which restricts rice importers from
accessing the official foreign exchange (forex) market. This policy implies
that those who import items under foreign exchange restriction can no longer
buy foreign currency from the official window to pay the overseas suppliers.
Rather, they would have to source forex from the parallel market or bureau de
change (BDCs) to pay for their imports. But, the policy has cut down rice
imports into Nigeria drastically that Nigeria had not received vessel of traded
rice since 2017. Also, the 10 per cent import duty with 60 per cent levy and
Benin Republic crashing its own tariff from 35 per cent to a paltry seven per
cent, while Cameroon introduced a zero per cent duty policy on the commodity,
down from 10 per cent is fueling smuggling of parboiled rice into Nigeria. In
the entire West African region, only Nigerians eat parboiled rice. Benin
Republic with a population of 8.02 million and Togo’s 7.06 million people
cannot consume the massive rice imported to their countries. According to data
from the Thai Rice Exporters Association, rice imports from Thailand to Benin
Republic rose from 805,765 MT in 2015, when Nigeria introduced the policy to
1,427,098 metric tonnes (MT) in 2016. It further rose to 1,814,014MT in 2017,
importation from January to May 2018 has risen to 625,863 MT in first five
months of the year. Cameroon also experienced an upsurge in importation from
449,297 MT in 2015 to 502,254 MT in 2016, and 749,008 MT in 2017.
The tiny central African
country bordering Nigeria has recorded 185,707 MT of imported rice from
Thailand from January to May 2018. On the other hand, the importation of
foreign parboiled rice by Togo increased from 54,086 MT in 2016 to 132,978MT in
2017 and currently stood at 100,996 as at May 2018. Ironically, while the rice
vessels call to Nigerian ports have continue to decrease, neighbouring
countries continue to experience increase in vessels. Statistics showed that
importation of parboiled rice into Nigeria decreased from 1,239,810 MT in 2014
to 644,131 MT in 2015.
It further decreased to 58,260 MT in 2016 to 23,192 MT in 2017,
and January to May statistics showed that Nigeria has imported a paltry 2,351MT
in 2018. Corroborating the Thai Rice Exporters Association, the Nigeria Customs
Service (NCS) said since 2017, Nigeria has not received traded rice in Apapa
ports. Speaking when members of the Shipping Correspondents Association of
Nigeria (SCAN) paid him a courtesy visit at the command in Lagos recently, the
controller of the command, Comptroller Jubril Musa, disclosed that the CBN has
not issued Form M to any rice importer. The Customs CAC said no single vessel
of traded rice berthed in Apapa ports in the last two years.
Consequently, the command,
he said, has not recorded any revenue on imported rice through the ports within
the reviewed period. He said, “Form M issuance is not within the purview of the
Nigeria Customs Service. It is a document that is sourced from CBN. If we see
any consignment that has form M, we treat. All goods imported that are for
commercial activities must have form M whether valid for foreign exchange or
not valid. CBN does that and we only treat when we see but throughout last year
to date, no importation of rice has passed through Apapa. So we have not
collected any duty on rice through the port.”
https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:hZ7cjspB2NAJ:https://leadership.ng/2018/07/13/rice-imports-by-benin-niger-republic-rises/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pk
https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:hZ7cjspB2NAJ:https://leadership.ng/2018/07/13/rice-imports-by-benin-niger-republic-rises/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pk
/ 1:23 PM / A DAY AGO
Chinese
officials inspecting Indian mills for imports of non-basmati rice: Indian
government source
Reuters Staff
JULY 13, 2018
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Chinese
officials have been inspecting Indian rice mills to import non-basmati rice, a
senior Indian government official told reporters on Friday.Beijing is also
examining India’s proposal to export raw sugar to China, said the official who
declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.China
is a leading importer of rice and sugar, while India is the world’s biggest
exporter of rice.Reporting by Neha Dasgupta; Editing by Krishna N. Das.
Source : Jang 14 July,2018 Lahore Edition
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