You've been
cooking fried rice wrong! Flip it out of the wok like pancakes every 0.32
seconds for the best flavour, say scientists
·
Perfect wok technique involves pulling pan
towards you before pushing it away
·
Another is using a ‘seesaw’ motion to tilt
the pan backwards and forwards
·
This should be done every 0.32 seconds,
without removing wok from the stove
It is bad news for lazy cooks or those
without much upper arm strength.
Scientists have discovered the secret of the
perfect stir-fry and it means tossing the rice every third of a second.The best
wok technique involves two motions – pulling the pan towards you before pushing
it away, and a ‘seesaw’ motion to tilt it backwards and forwards. This should
be done rapidly every 0.32 seconds, without ever removing the wok from the
stove.
+1Scientists
say secret of the perfect stir-fry is tossing rice every third of a second
Closer To Harvest? The
Status Of The Golden Rice Project
Published on November 20, 2018
by FlipScience StaffCloser To
Despite having received approval
from the US Food and Drug Administration last May, the Golden Rice project is
still about to do field tests to ensure quality and safety in the Philippines.
Written and researched by
Czareina Mae Espiritu, Michael Jay Trapse, Analyn
Cabote, Cecilia Angoluan, Agnes Lagat, Efraim Michael Teja,
and Julibeth Baiwa of Isabela State University
A variety of Oryza sativa (rice) genetically engineered using recombinant
DNA technology, Golden Ricecontains beta carotene, an
antioxidant which the body converts into Vitamin A. This gives the rice grain
the yellow-orange or gold color that inspired its name.
However, the Golden Rice project
is still on its way to completion. Its path, as expected, has not entirely been
bright and shiny.
The road to Golden Rice
The Department of Agriculture’s
Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) is working with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) towards further developing and
completing the Golden Rice project in the Philippines.
The process involves different
stages: research, confined field testing, field trials, safety assessments,
market tests, and nutrition studies. Nevertheless, multiple rounds of trials
and errors are bringing scientists closer to fully developing safe, genetically
modified rice varieties with benefits that conventional varieties do not
provide.
In the early stages of the
project, researchers isolated specific genes from maize (a cereal grain
originally from Central America) and common soil bacteria with desired traits
for Golden Rice. A screen house setup then allowed for the creation of
different local rice varieties.
A series of confined tests
followed, where Golden Rice varieties created in the screen house were further
improved to retain the same grain quality, yield, and pest resistance.
Growing pains
One of the biggest hurdles in the
development of the project took place in 2014. The then-current version of the
genetically engineered rice (also called an “event”), GR2R, achieved the target
level of beta carotene. However, it also resulted in a reduced
yield. Eventually, a more successful event, GR2E, hit the beta carotene
target without negatively affect yield.
For a time, obtaining the
necessary signatures from government authorities for trials proved challenging
as well.
Now, the Golden Rice project is
entering its fourth stage. In this phase, researchers will plant and grow
Golden Rice in the same normal field environment as unmodified rice varieties.
Further tests and assessments will be involved after the field test to ensure
that Golden Rice is efficacious and will reach the communities that need it the
most.
In addition, PhilRice is
currently breeding Golden Rice varieties resistant against diseases such as
tungro and bacterial blight. 
Golden rice for healthy eyes
According to PhilRice, GR2E
Golden Rice should be the same as traditional rice varieties in terms of
safety, span of time from growth until harvest, water requirements, yield, and
market price.
Data from the Food and Nutrition
Research Institute Survey reveals that incidences of vitamin A deficiency among
preschool children have increased from 15.2% in 2013 to 20.4% (about 2.1
million) in 2013. Additionally, roughly 9% of pregnant women and 5% of
lactating mothers suffer from a deficiency in vitamin A.
Once commercialized, Golden Rice
is expected to become an affordable and sustainable way to combat vitamin A
deficiency in the Philippines, particularly in its most remote and
underdeveloped areas.
Numerous methods of fighting
vitamin A deficiency already exist, but Golden Rice looks to be the most
promising. After all, rice is a staple food not just for Filipinos, but for
many Asian regions as well. –MF
Cover photo: IRRI
About the Authors
The authors of this article are
students of Isabela State University. Czareina Mae Espiritu, Michael Jay
Trapse, Agnes Lagat, and Julibeth Baiwa are BS Biology freshmen.
Efraim Michael Teja is a BA Mass Communication student, while Analyn Cabote is
a BS Biology senior. Cecilia Angoluan is finishing her master’s degree in
Biology. The students participa
Scientists have
modified rice to prevent HIV infection
By paradox
19.11.2018
This modification can reduce the incidence in poor countries.
Scientists have discovered the
miraculous property of rice, which was not previously known. A group of
scientists describes a method by which they have modified rice so that it can
be used for preventing HIV infections.
Doctors have made great strides
in the treatment of patients infected with HIV-infections, besides their number
has sharply decreased, especially in developed parts of the world.
Scientists have also spent a lot
of time and effort to develop a vaccine against the virus, but so far have not
succeeded. Although the development of oral drugs that can prevent infection
for a short period of time.
But, as the researchers note,
these drugs are usually not available in third world countries.
In order to help those people at
risk, they have developed a strain of rice which contains the same
HIV-neutralizing proteins, and oral drugs.
After maturation of the seeds
processed at the place in the ingredient is based on it then made a topical
cream containing proteins. The cream should be applied on the skin, so the
squirrels got into the body and had a protective effect.
Rice, was developed by
bioengineers synthesize one type of antibody and two proteins that bind
directly to the HIV virus, not allowing him to interact with human cells.
Scientists have
modified rice to prevent HIV infection
By paradox
19.11.2018
This modification can reduce the incidence in poor countries.
Scientists have discovered the
miraculous property of rice, which was not previously known. A group of
scientists describes a method by which they have modified rice so that it can
be used for preventing HIV infections.
Doctors have made great strides
in the treatment of patients infected with HIV-infections, besides their number
has sharply decreased, especially in developed parts of the world.
Scientists have also spent a lot
of time and effort to develop a vaccine against the virus, but so far have not
succeeded. Although the development of oral drugs that can prevent infection
for a short period of time.
But, as the researchers note,
these drugs are usually not available in third world countries.
In order to help those people at
risk, they have developed a strain of rice which contains the same
HIV-neutralizing proteins, and oral drugs.
After maturation of the seeds
processed at the place in the ingredient is based on it then made a topical
cream containing proteins. The cream should be applied on the skin, so the
squirrels got into the body and had a protective effect.
Rice, was developed by
bioengineers synthesize one type of antibody and two proteins that bind
directly to the HIV virus, not allowing him to interact with human cells.
http://micetimes.asia/scientists-have-modified-rice-to-prevent-hiv-infection/
Aroma of Kala Namak rice to waft
abroad, now
The Terai belt of
Sidhdharthanagar, Maharajganj and Gorakhpur, close to Nepal, was once called
the ‘pride of Purvanchal’ due to the cultivation of a very special variety of
rice there called Kala Namak.
LUCKNOW Updated: Nov 19, 2018 11:29 IST
Abdul
Jadid
Hindustan Times, Gorakhpur
Hindustan Times, Gorakhpur
The rice with and without its
husk.(HT Photo)
The
Terai belt of Sidhdharthanagar, Maharajganj and Gorakhpur, close to Nepal, was
once called the ‘pride of Purvanchal’ due to the cultivation of a very special
variety of rice there called Kala Namak.
However,
with the passage of time, this rare variety of rice, world famous for its rich
aroma and exotic taste, was shunned by farmers because of its low yield and
non-profitability.
The
crop was all but extinct in the region. However, with the efforts of a local
NGO – Participatory Rural Development Foundation (PRDF) led by retired
agri-scientist Ram Chet Chaudhary -- the crop is seeing a revival.
At
an international seminar at IIM Lucknow in 2013, PRDF presented a research it
had conducted, titled ‘Kala Namak from extinction to distinction’.
According
to statistics presented during the seminar, the production of Kala Namak rice
had dropped from 50,000 hectares to just 2,000 hectares of land and was
declining.
However,
after efforts were put in to revive it, production again went up to 35,000
hectares in 2018 in 14 districts, including Gorakhpur, Basti, Maharajganj,
Deoria, Sidhdharthanagar among others.
Also,
three high-yielding varieties of Kala Namak rice have been developed, and its
farming promoted in 14 districts of the Gorakhpur-Basti division. The latest
variety developed is Bauna Kala Namak 102. And if all goes as per plan, people
may have this variety on their table before the year ends.
The
development has attracted Lucknow-based company Wet Land Glory Pvt Ltd, which
on Friday, entered into an agreement to purchase the crop directly from farmers
and market it not only in India but also abroad, especially Dubai and
Singapore, under contract-farming.
If
the NGO is to be believed, the Kala Namak rice cultivation, based totally on
organic farming, has contributed to three times more income to farmers compared
to other paddy varieties such as Samba Massorie, Doongara, Koshihikari and as a
result, more and more farmers are showing interest in it.
Dr
Chaudhary worked with the UN for 10 years, before coming back to the city in
2003. People asked him to do something to revive the dying Kala Namak rice,
related with the identity of region, tracing its history back to the period of
the Buddha. A meeting was called and the issue discussed threadbare with
agriculture scientists from various universities, including Faizabad
University. Even the then agriculture minister, Dhanraj Yadav, had attended the
meeting.
“I
collected over 250 samples from farmers to research the crop. After seven years
of extensive research, I succeeded in developing Kala Namak variety KN3, which
was released by the UP Government and notified by government of India in 2010.
It was rich in aroma and tasted like the original Kala Namak Rice but farmers
complained that it had a low yield and that the outer covering with pointed tip
(awn) troubled them while separating rice from husk.
“Then
I came up with an improvement, ‘Bauna Kala Namak 102’, which was without an awn
and high-yielding. It was released and notified by the government of India in
2016. Now, we have come up with latest variety called ‘Kala Namak Kiran’, which
will soon be notified by the government.
“Now
I wish to boost the marketing of Kala namak so that farmers are encouraged to
grow it and can sell it right from their doorstep,” Chaudhary said.
PK
Srivastava of Wet Land Glory Pvt Limited, who signed the agreement with
farmers, said, “We want to take the Kala Namak Rice to national and
international markets again.
“To
ensure a fair price to farmers for their produce, we have entered into an
agreement with 100% buy-back terms. To take this unique product of UP abroad,
we will also start exporting it soon, besides promoting it through stalls at
the coming Lucknow Mahotsav and even at Kumbh 2019. By the end of December, we
will be able to market it.”
Assistant
Development officer Arvind Kumar Yadav said, “Among the three varieties
developed by Dr Chaudhary, Bauna Kala Namak 102 has become very popular. It’s
very similar to the original crop with a small stem and ripens in a
comparatively shorter period of time. Also, compared to the original Kala Namak
Rice, its gives a good income to farmers. In one hectare, 50 to 55 quintals of
Kala Namak Rice can be grown against 20 to 25 quintals of original Kala Namak
Rice per hectare.”
Agriculture Exporters Convene in Baltimore
BALTIMORE,
MD -- Last week, USA Rice and 80 other agricultural trade associations met here
for the U.S Agricultural Export Development Council (USAEDC) Annual
Workshop. USAEDC is a non-profit, private sector trade association that
represents the groups, including USA Rice, that receive funding from USDA's
Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) for promotion of agricultural products
overseas. This year's two-day event boasted a full schedule of speakers
and breakout sessions which focused on the Farm Bill, mid-term election
results, the toll of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agriculture, and an update on
the Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) program.
Political analyst Charlie Cook started things off with a candid summary of the importance of mid-term elections and how they directly correlate to the government's response to issues facing U.S. agriculture.
FAS Administrator Ken Isley gave the keynote address and discussed an agency reorganization underway designed to better align the mission of FAS with its constituents. USDA staff also provided an update on the ATP program, a 200 million dollar trade mitigation package aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations. During the submission period, 71 organizations requested funding under this new program and the requests were more than three times larger than the amount of available funds. USDA is currently reviewing proposals and expects to have funding decisions completed by January 8, 2019.
Jason Hafemeister, Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, reported that U.S. agriculture's top export markets are also those markets that have imposed retaliatory duties on U.S. goods in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. For example, seventy-two percent of the goods Mexico has slapped with retaliatory tariffs are agricultural exports, and 22 percent of all U.S. exports subject to retaliatory tariffs in China are in the agriculture sector. The negative effects caused by agriculture tariffs were significant enough to justify the implementation of the ATP program.
As part of a panel titled, "Maximizing Opportunities in Brexit," USA Rice COO Bob Cummings spoke about the current market access challenges faced by U.S.-grown rice in the EU with high tariffs, duty free access for only a small amount of U.S. rice, and favorable treatment provided to other origins. The upcoming free trade agreement negotiations with the EU and the UK provide an opportunity for U.S. rice to gain a larger market share in what was once a top market for U.S. rice.
The event culminated with a standing ovation of gratitude to Annie Durbin, who has served in the role of Executive Director for USAEDC since 2000 and is retiring at the end of 2018.
"The USAEDC Workshop is always a great opportunity for us to meet with our partners in FAS and fellow cooperators to discuss challenges and opportunities in international markets. I was happy to be able to publicly honor Annie who has strengthened the public/private partnership with FAS/USDA and the bonds among the USAEDC members during her service as Executive Director," said USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward, who chaired USAEDC from 2012-2014.
Political analyst Charlie Cook started things off with a candid summary of the importance of mid-term elections and how they directly correlate to the government's response to issues facing U.S. agriculture.
FAS Administrator Ken Isley gave the keynote address and discussed an agency reorganization underway designed to better align the mission of FAS with its constituents. USDA staff also provided an update on the ATP program, a 200 million dollar trade mitigation package aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations. During the submission period, 71 organizations requested funding under this new program and the requests were more than three times larger than the amount of available funds. USDA is currently reviewing proposals and expects to have funding decisions completed by January 8, 2019.
Jason Hafemeister, Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs, reported that U.S. agriculture's top export markets are also those markets that have imposed retaliatory duties on U.S. goods in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. For example, seventy-two percent of the goods Mexico has slapped with retaliatory tariffs are agricultural exports, and 22 percent of all U.S. exports subject to retaliatory tariffs in China are in the agriculture sector. The negative effects caused by agriculture tariffs were significant enough to justify the implementation of the ATP program.
As part of a panel titled, "Maximizing Opportunities in Brexit," USA Rice COO Bob Cummings spoke about the current market access challenges faced by U.S.-grown rice in the EU with high tariffs, duty free access for only a small amount of U.S. rice, and favorable treatment provided to other origins. The upcoming free trade agreement negotiations with the EU and the UK provide an opportunity for U.S. rice to gain a larger market share in what was once a top market for U.S. rice.
The event culminated with a standing ovation of gratitude to Annie Durbin, who has served in the role of Executive Director for USAEDC since 2000 and is retiring at the end of 2018.
"The USAEDC Workshop is always a great opportunity for us to meet with our partners in FAS and fellow cooperators to discuss challenges and opportunities in international markets. I was happy to be able to publicly honor Annie who has strengthened the public/private partnership with FAS/USDA and the bonds among the USAEDC members during her service as Executive Director," said USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward, who chaired USAEDC from 2012-2014.
BUSINESS
PNG, Philippines
Rice Venture To Produce Megatonnes
November 20, 2018
BY LEIAO GEREGA
The secretary of the Philippine
Department of Agriculture, Emmanuel Pi`nol has projected 4-5 megatonnes (4-5
million metric tonnes) of rice production in PNG within 2 years, stamping out
criticisms that say PNG is not able to produce and export its own rice.
Mr Pi`nol and Agriculture Minister Benny Allan both stood in for Philippines President Rodrigo Durtete and Prime Minister Peter O’Neill who did not turn up due to APEC commitments last week.
PNG is not a rice exporting country and the MoU hopes to eliminate the expensive exercise of importation cost at K500-600 million annually.
Already in production since August, is the 25-30-hectare rice demonstration field situated in the Pacific Adventist University grounds from which rice seeds will be yielded and replicated from.
The agreement comes through technical, expertise and financial support from the Philippines government in exchange that the rice demo field will replicate seeds with surplus to be exclusively imported to Philippines.
“I was quite impressed by the growth, and the vigor of the rice in the field,” said Mr Pi`nol, who earlier visited the plots and has confirmed its growth to be unique from Philippines rice importing countries.
“Our target for PNG is to cultivate about a 100,000 hectares in two years which will make PNG rice efficient but not only that we will go beyond that and we will target a million hectares in the next five years because that will not only create greater income for the farmers and landowners but will also create food security of the Philippines people.”
For the Philippines this will ease food security issues in their country where they have a population of 105 million people, an annual growth rate of 1.7 percent and only 3.9 million hectares of rice planting fields.
For PNG, growing rice will save high importation bills for which the country currently imports about 400,000 tons of rice annually and spends 500-600 million in kina annually.
“We will simply plant rice in the country not only because we want to feed the people of Papua New Guinea but because we would also like to feed our own people,” said Pi`nol.
The Philippine imports rice from Vietnam, Pakistan and Thailand but Mr Pi`nol projected that the growing population of their trading rice partners will mean lesser supplies in the future.
Mr Pi`nol and Agriculture Minister Benny Allan both stood in for Philippines President Rodrigo Durtete and Prime Minister Peter O’Neill who did not turn up due to APEC commitments last week.
PNG is not a rice exporting country and the MoU hopes to eliminate the expensive exercise of importation cost at K500-600 million annually.
Already in production since August, is the 25-30-hectare rice demonstration field situated in the Pacific Adventist University grounds from which rice seeds will be yielded and replicated from.
The agreement comes through technical, expertise and financial support from the Philippines government in exchange that the rice demo field will replicate seeds with surplus to be exclusively imported to Philippines.
“I was quite impressed by the growth, and the vigor of the rice in the field,” said Mr Pi`nol, who earlier visited the plots and has confirmed its growth to be unique from Philippines rice importing countries.
“Our target for PNG is to cultivate about a 100,000 hectares in two years which will make PNG rice efficient but not only that we will go beyond that and we will target a million hectares in the next five years because that will not only create greater income for the farmers and landowners but will also create food security of the Philippines people.”
For the Philippines this will ease food security issues in their country where they have a population of 105 million people, an annual growth rate of 1.7 percent and only 3.9 million hectares of rice planting fields.
For PNG, growing rice will save high importation bills for which the country currently imports about 400,000 tons of rice annually and spends 500-600 million in kina annually.
“We will simply plant rice in the country not only because we want to feed the people of Papua New Guinea but because we would also like to feed our own people,” said Pi`nol.
The Philippine imports rice from Vietnam, Pakistan and Thailand but Mr Pi`nol projected that the growing population of their trading rice partners will mean lesser supplies in the future.
Buhari’s #NextLevelLies, organises special Dinner, Thanksgiving to
celebrate WAEC ‘Certificate’? –
OVEMBER 19, 201812:49
Number one bestselling author and
former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Pastor Reno Omokri has called
the campaign blueprint, ‘The Next Level,’ which has just been launched by
President Muhammadu Buhari as “Next Level Lies.” Pastor Reno Omokri
El-Rufai to Obi: You’re bigot; No, you’d
insulted Jesus Christ, Omokri replies Pastor Omokri also described as shameless
a claim that the President organised a “special Dinner and Thanksgiving
ceremony to celebrate his WAEC ‘Certificate.” President Buhari is the All
Progressives Congress, APC, party candidate in the coming presidential
election. President Buhari just launched his presidential campaign council,
‘The Next Level,’ wherein he said that his government has stabilised the
economy and reduced rice importation by 90%. He, also promised to overhaul the
education sector by remodeling at least 10,000 schools every year if re-elected
as president in 2019. But Pastor Omokri, in a series of tweets, disagreed with
the president’s development claims, saying they are all lies. According to
Omokri, the Buhari-led government has caused the loss of over 11 million jobs
and reduced Nigeria to second world’s largest importer of rice. “The @MBuhari
campaign document lists job creation as achievement! Even @SGYemiKale, head of
NBS was on Twitter to complain that they have not given him funds to release
this year’s job numbers. 11 million Nigerians lost their jobs. Retweet if you
know it is a lie #NextLevelLies.” “Their Next Level campaign document claims
they stabilised the economy, yet, Bloomberg named the Naira under @MBuhari as
the fourth worst performing currency on earth. Please don’t take my word. Google
it. Retweet if you know this is another big #NextLevelLies “The biggest
@FKeyamo lie in @Mbuhari’s campaign document is the claim they reduced rice
importation by 90%.. Nigeria is now the WORLD’s SECOND LARGEST RICE IMPORTER
after China. Our rice imports increased by 30%. @Google it. Retweet if you know
this is another big #NextLevelLies “Can you imagine how low and shameless
@FKeyamo and co are. They advertise the so called WAEC ‘certificate’ given to
@Mbuhari as an achievement! Look at how stupid they think you are. Look at what
they have reduced Nigeria to. Retweet if you know this is another big
#NextLevelLies “How did Nigeria get to the point where a President arranges a
special Dinner Ceremony and Thanksgiving to celebrate a WAEC ‘Certificate’? I guess
when you have no achievements to celebrate, you end up celebrating your
‘certificate’! Retweet to reject this #NextLevelLies “. @FKeyamo’s Next Level
document praises @MBuhari’s economic plan. Is Keyamo an economist? @BillGates
traveled to @AsoRock and told Buhari face to face that ‘Your economic plan does
not meet the needs of Nigerians’. Google it! Retweet if you know this is
another big #NextLevelLies “Another achievement in @MBuhari’s campaign document
is the creation of “a fairer and more equitable society”. Yet ALL the
intelligence agencies are headed by Northern Muslim men. Not one SE person
heads a security agency. Retweet if you know this is another big #NextLevelLies
“The next achievement in @MBuhari’s campaign document is that “we lay the foundation
for a star and prosperous nation”.Yet Nigeria was officially named the world
headquarters for extreme poverty under Buhari. Retweet if you know this is
another one of @fkeyamo’s big #NextLevelLies “One of the achievements in the
@MBuhari campaign document is the Mambilla hydro power plant. But that plant is
an @OfficialPDPNig project by @GEJonathan. Dont take my word for it. @Google
it. They have no achievements so they lie. Retweet if you know this is a lie
#NextLevelLies 
“Another @FKeyamo lie in @Mbuhari’s campaign
document is the claim that “We implemented a responsible and transparent fiscal
plan”. Yet Ibe Kachikwu’s leaked memo revealed NNPC awarded $25 billion
contracts without due process. Retweet if you know it is another big
#NextLevelLies “One of the achievements in the @MBuhari Next Level campaign
document is that they increased power from 4000 megawatts in 2015 to 7000
megawatts today. But how can you increase power without building even one
single new power station? Retweet if you know this is a #NextLevelLies
“@FKeyamo’s lies of @MBuhari achievements claims they have improved healthcare.
They improved healthcare so much that Buhari lived in London for half of 2017
and @AishaMBuhari complained of no paracetamol in @AsoRock clinic. Retweet if
you know this is another big #NextLevelLies “Even President @MBuhari and
@aishambuhari are not happy with all the #NextLevelLies @fkeyamo packaged for
them!”
“Another @FKeyamo lie in @Mbuhari’s campaign
document is the claim that “We implemented a responsible and transparent fiscal
plan”. Yet Ibe Kachikwu’s leaked memo revealed NNPC awarded $25 billion
contracts without due process. Retweet if you know it is another big
#NextLevelLies “One of the achievements in the @MBuhari Next Level campaign
document is that they increased power from 4000 megawatts in 2015 to 7000
megawatts today. But how can you increase power without building even one
single new power station? Retweet if you know this is a #NextLevelLies
“@FKeyamo’s lies of @MBuhari achievements claims they have improved healthcare.
They improved healthcare so much that Buhari lived in London for half of 2017
and @AishaMBuhari complained of no paracetamol in @AsoRock clinic. Retweet if
you know this is another big #NextLevelLies “Even President @MBuhari and
@aishambuhari are not happy with all the #NextLevelLies @fkeyamo packaged for
them!”
FG mulls N60b rice subsidy, N24b
compensation for flood victims
by TONY
AILEMEN, Abuja
November 18,
2018 | 5:45 pm
The National Council on Food
Security on Friday said Federal government has set aside the sum of N60b to
subsidize rice production in Nigeria.
The Council also announced that the Bureau of Public Enterprises
BPE has concluded plans to restructure the bank of agriculture.
He noted that the restructuring will now made it possible for
investors and farmers to buy shares in the bank.
“It will eventually become the farmers bank. And we hope that in
the process this will bring down interest rates reasonably maybe 5 percent or a
little higher, so that agriculture will become attractive and people can raise
capital to invest”
This is just as the Council said government has also set aside
another N24b to mitigate the negative effect of flooding on states ravaged by
the recent flood disaster that destroyed farm lands across the country.
The Governor of Kebbi State and Vice Chairman of the Council,
Atiku Bagudu, and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbe
disclosed this at the Presidential Villa on Friday while briefing State House
Correspondents after the Council’s meeting presided over by President
Muhammmadu Buhari.
“There is a subsidy programme coming up, government has approved
N60 billion to support the rice industry to bring down prices. But we are going
to handle it differently, we don’t want to get into petroleum subsidy problem,
so a committee is looking at it with the ministry of finance.
“We think that it is better for us to loan money to the millers,
farmers and distributors at a very low interest rate, so that the capital
doesn’t disappear, so they have cheaper credit to do their business that should
impact on the price of rice in the market. When we are ready we will let you
know.
The Council also used the opportunity to debunk claims by the
United States Department of Agriculture that Nigeria will be the second largest
importer of rice from 2019
The agency had projected 13 per cent rise in Nigeria’s rice
importation from next year to 3.4 million metric tons.
Bagudu who said the report was based on the recent flooding,
added that it has no direct bearing with the current rice production capacity
of Nigeria.
Speaking on the herdsmen/farmers clashes, Ogbe said was putting in place a programme that will aggregate all the wastes from harvest – from maize stock, rice stock, sorghum, Millets, beans, process them, add molasses to feed the cows instead of allowing them roam around and getting to this conflict with the farmers.
Speaking on the herdsmen/farmers clashes, Ogbe said was putting in place a programme that will aggregate all the wastes from harvest – from maize stock, rice stock, sorghum, Millets, beans, process them, add molasses to feed the cows instead of allowing them roam around and getting to this conflict with the farmers.
Federal government also announced a decline in foreign exchange
expenditure on food items in the last five years, including sugar, milk, Rick,
tomato and wheat.
“In 2013 we spent $1,424,968.1 importing these five good items,
the figure dropped to $1.280 billion in 2014.”
“These are figures from the CBN as far Monday this week. In 2015
the figure dropped further to $971 million and to $780.792 million and in 2017
the figure is now $628,643 million. The figure for the 2018 will be ready next
year. You can see the decline in our importation of food”
“We drew the attention of the council to a report by the US department for agriculture which suggested that Nigeria has been importing rice or about to the tune of about three million tonnes.
“We drew the attention of the council to a report by the US department for agriculture which suggested that Nigeria has been importing rice or about to the tune of about three million tonnes.
“We informed the council that contact has been made with the US
agency to tell us the basis for the report because it’s not consistent with the
report available to us.
“The only official importation in Nigeria is about 4,000 metric
tonnes of rice. Secondly, the biggest exporter of rice, Thailand exported 1.1
million metric tonnes of rice to west Africa between January to October this
year and India exported 402 million metric tonnes of rice to west Africa
between January to end of July this year. That is a total of 1.5 million metric
tonnes. Even if all was smuggled into Nigeria, that was the total amount of
importation one could attribute to Nigeria.
“So, the US authorities responding by saying that their
assessment was based on satellite imaging of flooded areas and consideration
that we are about to enter electioneering period and that demand for rice by
politicians or for political purposes will increase. Thirdly, that most west
African countries depend on nigeria so because of the flooding, they concluded
based on those assumptions that Nigeria will import more.”
“Certainly, that is an erroneous report, even in spite of the
flooding the upland rice production has been quite strong this year. Even
though prices have increase in response to flooding, we still have adequate
paddy rice in Nigeria.
Government said it has banned a brand of fertilizer known as NPK
151515 which has been used in the country for many years but recent research
revealed its not useful for any crop or any soil.
“Soils differ and so does crop, to believe there is one uniform fertilizer you can spread for every crop is a fallacy. And it’s because we have done soil test and change the formulations of fertilizers, local blenders that some of the yields we are getting now are rising from two tonnes per hectares to five and six. So the president is looking into that and see how we can deal with it.
“Soils differ and so does crop, to believe there is one uniform fertilizer you can spread for every crop is a fallacy. And it’s because we have done soil test and change the formulations of fertilizers, local blenders that some of the yields we are getting now are rising from two tonnes per hectares to five and six. So the president is looking into that and see how we can deal with it.
AMRU Rice fears tax will impact rice
Cheng Sokhorng | Publication date 19 November 2018
| 10:16 ICT
AMRU Rice appeals to the EU to reconsider imposing a tax on the
Kingdom’s rice exports to all EU member states. Pha Lina
AMRU Rice (Cambodia) Co Ltd, one
of the Kingdom’s main rice exporters, has appealed to the EU to reconsider
imposing a tax on the Kingdom’s rice exports to all EU member states.
The company expressed concern
that the EU action on the Kingdom’s rice exports will impact the entire
industry, according to a letter sent to the EU Commission Directorate-General
for Trade.
Complaints
Italian rice farmers had
complained about Cambodian rice imports since at least 2014, but this is the
first time a formal investigation was launched by the Commission.
The EU’s investigation was
launched on March 16 in response to a request from Italy, which called for
“safeguard measures” – most commonly import restrictions or tariffs – to be
imposed on indica, or white rice from both Cambodia and Myanmar.
After the investigation,
Commission issued its general disclosure document on November 5, requiring
Cambodia to pay tax on rice exports to the EU within three years with common
custom tariff duties of €175 per tonne in the first year.
The Kingdom’s rice industry
argues that the EU’s safeguard clauses should be specific to the type of rice.
AMRU CEO Song Saran told The Post
on Sunday that the EU’s safeguard clause targets all types of rice, while
Cambodia mostly exports fragrant rice.
“The EU commission should review
its safeguard clause or it will impact the entire Cambodian rice industry. It
will hurt rice farmers and rice millers as well as the Kingdom’s economy."
“The safeguard clauses not only
focus on indica rice or white rice but include all types of rice, which will
hurt our fragrant rice exports,” Saran said.
He said while Cambodian fragrant
rice targets a niche market, farmers in the EU do not produce that type of
rice.
“The EU should better define [the
terms and conditions of] rice exports in order to protect the profits of rice
farmers in Cambodia.”
Saran said 90 per cent of
Cambodian rice exports are made up of fragrant rice. And, it’s on the way to
building a sustainable market for farmers.
Cambodia is granted a Generalised
Scheme of Preferences (GSP), which currently grants the country’s exports
tax-free entry to the European market under the Everything But Arms (EBA)
scheme.
However, under Article 24 of the
GSP, import tariffs can be re-applied to a product if it is determined that the
product “is imported in volumes and/or at prices which cause, or threaten to
cause, serious difficulties to EU producers of like or directly-competing
products”.
Ngin Chhay, director of the
General Directorate of Agriculture at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fisheries, said that the Commission’s decision is unfair for the Cambodian rice
industry.
“The statement from the EU
regarding indica rice kind of puts pressure on Cambodia, which just stepped
into [a stage of] better [economic] development."
“It is not fair for us to be
based on EBA status policy and the WTO. Our rice production is based on the
export of fragrant rice and does not hurt the Italian market,” he said.
The share of the EU rice market
captured by Cambodian rice has grown from 15 per cent in 2013 to 25 per cent
last year, said the EU.Meanwhile, the share of the rice market controlled by
European producers has fallen from 61 per cent to 39 per cent over the same
period
Nigeria produces 75% of 7.8m MT of domestic need, says AfricaRice
By Femi
Ibirogba
19 November 2018
| 4:22 am
Says Customs negligent on rice smuggling
The
Country Representative and Regional Coordinator of Africa Rice Centre
(AfricaRice), Ibadan, Dr Francis Nwilene, has exclusively disclosed to The
Guardian that Nigeria’s demand for rice per annum hovers around 7.8 million
metric tonnes. 
The
country, Nwilene said, produces about 5.8 million metric tonnes, making it
about 75% of its annual requirement.“Our demand is about 7.8 million tonnes per
annum, not 6 million. Our production now is about 5.8 million. The US agency is
not correct on the quantity of rice produced in Nigeria,” the AfricaRice boss
said.
The Minister
of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had claimed that Nigeria’s demand for
rice was 6 million tonnes, claiming that the country was already producing 90%
of such locally.The minister had disclosed this while reacting to a report
released by the United States’ Department of Agriculture’s World Markets and
Trade recently.
In the
October report, the Department of Agriculture stated that more than three
million metric tonnes of rice had been imported into Nigeria this year.While
the report also stated that Nigeria’s local rice production dropped from 2016
to 2018 compared to the situation in 2015, the minister claimed 1.2 million
metric tonnes of rice was exported to Nigeria in 2014, and that the figure
declined to 644,000 in 2015 and went further downward to 25,000 in 2016.
By
implications, neither the Federal Government nor the US agency is right on the
controversial rice production and import figures.Lai Mohammed had admitted that
importation figures from the CBN and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS)
officially revealed 1.2 million, and Africa Rice Centre said home production is
5.8 million. The sum of this is 6 million tonnes.
Perhaps
the minister did not factor in the smuggled quantity of rice, concluding, by
implication, that Nigeria consumes 6 million metric tonnes. Another clear fact
coming from the international centre is that Nigeria is over 2 million tonnes
deficit in rice production. Nwilene said the Nigerian rice is getting more
lucrative because most Nigerians now want locally produced rice, not imported
rice, because of the health hazards associated with imported one.
“What
some of the importers do now is that they re-bag it. They stay at border towns
and re-bag rice as their own Mama Gold and sell in Nigeria. So, the US agency
must have their figures. Those importers do not want to let go easily. They do
not need any approval from the CBN or the Custom authority because they
smuggled the products through the borders,” he disclosed.
“The
only way now,” the rice scientist said, “as I keep saying, is for the Custom
authorities to perform their duty effectively.” The Africa Rice Centre
(AfricaRice) is a leading pan-African rice research organisation committed to
improving livelihoods in Africa through science and effective partnerships.
AfricaRice is a CGIAR Research Centre – part of a global research partnership
for a food-secure future. It is also an inter-governmental association of
African member countries.
The
centre was created in 1971 by 11 African countries. Today its membership
comprises 27 countries, covering West, Central, East and North African regions,
namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte
d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, the Gambia,
Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania,
Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone,
Togo and Uganda.
An
official of the Federal Government’s Ibadan-based National Rice Centre, another
rice research institution under the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, who did
not want his identity disclosed, corroborated Nwilene’ point that the country
is not producing up to 90 per cent, claiming that importation had reduced
though.“Rice importation is less than in the last administration, but we are
not producing up to 90 per cent, I think,” he told The Guardian.
In
another development, the Federal Government approved N60 billion for a rice
subsidy programme to make the product more affordable for Nigerians.The
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, disclosed this
while briefing journalists on the outcome of the meeting of the National Food
Security Council.
Ogbeh
claimed that a committee would be set up in collaboration with ministry of
finance to work out the modi operandi of the rice subsidy. He, however, hinted
that the subsidy is not meant for importation of the product, but to rev up
local production at a lower cost.
This
followed just as the forecast by the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) claimed that Nigeria would be the world second largest rice importer by
2019.
“On an annual basis, consumption and residual use is projected higher in 2018/19 in Angola, Benin, Burkina-Faso, Cambodia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam,” the department said in its latest Rice Outlook released on Tuesday..“China and Nigeria are projected to remain the largest rice importing countries in 2019, followed by the EU, Cote d’Ivoire, and Iran,” the forecast claimed.
“On an annual basis, consumption and residual use is projected higher in 2018/19 in Angola, Benin, Burkina-Faso, Cambodia, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam,” the department said in its latest Rice Outlook released on Tuesday..“China and Nigeria are projected to remain the largest rice importing countries in 2019, followed by the EU, Cote d’Ivoire, and Iran,” the forecast claimed.
NIGERIA PROJECTED TO BE SECOND LARGEST RICE
IMPORTER
November 17, 2018
Come twenty nineteen, Nigeria has
been projected to be the second largest rice importer.
This is according to the United
States Department of Agriculture as contained in its latest Rice Outlook.
The Outlook in part stated:
“China and Nigeria are projected to remain the largest rice importing countries
in 2019, followed by the EU, Cote d’Ivoire, and Iran. “Nigeria and Egypt are
projected to account for the bulk of the 2019 import increase.
“Global rice consumption in
2018/19 is projected at a record 488.4 million tons, down 0.1 million tons from
the previous forecast but up more than one percent from a year earlier.”
The Central Bank of Nigeria in a
bid to curb rice importation restricted forex for rice importation, introducing
the Anchor Borrowers Programme and the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme.
https://plustvafrica.com/news/nigeria-projected-to-be-second-largest-rice-importer/
Lucknow group
develops transgenic rice with reduced arsenic accumulation
November 19, 2018
Arsenic acc
umulation in rice grains is one
of the serious agricultural issues in India. To address this, researchers at
Lucknow- based CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute have developed
transgenic rice by inserting a novel fungal gene, which results in reduced
arsenic accumulation in rice grain.
umulation in rice grains is one
of the serious agricultural issues in India. To address this, researchers at
Lucknow- based CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute have developed
transgenic rice by inserting a novel fungal gene, which results in reduced
arsenic accumulation in rice grain.
In their latest study, researchers have cloned Arsenic
methyltransferase (WaarsM) gene from a soil fungus, Westerdykell aaurantiaca,
and inserted the same into the rice genome with the help of Agrobacterium
tumefaciens, a soil bacterium which has natural ability to alter the plant’s genetic
makeup.
The newly developed transgenic rice along with normal rice was
then treated with arsenic. Comparison of transgenic and non-transgenic rice
showed that transgenic plants accumulated less arsenic in root as well as shoot
as compared to non-transgenic lines.
Researchers found that the resulting transgenic plant acquired
the potential for methylating inorganic arsenic to a variety of harmless
organic species, including volatile arsenicals. This could be potential
strategy for developing transgenic rice capable of low arsenic accumulation not
only in grain but also in straw and feed which are used for livestock.
Now the team is focusing on food
safety test and field trials, subject to regulatory approvals. In addition,
researchers are also looking for gaps in arsenic metabolism in rice which will
ultimately lead to understand arsenic uptake and metabolism in rice.
“Our study provides an understanding into arsenic transport
mechanism in plants, predominantly rice grain. This knowledge can be applied to
develop practices to decrease accumulation of arsenic in rice grain by
molecular breeding, gene editing or transgenic approaches. It can have
tremendous public health consequences”, explained Dr. Debasis Chakarabarty said
while speaking to India Science Wire.
The research team is involved in developing biotechnological
methods for reducing arsenic accumulation in rice grain. In the past, it has
shown a transgenic approachin
which phytochelatin synthase from Ceratophyllum demersum (an aquatic plant) was
expressed in rice. Transgenic lines showed enhanced accumulation of arsenic in
roots and shoot but less in grains. They also described that overexpression of
OsGrx_C7 (protein found in rice) enhanced tolerance to arsenite and reduced
arsenite accumulation in seeds and shoots of rice. Recently, they have showed
that OsPRX38 transgenics accumulate less arsenic due to high lignification in root
which acts as a barrier for arsenic entry in transgenic plants.
“As large number of people are affected by arsenic toxicity, it
is imperative to develop rice with
lesser arsenic content and high yield. In this background, biotechnological
methods such as modulating the expression of Arsenic metabolism-related genes
in rice will be a fruitful and practical approach to decrease arsenic
accumulation”, added Dr. Chakarabarty. The research team included Shikha Verma,
Pankaj Kumar Verma, Maria Kidwai, Manju Shri, Rudra Deo Tripathi and Dr.
Debasis Chakrabarty (CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute); Alok Kumar
Meher and Amit Kumar Bansiwal (National Environmental Engineering Research
Institute). The recent research results have been published in Journal of Hazardous Materials.
Listen to this
story
Tests in the lab have shown the sensor to be 500 times
smaller and 30 times more sensitive than MEMS gyroscopes, but the device is
still a long way from mass production. (Image courtesy of Ali
Hajimiri/Caltech.)
You may not realize it, but gyroscopes can be found in pretty much
any modern electronic gadget. With applications ranging from cell phones to
vehicles, drones and wearables, the humble gyroscope sensor is also one of the
most versatile. These days, the gyroscopes that you can find in your phone will
likely be MEMS-based. Now however, researchers from Caltech have successfully
built another type of gyroscope that is 500 times smaller and
30 times more sensitive than the MEMS version. Their research was published in Nature this
month.
Traditional MEMS-based gyroscopes
work by measuring the forces of two identical masses that are oscillating and
moving in opposite directions. By contrast, the optical gyroscope that the
Caltech team developed employs lasers rather than MEMS to achieve the same
result. Although optical gyroscopes are effective in theory, in practice they
have been hard to miniaturize, as the noise-to-signal ratio is inversely
proportional to the optical gyroscope’s size.
To understand the optical
gyroscope, one must first begin with the Sagnac Effect. Discovered by French
physicist Georges Sagnac, the effect uses Einstein’s principle of general
relativity to detect changes in angular velocity. Essentially, a laser is
broken into two beams, and each beam is shot along one side of a disk. Because
light travels at constant speed, the two beams reach the end of the disk at the
same time so long as the disk is not in motion. If the disk is spinning, the
laser beams will arrive at the end-point out of sync. This difference in
synchronization is what the gyroscope measures, as the end-point beam has
minute changes in its properties that can reveal, for instance, whether or not
you’ve just dropped your smartphone.
Unfortunately, the Sagnac Effect is
often prohibitively
sensitive to noise in the signal. Everything from small thermal
fluctuations, to vibrations from nearby construction or loud noises can disrupt
the beams as they travel. To make matters worse, the smaller the gyroscope is,
the more easily it is disrupted. The smallest high-performance optical
gyroscopes today are around the size of a golf ball—not very suited to being
stuffed inside a smart watch.
In order to bypass these problems,
the Caltech team came up with the
solution of lengthening the path that the laser beams must
travel, allowing them to employ small disks instead of large ones, while still
getting the same level of accuracy. Ali Hajimiri, Bren Professor of Electrical
Engineering and Medical Engineering in the Division of Engineering and Applied
Science, and the leader of the study, calls the technique "reciprocal
sensitivity enhancement." In this case, "reciprocal" means that
it affects both beams of the light inside the gyroscope in the same way.
The technique works by using two
disks instead of one, and then switching the direction that the light is
travelling back and forth. This extended the path that the beams are travelling
to several thousand rotations instead of one. When the path of the beams is
longer, the amount of noise is more even across the two beams, thereby
smoothing out imperfections from outside interference, and resulting in an
accurate measurement when the beams meet each other at the end.
Although the research has been
garnering some attention, it is worth remembering that it takes a long
time for these kinds of innovations to get from the lab to the
factories. The research has shown that building optical gyroscopes of this size
is possible, but converting the results into a commercial product is a process
that can take many years
The Arsenic In
Our Food
Arsenic is a
widely-distributed toxic carcinogenic metalloid popularly known as the king of
poisons and the poison of the kings. The history of intentional and accidental
poisoning by arsenic dates back a long time.
Acute and long-term exposure of arsenic leads to several health
problems and diseases in humans collectively referred to as “arsenicosis.”
Arsenic exposure in pregnant
women may also affect fetus development. Arsenic-related health
effects include various skin related problems (hyperkeratosis, hyperpigmentation),
cancer development in different tissues and organs (skin, bladder, kidney,
lung), mee’s lines, and hair hypomelanosis.
The WHO has
proposed a Benchmark Dose Lower Limit (BMDL0.5) for arsenic that suggests a
0.5% increased incidence of cancer. These limits are 3 μg day−1 kg−1 bw, 5.2 μg
day−1 kg−1 bw, and
5.4 μg day−1 kg−1bw for lung
cancer, bladder cancer, and skin lesions, respectively (WHO, 2011;
JFCFA, 2011).
Both natural (biogeochemical) and
anthropogenic activities are known to be the source of arsenic contamination in
the environment. Severe arsenic contamination exists in Southeast Asian
countries like Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and China. In these regions,
arsenic-contaminated groundwater is used as drinking water and also for
irrigation purposes. This leads to arsenic entry into different crops and,
subsequently, into the food chain through food grains, processed food items,
vegetables, fruits, fish, mushrooms, etc.
Rice is
known to be the most affected of all crops. The daily consumption of rice is
very high in India, Bangladesh, as well as other Southeast Asian countries.
These regions have severe and widespread arsenic contamination and are also the
major rice-growing areas. Thus, arsenic contamination of groundwater and rice
becomes a huge problem in these regions. However, it must be understood that the
problem of arsenic accumulation in rice plants is of global concern, as rice
import and export among different countries is a regular practice, and rice
grains, rice milk, rice bran, and several rice-based food products are consumed
by millions of people of different ages (from infants to adults), groups, and
regions.
Researchers have focused on analyzing not only the whole rice
grains but also a number of rice-based food products for arsenic levels and
arsenic species. In addition, government agencies conduct an arsenic analysis
of food items regularly. The results of hundreds of research articles and
government reports have been eye-opening, as the presence of arsenic at
higher-than-recommended levels has been detected in rice grains. Arsenic
concentrations have been found to vary in different varieties of rice of
varying origin, e.g. Indica vs. Japonica rice, local vs. high yielding
varieties, long grain vs. short grain varieties, etc. Rice bran samples have
also been found to contain a very high amount of arsenic (∼1 mg kg-1 dry weight; Sun et al.,
2008) putting products using rice bran as an ingredient at risk. Different
after-harvest treatments also affect arsenic concentrations in rice, for
example, brown rice vs. parboiled brown rice and white rice vs. parboiled white
rice (Batista et al., 2011).
Lately, there have been plenty of reports demonstrating arsenic
presence in rice-based food products, including baby food items from different
parts of the world. Hence, even the infants and toddlers are exposed to arsenic
at a very young age (Carbonell-Barrachina et al., 2012; Cubadda et al., 2016).
The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that infants and young children
consume more food than adult people based on body weight. With rising concerns
about arsenic in rice, the WHO has set a permissible limit for inorganic
arsenic (arsenite + arsenate) of 0.2 mg kg-1 for white rice and 0.4 mg kg-1 for brown rice. The
European Union (EU) prescribed the maximum limits for inorganic arsenic as 0.2
mg kg−1 for white rice and a limit
of 0.1 mg kg−1 for rice-based food products for
infants and young children.
With more and more research
focused on evaluating the impact of arsenic contamination around the world, it
has come to light that infiltration affects a number of crop plants (wheat,
maize, burglar, pulses, beans etc.), fruits, vegetables (potato, lady finger,
leafy vegetables etc.), mushrooms, and animal products (fish, meat, meat
products, egg, milk, and dairy-based products). Because of this, arsenic consequently
finds its way into commercial food products prepared from contaminated raw
material (Zhao et al., 2010). Hence, the risk of As-exposure becomes pertinent
not only to people living in arsenic-contaminated regions and/or consuming rice
as major food but also to people living in other parts of the world. Future
research needs to devise easy, low-cost methods for the routine sampling of
water and food samples to ensure safe food for all.
The need was felt to devise the
best possible low-cost method to reduce arsenic in rice grains purchased from
the market. In this perspective, cooking methods have been researched to
evaluate the impact of cooking on rice arsenic concentration and arsenic
speciation. It has been found that the ratio of rice to water used for cooking
of rice, water used for washing rice, the cooking duration, and the number of
washing steps significantly influence the arsenic content and its
bioaccessibility in cooked rice (Mwale et al., 2018; Rasheed et al., 2018).
Nonetheless, Gray et al. (2016)
warned that if excess water is used for cooking rice, along with significant
reduction in inorganic arsenic content, loss of nutrient elements like iron and
vitamins (folate, thiamin, and niacin) might also occur. Hence, more research
is needed to optimize a cooking method so as to achieve maximum possible
arsenic reduction while managing the optimum nutritional quality of rice
grains.
The years of research into
arsenic in our food and drinking water have led not only to changes in arsenic
limits (mentioned above) but also to changes in composition and types of infant
and child food products. It has been found in a recent survey that the
proportion of rice was varied while other grains (maize) were mixed in
infant/baby food products in Ireland (Carey et al., 2018). In the future,
strict regulations need to be imposed to make food items safe for consumption
by people of all ages.
These findings are described in the article entitled A
review of arsenic in crops, vegetables, animals and food products,
recently published in the journal Food
Chemistry. This work was conducted by Munish
K. Upadhyay, Anurakti Shukla, Poonam Yadav, and Sudhakar Srivastava from Banaras
Hindu University.
References:
1. Batista, B. L., Souza, J. M. O., Souza, S. S., & Barbosa, J.
(2011). Speciation of As in rice and estimation of daily intake of different As
species by Brazilians through rice consumption. Journal of Hazardous Materials 191,
342–348. DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2011.04.087
2. Carbonell-Barrachina, A. A., Wu, X., Ramirez-Gandolfo, A.,
Norton, G. J., Burlo, F., Deacon, C., et al. (2012). Inorganic As contents in
rice-based infant foods from Spain, UK, China and USA. Environmental Pollution 163, 77 – 83. DOI:
10.1016/j.envpol.2011.12.036
3. Carey, M., Donaldson, E., Signes-Pastor, A. J., & Meharg, A.
A. (2018). Dilution of rice with other gluten free grains to lower inorganic
arsenic in foods for young children in response to European Union regulations
provides impetus to setting stricter standards. PloS One e0194700. DOI:
10.1371/journal.pone.0194700.
4. Cubadda, F., D’Amato, M., Aureli, F., Raggi, A., &
Mantovani, A. (2016). Dietary exposure of the Italian population to inorganic
arsenic: The 2012−2014 total diet study. Food and Chemical Toxicology 98, 148−158. DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2016.10.015
5. Gray, P. J., Conklin, S. D., Todorov, T. I., & Kasko, S. M.
(2016). Cooking rice in excess water reduces both As and enriched vitamins in
the cooked grain. Food Additives and Contaminants: Part A 33, 78 – 85. DOI: 10.1080/19440049.2015.1103906
6.
JECFA (Joint FAO/WHO
Expert Committee on Food Additives) (2011). Evaluation of certain contaminants
in food. The seventy-second report, WHO, 1-115.
7. Mwale, T., Rahman, M. M., & Mondal, D. (2018). Risk and
benefit of different cooking methods on essential elements and
arsenic in rice. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health,
15, 1056. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph15061056.
8. Rasheed, H., Kay, P., Slack, R., & Gong, Y. Y. (2018).
Arsenic species in wheat, raw and cooked rice: Exposure and associated health
implications. Science of the Total Environment, 634, 366–373. DOI:
10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.339.
9. Sun, G. X., Williams. P. N., Carey, A. M., Zhu, Y. G., Deacon,
C., Raab, A., et al. (2008). Inorganic As in rice bran and its products are an
order of magnitude higher than in bulk grain. Environmental Science and Technology 42,
7542 – 7546. DOI: 10.1021/es801238p
10. WHO (World Health Organization) (2011). Guidelines for
drinking-water quality, vol. 4. pp. 315–318.
11. Zhao, F. J., Stroud, J. L., Eagling, T., Dunham, S. J., McGrath,
S. P., & Shewry, P. R. (2010). Accumulation, distribution, and speciation
of As in wheat grain. Environmental Science and Technology 44, 5464-5468.
DOI: 10.1021/es100765g
Bangladeshi
rice research lags behind due to legal framework
Published at 09:58 pm November 19th,
2018
Photo: Bigstock
The experts said there are still many legal
and policy challenges for the private sector to overcome if it is to become
involved in research and development, even with the recent passing of a law
allowing the private sector and government agencies to develop rice varieties
Scientific research to develop new and high
yielding rice varieties in Bangladesh has fallen behind the rest of the world
despite rice being the key food grain of the country, experts at a workshop
said yesterday.
The experts said there are still many legal
and policy challenges for the private sector to overcome if it is to become
involved in research and development, even with the recent passing of a law
allowing the private sector and government agencies to develop rice
varieties.
“For so many years, only the public sector and
public universities were allowed to conduct research and release the
varieties,” Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ACI Agribusiness
Ltd Dr FH Ansarey said.
“However, the new Seed Act 2018 allows private
sector to conduct research and development work. This is a great opportunity to
give the country’s rice research activities a boost.”
The two-day workshop that began at the ACI
Centre in Dhaka on Sunday was titled “Transforming Rice Breeding: Current
Status and Way Forward” and was held in partnership with USAID and the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
The workshop aimed to create awareness,
disseminate the Transforming Rice Breeding (TRB) approaches and evaluate the
current status of the ongoing TRB program at the International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI), Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) and ACI.
Govt support sought
Addressing the workshop, ACI Agribusiness CEO
Ansarey warned about the current projections for the future demand of rice and
restrictions on its cultivation.
“In Bangladesh, rice occupies 71% of gross
cropped area and contributes to 94% of the total food grain production along
with one half of agricultural GDP,” he said.
“However, with the population growth in the
country, farmland shrunk by 0.26% annually between 1976 and 2010 and is
currently shrinking at an estimated 1% per year. By 2050, the country’s
population will increase to 200.19 million while 44.6 million metric tons of
clean rice will be required for these people.”
Ansarey also sought government support in
innovation, finance, policy, infrastructure, production costs, and promotion
and communication.
Agriculture Ministry Secretary Md Nasiruzzaman
graced the opening of the workshop as chief guest while BRRI acting Director
General Dr Tamal Lata Aditya and ACI Group Chairman M Anis Ud Dowla were
present as special guests.
USAID Bangladesh’s Roy Fenn and BMGF’s Gary
Atlin also spoke at the opening session as guests of honour with IRRI
Representative for Bangladesh Dr Humnath Bhandari in the chair.
Cost effective
The speakers said TRB enables rice breeders to
develop a rice variety faster, within three to four years, compared to the
traditional system, which takes around seven to eight years.
They said the new approach to rice breeding is
cost effective and based on market demand. The important aspect of the modern
approach is the selection process, which is molecular based and unlike the
visual selection system in the traditional approach, they said.
According to experts, this molecular based
selection ensures rice breeders develop varieties built in specific desired
traits with high genetic gains mainly in terms of yield.
“It is strongly believed that the rice
varieties once developed through the TRB approaches will be highly acceptable
by the farmers not only for high yield but also for the desirable traits such
as resistance to diseases and pests, salinity tolerant, and attractive grain
quality,” IRRI’s Bangladesh Representative Dr Humnath said.
“It will overcome the constraints of varietal
replacement: the farmers will not cultivate decades old varieties; instead they
will cultivate the new ones.
“This will provide a tremendous boost to rice
production in Bangladesh.”
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/4032681
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