When Disaster Strikes Close to Home, U.S. Rice Industry Takes
the Reins
By Lesley Dixon
HOUSTON, TX -- It's been ten long
months since Hurricane Harvey inundated the Houston area with 40 to 60 inches
of rain, displacing more than 30,000 people, and causing $125 billion in
damage. For those that lived through it, it was a harrowing ordeal of
rising flood waters, destroyed property, and daring rescues. For
Houstonians, it was also a time to come together to help family, friends, and
neighbors, no matter how dire the situation.
For the employees of Houston-based RiceTec, it started with some phone calls. "We felt so helpless. I was stranded in my home for several days," said Cindy Howe, compensation and benefits manager at RiceTec. "We felt like we couldn't do anything, so we just decided to do something."
Howe and her colleague Jean Thornton, RiceTec's
manager of IT business services, knew they couldn't rest until they had
contacted every single one of the company's approximately 160 Houston-area
employees and confirmed that they were safe. The two were stranded in
their neighborhoods by the floodwater, but still had phones, power, and
computers.
"We reached out to determine who was impacted, what the impact was, if they needed assistance, or if they had family members who needed assistance," said Howe.
Howe and Thornton's efforts snowballed from there. Almost everyone Howe and Thornton got in touch with had been affected by the storm and the floods to some degree, some worse than others. But even those who had their own problems and repairs to attend to were eager to help those coworkers in more dire situations.
Before they knew it, there were 90 RiceTec employees involved in the recovery project who logged a total of 1,223 hours of volunteer rescue work. The company footed the bill for supplies from the hardware store, and employees brought their own tools, expertise, and work ethic.
"They just showed up with their hammers and their saws and their gloves and their muscles, and they got in there and got to it," said Thornton.
For the employees of Houston-based RiceTec, it started with some phone calls. "We felt so helpless. I was stranded in my home for several days," said Cindy Howe, compensation and benefits manager at RiceTec. "We felt like we couldn't do anything, so we just decided to do something."
"We reached out to determine who was impacted, what the impact was, if they needed assistance, or if they had family members who needed assistance," said Howe.
Howe and Thornton's efforts snowballed from there. Almost everyone Howe and Thornton got in touch with had been affected by the storm and the floods to some degree, some worse than others. But even those who had their own problems and repairs to attend to were eager to help those coworkers in more dire situations.
Before they knew it, there were 90 RiceTec employees involved in the recovery project who logged a total of 1,223 hours of volunteer rescue work. The company footed the bill for supplies from the hardware store, and employees brought their own tools, expertise, and work ethic.
"They just showed up with their hammers and their saws and their gloves and their muscles, and they got in there and got to it," said Thornton.
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Packing for Puerto Rico
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This spirit of community extends to
RiceTec's employees in Puerto Rico as well. The island was devastated by both
Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria within the span of three weeks, leaving
residents without power for months and largely isolating them from
international relief efforts. But that didn't stop RiceTec. The company
purchased generators, food, water, filtration systems, satellite radios,
batteries, and diapers, and miraculously managed to get the shipments through
using their connections.
RiceTec's employees in the small town of Lajas, led by Station Manager Cesar Zayas, in turn rationed out supplies to their neighbors most in need, extending RiceTec's goodwill and fellowship to their own community.
Months afterward, one of those employees from Lajas would meet Howe and Thornton in person. She hugged them so hard she could have cracked ribs. "You'll never know how much that meant to us," she told them.
Howe attributes their motivation to get "boots on the ground" to the response of their Arkansas team during the catastrophic flooding there in 2017. While no RiceTec employees were directly affected by those floods, many of their farmers in Arkansas were drastically impacted and Marya Landford of the RiceTec office in Arkansas got a group together at a local church and helped farmers clear out the damage on their farms.
That attitude of coming together when things get rough is an ingrained part of how the company operates. "Our culture has always been to have each other's backs when the chips are down," Howe said of RiceTec, whether it be in Houston, Arkansas, or Puerto Rico.
Of course, RiceTec wasn't the only company in the rice industry who stepped up to the challenges last year's hurricanes presented. In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Riviana Foods and their employees set up a disaster relief fund that was administered by the Greater Houston Community Foundation (GHCF). All told, Riviana raised $87,000 for their 17 employees who experienced damage to their homes and automobiles.
"We greatly appreciate the compassion and generosity of our employees," said Senior Vice President of Human Resources Gerard Ferguson of the relief efforts.
RiceTec's employees in the small town of Lajas, led by Station Manager Cesar Zayas, in turn rationed out supplies to their neighbors most in need, extending RiceTec's goodwill and fellowship to their own community.
Months afterward, one of those employees from Lajas would meet Howe and Thornton in person. She hugged them so hard she could have cracked ribs. "You'll never know how much that meant to us," she told them.
Howe attributes their motivation to get "boots on the ground" to the response of their Arkansas team during the catastrophic flooding there in 2017. While no RiceTec employees were directly affected by those floods, many of their farmers in Arkansas were drastically impacted and Marya Landford of the RiceTec office in Arkansas got a group together at a local church and helped farmers clear out the damage on their farms.
That attitude of coming together when things get rough is an ingrained part of how the company operates. "Our culture has always been to have each other's backs when the chips are down," Howe said of RiceTec, whether it be in Houston, Arkansas, or Puerto Rico.
Of course, RiceTec wasn't the only company in the rice industry who stepped up to the challenges last year's hurricanes presented. In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Riviana Foods and their employees set up a disaster relief fund that was administered by the Greater Houston Community Foundation (GHCF). All told, Riviana raised $87,000 for their 17 employees who experienced damage to their homes and automobiles.
"We greatly appreciate the compassion and generosity of our employees," said Senior Vice President of Human Resources Gerard Ferguson of the relief efforts.
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One of the RiceTec crews
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Ten months after the devastation of
Harvey, Irma, and Maria, Houstonians are still putting the pieces back
together. There's black mold and insurance policies to deal with, as well
as the threat of future floods. But thanks to the diligence and
camaraderie of employees at Riviana and RiceTec, everyone impacted by the flood
is back home and moving forward.
"We are a family here," said Howe. "It's our values. We care and respect others and our environment and our community, and that's where this all came from."
"We are a family here," said Howe. "It's our values. We care and respect others and our environment and our community, and that's where this all came from."
USA RICE DAILY
Rice Webinar: Thursday July 12
Tune in Thursday, July 12 at 3:00 p.m. Central Time, for a new rice webinar hosted by Dr. Bobby Coats, with the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness at the University of Arkansas. Dr. Alvaro Durand-Morat, Assistant Professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness at the University of Arkansas, describes the production, processing, and market features of the Cuban rice sector, and discusses the potential implications for U.S. rice.
Go here to register for the webinar.
USA RICE DAILY
Smugglers
Export Local Rice To Benin, Mali, Others
July 10, 2018
By YUSUF BABALOLA
Massive smuggling of locally produced rice out of the
country has been identified as one of the factors hindering self-sufficiency in
the country, LEADERSHIP has learnt. Kebbi State commissioner for budget and
economic planning, Hon. Zailani Mohammed, told LEADERSHIP in a chat that
locally produced rice was being smuggled in large quantities out of the country
to Niger Republic, Mali and other African countries for greater profit.
“Actually, a lot of rice produced in Nigeria is smuggled out to neighbouring
countries of Mali, Niger Republic and the rest. A lot of rice is smuggled out
and if we close the borders to stop the illegal smuggling, it will bring down
the cost of rice.”
When asked about the perpetrators of the smuggling, the
commissioner said, “They are being smuggled by individuals in the private
sector because they are looking for a better market. We can’t curtail them but
all we can do is to tell the farmers to produce more, because if we give
farmers a price and they can get a better one outside, and with the falling
rate in our naira exchange value, it seems more profitable to export or to
illegally smuggle it out to Niger Republic.
So, if we produce more, the
price will come down. Nigeria currently has a yearly shortfall of 1.3 metric
tonnes as the country produces 5.7 million metric tonnes of rice as
against the estimated national consumption of 7.00 million metric tonnes.
LEADERSHIP reports that Nigeria is the highest producer of rice in West Africa
as well as the second highest importer of parboiled rice in the world by 2014,
incurring an average import bill of N1billion on rice imports, but the
interventions by the federal government and state governments have increased
yields of rice per hectare, thereby reducing the country’s huge rice
import bill.
Zailani further
acknowledged the intervention of the federal government and state governments
in boosting rice production, saying Nigeria would achieve rice sufficiency with
more investments in infrastructure and technology. “The intervention of the
federal government has helped so much to increase the yield by hectares for
instance, in Kebbi we have moved from 3.5MT/hectare to 5.5MT/hectare in 2018
and that is going across many rice producing states in addition to the
intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).” He also stated the need for
government to support Nigerian rice farmers with technology and infrastructure
in order for them to be able to compete with Asian paddy rice farmers who dump
their end products on Nigeria’s economy.
“Foreign farmers have advantage over Nigerian farmers because they
are supported effectively by their respective governments, and more or less
dump (their products) on Nigeria’s economy, but if the two prices are compared,
the rice produced locally is fresh but foreign rice is on the high-sea for many
months and by the time you take it, the flavour is gone. Local rice is healthier
and enhances the capacity of local farmers,” he said. The commissioner urged
government to also invest massively in agriculture in order to bring down the
cost of production by Nigeria farmers. “Foreign farmers are supported by their
government with technology and infrastructural facilities to produce more and
this will be at a lower cost than Nigerian farmers.
This is the challenge and
every economy will go through this process,” he noted.
Also speaking
exclusively to LEADERSHIP, the president of the Rice Millers and Distribution
Association of Nigeria (RIMIDAN), Tunji Owoeye, acknowledged federal
government’s investment in rice so far. He, however, called on the federal
government to increase its investment in the production and cultivation of rice
to make Nigeria self-sufficient. “There are serious investments for us to make
in order to meet self-sufficiency from both private sector and government.
Government is investing heavily on production, enabling environment,
encouraging farmers. The private sector is also investing heavily even on the
valuation. The investment has surpassed what we have in the last 100 years”, he
said. Speaking on government’s proposal to shut the borders to check smuggling,
Owoeye said the move would help to stop rice smuggling into the country.
He, however, noted that it
might not be the only solution to the menace of smuggling, adding that
equipping the Nigeria Customs Service with state of the art technology to fight
smuggling at the borders was another approach that would work. “It may not stop
smuggling completely but it will help to fine-tune the strategies used.
Shutting the border will help them to rejig strategies on how to go harder on
rice smugglers. It will also send strong signals to the neighbouring countries that
are hiding the people, that there are consequences, and that Nigeria is
ready to protect its investments in rice production, but it is not a lasting
solution,” he said.
FG Signs Agreement With Indian Company To
Procure N10b Large Scale Rice Mills
The Federal Government has signed an agreement with an Indian
company to procure and supply 10 large scale rice mills worth N10.7 billion
before the end of this year.
Signing the agreement in Abuja on Monday, Chief Audu Ogbeh, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the move was to ensure the country met its target of achieving self-sufficiency in rice production.
Ogbeh said the mills to be built by MV Agro-Engineers Ltd., would assist in rice processing and match the growing number of rice farmers in the country.According to him, over 13 million Nigerians are in various farms across the country growing rice and the number could increase to 20 million persons shortly.The minister said that the mills would be given to off-takers (millers) and the Bank of Agriculture would take over the repayment of the loans over a period of 10 years.
He urged the company to give the country good technology and supply adequate spare parts for the mills.He said: “We are insistent on achieving self-sufficiency in rice production because we can’t afford over five billion dollars a day of importing rice, we don’t have the money and I don’t think any country can afford that line of expenditure.“We have to produce our food, we will not depend on imports to produce our food, we cannot survive on a diet of import of everything and we have the land.
“This formula of partnerships is working for us and we want to thank you for being part of it. We will continue with it because whatever subsidy we give or support is in long term bigger profit than anything we will make in cash.“We thank you for giving us at good price and we know you can make good and the best machines for us because if you do well now, you will do more in the future.’’
The Director, Agribusiness and Marketing in the ministry, Alhaji Muyiwa Azeez, said the rice mills would be made available to off-takers in 10 states.Azeez said: “The ministry has worked hard with the company and other stakeholders to review the delivery process of the mills before December, 2019.”The Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, Alhaji Kabir Mohammed, said the partnership was geared toward ensuring food security in the country.Mohammed said the Bank had many programmes aimed at supporting youths and women in agriculture.
The Managing Director of the Indian company, Jamu Babba-Dan’agundi, assured of the company’s commitment to deliver the mills promptly.The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that the Federal Executive Council in April approved N10.7 billion for the establishment of the 10 rice mills.NAN also recalls that Lokpobiri briefed journalists at the end of the FEC meeting saying that the 10 mills had the capacity to produce 100 tonnes of rice per day and would be managed by private rice millers.The minister listed the benefitting states to include Kebbi, Zamfara, Benue, Kogi, Bayelsa, Anambra, Kaduna, Ogun, Niger and Bauchi.
RDB projects rising rice loan demand for harvest
Cheng Sokhorng | Publication date 10 July 2018 |
08:48 ICT
A rice farmer works in Kandal province during the 2016 harvest
season. Heng Chivoan
State-owned Rural Development
Bank (RDB) projected that the demand for loans in the rice sector will increase
this season, said CEO Kao Thach on Monday.He said while more rice facilities
are ready for operation this year, there will be more demand for loans.RDB
disbursed $35 million to approximately 40 rice millers and exporters last year,
out of the $50 million earmarked for loans.
The government’s decision to
disburse loans directly through RDB sidestepped the Cambodian Rice Federation
(CRF), the industry body that has lobbied the government since March 2016 to
provide emergency funds for its members. In September 2016, the government
transferred its share of a $27 million package to RDB so the bank could
disburse loans to millers, allowing them to purchase paddy from farmers.
In August, another $23 million
was injected by the government, bringing the total to $50 million aimed at
propping up the struggling industry.Thach said a new loan will be issued for
the rice industry at the end of July and he expects it to be in high
demand.“The demand for capital in the coming season would see a huge increase
as rice facilities are ready for storage and milling,” he said, adding that the
total storage capacity this season would be around 450,000 tonnes on the
strength of four facilities launched earlier this month.
“Even if the loan package comes
up short, we will request the government to add more money,” Thach said.
AMRU Rice Co Ltd CEO Song Saran
said while rice cultivation has kept growing along with buyer demand, the
industry needed to supply 350,000 tonnes to the international market in the
coming season.“Now that we are less concerned about storage and milling, we
need at least $50 million in hand for the rice industry to supply the needs of
the international market,” he said.
Memories of Mom’s chicken pilaf resonate with
love
By Gholam Rahman
12:00 a.m. Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Memorable meals are made in heaven. Food alone can make a meal
good, even great, but for a meal to sink into the psyche that you can savor
forever, it needs something else — the juxtaposition of many imponderables that
only heaven’s hands can marshal at a particular point in time.
Such a moment has been burned into
my memories, of a meal many decades ago when I was a young lad in Dacca, the
second largest city of the British Indian province of Bengal. The food was
murgh pulao (chicken pilaf) of the most exquisite taste that only my mom could
make. It was the signature dish — along with the Kashmiri chai — of her
parental family, the Dacca Nawab family, originally from Kashmir.
But food was just a part of the
mix. The occasion was the Ramadan Eid, following the monthlong fasting, the
most happy and festive occasion of the year for Muslims worldwide. On most such
occasions my mom made her inimitable pilaf, and with it her halvas and
occasionally even the Kashmiri chai. All the tangibles were there in good
measure.
But what branded the meal on that
day into my psyche was something more imponderable: LOVE. Love for each other
within our large but closely knit family that our grandparents and parents
inculcated into us from the very beginning. That is a gift from God.
My father had three brothers; two
of them lived in Calcutta, Bengal’s largest city and its capital, the original
foothold of the British in India, part of which they built to replicate areas
of London. My father and his youngest brother lived in Dacca with my
grandfather in a large rambling house with many courtyards.
On that Eid day, all four brothers,
as well as my grandpa (my grandma had died when I was just a kid) were together
in Dacca. The elders all sat for that meal at a large table that sat 12. We
youngsters had a side table. Their interaction and joy in the company of each
other, the serene scene was a lesson in kind that made all the didactic lessons
a 3-D reality.
That is a lesson that, I firmly
believe, would lead me, or any of my 14 brothers and sisters, to gladly give
our lives for the sake of each other. A lesson of love I wish some of our
leaders had learned at home. Back on earth out of the stratosphere, here is the
recipe for the pilaf. Add the intangibles, if you desire, or can muster!
The cooking of our family’s murgh
pulao is really the cooking of a shahi qorma (imperial sweet curry), to which
washed and soaked basmati rice is added and cooked until the rice is done. So
cook the qorma first.
PULAO WITH SHAHI CHICKEN QORMA
2 small skinned chickens, cut up
into 8 pieces
1/2 cup yogurt
3 tablespoons oil and 1 stick
butter
2 sticks cinnamon, broken
3 to 4 cardamom pods
2 to 3 medium onions, chopped
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced finely
with 1½-inch piece of fresh ginger
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala (see
note)
1/2 cup light cream
1/4 cup Indian “mawa” or ricotta
cheese
1/4 cup peeled almonds, ground
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons or so raisins, soaked
and drained, optional
Couple of generous pinches of
saffron, soaked in 2 to 3 teaspoons rose water
1 1/2 to 2 cups basmati rice,
soaked 30 minutes, washed, drained and set aside
Water, as needed
Wash and clean the chicken of any
gristle and extra fat; drain well, mix with the yogurt and set aside.
Meanwhile, in a heavy, large pot heat the oil and butter. Over medium heat,
saute the cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add
the onion and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is just
light golden brown. Add the minced garlic and ginger, along with the ground
coriander and garam masala; cook stirring until a sauce begins to form, about 8
minutes.
Add the chicken pieces and cook
until the chicken loses its raw look, stirring frequently to coat the pieces
with the sauce, about 10 minutes. To tenderize the chicken, add a quarter cup
of water, stir the pot and cover. Over low heat, let the chicken cook, stirring
occasionally and adding a dash of water if needed, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the cream in the
microwave oven in a glass measuring cup and stir in the ricotta, breaking the
cheese curds as much as possible. Add the hot cream mixture to the pot in
drizzles, stirring the chicken as you add it. Stir and cook a minute or so and
add the ground almonds and the sugar.
Keep cooking, stirring often, until
the sauce thickens and coats the chicken pieces well, about 10 minutes. By now,
you would have cooked about 40 minutes. If the sauce looks somewhat separated
from the oil, don’t worry; Indian sauces are not supposed to look smooth and
homogenous. The chicken should be almost cooked and tender, with the fragrant
sauce permeating the meat.
Just before adding the reserved
rice, add half of the saffron, which should first be mashed into the rose water
with the back of a spoon. Stir to combine the flavors. Total cooking time
should be 45 to 50 minutes.
Cooking the rich and fragrant qorma
is the key to the dish. Now stir in the drained rice and cook, stirring
constantly for about a minute or so until the rice appears translucent. Add
about 3 to 4 cups of water, depending on the amount of rice.
Add the remaining saffron-rose
water and the raisins; stir gently to mix. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat
and cook until steam vents develop over the rice, about 7 to 8 minutes. Reduce
heat to low, cover the pot and cook until the rice grains test done, about 6 to
8 minutes.
Gently stir the rice with a
spatula, lifting from the bottom. Serve in a shallow bowl or dish and garnish
with sliced almonds. A spicy yogurt drink is generally served on the side.
NOTE: A trip to an Indian store may
be worthwhile. There you can buy skinned cut-up chicken, cardamom pods and
cinnamon sticks as well as rose water and saffron (often of poor quality). If
you buy packaged garam masala there, ask for masala for mild qorma.
It is, however, easy to make your
own garam masala, since many of its ingredients are also Christmas spices. In a
coffee or spice mill, grind together 2 teaspoons coriander seeds (optional
filler), 1 teaspoon cardamom seeds, 8 to 10 cloves and 1 teaspoon peppercorns;
to the resulting ground, mix in 2 teaspoons cinnamon powder and a half teaspoon
each grated nutmeg and allspice powder. Blend well and store in a small jar
with tight lid.
Eating out at The New Knowes Hotel
in Macduff
At a family gathering in Buckie recently, I happened to discover
that my wife’s great, great grannie was formerly the owner of a hotel in
Macduff many moons ago. This hotel was none other than
the Knowes Hotel, an establishment that has been on our “to do” list here at YL
for some time. That, and the fact my son’s football team announced they were to
play in Banff one Sunday morning, gave us plenty of reasons to go.
The only problem, however, was the fact the New Knowes, as it is
now known, stops serving lunch at 2pm on a Sunday and my son’s football match
didn’t finish until around the same time. No problem, we were told, they could
still host us for Sunday lunch, as long as we ordered our food in advance. This
is never ideal, as I prefer to wait to see what my stomach is in the mood for
on the day, but it was good of them to accommodate us, so we went ahead and
booked, after checking the menus on their Facebook page.
After a mad dash across from Banff on a scorching hot Sunday
lunchtime, we found the New Knowes (pronounced “nows” rather than “knows”)
perched above Macduff in a prime location next to the impressive war memorial
that looks over the town. This is a fantastic spot for the hotel as it commands
glorious views over the bay. The perfect spot to enjoy some local seafood, as I
was just about to do.
Wayne
Stewart, chef-owner of The New Knowes Hotel
We received a friendly welcome when we entered the fresh, modern
conservatory area. The interiors have been tastefully decorated in muted greys
and are very “on trend”.
We took in our surroundings after being shown to our seats and
drank in the ocean views that were right in front of us. The restaurant was
busy with Sunday diners, with a variety of customers including local ladies
enjoying a catch-up over a few glasses of prosecco, overseas travellers in for
a nice meal, a group treating themselves to an afternoon tea, and a private
party taking place in the function suite.
Whenever dining with little ones, it’s never good to have to
wait a long time for your food to arrive, especially if one of them has just
spent the last hour playing football, so we were delighted when our pre-ordered
starters were brought to us withing five minutes of arriving.
I am a sucker for Cullen skink, so I was spoiled for choice when
I saw it on the starters menu both as a soup and in the form of a risotto. I
plumped for the risotto, while my son ordered the starter version. My Cullen
skink risotto came with a poached egg, bacon salt and crispy potato and was
delicious, if a touch on the sweet side. It was beautifully presented as well,
which was a theme that was to be repeated throughout our visit. My son loved
his soup, but again it was just a little too sweet for me.
Cullen
skink risotto, poached egg, bacon salt and crispy potato. Across
the table, my wife and daughter absolutely loved their eye-catching carpaccio
of pineapple, passion fruit sorbet and minted mango salsa. They said the
flavours were tremendous. A real winner.
With the temperature outside hitting 22 degrees and the dining
room being fairly full, the heat in the conservatory was quite intense.
Buildings in the north-east of Scotland just aren’t built to cope with these
conditions. That would be the one drawback of having so many windows to admire
the sea views. And there is even a large window into the kitchen if you want to
watch the chefs creating your meal.
Crispy
langoustine, sweet chilli jam, balsamic glaze, lemon and black pepper side salad
Shortly after we had polished off our starters, our mains
arrived. We’d have liked a little more time between courses, but it was our
fault for booking so late.
I had taken a while to decide on mine as the menu offers a
fantastic choice, but with the area being renowned for its fresh seafood, I
went for the poached haddock with lemon crab crust, garden pea risotto,
seasonal veg and new potatoes. Once again, the presentation was wonderful. The
crab crust was moreish and unlike anything I’d tasted before. The pea risotto
could have done with a stronger flavour, but the vegetables were beautifully
cooked while the haddock was flaky, light and had a wonderful flavour.
Poached
haddock, lemon crab crust and garden pea risotto
My wife was delighted that there were four vegetarian dishes to
choose from and her Thai green vegetable curry met with approval. Again, the
presentation was well thought out with separate compartments for the spiced
onions and mango chutney, and the dish came with naan bread and basmati rice
too. It was full of flavour and she wiped the plate clean – in a ladylike
manner, of course!
Thai
green vegetable curry, with basil, spiced onions, naans, mango chutney and
basmati rice
The children ordered sausages and a burger from the kids menu and
both enjoyed their respective dishes.
We didn’t think we had room for dessert, but in the name of
research we decided to share a lemon cheesecake, while the kids had some
chocolate cake and Simpsons ice cream. Well, this course trumped all that went
before it in terms of presentation. And as for flavour it was light and
delicate and really cleansed the palate. And of course the kids devoured their
Buckie ice cream.
Rasperry
cheesecake
We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the New Knowes Hotel. Its
website states chef-owner Wayne Stewart prides himself on using fresh, local
Scottish produce to create great dishes, and we can testify to this. Wayne
should be commended for creating an ambitious, well thought-out menu with
plenty of choice to suite all tastes.I’m sure my wife’s great, great grannie
would have approved.
Readers’
Forum
Wednesday,
July 11, 2018
BB can take step to reduce rice prices
Last year, the production of rice in haor areas was adversely affected by floods, resulting in increased rice prices. In response, the government withdrew import duty on rice. As the production of rice has been good this year, with adequate supply in the market, it was expected that the prices would be reasonable. However, the prices did not fall partly because of the high import duty that the government has re-imposed. Artificial hoarding of rice by dishonest businessmen is also to blame for this high price.
During the last caretaker government, when something similar happened, Bangladesh Bank instructed all banks to realise loans disbursed to rice millers, and magically, the prices of rice came down within weeks. The BB should take similar steps to protect the interest of the consumers.
Ashraf Hossain
Dhaka
Last year, the production of rice in haor areas was adversely affected by floods, resulting in increased rice prices. In response, the government withdrew import duty on rice. As the production of rice has been good this year, with adequate supply in the market, it was expected that the prices would be reasonable. However, the prices did not fall partly because of the high import duty that the government has re-imposed. Artificial hoarding of rice by dishonest businessmen is also to blame for this high price.
During the last caretaker government, when something similar happened, Bangladesh Bank instructed all banks to realise loans disbursed to rice millers, and magically, the prices of rice came down within weeks. The BB should take similar steps to protect the interest of the consumers.
Ashraf Hossain
Dhaka
Growing rice in rows becoming
more popular in Arkansas
by July 9, 2018 4:55 pm
Flooded rice paddies, protected
by a series of levees, have been the norm in the Arkansas Delta for many years.
During the 1980s farmers experimented with systems that allowed rice to be
grown in standard rows, but those fields produced a lot of blast fungus, a
disease that can damage or kill a rice plant.
Science has been able to stem
that trend, and rice rows have steadily grown in recent years University of
Arkansas Division of Agriculture rice agronomist Dr. Jarrod Hardke told Talk
Business & Politics. The number of rice row acres has jumped from 40,000 in
2017 to more than 100,000 acres this year, he said.
“It’s certainly very scattered,”
Hardke said. “For the most part, you don’t have individual growers going too
heavily into it, although there are a handful who have. Many growers are just
trying a field here and there. But spreading that across 1.4 million acres,
‘here and there’ starts to add up.”
The reason some farmers prefer
the row method is input cost savings, Hardke said. A typical rice acre has
about $750 in input costs. Growing rice in rows can save a producer up to $70
per acre, per season, he said. Rice in rows can be grown in former soybean
beds, meaning they don’t have to be prepped like typical rice paddies. This can
save a farmer many hours on their combines and other equipment, Hardke said,
adding that those fields don’t require the levee systems, and are irrigated
with pipes, much like other row crops.
Stuttgart farmer Trent Dabbs and
his father have worked row rice for more than a decade. In the beginning,
“quite a few people thought we were crazy, but it’s worked out pretty good for
us,” he said. They started small – one field, 40 acres. This year, the Dabbses
have about 200 acres in row rice and may expand that acreage again next year.
Row rice means “less time
creating levees and putting in gates” and “during harvest, there’s less wear
and tear on the combines. You’re not jumping levees and it’s not as muddy,”
Dabbs said.
Hardke said row rice does
typically require more nitrogen than flooded rice, as well as the potential for
more intensive pest management. Even with the changes in production practices,
“we don’t see a big yield drag,” Dabbs said.
“We’ve had to make some changes
in our production practices; we changed our fertility and spraying to make it
work,” Dabbs said. “Instead of doing a large pre-flood shot of fertilizer, we
split it into three applications to spoon feed the rice and not lose nitrogen.”
Dabbs said he uses row rice on
sandier areas, fields that have difficulty holding water, and fields where he
might plant no-till soybeans behind rice. Yields in row rice have historically
been similar to those in flooded rice, although 2017 may have provided a skewed
example for Arkansas growers. Rice farmers in the state planted 1.161 million
acres last year, about 47.1% of all rice acres planted in the U.S. Those acres
accounted for 82.6 million hundredweight of rice, and it represented 46.4% of
the 178.2 million hundredweight produced in the country.
During the last three years,
Arkansas has accounted for more than 47% of the nation’s total rice production,
according to federal reports. Per acre, farmers had a yield of 164.4 bushels
per acre or 7,400 pounds. It was the third highest yield on record in the state
and a 570 pound per acre uptick from 2016.
“One of the dangers we tried to
emphasize was that some of last year’s success was due to weather conditions,”
Hardke said. “We had very good yields across the board, with excessive amounts
of in-season rainfall, which made growing rice in those environments that much
easier. We had some concerns going into this year that we would end up hot and
dry, and well, we have. That’s going to make managing those fields a little
more difficult, depending on local conditions and agronomic set-ups.”
Hybrid varieties of rice make the
row system possible. About half of Arkansas’ rice acreage or 700,000 acres is
hybrid, Hardke said. Hybrids can develop resistance to diseases such as blast
fungus, but a hybrid blend can only be used for one growing season. Hybrids are
produced when one part infertile male pollen and one fertile male pollen are
combined to produce an offspring, he said. These hybrids tend to produce better
yields and are more disease resistant, he said.
Most of the row rice fields are
not typical or traditionally poor producing fields, Hardke said.
The state’s rice crop is on
schedule and nothing significant has impacted it, Hardke said. But, there are
concerns on the horizon. Temperatures have remained extremely hot for the last
several weeks and the humidity has been high. These conditions are conducive to
cultivating fungicide diseases. Dry conditions could also impact irrigation, he
said.
“We still need rain, for sure,”
he said.
India's
rice exports set to ease as govt raises buying price
Reuters
Staff
JULY 10,
2018 / 12:56 PM
* India hikes guaranteed prices
paid for rice by 13 pct
* Wants to woo farmers ahead of
general election next year
* That means Indian rice exports
likely to become more expensive
* Thailand, Vietnam seen gaining
market share
By
Rajendra Jadhav
MUMBAI, July 10 (Reuters) -
India’s rice exports are set to ease from October as the world’s biggest
shipper of the grain boosts guaranteed prices that farmers receive for much of
their crop, making new season cargoes expensive compared to supply from rival
growers. Lower exports would mean that India loses market share in key Asian
and African markets, traders and industry sources said, with exports from
countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar likely to fill any gaps. India
on Wednesday raised prices paid to local farmers for common grade paddy rice by
13 percent from a year ago to 1,750 rupees ($25.50) per 100 kg, with Prime
Minister Narendra Modi looking to woo millions of rural poor ahead of a general
election next year.The government typically buys more than a third of the
country’s rice output at a fixed price, which also has a direct impact on
prices paid by traders. “With this price rise, our exports will become
expensive,” said B V Krishna Rao, president of the Rice Exporters Association
(REA).“The customer base that we have created over a period of time is going to
shift to Thailand and Vietnam.”Exporters were this week offering Indian 5
percent broken parboiled rice RI-INBKN5-P1 at $388-$392 per tonne on a free on
board (FOB) basis, nearly the same as prices quoted by Thai exporters.
But the hike in guaranteed price
will force Indian exporters to offer the new season crop at around $430 from
October, making exports uncompetitive, a dealer said. He declined to be
identified as he was not authorised to speak with media.India’s rice exports in
the 2017/18 fiscal year that ended on March 31 surged 18 percent from the year
before to a record 12.7 million tonnes on strong demand from Bangladesh and Sri
Lanka.But that demand has already been hit hard, said Nitin Gupta, business
head of rice at Olam India, with Bangladesh imposing a 28 percent tax on rice
imports in June to support local farmers.And Indian states like Chhattisgarh
could announce additional payments to farmers on top of the prices fixed by the
central government, industry officials said.
“Chhattisgarh could announce a
bonus of around 200 to 300 rupees (per 100kg). This will further widen the gap
between local and international prices,” said a Mumbai-based dealer with a
global trading firm.India uses rice and wheat that it buys from local farmers
at a fixed price to supply subsidised food to the poor and meet any emergency
needs.However, Rao of REA said that the government could eventually be forced
to incentivise more overseas rice sales as its storage gets closer to capacity.
(Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav Editing by Joseph Radford)
RDB projects rising rice loan
demand for harvest
Cheng Sokhorng | Publication date 10 July 2018 |
08:48 ICT
A rice farmer works in Kandal province during the 2016 harvest
season. Heng Chivoan
State-owned Rural Development
Bank (RDB) projected that the demand for loans in the rice sector will increase
this season, said CEO Kao Thach on Monday. He said while more rice facilities
are ready for operation this year, there will be more demand for loans.
RDB disbursed $35 million to
approximately 40 rice millers and exporters last year, out of the $50 million
earmarked for loans.
The government’s decision to
disburse loans directly through RDB sidestepped the Cambodian Rice Federation
(CRF), the industry body that has lobbied the government since March 2016 to
provide emergency funds for its members.In September 2016, the government
transferred its share of a $27 million package to RDB so the bank could
disburse loans to millers, allowing them to purchase paddy from farmers. In
August, another $23 million was injected by the government, bringing the total
to $50 million aimed at propping up the struggling industry.Thach said a new
loan will be issued for the rice industry at the end of July and he expects it
to be in high demand.
“The demand for capital in the
coming season would see a huge increase as rice facilities are ready for
storage and milling,” he said, adding that the total storage capacity this
season would be around 450,000 tonnes on the strength of four facilities
launched earlier this month.“Even if the loan package comes up short, we will
request the government to add more money,” Thach said.
AMRU Rice Co Ltd CEO Song Saran
said while rice cultivation has kept growing along with buyer demand, the
industry needed to supply 350,000 tonnes to the international market in the
coming season.“Now that we are less concerned about storage and milling, we
need at least $50 million in hand for the rice industry to supply the needs of
the international market,” he said.
Senegal River Valley to produce
875,000 tons of rice by 2020
Tuesday, 10 July
2018 - 13:16
Espoir Olodo
Rice inventories decline — PSA
July 10, 2018 | 10:24 pm
RICE inventories as of June 1
were estimated at 2.36 million metric tons (MT), down on a year-on-year and
month-on-month basis, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
In PSA’s “Rice and Corn Stocks
Inventory” released Tuesday, rice stocks fell 8.24% from a year earlier and were
down 18.85% from a month earlier. Some 46.39% of the total was held by
households, while 53.56% was held by commercial rice dealers. The remaining
0.09% consisted of inventory held by the National Food Authority (NFA).
The overall rice inventory is considered
sufficient for nearly 74 days’ demand.
NFA stock is good for less than a
day. The NFA is mandated to maintain at least 15 days’ worth of buffer stock at
any given time and at least 30 days’ worth of buffer stock for lean months,
which start on July.
Household stocks rose 1.47% year
on year while commercial and NFA inventories fell 1.92% and 98.99%,
respectively.
Month on month, commercial stocks
fell 16.65%, household inventories were down 21.20% and NFA inventory fell
40.29%.
Rice stocks are expected to pick
up with the arrival of 250,000 MT of imported rice to replenish the NFA’s
holdings, with other imports also en route via private deals.
Corn stocks as of June 1 amounted
to 592,010 MT, up 74.99% month on month and down 39.50% year on year.
Commercial entities held 92.13%
of the inventory while 7.87% was held by households.
On a year-on-year basis
commercial holdings fell 38.07% while those of households declined 49.22%.
— Anna Gabriela A. Mogato
Rice Prices
as on :
11-07-2018 01:28:40 PM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Bangalore(Kar)
|
1788.00
|
-18.32
|
51371.00
|
4300
|
4300
|
2.38
|
|
Pilibhit(UP)
|
400.00
|
170.27
|
3678.00
|
2395
|
2415
|
6.92
|
|
Manjeri(Ker)
|
290.00
|
NC
|
4930.00
|
3700
|
3700
|
NC
|
|
Shahjahanpur(UP)
|
250.00
|
25
|
3298.40
|
2345
|
2340
|
-
|
|
Gondal(UP)
|
148.00
|
-0.67
|
9083.50
|
2175
|
2175
|
2.59
|
|
Bahraich(UP)
|
116.40
|
-8.71
|
6366.60
|
2250
|
2260
|
0.90
|
|
Agra(UP)
|
100.00
|
-19.35
|
2557.00
|
2550
|
2540
|
-3.77
|
|
Kalna(WB)
|
97.00
|
2.11
|
2957.00
|
3050
|
3350
|
-3.17
|
|
Lucknow(UP)
|
86.00
|
-2.27
|
2039.00
|
2290
|
2300
|
6.51
|
|
Aligarh(UP)
|
85.00
|
21.43
|
1830.00
|
2540
|
2500
|
-0.78
|
|
Ghaziabad(UP)
|
80.00
|
33.33
|
3470.00
|
2675
|
2670
|
11.46
|
|
Allahabad(UP)
|
75.00
|
25
|
135.00
|
2590
|
2590
|
-
|
|
Puranpur(UP)
|
75.00
|
-25
|
2017.70
|
2390
|
2400
|
-
|
|
Safdarganj(UP)
|
75.00
|
-
|
75.00
|
2240
|
-
|
-
|
|
Thodupuzha(Ker)
|
70.00
|
NC
|
1260.00
|
3200
|
3200
|
-3.03
|
|
Basti(UP)
|
70.00
|
27.27
|
2843.00
|
2120
|
2125
|
0.24
|
|
Chandabali(Ori)
|
65.00
|
-16.67
|
858.50
|
1500
|
1500
|
-37.50
|
|
Utraula(UP)
|
61.00
|
408.33
|
200.70
|
1
|
1630
|
-
|
|
Rampurhat(WB)
|
60.00
|
-14.29
|
1020.00
|
2500
|
2520
|
16.28
|
|
Indus(Bankura Sadar)(WB)
|
55.00
|
-26.67
|
2630.00
|
2750
|
2750
|
7.84
|
|
Gazipur(UP)
|
52.00
|
-
|
52.00
|
2680
|
-
|
-
|
|
Faizabad(UP)
|
50.00
|
35.14
|
1085.50
|
2200
|
2200
|
-2.22
|
|
Howly(ASM)
|
41.00
|
86.36
|
3152.50
|
1400
|
1400
|
-22.22
|
|
Gauripur(ASM)
|
40.00
|
8.11
|
1824.00
|
4500
|
4500
|
NC
|
|
Akbarpur(UP)
|
39.00
|
-9.3
|
82.00
|
2215
|
2220
|
-
|
|
Bazpur(Utr)
|
39.00
|
-40.09
|
2010.60
|
2350
|
2380
|
-4.08
|
|
Fatehpur(UP)
|
36.00
|
140
|
1286.10
|
2235
|
2250
|
1.59
|
|
Maharajganj(UP)
|
35.00
|
16.67
|
100.00
|
2140
|
2140
|
-
|
|
Jangipura(UP)
|
35.00
|
25
|
1041.00
|
2260
|
2270
|
-
|
|
Junagarh(Ori)
|
34.01
|
61.49
|
671.44
|
2200
|
2200
|
4.76
|
|
Lakhimpur(UP)
|
32.00
|
-8.57
|
1724.00
|
2270
|
2280
|
5.09
|
|
Khalilabad(UP)
|
30.00
|
50
|
1062.00
|
2135
|
2135
|
-
|
|
Devariya(UP)
|
30.00
|
NC
|
1747.50
|
2145
|
2140
|
0.47
|
|
Mathura(UP)
|
30.00
|
3.45
|
690.00
|
2540
|
2545
|
0.79
|
|
Bharthna(UP)
|
30.00
|
NC
|
6366.00
|
2400
|
2400
|
-
|
|
Sirsaganj(UP)
|
25.00
|
4.17
|
865.00
|
2725
|
2680
|
15.96
|
|
Sitapur(UP)
|
23.00
|
4.55
|
622.00
|
2280
|
2300
|
-
|
|
Nadia(WB)
|
22.00
|
-8.33
|
327.00
|
3800
|
3850
|
2.70
|
|
Falakata(WB)
|
20.00
|
25
|
96.00
|
2800
|
2840
|
30.23
|
|
Wansi(UP)
|
18.00
|
-10
|
418.00
|
2120
|
2085
|
-
|
|
Barhaj(UP)
|
17.50
|
2.94
|
102.00
|
2160
|
2150
|
-
|
|
Ulhasnagar(Mah)
|
17.00
|
-10.53
|
135.00
|
3500
|
3500
|
40.00
|
|
Chorichora(UP)
|
17.00
|
-32
|
612.50
|
2150
|
2135
|
-
|
|
Sahiyapur(UP)
|
16.50
|
17.86
|
2240.00
|
2150
|
2155
|
-
|
|
Bareilly(UP)
|
16.00
|
-13.51
|
843.90
|
2420
|
2425
|
-
|
|
Saharanpur(UP)
|
15.00
|
NC
|
1020.50
|
2675
|
2690
|
13.11
|
|
Balrampur(UP)
|
15.00
|
-25
|
249.00
|
2200
|
2300
|
4.76
|
|
Kayamganj(UP)
|
14.00
|
16.67
|
534.00
|
2280
|
2280
|
NC
|
|
Tamkuhi Road(UP)
|
14.00
|
16.67
|
897.00
|
2180
|
2175
|
-
|
|
Gorakhpur(UP)
|
13.00
|
-89.6
|
3655.50
|
2150
|
2140
|
2.38
|
|
Raiganj(WB)
|
13.00
|
-13.33
|
843.00
|
3150
|
3150
|
24.75
|
|
Islampur(WB)
|
11.00
|
-15.38
|
727.50
|
3250
|
3250
|
44.44
|
|
Alappuzha(Ker)
|
10.00
|
NC
|
50.00
|
6800
|
6850
|
51.96
|
|
Banda(UP)
|
10.00
|
-41.18
|
517.00
|
2300
|
2215
|
-
|
|
Kaliaganj(WB)
|
10.00
|
-66.67
|
300.00
|
2850
|
3250
|
7.55
|
|
Muradabad(UP)
|
9.50
|
18.75
|
299.00
|
2425
|
2425
|
-
|
|
Giridih(Jha)
|
8.88
|
-34.99
|
467.93
|
3500
|
3500
|
NC
|
|
Ranaghat(WB)
|
8.30
|
-7.78
|
245.42
|
3400
|
3400
|
47.83
|
|
Dibrugarh(ASM)
|
8.00
|
45.45
|
502.70
|
2920
|
2920
|
29.78
|
|
Farukhabad(UP)
|
8.00
|
77.78
|
219.40
|
2420
|
2460
|
9.50
|
|
Jaunpur(UP)
|
8.00
|
-72.41
|
1407.60
|
2230
|
2215
|
6.19
|
|
Ajuha(UP)
|
8.00
|
-23.81
|
107.50
|
2250
|
2300
|
-
|
|
Vishalpur(UP)
|
7.80
|
-13.33
|
268.80
|
2440
|
2425
|
-
|
|
Maudaha(UP)
|
7.50
|
-
|
7.50
|
2300
|
-
|
-
|
|
Kosikalan(UP)
|
7.00
|
75
|
116.50
|
2505
|
2535
|
-
|
|
Madhoganj(UP)
|
6.50
|
-
|
6.50
|
2250
|
-
|
-
|
|
Puwaha(UP)
|
6.00
|
-50
|
726.50
|
2400
|
2250
|
-
|
|
Paliakala(UP)
|
6.00
|
-14.29
|
958.10
|
2300
|
2300
|
-
|
|
Khurja(UP)
|
5.00
|
-23.08
|
689.00
|
2600
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Mirzapur(UP)
|
5.00
|
25
|
636.00
|
2220
|
2215
|
-
|
|
Buland Shahr(UP)
|
5.00
|
NC
|
135.50
|
2600
|
2590
|
11.11
|
|
Chhibramau(Kannuj)(UP)
|
5.00
|
25
|
339.50
|
2240
|
2230
|
NC
|
|
Sehjanwa(UP)
|
4.50
|
-25
|
21.50
|
2160
|
2155
|
-
|
|
Kalyani(WB)
|
3.50
|
-68.18
|
132.90
|
3400
|
3400
|
NC
|
|
Charra(UP)
|
2.60
|
160
|
78.60
|
2500
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Achalda(UP)
|
2.50
|
-
|
2.50
|
1400
|
-
|
-38.33
|
|
Mugrabaadshahpur(UP)
|
2.00
|
-
|
2.00
|
2250
|
-
|
-
|
|
Balarampur(WB)
|
1.81
|
NC
|
55.85
|
2650
|
2650
|
12.77
|
|
Chandoli(UP)
|
1.50
|
-6.25
|
228.20
|
2250
|
2250
|
-
|
|
Tundla(UP)
|
1.40
|
-30
|
124.80
|
2650
|
2650
|
-
|
|
Bangarmau(UP)
|
1.20
|
-25
|
37.90
|
2150
|
2150
|
4.88
|
|
Penugonda(Mah)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
6.00
|
4080
|
4080
|
0.25
|
|
Bilsi(UP)
|
1.00
|
-
|
1.00
|
2300
|
-
|
-
|
|
Khairagarh(UP)
|
0.80
|
NC
|
88.70
|
2570
|
2550
|
1.98
|
|
Gadaura(UP)
|
0.60
|
NC
|
48.00
|
1900
|
1900
|
-6.17
|
|
Jagnair(UP)
|
0.60
|
-25
|
62.20
|
2560
|
2560
|
0.79
|
Egypt to import 400,000 tonnes of
rice in year: AEC
Al-Sisi’s decision to import rice
to end monopolies, says Al-Najari
July
11, 2018
July 9, 2018
Mostafa Al-Najari, a member of
the grain division of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce (FEDCOC)
and chairperson of the rice committee of the Agriculture Export Council (AEC),
told Daily News Egypt that he expects Egypt to import 400,000 tonnes of rice in
the period from August 2017 to August 2018.
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi
agreed Monday during his meeting with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and
Minister of Supply and Internal Trade Ali Meselhy to allow the importation of
rice, making the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) market rice
for the new year and put good prices for the crop in agreement with the
Ministry of Agriculture.
Despite the criticisms of this
decision due to its impact on the Egyptian economy, Al-Najari praised the
decision, saying that rice is an essential crop in Egypt, noting that making
the GASC market the rice for the new year is a path to reform.
He added that this decision will
contribute to stopping monopolies.
“When the Supply Ministry stopped
buying barley rice from farmers, this led to increasing monopolies,” he
explained.
He said that importing should
fill the gap between consumption and production, as consumption is now higher
than production.
Egypt slashed cultivation of
rice, a water-intensive crop, this year to conserve vital Nile River resources
as Ethiopia prepares to fill the reservoir behind a colossal $4bn dam it is
building upstream and which Cairo worries could threaten its water resources.
Previously, in January, Egypt
decided to reduce the area of rice cultivation from 1,100m feddans to 724,000
feddans.Then, in May, the government agreed to increase the area allocated for
rice cultivation by 100,000 feddans only this season, bringing the total area of
rice cultivation to 824,000 feddans,
In this term, Mostafa Al-Saltisi,
vice president of the rice division at the Chamber of Grain Industry in the
Federation of Egyptian Industries (FEI), told Daily News Egypt that the
decision to reduce the area of rice cultivation is one of the most dangerous
decisions that Egypt took, explaining that Egypt’s main agricultural crops are
grains and rice, describing the decision at 100% wrong.
He noted that Egypt’s main
problem in importing rice is that the quality of other countries’ rice is less
than that of Egypt.Moreover, he assured that importing rice threatens the local
market in Egypt.
Commodities
Outlook: Precious and Base Metals extend losses, Oil trades steady
Commodity Online |
July 10 2018
UPDATED 17:56:43 IST
UPDATED 17:56:43 IST
By Sam Nair
Precious Metals extend losses on dollar strength; trend remains
weak
Gold is trading lower today at 30431.0, down 0.61% whereas
Silver is down 286.0 points or 0.67% to trade at 39618.0 currently.The downside
in precious metals is being largely driven by technicals as the market continue
to ignore the geopolitical tensions. A stronger dollar along with tensions in
the Euro Zone also continue to pressure precious metals in the near term.Hedge
funds and money managers raised their net long position in COMEX gold by 105
contracts to 4,291 contracts in the week to July 3, US Commodity Futures
Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on Monday.
The intraday bias continues to remain negative and we expect Gold prices to test 30400.0-30350.0 today whereas Silver may make another attempt to test support at 39500.0-39300.0 today.
Base Metals push to fresh lows; Lead and Zinc fall sharply
Base Metals are trading lower today with the exception of Aluminum and Nickel which are slightly in positive whereas Copper is down 432.20, over a percent. Lead and Zinc are down nearly two percent to trade at 157.45 and 182.40 currently.The minor recovery in base metals seen yesterday was short lived as prices dipped further since open today. Ongoing trade war concerns will continue to dominate the prices fluctuations for the foreseeable future. We also believe that downsides will remain largely limited as falling inventories on major exchanges create a potential supply side situation in the near future and hence, we maintain a very cautious outlook.
Copper is expected to test key support level at 428.0-430.0 breaking which further short selling may emerge in the near future. Lead and Zinc should continue to extend the downside in the short term.
Oil prices continue to consolidate as supply concerns linger
Crude Oil is trading at 5108.0, up 59.0 or 1.17% whereas Natural Gas is down 0.21% to trade at 194.10 currently.Crude Oil prices continue to consolidate near highs as supply concerns linger from key oil-producing countries. Efforts from Russia and Saudi Arabia to increase oil output have also failed to impact the market as the size of supply disruptions are likely to be larger than the increase from both the nations.Another lingering concern comes in the form of import tariffs from China on US oil imports. The market should focus on the API and EIA oil inventories report for a fresh direction in prices.
Technically, oil prices are trading with a bullish bias and the upside should resume on a break of resistance at 5150.0-5160.0 whereas on the downside, support at 4900.0 acts as a support and key reversal point. Natural Gas has broken below a key up-sloping trendline and is expected to decline further in the short term to 188.0-182.0.
(Sam Nair is AVP - Commodities with Stewart and Mackertich Wealth Management Limited)
DISCLAIMER: The views and ideas expressed above may have been suggested to the clients of SMIFS Finance Ltd. It is advisable that investors/traders should consult with their Certified Experts before taking any investment decisions.
The intraday bias continues to remain negative and we expect Gold prices to test 30400.0-30350.0 today whereas Silver may make another attempt to test support at 39500.0-39300.0 today.
Base Metals push to fresh lows; Lead and Zinc fall sharply
Base Metals are trading lower today with the exception of Aluminum and Nickel which are slightly in positive whereas Copper is down 432.20, over a percent. Lead and Zinc are down nearly two percent to trade at 157.45 and 182.40 currently.The minor recovery in base metals seen yesterday was short lived as prices dipped further since open today. Ongoing trade war concerns will continue to dominate the prices fluctuations for the foreseeable future. We also believe that downsides will remain largely limited as falling inventories on major exchanges create a potential supply side situation in the near future and hence, we maintain a very cautious outlook.
Copper is expected to test key support level at 428.0-430.0 breaking which further short selling may emerge in the near future. Lead and Zinc should continue to extend the downside in the short term.
Oil prices continue to consolidate as supply concerns linger
Crude Oil is trading at 5108.0, up 59.0 or 1.17% whereas Natural Gas is down 0.21% to trade at 194.10 currently.Crude Oil prices continue to consolidate near highs as supply concerns linger from key oil-producing countries. Efforts from Russia and Saudi Arabia to increase oil output have also failed to impact the market as the size of supply disruptions are likely to be larger than the increase from both the nations.Another lingering concern comes in the form of import tariffs from China on US oil imports. The market should focus on the API and EIA oil inventories report for a fresh direction in prices.
Technically, oil prices are trading with a bullish bias and the upside should resume on a break of resistance at 5150.0-5160.0 whereas on the downside, support at 4900.0 acts as a support and key reversal point. Natural Gas has broken below a key up-sloping trendline and is expected to decline further in the short term to 188.0-182.0.
(Sam Nair is AVP - Commodities with Stewart and Mackertich Wealth Management Limited)
DISCLAIMER: The views and ideas expressed above may have been suggested to the clients of SMIFS Finance Ltd. It is advisable that investors/traders should consult with their Certified Experts before taking any investment decisions.
‘Spread of rains should remove any worry on kharif sowing’
Nabansu Chattopadhyay, Head, Agricultural Meteorology Division,
IMD
Revival of monsoon and extended sowing window to help farmers
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JULY 10
The revival of monsoon post
June-27 and the spread of rains should remove any major worry on the kharif
front, says Nabansu Chattopadhyay, Head, Agricultural Meteorology Division,
India Met Department (IMD).
“If this factor (spread of rains)
along with the sowing window is available for individual crops, things are
moving at a very good pace now,” Chattopadhyay told BusinessLine by
phone from Pune.
For instance, East and West Madhya
Pradesh would receive widespread rainfall over the next four to five days,
thanks to two rain-generating systems — one already over land and the other in
the making over the sea.
Rains for Central India
The offshore trough is giving
plenty of rain along the West Coast and immediate interior. So all the three
monsoon features are getting activated now. Only Rayalaseema, parts of
Telangana and Coastal Andhra Pradesh may sit out of the rain session.
Saurashtra and Kutch, which are
basically dry areas, too have been areas of some concern. The crops here do not
need much rainfall. Bajra and castor are the main crops though soyabean is also
taken up here on a limited scale.
“But even here, we expect the
rains to come from tomorrow (Wednesday), which is very much within the sowing
window,” Chattopadhyay said.
Soyabean cut-off date
In Maharashtra and Madhya
Pradesh, cotton and soyabean planting can be done up to the cut-off date of
July 10, which is today (Tuesday). The rains have picked up there in time,
making the situation significantly better when compared to June 12 to 27.
If one takes East India, which is
slightly deficient now, here too the rains are returning. Rice is the main crop
here. Some parts of Bengal may have been flooded, but farmers are ready with
the nurseries. “So around July 15, they would start transplanting. Uttar
Pradesh is bracing for a good rainfall in a few days. Punjab and Haryana were
deficient but they have started sowing cotton and are transplanting rice as
well.”
Chattopadhyay said he was not,
however, confident about Rayalaseema, especially Anantapur, where groundnut,
chilli and other cash crops are grown. There is not much rainfall to look to,
but the sowing window extends to July 25.
‘July looks impressive’
“Of course, we had a problem in
June, but July looks impressive as of now. I don’t have the latest sowing
percentage data, but the ongoing rain makes it ideal for sowing, and I’ve
reason to believe that the farmers are at it...”
Farmers in Uttar Pradesh must be
readying for transplanting given the outlook for rainfall. Here again, July 10
is the usual cut-off date for soyabean and cotton.
Maharashtra has been receiving
plenty of rainfall from July 3/4 and one is expecting to see ‘very significant
sowing percentage’ there. Same holds true for Madhya Pradesh also, which is
bracing for good rains over the next couple of days.
The North-East is a high-rainfall
area but there are some rice varieties which can be transplanted after 45 days
(usually it is 25 days). “So, North-East also may not present much of a
problem,” Chattopadhyay said.
Commodities Buzz: Korea Rice
Production To Decline 6.3 percent In 2018/19
Commodities
Buzz: Korea Rice Production To Decline 6.3 percent In 2018/19
July 10, 2018 10:33 IST | capital market
As per the
latest update from U.S. Department of Agriculture, With the Korean government
emphasizing less rice production, output in 2018-19 is forecast to fall by
6.1%, to 3.73 million tonnes. Under the rice reduction program, the government
has encouraged rice farmers to cultivate other crops in rice paddy land to
relieve the burden of heavy stocks accumulated since 2013-14.
Consequently,
estimated rice planting area has been revised down 6.6% to 705,000 hectares,
about 50,000 hectares less than the previous year, the USDA said.
The Korean
government said it will complete the draft revision of the Rice Income
Compensation Act by the end of 2018, planning to implement the revised income
support program from 2020 after completing public hearings next year.
Powered by Commodity Insights
Rice inventories decline — PSA
July 10, 2018 | 10:24 pm
RICE inventories as of June 1
were estimated at 2.36 million metric tons (MT), down on a year-on-year and
month-on-month basis, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.In PSA’s
“Rice and Corn Stocks Inventory” released Tuesday, rice stocks fell 8.24% from
a year earlier and were down 18.85% from a month earlier.
Some 46.39% of the total was held
by households, while 53.56% was held by commercial rice dealers. The remaining
0.09% consisted of inventory held by the National Food Authority (NFA).
The overall rice inventory is
considered sufficient for nearly 74 days’ demand.
NFA stock is good for less than a
day. The NFA is mandated to maintain at least 15 days’ worth of buffer stock at
any given time and at least 30 days’ worth of buffer stock for lean months,
which start on July.
Household stocks rose 1.47% year
on year while commercial and NFA inventories fell 1.92% and 98.99%,
respectively.
Month on month, commercial stocks
fell 16.65%, household inventories were down 21.20% and NFA inventory fell
40.29%.
Rice stocks are expected to pick
up with the arrival of 250,000 MT of imported rice to replenish the NFA’s
holdings, with other imports also en route via private deals.
Corn stocks as of June 1 amounted
to 592,010 MT, up 74.99% month on month and down 39.50% year on year.Commercial
entities held 92.13% of the inventory while 7.87% was held by households.On a
year-on-year basis commercial holdings fell 38.07% while those of households
declined 49.22%. — Anna Gabriela A. Mogato
http://bworldonline.com/rice-inventories-decline-psa/
Sisi allows rice imports into Egypt
July 9, 2018
7:46 pm
7:46 pm
The official spokesman of the
presidency office said that Minister of Supply Al-Meselhi reviewed measures
that have been taken by the ministry to implement it’s strategy’s objectives,
shedding light on the efforts exerted to provide essential commodities in
Ministry of Supply owned markets across the country in lower prices than other
outlets.Meselhi pointed out the increasing number of distribution outlets and
sales chains to raise the supply of products.
Hamed Abdel-Dayem, spokesman for
the Ministry of Agriculture said that the president’s decision to open doors
for rice imports will storm monopolists in the local markets.
Dayem added that the area
allocated for rice cultivation this year is 824 thousand feddans (unit of
area), which is sufficient for domestic consumption. He stressed that Sisi’s
decision will help all rice traders work at full capacity and will maintain the
stability of rice prices in the Egyptian markets.
He also said that the ministry is
attempting to develop new varieties of rice that consume less water and are of
higher quality.A rice crisis has hammered the Egyptian market since the last
months of 2017 and the beginning of 2018, when the rice bags started to disappear
gradually from the shelves at the consumer complexes and at the government
supply chains.The Ministry of Irrigation announced its decision to reduce the
area of cultivated rice from 1.1 million feddans to 724 thousand due to
shortage of water.
It was also reported that
certain suppliers had refrained from offering rice in order to sell it at a
higher price in private markets.Meselhi earlier denied any issues, stating that
the current quantities of rice were sufficient to meet the needs of the country
until December, and the area of race last year amounted to 1.8 million feddans
with an average production of about 3.8 million tons, compared to a consumption
of 2.5 million tons.However in a TV interview Meselhi said that the
government overcame the rice crisis and provided enough stock for the coming
months, stating that the rice shortfall was one of the country’s biggest
dilemmas since he came into power.
Court dismisses Sh26mn tax demand
from rice importer
TUESDAY,
JULY 10, 2018 16:26Times Tower, the headquarters of the KRA, in Nairobi. FILE PHOTO |
NMG
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA)
has suffered a setback after a decision to demand Sh26.2 million from a rice
importer was dismissed.
The taxman had claimed
uncollected duty from a firm, Krish Commodities Ltd, as a result of the
application of a lower duty rate.
The Court of Appeal in Mombasa
also prohibited KRA from continuing to demand money from the company in respect
of importation of rice cleared by the taxman.
Krish Commodities Ltd had moved
to the Appellate Court after the High Court dismissed its application seeking
to have demands by KRA quashed. Judges Alnashir Visram, Wanjiru Karanja and
Martha Koome said the High Court erred in its discretion.
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“We set aside the judgment and
substitute the same with an order allowing Krish Commodities Ltd application,”
said the three judge appellate bench.
They also noted that
identification of applicable rate of duty and assessment of what was payable
was done by the Simba System previously used by KRA for customs processing.
“The appellant had no role in
declaring or setting the rate to be applied, for KRA to turn around and pass
the buck to the company by contending that it was aware of the right rate
cannot hold any weight,” ruled the judges.
The court was told that the
company had in 2008 and 2009 imported rice into the country and the
consignments cleared.
Later in 2011, it received a
letter from KRA demanding payment of short levied duty over the goods.The court
also heard that underpayment arose from the application of the wrong duty rate
during the clearance and assessment of duty payable.Through lawyer Sanjeev
Khagram, the company argued among other issues that the High Court erred in
failing to appreciate the circumstances under which Simba System assessed the
duty payable over imported goods.
Mr Khagram further argued that
having paid the duty assessed, it was unfair for KRA to try and impose the
alleged short levied sugar four years’ later taking into consideration that the
purported erroneous application of the wrong rate of duty was attributable to
the taxman.KRA, through lawyer Pius Nyaga, argued that it conducted a post
clearance audit on the consignment of rice imported by the company.
Mr Nyaga said the results
revealed that the wrong duty of 35 per cent had been used in computing the duty
payable for the consignment. He further argued that the Kenyan tax system is
based on self-accounting and assessment since everyone is supposed to declare
how much tax is due and KRA empowered to audit the declarations.
Egypt imports rice to
control market, prevent increasing prices
Wednesday July 11, 2018
Caption: Rice cultivating- CC via Max Pixel
CAIRO – 11 July
2018: The decision to import rice aims at controlling the market and preventing
the prices hike, Head of Rice division of the Federation of Industries Ragab
Shehata said. Shehata clarified that importing rice does not mean that the
local market is in need of the product as the rice crop which is scheduled to
be harvested in the second half of July, will cover 90 percent of the local
market requirements. He pointed out that the scheduled rice harvest is
expected to reach about 4 million tons of barely rice and over 500,000 tons of
barely rice will be imported to produce about 300,000 tons of white rice.
“There are several countries to import rice from, including Thailand, India, Russia, the United States and Argentina,” the head of rice division stated. He also noted that the companies began to communicate with the Ministry of Agriculture to obtain import approvals. President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi approved Sunday to import rice and to start its marketing for the coming year, and to set suitable prices for the crop in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture.
On June 5, the government announced its plan to import rice (paddy, mulled and cargo rice), in a way to reduce the rice-cultivated areas due to the water shortage crisis the country is suffering from.
President Sisi ratified on May 21, the newly-passed amendments to the Agriculture Law No. 53 of 1966, per which the government will determine the areas to cultivate certain water-intensive crops such as rice and sugarcane, amid the water shortage crisis in order to rationalize water usage. Also, Article 101 of the law stipulates that those who violate the ministerial decrees issued to implement Articles 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Agriculture Law shall be punished with a fine not less than LE 20,000 (about $1,119) and not more than LE 50,000.
On May 2, the Egyptian government agreed to increase the area allocated for rice cultivation by 100,000 feddans (one feddan equals 1.038 acres) for this season only, bringing the total area allocated for rice cultivation to 820,000 feddans, Abdel Latif Khaled, head of irrigation sector in the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources stated. Thus, it is expected that Egypt will produce about 3.3 million tons this year as one feddan produces 4 tons, while Egypt's annual consumption of rice is estimated at 4.3 million tons.
However, the cultivated areas will be shrunk in the coming seasons as a result of water scarcity, given that one feddan of rice consumes 7,000 cubic meters of water.Egypt needs at least 105 billion cubic meters of water annually to cover the needs of more than 90 million citizens. However, it currently has only 60 billion cubic meters, 55.5 billion cubic meters of which come from the Nile and less than 5 billion cubic meters come from non-renewable subterranean water in the desert. The remaining 80 billion cubic meters are covered by the reuse of wastewater.
The average per capita consumption of fresh water declined by 1.5 percent in 2015/2016 as it reached 103.4 cubic meters, compared to 105 cubic meters in 2015/2014, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) data. A further decrease in Egypt's water resources is expected in light of the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which could have a negative impact on Egypt’s Nile water share.
Egypt was the largest rice producer in the Near East region, according to the FAO data in 2004. In the period between 2015 and 2016, the country exported rice with a revenue of $58 million. However, rice export was banned in August 2016 to meet the local demand after shrinking the cultivated areas.
Additional Reporting: Samar Samir
“There are several countries to import rice from, including Thailand, India, Russia, the United States and Argentina,” the head of rice division stated. He also noted that the companies began to communicate with the Ministry of Agriculture to obtain import approvals. President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi approved Sunday to import rice and to start its marketing for the coming year, and to set suitable prices for the crop in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture.
On June 5, the government announced its plan to import rice (paddy, mulled and cargo rice), in a way to reduce the rice-cultivated areas due to the water shortage crisis the country is suffering from.
President Sisi ratified on May 21, the newly-passed amendments to the Agriculture Law No. 53 of 1966, per which the government will determine the areas to cultivate certain water-intensive crops such as rice and sugarcane, amid the water shortage crisis in order to rationalize water usage. Also, Article 101 of the law stipulates that those who violate the ministerial decrees issued to implement Articles 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Agriculture Law shall be punished with a fine not less than LE 20,000 (about $1,119) and not more than LE 50,000.
On May 2, the Egyptian government agreed to increase the area allocated for rice cultivation by 100,000 feddans (one feddan equals 1.038 acres) for this season only, bringing the total area allocated for rice cultivation to 820,000 feddans, Abdel Latif Khaled, head of irrigation sector in the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources stated. Thus, it is expected that Egypt will produce about 3.3 million tons this year as one feddan produces 4 tons, while Egypt's annual consumption of rice is estimated at 4.3 million tons.
However, the cultivated areas will be shrunk in the coming seasons as a result of water scarcity, given that one feddan of rice consumes 7,000 cubic meters of water.Egypt needs at least 105 billion cubic meters of water annually to cover the needs of more than 90 million citizens. However, it currently has only 60 billion cubic meters, 55.5 billion cubic meters of which come from the Nile and less than 5 billion cubic meters come from non-renewable subterranean water in the desert. The remaining 80 billion cubic meters are covered by the reuse of wastewater.
The average per capita consumption of fresh water declined by 1.5 percent in 2015/2016 as it reached 103.4 cubic meters, compared to 105 cubic meters in 2015/2014, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) data. A further decrease in Egypt's water resources is expected in light of the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which could have a negative impact on Egypt’s Nile water share.
Egypt was the largest rice producer in the Near East region, according to the FAO data in 2004. In the period between 2015 and 2016, the country exported rice with a revenue of $58 million. However, rice export was banned in August 2016 to meet the local demand after shrinking the cultivated areas.
Additional Reporting: Samar Samir
Blame game over rice price hike
DEEPAK ACHARJEE
Prices of rice, especially of coarse
rice, have risen, while rice millers, importers and traders blame each other
for the increase amidst growing dissatisfaction among consumers, especially the
poor. The rice millers, importers and traders are blaming each other for
the rising rice prices, although the country has a good buffer stock of rice
and adequate availably in the markets.
To bring prices down, the
Directorate General of Food has started open market sale (OSM) in different
places in metropolitan cities to support low-income groups.Taiyob Ali, a
retailer of Mymensing Rice Agency in Mirpur area informed that the prices of
rice, especially coarse rice, have risen due to a shortage of
supply.“Currently, coarse rice like Guti Swarna and Irri are selling of Tk 42
to Tk 43 per kilogram (Kg) at the retailer level which sold earlier Tk 36 to Tk
37 per kg,” he said.Taiyob Ali informed that the importers almost stopped
importing Guti Swarna rice from India due to a rise in tariff, resulting in a
shortage.
“As the Guti Swarna is not
available in the market, the dealers raised the price of another variety of
coarse rice, Irri,” he added.Acting secretary of the food ministry told The
Independent that the Finance Division and the commerce ministry had increased
the tariff of imported rice to 28 per cent without consultation with the food
ministry and the stakeholders.“The authorities concerned should take immediate
steps to stabilise the rice market,” he said.He said they had huge quantities
of rice in buffer stock to meet existing demands. As of now, there are a total
of 10.59 lakh tonnes of rice in the godowns.Md Shah Alam, a rice importer, told
this correspondent that the commerce ministry imposed a 28 per cent tariff
without consultation with the rice importers. As a result, huge quantities of
rice were now awaiting release at different ports.“The government should take
steps to release the imported rice immediately to stabilise the rice market,”
he said.
At the same time, importers
blamed rice mill owners, saying they were hoarding rice to sell them at higher
price. This pushed up prices by Tk 2 or Tk 3 per kg.“The law enforcement
agencies and the other monitoring bodies should take necessary steps in this
regard,” he said.Layek Ali, general secretary of Bangladesh Rice Mill Owners’
Association, told The Independent that they were not hoarding rice any rice. “The
retailers are playing tricks to earn money by selling rice at a high rate,” he
said.“Prices at the district level were stable, so why should they increase in
the metropolitan cities especially in Dhaka?” he asked.“We don’t understand why
the prices have risen. There is enough supply of rice in the market against the
demand,” he added.
When contacted, Director General
of Directorate General of Food Md Arifur Rahman Apu told The Independent that
they would continue OMS activities in the metropolitan cities to support the
low-income people. Currently, there are a total of 10.59 lakh metric
tonnes of rice in the government godowns. The demand of rice is about 2.90
crore tonnes annually.
INDIA'S RICE
EXPORTS SET TO EASE AS GOVT RAISES BUYING PRICE
7/10/2018
* India hikes guaranteed prices paid for rice by 13 pct
*
Wants to woo farmers ahead of general election next year
*
That means Indian rice exports likely to become more
expensive
*
Thailand, Vietnam seen gaining market share
By
Rajendra Jadhav
MUMBAI, July 10 (Reuters) - India's rice exports are set toease
from October as the world's biggest shipper of the grainboosts guaranteed
prices that farmers receive for much of theircrop, making new season cargoes
expensive compared to supplyfrom rival growers.Lower exports would mean that
India loses market share inkey Asian and African markets, traders and industry
sourcessaid, with exports from countries such as Thailand, Vietnam andMyanmar
likely to fill any gaps.
India on Wednesday raised prices paid to local farmers forcommon
grade paddy rice by 13 percent from a year ago to 1,750rupees ($25.50) per 100
kg, with Prime Minister Narendra Modilooking to woo millions of rural poor
ahead of a generalelection next year.The government typically buys more than a
third of thecountry's rice output at a fixed price, which also has a
directimpact on prices paid by traders.
"With this price rise, our exports will become
expensive,"said B V Krishna Rao, president of the Rice ExportersAssociation
(REA)."The customer base that we have created over a period oftime is
going to shift to Thailand and Vietnam."
Exporters were this week offering Indian 5 percent brokenparboiled
rice <RI-INBKN5-P1> at $388-$392 per tonne on a freeon board (FOB) basis,
nearly the same as prices quoted by Thaiexporters.
But the hike in guaranteed price will force Indian exportersto
offer the new season crop at around $430 from October, makingexports
uncompetitive, a dealer said. He declined to beidentified as he was not
authorised to speak with media.India's rice exports in the 2017/18 fiscal year
that endedon March 31 surged 18 percent from the year before to a record12.7
million tonnes on strong demand from Bangladesh and SriLanka.
But that demand has already been hit hard, said Nitin Gupta, business head of rice at Olam
India, with Bangladesh imposing a28 percent tax on rice imports in June to
support local farmers.
And Indian states like Chhattisgarh could announceadditional
payments to farmers on top of the prices fixed by thecentral government,
industry officials said."Chhattisgarh could announce a bonus of around 200
to 300rupees (per 100kg). This will further widen the gap betweenlocal and
international prices," said a Mumbai-based dealer witha global trading
firm.India uses rice and wheat that it buys from local farmers ata fixed price
to supply subsidised food to the poor and meet anyemergency needs.However, Rao
of REA said that the government couldeventually be forced to incentivise more
overseas rice sales as
its storage gets closer to capacity.
‘Gambia earns
$80M in tourism, spent $74M to import rice in 2017’
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Juldeh Ceesay, a representative of the Ministry of
Finance and Economic Affairs has disclosed that The Gambia earned 80 million
U.S. Dollars in the tourism last year, saying a total of 74 million U.S.
Dollars was spent to import rice in the same year.Ceesay was speaking at the
start of two-day stakeholders consultation forum on Regional Rice Value Chain
Development Program held at a hotel in Kololi. The forum is a step towards the
funding of Mega Rice Development Project in The Gambia by the Islamic
Development Bank (IsDB) with co-financing from the Africa Development Bank
(AfDB).
“Therefore, this indicates that
increased in rice production would not only ensure food security, but also go a
long way in ensuring macro-economic stability including stability of the
national currency,” she added.He acknowledged that it is no secret that rice is
the country’s staple food and records have it that on average every Gambian
consumes 117kg per annum. This, he added, is far above the world average of
56.9kg per annum.“However, while we consume that much rice, our national rice
production is just about 17% of our needs leaving us to import more than 80% of
our rice needs. The dependency on imports to meet the national rice deficit, in
no doubt continues to dispose the food security situation in The Gambia to the
vulnerability of volatile global market trends and also depletes our foreign
exchange reserves,” he added.With observed trends in the decline of rice
production in the country over the years, she urged the consultants to leave no
stone unturned in the first step towards solving the country’s rice needs as
this forum presents those opportunities.
Ken Johm, a representative from
AFDB, described the meeting as very timely and important since rice stands out
as a key commodity in many national strategies for food security since the
soaring food prices crises in 2006-2008. “The substantial land and fresh water
resources in The Gambia presents huge untapped resources within the rice value
chain, which can be harnessed for economic development,” he added.The rice
sector, he said, has the potential to become an engine for economic growth and
development across the country, contributing to eliminating extreme poverty and
food insecurity, thereby creating employment opportunities, especially for
women and the youth entering job markets.
Momodou L. Ceesay, a
representative of IsDB, emphasised that majority of IDB member countries in
sub-Saharan Africa have set themselves the goal of increasing domestic rice
production so that they can avoid being dependent on importers. “Because the
IDB has received official request from many of member countries in the
continent and others have indicated their interest to collaborate with the bank
in realising its objective,” he said.
Ceesay disclosed that the
programme beneficiary countries include: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire,
The Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Sudan.“The initial
estimated investment of the program is USD 300 million of which IDB is expected
to finance USD175 million through the Lives and Livelihood Fund (LLF) that
includes 30% grant component; USD 25 million from the contributions from the 10
beneficiary countries; USD 100 million from development partners the target
direct beneficiaries are two million households. The objective is to develop
effective and profit oriented National and Regional Rice Value, Chain
enterprises with strong private sector participation and it will invest in
infrastructure development, research and development/Science and Technology,
Development of Value Chains, capacity building to enhance the enabling policy
environment,” he added.
Author: Fatou B. Cham
Philippines Confident Of
Meeting Rice Needs
Philippine Rice Producers
Have Extended Their Assurance That They Have The Production Capacity To Supply
Domestic PNG’s Rice Import Quota.
July 10, 2018
BY MATTHEW VARI
Philippine rice producers have
extended their assurance that they have the production capacity to supply
domestic PNG’s rice import quota.This follows from the inking of an
agricultural cooperation agreement between Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte in May this year
in Manila.Minister for Agriculture Benny Allan announced this while giving an update of the agreement last week in Port Moresby.“One of the things that we believe that will bring in revenue and foreign exchange quickly to address the current (economic) situation we are going through is rice,” Mr Allan said.“Rice we are saying will address and replace the imports that we have. Already there are negotiations and talks between Philippines and Papua New Guinea.“The PM went over to the Philippines and between our prime minister and the president (Duterte) over there they have given an undertaking that Philippines will come and grow rice like any other country.”He said that investors from the Philippines have indicated they can meet the 300,000-400,000 tonnes that the country currently imports from Australia and other countries.“Within five years they can meet that and then anything that they produce in surplus they will buy back. That is the arrangement that they have and some of these investors are serious.“We are now into signing an agriculture cooperation we are working on and getting the legal clearance on the MoA,” Mr Allan said.He said while the Philippines has indicated its interest in the Central Province and Sepik Plains, there are other countries that also have a presence in the country in the rice sector like Australia, Israel, China, New Zealand, India and Korea.
in Manila.Minister for Agriculture Benny Allan announced this while giving an update of the agreement last week in Port Moresby.“One of the things that we believe that will bring in revenue and foreign exchange quickly to address the current (economic) situation we are going through is rice,” Mr Allan said.“Rice we are saying will address and replace the imports that we have. Already there are negotiations and talks between Philippines and Papua New Guinea.“The PM went over to the Philippines and between our prime minister and the president (Duterte) over there they have given an undertaking that Philippines will come and grow rice like any other country.”He said that investors from the Philippines have indicated they can meet the 300,000-400,000 tonnes that the country currently imports from Australia and other countries.“Within five years they can meet that and then anything that they produce in surplus they will buy back. That is the arrangement that they have and some of these investors are serious.“We are now into signing an agriculture cooperation we are working on and getting the legal clearance on the MoA,” Mr Allan said.He said while the Philippines has indicated its interest in the Central Province and Sepik Plains, there are other countries that also have a presence in the country in the rice sector like Australia, Israel, China, New Zealand, India and Korea.
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