Fruitful year for
wheat, maize varieties
Amin AhmedDecember 23,
2019
The achievement came mainly on the back of a partnership between
the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and the Pakistan
Agricultural Research Council (PARC) with support from the US development
agency USAID.
Being the apex federal institution, PARC approved 10 new varieties
of wheat for commercial cultivation, while provincial the provincial seed
councils of Punjab and Balochistan approved four and six new open-pollinated
varieties (OPVs) of maize.
These OPVs have been developed mainly for small-scale farmers to
reduce the cost of seed without compromising the average yield. For the first
time, the seed council of Balochistan approved any maize variety in the
province.
According to the CIMMYT’s representative in Pakistan, Dr Muhammad
Imtiaz, all the approved wheat and maize varieties have been tested vigorously
by federal and provincial research organisations.
The production of high-yielding and disease-resistant varieties has
come at a time when the government has launched the agriculture emergency
programme
Initially, the introduced germplasm was distributed to research
institutes across the country for performance evaluation and screening against
diseases and climate challenges.
After the initial testing, the selected candidate lines were
evaluated through National Uniform Yield Trial for two more years across
Pakistan. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, four new wheat varieties were developed by
Cereal Crops Research Institute, Nuclear Institute for Food and Agriculture and
Barani Agricultural Research Stations of Kohat.
The Wheat Research Institute of Faisalabad, Arid Zone Research
Institute of Bhakkar, and Regional Research Institute of Bahawalpur have
released three new wheat varieties for Punjab farmers.
Additionally, the National Agriculture Research Centre has released
one wheat variety for rain-fed areas of Punjab. Furthermore, the Maize and
Millets Research Institute in Sahiwal came up with four new maize OPVs for
resource-limited, small-scale farmers in the maize-growing regions of Pakistan.
In Balochistan, the Agriculture Research Institute of Quetta has released
two wheat and six maize varieties, which are more yielding and resistant to
droughts. All these varieties can produce ten to 20 per cent more yield and
would be instrumental for food security.
PARC Chairman Dr Muhammad Azeem said the varietal diversity has
enhanced the crop productivity and saved wheat and maize crops from rust. The
last year’s crop debacle though resulted in grain loss, but the effects of rust
were minimised.
The production of high-yielding and disease-resistant varieties has
come at a time when the government has launched the agriculture emergency
programme. Public-Private participation now needs to be strengthened for the
availability of certified seeds to farmers, he said.
Dr Imtiaz of the CIMMYT said that the research partnership between
Pakistan, the United States, and the CIMMYT has played a vital role in
improving food security in the country. More than 70pc of current wheat
varieties grown in Pakistan come either directly from CIMMYT selections or
Pakistani cross-breeding programmes and at least 50pc of improved maize
varieties are derived from joint research from the CIMMYT and Pakistan.
In Pakistan, about 65pc population depends on agriculture, and the
sector makes up 24pc of GDP. Among major crops, wheat, rice and maize are the
three most important cereal crops and contribute 63pc share in value-added
agriculture. Developing genetically improved and stress-tolerant crop varieties
ensures sustainability and food and nutritional security.
The USAID-funded Agricultural Innovation Programme has also helped
Pakistan’s national partners to have access to improved rice and vegetable
varieties. More than 1,172 advanced rice lines having various traits were
introduced and distributed to 11 institutions throughout the country in public
and private sectors for evaluation against important rice disease like
bacterial blight and abiotic stresses (such as submergence, drought, salinity,
low and high temperatures), tolerance, yield potential and grain quality.
Of these germplasm, four bacterial leaf blight–resistant basmati
varieties have been approved by the provincial seed council and the variety
evaluation committee of PARC.
Bacterial blight disease–resistant super basmati, BR1 and BR2 were
selected and developed by the National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic
Engineering in Faisalabad while varieties Super Basmati 2019 and Super Gold
were selected and developed by the Rice Research Institute in Kala Shah Kaku.
All advanced super basmati rice varieties are resistant to
bacterial blight disease, a major yield-limiting factor of basmati in Punjab,
and producing 10pc to 12pc higher yields and better grain quality than traditional
super basmati. Besides, super gold variety is also tolerant to flooding.
Similarly, the Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB)
of Faisalabad has released two tomato hybrids, namely Niab Gohar and Niab
Jauher, for commercial cultivation. All these and many other innovations like
Zero-Till Happy Seeder and the Direct Seed Rice technology would only become
possible due to close partnership between national and international
stakeholders.
The CIMMYT is one of the 15 non-profit, research and training
institutions affiliated with the CGIAR, a global partnership that unites
international organizations engaged in research for a food-secured future. In
addition to Pakistan, it has a strong presence in South and West Asian
countries like Afghanistan, India, China, Turkey, Bangladesh and Nepal. Some of
these countries provided support from their own resources while others are
helped with donor support.
Published in Dawn, The Business and
Finance Weekly, December 23rd, 2019
Non-textile exports show marginal
growth
Mubarak Zeb KhanDecember 22, 2019
foreign sales of footballs, one of the leading export
items of the country, grew by 15 per cent during 5MFY20.
ISLAMABAD: Exports of non-textile products went up
nearly five per cent year-on-year to $3.781 billion during July-November in
FY20 owing to cash support to various sectors and currency depreciation.
The persistent increase shows exports of non-textile
products have rebounded in the ongoing fiscal year reversing the declining
trend seen during last few years. The trend indicates a natural diversification
of the export base owing to highest-ever depreciation of the rupee, which was
highly concentrated in few textile-based products.
Under various subsidies sch¬em¬es, the government had
extended cash support to leather manufacturers, footwear, sports goods,
surgical, engineering goods, furniture, meat and meat products, fish products
and cutlery manufacturers in a bid to increase non-textile exports.
The data released by the Pakistan Bureau of
Statistics showed carpet and rug exports increased by 4.44pc during the first
five months of current fiscal year from a year ago. The slight increase shows
that depreciation of rupee has helped Pakistani exporters to get market access
and compete with Chinese and Indian exporters.
However, sports goods’ exports went down slightly by
2.01pc and foreign sales of footballs were up by 14.73pc.
Tanned leather exports witnessed a negative growth of
18.78pc in July-Nov from a year ago.
Data showed a year-on-year decline of 35.52pc in
exports of petroleum products. Petroleum products, crude and naphtha
contributed in overall decline in the sector’s exports.
After a long time, exports of leather products rebounded
jumping by 11.21pc during this period. This was mainly led by sales of leather
garment, leather gloves, followed by other leather products.
Footwear exports went up by 22.72pc on back of
leather footwear and others, surgical goods and medical instruments by 10.94pc.
However, engineering goods dipped by 2.13pc during the year under review.
Year-on-year exports of gems surged 62.73pc. However,
export of molasses dropped by 97.8pc, and jewellery 8.79pc, while those of
cement and furniture fell by 5.27pc and 19.6pc respectively.
In the food basket, exports of rice witnessed a
robust rise of 38.58pc in the five months of current fiscal year from a year
ago. The growth was witnessed in both basmati and non-basmati rice. This will
be the highest export proceeds of rice from Pakistan in five months owing to
shortage of the commodity in the major rice producing countries.
Exports of sugar, meat and tobacco are the other
three major commodities which recorded an impressive growth. Furthermore,
exports of fish, vegetables, and fruits also increased.
Published in Dawn, December 22nd, 2019
Cloud computing to help PHL rice sector
-
December 22, 2019
LOS BAÑOS, Laguna—The agriculture
and science community in the Philippines celebrated the launch of Asi@Connect Ricestats Database:
Leveraging the Cloud for Rice Statistics and Analytics.
Ricestats Database, led by the
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), intends to create a reference
resource by using an ontology to combine data into a one-stop accessible
database with a displayable dashboard for rice statistics.
The platform runs on Amazon Web
Services, such as AWS Glue, Athena and S3 for data extraction, transformation
and loading, while the transformed data is stored in AWS cloud warehouse
Redshift.
The database will contain data
from existing household surveys conducted by IRRI globally, and will include
data from national bureaus and international organizations.
Currently, such a consolidated
database with disaggregated data, such as production by season and gender of
household head up to the barangay level, does not exist for rice in Asia.
In his keynote address,
Academician Dr. William Padolina said, “Without new knowledge, especially in
science and technology, without the new knowledge that will be generated, it
will be difficult to make good decisions on conservation and resource use,
something that is vital to the success of rice production.”
The launch was hosted by IRRI,
the Department of Science and Technology-Advanced Science and Technology
Institute (DOST-ASTI), and AWS last month at a hotel in Manila.
DOST-ASTI Director Dr. Joel
Joseph Marciano Jr. emphasized the importance of this collaboration with IRRI
and DOST-ASTI’s long-standing partnership.
“The DOST-ASTI and IRRI, over the
years, have established a good working relationship through our partnership in
the areas of research networking, high-performance computing, and cloud
computing. IRRI is connected to the Philippine Research, Education, and
Government Information Network (Preginet), which is being managed by the
DOST-ASTI,” Marciano said.
Preginet is the Philippines’s
only National Research and Education Network (NREN) that is connected to a
global REN, of which Asi@Connect
is the Asia-Europe connection.
IRRI Agri-Food Policy Platform
Leader Dr. Jean Balié said: “IRRI believes that the Asi@Connect project can help fulfill a
number of Sustainable Development Goals through improved access to education
and research resources across the Asia-Pacific.”
“Ricestats Database will enable
the dissemination of comprehensive rice socioeconomic data through an easily
accessible database interface on a wider scale. The project will provide a
unique resource for agricultural and social science researchers, academia,
policy-makers, donors and investors in the rice sector and beyond,” added IRRI
Representative for the Philippines Dr. Romeo Recide.
Asi@Connect empowers
Asian countries by enabling them to participate in collaborative programs, like
Ricestats Database. They also bridge the digital divide that exists within the
global communities of research, education, and health.
“The main objective
of Asi@Connect, as successor
to the TEIN [Trans-Eurasia Information Network] program, is to provide and
further develop a dedicated regional high-capacity, high-quality Internet
connectivity network for research and higher education, also leveraging the
e-infrastructure developed for public service projects, such as food security,
health, ocean observation related to natural disasters, e-government, education
and training, and cultural heritage with emphasis on applications of broad
societal benefit,” said TEIN Cooperation Center CEO Dr. Kim Byung-kyu.
The launch was attended by
partners from agriculture and science organizations, officials from national
government agencies, and members of the academe in the Philippines.
SUKHERA URGED TO
SET UP MUCH NEEDED SME GALLERY FOR SME WARES
The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME)
has urged Ahmed Nawaz Sukhera
federal secretary, ministry of commerce (Mincom) to set up SME export gallery
and strategically increase exports by encouraging and giving incentives to
exporters.President UNISAME Zulfikar Thaver said all our commercial attaches
all over the globe need to do more and increase our exports of our traditional
and non traditional goods to traditional and also non traditional markets.
Secondly he urged the
federal secretary Mincom to without any loss of time set up the promised
SME gallery and provide global marketing support to the exporters.
Thaver said he fails
to understand that when the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) had
prepared feasibility of the SME gallery and had agreed and accepted to set up
the much needed SME gallery to exhibit the wares of the SMEs under the name and
style of SME Export House , then why it was shelved. He said they had formed a
steering committee and had planned the entire strategy to promote exports of
SME wares and items of geographical indications (GI) aggressively. The GI items
are in demand by Pakistanis settled abroad and simply love our GI items like
basmati rice, spices, sweet preparations and clothings.
The SME Export House
would display the goods of the SMEs itemise, areawise and promote online
business as well.
Thirdly he emphasised
on the need to educate the SMEs on adding value to our produce.
Fourthly he said the
sector needs to focus on productivity and basically to become competitive by
saving energy, wastage , maintaining benchmark, improving packing and
increasing shelf life of our products.
He said that we need
to become competitive to meet the challenges. The sector also needs the
facility of Merchant Accounts for E-Commerce and payment gateway. Thaver
said the federal secretary Mincom has vast experience and as a past CEO
of SMEDA he knows the potentiality of the sector.
He also requested
Ahmed Nawaz Sukhera to co-ordinate with the ministry of industries and impress
upon Abdul Razzak Dawood , the adviser of prime minister for commerce,
production and industries as well to get the SME policy approved promptly and
begin its implementation for increasing exports and for stimulation of the
economy through the SME sector.
UNISAME
Sri Lanka needs agriculture policy change to up farmer incomes,
productivity
LOW PRODUCTIVITY: Agriculture employs a quarter of
Sri Lanka’s workforce and generates 7 percent of gross domestic product.
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s subsidy based agriculture policies are
not helping to boost productivity and take farmers out of poverty or deploy
land for the most suitable crops or activities, requiring a re-orientation of
focus, a researcher has found.
“There’s a lot of government spending on production of rice and
other crops, but its competitiveness and the profitability even for the farmers
and food security is very questionable,” Manoj Thibbotuwawa from the Institute
of Policy Studies, a Colombo-based think tank, who is studying agro-economics
said.
The findings are from an ongoing study into the agriculture
sector.
The research into paddy farming in the study is completed, and
an analysis into field crops and vegetables is ongoing.
Policies of self-sufficiency in some crops may have resulted in
people eating less vegetables or proteins.
A quarter of Sri Lanka’s workforce is engaged in agriculture,
generating 7 percent of gross dmestic product.
No Profits
Thibbotuwawa said research at state agencies into profits from
the agriculture sector ignore the country’s social costs of water, seed and
fertilizer subsidies and the costs of irrigation infrastructure.
“So, we estimated the opportunity cost of these factors, and
then calculated social profits,” he said.
“Social profits are actually negative, as we are spending a lot
on an unprofitable venture. Even the farmers get small profits which are not
enough to take them out of poverty.”
If comparable grades of rice are imported tax free, Sri Lankans
could enjoy a 30 percent fall in rice prices in the local market, the economist
said.
Currently, most rice varieties, excluding specialties such as
basmati required for hotels and restaurants are not imported.
“We are not saying to import totally, because we haven’t done a
calculation based on different agro-ecological zones. If we disaggregate the
local sown extent into the dry, wet and different agro-ecological zones, there
may be areas where farming is profitable,” Thibbotuwawa said.
Sri Lanka has 46 different agro-ecological zones with differing
profiles based on elevation, precipitation and soil fertility.
“So, the policies to propose would be to evaluate the
profitability of different regions and invest only in areas where we have a
comparative advantage in producing locally,” he said.
“Land in other areas should be diverted to competitive,
high-value, diversified crops.”
Subsidized Errors
Sri Lanka’s rice yield levels are low compared to other Asian
countries, Thibbotuwawa said.
Even Bangladesh has higher yields than Sri Lanka, while in China
and Japan, yields are twice as much as those locally, he said.
“This is because the main focus in the agriculture sector is on
giving subsidies.”
A key learning in economics is that long-term subsidies and
protection for mature industries reduces their competitiveness, as locals lose
touch with the reality of market forces.
Sri Lanka started the fertilizer subsidy in 1962, with the
‘green revolution’ to increase rice yields with newer rice strains which
required fertilizer, compared to the traditional varieties which did not.
NEWSLETTER
DAILY BRIEF
“Then, fertilizer use was
very low, and the government wanted to improve usage. With higher fertilizer,
yield levels went drastically up to 4 metric tonnes per hectare. But now we are
using more than the recommended level of fertilizer,” Thibbotuwawa said.
In Sri Lanka, farmers always believe that more fertilizer is
better.
Thibbotuwawa said that over-use of fertilizer is reducing soil
fertility.
“Most recent yield levels indicate that yield levels have
flattened from the earlier growth and is now around 3.5 metric tonnes per
hectare.”
“We have also not invested much into research into agriculture
technology until recently.”
Smallholder cultivation, with each farm smaller than 1 hectare
does not encourage economies of scale, and too many middlemen in the supply
chains also hampers the sector’s development through rent seeking, and market
signals such as quality requirements not passing through to smallholders, he
said.
Even if Sri Lanka generates a bumper harvest, the rice cannot be
exported, as other countries consume higher quality long grain rice at lower
prices, he said.
Misguided Food Security
Sri Lanka’s early agriculture policies following independence
was self-sufficiency in rice as a part of food security, and the policy has now
become ingrained, Thibbotuwawa said.
However, the self-sufficiency policy had resulted in Sri Lanka
not diversifying its crop mix, said.
“Because there is no diversification, around 40 percent of
energy and 30 percent of protein requirements of Sri Lankans are fulfilled by
rice.”
“Why do we need to consume that much of rice? Even our food
security is also not that high.”
“Food security doesn’t mean we have to get all of our nutrient requirements from rice.”
“Food security doesn’t mean we have to get all of our nutrient requirements from rice.”
“That’s a wrong impression most Sri Lankans have, and that’s why
we are investing more on growing rice.”
“Although there has been some diversification recently, we are
still not consuming high protein foods like meat or enough fruits and
vegetables, and nearly 30 percent of fruit and vegetable crops are wasted.”
Sri Lanka is the 66th most food secure country in the world,
while Singapore, which imports all food, is ranked first.
Land Trouble
Although the way forward is to grow rice only in highly fertile
land which derives profits for farmers, the small farm sizes, and legal
difficulties in transferring agriculture land will hold the sector back, Thibbotuwawa
said.
“So, people who are inefficient producers can’t sell their land,
and good entrepreneurs cannot buy land and increase their land extent for
mechanization or diversification.”
“That is what the MCC agreement attempted to address, but the
main concern was that if you give the land ownership to smallholders, since
they are always in distress, they will sell their land to companies and fall
into greater poverty.”
However, if the government takes short-term action to protect
the farmers and allows the release of land for profitable, efficient
investments, the farmers would benefit circularly through the creation of jobs,
Thibbotuwawa said. (Colombo/Dec21/2019)
Believe it or not! Your smartphone can spot fake rice - Power of
Artificial Intelligence!
Believe it or not but your smartphone can spot fake rice!
Updated: Sat, Dec 21, 2019
05:40 pm
05:40 pm
ZeeBiz WebDesk
Believe it or not but your smartphone can spot fake rice!
Yes...you read it right because the photo taken from your smartphone can detect
whether the rice you are paying for is genuine and of high-quality or
not. A simple photograph taken with a mobile phone is able to detect
irregularities in the labelling of rice, according to an investigation
conducted by the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the Scintillon
Institute of San Diego (USA), as per a report in IANS.
Artificial Intelligence
The scientists develop an algorithm based on deep learning - a
field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) -- that is able to determine whether that
rice is really the one described with the images taken with the smartphone.
"What we contribute compared to other detection methods is
simplicity and we show the consumer that you do not need large sums of money to
verify whether a certain type of rice is the one mentioned on the label,"
said Jose Santiago Torrecilla, Professor and researcher from the Department of
Chemical Engineering and Materials at the UCM.
To carry out the study, the researchers used five types of rice
that were ground "in order to distinguish the type of rice not only when
it is in grain form but also when it is ground into flour".
With all this information, algorithms based on neural networks
were designed and optimized to process the information contained in the images
for classification based on the type of rice, obtaining final precision models
between 93 per cent and 99 per cent.
"It should be noted that rice is just one example of cereal
and, therefore, this technology could be extrapolated to other types of cereals
or food," said the UCM chemist, leaving the door open for future
applications in the food industry.
Customs raid Mubi
market, seize foreign rice a day ago 5567 views by Nnenna Ibeh -
Personnel of the Nigerian Customs Service on Friday, December 20, raided a
market in Mubi - The NCS went on the operation with some officers of the
Nigeria Police - The team seized many bags of foreign rice and arrested three
suspects believed to be involved in the smuggling of goods The Nigerian Customs
Service on Friday, December 20, raided Mubi town market for foreign rice and
other contraband goods. The raid which was carried out by officers of the
Adamawa/Taraba state command of the NCS was led by the Comptroller, Kamardeen
Olumoh. It was gathered that the team seized many bags of foreign rice and
arrested three suspects believed to be involved in the smuggling of goods.
The News Agency of
Nigeria reports that the officers who teamed up with Police personnel stormed
the commercial border town main market around 11 am and raided many shops and
stores. The command comptroller said the raid was in compliance with a
directive from the comptroller-general of the service in Abuja. The team seized
many bags of foreign rice and arrested three suspects believed to be involved
in the smuggling of goods Source
app Meanwhile, Legit.ng
previously reported that an aide to the president on social media, Lauretta
Onochie, has said that the price of rice in Nigeria will soon crash. Onochie
urged Nigerians should expect a crash in the commodity's price to about N9,000
per 50kg. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you
better Customs Seize N1bn Worth of Codeine: Importation of Fairly-Used Bags,
Shoes Banned | Legit TV Read more: https://www.legit.ng/1286505-customs-raid-mubi-market-seize-foreign-rice.html
Customs arrest 47 smugglers, seizes 28,180
bags of rice
Published
December 21, 2019
By
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS),
Seme Area Command has arrested 47 smugglers in connection with various offences
at the border. Also, the command said 28,180 bags of foreign rice; parboiled
rice, were impounded from smugglers in the last 11 months.
The service attributed the
shortfalls in its revenue generation to the border closure which started four
months ago.In a statement by its Public Relations Officer, Hussaini Abdullahi
Onawo, the border drill exercise that was initiated by Federal Government
commenced on August 20 this year had placed temporary embargo on movement of
goods through the land borders nationwide. He explained that the command
collected the sum of N494 billion between January till date, representing 76
per cent of its annual allotted target of N6. 50billion.
However, Hussaini explained
that the amount was lower than the N5.07million recorded in same period in
2018.Also, the Customs Area Controller, Comptroller Mohammed Uba Garba, noted
that the command seized some 1,302 contraband valued at N1.57billion from
smugglers around the borders. Garba attributed the seizures in the last 11
months to the strategic policy measures put in place to tackle the menace of
smuggling, irregular migrations and other trans-border crimes.
He listed the seizures to include
28,180 bags of foreign parboiled rice with Duty Paid Value (DPV) and levy of
N777.73 million; 140x50kilogrammes of sugar with DPV N588, 000; 62 used
vehicles valued at N220.
43 million; 1,100 bales of used
clothing and 101 sacks of used clothing with DPV N70.17million; 185 sacks of
shoes, bags, belt, slippers both new and used with DPV N27. 6million; 1,539 x
6yards, 30 x 7yards, 16x6yards of textile materials and wrappers valued at N10.52million
and 5,489 cartons of frozen poultry products with DPV N49.4million.
Others are 397x25liters of
vegetable oil, 9x10liters and 37x5liters of vegetable oil with DPV of N138.
62million; 2,109x25liters of premium motor spirit (PMS) with DPV of N7.69
million; 14, 955 general merchandise items with DPV of N234.39million and 1,
992 parcels of hard drugs / narcotics with DPV N37.8million.
Brown Rice Lowers Diabetes and Cholesterol Levels: Why Eat Local Rice?
Posted on December 20, 2019 by Josephine Nettey in Health
Raphael
Nyarkotey Obu, PhD
Ghana
is currently promoting local rice consumption by kind courtesy of Citi FM
strong advocacy. What do we really know based on scientific studies on
rice? The truth is that, there are more than 40,000 types of rice,
including white, brown, black and wild varieties. Each has its own nutritional
profile, benefits and points that invite discussion relating to how they’re
grown, processed, and prepared.
Wild
rice is perhaps one of the good options. It’s more nutrient-concentrated, has
fewer calories and carbohydrates than white rice, and may aid in promoting
satiety and weight loss
Studies
show brown rice positively affects the cardiovascular, brain and nervous
systems, and contains powerful antioxidants to help alleviate ailments ranging
from hypertension to obesity
Rice,
in one form or another, is one of the most important staple foods in the world
and has been for possibly thousands of years. According to
the Cornel Research, rice supplies around 20 percent of the world’s food energy,with
the Asia-Pacific region producing and consuming 90 percent of the rice on the
planet according to M.k. papademetrio study titled ‘rice production in the
Asia-pacific region: issues and perspectives’
Basmati rice from India, jasmine
from Thailand and Arborio from Italy are growing in popularity among the more
than 40,000 types, including long-, medium- and short-grain white, as well as
brown, yellow, purple, red, black and other shades in between, each with subtle
textures and flavor variations according to a 2017 article by Juliette Steen titled
The Difference Between White, Brown And Red Rice’ and another by the Rice
Association’
These aromatic varieties can cost
twice as much as plain white rice according to one report titled Survey of Recent
Innovations in Aromatic Rice,” 2012. Eating rice may be good for
your health according Medical News Today 2017, but there are better varieties.
Technically, that’s true, but if you want to ensure that your chosen rice is
good for you, check how it’s grown. It’s extremely important to keep abreast of
new information and know the path foods have taken on the way to your table.
Is rice healthy?
The answer is not always
according to Annie Price 2017. She argued that Refined carbohydrates like
white rice are basically fake foods and do nothing to promote the health
of your body. ‘So is white rice good for you? No, it’s stripped of its
nutrients, leaving pretty much nothing but carbohydrates that enter the
bloodstream like an injection of sugar’.
However,
Brown rice nutrition, is loaded with vitamins and minerals as well as fiber and
protein to balance the carbs in brown rice. Scientific studies has even
shown that brown rice nutrition can reduce the risk of developing diabetes
as well as heart problems. It’s also a safe choice for anyone following a
gluten-free diet.
Studies on Brown Rice Nutrition
1. Boost
Heart Health
In a 2012 article by Jessie
Szalay – Live Science Contributor ,Brown rice has a
large amount of plant lignans, which help form plant cell walls. These
lignans are also believed to protect humans against various diseases,
including heart disease
Brown rice is also loaded with
Magnesium. This mineral is absolutely vital to heart health, and magnesium deficiency can
be dangerous depending on the degree. As we do know, magnesium
helps maintain normal heart rhythm, and scientific studies show that heart
health in both men and women is significantly improved with an increased
dietary intake of magnesium. Studies also reveal that getting magnesium
from our diet rather than supplements is likely preferable, especially for
people who have already suffered heart attacks in the past according to
University of Maryland.
In generality, both animal and
human studies have demonstrated that brown rice can reduce cardiovascular risk
factors and has cardio-protective effects, Kazemzadeh et al 2014 titled
‘Effect of Brown Rice Consumption on Inflammatory Marker and Cardiovascular
Risk Factors among Overweight and Obese Non-menopausal Female Adults’ published
in International Journal of Preventive Medicine and Kim et al 2006 titled
‘The effects of a mixture of brown and black rice on lipid profiles and
antioxidant status in rats’ published in the journal Annals of Nutrition Metabolism..
Brown rice is also high in selenium,
another major heart-boosting nutrient.
2. Rich
in Manganese
One significant attributes of
brown rice nutrition is its tremendously high manganese content
per serving. A cup of cooked brown rice fulfills almost all of our
daily manganese needs at 88 percent. Manganese has
been neglected in health promotion, but it’s tremendously important to optimal
health.
A significant trace mineral
needed for many vital functions, including nutrient absorption, production
of digestive enzymes, bone
development, formation of blood-clotting factors and immune system
defenses. Avoiding enough manganese in diet, can put you at
risk for a lot of unwanted health problems, including
weakness, infertility, bone malformation and seizures. This nutrient found
abundantly in brown rice also helps the body regulate blood sugar,
absorb calcium properly and metabolize carbohydrates. In a nutshell having
manganese in brown rice actually helps to metabolize it better according
to University of Maryland
3. Decreases
Cholesterol Levels
Whole
grain foods like brown rice contain both fiber and bran. This is why brown rice
offers so many more health benefits than white rice -it still has its bran
content.
Studies have shown that the rice
bran and fiber contained in brown rice may be able to lower unhealthy
cholesterol levels, particularly LDL cholesterol. The fiber in brown
rice naturally aids in lowering cholesterol
levels in the body by binding to cholesterol in the
digestive system, which causes it to be excreted by the body according to
University of Mary land.
4. Lowers Diabetes Risk
Scientific
research has shown that opting for brown rice instead of white rice may
actually decrease your risk of developing diabetes. Refined carbs like
white rice are not a friend of diabetics (or of anyone really) because they
raise blood sugar so quickly and easily.
A 2010 study out of Harvard
School of Public Health revealed that if you consume a little over
two servings of white rice (about 12 ounces) per week, making the switch to
brown rice could decrease type 2 diabetes risk by an estimated 16 percent.
This makes sense since white rice has a significantly higher glycemic index compared
to brown rice. The researchers also pointed out that brown rice eaters
tended to be healthier overall, eating more whole grains in general and
exercising more frequently. Brown rice lovers were also less likely to smoke
cigarettes or have diabetes running in their families according to Denise Mann
2010 article published by CNN.
This not to say that white
rice causes diabetes, but brown rice definitely appears to lower the risk of
developing diabetes, thus making it a better choice for anyone following
a diabetic diet plan.
5. Safe
for Gluten-Free Diets
Brown rice is often a
go-to carb for many gluten-free eaters. Similar to oatmeal, brown rice is a
naturally gluten-free food as long as it’s not contaminated by gluten-containing
substances according to Gluten free living website. Many people who avoid
gluten in their diets can easily fall short on fiber and the beneficial B
vitamins found in whole grains. The good news here is that brown rice provides
lots of fiber and B vitamins minus the gluten.
What Is Brown Rice?
Rice is an edible, starchy cereal
grain that’s naturally gluten-free. The scientific name for rice is Oryza sativa. Brown rice nutrition facts are quite
impressive and definitely beat white rice nutrition any day. During harvesting,
rice kernels are enclosed in their outmost layer known as the hull or husk.
Brown rice only has the hull of the rice kernel removed so it maintains
the grand majority of its inherent nutritional value. When brown rice is
further processed to remove the bran as well, then it becomes white rice and
loses most of its nutrients as a result of this processing.
Rice
Cultivation is said to have begun about 6,000 years ago in China, while
archeologists have found rice seeds about 9,000 years old. Rice has its longest
history in Asia where it still continues to be a staple to this day according
to The World’s Healthiest food website. Fast-forward to modern times, rice has
become most sought after around the world and has a place in such a large
variety of foods from Asian to Mexican to Indian, and many more.
Brown Rice Nutrition Facts
According
to Self-Nutrition data, A cup (8 ounces) of cooked brown rice contains
about:
216
calories
44.8
grams carbohydrates
5
grams protein
1.8
grams fat
3.5 grams fiber
1.8
milligrams manganese (88 percent)
19.1
micrograms selenium (27 percent)
83.9
milligrams magnesium (21 percent)
162
milligrams phosphorus (16 percent)
3
milligrams niacin (15 percent)
0.3
milligram vitamin B6 (14 percent)
0.2
milligram thiamine (12 perecent)
0.2
miligram copper (10 percent)
1.2
milligrams zinc (8 percent)
0.6
milligrams pantothenic acid (6 percent)
0.8
milligram iron (5 percent)
7.9
micrograms folate (2 percent)
19.5
milligrams calcium (2 percent)
83.9
milligrams potassium (2 percent)
Brown Rice vs. Black Rice vs.
White Rice
In Ghana, there are many brown
rice available. Brown rice nutrition definitely overpowers white rice.
According to the encyclopedia Britannica, Brown rice gets polished
(stripped of its nutrients) to become white rice. Unless white rice is
enriched, it really doesn’t offer the consumer much of anything in terms of
nutrients so white rice nutrition is basically nonexistent. Interesting, the
hidden black rice aka “forbidden
rice” is actually even more impressive than brown rice
nutrition, but it does contain a lot more calories for the same serving.
Comparison
of the different types of Rice:
In
comparing a 100-gram cooking serving of each kind:
Brown
rice: 111 calories, 3 grams protein, 2 grams fiber, 0.4 milligrams iron
White
rice: 130 calories, 2 grams protein, 0 grams fiber, o.2 milligrams iron
Black
rice: 356 calories, 8.9 grams protein, 2.2 grams fiber, 2.4 milligrams
iron
All rice is naturally
gluten-free, but brown and black rice as well as wild and red rice are also
considered to be whole grains. These whole grain rices are naturally high
in B vitamins and other nutrients. White rice, however, has to have B
vitamins added into it in order to provide any white rice nutrition according
to Think Rice.com.
Cooking Brown Rice
Before
one starts cooking brown rice, be sure to rinse it and remove any debris.
It is also highly advisable to soak and sprout your before
cooking it, which has been found to decreases allergens and phytic
acid content while increasing the absorption of nutrients. Soak
brown rice for about 12 hours and let it sprout for no more than one to two
days.
Brown rice generally needs more
cooking time than white rice. It’s best to cook brown rice like pasta. Instead
of following cooking instructions on rice packages, cook it by adding much more
water. Scientists proved this method could reduce arsenic levels, especially
inorganic arsenic, in rice by up to 40 percent. It could, however, also lower
levels of some rice nutrients too according to Raab et al 2009. Researchers
from the U.K. found that cooking rice in a coffee pot reduced arsenic by up to
85 percent(Emily Sohn 2005)
Negative Aspect of Brown Rice
According to WebMed.com, Brown rice is considered safe for the majority of
people in normal food amounts. It is advisable not to go overboard in your
brown rice consumption because arsenic in rice is a valid concern.
Unfortunately, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
warns that, “Rice in particular can take up more arsenic than other foods and
due to its high consumption can contribute significantly to arsenic exposure.”
A Consumer
Reports study revealed that there were measurable amounts of
arsenic in virtually every one of the 60 varieties of rice it tested.
It also found that rice cereal and rice pasta can have much more inorganic
arsenic so it’s important to limit rice product intake in children, especially
since rice cereals are commonly fed to young children.
Since rice is one of the most
popular gluten-free alternatives on the market today, this finding is
definitely concerning. notwithstanding, Consumer Reports advises
shoppers to choose brown rice from California, India or Pakistan because
brown rice from these areas tends to have about a third less inorganic
arsenic than other brown rices. However, it is best to choose locally
produce rice in Ghana.
The Food and Drug Administration has
yet to set set a federal limit for arsenic in rice and
rice products. According to the FDA, buying organic brown rice doesn’t equate
to lower arsenic levels since arsenic is absorbed by plants regardless of
growing methods. It is adviseable to opt for organic brown rice if
possible or procure local rice.
It is also possible to have
a brown rice allergy. If you have any food allergy symptoms after
consuming brown rice, discontinue consumption
Take home
1. Time
to develop locally made rice
2. In
moderation, brown rice can be a healthy, nutrient-rich addition to the
diet.
·
It’s frustrating that brown rice
contains arsenic, but thankfully there are ways to reduce arsenic in rice,
like cooking rice in a lot of water.
1. You
should also try to purchase organic brown rice grown in areas that
have been found to produce rice with less arsenic like California, India or
Pakistan. The best is to procure locally made rice.
2. Soaking
and sprouting brown rice can get rid of unhealthy elements while increasing its
nutrient availability.
3. It’s
inexpensive to buy brown rice, and it is extremely easy to use.
·
Brown rice nutrition is very
impressive and offers many health benefits, including reducing the risk of
heart disease, high cholesterol and diabetes.
Disclaimer: As pertains to all
my previous articles, they are for educational purposes and not to be use as
substitute to medical advice.
Dr. Raphael Nyarkotey Obu, PhD,
Is an honorary Professor of Naturopathic Medicine with research interest in
Naturopathic & Holistic Urology, Vinnytsia State Pedagogical University,
Ukraine. President of Nyarkotey College of Holistic Medicine- Formulated of FDA
approved Men’s Formula for Prostate Health, Women’s Formula for wellness
&Nyarkotey Tea for cardiovascular Health. 0241083423 or 0541234556
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What prisoners at HMP Garth will be served on Christmas Day
The festive menu caters for vegetarian, vegan and halal diets
· 07:00, 22 DEC 2019
HM Prison Garth in Leyland (Image: MSM)
This is a rundown of the meals prisoners at HMP Garth will be
tucking into this Christmas.
Amongst other dishes, inmates can
look forward to a sliced roast turkey dinner served with all the trimmings -
including a chipolata sausage.
LancsLive were
provided with the festive menu planned for December 25 at the Leyland prison
after submitting an Freedom of Information request to the Ministry of Justice.
There are a variety dishes on
offer to cater for vegan, vegetarian and halal diets at HMP Garth.
Christmas
breakfast
All inmates will be served
Weetabix and a carton of milk.
Soya milk will be given as an
alternative to those who are Vegan or lactose intolerant.
Sausage breakfast barms are also
on offer for prisoners. With Halal and vegetable alternatives also available.
Christmas
lunch
Traditional roast turkey with trimmings (Image: scu)
On the menu for Christmas dinner
is sliced roast turkey with a chipolata sausage, stuffing, cranberry sauce and
gravy.
Pan fried tuna loin topped with
lemon and herb butter and a vegan wellington with cranberry sauce and gravy are
also on offer.
Each of the above meals is served
accompanied with brussels spouts, sliced carrots, boiled potatoes and roast
potatoes.
For those with halal dietary
requirements, chicken breast bhuna with chick peas, basmati rice and mixed
salad will be served.
Christmas dessert
For dessert, prisoners will be
served Christmas pudding and vanilla sauce.
An apple, sultana and cinnamon
tart will be served with soya milk vanilla sauce as a vegan alternative.
UA scientists address armyworm control in rice
Extension entomologists are
developing a new percentage-based threshold for insect defoliation of rice that
can help eliminate unnecessary applications of pesticides.
Severe defoliation in rice from a
large flight of fall armyworms in 2016 led researchers with the University of
Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to develop a new defoliation threshold,
Nick Bateman, assistant professor and crop entomologist, said in a news
release.
It is common to see fall
armyworms, a defoliating caterpillar pest, in pastures and fields, Bateman
said.
Defoliation is the removal of
leaves caused by insects feeding on them. It can cause both yield loss and
heading delays, Bateman said.
The defoliation threshold that
triggered pesticide application in 2016 was adopted from wheat in the mid-1990s
and was based on the number of larvae per square foot.
After seeing the defoliation of
rice that year, Bateman said, “We knew we needed to go to work.”
Researchers manually defoliated
test plots of rice plants to determine at what level of defoliation and during
which stage of plant growth significant yield reduction results, Bateman said.
The research determines the
economic threshold — the point where a consultant or grower decides they are
going to make an application of a pesticide to halt defoliation before
significant yield loss occurs, Bateman said.
“What that is going to do is save
that grower from the point where he is going to be impacted economically,”
Bateman said. “We are also hoping to show how much defoliation rice plants can
tolerate.”
If a producer is going to make an
application for fall armyworms, researchers recommend spraying a
lambda-cyhalothrin. But pesticide applications come at the risk of removing
beneficial insects, Bateman said.
“When rice can be taken back 100
percent down to the soil or water line at those early growth stages — two to
three-leaf — with no impact on yield, there is no reason for us to make those
early applications,” Bateman said.
The threshold indicates whether
growers need to spray, and helps eliminate unnecessary applications, Bateman
said.
“From a yield loss standpoint
what we see is, unless we are getting over 50 percent defoliation at the late
tiller stage, we are not seeing yield loss,” Bateman said.
If the defoliation is over that
threshold there can be an almost two-week delay in heading.
This delay can push producers out
of their optimal heading window and lead to some quality issues as well as drag
out the harvest, Bateman said.
“The delay in heading is almost
more concerning than the yield loss,” Bateman said.
The new threshold recommendations
have been established for conventional rice varieties, Bateman said. They are
also investigating how thresholds may need to be adjusted for hybrid rice.
“We have only done one year of
work on this but it looks like conventional varieties can tolerate a little
more defoliation than hybrids,” Bateman said. “The yield loss in conventional
varieties doesn’t seem to be as severe as in hybrid varieties, but we are doing
more work to establish final thresholds for both conventional and hybrid
varieties.”
They are currently working on
fact sheets and will be presenting the new thresholds at grower meetings this
winter, Bateman said.
To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uark.edu. Follow the agency on
Twitter at @ArkAgResearch and Instagram at
ArkAgResearch.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact a local
Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @UAEX_edu.
The University of Arkansas System
Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and
services without discrimination.
— Abbi Ross is with the U of A System Division of Agriculture.
UA scientists address armyworm control in rice
Extension
entomologists are developing a new percentage-based threshold for insect
defoliation of rice that can help eliminate unnecessary applications of
pesticides.
Severe defoliation in rice from a
large flight of fall armyworms in 2016 led researchers with the University of
Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to develop a new defoliation threshold,
Nick Bateman, assistant professor and crop entomologist, said in a news
release.
It is common to see fall
armyworms, a defoliating caterpillar pest, in pastures and fields, Bateman
said.
Defoliation is the removal of
leaves caused by insects feeding on them. It can cause both yield loss and
heading delays, Bateman said.
The defoliation threshold that
triggered pesticide application in 2016 was adopted from wheat in the mid-1990s
and was based on the number of larvae per square foot.
After seeing the defoliation of
rice that year, Bateman said, “We knew we needed to go to work.”
Researchers manually defoliated
test plots of rice plants to determine at what level of defoliation and during
which stage of plant growth significant yield reduction results, Bateman said.
The research determines the
economic threshold — the point where a consultant or grower decides they are
going to make an application of a pesticide to halt defoliation before
significant yield loss occurs, Bateman said.
“What that is going to do is save
that grower from the point where he is going to be impacted economically,”
Bateman said. “We are also hoping to show how much defoliation rice plants can
tolerate.”
If a producer is going to make an
application for fall armyworms, researchers recommend spraying a
lambda-cyhalothrin. But pesticide applications come at the risk of removing
beneficial insects, Bateman said.
“When rice can be taken back 100
percent down to the soil or water line at those early growth stages — two to
three-leaf — with no impact on yield, there is no reason for us to make those
early applications,” Bateman said.
The threshold indicates whether
growers need to spray, and helps eliminate unnecessary applications, Bateman
said.
“From a yield loss standpoint
what we see is, unless we are getting over 50 percent defoliation at the late
tiller stage, we are not seeing yield loss,” Bateman said.
If the defoliation is over that
threshold there can be an almost two-week delay in heading.
This delay can push producers out
of their optimal heading window and lead to some quality issues as well as drag
out the harvest, Bateman said.
“The delay in heading is almost
more concerning than the yield loss,” Bateman said.
The new threshold recommendations
have been established for conventional rice varieties, Bateman said. They are
also investigating how thresholds may need to be adjusted for hybrid rice.
“We have only done one year of
work on this but it looks like conventional varieties can tolerate a little
more defoliation than hybrids,” Bateman said. “The yield loss in conventional
varieties doesn’t seem to be as severe as in hybrid varieties, but we are doing
more work to establish final thresholds for both conventional and hybrid
varieties.”
They are currently working on
fact sheets and will be presenting the new thresholds at grower meetings this
winter, Bateman said.
To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uark.edu. Follow the agency on
Twitter at @ArkAgResearch and Instagram at
ArkAgResearch.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact a local
Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.edu. Follow us on Twitter at @UAEX_edu.
The University of Arkansas System
Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and
services without discrimination.
— Abbi Ross is with the U of A System Division of Agriculture.
What prisoners at HMP Garth will be served on Christmas Day
The festive menu caters for vegetarian, vegan and halal diets
·
SHARE
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
· 07:00, 22 DEC 2019
HM Prison Garth in Leyland (Image: MSM)
This is a rundown of the meals prisoners at HMP Garth will be
tucking into this Christmas.
Amongst other dishes, inmates can
look forward to a sliced roast turkey dinner served with all the trimmings -
including a chipolata sausage.
LancsLive were
provided with the festive menu planned for December 25 at the Leyland prison
after submitting an Freedom of Information request to the Ministry of Justice.
There are a variety dishes on
offer to cater for vegan, vegetarian and halal diets at HMP Garth.
Christmas
breakfast
All inmates will be served
Weetabix and a carton of milk.
Soya milk will be given as an
alternative to those who are Vegan or lactose intolerant.
Sausage breakfast barms are also
on offer for prisoners. With Halal and vegetable alternatives also available.
Christmas
lunch
Traditional roast turkey with trimmings (Image: scu)
On the menu for Christmas dinner
is sliced roast turkey with a chipolata sausage, stuffing, cranberry sauce and
gravy.
Pan fried tuna loin topped with
lemon and herb butter and a vegan wellington with cranberry sauce and gravy are
also on offer.
Each of the above meals is served
accompanied with brussels spouts, sliced carrots, boiled potatoes and roast
potatoes.
For those with halal dietary
requirements, chicken breast bhuna with chick peas, basmati rice and mixed
salad will be served.
RELATED
ARTICLES
Christmas
dessert
For dessert, prisoners will be
served Christmas pudding and vanilla sauce.
An apple, sultana and cinnamon
tart will be served with soya milk vanilla sauce as a vegan alternative.
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RRI-KSK claims to havedeveloped
new Basmati variety
Rice
Research Institute Kala Shah Kaku (RRI-KSK) has claimed to develop a new
Basmati variety called ‘Super Basmati 2019' having over 10 per cent more per
acre yield against the existing varieties and Average Grain Length (AGL) of 7.6
mm. RRI Kala Shah Kaku officials shared this with stakeholders of Rice value
chain at the 14th meeting of the Rice Research & Development Board held at
its facility the other day with the Board Chairman Sarfraz Ahmed Khan in the
chair, sources privy to the meeting told Business Recorder here
on Saturday. Director RRI-KSK Dr Muhammad Sabar while sharing various
activities of the facility disclosed that two new basmati varieties – ‘Super
Basmati 2019 and Basmati Gold' – developed by the institute have got approval
while three spot lines are under pipeline for approval. He also shared the
samples of Super Basmati 2019 with the participants for tests & trials.
Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) Chairman Shahjahan Malik shared
the international rice trade statistics with the participants of the meeting.
He said that the rice export is showing upward trend during last two years and
informed the meeting that basmati export quantity wise registered 28 per cent
increase during the year 2018-19 as compared to corresponding period and hoped
that it will go further up in the current year. The agenda of the meeting was
to discuss the current scenario of rice crop and Director Rice RRI-KSK Muhammad
Sabar informed the house that according to the Crop Reporting data, area under
rice cultivation was even higher than the projected target. Area under rice in
2019-20 remained 5,014 thousand acres, which is about 9 per cent higher than
the set target of 4,618 thousand acres. He further briefed the house that rice
crop particularly in Sindh and Southern Punjab is affected due to the climate
change and increase in day/ night temperature at flowering stage this year,
which caused sterility/low grain formation in rice. He also disclosed that
research and development activities regarding heat stress resilient varieties
development is already in the progress. However, he said that high temperature
affect spikelet fertility at the time of anthesis which also deteriorates
quality of the grain. To combat this issue, farmers are advised to follow
variety specific sowing time and avoid early sowing, because it has been
observed in early sown varieties which flower before 20th September show more
sterility due to higher temperature than timely shown varieties. The meeting
also discussed stubble management of rice crop through mechanization i.e., rice
harvester, paddy straw chopper and happy seeder. While Seed Association of
Pakistan (SAP) representative
shared
that aflatoxin issue arises when crop is harvested with combine harvester and
moisture level is also high. The meeting noticed that no serious threat and
issues were pointed out this year as far as pest and disease situation of rice
crop is concerned.
Author
Name: https://www.brecorder.com/2019/12/23/555622/rri-ksk-claims-to-havedeveloped-new-basmati-variety/
Customs Tasks Exporters On Minimum Standard To
Stem Rejection
Comptroller Mohammed Abba-Kura
Controller,
Apapa Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Comptroller Muhammed
Abba-Kura, has appealed to exporters using the Apapa port to always ensure that
minimum international standards are met before exporting their consignment
to avoid the recurrent incidences of returning consignments after export.
Speaking
at a media briefing last weekend on the activities of the command so far this
year, Abba- Kura said Nigeria’s agricultural produce has suffered in the last
few years from rejection in the international markets due to poor adherence to
standards and maintenance of required quality.
He
said some containers of agricultural produce meant for export were recently
rejected from the Apapa port.
He,
however, noted that some exporters have been compliant on export declaration,
as the command recorded a total volume of 262,095.09 metric tons of exported
goods with Free on Board (FOB) value of $132.76 million within the review
period.
On
revenue performance, he said the command generated N414 billion from January to
December 19th 2019 as against N404 billion generated between January and
December 2018, which translates to about 111 per cent of its 2019 annual
revenue target.
He
said the command had the highest revenue figure of N42.73 billion in October.
The
high revenue collection, according to him, is part of the gains recorded as a
result of the nation’s land border closure to import and export as shippers now
import cargoes through the seaports.
He
said the border closure policy has reduced incidences of smuggling through the
land border and increased legitimate imports through the seaports.
On
anti-smuggling, he said within the period under review, the command seized a
total of 112 containers of various items that flouted import procedures with a
Duty Paid Value of N12.8 billion.
Among
the seized items are containers of empty sacks of rice falsely declared as
cotton waste and pharmaceutical products, which include tramadol that were
imported without necessary approval from regulatory agencies.
Other
items include 18 containers of tomato paste, vegetable oil, ladies and girls
fashion wears, three containers of expired rice, alcoholic drinks,
armoured glasses without End User Certificate (EUC) and drilling pipes labelled
in foreign language, among others.
“The
empty sacks of rice were imported from Thailand and they were meant for
re-bagging of local or expired foreign rice to deceive members of the public.
The importer of these empty sacks of rice is an unpatriotic Nigeria because we
have local industries that produce this kind of bags, so why should he even
bring them in?
“It
is pertinent to emphasise here that virtually all these seized items are in gross
violation of our extant laws and import guidelines. The duty paid value for
these seizures stood at N12.8 billion,” he said.
The
Customs boss also appealed to importers of pharmaceutical products to respect
and comply with the country’s guidelines on importation to rid the nation of
counterfeited and prohibited medicaments.
Typhoon,
imports take toll on PH palay yield
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Updated December
23, 2019, 11:02 AM
By Madelaine B. Miraflor
Typhoon “Tisoy,” the strongest
storm to hit the country this year, and some farmers’ decision to abandon rice
farming amid declining palay prices are taking a toll on the country’s year-end
palay output.
An overall outlook by the United
States of Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) showed a higher rice importation
for the Philippines this year.
In addition, the USDA’s Global
Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report prepared by US Embassy’s Foreign
Agricultural Service (FAS) here specified that the outlook for the country’s
rice production has been “revised downward due to damages from Typhoon
Kammuri,” locally known as Typhoon Tisoy.
“Rice imports during the year, on
the other hand, will increase 200,000 metric tons (MT) as a result of lower
production, enhanced by some shifting away from rice cultivation due to low
paddy prices,” the GAIN report said.
Typhoon Kammuri caused an
estimated ₱3.7 billion in damage to the Philippines’ farm sector when it passed
through seven regions earlier this month.
Tisoy particularly wiped out as
much as 195,046 MT of farm output, mainly rice, and had left 132,166 hectares
of farm land in Central Luzon, CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, Bicol Region, Western
Visayas, Ilocos Region, Eastern Visayas destroyed.
The GAIN report estimated that
for rice alone, Typhoon Kammuri destroyed 105,000 MT of paddies in 78,000
hectares of rice farms.
For the entire 2019, the
Department of Agriculture (DA) expects total paddy output to reach 18.48
million MT, 3 percent lower than last year’s 19.06 million MT output.
“The downward revisions are
steeper as a result of the continued decline in paddy prices, which will force
some farmers to shift away from rice cultivation in MY [Market Year] 2019/2020.
According to a rice miller, farmers will wait for one or two more rice crops
before deciding to shift to other crops or pursue another livelihood,” the
report said.
From July to September 2019, the
average farmgate price of palay was ₱16.11 per kilo (/kg), 27 percent lower
than the ₱21.92/kg average price during the same period in 2018.
For the month of September alone,
paddy rice prices were at ₱14.76/kg, down 9 percent from ₱16.2 per kilo the
previous month, and 16 percent lower than ₱17.5/kg in March when the Rice
Tarrification Law (RTL) was implemented.
“Paddy prices are expected to
remain subdued as the main harvest is underway,” the GAIN report further said.
It then said that “mainly due to
the expected decline in local rice production, rice imports were raised 200,000
MT to 2.9 million MT in MY 2019/2020.”
To recall, the Philippines had recently beaten China and is now the world’s biggest rice importer.
To recall, the Philippines had recently beaten China and is now the world’s biggest rice importer.
As part of the measures to ease
farmers’ suffering from the impact of RTL, which allowed unlimited rice
importation in the country, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said the
government will be providing ₱5,000 one-time cash assistance to some rice
farmers.
The distribution will start today
(Monday), Dar said.
A smartphone photo can spot fake rice at your grocery
store
December
22, 2019 6:19 pm
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LONDON: Next time you go to the
neighbourhood grocery store, take your smartphone as a photo taken from your
phone can detect whether the rice you are paying for is genuine and of
high-quality or not.
A simple photograph taken with a
mobile phone is able to detect irregularities in the labelling of rice,
according to an investigation conducted by the Complutense University of Madrid
(UCM) and the Scintillon Institute of San Diego (USA).
The scientists develop an
algorithm based on deep learning — a field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) —
that is able to determine whether that rice is really the one described with
the images taken with the smartphone.
“What we contribute compared to
other detection methods is simplicity and we show the consumer that you do not
need large sums of money to verify whether a certain type of rice is the one
mentioned on the label,” said Jose Santiago Torrecilla, Professor and researcher
from the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials at the UCM.
To carry out the study, the
researchers used five types of rice that were ground “in order to distinguish
the type of rice not only when it is in grain form but also when it is ground
into flour”.
With all this information,
algorithms based on neural networks were designed and optimized to process the
information contained in the images for classification based on the type of
rice, obtaining final precision models between 93 per cent and 99 per cent.
“It should be noted that rice is
just one example of cereal and, therefore, this technology could be
extrapolated to other types of cereals or food,” said the UCM chemist, leaving
the door open for future applications in the food industry. (IANS)
Tell It to
SunStar: ‘Golden rice’ is irresponsible
December 22, 2019
By
Greenpeace Southeast Asia-Philippines
WE DENOUNCE the Bureau of Plant Industry’s (BPI) rubber stamp approval of genetically modified “golden rice” (GR) and called on the government agency to immediately reverse the faulty decision, which the environment group maintains is based on insufficient data.
The BPI’s approval of so-called “golden rice” is extremely irresponsible and completely misguided. We condemn the BPI’s systematic disregard of the precautionary principle and of robust data that clearly show that the safety assessments submitted by GR proponents are flawed. Rice is the Philippines’ primary staple; this is a foolish decision that will have far-reaching negative impacts on food and agriculture in the country.
Together with other environmental, farmer, consumer and scientist groups, we contend that the approval is invalid. Aside from the lack of transparency and adequate public participation that hounded the approval process, scientists contest that the submissions by GR proponents did not provide sufficient and convincing data on the safety of GR for human consumption and for the environment. However, despite these clear shortcomings and numerous responses from concerned citizens’ groups that disputed the incomplete data in the application, the BPI approved GR for release as food, feed and for processing on Dec. 10.
The approval process also failed to take into account the potential socio-economic impacts to farmers and indigenous peoples, as well as to local culture, ethics and risks to social cohesion. Filipino rice farmers are already reeling from a series of crop failures due to typhoons and droughts, as well as the impacts of the Rice Tarification Law, which has seen local rice prices plummet against the influx of imports. Yet, the assessment did not cover what the impact of GR will be on further loss of markets for farmers due to crop contamination from genetically modified species. Farmers, indigenous peoples, religious groups, youth, mothers and consumers have been opposing GR because of impacts on cultural and socio-economic stability, but these concerns were not put on the table.
The approval process for genetically modified organisms in the Philippines should provide standards for safety and security of our citizens and the food we grow and consume. But instead, the process discounts a lot of potential threats and is geared towards approval instead of safety.
Genetically modified “golden rice” neither addresses hunger nor malnutrition. At a time of climate emergency, the solution is resilient food and farm systems--diverse grains, fruits and vegetables for diverse diets and for food and nutrition security. Governments and philanthropists should be promoting programs that empower people to have access to and grow diverse fruit and vegetables, instead of listening to a few giant biotech corporations pushing unproven expensive techno-fixes and experimenting on the lives and livelihood of farmers, mothers and children.
WE DENOUNCE the Bureau of Plant Industry’s (BPI) rubber stamp approval of genetically modified “golden rice” (GR) and called on the government agency to immediately reverse the faulty decision, which the environment group maintains is based on insufficient data.
The BPI’s approval of so-called “golden rice” is extremely irresponsible and completely misguided. We condemn the BPI’s systematic disregard of the precautionary principle and of robust data that clearly show that the safety assessments submitted by GR proponents are flawed. Rice is the Philippines’ primary staple; this is a foolish decision that will have far-reaching negative impacts on food and agriculture in the country.
Together with other environmental, farmer, consumer and scientist groups, we contend that the approval is invalid. Aside from the lack of transparency and adequate public participation that hounded the approval process, scientists contest that the submissions by GR proponents did not provide sufficient and convincing data on the safety of GR for human consumption and for the environment. However, despite these clear shortcomings and numerous responses from concerned citizens’ groups that disputed the incomplete data in the application, the BPI approved GR for release as food, feed and for processing on Dec. 10.
The approval process also failed to take into account the potential socio-economic impacts to farmers and indigenous peoples, as well as to local culture, ethics and risks to social cohesion. Filipino rice farmers are already reeling from a series of crop failures due to typhoons and droughts, as well as the impacts of the Rice Tarification Law, which has seen local rice prices plummet against the influx of imports. Yet, the assessment did not cover what the impact of GR will be on further loss of markets for farmers due to crop contamination from genetically modified species. Farmers, indigenous peoples, religious groups, youth, mothers and consumers have been opposing GR because of impacts on cultural and socio-economic stability, but these concerns were not put on the table.
The approval process for genetically modified organisms in the Philippines should provide standards for safety and security of our citizens and the food we grow and consume. But instead, the process discounts a lot of potential threats and is geared towards approval instead of safety.
Genetically modified “golden rice” neither addresses hunger nor malnutrition. At a time of climate emergency, the solution is resilient food and farm systems--diverse grains, fruits and vegetables for diverse diets and for food and nutrition security. Governments and philanthropists should be promoting programs that empower people to have access to and grow diverse fruit and vegetables, instead of listening to a few giant biotech corporations pushing unproven expensive techno-fixes and experimenting on the lives and livelihood of farmers, mothers and children.
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Customs raid Mubi market for foreign rice
Customs officials
Hindi Livinus, Yola
Officers and men of the Adamawa/Taraba Command of the Nigeria
Customs Service on Friday raided Mubi town market for foreign rice and other
contraband.
The raid, led by the Comptroller, Kamardeen Olumoh, resulted in
the seizure of many bags of foreign rice and the arrest of three suspects.
The customs personnel, with reinforcement from the police,
stormed the commercial border town main market around 11am and raided many
shops and stores.
Speaking on the development, the Comptroller said the raid was
in compliance with a directive from the Comptroller-General of the service in
Abuja.
He said, “The menace of smuggling around this axis has been
alarming for quite some time. The Comptroller-General of Customs ordered that
the operations be carried out, that Mubi market must be mopped up of all
smuggled items, especially foreign rice.
Olumoh said, “Today, we are in the market and we are able to
evacuate large quantity of rice and this is a clear signal to smugglers.
“We are backed by the law. Section 147 of Customs and Excise
Management Act has given us the power to enter or search premises day or night,
to break and enter, make arrest; in fact, without warrant and that is exactly
what we did today.”
There was, however, mixed reactions over the raid in Mubi.
Most traders spoken to after the raid condemned the action of
the customs, as they counted their losses.
Navy arrests
24 persons with 1,831 bags of smuggled rice in Akwa Ibom
By Inemesit Akpan-Nsoh,
Uyo
23 December 2019 |
3:39 am
The Nigerian Navy, Forward Operating Base
(FOB), Ibaka, Mbo Council Area of Akwa Ibom State has said it arrested 24
persons and seized 1,831 bags of smuggled rice from them.
Commanding Officer of FOB, Captain Peter Yilme,
disclosed this at the weekend in Ibaka, while handing over the suspects, saying
they used five wooden boats in smuggling the 50kg bags of rice from Cameroon.
He said the Naval officers and men made the
arrests in four different operations during routine patrol in their gunboats.
Yilme explained that on November 27, 2019 four
suspects were arrested with 294 bags of rice in a boat and on December 5, 2019,
eight suspects were arrested in a boat with 87 bags of rice.
He added that between December 7 and 11, 2019
seven suspects were arrested in two boats with 1,270 bags of rice, while eight
suspects were arrested in a boat with 172 bags.
While handing over the suspects and items to
the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Yilme, who was represented by the Base
Operations Officer, Lieutenant Commander Kabiru Yusuf, said the command would
remain steadfast in fighting illegalities on the waterways in line with
directive of the Chief of Naval Staff.
“On behalf of the Commanding Officer, I Captain
Peter Yilme, handed over 1,831 bags of rice and 24 suspects to the
Superintendent of Customs, Dawuda A. Garuba,” he said.
Receiving the 24 suspects and the items from
the Nigerian Navy, Garuba said, “On behalf of the border drill team, I, Dawuda
A. Garba do hereby take over as stipulated in the handover notes.”
Two of the suspects who were drivers of the
boats said they were not told that they were to carry rice from Cameroon to
Nigeria.
One of the suspects, Etim Edet, a boat worker
from Adadia in Uruan Council Area of Akwa Ibom State, said he was told that he
would bring in fish from Cameroon.
Edet explained that he only realised he would
be carrying rice at the point they were being loaded into the boat as against
fish as he was earlier told.
“I am a boat driver and I didn’t know that
bringing in rice from Cameroon was wrong. This is my first time. I ply my trade
in Esio, Adadia.
“I was told that I will be carrying fish but
when I went, I saw them loading rice into the boat. Since I am not the owner of
the boat, I didn’t know that they planned to carry rice with it. The owner of
the boat knows that I have been arrested,” he said.
Another suspect, Felicity Omojoakinjere said,
“I was arrested because I went to Cameroon to carry rice, but the rice is not
mine. I am a boat worker and I have not carried rice before. I use to carry
provisions. It was not until the rice was loaded into the boat that I knew I
was to carry rice.”
Low quality drives export paddy price
down
PUBLISHED 23
DECEMBER 2019
Export
paddy fetched a poor price this year as the quality of newly harvested paddy is
low, said Lu Maw Myint Maung, General Secretary of Myanmar Rice
Federation.
On the morning of December 19, the MRF
held the formation of a regional committee in Pyay, Bago Region. The ceremony
was attended by farmers, rice millers and traders from six Pyay
districts.
“Farmers
did not get sufficient water for paddy growing. This year, the quality of paddy
is a bit low due to the difficulty in the availability of paddy seeds. As the
quality of paddy seeds is low, we cannot get high-quality paddy even if we use
the advanced rice grinding machines. That’s why paddy doesn’t get a good price.
The farmers are in the cycle,” he added.
The
formation of the regional committee by the MRF aims to solve other difficulties
in addition to the current problems, said officials of the MRF.
“The
MRF is seeking the best ways to solve this problem. Farmers need to immediately
inform our regional committee and township committee about the difficulties in
the availability of paddy strains, water supply, and other difficulties. We
will make cooperate with relevant regional governments if we are unable to
solve the problem at the township level. If it is not ok, we have to report it
to the Union government as a next step. We aim to solve it swiftly and
effectively,” he continued.
Farmers
staged protests this year as they did not get the floor price fixed for the
monsoon paddy. Farmers experienced losses due to the low paddy
harvest.
No negative impact on banking sector - Cabraal
Monday,
December 23, 2019 - 01:00
The
Government decision to suspend recovery of loans obtained by the SME sector,
not exceeding Rs 300 million for each entity through a directive to revive SMEs
in the country, would not have a negative impact for the banking sector, Senior
Advisor on Economic Affairs to the Prime Minister, Ajith Nivard Cabraal said.
He
said that Banks will freeze the capital for one year while the interest
component would still be paid. “Hence there would not be any negative impact or
additional financial pressure for the banks who were lenders.”
The
Government has also directed the Banks to resort to this plan as they will
benefit with the exemption of a whole package of tax exemptions which the Banks
are now not required to pay to the Government as well. This in turn, should be
a huge saving for the banks too.
On
December 20, the Government suspended recovery of loans obtained by the SME
sector, not exceeding Rs 300 million for each entity through a directive to
revive SMEs in the country. “The recently announced tax reform initiatives
provide substantial savings to all banks including the Central Bank of Sri
Lanka. The Government expects the banks to use part of such savings to revive
the SME sector on a priority basis. This concessionary action will be followed
by a comprehensive package coupled with already announced tax concessions
designed by the Ministry of Finance, economy and Policy development and the
Central Bank of Sri Lanka which will support both the lender and the borrowers
especially the SME sector” the Treasury said.
The
exemption of the capital repayment plans SME defaulters will also enable them
to maintain their capital bases for expansion and recovery plans as well, they
said.
Now
with the announcement of this new package, the SME entrepreneurs will not have
to divest their mortgage assets to the banks as would have otherwise happened.
This
proposal comes in the wake of the Government making a valiant effort of its
desire to revamp the SME sector which constitutes the backbone of the economy.
Particular
focus has been laid on the rice millers as well as they are running into
operational hazards during the 2019/2020 Maha season as well
UA scientists
address armyworm control in rice
By Abbi Ross Special to The
Commercial
Posted
Dec 21, 2019 at 11:23 AMUpdated
Dec 21, 2019 at 11:33 AM
Extension entomologists are
developing a new percentage-based threshold for insect defoliation of rice that
can help eliminate unnecessary applications of pesticides.
Severe defoliation in rice from a
large flight of fall armyworms in 2016 led researchers with the University of
Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to develop a new defoliation threshold,
Nick Bateman, assistant professor and crop entomologist, said in a news
release.
It is common to see fall armyworms,
a defoliating caterpillar pest, in pastures and fields, Bateman said.
Defoliation is the removal of
leaves caused by insects feeding on them. It can cause both yield loss and
heading delays, Bateman said.
The defoliation threshold that
triggered pesticide application in 2016 was adopted from wheat in the mid-1990s
and was based on the number of larvae per square foot.
After seeing the defoliation of
rice that year, Bateman said, “We knew we needed to go to work.”
Researchers manually defoliated
test plots of rice plants to determine at what level of defoliation and during
which stage of plant growth significant yield reduction results, Bateman said.
The research determines the
economic threshold — the point where a consultant or grower decides they are
going to make an application of a pesticide to halt defoliation before
significant yield loss occurs, Bateman said.
“What that is going to do is save
that grower from the point where he is going to be impacted economically,”
Bateman said. “We are also hoping to show how much defoliation rice plants can
tolerate.”
If a producer is going to make an
application for fall armyworms, researchers recommend spraying a
lambda-cyhalothrin. But pesticide applications come at the risk of removing
beneficial insects, Bateman said.
“When rice can be taken back 100
percent down to the soil or water line at those early growth stages — two to
three-leaf — with no impact on yield, there is no reason for us to make those
early applications,” Bateman said.
The threshold indicates whether
growers need to spray, and helps eliminate unnecessary applications, Bateman
said.
“From a yield loss standpoint
what we see is, unless we are getting over 50 percent defoliation at the late
tiller stage, we are not seeing yield loss,” Bateman said.
If the defoliation is over that
threshold there can be an almost two-week delay in heading.
This delay can push producers out
of their optimal heading window and lead to some quality issues as well as drag
out the harvest, Bateman said.
“The delay in heading is almost
more concerning than the yield loss,” Bateman said.
The new threshold recommendations
have been established for conventional rice varieties, Bateman said. They are
also investigating how thresholds may need to be adjusted for hybrid rice.
“We have only done one year of
work on this but it looks like conventional varieties can tolerate a little
more defoliation than hybrids,” Bateman said. “The yield loss in conventional
varieties doesn’t seem to be as severe as in hybrid varieties, but we are doing
more work to establish final thresholds for both conventional and hybrid
varieties.”
They are currently working on
fact sheets and will be presenting the new thresholds at grower meetings this
winter, Bateman said.
To learn more about Division of
Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station
website: https://aaes.uark.edu.
Follow the agency on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch and
Instagram at ArkAgResearch.
To learn about extension programs
in Arkansas, contact a local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.edu. Follow
us on Twitter at @UAEX_edu.
The University of Arkansas System
Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and
services without discrimination.
Smartphone pictures to be able to detect rice quality
IANS
Updated: December 21st, 2019,
23:09 IST
London: Next time you go to the
neighbourhood grocery store, take your smartphone as a photo taken from your
phone can detect whether the rice you are paying for is genuine and of
high-quality or not.
A
simple photograph taken with a mobile phone is able to detect irregularities in
the labelling of rice, according to an investigation conducted by the
Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the Scintillon Institute of San
Diego (USA).
The
scientists develop an algorithm based on deep learning – a field of Artificial
Intelligence (AI) — that is able to determine whether that rice is really the
one described with the images taken with the smartphone.
“What
we contribute compared to other detection methods is simplicity and we show the
consumer that you do not need large sums of money to verify whether a certain
type of rice is the one mentioned on the label,” said Jose Santiago Torrecilla,
Professor and researcher from the Department of Chemical Engineering and
Materials at the UCM.
To
carry out the study, the researchers used five types of rice that were ground
“in order to distinguish the type of rice not only when it is in grain form but
also when it is ground into flour”.
With
all this information, algorithms based on neural networks were designed and
optimized to process the information contained in the images for classification
based on the type of rice, obtaining final precision models between 93 per cent
and 99 per cent.
“It
should be noted that rice is just one example of cereal and, therefore, this
technology could be extrapolated to other types of cereals or food,” said the
UCM chemist, leaving the door open for future applications in the food
industry.
(IANS)
(IANS)
Small businesses to get money, mentoring, and more to help India’s
hinterland go green and clean
Published: December 23, 2019
3:11:05 PM
Credit
and Finance for MSMEs: Villgro Innovation Foundation and Council on Energy,
Environment and Water will be supporting at least five small enterprises
deploying livelihood appliances powered by clean energy in rural areas.
‘Climate
resilience’ is turning into a major sustainability problem for SMEs and small
enterprises in rural industries. (Illustration: rohnit phore)
Credit and Finance for MSMEs: Villgro Innovation Foundation, which is among the earliest
incubators for businesses focusing on social sectors, and research institution
Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) will be supporting at least
five small enterprises deploying livelihood appliances powered by clean energy.
Businesses would be offered funding along with technical and sectoral support
to help them with large-scale commercial operations in the coming three years.
The support initiative is named Powering Livelihoods to work in rural areas and
bolster them with clean energy products.
“India alone has more than $50 billion worth of market for clean
energy solutions for rural livelihoods,” said Arunabha Ghosh, CEO, CEEW. Over 4
million rural micro-businesses in the recent past have said unavailability of
the reliable power supply is the top challenge for them, said a statement by
Villgro and CEEW. Thus, helping such enterprises with electricity not just
creates new livelihood opportunities but also improves productivity, product
value, and incomes. ‘Climate resilience’ is turning into a major sustainability
problem for SMEs and small enterprises in rural industries. Fluctuations in
energy cost, extreme weather conditions etc impact business of these
enterprises, the statement added citing a recent Yes Bank report.
The programme by Villgro and CEEW will be “highly significant in
terms of capital, capacity building, and ecosystem support to help local
enterprises in this domain survive and thrive while escaping the ‘commercial
valley of death’,” Ghosh added. The programme will provide a grant of up to
$250,000 to each enterprise for the commercial deployment of their product.
Also based on the need, businesses will be given support services up to
$100,000 via strategic tie-ups including mentoring, financial planning, compliance
assistance, legal issues etc.
The core products in focus would be businesses deploying
appliances such as clean energy-powered and/or energy-efficient cold storage,
commercial food processors, juicers, dryers, milk chillers, flour mills,
milking machines, rice hullers, and oil expellers, solar charkhas, sewing
machines, paddle loom, jute machinery, and silk reelers. The applications for
the programme are open until January 5, 2020.
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