IGC Raises Corn Outlook, Sees Grains Stockpiles at
30-Year High
By Rudy Ruitenberg Jan 22, 2015 7:29 AM PT
World corn output will beat a November forecast, the International
Grains Council said, lifting the estimate an eighth time on improved prospects
for South America.Bigger
corn and wheat crops will expand world grain output excluding rice to a record
and lift inventories at the end of the season to the highest in about 30 years,
the London-based organization wrote in a report today.Corn futures have dropped
9.7 percent in Chicago in
the past 12 months as U.S. growers harvested a record crop and the outlook for
production in Brazil and
Argentina improved, while wheat futures have dropped 4.4 percent.
Cheaper grain has contributed to a drop in international food prices.“World
maize export prices turned lower amid stiff global competition and ample
availabilities,” the council wrote, using another word for corn.Farmers will
gather 991.9 million metric tons of corn this season, 9.6 million tons more
than forecast previously and climbing from 990.7 million tons in 2013-14, the
council wrote.The IGC left its outlook for this season’s wheat production
little changed, forecasting a crop of 717 million tons from 717.2 million tons
in November, rising from 712.7 million tons a year earlier.Prospects for the
2015-16 winter wheat crop are mostly favorable in the Northern Hemisphere, and
world wheat production is “provisionally” forecast to slip 2 percent to 701
million tons next season, the report showed.
Record Production
Total grain production, excluding rice, is forecast to advance to a
record 2.002 billion tons from 2 billion tons in 2013-14, according to the IGC,
which raised the outlook by 11.8 million tons. Stockpiles may climb more than 7
percent to 432 million tons, the highest since the mid 1980s, the council said.“Even
with a solid rise in consumption, global closing stocks are seen reaching a
near 30-year peak,” the IGC said.For corn, the biggest adjustment to the
outlook was made for Argentina,
with production there now seen at 29.5 million tons, 7 million tons more than
in November.Brazil’s corn outlook was lifted by 2 million tons to 77 million
tons, while the U.S.
corn estimate was cut by 3.9 million tons to 361.1 million tons.The
world soybean outlook was raised by 4 million tons to 312 million tons,
predicted to climb from a year-earlier 284 million tons. Stockpiles at the end
of this season may climb to 42 million tons from 31 million tons, the council
said.The IGC trimmed the global rice outlook by 1 million tons to 474 million
tons.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rudy Ruitenberg in Paris at rruitenberg@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Thomasson
at lthomasson@bloomberg.net
John Deane,
Nicholas Larkin
Source with thanks: Bloomberg
Arkansas Farm Bureau Daily Commodity Report
A comprehensive daily commodity market report for Arkansas
agricultural commodities with cash markets, futures and insightful analysis and
commentary from Arkansas Farm Bureau commodity analysts.
Noteworthy benchmark price levels of interest to farmers and
ranchers, as well as long-term commodity market trends which are developing.
Daily fundamental market influences and technical factors are noted and
discussed.
Soybeans
|
High
|
Low
|
|
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Cash Bids
|
1024
|
933
|
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New Crop
|
1009
|
984
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Riceland Foods
|
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Cash Bids
|
Stuttgart: 981
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Pendleton: 981
|
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New Crop
|
Stuttgart: 946
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Pendleton: 951
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Futures:
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Soybean Comment
Soybeans were un able to hold onto yesterdays gains. Weakness in
outside markets spilled over into this market pulling prices lower. The market
is anxiously awaiting tomorrows export sales report which prices need to see
growing demand to have support. Recent news continues to be bearish for soybean
prices and this market still has the potential to test $9 in the coming months.
Wheat
|
High
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Low
|
|
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Cash Bids
|
515
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452
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New Crop
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--
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--
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Futures:
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Wheat Comment
Wheat prices continued their march lower today. Prices have yet to
find any fundamental support. Look for this market to test lows around $5 this
spring, unless some major conflict can pull prices higher. If you haven’t
priced wheat yet, watch for a technical rally over the next week that could
offer you an opportunity to price some wheat.
Grain Sorghum
|
High
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Low
|
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Cash Bids
|
483
|
373
|
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New Crop
|
--
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--
|
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Corn
|
High
|
Low
|
|
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Cash Bids
|
412
|
360
|
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New Crop
|
411
|
386
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Futures:
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Corn Comment
Corn prices closed lower again today. While outside market remain a
negative for prices, corn prices continue to only see modest losses as the
market remains concerned about acreage. Current estimates between 88 and 90
million acres allow little room for reduced yields. If this market were to
endure another drought the market would quickly go through the 1.9 billion
bushel carryover. The smaller the acreage the more concerned the market will
become with weather in 2015. At the same time, if we harvest another record
corn crop in 2015 we would experience another build up in stocks in 2015.
Cotton
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Futures:
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Cotton Comment
Cotton futures traded in a relatively narrow range on either side
of unchanged before settling lower. There was no new export report to react to
today, is it was delayed until tomorrow due to the MLK holiday on Monday. March
and May set a new low again today. Previous support of 57.84 cents on the
monthly continuation was violated during selloff this week. Bearish news out of
China sparked the selloff, as December imports were down 57% from a year
earlier and were a five-year low.
Rice
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High
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Low
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Long Grain Cash Bids
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- - -
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1055/cwt
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Long Grain New Crop
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- - -
|
1053/cwt
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Futures:
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Rice Comment
Rice futures turned lower again today with no new export report to
react to. The market did manage to hold above support at last week's new
contract lows. For March, that level is $11.06 and for May support is $11.36
1/2. Weak demand globally has resulted in the lowest price for Vietnamese rice
in over 10 months, and prices in Pakistan are even lower, providing plenty of
competition for U.S. origin rice and keeping a lid on prices here.
Cattle
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Futures:
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Live Cattle:
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Feeders:
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Arkansas Prices
Charlotte Livestock Auction
Green Forest Livestock Auction
Ratcliff Livestock Auction
Oklahoma City
El Reno Livestock Market, El Reno, OK
Cattle Comment
Cattle prices remain weak, but seemed to have found support near
150 for live cattle and 200 for feeders. This market remains technically
oversold and should see a rally in the coming days. The fundamentals will
determine if this rally can be sustained as we await the inventory report later
this month.
Hogs
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Futures:
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Rice
exports in Q1 to reach 900,000 tonnes
Rice
exporters are expected to ship 900,000 tonnes of the grain abroad in the first
quarter of this year.Under plans drawn up for 2015 by the Vietnam Food
Association (VFA), rice exports for the whole year will reach 7 million tonnes.Nguyen
Hung Linh, VFA Chairman, said local exporters have not signed many contracts
because local rice prices have been higher than average world prices, reported
the Thoi bao Kinh te Vietnam (Vietnam Economic Times) newspaper.But, as the
winter-spring crop approaches harvest time, traders are likely to step up
purchases because of reasonable prices when supply increases, he said.
However,
the association has also said that this year will also see a drop in Vietnam's
rice exports to key markets.A recent report in the Thoi bao Ngan hang (Banking
Times) said that rice exports to China will see the steepest fall because of
the Chinese Government's policies on controlling trade via border gates.Meanwhile,
export of Vietnamese rice to African markets will plunge 60 percent, as it did
in 2014, said the VFA.The main reason for this drop is that African nations are
buying considerable amounts of cheap and low-quality rice from Thailand and
India, and Vietnamese companies are unable to compete with them.
The
two countries have large inventories of low-quality rice and they plan to sell
several dozen tones of this in 2015.Regarding other key export markets, the VFA
estimates that the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia will import from Vietnam
1.7, 1.1 and 1.3 million tonnes respectively in 2015.If Vietnam's rice
exporters can take advantage of the regional situation and cut selling prices,
they can increase shipments this year by as much as 2.1 million tonnes to the
three markets, the VFA said.In 2014, Vietnam exported 6.32 million tonnes of
rice, earning 2.8 million USD, to become the third largest rice exporter in the
world, after Thailand and India, according to the association.
VNA
Tags:Rice exports,
Mahama: Ghana striving to be net rice
producer
President John Mahama has said Ghana is still
striving to become a net producer of rice so as to reduce the amount of rice
imported from outside.He told Ghanaians in Germany Tuesday that: “We are
investing to increase rice production. We’ve brought improved seeds from all over
the world, and we are encouraging rice farmers to produce more rice and so we
are seeing an increase in rice production. From 2012 to 2013, we increased rice
production by 60 percent, but still we are importing a lot of rice. We are not
yet a net producer of rice to feed our own market,” Mr Mahama said.The
President said once the country becomes self-sufficient in rice production, it
will further reduce the amount of foreign exchange expended by the Government
to import rice, poultry and other products from outside.
“Today
chicken and rice and potato chips and things are becoming the natural fair for
Ghanaians and because we are not producing enough of it we have to spend
dollars importing these and so of course when the Cedi to Dollar rate varies,
it makes the cost of rice more expensive, but we are even investing in these
areas,” the President said.Speaking at the 30th National Best Farmers Day Award
ceremony at Sefwi Wiawso in the Western region Friday December 5, 2014, the
President said Ghana currently imports rice to the tune of US$500million every
year.“The last statistics was US$470million worth of rice,” the President
decried as he urged Ghanaians to eat what they grow.Apart from rice, US$1
billion of other produce, which are produced in Ghana or can easily be produced
in Ghana are also imported.
Meanwhile,
the country’s yearly exports hover around US$13 billion while its imports bill
stands at about US$17 billion.The President said the development in local rice
production means “we are growing more local rice and you can see the
attractiveness of the rice industry by the investment that has started to be
made by the private sector in this industry.”“Several private sector business
people have set up rice milling plants in various parts of the country and are
buying locally produced rice and milling it not only for our local market but
also for export.“And it is my belief that if this trend continues, Ghana should
become a net exporter of rice in the next few years,” President Mahama said.
Adamas denies involvement in G2G rice deal
The Nation January 22, 2015 2:34 pm
Listed
Adamas Corp today clarified that its subsidiary, Kitha Properties Co Ltd, has
no involvement in the government-to-government rice deal.The statement followed
the National Anti-Corruption Commission's decision on Tuesday to indict a
number of individuals and companies alleged to have involved in the
controversial G2G rice deal.Kitha was held as an accomplice."The Company
would like to clarify that Kitha has confirmed that it has not involved in the
actions or procedures described as the wrongdoings.
From
its inception, Kitha undertake real estate development business only and has
never undertaken rice trading or purchase or sell rice. Kitha have not been
informed of the indictment resolution from the Office of the National
Anti-Corruption Commission or other agencies. If we receive any additional
relevant information, we will inform the Stock Exchange of Thailand
accordingly," Adamas' chief executive officer Panchai Aroonpairoj said in
the statement.
Adamas took over Kitha in July 2014 at the cost of Bt800 million.
Adamas' share trading is suspended as of today.
Nigeria will become net rice exporter if re-elected,
says jonathan
January 22, 2015 | Filed under: Real Sector | Author: Editor
President
Goodluck Jonathan has promised to put in place policies and programmes that
will make Nigeria a major rice exporting nation if re-elected in February.He
also restated the commitment of the Federal Government to reactivate all the
moribund industries in Kano. He made the remark while addressing party
supporters at the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential campaign rally
held at the Polo Ground on Wednesday in Kano. President Jonathan, who is the
PDP’s presidential candidate, also assured of his intention to ensure that
Nigeria joined the league of nations declared polio free by the World Health
Organisation (WHO).
Jonathan
particularly promised to work with the governor of Kano State to ensure that
agriculture is given all the attention required.According to him, the
development of agriculture would go a long way in boosting the creation of new
employment, as well as reduction of mountingpoverty being experienced among the
young people in the state.He thanked the people of the state for coming out en
masse to participate in the political rally, and also commended the youths in
the northern part of the country for making a contribution of N2 million for
the purchase of his nomination form.In the same vein, the president promised to
work towards ensuring that Kano, which was known as a centre of commerce,
regained its glory as an active business centre.
He
used the occasion to condole with the people of the state over the demise of
Ado Bayero, the late Emir of Kano and paid glowing tributes to previous
Nigerian leaders from the state, such as the late General Murtala Mohammed for
their contributions to nation building.Speaking earlier, during the campaign,
Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sabo debunked what he described as insinuation
in some quarters that President Jonathan regime is against the northern people.
Modi-picked panel wants India to get nimble on grains
exports
BY MAYANK BHARDWAJ AND RATNAJYOTI DUTTA
NEW DELHI Thu Jan 22, 2015 6:00pm IST
A worker carries a ladder past sacks filled with wheat at a Food
Corporation of India (FCI) warehouse in Morinda in Punjab February 20, 2013.
CREDIT: REUTERS/AJAY VERMA/FILES
(Reuters) - India needs to become more nimble in allowing wheat and
rice exports from overstocked government silos if it wants to cut waste and get
the best price for its grains, a panel appointed by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi recommended.Despite stocks that are often more than double the
government's target, India exports only about 10 percent of its wheat and rice
output of 195 million tonnes.
The Food
Corporation of India (FCI), a government behemoth set up 60 years ago after
acute food shortages forced India to import, sits on mounds of rice and wheat
thanks to bumper harvests since 2007. "Because of bureaucracy, we take a
long time to agree on exports and market dynamics change by then, thwarting our
efforts to make the best out of attractive prices abroad," Shanta Kumar,
chief of the panel, said after unveiling the report on Thursday.Currently the
government takes a call on exports and local sales after a lengthy consultation
process.
The
panel would like the FCI to abolish regional offices, focus on key states for
procurement, invest in computerisation and bring in technical and managerial
expertise from the private sector.A nimble-footed FCI will help us earn
precious foreign exchange and save a lot of money that is blocked in terms of
extra grains stocks that is prone to pest attack and wastage," said Ashok
Gulati, a noted economist and a member of the panel.Modi, who formed the panel
in August to suggest an overhaul of India's theft-prone food distribution
network, has asked the food ministry to examine the recommendations before
acting on the report.India, the world's biggest rice and wheat producer after
China, runs a mammoth $18.64 billion food welfare programme.
But
nearly half of the ultra-cheap rice and wheat meant for the poor is either
wasted or stolen, according to various experts.The panel also suggested the
government scale down its food distribution programme by covering only 40
percent of the population, instead of 67 percent. However, it favoured a higher
monthly allocation of 7 kg per person against 5 kg now.Lowering the number of
beneficiaries could save India 330 billion rupees ($5.35 billion) a year in
subsidies, said Kumar, a former food minister. But the move could potentially
anger millions of voters enjoying cheap grains and would require the approval
of India's partisan parliament."It's not an easy task to reduce the level
of beneficiaries as a host of procedural hurdles will have to be crossed before
accepting the latest recommendations," said B.C. Barah, a New Delhi-based
agriculture economist.
($1
= 61.6300 Indian rupees)
(Editing
by Krishna N. Das and Michael Urquhart)
Rice losses likely to top B682bn
Published: 22 Jan 2015
at 08.00
Newspaper section: Business
Writer: Wichit
Chantanusornsiri
Financial losses incurred from rice subsidy schemes dating back to
2004 are likely to exceed the estimated 682 billion baht, says the Finance
Ministry. If rising depreciation and missing milled rice from warehouses
are taken into account, the combined losses will be higher than the recent
estimate, finance permanent secretary Rungson Sriworasat said yesterday.The
subcommittee overseeing accounting affairs of all rice subsidy schemes earlier
estimated losses from buying 84 million tonnes of milled rice in the 15 schemes
from 2004-14 amounted to 682 billion baht, with the Yingluck Shinawatra
government's programme alone accounting for 518 billion.
But
that estimate did not take into account depreciation or missing rice from
warehouses inspected by a team working for PM's Office Minister ML Panadda
Diskul.According to the inspection of 17 million tonnes of milled rice bought
under the previous government's scheme, only 2.19 million tonnes were deemed of
standard quality and classified as Grade A rice.Some 14.4 million tonnes were
judged to be substandard Grade B, while the rest was classified as Grade C
because it was either rotten or had been registered incorrectly.The
rice-pledging scheme was a major policy that helped to sweep Ms Yingluck to
power in the 2011 general election.However, its guaranteed purchase of every
single grain at a pledging price of 40-50% above market prices incurred a
substantial cost to taxpayers.
Thailand also lost its crown as the
world's biggest rice exporter, as the scheme, which ran for five
crops, encouraged farmers to grow low-quality rice that normally took
less time to cultivate.The joint committee of the National Anti-Corruption
Commission (NACC) and the Office of the Attorney-General on Tuesday agreed to
press criminal charges against Ms Yingluck for alleged dereliction of duty in
overseeing the rice scheme and causing massive damage to the state.
The NACC also recommended that
former commerce minister Boonsong Teriyapirom, his ex-deputy Poom Sarapol and
19 others be indicted for graft for their roles in government-to-government
rice sales.Manas Jamveha, director-general of the Comptroller-General's
Department, said his department, which is responsible for seeking compensation
from those alleged to have caused damage to the state, was awaiting the
Commerce Ministry's report."Damaged state agencies must
submit a summary report of the charge to verify all
information," he said."They must set up a committee to launch the
probe again before arranging the report."
Source with thanks:The Bangkok Post
One million tonnes of rice on auction
Published: 22 Jan 2015
at 16.53
Online news: News
Writer: Online
Reporters
The Commerce Ministry is auctioning off a total of one million
tonnes of rice to domestic buyers on the condition that winning bidders must
take all the grain in whatever warehouse stockpile they buy. An official
takes a sample from a sack of rice to check on its quality.
(Bangkok Post file photo)
The first auction for 2015 is scheduled on Jan 29, with the
ministry to offer 850,000 tonnes of 5% white rice and 150,000 tonns of fragrant
rice stored in warehouses of the Public Warehouse Organisation and the
Marketing Organisation for Farmers.The ministry is arranging the sale through
the Foreign Trade Department, which handles domestic and foreign sales of
the government stockpile.The auction terms were explained to a large group of
potential bidders on Thursday.
Bangjoingitt
Angsusinght, the department’s deputy director-general, said interested people
can check the quality of rice offered for the auction at the listed warehouses.The
department will announce a minimum bidding price and if all offers are
lower than that price, the auction for that particular warehouse will be
cancelled. Under the plan, the ministry expects to dispose of 17 million
tonnes of rice left in its stockpile, accumulated from the implementation of
rice pledging scheme, within two years, with a major portion of about 10
million tonnes to be sold this year.However, some potential participants
in the auction said they were worried about the quality of the rice as
each warehouse kept grain from different sources, so it might not meet
their required standard.
Source with thanks:The Bangkok Post
Rice scheme damaging, corrupt political tactic, says
NACC
Published: 22 Jan 2015 at 13.12
Online news: Politics
Writer: Online Reporters
The rice-pledging scheme of former prime minister Yingluck
Shinawatra's government was a damaging political tactic to help her party to
win a general election and rise to power, and to benefit corrupt associates,
the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) told the National Legislative
Assembly (NLA) on Thursday
Former
Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is hounded by reporters as she arrives at
the parliament to deliver her closing statement in defence of her government's
rice pledging scheme on Thursday. (Photo by Chanat Katanyu)
Presenting
the NACC's closing statement in its impeachment case against Ms Yingluck,
commissioner Vicha Mahakun said Ms Yingluck's Pheu Thai Party had campaigned
for votes by promising to give rice growers 15,000 baht per tonne of rice under
its proposed rice-pledging scheme.The promised price was twice the then market
price of 7,500 baht per tonne. This campaign promise was clearly a populist policy
to ensure Pheu Thai's election victory, to form a new government in place of
the previous administration of former prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, he
said.Mr Vicha said that in fact the "rice-pledging" scheme was not a
pledging scheme at all, because the offered rate was far higher than the market
price and no rice growers who pledged their rice would ever redeem it for less.
He
said the Yingluck government called it a "rice-pledging" scheme only
to prevent the government from being considered a rice trader in its own right
with a monopoly because of the high price offered for the grain.Mr Vicha also
said that the rice-pledging scheme led to policy-based corruption, because rice
in the government's stockpiles had been sold largely to associates at low
prices, and these people later made huge profits from selling the grain at high
prices.
s
Yingluck's government had tried to cover up by claiming that it had released
the rice under government-to-government deals which actually had not existed,
Mr Vicha said.
NACC
member Vicha Mahakun delivers his anti-graft panel's closing statement. (Photo
by Chanat Katanyu)
He also said
that the NACC and the Office of the Auditor General had repeatedly urged her
government to stop the rice scheme because it would cause endless losses to the
state.He said the implementation of the rice scheme from 2011 to 2014 resulted
in a posted loss of 518 billion baht, meaning about 200 billion baht per year
or 17 billion baht per month, and the state would take about three decades to
repay the debts resulting from the loss incurred using the taxpayers' money.
Rice
growers had committed suicide because they had fallen into financial strife
while being forced to wait too too long for the pledged-rice money from the
loss-ridden scheme of Ms Yingluck's government, Mr Vicha said.In her closing
statement, Ms Yingluck told the NLA that the impeachment case should not have
been brought against her because the 2007 constitution that allowed the
impeachment had already been revoked.She also said that the impeachment could
lead to the five-year suspension of her political rights and that would
unfairly limit her fundamental rights.She rejected the NACC's statement that it
had spent one year and 10 months investigating the rice scheme. Actually, she
said, the anti-graft panel had done it in only slightly over three months.
Ms Yingluck
also said that she had received reservations about her rice scheme from
concerned organisations, but those letters had not urged her to halt the scheme.
A letter calling for the end of the
scheme, from the Office of the Auditor General, arrived after she had
dissolved the House of Representatives, she said.She also complained that the
NACC accepted her political opponents as witnesses in its investigation while
rejecting several key witnesses that she had proposed.The former prime minister
denied that her rice-pledging scheme caused national damage. On the contrary,
she said, it had benefited the national economy by increasing farmers' incomes
and their spending stimulated the economy.
Ms
Yingluck makes her closing statement. (Photo by Chanat Katanyu)
The rice scheme had put extra money into circulation in the
national economy, 308 billion baht in the 2011/2012 crop season and 315 billion
baht in the 2012/2013 season, Ms Yingluck said.The scheme acceptably consumed
no more than five percent of the annual national budget, while helping take good care of 20 million farmers,
she said.As the economy was stimulated by this money entering circulation, the
national economy recovered and the government
could generate more revenue through taxation, she said.Ms Yingluck denied the
NACC accusation that the rice scheme allowed her government to monopolise the
rice trade in the country. She said only half the total rice yield had entered
the rice-pledging scheme.
Ms Yingluck also denied that she ignored reservations expressed
about the project. She said that after receiving the warnings, she launched a
corruption investigation and surveillance of the scheme's implementation.She
also argued that the implementation of the rice-pledging scheme involved so
many ministers and committees she had assigned to handle it, it was unfair for
her to face prosecution alone.NLA president Pornphet Wichitcholchai scheduled
the NLA's vote on the impeachment case for Friday Jan 23,the same day as the
vote on the impeachment cases against former Senate speaker Nikom Wairatpanij
and former House speaker Somsak Kiatsuranont on their constitutional amendment
case.The NLA will sit at 10am, and will vote first on the cases involving Mr
Nikom and Mr Somsak.
Source with thanks:The Bangkok Post
Genetically Modified Rice on trial at Nobewam since
April 2013
A
Genetically Modified Rice which has been on trial at a confined environment at
Nobewam in the Ejisu/Juaben Municipality of Ashanti since April 2013 is
expected to be released to farmers upon approval by the National Biosafety
Committee.The Genetically Modified Rice under trial has proved to be nitrogen,
water use efficient and salt tolerant is a project being undertaken by the
Crops Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
at Fumesua in Ashanti. Correspondent Thomas Nsowah-Adjei was there for Radio
Ghana.The partners in the project are the African Agricultural Technology
Foundation in Kenya, Atadia Biosciences in the US and the National Cereals
Research Institute in Nigeria.
In
order to make the outcome of the research experiment secure and safe for public
consumption, the field is confined and protected from human and animal
interference such that apart from the research scientists and the staff, no
foreign interference including birds is allowed into the confined environment.The
Confined Field Trial rice which is ready for harvest involve rice plants that
have been genetically modified or transformed to utilize nitrogen efficiently
while others have three stack genes developed to do well on drought
environment, salty soil, and lack of fertilizer nitrogen.The aim is to help
rice farmers in Ghana and other developing countries in Africa and Asia with
rice varieties that can withstand the three stresses and climate in an effort
to address food insecurity.
A
Plant Breeder and a Principal Investigator of the Project, Dr Maxwell Asante
noted that the purpose was to research into GM rice that can perform well under
nitrogen fertilizer levels that are lower than the recommended rate and give at
least 15 percent yield advantage over the non GM version of the rice.He said
the identified rice when confirmed shall be recommended to the National
Biosafety Committee to allow it to be grown by farmers after testing.Dr Asante
said when the approval is given the genes that make the GM Rice nitrogen-use
efficient will then be transferred to other popular varieties in Ghana through
conventional breeding methods.The Director of the CRI, Dr Mrs. Stella Ennin
said there is nothing frightening about GMOs. What is significant about GMOs is
that they improve upon varieties of existing crops to enhance production and
subsequently address food insecurity in Ghana.
GBC
AFAN Expresses Optimism In 2015 Rice Target
Posted by admin on
Jan 23rd, 2015 and filed under Business.
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Both comments and pings are currently closed.National Technical Adviser, All
Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Dr. Tunde Arosanyin has expressed
optimism on the country’s ability to meet the 2015 target for self-sufficiency
in rice production.Arosanyin expressed the hope in an interview with newsmen on
Thursday in Abuja.He said the efforts of the Federal Government and the farmers
to meet the target were in the right direction.He called on states and local
governments to complement the efforts of the Federal Government to make the
goal realistic.“All hands must be on deck to ensure that the target is
achieved.
“The commercial farmers are coming
up but we need to see more indigenous commercial farmers in rice production.“Some
of the states that have economic advantage on rice production should ensure
they keyed into the Public Private Partnership (PPP) where there are so many
agricultural investors.“I really don’t see the need for Nigeria to be importing
rice, maize, sugar or wheat, we must look inwards to salvage our economy,” he
told reporters.
“We must initiate how to become
exporters of food items to reduce unemployment and also address the issue of
food security.’’The AFAN technical adviser urged state governments to create an
enabling environment where farmers could exhibit their potential to attract
investors.The Tide source recalls that the Minister of Agriculture and
Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, had in 2013 said that Nigeria would be
self-sufficient in rice production by 2015.Adesina noted that the country, a
major consumer and importer of rice in Africa, was spending over N1 billion
daily and N356 billion annually on rice importation.
The minister said the high import
cost of rice must be reduced drastically.Dr Olukayode Oyeleye, the Special
Assistant to the minister, said in 2013 that the Federal Government had
provided quality seeds as well as other input to support rice farmers.He said
the country had begun a rice revolution and produced nearly 50 per cent of all
its rice needs in just a year.Oyeleye added that the private sector also
responded with 14 new rice mills and made high quality local rice available in
2013.
Driverless tractor proving itself in Australia
By Rich Keller, Editor, Ag Professional January
20, 2015 | 4:00 pm EST
Trials of a
robotic driverless tractor are looking good in Australia. The work is a joint
program among Rice Research Australia, Japanese companies Hitachi Zosen
Corporation and Yanmar Co. and three Australian universities. The study seeks
to verify that advanced positioning signals transmitted from Japan’s
Quasi-Zenith Satellite System can be used in precision farming, reports
Roderick Makim for the Australian and British emphasis publication, The
Land."It is meeting all expectations...it's accuracy is very good,"
Makim quoted Rice Research Australia Manager Russell Ford as saying.
"It
seems a bit out there, but when you see it, you realize it's not far away (from
being widely used by farmers).”But once he was quoted as saying its not that
far away, Ford was further quoted as suggesting not far away is something like
10 to 15 years before being “a reality.”The potential of driverless tractors
has already been proven by U.S. equipment manufacturers for some specific tasks
such as running side by side with a moving combine for grain to be unloaded
into a tender grain trailer.All types of crop production practices are being
investigated in Australia for use of the driverless tractor such as
cultivation, spreading fertilizer and even operating crop sensors to detect
plant nitrogen levels as it proceeds through a field. Many more trials are
planned.
CSIR
harvests fourth batch of genetically modified rice
Wednesday,
21 January 2015The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has
harvested its fourth batch of genetically-modified (GM) rice cultivated at
Nobewam in the Ashanti Region for confined field trials (CFTs).The rice
project, dubbed “NEWEST”, started in April 2013 after an approval was given by
the National Biosafety Committee (NBC) under the Biosafety Law (Act 831), to
regulate the production of GM improved seeds in the country.
Briefing
the media after a visit to the CFTs at Nobewam in the Ejisu –Juaben District,
the Principal Investigator of the CSIR, Dr Maxwell Darko Asante, said the
fourth harvest had revealed a “lead event” in the outcome of the trials, which,
he said, would be recommended to the Biosafety Committee to allow it to be
grown by farmers in Ghana after testing.“The NEWEST rice lines had been
developed to handle drought, salty soils, lack of fertiliser nitrogen, and also
handle climatic change”, he said.
The
project is partnered by African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AAFT) in
Kenya, Arcadia Biosciences in the USA, the International Centre for Tropical
Agriculture in Colombia, the NARO-National Crops Resource Institute in Uganda,
the National Cereals Research Institute, Nigeria, and the USAID.Dr Asante said
he was hopeful that the analysis of the harvested rice seeds would be completed
before the end of the year. However, he said, it would take three to five years
before the produce would leave the confined field to be produced on commercial
scale by conventional farmers.
The
Head of Biotechnology Research Programme at the CSIR-Crops Research Institute,
Dr Mariam Quain, called on Ghanaians to embrace the use of biotechnology in
agriculture production to ensure increased crop yields.Biotechnology, she said,
was a tool employed by scientists to improve the genetic make-up of organisms
to produce improved seeds.She stressed the need for the country to have
improved means of production of food in order to meet the increased demand of
the populace, coupled with climatic change and increased pressure on limited
arable lands.Dr Quain said the introduction of genetic engineering (GE) would
beef up agriculture production, and also improve the livelihood and income of
farmers, as well as the country’s economic situation.
“Currently,
GE crops are grown on commercial scale in 27 countries, including 19 developing
and eight industrial countries,” she added.She said so far, Burkina Faso was
growing GE cotton on commercial scale, which, she said, had enabled them to
reduce the application of pesticides on the field from six sprayings to two
from planting to harvest, coupled with the quality cotton they harvested.
Rice exports post 3.46pc growth in first two quarters
Thursday, 22 January 2015 19:24
Posted by Imaduddin
ISLAMABAD: Rice exports from the country during first two quarters
of current financial year witnessed 3.46 percent growth as compared to the
corresponding period of last year. During the period from July-December, 2014
about 1,781,401 metric tons of rice worth $976.784 million exported as compared
to 1,709,883 metric tons valuing $944.077 million exported in same period of
last financial year.According the latest figures released by Pakistan Bureau of
Statistics (PBS), exports of basmati rice recorded 2.63 percent increase as
about 260,481 metric tons of basmati rice worth $302.265 million exported as
compared to the 269,272 metric tons valuing $294.517 million of same period
last year.
Meanwhile,
the exports of rice other then basmati also grew by 3.84 per Percent and
reached at 1,520,920 metric tons costing $674.519 million which stood at
1,440,611 metric tons valuing $649.560 million during same period last year.However,
the data reveled that exports of fruit and vegetables from the country during
the period under review remained on down track as their exports witnessed 3.29
percent and 25.23 percent decrease respectively.From July-December, country was
managed to export 256,146 metric tons of fruit worth $189.136 million which was
recorded at 345,791 metric tons valuing $204.875 million of corresponding
period of last year.
Vegetables
exports was recorded at 167,648 metric tons during the period under review as
compared to the 244,365 metric tons of same period last year, the data added.During
the period under review, sugar exports posted 0.46 percent growth And reached
at 204,711 metric tons valuing $98.652 million as compared to the exports of
208,438 metric tons worth $98.202 million of same period last year.
Source with thanks:The Business
Record Pakistan
United Airlines to Serve Up New Premium-Cabin Dining
Experience on North America Flights
Wed Jan 21, 2015 11:01am EST
* Reuters is not responsible for the content in this press
release.
- All-new meals and snacks coming to mainline flights within the
U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and leisure markets in Mexico
- Airline to also add meals to shorter flights, expand
mid-continental and transcontinental meal service and offer customers greater
variety
PR Newswire
CHICAGO, Jan. 21, 2015
CHICAGO, Jan. 21, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- United Airlines will
treat premium-cabin customers on flights within North America to a
brand new dining experience beginning Feb. 1, when the airline elevates
everything from entrees to desserts and lighter snacks for United First and United Business customers.Additionally, United will
expand North America premium-cabin meal service to include flights of
at least 800 miles - or as short as two hours and 20 minutes -
increasing the number of flights on which customers may enjoy meals. The
airline will also offer a greater variety of dining choices.These changes come
as United is making a multi-million-dollar investment in in-flight food
service.
Premium-Cabin Dining Changes
Created by United's team of chefs and inspired by cuisine in the
airline's hub cities and other popular North American destinations, United will
introduce flavorful new entrees, including cage-free scrambled eggs prepared
skillet style with pepper-jack cheese, sauteed pepper mix, sliced New Mexico sausage,
potato gratin and fire-roasted pepper sauce; lobster macaroni and cheese with a
baked crumb topping and side of broccoli rabe; and chicken and sausage
jambalaya with white rice and green onions.
Other changes include:
For short flights that offer lighter refreshments, the addition of
new breakfast breads in the morning and a rotation of 25 new premium snacks in
the afternoon and evening;
On meal flights less than four hours, a variety of enhanced
breakfast choices, such as French toast souffle or steel-cut oatmeal, both
paired with fresh fruit and Greek yogurt, plus new dinner selections, including
tandoori chicken with basmati rice and paneer, to replace the current premium
sandwich options;
An expanded mid-continental meal service on flights of four hours
to five hours and 19 minutes, offering customers who now get two entree options
a choice of three, such as creole shrimp served with Carolina grits,
and a dessert of sorbet with mint-leaf topping during lunch
or gelato or ice cream for dinner;
New multi-course meal service on transcontinental and Hawaii flights,
featuring heartier entrees, such as tamale-stuffed chicken wrapped in a corn
husk and served with creamy corn sauce, roasted red and yellow tomatoes
and yucca sticks, followed by sorbet during lunch or gelato or ice cream
for dinner; and
Signature bake-on-board cookies in customer-chosen flavors,
including triple-chocolate chunk, served for dessert on short- and medium-haul
flights that offer meals, or as an afternoon or evening pre-arrival treat on
transcontinental flights and flights that link Hawaii with Los
Angeles, San Francisco, Denver and Houston.
United will also continue to offer premium-cabin customers Prosecco
sparkling wine and - on lunch and dinner flights - the airline's
signature warmed nuts.
"Our customers tell us they want greater options and fresh,
savory dining choices when they fly with us," said Lynda Coffman,
United's vice president of food services. "With these latest enhancements,
we will offer restaurant-quality cuisine that enriches their in-flight
experience."
In-flight Dining Investments
United will continue to make investments in its customers'
in-flight dining. Beginning in March and throughout the rest of this year, the
company will:
Upgrade premium-cabin meal service on United Express flights,
replacing snack boxes with freshly prepared food served on chinaware on flights
of at least 800 miles - or as short as two hours and 20 minutes - and
offering a selection of premium packaged snacks on flights less than 800 miles;
Significantly enhance United Economy meals and beverages on long-haul
international flights, including adding multi-course meal service;
Refresh its Choice Menu Bistro on Board selection, which offers fresh
food for sale in United Economy on
most flights scheduled for more than three-and-a-half hours within North
America, to Central and northern South America and betweenHonolulu and Guam;
and
Launch new premium-cabin menu choices on its p.s. Premium Service between New York JFK and Los
Angeles and New York JFK and San Francisco.
The Reuters
Eyeing Rs 1500 crore turnover in FY15: Kohinoor Foods
Kohinoor Foods Basmati rice exports increased by 27 percent from Rs
296 crore to Rs 375 crore and foods sales have increased by 24 percent from Rs
32 crore to Rs 39 crore said Gurnam Arora of Kohinoor Foods.
7 0Google +0 1Comments (2) Midcap Radar 01:30 pm Right now the
prices of Basmati have decreased quite a bit but still the orders are very good
so we will be able to increase volumes a little bit than last year. GURNAM
ARORA Joint MD Kohinoor Foods Gurnam Arora, Joint MD of Kohinoor Foods talking
about growth outlook said the company is eyeing Rs 1475 crore turnover in FY15
on back of strong orders and improvement in domestic sales.
Going forward he expects steady growth momentum of order inflows
from Iran. Total export sales have increased from Rs 417 crore to Rs 465 crore
from April to September end. The December quarter did very well in terms of
sales, says Arora. Traditionally, second half is a strong for the company but
this time the Basmati rice prices were 30-40% cheaper than last year because of
bumper crop. However, he expects the uptick in volume growth to compensate for
lower prices in the second half.
Basmati rice exports have increased by 27 percent from Rs 296 crore
to Rs 375 crore and foods sales have increased by 24 percent from Rs 32 crore
to Rs 39 crore. Below is the transcript of Gurnam Arora interview with Ekta
Batra & Nigel D'Souza on CNBC-TV18. Nigel: The stock is higher in today’s
session. There is some talk that with inflation pressures easing there could be
higher discretionary spends and may be you stand to gain from that. Give us the
break up of your domestic as well as exports in terms of revenues? Do you believe
that in fact the domestic story as well is improving? A: You see the Basmati
rice export has increased by 27 percent from Rs 296-375 crore and food sales
has increased by 24 percent from Rs 32 crore to Rs 39 crore.
Totally the export sale has increased from Rs 417-465 crore till
September. Ekta: This is from April to September? A: Correct. Ekta: How is this
December quarter done for you? A: It has done very well. Ekta: What are the
trends for the second half it is generally stronger seasonally I do understand
for the rice industry. What do you think you can clock in terms of volumes and
prices as compared to that same time last year? A: Right now the prices of
Basmati have decreased quite a bit but still the orders are very good so we
will be able to increase volumes a little bit than last year. Ekta: You are
saying that your volumes will compensate on the price? A: Yes. Ekta: How much
of a price decline have you seen and how much of an incremental volume gain can
you see? A: Our prices are about 30-40 percent cheaper than last year. Ekta:
Why is that? A: It is because of bumper crop of Basmati rice. Ekta: What about
volumes? A: This year we have increased our exports to 2-3 new clients which
are quite big. We have taken over the Abu-Dhabi municipal corporations business
which is quite good and we have done good business in Iran.
Iran is banned now but some
of our customers are still doing business with their old commitments so we are
doing fine for even the next quarter. Kohinoor Foods stock price On January 23,
2015, at 15:40 hrs Kohinoor Foods was quoting at Rs 50.30, down Rs 4.35, or
7.96 percent. The 52-week high of the share was Rs 61.20 and the 52-week low
was Rs 37.95. The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 1.98 per
share as per the quarter ended September 2014. The stock's price-to-earnings
(P/E) ratio was 25.4. The latest book value of the company is Rs 137.64 per
share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company is 0.37.
CSIR
harvests fourth batch of genetically modified rice
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has
harvested its fourth batch of genetically-modified (GM) rice cultivated at
Nobewam in the Ashanti Region for confined field trials (CFTs).The rice
project, dubbed “NEWEST”, started in April 2013 after an approval was given by
the National Biosafety Committee (NBC) under the Biosafety Law (Act 831), to
regulate the production of GM improved seeds in the country.
Briefing
the media after a visit to the CFTs at Nobewam in the Ejisu –Juaben District,
the Principal Investigator of the CSIR, Dr Maxwell Darko Asante, said the
fourth harvest had revealed a “lead event” in the outcome of the trials, which,
he said, would be recommended to the Biosafety Committee to allow it to be grown by farmers in Ghana
after testing.
“The
NEWEST rice lines had been developed to handle drought, salty soils, lack of
fertiliser nitrogen, and also handle climatic change”, he said.The project is
partnered by African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AAFT) in Kenya, Arcadia
Biosciences in the USA, the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture in
Colombia, the NARO-National Crops Resource Institute in Uganda, the National
Cereals Research Institute, Nigeria, and the USAID.Dr Asante said he was
hopeful that the analysis of the harvested rice seeds would be completed before
the end of the year. However, he said,
it would take three to five years before the produce would leave the
confined field to be produced on commercial scale by conventional farmers.
Embrace
GMOs
The Head
of Biotechnology Research Programme at the CSIR-Crops Research Institute, Dr
Mariam Quain, called on Ghanaians to embrace the use of biotechnology in
agriculture production to ensure increased crop yields.Biotechnology, she said,
was a tool employed by scientists to improve the genetic make-up of organisms
to produce improved seeds.She stressed the need for the country to have
improved means of production of food in order to meet the increased demand of
the populace, coupled with climatic change and increased pressure on limited
arable lands.
Dr
Quain said the introduction of genetic engineering (GE) would beef up agriculture production, and also
improve the livelihood and income of farmers, as well as the country’s economic
situation.“Currently, GE crops are grown on commercial scale in 27 countries,
including 19 developing and eight industrial countries,” she added.She said so
far, Burkina Faso was growing GE cotton on commercial scale, which, she said,
had enabled them to reduce the application of pesticides on the field from six
sprayings to two from planting to harvest, coupled with the quality cotton they
harvested.
Image:
The Principal Investigator, Dr Maxwell Darko Asante, explaining a point to the
media during a GM-rice confined field trials (CFTs) at Nobewam. Picture:
EMMANUEL BAAH.
21
January 2015 | Written by Emmanuel Baah
|
CSIR
harvests fourth batch of genetically modified rice
Rice Leadership Class Graduates Next Month
STUTTGART, AR- The 2013-2015 Rice Leadership Development Class will
hold the fourth and final session of their two year program next month in
Washington D.C. The Session will be held at the same time as the USA Rice
Federation Government Affairs Conference and will allow the class members to
observe the leadership of the U.S. rice industry conducting their business
meetings, as well as participating in lobbing efforts on the Hill.Class members
will also take part in meetings with various government agencies that impact
the U.S. rice industry, attend the World Market Price meeting, and participate
in a special graduation ceremony.
The
class is made up of five rice producers: John Compton, Jennings, LA; Seth
Fiack, Glenn, CA; Mark Isbell, North Little Rock, AR; Steven Schuler, Woodland,
CA; Joel Stevens, Monticello, AR, and two industry representatives: Robb
Dedman, Pro Ag Consulting, Inc., Rison, AR and Wes Long, RiceTec, Inc., Benton,
AR.The Rice Leadership Development Program is sponsored by John Deere Company,
RiceTec, Inc., and American Commodity Company through a grant to the Rice
Foundation and managed by the USA Rice Federation.
Contact:
Chuck Wilson (870) 673-7541
USA Rice Federation
Announcement of 11th Ordinary Import Tender in FY
2014
|
Announcement: 20 January 2015
Tender: 23 January 2015
Offer details: 57,000 mt
|
Source with thanks: USA Rice Federation
Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
CME Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures for January 22
|
Month
|
Price
|
Net Change
|
|
March 2015
|
$11.160
|
- $0.210
|
|
May 2015
|
$11.415
|
- $0.205
|
|
July 2015
|
$11.650
|
- $0.200
|
|
September 2015
|
$11.330
|
- $0.150
|
|
November 2015
|
$11.430
|
- $0.150
|
|
January 2016
|
$11.610
|
- $0.255
|
|
March 2016
|
$11.610
|
- $0.255
|
Source with thanks: USA Rice
Federation
Mahyco expects marketing of Bt rice with high salt
tolerance from 2018
The company will work on multiple transgenic lines of rice under
the aforesaid trials and expects to pick the best out of them
BS Reporter | Hyderabad
January 22, 2015 Last Updated at 20:42 IST
Hybrid
seeds producer Mahyco today said its latest genetically modified Bt rice
effective in mitigating the impact of high salinity might see commercialisation
from 2018-19.Having taken up field trials in the Nizamabad district of
Telangana, the company started the event selection trial in a coastal area in
Maharashtra two days ago. Mahyco claims there was a 15-20 rise in yields when
it was grown in highly saline soils.“It is an event selection trial. After
this, we have three more seasons of trials for two years for bio-safety
research level I and II. Based on these observations, if the states give the
necessary permissions, we will start its commercial production from 2018-19,”
said Ritesh Mishra, lead for regulatory affairs at Maharashtra-based Mahyco.
He
said due to high levels of ground water utilisation and drought conditions,
crop fields are witnessing accumulation of salt of up to one feet and above.The
company will work on multiple transgenic lines of rice under the aforesaid
trials and expects to pick the best out of them.Seed researchers usually take
up research in greenhouse conditions to start with, and take them forward for
field-level studies after seeking regulatory permission from the Centre and the
state governments.The company is also working on Bt chickpea that can minimise
the crop damages due to the commonly seen insect attack to 2-3 per cent.According
to Bharat R Char, lead for biotechnology at Mahyco, the Bt gene in chickpea
controls the insect damaging the crop, and it is the same insect that damages
the cotton crop.
However,
the gene used in Bt chickpea is slightly different from the one used in Bt
cotton.On permissions for this, Char said, “We have permissions for bio-safety
research level I trials for the next two rabi seasons. While we had applied for
seven states, we got to know that Andhra Pradesh has given the permission to do
field trials in Kurnool and Kadapa.” It is also expecting grant of permission
soon from the Maharashtra government.It must be noted that though India is the
largest producer of chickpea in the world. it had been depending on imports to
the extent of 3-4 million tonnes to the meet the total annual demand of 22
million tonnes. India is procuring the protein-rich agri commodity from Canada
and Tanzania
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