Thailand to sell stockpiled rice
BANGKOK,
May 18, 2015:
http://www.therakyatpost.com/business/2015/05/18/thailand-to-sell-stockpiled-rice/
Update on U.S. and world rice market scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
Friday
Nathan Childs to provide latest analysis of rice
market outlook
May
18, 2015 | Delta Farm Press
Dr. Nathan Childs needs no introduction to rice farmers. He’s
been a featured speaker at the USA Rice Outlook Conference almost since its
inception in 1994 and has been providing detailed analysis of the rice markets
to the rice industry for more than 23 years.
A hand to the plough
May 18 2015
We need an alternative approach
to farming that builds on indigenous knowledge and resources
“Everything else can wait, but
not agriculture”
–Jawaharlal Nehru, 1947
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru made this famous remark in the context of the Bengal famine of 1942–43 and the acute food scarcity prevailing in the country in 1947. For Indians who grew up in the 1960s, a vivid image is one of perennial food shortages and a precarious political situation due to dependence on imports. The mood of the era was epitomised by a RK Laxman cartoon which showed a minister looking out of his window and remarking to his aide ‘...Good, good, the monsoons are on time. Once again this year, we can ask the Americans to mind their own business.’
Thanks to the green revolution, that era is only a dim memory. While the green revolution led to an immediate increase in production and productivity of agriculture, it was achieved at a heavy cost to the environment and is not a sustainable long-term strategy. As noted agricultural scientist MS Swaminathan said, “The green revolution of the 1960s provided a breathing spell for achieving an adjustment between population growth and food production.” However, it is a matter of concern that even today a large section of the scientific community tends to see the progress in the agriculture sector as a matter of more and more technological fixes, of the green revolution variety.For several years now, agriculture in India is said to be in a state of crisis. This is tantamount to saying that India is in a crisis since about 70 per cent of our population is still in rural areas with agriculture as their main livelihood. This crisis manifests itself as increasing impoverishment of the farmers and lack of options for rural non-farming employment. There is an alarming degradation of the resource base of agriculture, especially of soil, increased pressure and demand on land from non-agricultural activities, erosion of biodiversity in terms of both species and varieties of cultivated crops and decline in cattle population. This has led to distress migration to the cities and caused scarcity of labour in rural areas for agricultural activities.India has one of the largest networks of organisations and infrastructure for agriculture anywhere in the world. Never-theless, traditional Indian agriculture has hardly any space in the research or extension and dissemination services of the central or state governments. The achievements of the modern chemical model of agriculture have been so dazzling that little attention has been paid to the relevance of indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices.India is richly endowed with plentiful natural resources and tremendous density and diversity of bio-resources. Its cultivable area of 160 million hectares is about 60 per cent of the total land area against the world average of 10 per cent. The average rainfall throughout India is 105 cm per year, higher than what other large areas of the world receive. Almost all parts of the country have had a rich traditional knowledge of agriculture and sustainable utilisation of natural resources with a history of continuous land cultivation over long periods with little decline in soil fertility. This knowledge tradition is both oral as well as supported by rich textual resources. The unique feature of Indian knowledge in many areas is its social organisation into classical and folk traditions. Classical tradition connotes formally organised knowledge supported by a corpus of texts and manuscripts and a clear theoretical framework. Normally, there are formal procedures for training experts. In contrast, folk traditions do not necessarily have a textual basis. The training of practitioners is informal and propagated through a guru-shishya parampara. In the case of agriculture, also, we see two such streams. The classical stream of knowledge is vrikshayurveda, literally meaning knowledge of the science of life of plants. There are a large number of scholarly texts of vrikshayurveda in various Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. In recent years, the Asian Agri-History Foundation has brought out excellent editions of many of these texts which include translations and commentaries. There is also a robust folk tradition of agriculture.
Aerial view of CIKS farm
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru made this famous remark in the context of the Bengal famine of 1942–43 and the acute food scarcity prevailing in the country in 1947. For Indians who grew up in the 1960s, a vivid image is one of perennial food shortages and a precarious political situation due to dependence on imports. The mood of the era was epitomised by a RK Laxman cartoon which showed a minister looking out of his window and remarking to his aide ‘...Good, good, the monsoons are on time. Once again this year, we can ask the Americans to mind their own business.’
Thanks to the green revolution, that era is only a dim memory. While the green revolution led to an immediate increase in production and productivity of agriculture, it was achieved at a heavy cost to the environment and is not a sustainable long-term strategy. As noted agricultural scientist MS Swaminathan said, “The green revolution of the 1960s provided a breathing spell for achieving an adjustment between population growth and food production.” However, it is a matter of concern that even today a large section of the scientific community tends to see the progress in the agriculture sector as a matter of more and more technological fixes, of the green revolution variety.For several years now, agriculture in India is said to be in a state of crisis. This is tantamount to saying that India is in a crisis since about 70 per cent of our population is still in rural areas with agriculture as their main livelihood. This crisis manifests itself as increasing impoverishment of the farmers and lack of options for rural non-farming employment. There is an alarming degradation of the resource base of agriculture, especially of soil, increased pressure and demand on land from non-agricultural activities, erosion of biodiversity in terms of both species and varieties of cultivated crops and decline in cattle population. This has led to distress migration to the cities and caused scarcity of labour in rural areas for agricultural activities.India has one of the largest networks of organisations and infrastructure for agriculture anywhere in the world. Never-theless, traditional Indian agriculture has hardly any space in the research or extension and dissemination services of the central or state governments. The achievements of the modern chemical model of agriculture have been so dazzling that little attention has been paid to the relevance of indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices.India is richly endowed with plentiful natural resources and tremendous density and diversity of bio-resources. Its cultivable area of 160 million hectares is about 60 per cent of the total land area against the world average of 10 per cent. The average rainfall throughout India is 105 cm per year, higher than what other large areas of the world receive. Almost all parts of the country have had a rich traditional knowledge of agriculture and sustainable utilisation of natural resources with a history of continuous land cultivation over long periods with little decline in soil fertility. This knowledge tradition is both oral as well as supported by rich textual resources. The unique feature of Indian knowledge in many areas is its social organisation into classical and folk traditions. Classical tradition connotes formally organised knowledge supported by a corpus of texts and manuscripts and a clear theoretical framework. Normally, there are formal procedures for training experts. In contrast, folk traditions do not necessarily have a textual basis. The training of practitioners is informal and propagated through a guru-shishya parampara. In the case of agriculture, also, we see two such streams. The classical stream of knowledge is vrikshayurveda, literally meaning knowledge of the science of life of plants. There are a large number of scholarly texts of vrikshayurveda in various Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. In recent years, the Asian Agri-History Foundation has brought out excellent editions of many of these texts which include translations and commentaries. There is also a robust folk tradition of agriculture.
Aerial view of CIKS farm
Today’s scepticism of traditional knowledge is based on the view that such knowledge cannot be trusted since it has not been subject to testing and validation as per modern scientific norms. In this connection, it is very interesting to see that a vast body of traditional knowledge of agriculture was indeed very recently put to scientific examination.The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) launched a nationwide mission mode project on collection, documentation and validation of indigenous technical knowledge under the national agriculture technology project (NATP) in 2000. Information on indi-genous technical knowledge was collected from primary sources through voluntary disclosure and collection and compilation of the Indigenous Technical Knowledge (ITK) volume was made from available literature, books, journals and theses.The compilation has five documents in seven volumes (published between 2002 and 2004). The first two documents consisting of four volumes listed 4,879 indigenous practices. The third and fourth documents describe efforts at validating and cross-validating these practices. Of the 4,879 practices documented, a set of 111 practices were selected and subjected to experimental testing in efforts that were conducted by ICAR institutes and state agricultural departments and universities. These pertain to various topics such as pest control, crop protection, farm implements and weather forecasting. The results of these validation experiments were published as separate volumes. These volumes do not contain an overall analysis of the results — hence our centre has compiled the results in a tabular format (Check chart).The chart shows that slightly more than 80 per cent of these practices were valid and about 6 per cent of the practices were partly valid. About 9 per cent were concluded as being not valid. There were a few cases where scientists felt that experiments need repetition. In some cases, the results were not declared. In summary, there was overwhelming evidence in favour of the validity of these practices. However, it is strange that this entire exercise seems to have left no impression whatsoever on our body of scientists nor have the validated practices been disseminated through our extension services.In fact, the existence of this voluminous body of information is hardly known, much less publicised widely. Information about the series could be procured only after filing a petition under the RTI Act!
A whole range of solutions and technologies drawn from indigenous knowledge, however, are now available from various sources, including various volumes of vrikshayurveda and the journal published by the Asian Agri-History Foundation (http://asianagrihistory.org); various issues of the journal Honey Bee published from the Centre for Management of Agriculture in the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (http://www. sristi.org).A large number of efforts undertaken by non-government organisations across the country to document and field test these practices have also produced a significant body of credible experience and evidence.This is a glimpse of the great richness and robustness of traditional agricultural knowledge systems. That they have survived down to this day despite total neglect by the official establishment or any kind of support from trained scholars or the scientific community is a testimony to their inherent strength and vitality.The three essential elements of the material resource base required for agriculture are — soil (fertility), water and sunshine, as well as seeds. The Indian subcontinent is a region of extremely high biodiversity of plants and in fact, two of the 12 global “biodiversity hotspots” are situated in India. It has been estimated by the government’s National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) that currently there are 75,000 to 100,000 landraces of paddy available in India. Similarly, there are about 2,700 varieties of commonly used vegetables that are being preserved in the Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR) at Varanasi. In addition, there are a significant number of varieties of paddy and vegetables still available with farmers which are not noted or captured by the formal systems. Along with this, there is also extensive literature and knowledge regarding the agronomic properties as well as the therapeutic and nutritional properties of paddy and vegetables. Such knowledge is rich, varied and nuanced. Let us, for now, illustrate this rich knowledge through indigenous paddy varieties.According to the late RH Richharia, who was one of our outstanding rice scientists, about 400,000 rice varieties existed in India during the Vedic period. He estimated that even today about 200,000 rice varieties exist in India — a truly phenomenal number. This means that if a person were to eat a new rice variety every day of the year he could live for over 500 years without reusing a variety!
In every nook and corner of India, farmers have nurtured and cultivated varieties suitable to those areas.
These conservation practices are often interwoven and linked with cultural, social and religious practices in an organic way. For example, it was observed by Richharia that at the Puri temple in Orissa, Lord Jagannath is worshipped with food prepared from freshly harvested rice every day of the year. This means that there was an intimate knowledge of the varieties of the rice that could be grown and harvested through all the seasons and a ritual linkage with a temple which ensure that these varieties continue to be cultivated and propagated. Throughout India, many varieties of paddy (and for that matter other crops such as millets, fruits and vegetables), are utilised and linked with specific festivals and celebrations, which, but for these linkages would have been extinct.There are two broad categories of reasons why such diversity is important — agronomical as well as nutritional/therapeutic. In different parts of India, paddy shows variation with respect to crop age (short, medium and long duration), resistance to pests and diseases, requirement of water, suitability to various seasons, capacity to grow in different attitudes (ranging from the Himalayan heights to lands below sea level) and in different kinds of soil (sandy, clayey and so on). This has ensured that a rice crop be harvested in almost every party of India through various times of the year.
A few indigenous rice varieties with interesting agronomic properties from Tamil Nadu illustrate this:
Sigappukuruvikar (pest-and disease-resistant), Koomvazhai (flood-resistant), JilJilVaigunda (drought-resistant), Kullakar (provides excellent straw for thatched roofs), Panangattu Kudaivazhai (good fodder).
Kudaivazhai; Kullakar
India has over 4,000 ethnic communities with a deep knowledge and understanding of the properties of natural products, particularly plants with which they live in close communion. The all-India coordinated research project on ethnobiology (AICRPE) produced a midterm report in 1994 which stated that the ethnic communities in India alone (who constitute only about 7 per cent of our population) had knowledge of around 9,500 species of plants used for varied purposes, the major ones being for medicine (7,500 species) and food (3,900 species).
Here are some examples of indigenous paddy varieties that have traditionally been accepted as containing varied nutritional and therapeutic properties. Modern laboratory studies carried out recently indicate that the traditional understanding may be consistent with these findings.There are varieties that are suited for making particular preparations such asSempalai (for puffed rice), Pitchavari (for puttu) and Samba Mosanam (for aval – pounded rice). The scented variety, Seeraga samba, as well as another variety, Kitchili samba, are preferred for biryani.
Mapillai samba; grains of Kalarpalai
In terms of nutrients, Mappillai samba is considered an excellent source of strength and is found to be high in carbohydrates and crude fibre. Two traditional paddy varieties of Tamil Nadu, Neelam samba and Kuzhiadichan, are said to be galactogogues, that is, good for lactating mothers. Laboratory studies show that Neelam samba is rich in calcium. Karunkuruvai is used in the treatment of filariasis. It is actively in use by siddha physicians of Tamil Nadu and mentioned in ancient Tamil siddha medical texts. Laboratory studies show that Karunkuruvai is rich in iron and has a low glycemic index. The glycemic index of Karunkuruvai, Kullakar, Kovuni, Mapillai Samba,Neelam samba and Kudaivazhai are low compared to market varieties such as white Ponni — which is consistent with the traditional view that these are good for diabetes.Mind you, this is just the tip of the iceberg, numerous other examples can be cited from all parts of India.In today’s agriculture, there is very little presence or use of indigenous varieties of paddy. Several of them have not even been characterised rigorously through modern scientific efforts. They suffer a fate similar to the indigenous breeds of cattle which still continue to be described in official records as “nondescript (ND).”Today, in Europe or North America, traditional agriculture is referred to as chemical agriculture since it has been in vogue already for a few centuries. Much of what goes by the name of organic farming or ecological agriculture is an afterthought or a corrective because of centuries of chemical agriculture and consequent environmental damage.However, in India, sustainability and eco-friendliness are inherent to our knowledge systems.The current policy on agriculture continues the green revolution strategy heavily dependent on external inputs ranging from seeds and including fertilisers, pesticides, and most importantly, knowledge of cultivation practices. This has led to declining yields and soil fertility and an increasing realisation of the limitation of chemical farming.We need an alternative approach that builds on indigenous knowledge, wisdom and resources. We have outlined and shown that there is a tremendous potential for this.Equally importantly, we are endowed with a tremendous resource base consisting of land, water, sunshine and biodiversity. This can provide a strong and unique starting point for alternative strategy for the development of Indian agriculture.
(AV Balasubramanian is with the Centre for Indian Knowledge Systems (www.ciks.org), Chennai, an institution working on sustainable agriculture building on traditional knowledge and practices ciksbalu@gmail.com)
For Printed Version : 19know1, 19know2
Dr. Narendra Kulkarni, R & D Head of R J Bio-Tech Limited
Received An Award From IIRC (Indian Institute Of Rice Research)
May 18, 2015:
R J Bio-Tech Ltd has informed BSE regarding a Press Release
dated May 18, 2015 titled "Dr. Narendra Kulkarni, R & D Head of R J
Bio-Tech Limited Received An Award From IIRC (Indian Institute Of Rice
Research)".
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/announcements/others/dr-narendra-kulkarni-r-d-head-of-r-j-biotech-limited-received-an-award-from-iirc-indian-institute-of-rice-
Revolutionary innovations by agricultural scientists
can put a full stop on farmers' suicide cases in India
While political parties are quick to take up the
political challenge of the day and try and woo farmers to their side by
launching attacks on the party in power, the real challenge for India is for
its agriculture scientists who will now have to think in terms of seeking
solutions to these problems.Only in the last fifty years India has emerged from
a food shortage nation to a food surplus one. This present generation has
access to more food and more luxury than any other generation before them where
lack of milk and even foodgrains like wheat was the norm rather than the
exception.The present generation of Indians is also suffering from a food
induced obesity epidemic. However this is no reason for complacency among the
agricultural scientists of the nation.Agriculture research has now to focus on
plants and species that are more resistant to weather changes and provide food
accordingly. So far agriculture scientists have only given temporary results
and major side effects. The poisoning of the fields of Punjab is due to
excessive Green Revolution induced chemical farming.The bringing of the Indira
Gandhi canal to Rajasthan may have brought rice cultivation to the region but
it has also brought malaria and rodents to the region as well. Japanese
Encephalitis is a result of paddy cultivation with piggery in Gorakhpur and
Deoria. Local fish species have been destroyed by Chinese imports.It is time
that agriculture scientists apply the latest techniques to produce more food,
without damage to the local environment and without stressing water resources.
The Red Indians used to drink from a cactus called prickly pear in the desert.
Maybe ICAR and others need to look there for smart plants to produce food
without mega dams and untimely rainfall obstructing the process.Smart plants
exist in concept. They are like the tomato that does not mould because it has a
chicken gene in it. Or the rice that has a carrot gene in it. However India
needs to rethink its agriculture and water use methods, otherwise if the
country turns into a vast desert and faces a major ecological disaster it could
be because of its agriculture scientist community, which has failed to come up
with a novel solution like the prickly pear.Editorial NOTE: This article is
categorized under Opinion Section. The views expressed in this article are
solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of
merinews.com. In case you have a opposing view, please click here to share the
same in the comments section.
http://www.merinews.com/article/revolutionary-innovations-by-agricultural-scientists-can-put-a-full-stop-on-farmers-suicide-cases-in-india/15906512.shtml
4-H program deepens students'
understanding of science
Brian and Anna Prchal and Tyler
Fromm are teenagers making and using biodiesel. They're also part of a possible
solution for a growing need for employees in agriculture.
By
Nancy Madsen, The Free Press
Posted May 18, 2015 at 7:00 AM
New Prague, Minn.
Brian and Anna Prchal and Tyler Fromm are teenagers making and
using biodiesel. They're also part of a possible solution for a growing need
for employees in agriculture.There are 25,700 new jobs for management and
business in agriculture and 14,600 new jobs in agriculture and science
engineering each year, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture analysis
of job figures. The gap between expected job openings and agriculture and
related fields graduates is roughly 1,000 each year.For junior high and high
school students, "4-H involvement could lead to college, university or
even trade school and an ag-related job," said Josh Rice, who runs the
science of agriculture programming at University of Minnesota Extension.
"Agricultural awareness is a very important piece of this. There are ag
jobs out there and it's not just production agriculture. It can be marketing,
processing, distribution and even social science."Minnesota is the first
state to start a 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge, which is a team
competition showing science and engineering understanding, The Free Press
(http://bit.ly/1FZEx0j ) reported. The teams have three or four members between
grades six and 12 who share a common interest. A coach guides them through the
scientific or engineering process. The teams also meet with a mentor from the
industry, who gives guidance and an inside view of an agricultural career.Brian
and Anna Prchal of Montgomery and their cousin Tyler Fromm of New Hope teamed
up to work on biodiesel. Jodi Prchal, Brian and Anna's mother and a fifth-grade
teacher, is their coach.Brian created biodiesel from used fryer oil at a local
restaurant. He describes the process in detail on how to transform that oil
into fuel."You can burn straight filtered vegetable oil in a diesel
engine, but it gums up the engine," Brian said.After filtering it, the
major step in the process was carefully combining the oil with methanol and
potassium hydroxide, which separates the fatty acids from the glycerin, which
settles to the bottom. The fatty acids bond with methanol to transform the
molecules into biodiesel. That is followed by "washing" the biodiesel
with water to cause even more separation, leaving a transparent light orange
liquid.Jodi Prchal says the critical moment came when they tried it in an
engine. Brian had bought a single-cylinder, nine horsepower diesel engine and
it ran smoothly on the biodiesel.Brian's goal, he said, is to be able to have a
diesel truck and run it on his own biodiesel."I've always been really
interested in renewable energy," he said.He made 1 liter of biodiesel for
this project but wants a setup that will allow him to make 30 gallons at a time
with less intervention."It would cost 70 cents a gallon if you do it right
versus $4 per gallon of diesel, when diesel was high," Brian said.
http://www.crookstontimes.com/article/20150515/NEWS/150519690/-1/news
Bühler rice contracts in Asia
exceed $100 million
5/18/2015
- by World Grain Staff
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BANGKOK, THAILAND — The Bühler Group, a leader in rice processing
and optical sorting solutions, said on May 18 that it has secured contracts in
Southeast Asia totaling more than $100 million in the last two years.The
contracts have an emphasis on food safety, hygienic production, energy
efficiency and sustainability.The company has been awarded major contracts by
the largest rice processors and reprocessors across Thailand, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Myanmar including Merry Rice,
Crystal Rice, Siam Parboiled, TPS Group, Capital Rice, La Suerte, Phung Hoang,
Kilang Beras Pek Choo Keok Sdn. Bhd, Yoma Sun and Nine Seas. The total
investment in rice processing plants and related equipment for these projects
alone is set to exceed $80 million.Working with rice processors and
reprocessors in the region, Bühler said it offers and develops new market
optimized rice processing solutions that add value for its customers through
improved yield, performance and efficiency. It also looks to increase awareness
of food-safe rice mills to ensure hygienic and safe food for consumers.Over the
past two years, Bühler has experienced significant growth in the region, with
particular success gained in Thailand. This marked a record period, partly
thanks to a smaller number of larger contracts, including the company’s largest
ever contract for rice processing for Merry Rice, globally valued at over $40
million. The contract, for 62 of Bühler’s SORTEX S UltraVision machines, and 52
high-capacity UltraPoly polishers will result in the world’s largest rice mill,
capable of sorting over 10,000 tonnes of rice per day, Bühler said.Among
contracts already confirmed are the first complete rice mill in Vietnam for
Phung Hoang, capable of processing 400 tonnes a day; a complete paddy
processing plant in Malaysia for Kilang Beras Pek Choo Keok Sdn. Bhd; and two
complete paddy processing plants in Myanmar for Nine Seas and Yoma Sun. Crystal
Rice in Cambodia has also started production and Siam Parboiled in Thailand is
in the advanced stages of installation.“Over the past two years we’ve
consciously changed the way we do business across Souteast Asia,” said Mark
Ledson, managing director of Bühler Thailand. “We’ve dedicated time to listen
to our customers’ needs and demonstrate our ability to offer a truly complete
engineered solution that is supported by our commitment to Service Excellence.”Significant
product launches in 2014 have also helped grow Bühler’s reach across Southeast
Asia including the new SORTEX S UltraVision optical sorting machine – widely
regarded as the most technologically advanced, intelligent optical sorter
available for rice today.“The response to the SORTEX S UltraVision has been
incredibly positive, many of our customers have confirmed the SORTEX S
UltraVision as taking optical sorting to the next level and sets us apart from
the competition as a global leader in this market,” Ledson said. “We understand
the enormous pressure rice millers are under to process rice in the most
sustainable way, maximizing yield and improving quality and food safety
standards. We believe high capacity processing is the future, if the industry
is to match growing demand.”In addition to the launch of the SORTEX S
UltraVision optical sorting machine, Bühler teams across South East Asia have
also been actively promoting food safety as a key concept. With both consumer
and customer interest in food safety on the rise, particularly with budding
exporters, Bühler said it is in a prime position to offer end-to-end solutions
that guarantee hygienic performance and food safety, including process
engineering solutions for rice, solutions for pre-cleaning, silos, drying, rice
milling and automated bagging.Moving forward, Bühler will continue to extend
its reach and presence in the region by completing existing projects and
securing new ones. It has developed a full-fledged factory in Vietnam and has
built an accessory workshop in Indonesia. All this demonstrates Bühler’s
commitment to its customers across the region, the company said. It is
also actively building its channels for single machine sales and is
establishing country focused technology teams in most of the countries in Southeast
Asia. Developing markets such as Cambodia and Myanmar will also present new
opportunities to deliver smaller capacity rice mills, demonstrating Bühler’s
ability to cater to the complete spectrum of rice mills across the region.“In
the past 24 months we have won large rice milling projects in Thailand,
Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam. Looking ahead
to the next two years, we will be looking to drive our market share across
regions in Southeast Asia and enhance our Sales & Service structure
(including distribution channels) along with developing new mid-market rice
processing solutions to give our customers value for money and continue to
build the Bühler rice brand image,” said Rustom Mistry, director, head of Rice
Processing in Asia. “By developing and strengthening our technology expertise
and service excellence in each country we are better prepared to serve our
customers locally and further demonstrate our commitment to the local community
and wider industry.”
http://www.world-grain.com/articles/news_home/Supplier_Update/2015/05/Buhler_rice_contracts_in_Asia.aspx?ID=%7BE89D9240-0566-45C2-BD67-206E739F8DDB%7D&cck=1
Patiala: Rice millers resents Food Corporation of India
decisions
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, Patiala
|
Updated: May 18, 2015 20:36 IST
The Federation of All
India Rice Millers Association has taken strong exceptions to the disparities
in implementing their (FCI's) own decisions, particularly with regard to the
acceptance of rice from the millers at the FCI's depots on the basis of 100%
weighment on weigh-bridges.Association president,
Tarsem Saini, said that FCI through their instructions of year 2005, decided
that rice consignments are to be accepted from rice millers on 100% weighment
on weigh-bridges.However for the purpose of checking, whether the consignment
was standard or not, bags not more than 10% of the consignments were to be checked.Association's
President further disclosed that Field Staff of the Food Corporation of India
did not implement the above decision in totality & rather in the most of
the states weight check memos were being issued on 10% weighment basis to
exploit the millers, although higher weight emerged at the weigh-bridges at the
time of 100% weighment.He said that on Feb 2015, a deputation of the
Association met the Chairman-Cum-Managing Director of FCI at New Delhi with our
long pending demands, so as to eliminate malpractices in the Field & the
main threshold was given to implement the decision of FCI Headquarters, New
Delhi of year 2005."Instead of resolving issue, the FCI's Headquarter,
through a communication of May 14, 2015 reversed their own decision of year
2005 and decided that weight check memos of rice acceptance are to be issued to
the millers on 10% weighment basis instead of100% weighment conducted at the
weigh-bridge. This will promote corruption," said Saini."Not to speak
of above, the FCI has also not finalised the milling charges bills for the past
15 years as a result of which crores of rupees of the millers are lying with
the FCI," he added. He said that due to large scale resentement against
FCI, a meeting of rice millers of the entire state has been called in Bathinda
to take stock of the situation so as to lodge the protest with Government.Association
president has also appealed to the Punjab government to take up the above
issues with the Centre on priority, apart from setting up of computerised labs,
otherwise the millers shall have to re-think for the milling of paddy crop this
Kharif season.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/patiala/patiala-rice-millers-resents-food-corporation-of-india-decisions/article1-1348474.aspx
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WTO Rules Against COOL
WTO: No flag waving
WASHINGTON, DC -- This morning, the World Trade Organization (WTO)
Appellate Body made public its ruling on the United States' Country of Origin
Labeling (COOL) regulation on certain muscle cuts of meat, citing that the
regulation violates international trade rules and has caused harm to Canada and
Mexico, which complained to the WTO.The ruling could result in retaliation
against the United States through import tariffs if the labeling doesn't
end. House Agriculture Committee
Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) is currently working on legislation in conjunction
with Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA) which would repeal the COOL regulation for beef and
pork exports and bring the U.S. back into WTO compliance. Senate Agriculture
Committee Chairman, Pat Roberts (R-KS) has indicated that the Committee will be
considering all options but has not yet committed to using legislation
repealing COOL as a solution. "The
Senate Agriculture Committee will consider any option, including repeal
regarding meat, that will allow the United States to be WTO-compliant and avoid
retaliation from Canada and Mexico," Roberts said in a statement.
"We'll do whatever it takes to protect the livelihood of American farmers,
ranchers, and industries that will be targeted by retaliation.""Today's
decision is the third by a WTO body that has gone against the United
States," said USA Rice COO Bob Cummings. "It's time for the United
States to bring COOL regulations into compliance with our WTO obligations, and
we support efforts in Congress to achieve this common sense goal."
Cummings
continued, "Canada and Mexico are among the top five export markets for
U.S. rice and we are very concerned about possible retaliation, perhaps by the
end of this year, by these governments against exports of U.S. rice."
Contact: Peter Bachmann (703) 236-1475
USA Rice Welcomes Summer Intern
On
the job
Whit
is the only son of Libby and Ted Kendall.
Contact: Deborah Willenborg (703) 236-1444
|
Crop Progress: 2015 Crop 89 Percent Planted
|
|
WASHINGTON, DC -- Eighty-nine percent of the nation's
2015 rice acreage is planted, according to today's U.S. Department of
Agriculture's Crop Progress Report.
|
|
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|
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice
Futures for May 18
|
Trade path still uphill battle
DC Dialogue
Senate garners
the needed votes to proceed to debate for TPA fast track authority ahead of
Memorial Day recess.
Published on: May 15, 2015
http://farmfutures.com/blogs-trade-path-still-uphill-battle-9802
Boustany: Rice
study proves need for strong trade agreements
by Ripon Advance News Service | Monday, May 18,
2015 @ 10:26am
Following
the release of a study last week by the International Trade Commission (ITC)
regarding the nation's rice production, U.S. Rep Charles Boustany (R-LA)
discussed the need for strong trade agreements to support the industry. The study, “Rice: Global
Competitiveness of the U.S. Industry,” was requested by Boustany more than a
year ago, along with then-House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp
(R-MI). The lawmakers asked the ITC to review and investigate the effects of
fluctuations in the market resulting from government support programs in other
rice-producing countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, India, China and Brazil. “The United States rice industry
depends on exports, which account for about half of the U.S. rice crop each
year,” the report revealed. “U.S. exports of medium grain refined rice are
shipped mainly to Japan, but also to Taiwan and South Korea, where trade
agreements give U.S. rice guaranteed minimum access. Tariff elimination would
have led to a significant increase in global rice trade, but only a small
increase in production and consumption. However, of the policy changes
considered, eliminating tariffs would have had the greatest impact on U.S.
production and exports.” The
export of U.S.-produced rice is a major issue in the ongoing negotiations of
the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement with a dozen Asian
nations. Boustany, co-chairman of the Friends of the TPP Caucus, has remained a
strong advocate for Louisiana rice farmers, pushing for their ability to
compete in the Asian marketplace on a level playing field.“This ITC study clearly
demonstrates that the U.S. rice industry is well-positioned to compete and grow
with new export opportunities in Asia, particularly in Japan,” Boustany said.
“As negotiations on free trade agreements with Asia continue, this study should
empower our negotiators to reach a deal that will support this important
industry. I’ll continue to push for low tariff barriers and a level playing
field for Louisiana agriculture that will support growth and job creation at
home.” Boustany’s position is
supported by several leaders within the rice export industry. “The study shows precisely what we
suspected all along,” Betsy Ward, president & CEO of the USA Rice
Federation, said. “The U.S. rice industry is playing by the rules, but is at a
decided disadvantage from some of our trading partners who do not play by the
rules.”
http://riponadvance.com/stories/510545417-boustany-rice-study-proves-need-for-strong-trade-agreements#sthash.lMBlGBHw.dpuf
Indonesia signals it will import rice ahead
of Hari Raya Aidilfitri
merdeka.com reports: With demand due to increase drastically ahead of
Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Indonesia is taking steps to ensure there is enough rice
stocks for the festive period.
POSTED: 18 May 2015 19:48
Indonesia's President Joko Widodo (C) helps farmers to plant rice in a paddy field at Ngara village, West Kalimantan. (Photo: AFP/Agus Suparto)
JAKARTA: Indonesia's Trade Ministry on Monday (May 18) signalled
that it will approve rice imports ahead of the Hari Raya
Aidilfitri celebrations this year. This is because it expects the
demand for rice to increase drastically before the fasting month as compared to
normal months. Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel said the rice imports will be
issued during discussions about the rice stock at the end of May. "We
wait to discuss again in May," he said. "What is clear is that the
government realises the need for a good harvest. We continue to monitor, and
later will discuss during the meeting with the Vice-President and
President."Mr Rachmat stressed the permission to import rice will be
decided after taking into account the amount of harvest from the local farmers.
He said the demand for rice until the fasting month is still able to be met
with the current rice reserve. “The State Logistics Agency (Bulog) will
continue to get rice from the current harvest yields. I’ve been told by the
Agriculture Minister that Central Java and East Java will harvest again. So,
we've asked Bulog to take them,” said Mr Rachmat. However, he believes
Bulog is still not able to ensure the stability of prices for essential goods,
especially for rice in the market. Bulog is only able to allocate and supply
1.2 million tonnes of rice to the market, or about 60 per cent of the ideal
allocation to the market.“Bulog’s rice allocation (to be supplied to the
market) is about 2 million tonnes. Bulog’s allocation at this moment is about
1.2 million tonnes,” said Mr Rachmat.
BANGKOK,
May 18, 2015:
Thailand’s
military government plans to sell two million tonnes of rice over the next two
months from stockpiles built up under the previous administration’s failed
buying programme, the Commerce Ministry said today.
Thailand
was the world’s top rice exporter for decades until its grain became
uncompetitive under the buying scheme brought in from 2011 by ousted Prime
Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, which paid farmers above market rates for their
crops.“The National Rice Committee will take two million tonnes of rice from
the five million tonnes for auction in the next one to two months,” said
Chutima Bunyapraphasara, permanent secretary at the ministry.The government has
16 million tonnes of rice in its stockpiles but 11 million tonnes of that is
either spoiled or of a poor grade, she said.The Commerce ministry will
determine which rice from the stockpiles can be consumed by humans or
livestock. Rice that is not fit for consumption will be sold for industrial
use, she said.Chutima said 3.3 million tonnes of rice had been sold in the
first four months of this year. That includes 1.2 million tonnes worth 16.22
billion baht (RM1.72 billion) sold in two auctions in the first quarter.The
government said on March 20 it would delay further auctions to avoid adding to
the downward pressure on prices.
Govt to issue basic commodity regulation
The
Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Business | Sat, May 16 2015, 2:55 PM
Business
News
Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel says
the government will issue a presidential regulation on basic commodity prices
to anticipate price hikes.“I am waiting for the issuance of the presidential
regulation based on the Trade Law, so the government can set basic commodity
prices in certain situations,” Rachmat said in Jakarta on Saturday.He referred
to Law No. 7/2014 on trade. However, he has not specified when the regulation
will be issued.With the regulation, the ministry will be able to regulate the
prices of key commodities such as rice, soya, corn and others.In February, the
price of rice, Indonesia’s staple food, rose by up to 30 percent in some areas.Factors
such as a late harvest, uneven rice distribution and the existence of a
so-called “rice mafia” are speculated to be among the triggers of the price
hike.The director of the Institute for the Development of Economics and Finance
(INDEF), Enny Sri Hartati, warned that many other factors should be considered
relating to the issuance of the presidential regulation, which she thought
referred to New Order era regulations.Since the 1960s, the government has used
a range of policies to stabilize the prices of crucial commodities.“The
government should ensure that there is sufficient supply. The market is also
waiting for the government to intervene in the market mechanism, such as by
eradicating the cartels,” she said. (fsu) (+++
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/05/16/govt-issue-basic-commodity-regulation.html#sthash.J0VIglWb.dpuf
Govt to release 2m tonnes of rice
The
Nation May 18, 2015 4:48 pm
The Commerce Ministry plans to auction 2 million tonnes of rice
from the 16-million tonne stockpiles within the next two months.Commerce
Permanent Secretary Chutima Bunyapraphasara said that the release was approved
today by the National Rice Policy Committee, which is chaired by Prime Minister
Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. She is convinced that the auction would not further
pressure rice prices, as the second crop will be in the market this month.
Paddy rice price is expected to remain at Bt8,200-Bt8,500 a tonne.She is
confident that Thailand’s rice exports this year would reach the 10
million-tonne target, following the 3.4 million-tonne shipments in the first
five months. She said that over 10 million tonnes in the stockpiles have
degraded. Surveyors will be invited to a discussion soon, to find ways that
will minimise the government’s losses.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Govt-to-release-2m-tonnes-of-rice-30260374.html
Trade flourishes at Muse
checkpoint
Chan Myae Thu
Myanmar Eleven May 17, 2015 1:00 am
Myanmar Eleven May 17, 2015 1:00 am
Export inspection gate at the Muse border
checkpoint./EMG
Trade flow at
the Muse border hub is thriving, with large exports of rice and corn to China,
according to checkpoint officials.Between 140 and 180 rice trucks and between
120 and 170 corn trucks pass through the border gate at Muse every day.However,
fruit exports are in decline as the season has ended."As the situation at
Chinshwehal is uncertain, the trucks are using the Muse route for the time
being. This year's exports are likely to exceed last year's sum," said a
border official.Chinshwehal is a town on the China-Myanmar border that
experienced 5.2 Richter scale earthquake on Sunday.Export earnings totalled
approximately US$178 million between April 1 and May 12, and import spending
totalled over $186 million. During the same period last year, these figures
were $113 million and $160 million, respectively.While Myanmar traders have
obtained official licenses for exporting, Chinese traders are often arrested
for not having licenses.
Odisha
to procure 36 lakh tonnes of rice in 2015
IANS
Bhubaneswar,
| 16 May, 2015
http://www.thestatesman.com/news/odisha/odisha-to-procure-36-lakh-tonnes-of-rice-in-2015/63678.html#yCF3WgLZls1t84wC.99
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- May 18
Nagpur, May 18 Gram and tuar prices reported
higher in Nagpur Agriculture Produce
and Marketing Committee (APMC) here on good
seasonal buying support from local millers amid weak supply from producing
regions. Healthy hike on NCDEX in gram prices, fresh rise in Madhya Pradesh
pulses and repeated enquiries from South-based millers also boosted prices,
according to sources.
* * * *
FOODGRAINS & PULSES
GRAM
* Gram
varieties showed weak tendency in open market here on lack of demand from local
traders amid good supply from producing regions.
TUAR
* Tuar
varieties declined in open market here in absence of buyers amid ample stock in
ready position. Reports about good overseas arrival also affected
prices.
*
Masoor and moong varieties reported strong in open market on increased marriage
season demand from local traders amid thin supply from producing belts.
* In
Akola, Tuar - 7,200-7,500, Tuar dal - 9,900-10,300, Udid at 9,100-9,600,
Udid
Mogar (clean) - 10,700-11,100, Moong - 9,000-9,200, Moong Mogar
(clean) 10,700-11,100, Gram - 4,100-4,400, Gram Super best bold -
6,000-6,200
for
100 kg.
*
Wheat, rice and other commodities remained steady in open market
in
poor trading activity, according to sources.
Nagpur
foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg
FOODGRAINS
Available prices Previous
close
Gram
Auction
3,500-4,490 3,500-4,410
Gram
Pink Auction n.a. 2,100-2,600
Tuar
Auction 5,700-7,400 5,630-7,320
Moong Auction
n.a. 6,000-6,300
Udid
Auction n.a. 4,300-4,500
Masoor Auction n.a. 2,600-2,800
Gram
Super Best Bold
6,300-6,500 6,500-6,700
Gram
Super Best n.a.
Gram
Medium Best 6,000-6,200 6,300-6,400
Gram
Dal Medium n.a. n.a.
Gram
Mill Quality 5,300-5,500 5,500-5,700
Desi
gram Raw 4,500-4,650 4,600-4,750
Gram
Filter new 6,000-6,100 6,100-6,200
Gram
Kabuli 5,000-6,800 5,000-6,800
Gram
Pink 6,300-6,500 6,300-6,500
Tuar
Fataka Best
10,500-10,800 10,600-10,900
Tuar
Fataka Medium
10,000-10,300 10,100-10,400
Tuar
Dal Best Phod 9,500-9,800 9,500-9,900
Tuar
Dal Medium phod
9,000-9,350 9,000-9,400
Tuar
Gavarani New 7,700-7,800 7,800-7,900
Tuar
Karnataka 7,900-8,000 8,000-8,100
Tuar Black 10,700-11,000 10,700-11,000
Masoor dal best
8,100-8,300 7,900-8,100
Masoor dal medium
7,500-7,800 7,200-7,500
Masoor
n.a. n.a.
Moong
Mogar bold
11,000-11,500 11,000-11,400
Moong Mogar Medium best
10,200-10,600 10,200-10,500
Moong dal Chilka
9,200-9,750 9,200-9,700
Moong Mill quality
n.a. n.a.
Moong Chamki best 9,600-9,900 9,500-9,800
Udid
Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG)
11,200-11,600 11,200-11,600
Udid
Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG)
9,900-10,600 9,900-10,600
Udid
Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 8,500-8,900 8,500-8,900
Batri dal (100 INR/KG)
4,400-4,600 4,400-4,600
Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg)
3,200-3,350 3,200-3,350
Watana Dal (100 INR/KG)
3,200-3,450 3,200-3,450
Watana White (100 INR/KG)
2,450-2,625 2,450-2,625
Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG)
3,700-4,800 3,600-4,800
Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG)
1,500-1,800 1,500-1,800
Wheat Mill quality(100 INR/KG)
1,950-2,050 1,950-2,050
Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,700 1,500-1,700
Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG)
2,250-2,550 2,250-2,550
Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG)
2,100-2,350 2,100-2,350
Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG)
n.a. n.a.
MP
Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG)
3,200-3,750 3,200-3,750
MP
Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG)
2,700-3,000 2,700-3,000
Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG)
1,400-1,500 1,400-1,500
Wheat Best (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,200 2,000-2,200
Rice
BPT New(100 INR/KG)
2,500-2,800 2,500-2,800
Rice
BPT (100 INR/KG)
3,000-3,300 3,000-3,300
Rice
Parmal (100 INR/KG)
1,600-1,800 1,600-1,800
Rice
Swarna new (100 INR/KG)
2,100-2,400 2,100-2,400
Rice
Swarna old (100 INR/KG)
2,500-2,700 2,500-2,700
Rice
HMT new(100 INR/KG)
3,300-3,700 3,300-3,700
Rice
HMT (100 INR/KG)
4,000-4,400 4,000-4,400
Rice
HMT Shriram New(100 INR/KG)
4,200-4,500 4,200-4,500
Rice
HMT Shriram old (100 INR/KG)
4,600-5,200
4,600-5,200
Rice
Basmati best (100 INR/KG)
8,000-10,000 8,000-10,000
Rice
Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG)
6,000-7,500 6,000-7,500
Rice
Chinnor new (100 INR/KG)
4,600-5,200 4,600-5,200
Rice
Chinnor (100 INR/KG)
5,600-6,000 5,600-6,000
Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG)
2,200-2,300 2,100-2,200
Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG)
2,400-2,550 2,300-2,450
WEATHER (NAGPUR)
Maximum temp. 42.1 degree Celsius (107.8 degree
Fahrenheit), minimum temp.
26.2 degree Celsius (79.2 degree Fahrenheit)
Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a.
Rainfall : nil
FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum
temperature would be around and 43 and 27 degree Celsius respectively.
Note: n.a.--not available
(For oils, transport costs are excluded from
plant delivery prices, but
included in market prices.)
Saudi rice imports from India rise 58% to
SR4.5bn in 2014
JEDDAH: ARAB NEWS
Published — Sunday 17 May 2015
Last update 16 May 2015 9:34 pm
The value of Saudi rice imports to the Kingdom from India grew
by 58 percent, reaching $1.19 billion (SR4.46 billion) by the end of 2014,
compared to $752.67 million (SR2.82 billion) in 2013, according to Indian
Consul General Bawa Syed Mubarak.Speaking to local media, the Indian diplomat
said that Saudi rice imports from India dropped by 1 percent in 2013, due to
the emergence of certain obstacles but jumped to record levels in the following
year (2014)."At the global level, Indian rice exports fetched $7.78
billion (SR29.17 billion) in 2014, comprising a growth rate of more than 25
percent in one year, of which the Saudi share exceeded 15.35 percent,"
Mubarak said.The diplomat stressed that the Saudi market is considered a key
importer of Indian rice worldwide. He noted that rice represented nearly 10
percent of the overall Indian exports to the Kingdom.The volume of trade
exchange between the two countries reached more than $48.62 billion, where
Indian exports to the Kingdom amounted to $12.21 billion by the end of 2014 in
total, an increase of 12 percent, whereas Saudi exports to India reached $36.40
billion, an increase of 8 percent relative to previous years.
http://www.arabnews.com/economy/news/747741
Yingluck to enter plea in rice case Tuesday
18 May
2015 at 17:53 1,636 viewed8 comments
WRITER:
ONLINE REPORTERS
Former
prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra is expected to turn up at the Supreme Court
on Tuesday when the trial over her rice scheme is set to start. (Photo by
Chanat Katanyu)
Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra is expected enter a
not-guilty plea tomorrow at the Supreme Court, which is hearing the dereliction-of-duty
case regarding her government’s rice-pledging scheme.
Surasak Trirattrakul, inquiry director of the Office of the
Attorney General, said Monday that the high court's Criminal Division for
Holders of Political Positions ordered Ms Yingluck to appear at 9.30am to hear
the charges and enter her plea.As she is expected to appear and plead not
guilty, the court will then consider any temporary-release request and set
another hearing to examine evidence and witnesses, he said.If Ms Yingluck fails
to appear without a legitimate reason, she would face a possible arrest
warrant, Mr Surasak said. Public prosecutors are readying more than 10
witnesses, he added.Thanarerk Nitisenee, president of the Supreme Court's
political division, said Monday that the nine judges handling the case would be
on their bench tomorrow to start the trial.The defendant had not filed a
request for temporary release, but she might do that tomorrow, he said.
Ms
Yingluck could also seek the court's permission to postpone the trial, which
the court would consider if backed by sound reasons, Mr Thanarerk said.
The
former prime minister is charged with dereliction of duty and abuse of
authority in failing to stop graft and losses in the rice scheme according to
Section 157 of the Criminal Code and Section 123/1 of the 1999 Counter
Corruption Act.
The
losses estimated at more than 500 billion baht were incurred when her
government bought rice from farmers at above-market prices but failed to resell
much of it.
The
National Anti-Corruption Commission accused Ms Yingluck of using the
rice-pledging scheme to gain votes from farmers and win the national general
election in 2011.
Assistant
police chief Prawut Thavornsiri said on Monday that a limited number of Ms
Yingluck's supporters was expected to show up tomorrow and local police would
be deployed to ensure order.
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