VASWANIS GET BILLIONS ON
JONATHAN’S LAST DAY IN OFFICE
Published on Tuesday, 02 June 2015 04:01
Written by Nuruddeen M. Abdallah
A new import quota for rice millers under the National Rice
Development Policy was approved by former President Goodluck Jonathan on
Thursday last week, his last full day in office in order to help the Stallion
Group to evade paying billions of naira in import duty, Daily Trust
learnt from informed sources in Abuja yesterday.
The
Stallion Group, which is owned by the controversial businessmen Vaswani
Brothers, have been fighting since late last year to evade paying N17 billion
in import duty slapped on them by the Nigeria Customs Service [NCS] for
exceeding their 2014 rice import quota.Former Minister of State for Finance
Ambassador Bashir Yuguda conveyed Jonathan’s approval of the new 2015 quotas to
NCS in a letter with reference F.4569\Vol V\295 dated May 28, 2015. Yuguda said
the approval “was based on the recommendation of the inter-ministerial
committee set up to review the policy.
” The inter-ministerial committee itself was hastily set up by
former Vice President Mohammed Namadi Sambo in mid-May following strong lobby
by the Vaswanis to evade payment of the higher duty rate slapped on them by the
Customs for exceeding their rice import quota under the dual tariff regime.The
committee met under Sambo’s chairmanship on May 14. Those who attended included
then Finance Minister Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, then Minister of Industry, Trade
and Investment Olusegun Aganga, then Minister of National Planning Dr. Abubakar
Sulaiman, Bureau for Public Enterprises’ director general Benjamin Dikki and
permanent secretary in the Agriculture Ministry Arch. S. T. Echono. Within a
matter of days this committee adopted a new “national rice supply gap” of
782,000 metric tonnes. It then proceeded to allocate new quotas to 16 “existing
millers with expanding operations” and four “new investors” in rice milling.
The former group included Mascot Agro, a new company said to
have been hurriedly registered by Stallion Group as a new rice importer since
their main company Popular Foods was already enmeshed in a struggle with the
Customs. NCS even shut the company’s warehouses over non-payment of the excess
duty but were ordered by the presidency to reopen them pending the resolution
of the case. Mascot Agro got a new quota of 100,000 tonnes under the
preferential tariff regime.Trouble had started for Stallion Group late last
year when NCS calculated that it imported 475,000 metric tonnes of rice over
and above its 2014 quota of 89,939 MT. NCS determined that this excess rice
import is not covered by the preferential rate of 10 percent duty and 20
percent levy.
Since the national rice policy approved by Jonathan in May last
year prescribed 20 percent duty and 60 percent levy for any excess imports,
Customs calculated Stallion’s indebtedness at N15 billion. This increased to
N17 billion when the group imported another 54,000 tonnes of rice through its
Mascot Agro, which was not a recognised rice miller and had no quota
allocations in 2014. Since then, Daily Trust learnt that the Vaswani
Brothers pulled all available strings in the Federal Government to dodge paying
the duty. Incidentally, three companies that also exceeded their import quotas,
Kereksuk Farms, Atafi Rice Industries and Arewa Rice Mill quietly paid the
higher charge slapped on them by NCS. The new, hurriedly done 2015 quota allocations were conveyed by
then Vice President Sambo to Jonathan in a letter SH/VP/FMARD/01 dated May 26,
this year. Jonathan approved it the next day and his approval was conveyed to
Sambo in a letter PRES/143/VP/748 dated May 27, 2015.
It was signed by Matt
Aikhionbare, Senior Special Assistant to the President, Admin. Sambo then sent
it to Yuguda who ordered the Customs Service to comply in a letter dated May
28, the administration’s last full day in office.With this last minute “parting
gift”, an authoritative National Assembly source told Daily Trust that Stallion
Group will now use the additional quotas granted to Mascot Agro to evade
payment of billions of naira in Customs duty even though the imports were
illegally made in the first place.
The source also said this
massive import by Stallion Group far above its quota has already created a glut
of parboiled rice in the local market and has totally defeated the aims of the
National Rice Development Policy which is to encourage the import of husky
brown rice that requires local milling.The source said the relevant National
Assembly committee will draw President Muhammadu Buhari’s attention to the
hurriedly done quotas which merely helped Stallion Group to dodge paying
duties.
http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/daily/index.php/top-stories/56181-vaswanis-get-billions-on-jonathan-s-last-day-in-office
Senator Wicker Addresses 80th Annual Delta
Council Meeting
Senator Roger Wicker
CLEVELAND, MS -- Roger Wicker, U.S. Senator for Mississippi
delivered the keynote address at the 80th Annual Delta Council meeting here on
May 29. Wicker praised the Delta Council
for the broad scope of their activities and the impact the organization has had
in the region, and reaffirmed his commitment to Mississippi's agriculture
industry which is deeply rooted in the Delta.
The annual event is widely attended and sponsored by a variety of
agricultural organizations including the Mississippi Rice Promotion
Board.Members of Delta 1000 also heard from Jere Nash and Andy Taggart,
co-authors of Mississippi Politics: The Struggle for Power, 1976-2006, who
offered a "Red-Blue Review" of the 2015 campaign for state positions
in Mississippi as a possible harbinger for the national elections in 2016.
USA Rice Federation Chairman Dow Brantley attended along
with USA Rice staff and was impressed with the large crowd and high level of
participation from key Mississippi leaders.Brantley said, "This was my
first Delta Council meeting and it was great to see all the rice grower
leadership, and learn about the good work Delta Council does each and every
year serving farmers and the community."
Contact: Ben Mosely
(703) 236-1471
Procurement Gathers Pace
in Kalahandi
By
Published: 30th May 2015 06:00 AM
Last Updated: 30th May 2015 07:36 AM
BHAWANIPATNA:Paddy procurement is on in full swing in Kalahandi
district. While procurement started on May 20, the Kalahandi administration has
so far procured 79,925 quintals of paddy through mandis.The district administration
has decided to procure 1,05,304 tonnes of paddy through 55 Primary Agriculture
Cooperative Societies (PACS). Of these, 46 are located in Indravati
area.Sources said 33 rice millers have been engaged to lift the paddy and
squads formed to ensure hassle-free procurement. Nodal Officer for Paddy
Procurement, Mahendra Behera said of the 55 paddy procurement centres, 17 do
not have permanent sheds to store paddy.Meanwhile, rice millers have already
delivered 75 per cent of the costumed milled rice of Kharif crop to the
district administration.
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Crop
Progress: 2015 Crop 96 Percent Planted
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WASHINGTON, DC -- Ninety-six 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
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Usa
rice federation
Satellite imagery to enable large-scale
monitoring of Asia’s rice areas
Information
derived from satellite images can soon be made available to governments to help
guide policy related to food security and sustainable development, particularly
in rice-growing areas.The European Space Agency (ESA) satellite, Sentinel-1A,
launched in 2014 can provide regular ‛snapshots’ of Asia as often as every 12
days. The imagery is derived from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems that
can monitor the earth’s surface day and night, even through rain or cloud
cover—hence, images even during the monsoon season—making the tool perfect for
rice crop monitoring.As a demonstration of the potential of the Sentinel
program, sarmap and heInternational Rice Research
Institute (IRRI)
have generated mosaics, composed from several Sentinel-1A images that cover 7
million square kilometers of South and Southeast Asia.
These cloud-free mosaics show detailed SAR
imagery for accurate monitoring of agricultural activity and of the state of
natural resources across Asia.SAR-based monitoring has never before been
possible at such large scale, mainly due to the cost and challenge of
processing so much imagery automatically. Fortunately, Sentinel-1A imagery is
available for free and sarmap has developed automated processing chains, hosted
on cloud computing facilities provided by Amazon Web Services to handle this
vast amount of data. The rice crop can then be monitored on a regular basis
through the season.This kind of monitoring can support a data revolution,
leading to better and more timely information on crop production.Rice is one of
the most important crops for global food security, and 90%—or about 140 million
hectares—of the world’s rice-growing area is in Asia. The crop is regularly
exposed to the risk of damage from drought, flooding, and tropical storms.
Timely and accurate information on rice, i.e., crop area, crop growth, and
losses due to calamities) is thus very important to rice-growing and -consuming
nations.
The lower Mekong River Delta, viewed with as a
SAR imagery. (SAR imagery from ESA: Sentinel-1A. Background from Google Earth,
Google Inc.)
IRRI and sarmap are
working, with many other partners, on two major projects that use SAR imagery:
One is the Remote Sensing-based
Information and Insurance for Crops in Emerging economies (RIICE) project, which has already used SAR images to
monitor rice-growing areas in 13 test sites in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, the
Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. The second phase of the RIICE project
starts in May 2015 and aims to develop in-country capacity to help partner
governments fully benefit from the technology.The other is the Philippine Rice Information
System (PRiSM) project,
the development of which was funded by the Philippine Department of
Agriculture.
The
PRiSM project has identified SAR-based rice monitoring as one of the technologies
to be used for delivering better rice crop information."Our aim is to work
with partners in Asia to ensure that this technology is incorporated into
national systems," said Andrew Nelson, project lead at IRRI and head of
IRRI’s Geographic Information Systems laboratory. "Such information can
better support decision-making, targeting of resources, crop insurance, and
disaster mitigation and response systems in both public and private sectors.
"What
do the images show? SAR imagery must be interpreted differently from imagery
commonly available through Google Maps and other mapping services. In the SAR
mosaics, we have processed images taken between 21 February and 10 March 2015
such that dark blue represents water or other flat surfaces such as airport
runways, orange and white represent built up areas and human settlements, light
blue represents bare soil, while brown and green show vegetation at different
stages of growth. SAR imagery from Sentinel-1A enables tracking of changes in
vegetation and water through the seasons, which changes the way crops are
monitored from space in monsoon conditions.The following image, for example, of
the lower Mekong Delta—one of the most important rice-growing regions in the
world—clearly shows how SAR imagery can capture differences in vegetation and
water.
The irrigation network and the various stages
of the rice crop across the delta are visible as well as other features such as
cities (e.g., Ho Chi Minh at top right of the image) and aquaculture in coastal
areas. The image is a snapshot of the earth’s surface, but Sentinel-1A will
continue to capture images as often as every 12 days over the region, and these
images will become increasingly useful as they reveal the progress of the rice
crop over time, season after season.This work has been conducted for the RIICE
project funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and for the PRiSM project funded by the Bureau of Agricultural Research
of the Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA-BAR). It is also supported by the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRISP).
http://www.agprofessional.com/news/satellite-imagery-enable-large-scale-monitoring-asia%E2%80%99s-rice-areas
Thai rice stocks
could help market keep El Niño in check
Current weather patterns in Southeast
Asia reinforce meteorologists’ belief that a strong El Niño is already taking
place, but still the rice market is indifferent, says a leading rice
researcher.
The severe and ongoing drought the weather event has
brought has become evident in the dry-season rice crop in the Philippines and
Thailand where, according to the Office of Agricultural Economics, it is
expected to decline by 30%, or 2m tonnes of milled rice compared to last year’s
yield.Similarly, drought in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines,
including Bohol province, has had some effect on the dry-season crop but, if
the drought continues, the main cropping season that starts in May will also be
affected.
Less supply but still prices remain weak
“So far, the market has been quite indifferent to
the possibility of a strong El Niño this year, in which India is predicted to
be hardest hit along with Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines,” writes
Dr Sam Mohanty, head of the social sciences of the International Rice Research
Institute (Irri) in the Philippines, on his blog.
Despite such possibilities, rice prices continue to
remain weak on the back of surplus Thai and Indian rice in the market. Last
year’s forecast of a strong El Niño, which did not materialise, has been
playing on the minds of many in the rice market.
“The comfortable level of nearly 100m tonnes in
global rice stocks, including 9m tonnes of Thai stocks (based on USDA data),
has been acting as a buffer against any irrational market sentiment and
speculation.
“This does not mean that market sentiment will not
change in the coming weeks as we draw closer to the advent of the monsoon and
main cropping season in many rice-growing countries.”
India wields a mighty influence on rest of world
Of the various factors that can influence the market,
writes Mohanty, India’s monsoon situation will be the key in the coming weeks,
Mohanty adds. India’s influence on the rice market has never been greater than
what it is now, with 7m tonnes of non-basmati and 3-4m tonnes of basmati
exports. In case of a drought, non-basmati exports will be the target of
policymakers to ensure domestic food security. Indian public-sector rice
procurement stocks through the Food Corporation of India and state agencies are
at a level much higher than the strategic stock requirement, but the level of
current procurement stocks is much lower than what it was during the same time
last year. Based on the data available on the FCI website, total rice
stocks at the start of May stood at 22.35m tonnes, compared to 28.6m tonnes at
the same time last year, and 34.7m tonnes the year before.Mohanty says the
market is poised to remain rational and driven by market fundamentals as long
as exporting countries remain open for business and refrain from making unilateral
decisions to restrict rice trade flows and importing countries refrain from
panic buying for domestic stockpiles.
“The major worry for the
market is the countries in the El Niño watch, which include the second-largest
exporter, India, and three large importers, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the
Philippines.
“If these countries are
affected by drought in the coming season, this could spell trouble for the
market. On the one hand, India will be pulling out of the non-basmati market to
meet the local shortfall and, on the other hand, demand from importing
countries will be rising.
“If this happens, the 9m
tonnes of Thai rice stocks could come in very handy in keeping the market in
check and ensuring that importers not resort to panic buying.”
Rice Rocks Riverfest
Riverfest
rice swag
LITTLE
ROCK, AR -- The Arkansas Rice Council represented the rice industry as a
sponsor of the annual Riverfest celebration held here over Memorial Day
Weekend. Riverfest, the largest family festival held in Little Rock, served as
an ideal platform to encourage the public to get rice on their minds -- and on
their plates. More than 250,000 people attended the festival, and the Arkansas
Rice Council booth was a popular destination. As an event sponsor, the Arkansas
Rice Council was able to communicate how important the rice industry is to the
state of Arkansas. They shared Arkansas rice facts and hosted interactive games
that allowed participants to win freebies like koozies, sunscreen, bumper
stickers, and sunglasses holders.
"People know we grow a lot of rice in Arkansas, but they're
usually surprised to learn it's more than half of all the rice grown in the
U.S." said Tisha Gribble who represented the Arkansas Rice Council at the
event. "And when I tell them that it's around 1.3 million acres, provides
25,000 jobs to Arkansans in rural areas of our state, and generates around six
billion dollars for our state each year...their minds are blown!"
Contact: Colleen Klemczewski (703) 236-1446
Rice Quality Concerns Create Hurdles
For Industry
A rice field near Stuttgart (Jason Burt)
Jim Mead, owner of Delta Grains,
a seed and grain brokerage business near Jonesboro, was part of the vanguard in
seed technology. In the 1980s, he was an integral part of Eagle Seed Co. in
Weiner, a small but innovative company that developed new rice and soybean
varieties. Now, he views the seed business from both sides.He doesn’t like some
of what he sees.“Back in the day, 120-bushel [to the acre] rice was good.
Today, we are 160-bushel farmers, but we also hit a plateau here,” he said.
Starting in 2006 with Bayer [Crop Science], that was the downfall of U.S. rice.
The quality was starting to
decrease.”In 2006, it became known that Bayer, one of the major seed players,
had allowed genetically modified (GMO) rice to get into the state’s rice seed
stock. GMO crops are not welcome in many markets, and the ripple effects from
the Bayer incident reached far beyond the state’s borders, ultimately leading
to lawsuits settled for hundreds of millions of dollars.But beyond the Bayer
situation, Mead said the state’s rice industry faces large hurdles, many of
them self-inflicted.He recounted how seed varieties have forfeited milling
quality for short-growing season traits.For many years, Weiner has hosted the
Arkansas Rice Festival on the second weekend in October. A generation ago, many
farmers could not attend because they were still harvesting their crop. That’s
not true today.“Breeders started focusing on early, early high-yield, and now,
if you are not finished cutting by the Rice Festival, you are not a very good
farmer,” Mead said.“Breeders have gotten the yield up. They have gotten the
earliness in there, but now we have a quality issue.
We used to be known as the No. 1
quality rice in the world. Now, we can’t hardly give it away. We just don’t
have the quality anymore that we used to have. We are not known as the
quality-producing country anymore.”That’s not a sentiment likely to find its
way into rice marketing materials, but increasingly industry trade groups are
acknowledging the issue.“U.S. Long-Grain Rice Industry: At a Crucial
Crossroads” by Karen Ott Mayer delves in depth into the quality issues facing
the nation’s rice industry and the international competitors filling that
void.Underlining the importance of the subject, the piece is found on www.usriceproducers.com,
not exactly an outfit that benefits from U.S. rice defects. Dating to 2013,
Delta Farm Press, arguably agriculture’s most prominent voice, has raised
alarms regarding quality issues, too
http://www.arkansasbusiness.com/article/105193/rice-quality-concerns-create-hurdles-for-industry
At World's Fair In Italy, The Future Of Food Is On The Table
MAY 31, 2015 7:34 AM ET
Carlo Ratti of MIT designed this "supermarket of the
future" exhibit. If you move a hand close to a product, a digital display
lights up, providing information on origin, nutritional value and carbon
footprint.
Courtesy
of COOP Italia
For the next six months, Italy is
hosting a dinner party — and the entire world is invited to attend.The event,
called Expo Milano 2015, is the latest
World's Fair. This year's theme is "feeding the planet, energy for
life." The global population is projected to pass 9 billion by 2050, and
Expo organizers want to start a global conversation now about sustainability,
biodiversity and food security.With exhibits from 145 countries over a
12-million-square-foot area, the expo is a showcase for the many cultures of
food and environmental technology. Some pavilions have vertical farms. Brazil
has transplanted a tropical forest. And some countries are exhibiting jointly
their staple products— such as rice, coffee and cocoa.World-famous architects
have designed many of the pavilions — most of which will be dismantled when the
Expo shuts down.One of the more low-key pavilions belongs to the Italian-born Slow Food movement. Since it was founded in the mid-1980s, Slow Food has
contributed to a growing worldwide appreciation of artisanal food products and
local food production.
This vertical farm is part of the American pavilion.
Sylvia
Poggioli/NPR
Slow Food is also a strong voice
against big agro-industries, whose low prices it blames for pushing small
farmers out of the market. Lorenzo Berlandis, vice president of Slow Food Italy, says the world
must change its mindset about food production and the culture of waste."We
hope that at the end of this event, we can reach a new vision and new
perspective in food production — how can human beings feed the planet, feed
humanity respecting biodiversity. [It's] the only chance we have for the
future," Berlandis says.One pavilion challenging visitors on consumer responsibility
is Switzerland's. It features four silo-like towers filled with Swiss food
products. Pavilion director Manuel Salchli says the towers will not be
re-filled."People are invited to take as much as they want to take, but
they are also reminded of the fact that after them, we expect another 2 million
visitors," he explains. "So think of what you take and what you leave
for others to come."So far, Salsli says, visitors are not stuffing their
pockets with freebies.Near the USA Pavilion is Food Truck Nation, serving a variety of American dishes.
Mario Lobbia, supplier of food
appliances to the Expo, is sampling an American classic: a double hamburger.
A man serves hamburgers at the USA Pavilion's food truck at Expo
2015 in Rho, near Milan, Italy. The Food Truck Nation exhibit highlights
America's urban food truck trend.
Luca
Bruno/AP
"Umm, very good,
really," he says after a bite. Lobbia says Italians need to be a little
more adventurous in their food tastes. "Always pasta, vegetables, and so
on. We start getting boring. Sometimes, you need these kind of
things."That's what Mitchell Davis, chief creative officer of the American
pavilion, likes to hear."Whether it's food trucks on the street, whether
it's artisans baking bread, making wine, making cheese, or chefs at the finest
level, the idea was to present America as diversity," Davis says.Expo
Milano is filled with eco-friendly architecture. One of the most striking
pavilions is that of the United Arab Emirates. Designed by British architecture firm Foster + Partners, the pavilion
features nearly 40-foot-high walls that ripple like waves of sand and weave
from big to small walkways, symbolizing a canyon.Peter Higgins, who designed
the exhibit inside, says without a lake or a river, the Emirates have virtually
no agriculture.
"So we just introduce you to stories
about sustainability, about desalination, about the legacy and the history of
the Emirates, where they have learned to live with very little," he
says.Visitors get more practical experience at the high-tech supermarket of the
future — where they can already do their shopping.Carlo Ratti, who teaches urban
innovation at MIT, joined forces with an Italian supermarket company and put
the consumer at the heart of the food chain.
If you move a hand close to a
product, a digital display lights up, providing information on origin,
nutritional value and carbon footprint.Ratti was inspired by the novel Palomar, by Italian writer Italo
Calvino. In it, Mr. Palomar visits a cheese shop in Paris. As Ratti recounts
the scene: "He thinks he is at the Louvre, that every product, every piece
of cheese, tells him a story, about a different pasture, under a different sun.
We wanted to take inspiration from Calvino and make sure the products can tell
us their story."And when they're not shopping, visitors can chose among
some 150 restaurants and sample a cornucopia of food cultures from across the
planet.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/05/31/410074678/at-worlds-fair-in-italy-the-future-of-food-is-on-the-table
APEDA NEWS (INDIA)
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India reaches the pinnacle in rice exports
India has come a long way in the past 5 decades from a country
with a severe food deficit to being a major grain exporter. The frequent food
shortages in the 1950s and 60s and large-scale U.S. food grain assistance,
especially wheat through the PL-480 program,
seem to be a distant memory now. Growing up in the eastern state of Odisha, I
vividly remember women and children lining up in front of my grandfather’s
house with a bowl in their hands to receive PL-480 wheat porridge for breakfast
and lunch.The Bihar famine in the mid-60s is regarded as a turning point for
India’s food production. As described in The famine that India did not waste, an article published
in Business & Economy, then Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi realized the link between food sovereignty and independence in foreign
affairs as the U.S. used its PL-480 food aid release to influence India’s
stance on American policy toward Vietnam.
Lester Brown, cofounder and president of the Earth Policy Institute in Washington, D.C., has a different take of the event. In U.S.-India: Dealing with monsoon failure, he says
the U.S. used the release of food aid during the Bihar famine to force the
country to reform its food policy that served the urban population through a
price ceiling to guarantee a floor price for farmers to encourage food
production. The U.S. President at that time, Lyndon Johnson, was worried that
India was neglecting its agriculture and becoming too dependent on U.S. food
aid to overcome its deficit.Whatever the motive was, the end result has been
more than satisfactory. Indian rice and wheat production in the past 5 decades
rose by more than three- and eightfold, respectively. During this period, per
capita availability increased by more than 10 kilograms for rice and 50
kilograms for wheat. The rise in grain production eventually transformed India
from a grain importer to an exporter in the mid-90s (Fig. 1).
Since then, grain exports (rice, wheat, and maize) have steadily
increased, reaching 24 million tons by 2012-13. The transformation of the rice
sector was even more startling, with India dethroning Thailand to become the
largest exporter of rice in 2012. The Thai rice pledging scheme implemented in
late 2011 definitely boosted India’s rise to the top of the export chart, but
India has continued to export in excess of 10 million tons even after the
pledging scheme was removed in early 2014. Thailand edged past India in 2014 by
exporting 10.97 million tons of rice after stopping the pledging scheme in 2014
as compared to 10.9 million tons for India (source: PSD, USDA).
Within rice, the biggest success has been the transformation of
the basmati industry. Up until the early 1990s, Pakistan dominated the basmati
market, but the rapid development of milling, processing, and packaging in the
Indian basmati industry has made it the market leader today. In 2013-14, India
exported around 3.76 million tons of basmati compared with 0.75 million tons of
exports by Pakistan and earned a foreign exchange of nearly USD4.8 billion
(source: Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority
or APEDA). During the same period, India exported 7.13 million tons of
nonbasmati rice, primarily broken and parboiled rice, earning an additional
foreign exchange of USD2.9 billion (source: APEDA).
The rising cost of success
There is no such thing as a free lunch. India spends billions of
dollars on supporting its agricultural sector. The suite of policies it started
in the mid- 60s, that is, a minimum support price and input subsidies (for
fertilizer, seed, water, electricity, machinery, among other inputs) for
farmers and a food subsidy for the poor remain in place. These policies,
without any doubt, played a key role in improving India’s food security both
nationally and at the household level but, at the same time, these policies
have become a serious burden to the Indian exchequer. For the fiscal year
2015-16 (April-March), the central budget earmarked around USD20 billion for
food subsidy and USD12 billion for fertilizer subsidy. On top of that, a few additional
billions are spent on subsidizing credit, machinery, irrigation, power, and
seed. These subsidies will continue to grow in the future if continued in its
present form.
Another serious problem facing Indian rice production is the
declining groundwater in its many rice-growing belts. In rice-growing states
such as Punjab, Haryana, and Tamil Nadu, the free electricity and the diesel
subsidy have made the excessive withdrawal of groundwater worse. An article in National Geographic stated that the water table in India is dropping at an average
of 1.4 meter per year. If this trend continues, India’s food security will be
seriously affected in the future. Given the growing water problem in the
country, Indian exports of 40 trillion liters of precious water annually—in the
form of 10 to 11 million tons of rice—raises an important question of
overproduction of rice in the country. On top of that, the 7 million tons of
nonbasmati rice are normally exported at a price that hardly covers the true cost
of production if you take into account the input subsidies (for fertilizer,
electricity, seed, machinery, etc.) provided to the farmers.
What needs to
be done?
The reform of these subsidies, particularly for fertilizer and
food, is long overdue. The current government clearly intends to tackle this
“800-pound gorilla” that is so deeply rooted in the system. The government is
seriously considering the recommendations of the Shanta Kumar Panel to deregulate the
fertilizer sector and provide a cash subsidy of
INR7,000 (around USD110) per hectare to farmers. Similarly, the government
is also looking into the panel recommendation to reform the grain subsidy
program by implementing cash transfers in cities with a population of more than
1 million in grain-surplus states and an option for cash or physical grains in
grain-deficit states.
In an attempt to reverse the increasing ground water depletion
in major rice-surplus states such as Punjab and Haryana, and reduce pressure on
these states to meet the country’s food need, the government rolled out
programs such as the National Food Security Mission and Bringing Green Revolution
to Eastern India to improve the productivity of rice in eastern India. These
efforts have resulted in some sizable increases in rice production in the
eastern states in the past decade. The average yield of seven eastern states
increased by more than 40% between 2004-05 and 2012-13 and production increased
by 16 million tons (Fig. 2). During that same period, the rice area in Punjab
and Haryana also increased slightly from 3.68 million hectares in 2004-05 to
3.87 million hectares in 2012-13, with production increasing by one million
tons.
The recent trend suggests that the paddy yields in the eastern
states will continue to rise in the future with greater use of quality seeds,
flood- and drought-tolerant varieties, and improved production practices. There
are no indications of shifting from rice in Punjab and Haryana into less
water-intensive crops. The shift will not happen unless the government removes
the minimum support price for rice or provides an assured price for alternate
crops that will be equally or more profitable than rice in the region.No one
can deny India’s success in food grain production and its transformation from a
food-deficit country to a major grain exporter in the world. What India did to
achieve this milestone was to meet the need of the hour to spare millions from
starvation and poverty. But, the time has come to think beyond just the
quantity of grain production and more along the line of sustainability of the
production system, including the cost of subsidies. Reforms of food and input
subsidies will not be easy but this needs to be done at the earliest. As
eastern India expands its rice production to take care of the country’s food
needs, the state governments in Punjab and Haryana, with the help of the
central government, should devise a strategy to reduce their area under rice,
particularly nonbasmati rice, to relieve the pressure on groundwater.
_________________________________________
Dr. Mohanty is the head of the Social Sciences Division and program leader (Targetting and policy) at the International
Rice Research Institute.
http://irri.org/rice-today/india-reaches-the-pinnacle-in-rice-exports?utm_source=IRRI+email+subscriptions&utm_campaign=c05e452278-RiceToday_Weekly6_01_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c803adc7cf-c05e452278-40925885
Averting hunger in Ebola-hit countries
April is the cruelest month,” wrote T.S. Eliot in The Waste Land. It was as if he were voicing
the sentiments of the farming communities in Ebola affected countries—Liberia,
Sierra Leone, and Guinea. Though the time for planting has come, there is a
desperate lack of labor and inputs, particularly seed, as hungry rice farmers
ate the seeds they would have normally stored for planting in April.Although
there are signs that the Ebola epidemic is being contained in the three
countries, a major food crisis is looming unless urgent steps are taken to
tackle food security concerns, according to 2014 reports by the United Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme
(WFP).According to their estimates, the Ebola virus outbreak left slightly more
than half a million people in the three countries “severely food
insecure”—120,000 in Sierra Leone, 170,000 in Liberia, and 230,000 in Guinea.
The total number of affected people could double to one million
in a few months unless urgent measures are taken to significantly enhance
access to food and safeguard crop and livestock production in these countries,
they warned.The crisis has been further aggravated because 
Liberia and Sierra Leone were still recovering from prolonged
civil wars while Guinea was still transitioning from military rule when Ebola
struck.In December 2014, the government of Sierra Leone banned all public
celebrations, including Christmas and New Year, to prevent Ebola from spreading
further. Similarly, Guinea, where the latest Ebola outbreak started recently,
declared a 45-day “health emergency” in five regions in the western and
southwestern parts of the country.
Liberia and Sierra Leone were still recovering from prolonged
civil wars while Guinea was still transitioning from military rule when Ebola
struck.In December 2014, the government of Sierra Leone banned all public
celebrations, including Christmas and New Year, to prevent Ebola from spreading
further. Similarly, Guinea, where the latest Ebola outbreak started recently,
declared a 45-day “health emergency” in five regions in the western and
southwestern parts of the country.
Shock to food
and agricultural sectors
FAO and WFP stated that the Ebola epidemic had caused a significant shock to the food and agricultural sectors in the affected countries, where two-thirds of the people depend
on agriculture for their livelihood. A number of interrelated factors,
including quarantines, disruptions in transportation and trade, and rising food
prices were triggering the food crisis.Experts participating in the Global Rice Market and
Trade Summit organized by the International
Rice Research Institute in Thailand in October 2014 remarked that there was a
noticeable rise in local rice prices in the affected countries, although the
Ebola crisis was not expected to have a major impact on the global rice
market.The virus killed many productive farmers and many others abandoned their
fields and harvests out of fear. In Sierra Leone, for instance, up to 40% of
the farms in the worst affected areas were reported abandoned.
Impacts on the rice sector
Rice is the most important staple in the three countries and its
price and accessibility directly influence social stability. Annual per capita
consumption of rice (about 100 kg) is among the highest in sub-Saharan Africa.
However, all three countries are net importers of rice as demand is much higher
than local production.
Promoting domestic rice production is therefore important in the
national rice development strategy developed by each of these countries under
the Coalition for African Rice Developmentframework.The
national programs of these countries are involved in many joint projects with
the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice)
and have identified Rice Sector Development Hubs. A rice hub is a mechanism
introduced by AfricaRice across sub-Saharan Africa to concentrate R&D
efforts and connect partners along the rice value chain to achieve greater
impact.
In the past few years, AfricaRice
has been providing targeted support to Liberia and Sierra Leone at their
request to revive their respective rice sectors, under the World Bank-fundedWest Africa Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP). The main focus of this support is to make improved seed
and technologies available to farmers, enhance rice quality, and develop a
critical mass of scientists, technicians, extension workers, and seed
producers.Unfortunately, the Ebola crisis threatens to undo the progress made
in all these areas.
According to FAO, 2014 rice production was expected to decline
by 12% in Liberia, 8% in Sierra Leone, and 4% in Guinea. But, there are big
disparities within the region: production is down by 20% in Liberia’s Lofa
District, which is the main rice-producing region and is considered as
Liberia’s breadbasket, and by 17% in the hardest hit parts of Sierra Leone.“The
Ebola outbreak in Liberia is a complete setback to our achievements,” said
AfricaRice scientist Inoussa Akintayo, who is coordinating a World
Bank-supported emergency rice project in Lofa and Bong districts in Liberia.In August
2014, for reasons of safety, senior management of AfricaRice decided to pull
out its regional and international researchers from Liberia and Sierra Leone.
“This has affected the implementation of the planned activities,” said
AfricaRice scientist Bert Meertens, who is assisting the Sierra Leone Agricultural
Research Institute in WAAPP activities.
A call for urgent action
Aside from controlling Ebola, FAO and WFP called for urgent
action to re-establish farming systems in the three countries. Measures should
enable the most vulnerable people to access agricultural inputs, such as seeds
and fertilizers, and adopt improved technology to overcome labor
shortages.AfricaRice has been actively involved in discussing and planning
strategies to make improved rice seed available to farmers with strong support
from donors as well as the Economic Community of West African States.In December
2014, the Center participated in Seeds for Agriculture in Ebola-affected
Countries, a workshop organized by the African Development Bank in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
The Center has been invited by the World Bank to join its efforts
in providing rice seed to farmers in Ebola-hit countries in time for the 2015
planting season.A USAID-AfricaRice initiative aims to provide technical support
to the seed sector in selected countries, including Liberia. With support from
the Government of Japan, AfricaRice is launching an emergency project to tackle
the problem of insufficiency of rice seed in Guinea because of the Ebola
crisis.Meanwhile, remembering the quiet heroism of scientists in these
countries, AfricaRice economist Ali Toure, who was working in Sierra Leone,
remarked, “We are praying for the safety of our brave colleagues, who are
continuing their work under very difficult and even dangerous situations.”As of
15 March 2015, 24,700 cases and 10,195 deaths had been reported worldwide, most
of them in these three countries. The World Bank estimates that the regional
economic toll could reach USD32 billion by the end of 2015.
_________________________________________
Ms. Mohapatra is the head of Marketing and Communications at
AfricaRice.
http://irri.org/rice-today/averting-hunger-in-ebola-hit-countries?utm_source=IRRI+email+subscriptions&utm_campaign=c05e452278-RiceToday_Weekly6_01_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c803adc7cf-c05e452278-40925885
Rice scientists from India helping Africa
Venuprasad
Ramaiah: A passion for rice genetics and breeding
Like many of his classmates, Venuprasad Ramaiah was planning to
become an engineer. But, during his first year of bachelor’s degree studies at
the University of
Agricultural Sciences in Bangalore, India, a course in plant
genetics taught by an inspiring teacher, Ms. Savithri Amma, marked a turning
point in his life.“For me, that was a ‘wow’ moment,” said Dr. Ramaiah, a
scientist at the Africa Rice Center(AfricaRice).
“It sparked a passion in
me for research in this field. There has been no looking back since then.”After
completing his PhD in genetics of grain yield and root length under drought
stress in rice, which he pursued at the same university and at the
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines, Dr. Ramaiah
obtained a postdoctoral fellowship at IRRI and, later, at The World Vegetable
Center in Taiwan. He then took up the
position of a project scientist in the groundnut breeding unit of the International Crops
Research Institute for the Semi- Arid Tropics, in Hyderabad, India,
in 2009.
However, since he was keen to return to rice research, he
decided to join AfricaRice as a lowland-rice breeder in 2010.“My family friends
and colleagues thought I was crazy for leaving an attractive position in India,
but I am passionate about rice research,” Dr. Ramaiah remarked. “I also
strongly believe that the real need is in Africa, where even small
contributions can have more impact on the livelihoods of farmers than in
Asia.”At AfricaRice, Dr. Ramaiah works on rice breeding for the rainfed lowland
ecosystem with national programs under the Africa-wide rice breeding task
force, which covers about 30 countries, and with international organizations,
particularly IRRI. He is also closely involved in training research staff and
students.
His team has successfully transferred the SUB1
submergence-tolerance gene–identified by IRRI scientist David Mackill and U.C.
Davis researcher Pamela Ronald–into two important rice varieties in West Africa
(WITA4 and NERICA L-19) that are susceptible to flooding. These Sub1 varieties
will be disseminated to rice farmers in flood-prone areas in Africa.Building on
his successful work on drought tolerance at IRRI, Dr. Ramaiah is coordinating
an important project at AfricaRice to identify genes for drought tolerance,
anaerobic germination, and iron toxicity. The project is done in partnership
with Cornell University,
IRRI, and theNational Institute of
Agrobiological Sciences in Japan and with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation.
Dr. Ramaiah's pioneering work has already led to the
identification of extremely promising material among the more than 2,000
accessions in AfricaRice's genebank.These efforts are expected to
deliver better stress-tolerant varieties to small and poor African rice farmers
in rainfed areas. These varieties will help make the farmers’ yield and income
stable as well as protect them from the threats of climate change.“Despite all
the challenges in Africa, it is most rewarding for me and my team to see the
results to products and feel that we are a part of it,” said Dr. Ramaiah. “We
feel immensely proud that, with proper resources, we can do research on a par
with the best organizations in the world.”
Senthilkumar
Kalimuthu: A stargazer with feet firmly planted on the ground
Senthilkumar Kalimuthu loves astronomy and space science and
named his son Majoris, after one of the largest stars known to mankind. Yet, as
a systems agronomist at the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice), he has his feet
firmly planted on the ground.Born to a farming family in Ramanathapuram
District in Tamil Nadu in southern India, Dr. Kalimuthu vividly remembers his
school holidays, which he spent helping his mother on their farm. He recollects
the anxiety of farmers in his village as they prayed for rain.“When rain didn’t
come, our rice plants failed to flower and often we had to harvest feed for
cattle instead of food for us,” he said.This experience led him to take up
agriculture during his undergraduate studies and focus on water-saving rice
cultivation technologies as the topic for his MSc and PhD research so that he
could help such farmers.Dr. Kalimuthu is justifiably proud that not only did he
receive the Thirumathi K. Rangammal Award for his MSc research from the Tamil Nadu Agricultural
University, but also because his findings were later disseminated to
more than a million farmers in Tamil Nadu through the Department of
Agriculture.His work was so much appreciated that he was able to receive
initial funding from the Dutch government for his doctoral research at Wageningen University in The Netherlands. On completion, he became a postdoctoral
researcher at Wageningen University and later in theFrench National Institute of Agricultural
Research in France.Since he was keen to
help rice farmers and make an impact on the ground, Dr. Kalimuthu joined
AfricaRice in 2012 as a systems agronomist at the Center’s regional station in
Tanzania. Explaining the potential impact of research in Africa, he said,
“Through agronomy, it is possible to double the national average rice yield in
Tanzania to 4 tons per hectare. This ‘potential’ is what drives me to work in
and for Africa.”
Senthilkumar is coordinating the activities of the Agronomy and
Mechanization Task Forcesconvened by AfricaRice in Eastern and
Southern Africa. He is also monitoring rice R&D activities in 12 rice
sector development hubs across Tanzania, Uganda, Madagascar, Rwanda, and
Ethiopia, where he has trained more than 200 rice researchers and 350 rice
farmers in rice agronomy, of which 40% are women. He is also supervising
students, research assistants, and some researchers.His studies and experience
are helping him to realize his dream of becoming an eminent agronomist.
Importantly, the lessons that he learned during his childhood from his mother
on their farm are continuing to guide his footsteps.Recounting one such lesson,
he said that, when he was walking on their farm with his mother, his feet would
press on roots of rice plants. He was worried that he was damaging the plants.
But his mother assured him that destroying rice roots a little would produce
more tillers and more yield. “I didn’t understand at that time. But now,
through my experiments, I see how the roots get pruned by mechanical weeding.
This helps increase rice tillering and yield.
_________________________________________
Ms. Mohapatra is the head of Marketing and Communications at
AfricaRice.
http://irri.org/rice-today/rice-scientists-from-india-helping-africa?utm_source=IRRI+email+subscriptions&utm_campaign=c05e452278-RiceToday_Weekly6_01_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c803adc7cf-c05e452278-40925885
Delta needs clear zoning, rice brand
CAN
THO (VNS) — Growing areas should be clearly zoned and a national brand
should be developed to promote rice from the Mekong Delta, a conference heard
in Can Tho on Wednesday.Pham Van Du, deputy chief of the agriculture ministry's
Cultivation Department, told the conference on large-scale field production in
the delta that improving the incomes of farmers and rice-trading businesses was
among important measures to promote rice production.Nguyen Quoc Viet, deputy
head of the Steering Board for the Mekong Delta, said the new large-scale field
rice production model was first introduced in the Mekong Delta in 2011, 
and the area under it had risen
from 7,800 hectares in the beginning to 290,000ha by the end of 2014. It had
also helped improve the quality of the grains and value addition to make them
more competitive in the domestic and overseas markets, he said.The impact of
the new model should be assessed and its likely challenges identified in the
era of integration, he said.The Government issued a decision in 2013 to
encourage a switch to it.
and the area under it had risen
from 7,800 hectares in the beginning to 290,000ha by the end of 2014. It had
also helped improve the quality of the grains and value addition to make them
more competitive in the domestic and overseas markets, he said.The impact of
the new model should be assessed and its likely challenges identified in the
era of integration, he said.The Government issued a decision in 2013 to
encourage a switch to it.
During
last year's summer-autumn rice crop, 101 rice trading companies from 13 Mekong
provinces signed deals with 88 co-operatives to buy rice grown on 42,605ha
under the new model.The deputy head of the department, Pham Van Du, said:
"The co-operatives established for the large-scale field production model
are of great importance. They supply farmers with seeds, fertilisers and agricultural
chemicals."Nguyen Tri Ngoc, secretary of the Association of Agricultural
Production and Rural Development, said despite a trade surplus in 2014, the
country's agriculture had showed weaknesses."Its growth rates went down
and the prices of its produce plunged, with the prices of some Vietnamese
produce ranking seventh or ninth behind those from other countries.To make the
large-scale model more profitable, farmers must use rice varieties confirmed by
trading businesses, he said.— VNS
Rice scope expands for jute
Pinak
Ghosh
Calcutta, May 31: The Bengal jute mill industry, suffering from a
lack of demand, expects orders to improve once the state government starts
procuring paddy directly from farmers from October and use jute bags to pack
the rice.The optimism follows the Centre's move to shelve over a decade-old
practice of "levy rice". Under this mechanism, rice millers had to
compulsorily supply up to 25 per cent of their annual produce for public
distribution at a rate set by the government.The system was flawed as there was
no mechanism to check whether the millers were paying the minimum support price
(MSP) to the farmers and not diverting the better quality grain to the open
market.Among the major rice producing states, Punjab and Haryana have already
abolished the levy rice system, but it is still prevalent in Uttar Pradesh,
Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Bengal.
The Bengal government is sourcing levy rice from about 1,200
millers for sale through ration shops. The Centre now wants the state
government agencies to purchase the paddy directly from farmers by paying MSP,
to plug the leakages.Jute bags are the key source of packing rice. Hence, mill
owners are hopeful that the direct purchase will translate into greater demand
for bags and discourage packaging in used and illegally imported jute bags from
Bangladesh.In a meeting with the members of Indian Jute Mills Association
(Ijma) earlier this month, the state government had decided to pack 70 per cent
of the rice produced in the state in new jute bags.Another meeting is scheduled
for June 1 to discuss the modalities of sourcing the new bags.Under the new
system, the jute mills will be given a requisition from the jute commissioner
and, accordingly, bags for packing rice will be supplied to the
millers.However, mill owners are in favour of procurement either through the
directorate-general of supplies and disposal or through state government
agencies rather than directly supplying to the millers.Ijma members said the
mills in Bengal were suffering on account of a shortage of orders and around 15
units have suspended production."The average capacity utilisation level of
the mills still in operation is around 50 per cent. This, however, can go up by
at least 5-6 per cent once the government orders start coming in," said a
jute mill owner.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1150601/jsp/business/story_23205.jsp#.VW2KDM9Viko
Roi Et rice traders convince
Singaporean importers of high quality Thai rice
Date
: 30 พฤษภาคม 2558
ROI ET, 30 May 2015 (NNT) - Jasmine rice suppliers in Roi Et, led
by provincial governor Somsak Changtragul, had a meeting with the manager of
Yijia Import And Export Co., Ltd., a Singaporean rice importer as the latter
visited the province on Saturday. Mr.Somsak said that Thai entrepreneurs had
convinced Singaporean importers of the quality of Roi Et Jasmine rice. The
visit followed a roadshow to Singapore that the Thai government conducted on
16-17 May 2015. "I believe that business matching between Roi Et rice
traders and Singapore importers will happen very soon, possibly in November
this year," said Mr.Somsak. Roi Et Province has so far been successful in
growing Jasmine rice particularly at the once-barren zone known as Thung Kula Rong
Hai. The area currently becomes the best zone for growing Jasmine rice.
http://thainews.prd.go.th/CenterWeb/NewsEN/NewsDetail?NT01_NewsID=WNECO5805310010001#sthash.UU5gM30u.dpuf
Revolutionary
instant rice from Sri Lankan entrepreneur
By
Quintus Perera
View(s): 547
Hey presto – ‘Instant Rice’.Giving meaning to the adage ‘failures are the pillars of success’, a Sri Lankan entrepreneur is aiming to headline the world with a revolutionary ‘instant rice’ product.
Waffle cone in the making
How is it produced? Just boil it
for five minutes and a plate of delicious fried rice is ready be it with
prawns, cuttlefish, vegetable or fish. It comes in a pack branded as
‘CanMo’.Young entrepreneur Chathuranga Kariawasam from Pelawatte Road, Nugegoda
spoke to the Business Times (BT) seated on one of their ‘Roots’ fresh fruit
juice parlours at Nawala Road, Nugegoda and explained the invention and the
approach to the world market of ‘CanMo’
In 1993, though successful at the
GCE A’ Level the marks were not enough to enter the 
university, he said. In response
to an advertisement by Sri Jayawardenapura University for external degress, he
became an external student, is already a graduate in entrepreneurship and hopes
to qualify with a Masters Diploma in another two months. Ineligible for university straight after A’ Levels, he joined
Richard Pieris Ltd as a Management Trainee and started researching on
preserving fruit salad for six months for export with technical assistance from
ITI researchers with Rs. 2.6 million granted by the Sri Lanka Agribusiness
Council. When the ITI researchers migrated to Australia half-way through his
product development, Mr. Kariawasam struggled for eight years using his own
funds but the product failed miserably.
university, he said. In response
to an advertisement by Sri Jayawardenapura University for external degress, he
became an external student, is already a graduate in entrepreneurship and hopes
to qualify with a Masters Diploma in another two months. Ineligible for university straight after A’ Levels, he joined
Richard Pieris Ltd as a Management Trainee and started researching on
preserving fruit salad for six months for export with technical assistance from
ITI researchers with Rs. 2.6 million granted by the Sri Lanka Agribusiness
Council. When the ITI researchers migrated to Australia half-way through his
product development, Mr. Kariawasam struggled for eight years using his own
funds but the product failed miserably.
Instant rice being packed
His father, Asoka Kariawasam along with a friend, Rienzie
Fernando in 1997 pioneered making fresh fruit juice with the establishment of
‘Roots’. They made juice from the fresh fruit rather than keeping the prepared
juice in the refrigerator, a pioneering effort, now with 20 fresh juice outlets
and a market leader in this trade segment.
He said that the failed fruit
salad preservation project discouraged him but due to the lecturers’
persistence in urging students to innovate, he thought of giving it another
try.Since the family is in the ice cream business too, he got an idea to make
waffle ice cream cones that would be cheap and durable. After eight months of research, he developed a novel waffle ice
cream cone that has a 6-month shelf life and is cheap.Branded as ‘Waffle Boy’,
he manufactures 200,000 per month and the product is available in all
supermarkets, star-class hotels and reputed outlets. Last week his company began exporting the cones to Maldives and
hopes to export to other countries as well.The instant rice idea came to him in
2007. When he saw on TV in 2009, soldiers eating noodles in the battlefield on
the run he was determined to make it a reality as he thought the soldiers would
have preferred rice, if available.
Chathuranga Kariawasam
Research was carried out with
technical assistance by Janitha Liyanage, a lecturer in the Sabaragamuwa
University and joined by another undergraduate, Ms. H. F. Risna, now a BSc
graduate specialised in Food Science and Technology. The trio succeeded with
this world class invention.‘CanMo’ Instant Fried Rice with prawns, fish,
vegetable and fish in three different packs targets different consumer segments
– one with a bowl that could be used in the microwave oven aimed at the high
end consumer and priced at Rs 220; the sachet pack priced at Rs. 100 and
another pack aimed at low income segment at Rs. 80. All what one has to do is
to open the sachet, put the contents into a pan, either add two cups of boiling
water or boil for five minutes and a sumptuous plate of fried rice of ‘your’
choice is on the table to eat The factory is in production at Mirihana .
The product would be available in
supermarkets and other reputed outlets.Some 10,000 packs with bowls are
produced per month, and around 100,000 sachet packs are produced per day.They
have tested the market and hope to reach the entire country. His main target
however is exports, he said, adding that they need large quantities for
export.The latest fried rice product should be protected by the concerned state
agencies and financial backing should also be provided, he said.Mr. Kariawasam
has a dream: “I want to present my case to the government and to the world, I
want to be financially stable and recognised. If I am not well protected and
backed by finance, it would take a long time to fully realise my dream.”
Mr. Kariawasam could be contacted on
waffleboysrilanka@gmail.com.
Midsayap irrigators laud DA for
increased rice production
June 01, 2015
KORONADAL CITY, South
Cotabato, June 1 (PIA) -- In the past,
rice growers in Midsayap, North
Cotabato would be satisfied
if they harvested 80
sacks from each
hectare.But this, changed lately,
according these farmers,
after the Department of
Agriculture poured in several interventions to the town’s
irrigators’ associations. Dante
Cudal, president of the Midsayap
– Pigcawayan – Libungan – Kabuntalan Federation of Irrigators’ Association
(MPLKIA), said since
2013 when DA 12
started implementing projects ,
they have been
enjoying harvest of up to
140 sacks per hectare “MPLKIA received P17.4-M worth of
projects from DA 12 from 2011 to 2014.
The biggest project given to
us was the P16-M Rice Processing Center (RPC( II,” Cudal disclosed. Besides the
state-of-the-art rice processing facility, the IA federation also received four-wheel drive
tractor (P1.3-M);, flatbed dryer (P506, 000), and hand tractor (P106, 000).
Another farmer-leader Danilo Tacan, president of Libris 5 Chrislam Irrigators’
Association of Barangay San Isidro also lauded DA’s farm mechanization
program, which he
added has resulted in 110-140 cavans per hectare being
enjoyed by their members. Each
cavan weighs 55 kilograms.“We
received hand tractor with trailer (P106, 000) and one floating tiller (P88,
000) from DA 12,” Tacan said.Similar increase in rice production was also
recorded by rice grower-members of Settlers IA (SIA) of Barangay Lower
Katingawan after being granted with almost P1-M worth of farm machines and
postharvest facility from the Department.
Meanwhile, Wilson Macoy, president of SIA, acknowledged DA 12 for
giving them flatbed dryer (P625, 000),
rice thresher (P 95, 000), and power tiller (P93, 000) which they have
been utilizing in bolstering their farms’ productivity.“These farm machines
such as floating tiller shortened the time
spent for land preparation” Tacan
remarked.These farmer associatons also attributed the increase in rice
production in the improvement of their farm-to-market road for a more
convenient and faster transportation of products to the town’s market.Better
and quality road also reduced our transportation costs and improved our
mobility and even motivated us to increase our palay production which gives us
bigger incomes,” Cudal commented.
Apart from the
aforementioned, members of these
farmer associations have
also been recipients
of certified seeds
from DA 12, which
they agreed has
also boosted their production capacity that they added could
greatly contribute to the
achievement of the rice self-sufficiency goal of the national government.With these bountiful
harvests, farmer-members of the
associations are more confident they could send their children to college and
provide for the basic needs of
their respective families.In their words, these farmer-leaders
have expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the Department of Agriculture led
by Secretary Proceso Alcala, and Regional Executive Director Amalia
Jayag-Datukan for addressing the needs of the farmers engaged in rice
farming.“I hope the DA will continue its undying service to the rice farmers,”
Cudal said challenging his fellow farmers to be proactive in submitting
proposals for their desired projects to the DA.Cudal also added that
“Department of Agriculture will always be our number one partner towards
community development.” (CRMatullano/LMSalvo-DA-RAFIS/DEDoguiles-PIA 12)
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1611433138045/midsayap-irrigators-laud-da-for-increased-rice-production#sthash.aBMmbmtt.dpuf
Synthetic
rice issue aimed at hampering development
of analog rice: Economic expert
The
Jakarta Post, Jakarta | National | Sun, May 31 2015, 2:02 PM
National
News
Institute for Development of
Economics and Finance (INDEF) economist Enny Sri Hartati has said the synthetic
rice issue is just part of an effort to impede the development of analog
rice."Currently, a number of research institutes and universities are
developing analog rice in an effort to increase food diversity in Indonesia,”
said Enny as quoted byAntara in Jakarta on Sunday.The expert said analog rice was a food
commodity that looked like normal rice but was made from all kinds of tubers,
making it suitable and safe for consumption.If the research is successful and
can be done on a large scale, it could support national food needs, she
said.Enny went on to say that she doubted the synthetic rice issue was driven
by economics, since plastic production cost more than rice production.
“If it is based on certain
economic motives, the synthetic rice should have been distributed at a higher
price because according to economic principles, we want to buy goods as cheaply
as possible and sell them at a higher price. But this did not happen with what
was rumored to be ‘synthetic rice’. Thus, it is likely that there are other
motives behind the synthetic rice issue,” she said.The INDEF economist said a
number of parties had reportedly attempted to hamper the development of analog
rice as they were concerned the newly discovered staple food would disrupt
consumers’ dependence on rice.“Once analog rice enters markets, people’s
dependency on rice will be disrupted. This poses a challenge to certain
parties. With the current synthetic rice issue, people are really worried.
What happens now is that people cannot
differentiate between synthetic rice and analog rice,” said Enny.She said once
the synthetic rice issue contaminated the mindset of consumers, it would be
difficult for researchers or any parties supporting the development of analog
rice to introduce their discovery to the people.“In such situations, people
will just keep it in their minds that analog rice is not ‘original’ rice. They
will not pay attention to whether or not analog rice is suitable and safe for
consumption,” said Enny. (ebf)
Famed rice terraces face
modern threats
By Karl Malakunas, Agence France-Presse
Posted at 05/31/2015 12:32 PM
In this photo taken on April 28, 2015 shows houses
sitting amid rice terraces on a mountainside in Mayoyao, Ifugao. Photo by Karl Malakunas, Agence France-Presse
MAYOYAO -- It is fiesta time in
the famed rice terraces of northern Luzon, and young men in colorful tribal
clothing pound ancient rhythms on brass gongs as wild boars squeal ahead of
slaughter.The annual festivals, held in remote mountain communities after the
planting of the rice that is at the core of their existence, are a vital way of
passing centuries-old customs to the new generation.Those traditions are the
soul of the Cordillera ranges, one of the Philippines' most spectacular regions
where Ifugao tribespeople are custodians of World Heritage-listed rice
terraces.
But the stepped paddy fields, built 2,000 years ago and the
highest in Asia, as well as the Ifugao's traditional lifestyles, are facing
unprecedented threats amid the relentless forces of modernity."There is a
danger of these beautiful areas turning into urban jungles," Edison
Molanida, World Heritage sites manager for the national government's culture
commission, told AFP."One of the main threats is the rapid pace of
development in the area. And by rapid pace, we mean unmanaged
development."In its description justifying World Heritage status, the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
describes the region as "a living cultural landscape of unparalleled
beauty."On misty mornings, when the first rays of pale orange sunshine
fall across the stone walls that follow the mountains' contours, the terraces
look like giant staircases climbing to the heavens.
UNESCO also praises the Ifugao people for having remained in
harmony with nature for so long, such as by using herbs instead of pesticides,
eschewing fertilizers and generally showing great care for limited natural
resources.The irrigation system, which taps water from mountaintop forests and
shares it equitably throughout the communities, is hailed as a "mastery of
engineering".A generation or two ago, many of the Ifugao villages and the
lifestyles of the people who lived in them largely resembled those of centuries
ago.Large areas of the five listed districts, home to roughly 100,000 people
and a day's drive from the capital Manila, today retain many of the aspects
celebrated by UNESCO.
Change afoot
But radical change is underway.Once picturesque villages are
acquiring the chaotic trappings of typical poor towns, including ugly
multi-storey buildings made of cheap concrete, polluting diesel vehicles and
ramshackle tin-roofed shanties.Introduced pests, including giant Indonesian
earthworms, are causing major damage to the structures of the terraces, causing
some to collapse.In Mayoyao, one of the region's most scenic villages, local
officials say the worms, as well as snails originally brought in as a food for
protein, are the biggest dangers to the terraces.Television and the Internet
are similarly eroding traditional work ethics, which are vital to maintaining
the labor-intensive terraces.
"When our parents told us to go and work, we'd obey,"
Margaret Licnachan, 38, a rice farmer and mother-of-four, told AFP as she sat
in the stone courtyard of her Mayoyao home. "But today, our children
refuse to go and work in the terraces. They are lazy."Molanida, the World
Heritage sites manager, described the "abandonment of the rice growing
culture" by significant numbers of Ifugao as one of the biggest dangers
for the region."If the younger generation are no longer interested in the
rice culture and move to cities, or adopt modern lifestyles, who will be left
to tend to the terraces?"
Locals optimistic
In a lengthy interview from his mountaintop office overlooking
the terraces, Mayoyao vice mayor Jimmy Padchanan insisted local elders were
working hard and successfully to control the march of modernity."We can
not deny the effects of modernization on our culture," Padchanan said.
"But it is not all bad. We are blending old societies with the new, while
maintaining many of our values."Padchanan said he was confident the rice
terraces and ancient traditions could survive the onslaught of the 21st
century."The Mayoyao rice terraces will continue to be handed down from
generation to generation. The rice terraces shall endure for as long as the
Mayoyao are here," he said.
Locals also pointed out they had a right to develop and enjoy
modern society, and should not have to live in fossilized communities.Standing
in traditional tribal clothes during a recent festival, Mayoyao elder and rice
farmer Mario Lachaona spoke passionately about preserving customs but cautioned
against over-romanticizing the old days."Life before was so hard,"
said Lachaona, 68, a wiry father of six and grandfather of 18. "Education
was not good. There were no roads here so we had to walk long distances to buy
foods. We could not survive on just the rice we grew."Lachaona said his
grandchildren had much better nutrition and education than his generation,
while their opportunities to find work other than subsistence farming were much
greater."Life is a lot easier now," Lachaona said.
The expected paving in the next few years of the only road to
Mayoyao will make life easier again in many ways.Padchanan, the vice mayor,
said there were plans to sell vegetables in far away towns, providing a welcome
source of extra income for rice farmers.Only a few hundred foreign tourists
visit a year, and the paved road would hopefully bring a lot more.However Molanida
said he feared those sorts of developments would not be managed well."It
is up to the Ifugao people to decide if they want to fight harder to conserve
their culture and prevent chaotic development," he said."Otherwise
the rice terraces may become grass terraces."
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/focus/05/31/15/famed-rice-terraces-face-modern-threats
LSU AgCenter
holding several rice field days
The LSU AgCenter will hold a series of rice field days across
Louisiana during the growing season.Topics will include variety development
updates, control of weeds, insects and disease, fertilization and soybean
production.
JUNE 9: Evangeline
Parish Rice Field Day; Joey Hebert Farm on Bieber Road about 4 miles west of
Mamou.
JUNE 16: Acadia Parish
Rice Field Day, the South Farm of the Rice Research Station in Crowley, off La.
13; registration is at 8:30 a.m. and the program at 9 a.m.
JULY 1: Rice Research
Station in Crowley; field tours begin at 7:15 a.m.
JULY 21: Northeast
Louisiana Rice Field Day, Woodsland Plantation in Richland Parish 4 miles west
of the intersection of La. 15 and La. 133; 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., then the event
reconvenes at the Rayville Civic Center.
A St. Landry Parish Rice Field Day also will be held, but
details are pending.
http://theadvocate.com/news/business/12476084-123/business-briefs-for-may-31
City residents drive rice bran
oil demand
Badrul
Ahsan
Demand for antioxidant-rich rice bran oil is gradually rising among
the health conscious city dwellers, which may reduce dependence on imported soybean
oil, industry insiders said.According to wholesalers and retailers, after an
intense awareness campaign, particularly among housewives, demand for the rice
bran oil increased from 15-20 tonnes a day in 2012 to 70-100 tonnes now.Demand
for the rice bran oil has been rising by around 20 per cent for the last couple
of years, they added.
The oil is extracted from husking the hard, brown outer layer of
rice.Leading consumer goods companies including ACI, City Group and Emerald Oil
Industries Ltd have introduced branded rice bran oil due to the increasing
demand. "Rice bran oil is rapidly replacing other oil. Almost all the
grocery shops across the city are now selling the oil which would rarely seen
in such stores reflecting the steady rise in demand for the item," Moinur
Rahman, manager of ACI Consumer Brands that markets rice bran oil under the
name of 'Nutrilife' told the FE.But it was not all plain sailing. Introduced in
Bangladesh in 2011, the cooking oil had to get past plenty of misconceptions.
"We had faced a lot of difficulties during the initial days--
people were not aware of the existence of rice bran oil and its health
benefits. Many even perceived it to be engine oil," said Mazharul Islam, a
manager of Emerald Oil Industries Ltd (EOIL).One reason for rice bran oil's
rising popularity is the reduction in its prices.The price of each litre of
rice bran oil was Tk 40 higher than soybean oil during the initial days. But
the gap has now come down to Tk 20 each litre, said Mr Rahman.He noted that
rice bran oil's growing demand has also helped bring down the country's import
dependency for cooking oil especially on soybean oil.At present, the country
spends over Tk 100 billion (10,000 crore) a year to import 1.4 million-1.5
million tonnes of edible oil against the domestic demand of 1.8 million tonnes,
according to Bangladesh Bank and industry estimates.
"The rice bran oil holds a very good market potential. We have
the raw materials and there are many rice mills that can supply it," the
ACI official said.The country produces more than 50 million tonnes of paddy a
year, which yields 4.0 million tonnes of rice bran, according to estimates by
agricultural scientists.ACI entered this segment of cooking oil market in 2012
when only EOIL and Rashid Oil Mills had started extracting oil by using locally
available rice bran. Now, there are around eight firms, including Bangladesh
Edible Oil Ltd.
City Group of Industries, a leading cooking oil processor and
marketer, is also set to make its entry to this segment of cooking oil.Biswajit
Das, general manager of City Group, said the company has already set up
machinery for the plant."The number of health conscious buyers is rising
day by day -- that's why we are also interested in expanding our business into
this sub sector."The existing players too have expanded their production
capacity on the back of the rising popularity.EOIL, now listed on the bourses,
increased its processing capacity last year and began production of its
expanded unit in November 2013. Currently, its total production capacity stands
at 48 tonnes a day.Mr Islam said the company now produces around 40 tonnes of
rice bran oil a day.
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2015/05/31/94772
Rainy, cloudy weather not good
for growing rice in Louisiana
Posted:
Monday, June 1, 2015 11:30 am
Recent weather has not been ideal for growing rice because of
frequent rainy and cloudy weather, LSU AgCenter experts told farmers at field
days on May 28 in Jefferson Davis and Vermilion parishes.Cloudy weather reduces
sunlight needed for photosynthesis, said Steve Linscombe, LSU AgCenter rice
breeder. But,he said, the rice crop looks better than he expected. The reduced
sunshine while the rice is now in the vegetative stage is less harmful than
when the plants move into the reproductive stage and start grain filling.Dustin
Harrell, AgCenter rice specialist, said the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station
usually gets 26 inches of rain between March 1 and the end of July, but the
total so far is 24 inches.
He said the station has had 43 days of measurable rainfall since
March 1 and more cloudy days when it hasn’t rained.This is the first time in a
long time that we have sunshine,” Harrell said at the Vermilion Parish
event.Harrell said midseason fertilizer applications have been complicated by
the wet ground that prevents airplanes from using airstrips. Instead, pilots
have been forced to use paved runways that are often distant from fields, resulting
in higher costs for aerial applications.He said waiting seven to 10 days for a
midseason fertilizer application should not make a significant difference in a
crop.Don Groth, LSU AgCenter plant pathologist, told farmers that they should
be on the lookout for disease.
“This is disease weather.”He said leaf blast will be a problem for
farmers if water accidentally drains from a field, but restoring a flood will
likely reduce the disease severity.Groth said fungicide-resistant sheath blight
has spread this year, with some reported south of Lacassine and in east
Evangeline Parish, increasing the likelihood that the fungicide Sercadis will
be needed by more farmers.The news was worse for soybeans. Ron Levy, LSU
AgCenter soybean specialist, said the wet weather has forced him to delay
planting for many of his variety trials, and many farmers are close to deciding
not to plant a soybean crop.“It’s probably getting to a point where we won’t
see many soybeans planted in south Louisiana,” Levy said.
Those farmers able to plant in March on raised beds on sugarcane
ground, and in the eastern part of the state, have good crops, he said, but
they are the exception.Levy said some beans will survive flooding, but high
water followed by hot sun will scald the young plants.Louisiana soybeans have
had record yields the past three years, and had the highest state yield in the
US in 2014. “This year it appears we’re not in for a record-breaking year,”
Levy said. Linscombe told farmers he is working on developing varieties for use
with the herbicide-resistant Provisia rice system, and 12 lines are being grown
at the Jimmy Hoppe farm near Fenton, where the Jefferson Davis Parish field day
was held. Provisia will be a good complement to Clearfield rice in controlling
red rice with a different mode of action, he said.He said the LSU AgCenter’s
winter nursery in Puerto Rico allowed the breeding process to be accelerated,
and it’s possible that a limited commercial release of Provisia would be
available in 2017. “I want to stress that’s a best case scenario,” he told
farmers at the Vermilion Parish event.
Harrell said a second-crop rice yield can be increased by mowing or
rolling the stubble after the first crop harvest. Either option will delay
maturity by about two weeks, he said, so it’s not a recommended practice if the
first crop is harvested after Aug. 15.Excess fertilizer also will delay
maturity, he said.Andrew Granger, LSU AgCenter county agent in Vermilion
Parish, said the price outlook for rice is not good. An abundant carryover from
last year’s good harvest has depressed prices, he said.Mike Stout, LSU AgCenter
entomologist, said he has a test at the Lounsberry farm where the field day was
held for Vermilion Parish, to determine which of nine varieties have resistance
to rice water weevils. So far, he said, Jupiter has the most susceptibility and
Jefferson has shown resistance.
http://www.hannapub.com/ouachitacitizen/news/local_state_headlines/rainy-cloudy-weather-not-good-for-growing-rice-in-louisiana/article_8f7ee448-087b-11e5-95be-2ba7ec572d3f.html
Sans Backup Strategies, Vazhakkulam
Pineapple Price Suffers Downslide
By
Published: 02nd June 2015 06:05 AM
Last Updated: 02nd June 2015 06:05 AM
KOCHI: For Augustine M V, who
moved from Vazhakulam to Vashi, Mumbai, about 15 years ago for pineapple
trading business at APMC Wholesale Market at Vashi, this year has been pretty
bad. “Pineapple, which is available at `17-18/kg at Vazhakulam is sold
here in Vashi at `12-13/kg. There are days when even 100 loads of Vazhakulam
pineapple are unloaded here.
We are incurring about `40,000 loss per load,” he says over
phone from Mumbai.The pineapple prices have fallen by 74 per cent, from `50/kg
in 2013 to `13 in 2015, causing heavy losses to growers back in his
hometown.Vazhakulam pineapple, which was accorded the Geographical Indication
tag (GI) in 2009, undoubtedly has better aroma, flavour and sweetness compared
to the pineapple cultivated anywhere else in the country. But lack of effort to
market the GI-tag has resulted in farmers or traders getting no premium on the
fruit even after the prestigious label.The fate of other GI-tagged
agri-commodities from Kerala, is unfortunately, no different. Kaipad
rice, Malabar pepper, Alleppey Green cardamom, Palakkad Matta rice, Pokkali
rice, Gandhakasala and Jeerakasala rice of Wayanad and Palakkad’s Njavara, all
enjoy GI-label but no visible benefit to farmers.
A similar result awaits Chengazhikodan Nendran banana, which
received the prestigious GI tag last month, say experts.Dr Leena Kumari, head
of Rice Research Station, Mankombu, says there’s no backup efforts on the part
of the government or farmer societies to cash-in on the GI-tag to boost demand,
especially in export markets.“In principle, GI-tag should help farmers as the label
ensures higher quality on the agri-commodity compared to their peers. But,
there has not been any extra efforts to push these products,” she
laments.According to her, the government procures the pokkali rice seeds at
`50/kg, much higher compared to the market rate of Rs 38.
A similar way of procurement at high prices should be done for
pokkali rice too, she recommends, adding that with proper branding and
marketing the GI-tagged agri-produce could fetch better prices in both local
and export markets.Dr P Indira Devi of Kerala Agricultural University says the
benefits of GI tag should be made available to both farmers and
customers.“There has not been enough efforts made to publicise the benefits of
commodities which have the GI-label,” she notes.“Nobody actually cares about
GI-tag, as most of the pineapple sold in the country are from Vazhakulam,” says
Augustine.Baby John of Pineapple Farmers Association, says for perishable
agri-products (Vazhakulam pineapple or Chengazhikodan Nendran banana), the key
is to preserve them using technology. “The GI tag has no meaning if you have a
glut. When you know the product will perish in 15 days, the option before the
farmers is distress sale. This is what’s happening on Vazhakulam pineapple
now,” he sums up.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/Sans-Backup-Strategies-Vazhakkulam-Pineapple-Price-Suffers-Downslide/2015/06/02/article2844868.ece
|
Myanmar works for formulating
policy framework for foreign investment in agriculture
|
|
2015-05-31 10:41:54
|
|
YANGON, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar government is working closely
with the 34-nation Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
to formulate a policy framework to boost foreign investment in the agricultural
sector, official media reported Sunday.
OCED officials were quoted as saying that allowing foreign
ownership of land and creating a legal framework to encourage contract farming
will attract foreign direct investment in Myanmar 's agricultural sector.The
OECD held a workshop in Yangon on Saturday on modernizing Myanmar's economic
building on a strong agricultural sector.
According to official statistics, Myanmar's agricultural sector
ranked the 9th out of 11 sectors in terms of foreign direct investment with
approved capital of 242.686 million U.S. dollars as of March 2015 since late
1988 when the country started to open to foreign investment.Meanwhile, the
International Fund for Agriculture Development ( IFAD) offered aid to Myanmar
to carry out project for agricultural development which lasted from 2013 to
2015 covering three villages in central Magway region.The International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI) also helped the country grow rice under Myanmar Rice
Sector Development Strategy and Program.
On the ground in Vietnam, with
rice, not bullets
Submitted by admin on Sun, 05/31/2015 - 12:00am
By: Erin
Hinrichs
Calvin Kellerman
visits with a Vietnamese farmer as she manually harvests rice. Kellerman helped
introduce a new heartier variety of rice seed that allowed locals to harvest
higher yields. (submitted photo)
Kellerman’s
translator, Ong Chuan, interprets for him at a gathering that includes the Tan
An agricultural director, on Kellerman’s other side. The group took in a sewing
demonstration in October 1968. While doing agriculture extension work,
Kellerman was also involved in setting up activities like this, meant to
emulate 4-H. (submitted photo)
At the Wentworth
Library, in West St. Paul, Calvin Kellerman, 89, displays the parting gift he
received from local farmers he advised in Vietnam — a figure of a Vietnamese
farmer they apparently melted down from spent shell casings. (Erin
Hinrichs/Review)
Calvin Kellerman
(right) shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and former Minnesota
Gov. Orville Freeman prior to Kellerman’s departure for Vietnam. (submitted
photo)
Calvin Kellerman
advised civilians on agriculture
Calvin Kellerman, 89, keeps a small brass statue of an aged
Vietnamese man hauling a load of firewood for cooking on display at his
residence in Mendota Heights. He's not sure who made it, but he speculates it's
made of artillery shells that had been fired by U.S. soldiers — collected,
melted down, and turned into a gift given to him by the local farmers he
advised. A World War II veteran, Kellerman signed up in 1966 to serve
during the Vietnam War as a civilian agricultural advisor.Employed by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and the U.S. State Department — which had teamed up
to launch an aid mission in the midst of the unpopular war — he spent six years
introducing an improved variety of rice in Long An, Da Nang and Can Tho
provinces.It was a lifesaving effort.
In the mid-1960s, no matter how far they were from the battle
lines, Vietnamese families were struggling. Having just emerged from a rice
famine during World War II that extended into the postwar years, both north and
south portions of the country faced shortages due to the conflict. If one
area's crops flooded or were ravaged by rats, there might be no safe routes to
travel to another or bring sustenance in.In a country where every meal is said
to be "rice and something else," this was a crisis."When we got
to Vietnam, they were not able to provide enough rice for themselves,"
Kellerman says. "[Today] they have enough rice where they can feed all the
people who live there and they have enough to export it."
From delta to delta
Born a farmer in the delta lands of the Red River Valley in
North Dakota, Kellerman joined the Navy in 1944 as an apprentice seaman. He
later served in Okinawa as a Seabee — the Navy's term for the initials of
Construction Battalion — constructing a hospital with concrete made of coral,
he says, until the atomic bomb brought that project to a halt.After completing
his service, he studied agriculture at North Dakota State University and got a
job teaching farm management to other World War II veterans who were looking to
regain their footing back in America's heartland. He later joined the U.S. Soil
Conservation Service (later renamed the Natural Resources Conservation
Service).
By the time the Vietnam War had begun, he was married and had
two daughters. Given the groundswell of anti-war sentiments that marked
America's involvement in Vietnam — combined with his own distaste for the war —
he could have stayed on the sidelines. But he couldn't resist one last call to
duty.Only this time, Kellerman says, it came in the form of a guy at the North
Dakota Winter Show shouting out to passersby, "Hey folks, we need ag
people in Vietnam!"Curious, he followed up on the position and quickly
found himself on a plane to Washington, D.C. to take a qualifying language
test."The Vietnamese language is tonal. It has five different tones and if
you don't understand the tone, you'll never understand the language," he
says of the dialect spoken in the south.He passed the test and started training
in January 1967 near the Everglades in Florida, where he and his colleagues
studied Vietnamese language in the morning and tropical agriculture in the
afternoons.
'We're moving where?'
His eldest daughter, Renee Trier, remembers being completely
shocked when Kellerman first sprang the news on the family. Looking, back,
however, she can see how the career move was in character."He's always
been someone who's enjoyed teaching and education. He loves the land. He loves
farming," Trier says. "He presented it for his family as 'This is an
opportunity for you to learn about new cultures and new
things.'"Kellerman's insight helped the family view the challenge
differently, and his prediction was correct, she says."He was right. It
definitely opened all of our eyes.
"Trier, her mother and sister moved to the Philippines,
where Kellerman could visit them on occasion.For the most part, though, he was
off the grid, traveling from village to village in the MeKong delta to help sow
more-productive rice — and goodwill. Those he met were torn between the fears
that they wouldn't be able to make a living on next season's harvest — or, in
the immediate term, even live to work another day."I was born and raised
as a Christian," Kellerman says simply. "They teach you that
you take care of other people."That had never left my mind. Those people
were not only being taken care of badly, but were being shot at at the same
time."
Staying clear of the crossfire
Based near an American military camp in Tan An for his first
four years of service, Kellerman saw many farmers abandoning their traditional
livelihoods in hopes of finding more secure futures in the city."At that
time, the initiative of the Vietnamese local people was stifled because every
time you went on the road, you might get shot at," he says.The threat was
so constant, he says, that many families slept under their beds at night — in
trenches they'd dug to try to avoid indiscriminate bullets.
Despite the constant risk of being caught in crossfire,
Kellerman says he never hesitated to check in on the local farmers he was
working with. His translator, Ong Chuan, accompanied him almost everywhere he
went and kept Kellerman out of harm's way.On a typical outreach mission,
Kellerman — accompanied by the local agriculture chief and Ong Chuan — would
fly by helicopter to a farming village and introduce the new rice seed, which
they distributed at no cost.The visits, heralded by the unmistakable noise of
the "chopper," brought everyone in the village out to see what was
happening."Whenever we got there, we'd find the place full of
people," Kellerman says, paging through a scrapbook with black and white
photos of curious Vietnamese children.
Above water, away from rats
The new seeds came from the International Rice Research
Institute in the Philippines, which had been established to develop a more
hardy, dependable rice for Southeast Asia.The "miracle rice" the IRRI
developed in the early '60s was a hybrid type that grew up stiff and short,
making the plants better suited for the conditions in southern Vietnam. When it
came to increasing crop yields, these two modifications made a huge
difference."When I got to Long An, the rice would grow 4 to 6 feet high in
the rainy season, [then] fall down into the water.
The rats would get it and the yields would be very low,"
Kellerman recalls. The seed was cutting-edge, but it adapted just fine to
the centuries-old method of cultivation: plows pulled by water buffalo. And
farmers saw results.According to a record preserved in Kellerman's scrapbook, farmers
in the Long An province produced a record-setting 233,000 metric tons of rice
under his guidance.As he recalls, only seven others of the country's 44
provinces produced more than 100,000 tons."I'm proud of the work that he
did to enable those Vietnamese farmers to improve their life and their
families' lives by increasing their crop yields and the quality of their
food," Trier says. "And to do it during a time of war, I give him a
lot of credit for being willing to do that."
Post-war struggle
Returning Stateside in Jan. 1973, Kellerman found he was the one
struggling to make a living.Even though he hadn't been engaged in the war, most
employers wouldn't give his applications a second look.The man who was praised
by the Secretary of Agriculture and was flown around Southeast Asia to educate
people on rice harvests eventually got a job grating grain at a facility in
Texas. The company issued him an orange jumpsuit so he'd be easier to spot in
case a grain elevator collapsed or a fire started — a common hazard due to the
grain dust that built up in the workroom.
Kellerman made it safely to retirement, but continued to deal
with health complications that he says were caused by exposure to Agent Orange
during his time in Vietnam. Although he's a World War II veteran, Kellerman is
denied veterans' medical assistance for the defoliant's well-known aftereffects
because, technically, he was serving as a civilian during the later
war.Nowadays, he splits the majority of his time between visting the Wentworth
Library and playing cards at a local bridge club. On occasion, he makes it out
to his black walnut grove in North Dakota to prune his trees.Every Thursday
morning, he meets with a group of veterans who call themselves the "Grumpy
Old Men" at the American Legion in Apple Valley."We have a cup of
coffee and a donut for a buck and we sit and talk with each other. None of
those folks ever knew anything about the ag in Vietnam," he says, proud to
delve into a different side of the Vietnam experience.
"As far as I'm concerned, I accomplished something."
Erin Hinrichs can be reached at 651-748-7814 and ehinrichs@lillienews.com. Follow
her at twitter.com/EHinrichsNews.
In early 1967, 43 agriculture advisors trained for a different
type of service in Vietnam: a war on hunger.
Although the advisors’ mission was to help South Vietnamese
farmers to increase their crop yields, these federally-employed volunteers were
also prepared for the very real possibility that they could be caught in the
crossfire.
Transcribed from a letter former agriculture advisor Calvin
Kellerman saved, the following correspondence illustrates the risks these men
took in the name of delivering aid during a time of war. The Review has used
initials for last names.
Feb. 22, 1968
Dear Cal:
Each of us in Agriculture is interested in what’s happening to
our friends, so thought I would write down those things that have come to my
attention here in Saigon and suggest you let us know how you are and how the
present situation is affecting you. Several of the PASA Agr. Adv. have written
notes to me when sending in the T & A report, which I appreciate.
Following are comments as they have come to my attention:
Ed F. — Slightly wounded in action at Phan Thiet. He is now in Nha Trang working as Fisheries Adv.
Bob H. — His house was blown up a few days before Tet offensive. He was only slightly hurt.
Bill J. — Sr. Agr. Adv. I CORPS and Morgan Stickney Soil Fert. Adv. I CORPS evacuated B.T. (before Tet) because of infectious hepatitis. Bill is now in California and Morgan in P.I.
Willie C. — Acting as Sr. Agr. Adv. TDY in Bill’s place.
James M. — Assigned to DaNang to help with I CORPS Agr. program.
Tom R. — Missing in action at Hue.
John R. — Resigned.
Ike H. — Recently assigned to Dalat, had his house blown up while he was on visitation at Bangkok.
Bob J. — Moving from Cam Ranh to Vung Tau as extension training advisor.
Grady M. — Bombed out twice from his house. Only item recovered was back of his wrist watch.
Peter W. — Leave without pay in U.S.
Dallas B. — Resigned.
Dale S. — Not returning.
Charley B. — Moved from Dalat to Gia Dinh B.T. (before Tet).
Marvin B. — Wounded in action at Rach Gia and treated locally.
Jose R. — Moved from Kontum to Khanh Hoa after spending 6 days and nights in bunker, with pet monkey named “Virgin.”
I am sure there are many more happenings that we are not aware of yet and will be glad to write another letter to keep you up to date. I would appreciate hearing from you soon.
Ed F. — Slightly wounded in action at Phan Thiet. He is now in Nha Trang working as Fisheries Adv.
Bob H. — His house was blown up a few days before Tet offensive. He was only slightly hurt.
Bill J. — Sr. Agr. Adv. I CORPS and Morgan Stickney Soil Fert. Adv. I CORPS evacuated B.T. (before Tet) because of infectious hepatitis. Bill is now in California and Morgan in P.I.
Willie C. — Acting as Sr. Agr. Adv. TDY in Bill’s place.
James M. — Assigned to DaNang to help with I CORPS Agr. program.
Tom R. — Missing in action at Hue.
John R. — Resigned.
Ike H. — Recently assigned to Dalat, had his house blown up while he was on visitation at Bangkok.
Bob J. — Moving from Cam Ranh to Vung Tau as extension training advisor.
Grady M. — Bombed out twice from his house. Only item recovered was back of his wrist watch.
Peter W. — Leave without pay in U.S.
Dallas B. — Resigned.
Dale S. — Not returning.
Charley B. — Moved from Dalat to Gia Dinh B.T. (before Tet).
Marvin B. — Wounded in action at Rach Gia and treated locally.
Jose R. — Moved from Kontum to Khanh Hoa after spending 6 days and nights in bunker, with pet monkey named “Virgin.”
I am sure there are many more happenings that we are not aware of yet and will be glad to write another letter to keep you up to date. I would appreciate hearing from you soon.
Sincerely yours,
Andy Andersen
USAID/AGR/Field Support
Saigon
USAID/AGR/Field Support
Saigon
U.N. warns of coming hunger in North Korea
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un gives field guidance
at the 810 army unit’s Salmon farms in this undated photo released by North
Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang.
REUTERS/KCNA
A drought in North Korea could lead to huge food shortages this
year, the top U.N. official in the country told Reuters in an
interview.Rainfall in 2014, the lowest in records going back 30 years, was 40-60
percent below 2013 levels, and reservoirs are very low, said Ghulam Isaczai,
the U.N. resident coordinator."We're extremely concerned with the impact
of drought which will affect the crop this year severely. And we might be faced
with another major incident of food availability or even hunger," said
Isaczai. "It is going to create a huge deficit between the needs and what
is available."If El Nino weather conditions bring more drought this year,
the situation in 2016 could be even worse, he warned.
"This is currently the rice-planting season. Normally they
submerge the land almost a week or two in advance. But this year, I've seen it
myself – they're doing it in the dry, actually planting rice. So what we're
hearing right now is that they're switching to maize and corn because that
requires less water."Some farmers, already struggling with a shortage of
fuel and equipment, have resorted to using buckets to water seedlings, he said.
The effect of North Korea's lack of agricultural infrastructure such as irrigation
systems was visible on the border, where "dry and harsh" North Korean
land met green fields in China.A famine
in the 1990s killed as many as 1 million North Koreans but recently many
international donors have been reluctant to help because of Pyongyang's
restrictions on humanitarian workers and international concerns over its
nuclear ambitions."Let's not make aid political," Isaczai said.
ELECTRICITY HIT
The United Nations provides nutritional supplements to schools
and hospitals but does not have the funds to supply rice for North Korea's 24.6
million population, 70 percent of whom are already classed as "food
insecure"."How are they going to fill this gap? I think they have
reached out to some countries - to India, to China, to Russia," Isaczai said.The lack of water has
dried up rivers and streams and has also hit electricity supply, which was at
its worst in winter when hydroelectric power was restricted to reserve water
for the rice-planting season."What the government confirmed to me is that
they're operating at 50 percent of capacity in terms of power generation.
A lot of it is now
related to water," the U.N. official added.Blackouts in Pyongyang last
anything from 8-9 hours to a whole 24 hours and many hospitals are unable to
operate.Isaczai said he thought the food situation would not be as bad as in
previous major droughts, since communities were now more resilient and might
have some reserves.New farming rules - which allow smaller, family-sized teams
to run farms - meant more efficiency and ownership, he said, with families
allowed to keep livestock and farmers able to keep surplus crops."Also
there are small markets emerging in rural areas, like kind of farmers' markets
where people can barter or trade or sell things."Some people were also
selling food on the street, which might be a few eggs or apples, enabling
families to supplement the food they get from the national ration system.The
reforms may not be fast or widespread, Isaczai said, and the impact may take
three to five years to be felt.The government also set a target last year of
building 20,000 greenhouses, he said, which would make more vegetables
available and diversify diets, but the country needs help to build them.
(Reporting by Tom Miles; Editing
by Pravin Char)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/05/30/uk-northkorea-drought-idUKKBN0OF0BP20150530
Water shortages mean less rice planted this
year
A partially flooded rice field seen along 7-Mile Lane
in Chico on May 8. Bill Husa — Enterprise-Record
POSTED: 05/31/15, 8:10 PM PDT |
A crop duster spreads rice seeds over the rice fields in Richvale
on April 27. Emily Bertolino — Enterprise-Record
If this
had been a normal year, it would have been a perfect season for planting rice —
clear skies, not much wind and plenty of time to do things right.All of those
things were true this year, except not as much land was planted due to lack of
water.For the past several weeks, small airplanes could be spotted in the air
along the Midway south of Durham and other areas where the predominant crop is
rice.The crop dusters land on small landing strips alongside rice field. The
holding compartments of the planes are filled with soaked rice seed. Next the
planes zoom over the field, flying low to distribute the seed into the water.
The peak
of planting was about two weeks ago, said Craig Compton, owner of Avag Inc., an
aerial application company with planes based in Richvale.As for planting, there
was no big hurry this year, First off, less rice was planted. Many growers had
their surface water amounts cut drastically, including water districts along
the Feather River.Districts that are collectively known as the “Joint
Districts,” had their water reduced by 50 percent.However, with groundwater
pumping, about 80 percent of the rice land in this area was planted, said Sean
Earley, manager of Richvale Irrigation District.Along the Sacramento River,
surface water allocations were also decreased. Some farmers received zero
water, and farmers with senior water rights received 75 percent. Again, growers
who had access to groundwater are using wells to add to their water
supply.Earley noted that farmers are being super-vigilant about spills.
“Zero water is leaving the fields.”Data on
rice acreage has not yet been compiled, said Jim Morris, communication
specialist with the California Rice Commission. Those numbers should arrive in
the next couple of weeks after looking at land surveys and seed sales.Last
year, rice planting was down 25 percent, he said, and will be even lower than
that this year.The weather has been ideal for planting. The best weather for
growing rice is 80-90 degrees, with no wind, Morris said.Compton of Avag aerial
applicators, said there are years when all of the planting is pushed into a
short time frame. This is usually due to rains at the time of field preparation
or high winds, which can blow seed to one edge of the field rather than
dropping to the bottom for cultivation
http://www.chicoer.com/general-news/20150531/water-shortages-mean-less-rice-planted-this-year
Rains swamp Mid-South crops
Jun
1, 2015 | Delta Farm Press
Don
Groth, LSU AgCenter plant pathologist, tells farmers in Vermilion Parish about
ways they can control diseases in rice this year. Heavy rainfall and cloudy
weather have hampered this year’s crop and created an ideal climate for disease
to flourish. (Photo by Bruce Schultz, LSU AgCenter)
Rain and more rain continue to dominate Mid-South agriculture
with delayed and prevented planting, loss of quality in wheat, delays to
fertilization and applications of herbicides. Here’s a look at current
conditions aross the region:
Louisiana
The LSU AgCenter Rice Research
Station at Crowley, La., usually gets 26 inches of rain between March 1 and the
end of July, but the total so far is 24 inches, according to Dustin Harrell,
AgCenter rice specialist.Midseason fertilizer applications have been
complicated by the wet ground that prevents airplanes from using airstrips,
Harrell said. Instead, pilots have been forced to use paved runways that are
often distant from fields, resulting in higher costs for aerial applications.He
said waiting seven to 10 days for a midseason fertilizer application should not
make a significant difference in a crop.
Don Groth, LSU AgCenter plant pathologist, told farmers that
they should be on the lookout for disease. “This is disease weather.”He said
leaf blast will be a problem for farmers if water accidentally drains from a
field, but restoring a flood will likely reduce the disease severity.Groth said
fungicide-resistant sheath blight has spread this year, with some reported
south of Lacassine and in east Evangeline Parish, increasing the likelihood
that the fungicide Sercadis will be needed by more farmers.• The news is worse
for soybeans. Ron Levy, LSU AgCenter soybean specialist, said the wet weather
has forced him to delay planting for many of his variety trials, and many
farmers are close to deciding not to plant a soybean crop.“It’s probably
getting to a point where we won’t see many soybeans planted in south
Louisiana,” Levy said.
Arkansas
• Wet weather continues to be the biggest issue for Arkansas
corn, says Jason Kelley, Arkansas wheat and feed grains specialist. “Many have
and are still struggling getting herbicides and sidedress nitrogen applied. The
earliest planted corn in far south Arkansas could be tasseling (the first week
of June) and the other extreme is producers contemplating planting more corn to
cover contracts.
“Corn is now rapidly growing and when it does stop raining I’m
afraid we are going to go from too wet to dry very quickly,” Kelley says.In
Northeast Arkansas, “the same weather pattern continues — we receive enough
rain to limit field work,” says Stewart Runsick, Clay County Extension agent.
“Many corn fields are turning yellow in areas and need some nitrogen. Some
applications of herbicide and fertilizer have gone out by air. Others are just
putting out a little nitrogen trying to buy some time until it dries up. Most
of the corn is V6 or bigger. We need a week of dry weather to get
finished up.
• At the end of May, Arkansas producers had plenty of rice ready
to go to flood. “Once again rice is nearing the end of the nitrogen application
window and we can’t find dry ground to put it on,” says Jarrod Hardke,
Extension rice specialist. In the latest Arkansas Rice
Update, Hardke and Trent Roberts, fertility specialist, discuss how
late is too late to plant rice and preflood nitrogen management issues.
• Steady rains over southeast Arkansas, combined with
overflowing tributaries heading toward the Mississippi River, caused the
northern portion of Chicot County to suffer severe flooding in the last week of
May.Much of the northern quarter of the county was under 6 to 7 inches of
water, said Gus Wilson, staff chair for the Chicot County Cooperative Extension
Service office in Lake Village.The northern quarter of the county, he said,
will likely suffer near-total crop loss due to the flooding and the timing of
the weather events.He added that even if the area receives no more rains, it
will probably be several weeks before fields are dry enough to begin
replanting.
http://deltafarmpress.com/rice/rains-swamp-mid-south-crops
Vietnam signs contracts to
export 3.2 million ton rice
Businesses have signed contracts to export over 3.28 million tons
of rice this year, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
yesterday.Many traders have temporarily stopped rice purchase in the Mekong
Delta due to export difficulties (Photo: SGGP)
Of these, 1.7 million tons worth US$738 million have been
delivered, down 20 percent in value and 18 percent in volume over the same
period last year.Rice export is now facing difficulties with few orders and low
prices. Key export markets of Vietnam including China, Malaysia and Indonesia
have halted import while the condition has not recovered in other
markets.Businesses and traders have reduced or even stopped rice purchase in
the Mekong Delta.According to the Cultivation Department, the Mekong Delta has
sowed 1.66 million hectares of summer autumn rice this crop, down over 8,300
hectares over the same period last year. The reduction is attributed to
unstable price which has caused farmers to convert rice crop into vegetable and
fruit farming.Despite the department has advised rice growers to seed less than
10 percent of the IR 50404 variety but the ratio has reached 24 percent. Many
farmers have cultivated without consumption contracts or orders from
businesses, signaling more difficulties in consumption in the upcoming time.
http://www.saigon-gpdaily.com.vn/Business/2015/6/113949/
Rice Dept to unveil 7 new breeds
of rice
Saturday,
30 May 2015
By NNT
Thailand’s Rice Department
will celebrate this year’s “Rice and Farmer’s Day” by unveiling seven new
strains of rice.Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn will
inaugurate this year’s ceremony and the department will unveil seven newly
approved breeds of rice. The new rice strains include indigenous breeds that
will soon be certified with Geographical Indicators as well as fast-growing
strains that can be utilized outside of the rainy season.The department
revealed that June 5 of every year is “Rice and Farmer’s Day,” as well as the
anniversary of the day when King Rama VIII, His Majesty King Ananda Mahidol,
and King Rama IX, His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, visited the rice farms
of Bang Khen district and sowed rice seeds into the fields. It is an auspicious
day for rice farming in Thailand and honors all rice farmers in the Kingdom.The
department Secretary-General revealed that there are currently 60 million rai
of rice paddies in the Kingdom, tended by approximately 17 million farmers.
Rice exports have generated approximately 200 billion baht in annual revenue.
http://www.pattayamail.com/news/rice-dept-to-unveil-7-new-breeds-of-rice-47560#sthash.p89YDHMs.dpuf
Thai Commerce Min warns legal
action against poor quality rice vendors
BY
EDITOR ON 2015-06-01 THAILAND
Min.
of Commerce warns legal action against poor quality rice vendors
BANGKOK, 1 June 2015, (NNT) – The Ministry of Commerce warns legal
action will be taken against vendors selling inferior quality rice.The warning
was made by the ministry’s Inspector-General Somchart Soithong, following
recent complaints of mobile rice retailers cutting standard or good quality
grains with low-grade stock.He asked the residents to alert the authorities,
while strongly recommending they only buy rice from trusted wholesalers, who
consistently offer quality grains.Meanwhile, President of the Swine Raisers
Association of Thailand Surachai Suthitham stated that the average farmer’s
market price of pork from April to May has increased by four baht from 62-63 baht
per kg to 66 – 67 baht per kg.He attributed the hike to the drought crisis, as
well as a 30 percent drop in number of piglets. Several ranches at the
beginning of the year suffered an outbreak of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea (PED)
Virus, especially in the northeastern region.However, the Association President
is convinced that pork prices would return to normal during the rainy season.
http://news.thaivisa.com/thailand/thai-commerce-min-warns-legal-action-against-poor-quality-rice-vendors/92647/
Paddy seed production provides supplementary income to farmers
Seed production enhances returns
for paddy cultivators in the wake of the growing demand for quality seeds, said
scientists at a day-long training programme on “production of quality paddy
seeds” organised at Krishi Vigyan Kendra at Vamban near here on Saturday.They
said that most farmers found it difficult to purchase quality seeds and, hence,
production of seeds of high-yielding varieties would go a long way in ensuring
more returns.L. Nirmala, Programme Co-ordinator, said that farmers should be
fully aware of the importance of season-specific demand for quality seeds.
For instance, during the
forthcoming ‘kuruvai’ season, the demand for quality Co-51 variety released by
the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University would be on the rise. “Being the short
duration fine variety, ‘kuruvai’ farmers will opt for this variety,” she said
appealing to farmers to produce seeds for such varieties.M. Kathiravan,
Assistant Professor Seed Sciences, in his power-point presentation, said seed
production fetched more income for farmers. For instance, quality seeds would
fetch a returns of up to Rs. 50,000 an acre.He said that April-May and
December-January were the two ideal ‘pattam’ when farmers could go in for
raising quality seeds.Selection of fields for raising paddy seeds was more
important. Fields where the same paddy variety had been raised earlier would be
more conducive. “Fields where other varieties had been harvested earlier often
cause variation in the characteristic and botanical behaviour of seeds,
resulting in quality of seeds,” he warned. The fields should be free from weeds
and pest attack.A question hour session was held in which farmers got their
doubts clarified.
“Farmers should be fully aware of the importance of
season-specific demand for quality seeds”
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/paddy-seed-production-provides-supplementary-income-to-farmers/article7269660.ece
DA seeks P11-B budget for rice program
(The Philippine Star) | Updated June 2, 2015 - 12:00am
The DA rice program is the banner program of the
government for increasing the production of the staple to
self-sufficiency level. File photo
MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Agriculture (DA) is
seeking a significant increase in its budget for its rice program to sustain
growth in production and step up climate change and disaster preparedness in
the sector.The DA is asking the National Government for around P11 billion next
year from the program’s budget of P6.6 billion this year.“We are asking for an
increase because this will address the issue of climate change, (production)
competitiveness and seed requirement,” said Edilberto de Luna, assistant
secretary for field operations and head of the National Rice Program.The DA
rice program is the banner program of the government for increasing the
production of the staple to self-sufficiency level.
De Luna said the budgetary increase would be used to expand the
scope of the Tier 1 of the national rice program which is focused on
maintaining and sustaining the 2015 target output levels of 20.09 million
metric tons (MT) and average yield of 4.09 metric tons per hectare.Tier 1 also
supports strategic longer-term investments for continued growth through
research and development, small-scale irrigation and extension capability
building.
Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
Under the proposed program expansion dubbed as Tier 2, the National
Rice Program would provide more interventions to “attain substantial
improvement on global competitiveness factors and for raising farmers’
income.”Under Tier 2, the National Rice Program aims to increase the resilience
of the rice sector to climate change. As such, services and benefits would be
extended to more rural groups and individuals.Proposed programs under Tier 2
includes the provision of enhanced production support services through the use
of high-yielding hybrid seeds, high quality seeds and improved disaster
risk reduction and management.Through its extension programs, the National Rice
Program will also promote the use of yield and production enhancement
technologies that promises increased yield of around 4.15 metric tons per
hectare.
The department will likewise maintain support for irrigation and
procurement of farm machineries and equipment through counterpart funding.“The
Tier 2 proposal is primarily directed in addressing the low competitiveness of
the local rice industry and the generally marginal income of farmers,” said de
Luna.“Addressing these macro issue has become urgent relative to food security
and poverty alleviation in the context of the Asean integration this 2015,” he
added.
http://www.philstar.com/business/2015/06/02/1461134/da-seeks-p11-b-budget-rice-program
India monsoon rains delayed, to arrive by
June 5-weather office
NEW DELHI, JUNE 1
This year's monsoon may arrive on India's southern Kerala coast
in the next five days as the rains have missed their normal start date of June
1, weather officials said on Monday.The annual rainy season is vital for India
as half its cropland lacks irrigation. The farm sector accounts for 15 percent
of India's $2 trillion economy.The rains support two-thirds of India's 1.25
billion population who live in rural areas and rely on farming.After arriving
over the Kerala coast, the monsoon starts its four-month long season."We
hope conditions will become favourable for the monsoon onset over the Kerala
coast on around June 5," said B.P. Yadav, director of the India
Meteorological Department (IMD).Last month, the weather office had forecast
that the monsoon would arrive on the Kerala coast on May 30, give or take four
days.
The monsoon arrived last year on June 6, a day after the
forecast and five days after the usual date, and the season ended with
deficient rains that trimmed grain output.The farm ministry has put in place
contingency plans for about 580 districts to meet any exigencies arising due to
a delay in the annual rains.The monsoon typically covers half of the country by
mid-June, and the entire country by mid-July, helping farmers to plant summer
crops such as rice, soybean, cane and cotton."Contingency plans contain
specific advisory to meet delay or deficiency in rains," said K.K. Singh,
head of the agromet division of the weather office.In April, the weather office
had forecast less than usual rainfall due to El Nino, an event marked by
warming of the sea surface water in the Pacific Ocean that can lead to droughts
in Asian countries like Australia and India.A research model of the Indian
Institute of Tropical Meteorology predicts a delay in the advance of the rains
towards soybean areas of central India by about a week due to the late start.
(Reporting by Ratnajyoti Dutta;
Editing by Robert Birsel)
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/01/india-monsoon-idUSL3N0YN32U20150601
Paddy crop to be cultivated
on more than 4.5m acres in Punjab
SIALKOT: The Punjab Agriculture
Department has announced that the paddy crop will be cultivated on more than
4.5 million acres of land during ‘Kharif’ season in the province.The
department’s officials said that paddy would be sown over 1.6 million acres of
land in Gujranwala division while 352,000 acres land would be brought under the
crop in Sialkot district. They said that in Sialkot district, the cultivation
of paddy has been reduced by 40,000 acres of land as compared to previous
year’s target due to lack of interest of farmers and unfavourable weather
conditions.The Agriculture department was making adequate efforts for creating
awareness among the growers about use of recommended seed to attain better
yield of the crop in the province, they added.The department has initiated a
well-knitted training programme for the paddy growers on the preparation of
nurseries and cultivation of paddy crop aimed at attaining the fixed target in
Punjab.
http://www.customstoday.com.pk/paddy-crop-to-be-cultivated-on-more-than-4-5m-acres-in-punjab/
Iran denies
plans to import rice
6/1/2015
Trend Daily Economic News
Trend Daily Economic News
Baku, Azerbaijan,
June 1
By Fatih Karimov - Trend: Iranian Deputy
Agriculture Minister Abbas Keshavarz denied reports on importing rice after the fasting month of Ramadan (to start
on June 18).Considering that sufficient amounts of rice have been stored, the importation of rice is still banned, Iran's IRIB quoted
Keshavarz as saying June 1.The importation of rice was banned in the last month of the past
Iranian fiscal year, ended on March 20, he noted.Deputy Head of Imports Commission of Iran's Chamber of Commerce,
Industries, Mines and Agriculture Mohammad Reza Safa has said that the Iranian
government has banned rice and sugar imports to support domestic producers.
"Iranian producers' production cannot meet
domestic demands, and we need to import. But currently there is enough rice and sugar in
the market, so we decided to banimports," he said.Based on
statistics of the Iran Customs Administration, the country imported 1.077 million metric tons of rice, worth $1.293
billion, in the first 11 months of the past Iranian fiscal year.
Rice imports decreased by 39.7 percent in weight and 38.55
percent in value compared to the same period in the fiscal year, ended in March
2014.
Edited by CN
http://www.world-grain.com/news/news%20home/LexisNexisArticle.aspx?articleid=2375612098
Midsayap irrigators laud DA for increased rice production
June 01, 2015
KORONADAL
CITY, South Cotabato, June 1 (PIA) -- In the past,
rice growers in Midsayap, North
Cotabato would be satisfied
if they harvested 80
sacks from each
hectare.But this, changed lately,
according these farmers,
after the Department of
Agriculture poured in several interventions to the town’s
irrigators’ associations.Dante Cudal, president of the Midsayap – Pigcawayan –
Libungan – Kabuntalan Federation of Irrigators’ Association (MPLKIA), said
since 2013 when
DA 12 started implementing projects , they have
been enjoying harvest of
up to 140 sacks
per hectare“MPLKIA received P17.4-M worth of projects from DA 12 from
2011 to 2014.
The biggest project given to us was the P16-M
Rice Processing Center (RPC( II,” Cudal disclosed.Besides the state-of-the-art
rice processing facility, the IA
federation also received four-wheel drive tractor (P1.3-M);, flatbed
dryer (P506, 000), and hand tractor (P106, 000). Another farmer-leader Danilo
Tacan, president of Libris 5 Chrislam Irrigators’ Association of Barangay San
Isidro also lauded DA’s farm mechanization program, which
he added has
resulted in 110-140 cavans per hectare
being enjoyed by their
members. Each cavan weighs 55 kilograms.“We received hand tractor
with trailer (P106, 000) and one floating tiller (P88, 000) from DA 12,” Tacan
said.Similar increase in rice production was also recorded by rice
grower-members of Settlers IA (SIA) of Barangay Lower Katingawan after being
granted with almost P1-M worth of farm machines and postharvest facility from
the Department.
Meanwhile,
Wilson Macoy, president of SIA, acknowledged DA 12 for giving them flatbed
dryer (P625, 000), rice thresher (P 95,
000), and power tiller (P93, 000) which they have been utilizing in bolstering
their farms’ productivity. These farm machines such as floating tiller
shortened the time spent for land preparation” Tacan remarked.
These farmer associatons also attributed the increase in rice
production in the improvement of their farm-to-market road for a more
convenient and faster transportation of products to the town’s market.Better
and quality road also reduced our transportation costs and improved our
mobility and even motivated us to increase our palay production which gives us
bigger incomes,” Cudal commented. Apart
from the aforementioned, members of these farmer
associations have also
been recipients of
certified seeds from
DA 12, which they
agreed has also
boosted their production
capacity that they added could
greatly contribute to the
achievement of the rice self-sufficiency goal of the national government.
With
these bountiful harvests,
farmer-members of the associations are
more confident they could send
their children to college and
provide for the basic needs of
their respective families.In their words, these farmer-leaders
have expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the Department of Agriculture led
by Secretary Proceso Alcala, and Regional Executive Director Amalia
Jayag-Datukan for addressing the needs of the farmers engaged in rice
farming.“I hope the DA will continue its undying service to the rice farmers,”
Cudal said challenging his fellow farmers to be proactive in submitting
proposals for their desired projects to the DA.Cudal also added that
“Department of Agriculture will always be our number one partner towards
community development.” (CRMatullano/LMSalvo-DA-RAFIS/DEDoguiles-PIA 12)
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1611433138045/midsayap-irrigators-laud-da-for-increased-rice-production#sthash.l6cSTMSn.dpuf
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