News Headlines...
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Call to ensure best use of cultivable land to
attain food security
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Ph one of world’s biggest rice importers, as
food producers go hungry
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FPCCI leader, minister discuss WHT, rice
millers' problems
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Pakistan rice losing place in global market
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Action plan in the works to promote nutritious
black rice grown in the northeast
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Gondia millers yet to deposit rice worth Rs 37
crore with government
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ICCI asks govt to bailout rice sector
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Chinese Rice protein powder Industry 2010 –
Market Analysis, Overview, Growth, Demand and Forecast Research Report 2020
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Pain balm from rice bran
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Population growth threatens PHL rice
self-sufficiency goal
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Beyond national borders
News Detail...
Call to ensure
best use of cultivable land to attain food security
RANGPUR, Oct 18 (BSS): Attaining sustainable national food security
despite the threat of climate change is possible through ensuring best use of
the cultivable land and latest technologies with newer cropping patterns to
enhance crop output.The issue of food security has become the most important
global issue, as the adverse impacts of climate change have been posing a
severe threat to agriculture, among many other sectors.
According to the agriculture and environment experts, there is no
alternative to increase production of foodgrain through making the best use of
cultivable land to ensure social peace, stability and harmony.Talking to the
news agency, renowned rice scientist and Adviser, Agriculture of BRAC
International (South Asia and Africa) Dr MA Mazid put emphasis on bringing
every inch of land under crop farming, as the cultivable land area continues to
shrink.
He said farmers should be trained and educated enough to cope with
untimely droughts, floods, lack of rains or heavy rains those have been
adversely affecting the agriculture sector hampering food production almost
everywhere in the world.There is no alternative to ensuring the best use of
land for food security through increasing crop yields at reduced costs, saving
water, facilitating crop intensification, quality seeds and remunerative
markets for the produce despite climate change, he added.
Agriculture and Environment Coordinator of RDRS Bangladesh Mamunur
Rashid stressed on acquainting the farmers with modern agriculture, providing
them with necessary facilities, quality seeds and inputs for increasing crop
production.He emphasised delivering conservation agriculture-based technologies
with adoption of innovative crop rotation in which crops are planted in
minimum, no-till or reduced tillage with some crop residue retention on soil
surfaces to reduce unproductive losses of water.
Side by side ensuring the best use of land, he suggested
introduction of short duration rice farming, cropping patterns like
rice-wheat-mungbean/jute, rice-potato-relay/maize, rice-vegetables-wheat and
rice-sugarcane with intercropping of garlic, onion/vegetables.
Horticulture Specialist of the Department of Agriculture Extension
(DAE) Khandker Md Mesbahul Islam stressed the need for ensuring the best use of
cultivable land adopting vegetables-based cropping pattern to enable farmers in
getting maximum profits of their produce.
He said a farmer can earn a net profit of up to Tk 0.10 million
(1.0 lakh) on an average from only 33 decimals of land through ensuring its
best use and proper cropping patterns, inputs and technologies to produce four
crops from the same land annually.He said the country's northern region has
been producing maximum quantity of vegetables to meet national demand and export
abroad to earn foreign exchange now with the prospect of earning higher amount.Executive
Director of Northbengal Institute of Development Studies Agriculturist Dr Syed
Samsuzzaman urged the agri-scientists to innovate stress-tolerant crop varieties
to keep food production increasing despite adverse climatic conditions.
Ph one
of world’s biggest rice importers, as food producers go hungry
50 3 77 0
“It is ironic that the rural people who are the primary food
producers are the ones who are experiencing lack of food and drastic hunger.”
MANILA – Peasant and fisherfolk
protested on World Food Day on Oct. 16, Friday, calling for genuine agrarian
reform, which, they said, will solve hunger.They protested in front of the
Department of Agriculture’s office in Quezon City holding placards bearing
calls such as “Pagkain
hindi bala! Lupa sa nagbubungkal! (Food not bullets! Land to the tiller!) A
farmer carried an empty pot to depict hunger in the countryside.“It is ironic
that the rural people who are the primary food producers are the ones
experiencing lack of food and hunger,” said Salvador France, vice chairperson
of fisherfolk group Pamalakaya. “This has been a running nightmare especially
for the fisherfolk and farmers all over the country.”France said that based on
the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data, these are the top two sectors
with the highest poverty incidence.
Peasant groups called for the
enactment of the Genuine Agrarian Reform bill (Garb), and a stop to the
smuggling of imported rice.Engineer Ronald Garcia, an agricultural engineer and
member of Advocates of Science and Technology for the People (Agham), said the
2015 theme for World Food Day — “Social Protection and agriculture: breaking
the cycle of rural poverty” — is in sharp contrast with the situation of
Philippine agriculture.Garcia criticized the 2011-2016 Food Staples
Self-sufficiency Roadmap (FSSR) program of the Aquino government which targeted
100 percent rice self-sufficiency.
Peasant and fisherfolk protested
on World Food Day on Oct. 16, Friday, calling for genuine agrarian reform,
which, they said, will solve hunger. (Contributed photo/ Bulatlat.com)
However, he said the Philippines remains one of the top net importers of rice in
the world, importing 1.6 million metric tons of rice in 2014. This
year’s rice imports is projected to increase further.
Free irrigation bill
Anakpawis Rep. Fernando Hicap,
meanwhile, pushed for free irrigation services for farmers through House Bill 6224,
or the Free Irrigation Services Bill.Irrigation is one of the primary factors
for the growth of agricultural productivity, Hicap said, and food security is
impossible without free irrigation service in the country.“The agriculture
sector is the backbone of the national economy as the country remains
agricultural, where farmers and farm workers, who comprise the vast majority of
the population, till the lands for their livelihood and for the benefit of the
entire nation,” Hicap said.
The National Irrigation
Administration (NIA) reported that as of 2014, only 57 percent of the targeted
three million hectares had irrigation, with 1.3 million hectares still without
irrigation.
Hicap said the huge budget of the
National Irrigation Administration does not benefit farmers. The NIA even
charges for the irrigation. The proposed NIA budget was increased from P28
billion ($622 million) in 2015 to the proposed P33 billion ($709 million) for
2016.
Hicap said irrigation fees add to
the cost of rice production, with farmers bearing the high cost of fuel for
water pumps. Many just depend on the rain, and eventually, “go bankrupt and
lose their lands.”Hicap called for a stop to the collection of irrigation fees,
as proposed by HB 6224. He said the budget for construction, repair and
maintenance of national irrigation systems should be included in the General
Appropriations Act.
Peasant and fisherfolk protested
on World Food Day on Oct. 16, Friday, calling for genuine agrarian reform,
which, they said, will solve hunger. (Contributed photo/ Bulatlat.com)
“To move on the path towards food security and rice
self-sufficiency, we challenge President Aquino’s government to immediately
pass this bill and take control of the dams to irrigate the farms across the
country,” Hicap said.
Water as priced commodity
Agham’s Garcia said the
“Philippines is the only country in Asia where farmers pay for irrigation
services, in line with World Bank’s policy to treat water resources as a priced
commodity.He said the government has continued to neglect its obligation to
provide agricultural inputs and utilities to help farmers in the face of
calamities, such as the El Niño phenomenon.In Basey, Samar, where Agham
recently conducted an agriculture productivity assessment, irrigation facilities
built during the Ramos regime remained unused, and farms still rely on rain,
Garcia said.
He said that in the face of heavy
losses suffered by farmers due to El Niño, the government has turned to rice
importation to feed the country.“Instead of providing needed support to boost
local production such as the provision of farm implements, access to improved
seed varieties and water supply, the government has shown its total dependence
on global policies of rice liberalization,” Garcia said.The government, he
said, must take drastic action and prioritize the needs of Filipino farmers.
“It must seriously consider lifting irrigation fees, especially now when water
is expected to be badly needed, to increase local agricultural productivity.
Irrigation facilities must be rehabilitated to ensure a steady supply of water
during dry season.”
He said agricultural technologies
are available to help mitigate the impact of El Niño on farmers. These include
the diversification of cropping systems to increase food resources and improve
soil productivity, varietal improvement of drought- and pest-resistant seeds,
and community-based weather and climate monitoring systems.“Farmers can only
realize full agricultural productivity, however, if genuine agrarian reform
coupled with national industrialization will take place. It is only through
this that farmers are fully enabled to withstand the impacts of El Niño,”
Garcia said.
http://bulatlat.com/main/2015/10/17/ph-one-of-worlds-biggest-rice-importer-as-food-producers-go-hungry/#sthash.Lau95qv0.dpuf
FPCCI leader, minister discuss WHT, rice millers' problems
October 17, 2015
RECORDER REPORT
The chairman of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce
and Industry (FPCCI) Regional called on Provincial Minister for Finance Ayesha
Ghaus Pasha on Friday and discussed issues being faced by the business
community. Chairman Khawaja Zarar Kaleem, who is also Vice President, was
accompanied by his Pakistan Rice Mills Association counterpart, Ahmad Mukhtar. They discussed about the withholding
tax on banking transactions and rice millers' problems. The minister assured
trade representatives that their fears and misunderstandings would be addressed
appropriately and made it clear that the tax was only applicable to non-filers
and the business community should have a clear understanding about it. "Pakistan's rice trade is facing
severe challenges following the rising costs of agricultural inputs and its
export may sharply decline during this fiscal year," warned Chairman
Kaleem. "The rice export trade, the second largest earner of the valuable
foreign exchange for the country, is continually being neglected by the federal
government.
" He told the
minister, "Owing to the high costs of agricultural inputs including
fertiliser, electricity, water and lack of seeds development, Pakistan's rice
is uncompetitive in international market, especially the basmati varieties.
Presently, Indian rice exporters are offering as low as the $300 per metric
tonne price for the basmati rice in the world market. As the prices of Indian rice
are much lower than those in Pakistan, major importing countries and
international buyers are switching to the Indian rice. "We have stocks of some 0.5
million tonnes of rice having a value of more than a billion dollars of the
previous year's crop, while a new crop paddy arrival is expected in the market
by October end. It is an alarming situation for the rice trade as previous
stocks are still lying in the godowns and the new crop will arrive in the next
two weeks, resulting in losses to farmers. Under the current situation,
exporters are not in a position to buy paddy from farmers because of a shortage
of cash flow as their finance limit have already been choked."
His Pakistan Rice Mills Association counterpart then demanded,
"Rice farmers will not get a good price of their commodity because of
availability of previous stocks in the market, therefore, the government should
take some immediate measures to support them. We [the exporters] are even not
in a position to return dues of export refinance facility instantly, because
rice is still in millers' stock and financial charges on these stocks are daily
increasing the cost." Their
Regional Standing Committee on Rice counterpart, Muhammad Yousaf, too mentioned
the problems, saying that to save the rice stocks from pesticides we
"would need regular fumigation" to avoid damage to commodity,
resulting in an additional burden on the exporters.
He said last month the premier did convene a top level meeting
with all leading exporting sectors, including rice. During that meeting, a
business community delegation presented a detailed proposal to protect the
farmers and exporters from huge losses, but none of the demands were accepted
then. He then made plain the main
demand, "Our major demand is the withdrawal of the 3.5 percent tax on
local purchase of rice and repayment of export refinance loans in 360 days,
instead of the current 180 days. We demand that the Rice Research Institute
work on a mage project to reduce the input cost and increase the yield and quality
of the Pakistani rice so that the cost of paddy will be reduced and the
exporters can compete in the world market. "In
addition, to protect the basmati rice export trade, Pakistan must focus on the
markets of Iran and Saudi Arabia since these are the major importing countries
of the basmati rice. A legal and official banking channel should be developed
that can help start the official rice export to the neighbouring country, Iran,
which has already lifted a ban on the commodity import from Pakistan."
http://www.brecorder.com/taxation/181/1237194/
Pakistan rice
losing place in global market
October
17, 2015/ 3
Lahore
- Owing to high cost of agricultural inputs including fertiliser, electricity,
water and lack of seeds development, Pakistan’s rice has become uncompetitive
in international market especially Basmati varieties. Presently, Indian rice
exporters are offering as low as $300 per Metric Ton price for Basmati rice in
the world market. As the prices of Indian rice were much lower than Pakistan,
major importing countries and international buyers were switching to Indian
rice. This was stated by Ahmad Mukhtar, Chairman of Pakistan Rice Mills
Association (PRMS) during a meeting with Provincial Minister for Finance
Dr. Ayesha Ghaus Pasha here at FPCCI regional office.
The
Minister assured the trade representatives that their fears, apprehensions and
misunderstandings will be addressed appropriately. The Provisional Finance
Minister reiterated that the levy of withholding tax was only applicable to the
non-filers and the business community should have a clear understanding of this
fact. Ahmed Mukhtar said that millers have rice
stocks of some 0.5 million tons rice, having a value of more than a billion
dollar, of previous year’s crop, while new crop paddy arrival is expected in
the market by October-end,” he said, adding that it was an alarming situation
for the rice trade as previous stocks were still lying in the godowns and new
crop would arrive in next two weeks, resulted in losses to the growers.
“In the
current situation, exporters are not in a position to buy paddy from growers
due to shortage of cash flow as their finance limit have already been choked.
It believed that rice growers will not get a good price of their commodity due
to availability of previous stocks in the market, therefore the government
should take some immediate measurers to support the growers,” Ahmad Mukhtar
Chairman of Pakistan Rice Mills Association (PRMS) demanded. “Exporters
are even not in the position to pay back dues of export refinance facility
instantly because rice is still in millers’ stock and financial charges on
these stocks are daily increasing the cost,” he mentioned.Muhammad Yousaf
Chairman of FPCCI Regional Standing Committee on “Rice” said that in order to
save the rice stocks from pesticides, it needed regular fumigation to avoid
damage of commodity, resulted in an additional burden on the exporters.
http://nation.com.pk/business/17-Oct-2015/pakistan-rice-losing-place-in-global-market
Action plan in the works to promote nutritious black
rice grown in the northeast
NEW DELHI: White rice may rule the domestic and
international markets with the famous 'Basmati' variety having pride of place,
but in the near future it is black rice from the northeast that may win hearts
of consumers due to its nutritional value and health benefits. Black rice is mainly grown and
consumed in Manipur where it is called 'Chakhao'. Famous for its pleasant nutty
flavor, this little known rice variety has, however, started entering the world
market through China which cultivates it both for local consumption and export. Waking up to the need to promote the
variety which already has a market in USA, Australia and European countries,
India's premier agricultural research institute is set to suggest an action
plan to the government on how to promote black rice and other varieties.The plan is expected to not only earn foreign exchange
for the country but also improve the condition of farmers in the northeast and
elsewhere.
Setting the stage for such a move,
chief of Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) Trilochan Mohapatra on
Friday threw a question at a gathering of eminent scientists here at a
conference on the occasion of World Food Day when he asked whether they
(scientists) were leaving out other regions (non-Basmati rice producing areas)
in their research. "There
has to be a concrete action plan (to promote other varieties of rice from other
regions). I believe this conference will throw light on the issue in next two
days", said Mohapatra in what is largely believed to be a move to push
other unique rice varieties, having high nutritional value, through government
intervention. In value terms,
India exports rice worth over Rs 40,000 crore with the maximum foreign exchange
coming to the country through export of Basmati variety.
Though the country has done
exceedingly well with arrival of a new Basmati variety (Pusa-1509), the idea is
to increase the share of other varieties of rice as well in the international
markets. Head of the IARI's
genetics division, A K Singh, who was the chief breeder of the popular and
hugely successful Pusa-1509 variety of Basmati rice, admitted the importance of
promoting other unique variety like black rice as well for larger interest of
farmers in different regions. Singh told the TOI: "Black rice has
medicinal value. Being rich in decease-fighting antioxidants, it is anti
cancerous as well".
Other scientists, assembled here for
the conference on "promoting exportable rice varieties and evolving a
sustainable development model", too pledged to promote all such varieties
including black rice which got pushed into the background over the years. Joint director (research) of the IARI,
K V Prabhu, too felt the need to promote different local varieties through
government's intervention. He said the institute would suggest to the
government how to go about it after taking into view the deliberations of the
conference, organized jointly by the institute and the Voluntary Action for
Research Development and Networking (VARDAN). The
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) too has of late, started
promoting the unique aspect of these varieties on various discussion platforms.
Gondia millers yet to deposit rice worth Rs 37 crore with
government
BHANDARA: Chief minister
Devendra Fadnavis will be in Gondia on Saturday for inauguration of an
exhibition organized by the Gondia District Rice Millers Association. Thirty
members of the association, which has organized the event on a large-scale with
100 stalls, are liable for not depositing one lakh quintal of rice worth Rs37
crore with the government since last five years.
The Maharashtra State Cooperative Tribal
Development Corporation had given paddy to the 30 rice millers in financial
years 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13. As per the agreement, the rice, known as
Custom Mill Rice (CMR), was to be deposited with government godowns within 15
days from receiving the paddy from the government. On failure to do so, the
millers were supposed to pay 15% interest per annum of the rice cost. The
agreement also mentioned that criminal proceedings will be initiated against
the millers or their immovable assets will be seized and bank guarantee
forfeited if they fail to fulfil the conditions.However, the millers have neither
deposited the rice nor its cost till date. Thought the state government had
issued directives to the district collector to initiate criminal proceedings
against the millers, the order was withdrawn under pressure from the rice
millers lobby.Gondia district supply officer Prashant Kale said the quality
control report of CMR is awaited. "As soon as the report is received, the
millers will be asked to deposit the rice with government godowns," he
said. President of Gondia District Rice Millers Association Ashok Agrawal said
they are ready to deposit the CMR but the government is unwilling to accept it.
Times of India
ICCI
asks govt to bailout rice sector
Updated about Oct 16, 2015
The millers are unable to pay bank loans or clear
outstanding amount to the farmers therefore Government and State Bank have
extended date of their repayments until June 2016 but banks continue to harass
rice millers to recover 30.5 billion rupees loans.Atif Ikram said that farmers
are pushed to sell their yield at reduced price due to oversupply which is
inflicting loss up to Rs 50000 per acre that is highly discouraging. The
ICCI president said that government should increase subsidy or announce support
price to save farmers from market shocks.Price of all varieties of rice
continue to fall from the last two years but its benefit has not been
transferred to masses, he lamented.
http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/index.php?page=newsdetail&news_id=1351#sthash.38GbBUok.dpuf
Chinese
Rice protein powder Industry 2010 – Market Analysis, Overview, Growth, Demand
and Forecast Research Report 2020
Firstly, the report provides a basic overview of the industry
including its definition, applications and manufacturing technology. Then, the
report explores the international and Chinese major industry players in detail.
In this part, the report presents the company profile, product specifications,
capacity, production value, and 2010-2015 market shares for each company.
Through the statistical analysis, the report depicts the global and Chinese
total market of Rice protein powder industry including capacity, production,
production value, cost/profit, supply/demand and Chinese import/export.
The total market is further divided by company, by country, and
by application/type for the competitive landscape analysis. The report then
estimates 2015-2020 market development trends of Rice protein powder industry.
Analysis of upstream raw materials, downstream demand, and current market
dynamics is also carried out. In the end, the report makes some important
proposals for a new project of Rice protein powder Industry before evaluating
its feasibility.
http://www.medgadget.com/2015/10/chinese-rice-protein-powder-industry-2010-market-analysis-overview-growth-demand-and-forecast-research-report-2020.html
Pain balm from rice bran
October 18,2015, 04.21 AM IST | | THE HANS INDIA
Novel
gel from Indian Institute of Rice Research-Hyderabad to hit markets soon
Rice bran oil contains various antioxidants
including-oryzanol He said the present invention had provided compositions
containing analgesic or anti-inflammatory agents dissolved in fast absorbing
rice bran oil for quick penetration of the active components.Explaining the
composition of the product, Dr Azam said one aspect of the present invention
relates to a topical preparation for pain relief in humans, wherein methyl
salicylate, camphor, menthol, eucalyptus oil, and clove oil were combined
together to enhance the pain relief features. Moreover, rice bran oil would
absorb quickly into the skin, so the penetration of the pain relief components
of the composition is also quick.
Referring to the benefits of the pain
relieving gel, the Scientist said the product is an herbal formulation
containing rice bran oil as a carrier. Rice bran oil also contained various
skin beneficial ingredients that help in revitalising the skin and keeping skin
smooth, supple and soft, protecting skin from environmental pollution,
minimising the effects of sunburn and chapping and reducing the effects of
dryness. The composition of the present
invention is new, very safe, eco-friendly and would not produce any harmful
effects.Regarding feedback, he said 50 persons, both male and female, were
provided with 50 g sample of pain relief composition, all users reported that
they were extremely satisfied with the the product. They got immediate relief
from muscle pain/sprain/joint pain, he said.
Dr
Azam said commercially available topical compositions were often used to treat
sore muscles, pain associated with the joints of a body, arthritis and other
similar conditions. Many of these topical compositions were thick and have a
heavy texture. Such products typically would take a considerable amount of time
to reach the desired area of treatment.He said the composition also provided in
the treatment of arthritis in elderly patients, tendonitis, neuralgia, and
sports-related injuries. Overall, because of fast absorbing properties of rice
bran oil in the skin, active ingredients of the formulation also get absorbed
quickly and provide quick relief from pain.
By:V Naveen Kumar
http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/2015-10-18/Pain-balm-from-rice-bran-181416
Population growth threatens PHL rice self-sufficiency
goal
October 19, 2015
First of three parts
The current El Niño episode may have been the single biggest
factor behind the decision of the government to import more rice for this year
and 2016. In the next five years, however, experts warned that the increase in
the country’s population would make it more difficult for the Philippines to
avoid the international rice market.The drought caused by El Niño has forced
the Philippines to front-load its importation of 500,000 metric tons (MT) of
rice fornext year. The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said
the government is looking to buy an additional 1 million metric tons
(MMT) of imported rice for 2016.
Neda, chair of the interagency Food Security Committee on Rice,
said the government is stockpiling rice as the dry spell could cut rice output
for the years 2015 and 2016 by 25 percent. Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio
M. Balisacan said this is on a par with the damage caused by El Niño in the
years 1997 and 1998.While the National Food Authority (NFA) Council has yet to
approve the purchase of the additional 1 MMT of imported rice, experts said the
Philippines may have done the right thing in purchasing rice from abroad this
year. Samarendu Mohanty, head of the International Rice Research Institute’s
(Irri) Social Sciences Division, said the price of rice in the international
market currently remains stable. But Mohanty warned that prices could go up
next year as El Niño ravages other rice-producing countries in Asia.
Mohanty noted that some areas of India are experiencing drought
and El Niño’s damage on rice crops will not be known until the end of the
month. Meanwhile, planting season in Indonesia will also start by the end of
October.
“The price of rice could rebound by 15 [percent] to 20 percent
in the next three months if rice crops in India and Indonesia are affected by
El Niño. The two countries are not the most affected by El Niño but they could
decide the price,” he said in an interview at the sidelines of the Asean
Rice Future Forum held in Vietnam from October 14 to 16.“There is [also] concern
that the stock level of five exporters have gone down significantly much lower
than what it was three years ago. This might influence market direction and
cause prices to go up. This could happen next year,” Mohanty added.
More Filipinos in 5 years
The current El Niño has made paddy rice production more
challenging in the Philippines. Lower water levels in the country’s big
dams have discouraged farmers from planting rice. This is because producing one
of kilogram of palay requires some 1,500 liters of water.Apart from the
vagaries of weather, the expansion of the country’s population to 112 million
in 2020 could make it more difficult for the Philippines to wean itself away
from rice imports. Dr. Suthad Setboonsarng, member of Irri’s Board of Trustees,
said in his presentation before the Asean Rice Future Forum, that the
10.6-million increase in the country’s population in five years could force the
Philippines to import more rice.
According to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, each
Filipino consumes about 114 kg of rice. This means that the Philippines needs
to produce nearly 11.6 MMT of milled rice every year just to fill the
requirements of its population. This does not yet include the buffer stock that
the NFA is required to maintain every month.In a joint report released by the
Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development and Food and Agriculture
Organization, the country’s rice imports could increase by an average of 4
percent a year from 2015 to 2024.Setboonsarng said the increase in the
population of the Philippines and other countries in Asia would affect future
rice market. In the next five years, he said global population will increase by
433 million. Of this figure, 50 percent will come from Asia, while Africa will
account for 34 percent.
“Aside from higher rice consumption due to an increase in
population, less and aging farmers, urbanization, and the deterioration of rice
farm lands would affect the rice market,” he said.Setboonsarng said the
increase in population, as well as changes in global rice production would have
a major impact on Asean. By 2024, five Asean countries would be classified as
net rice exporters, while five others would be considered net rice importers.
The Philippines is projected to remain as a net rice importer.The Philippine
government, however, did not want to remain dependent on rice imports. Because
of its experience in 2008, the Arroyo administration was forced to target
“self-sufficiency” in rice. At the time, the Philippines was forced to buy
imported rice at $1,000 per metric ton (MT) due to tight global supply.The
Philippines produced 16.24 million tons of palay in 2007, representing a
6-percent growth over the 2006 palay production. Despite the jump in
production, it was not enough and the government had to scramble for stocks to
augment local supply. Population growth, the increasing consumption of rice,
and the need to beef up buffer stock for emergencies like calamities,
necessitated
the importation of 2.3 million tons of rice in 2008.
the importation of 2.3 million tons of rice in 2008.
As soon as President Aquino assumedoffice in 2010,
Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala had declared that the Philippines would
remain focused on achieving its rice self-sufficiency bid. To achieve this, the
government poured money into the farm sector, with the rice subsector cornering
a huge chunk of the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) annual budget. From 2011
to 2015, the DA received a total of P339 billion, the highest budget it has
been allocated within a span of five years.The increase in budget allowed the
DA to rehabilitate irrigation facilities and expand irrigated areas. This and
other interventions such as the use of high-yielding seeds, Alcala said,
increased the country’s rice self-sufficiency level to 96 percent from 82 percent
in 2010.
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/population-growth-threatens-phl-rice-self-sufficiency-goal/
Beyond national borders
Brac running its development
programmes in 11 countries, serving millions
Fazle Hasan Abed
Sir Abed, who was knighted by the
British Crown in 2009, founded Brac, the organisation originally known as
Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee, as a temporary relief organisation to
help the country recover from the 1970 typhoon that killed about 500,000 people
and the subsequent war in 1971 to win independence from Pakistan.Brac has grown
into the world's largest non-governmental organisation focused on alleviating
poverty -- estimated to have helped more than 150 million people out of poverty
in Africa and Asia.On Thursday night, Sir Abed was awarded the 2015 World Food
Prize for his outstanding contribution to enhancing the world's production and
distribution of food to those most in need. The prestigious prize, known as
Nobel Prize for food and agriculture, was conferred on him at an event at the
Iowa State Capitol Building in Iowa, USA. The award includes a cash prize of $
250,000.
“I must acknowledge that the award
does not belong to me alone, it is the recognition of Brac's work over the last
43 years in providing pathways out of poverty for millions of people in
Bangladesh and other countries in Africa and Asia,” said Abed, receiving the
award.The global reach of Brac, is unprecedented, with more than 110,000
employees around the world, and a further 150,000 BRAC-trained entrepreneurs
providing low-cost goods and services (such as seeds, medicine and training) to
their rural neighbours.In Bangladesh, Brac-developed agricultural and food
security programmes (AFSP) have helped over half a million farmers gain access
to efficient farming techniques, proven technologies and financial support
services.
Through farmers' participation in
field demonstrations and training, these programmes have helped increase yields
through crop intensification, research and development on new seed varieties
and provision of quality seeds at fair prices.Talking to The Daily Star
yesterday, Brac Executive Director Muhammad Musa said, "At Brac we work
with the farmers, we work for the farmers. We try to link them up with the
market. We operate farmers' field school."
In 2001, Brac initiated an
agricultural credit programme through the north-west crop diversification project.
Coordinating all activities on agricultural research, development, agricultural
credit and marketing, a new agriculture and food security programme (AFSP) was
launched in 2009.The goal of the programme is to contribute to achieving food
security and the reduction of hunger and malnutrition through increased
environmentally sustainable agricultural production.In the present phase, Brac
has made significant impact on improving the livelihood status of more than
88,000 farm households in areas vulnerable to climate change.
Brac carries out participatory
experiments with farmers to test the validity of using certain technology and
to efficiently deliver cutting-edge agriculture and aquaculture practices to
ecologically adverse regions. Brac seeks to convert single-crop areas to double
or triple-crop by introducing stress-tolerant and high value crop varieties.To
help achieve food security, Brac has also initiated three agricultural
microfinance projects: Borgachashi
Unnoyon Prokolpo (BCUP) for tenant farmers, the north-west diversification
project (NCDP), and the secondary-crop diversification project (SCDP), each
offering a combination of credit, savings, access to productive assets, and
training.
In 2014, Brac added over 70,000
members to the projects. Brac provided loans to 402,000 borrowers, and
agricultural training to 309,000 men and women. The project takes a 'credit
plus' approach that combines access to customised loans of USD 200 - 1500,
savings products, and technical training. It supports ventures ranging from
vegetable cultivation, livestock, duck and poultry farming, aquaculture, as
well as investments in land, and agricultural machinery.
Brac has initiated research and
development activities on hybrid rice and maize since the inception of hybrid
rice research and development activities in Bangladesh. It introduced parent
materials from China and evaluated it under Bangladesh conditions. Brac
released over a dozen of hybrid rice, maize and vegetable varieties.Brac is
credited for pioneering and promoting maize cultivation in Bangladesh, thereby
establishing the poultry feed industry, which has previously been fully
dependent on imported maize.Members of the Brac family told The Daily Star that
Sir Abed's winning the food prize is also an honour for Bangladesh and it
should encourage all working for the cause of food security and nutrition.
The World Food Prize was conceived
by Dr Norman E Borlaug, recipient of the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize. Since 1986,
The World Food Prize has honoured outstanding individuals who have made vital
contributions to improving the quality, quantity or availability of food
throughout the world.Other past prize winners include Nobel Peace Prize winner
Dr Muhammad Yunus, pioneer of Indian green revolution Prof MS Swaminathan,
pioneer of hybrid rice Professor Yuan Longping of China, former president of
Brazil Luis Inácio Lula Da Silva, ex-President of Ghana John Kufour, US
Senators Bob Dole and George McGovern, and former Executive Director of the
United Nations World Food Programme Catherine Bertini.
