Pak-Iran trade
hostage to failed trade diplomacy: PBIF
February 20, 2016
KARACHI: Pakistan Businessmen and
Intellectuals Forum (PBIF) on Friday said Pakistan and Iran could become
important trading partners for which serious efforts are needed.
Gas import deal that was to bring a revolution in the Pakistan's energy market is still under sanctions, therefore the two countries should ink new energy deals, it said.Bilateral trade, which was once $1 billion, has now come down to $128 million despite the agreement between both countries to boost trade to $5 billion, said PBIF President Mian Zahid Hussain. He said that sliding exports reflects the failure of trade diplomacy on the part of Pakistani authorities despite the fact that Pakistani rice, fruit, vegetable, sports goods and IT services are in demand in the neighbouring nations.
Gas import deal that was to bring a revolution in the Pakistan's energy market is still under sanctions, therefore the two countries should ink new energy deals, it said.Bilateral trade, which was once $1 billion, has now come down to $128 million despite the agreement between both countries to boost trade to $5 billion, said PBIF President Mian Zahid Hussain. He said that sliding exports reflects the failure of trade diplomacy on the part of Pakistani authorities despite the fact that Pakistani rice, fruit, vegetable, sports goods and IT services are in demand in the neighbouring nations.
Hussain said that the government as well as private sector should initiate efforts to boost trade, which include opening of banking channels that are currently under sanctions and improved transport infrastructure.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/business/20-Feb-2016/pak-iran-trade-hostage-to-failed-trade-diplomacy-pbif
Writ Plea from Madhya Pradesh
Seeks Quashing of IPAB Order on Basmati Rice
Published: 18th February 2016 04:01 AM
Last Updated: 18th February 2016 04:01 AM
CHENNAI: The State of Madhya Pradesh, through its Additional Director of
Agriculture, has moved the Madras High Court with a writ petition seeking
quashing of an order, dated February 5, 2016, of the City-based Intellectual
Property Appellate Board (IPAB).The February 5 order, among other things, held
that the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority
(APEDA), a statutory body in New Delhi, is entitled to get Geographical
Indications (GI) tag for Basmati rice in respect of the area and region
specified in the certified copies of the maps annexed with its GI application
No 145 and consequently, the Assistant Registrar, GI Registry, Chennai, shall
proceed with the registration and issue the certificate of registration within
four weeks.The writ petition came up before the first bench of Chief Justice SK
Kaul and Justice MM Sundresh on Wednesday.
The bench ordered notice to the IPAB, APEDA, Assistant Registrar
of GI and others. It also directed that, till a decision is taken on the writ
petition, no precipitating action will be taken by APEDA in respect of the
produce from the State of Madhya Pradesh quo the existing areas where such rice
is alleged to have been growing.Petitioner’s senior counsel submitted that the
issue of inclusion of certain areas of MP as Basmati rice growing areas would
have to be examined by the Assistant Registrar of Geographical Indications in
view of the impugned order of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB)
and there were already directions to conclude that aspect within six months.
The issue which is sought to be raised before the Bench, as per
the submissions made, is that certain States have been included in toto, while
actually what should have been included was certain specified areas of those
States where the cultivation of Basmati rice goes on. It is the counsel’s
contention that such a plea was not capable of being raised in the proceedings
before the Assistant Registrar of GI and can be raised before this court as a
consequent of the impugned order.
APEDA senior counsel stated that the petitioner never assailed
the earlier order of the Assistant Registrar of GI dated December 31, 2013 and
had thus lost the right to raise the issue as otherwise they could always raise
it before the Assistant Registrar of GI, subject to the meeting of the terms
and conditions required for raising such an objection.The aforesaid is the
limited controversy which will have to be examined by this court as agreed to
by both the sides. Let counters be filed by the parties to the case restricting
to the aforesaid aspects within three weeks, the
bench said. Rejoinder if any be filed within two weeks thereafter, the bench
added and posted the matter for April 5
The Indian Express
Is Iran’s Comeback a Double-Edged
Sword for India?
Iran’s reengagement promises both more opportunity and more
competition for India.
By Soyen Park
February 21, 2016
Since 2014, buoyed by the economic pitch of Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, India has been in the global economic spotlight. In
2016, however, at least some of the focus will shift to Iran, as it rejoins the
global economy following the lifting of sanctions. What does this new Iran
really mean for India? As much as it can benefit from a more open Iran, India
will also face some more serious competition, from both Iran and its potential
partners.There is no doubt that India will benefit from cheaper commodity
prices and an Iranian shopping spree.
With Iran boosting its oil production and exports amid a global
supply glut, major crude oil importers like India will benefit immensely from
the cheaper oil. For India, cheaper oil helps it to reduce its import bill,
reducing trade and current account deficits. The Indian government has already
taken the opportunity to hike excise duties on fuels, which are expected to
yield additional government revenue at a time of fiscal consolidation.
But Iran’s comeback means more than just cheaper oil and better
fiscal position. Besides agro and allied products, which have been India’s
biggest exports to Iran, exports of Indian pharmaceuticals, IT, commodities,
and general goods are all expected to increase. The Indian government is moving
swiftly to expand trade ties with Iran. During the second meeting of the Joint Working Group on Trade
and Commerce in November 2015, Iran and India agreed “to open up a channel for
exchange of information” to start preliminary consultations for a preferential
trade agreement (PTA).Indian companies are also expected to play a greater role
in Iran’s infrastructure projects.
In fact, Iran hasasked India to invest $8 billion in infrastructure
projects, particularly in connectivity plans. India has already signed a
memorandum of understanding with Iran to develop the strategic Chabahar port and pledged to invest about $85
million. India is also keen to develop Iran’s railways, participating in the
Chahbahar-Zahedan-Mashhad railway line as well as supplying rail tracks,
rolling stock, signaling and other equipment.Energy is another area where India
is seeking for greater access. During the 18th session of the India-Iran Joint
Commission in December 2015, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj conveyed India’s interest in exploring Iranian
oil and gas blocks and asked Iran to allow India to develop Farzad-B gas field,
which was discovered by a consortium of Indian companies in 2008.
More Competition
Despite the much-hyped expectations of opportunities in
post-sanctions Iran, India is likely to face more competition in engaging with
Iran. During sanctions, India was one of the few countries that continued trade
links with Iran. Food, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment were explicitly
excluded under the sanctions, and Iran imported basmati rice, sugar, soymeal,
corn and other products from India, whose exports to Iran almost doubled in the
years since 2011. With the sanctions lifted, however, Iran now has more options
for both its exports and its imports – all major exporting countries are keen
to tap the Iranian market. China moved first when President Xi Jinping visited
Iran last month to expand trade and strengthen ties. On February 15, a cargo
train from China arrived in Tehran in an attempt to revive the ancient Silk
Road. This will only buttress Iran’s geostrategic position.
Competing with others in the Iranian market is not the only
concern. India now will have to compete with Iran itself for foreign
investment. Less than two weeks after sanctions were lifted, Iranian President
Hassan Rouhani signed megadeals worth billions during his state visit to
Europe. Iran now expects to attract up to $50 billion in foreign investment and
finance in the next fiscal year, which begins on March 20.
The upsurge of global interest in the Iranian market is clearly
evident. China and Europe are already racing to get a slice of the pie. A
bilateral investment pact between Japan and Iran was signed early this month,
while Joint Economic Committee meeting between Iran and South Korea will be held tomorrow with the expectation of signing more
than 15 agreements. With Iran emerging as the next frontier for investment,
India is no longer a sure thing to remain the world’s most favored investment
destination when U.S.
primary sanctions against Iran are lifted.Iran’s reengagement with the world
certainly promises great opportunities to India. However, India is not the sole
beneficiary, and New Delhi will need to consider its strategy carefully.
Dr. Soyen Park is a South Korean national, currently living in
New Delhi where she works as a researcher on the Indian economy.
Trilochan
Mohapatra is now Secy, ICAR
Staff Reporter, New Delhi
20/02/2016
20/02/2016
Trilochan Mohapatra, Director-cum-vice Chancellor, IARI,
ICAR, New Delhi, has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Agri Research
& Education-cum-Director General in the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research. In August 2015, Mohapatra was appointed as Director of the
Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), which played a major role in the
country's Green Revolution after remaining headless for more than a year.
Mohapatra, previously also headed Odisha-based
Central Rice Research Institute, Bureaucracy Today has learnt. Mohapatra, who
has been working in the area of molecular genetics and genomics, has published
over 145 research papers in national and international journals of repute.He
has developed the first high-yielding basmati rice variety resistant to
bacterial sequencing of rice and tomato.
https://bureaucracytoday.com/top_news.aspx?id=154042
Korean researchers find black rice helps
reduce body fat
Updated: 2016-02-22 14:03:36 KST
More people are eating different types of rice for a healthy lifestyle.Black rice contains one of the highest levels of anthocyanin antioxidants, which act as anti-cancer agents.The rice is also good for anti-aging and prevention against various diseases.And according to research, black rice also fights against obesity.Substances found in the outermost layer of black rice, including anthocyanin, inhibit lipogenesis and fat absorption.The researchers fed ten out of 20 mice with black rice extract for three months.
Compared
to the control group, the mice that were fed the extract saw a nearly 26
percent reduction in obesity index and a 27.five percent reduction in abdominal
fat. Their blood cholesterol was
also reduced by ten.five percent.Post-menopausal women who took black rice
extract capsules for 12 weeks also saw a more than five-percent reduction in
abdominal fat.Korea's Rural Development Administration will transfer its
extraction technology of black rice to companies, which will produce medicines
and various health products.
Park Se-young, Arirang News.
Park Se-young, Arirang News.
Reporter :
http://www.arirang.co.kr/News/News_View.asp?nseq=188470
Nigeria spends $1.8b yearly on rice
import, says Dangote
Launches Rice Outgrowers Scheme
Africa’s richest man and President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko
Dangote has lamented that Nigeria spends nearly $1.8billion per year importing
(approximately 3.2 million) metric tons of rice to feed its population.He said
this huge foreign exchange (forex) would have been used on more impactful
social development interventions if they were not needed for food imports.Speaking
during the launch of the Dangote Rice Outgrowers Scheme in Jigawa State at the
weekend, he said the nation’s agricultural commodities and food
imports bills averaged over N1trillion in 2013 and 2014, with foods such as
sugar, wheat, rice, fish accounting for 93 per cent of the total cost of
importsThe scheme started with the distribution of treated rice seedling for planting to some 5000 farmers.He said: “We are committed to the development of outgrower scheme by providing local, value added products and services that meet the ‘basic needs’ of the populace. To this end, the Dangote Rice Farm Ltd, will run an initial pilot in Hago-Fadama, Kafin Hausa and Auyo areas which would see Dangote Rice developing small hold farmers by providing quality inputs (certified seeds, fertiliser, agro-chemicals and petrol), improved agricultural practices and technology to increase yield and produce quality rice paddy which would also be bought back from them by Dangote Rice Limited.
“The programme in Jigawa State is expected to create more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs to the host communities.”Aside the outgrowers aspect of the investment, he said Dangote Rice is planning to plant approximately 150,000 hectares of long grain white rice and produce near one million tons of high quality par boiled white rice for sale into the market.Furthermore, he said the internal policy within Dangote Rice Ltd is to procure 30 per cent of rice production from local farmers who will be developed into outgrower groups. According to him these outgrowers will be simultaneously developed alongside the company’s commercial farming operations.
Dangote said before the discovery of oil, the economy was built around potentials from palm oil, ground nut, cotton, and rubber plantations. “Now the price of oil has plummeted from a peak of $116 per barrel in June 2014 to as low as $29 per barrel in January this year. This means there is huge loss of revenue to the government,” he said.Currently the average yield of rice in the country is between 1.8 to 2.5 metric tone per hectare (MT/ha), depending on the region and the crop (wet or dry) and with or without irrigation 1.8 MT/ha, which is significantly lower than the best practice yields in Africa of 9.2 MT/ha generated in Egypt. Locally produced rice is more expensive than imported rice due to the high cost of production relative to the low yields in the country because of poor agronomic practices.
In addition, the Federal Government
has implemented policy incentives that encourage investment in domestic rice
production and milling.Dangote disclosed that the Dangote Rice Outgrowers
Scheme was designed as a one stop solution for the rice value chain.In his
remark during the rice seedling distribution, Minister of State for
Agriculture, Senator Heneiken Lokpobiri lauded the initiative of Dangote,
saying the intervention in the government efforts at providing food security
for the citizenry, creating jobs and reducing dependence on food importation is
appreciated by being boosted.According to him, so much forex is spent on
importation of food items that could be produced locally.
While expressing the government
readiness to provide all the needed support to make the Dangote Rice Outgrowers
Scheme a success, the minister said the government is putting in place a
strategy that will make farmers have greater access to farm implements to help
them produce with ease.Also speaking the Special Adviser to Alhaji Dangote on
Rice and Coordinator of the Outgrowers Scheme, Mr. Lulu Carlos explained that
6.1million metric tone (mmt) of rice is consumed annually but not more than 2.6
million metric tons are produced locally leaving the rest to importation.Lulu
said: “We are happy to start today the partnership with the First Out Growers
bloc of 200 hectares, shared among 8 communities. I have seen the same project
grow in my country, Brazil, whereby from 2.5 Mt tons in the beginning to today
where we reached 9 tons of paddy rice per hectare in productivity.
“This has transformed our country
(Brazil), from a net importer of Rice in the year 2000 to a neýt exporter in
the year of 2009. This was achieved
through a big out grower scheme in the rice region, which today involves
thousands of independent farmers responsible for 80 per cent of the 12 million
tons locally produced rice and a small number of large Commercial farms
supplying the remaining 20 per cent.“Also, Alhaji Aliko, has instructed me to conduct the project here
for at least 30 per cent from out growers and 70 per cent from our commercial
farm to be established in the state. But this is not our limit. We are today
convinced that this equation will have more and more out growers participation
in the future, due to very good and welcome response we are getting from all
the communities we are dealing with.
“We are bringing to the people top quality seeds, fertilizers and
chemicals as well the training and teaching the best and most modern agriculturalý
practices, to enable you to boost your productivity and quality of your rice.
We are also committed to roll out the scheme to cover another 1,000 hectares
for the coming rainy season in June / July, using the experience of this 1st
plot to guide our progress.”
The Jigawa State governor, Alhaji
Badaru Muhammed Abubakar thanked the Dangote Rice Limited for choosing Jigawa
as the pilot state for the project. He pledged the readiness of his
administration to provide all necessary support to the project.He said, the
project was part of his government’s commitment to improve agriculture and
industrialize the state for job creation and poverty eradication.
“Right from my inaugural speech, I
made it clear that, agriculture was one of my government cardinal points and we
are ready to collaborate with private investors in achieving the desire goals.“The
project we are launching today is one of the numerous projects we intend to
embark in collaboration with private investors from within and outside the
country and we have already signed memorandum with many of them,” the governor
said.The governor then assured Dangote Group of the state government’s support
in making any policy and intervention that will make the investment profitable
and generate jobs for the teeming population of the state.
http://thenationonlineng.net/nigeria-spends-1-8b-yearly-on-rice-import-says-dangote/
Aurora’s
festival puts the spotlight on brown rice
Eight of the
best suman makers in Aurora competed
during the Farmers’ Day, in what was to be their first official attempt at
using unpolished or “brown” rice in creating the best tasting suman, 15 February."Every year, the
local government holds a Pinaka
Contest. This 2016, we are holding the Pinakamasarap
na Brown Rice Suman as suman is one of the most sought-after delicacy that visitors and tourists buy in Aurora. It
is also in response to the call of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to eat
brown rice," said Venecia B. Estacio, focal person for organic agriculture
and high value crops.
Suman is a steamed rice cake wrapped in fresh
coconut palm or banana leaves. A native delicacy made with glutinous rice,
coconut milk, sugar, and salt, suman
has become a staple in typical Filipino fiestas."In
our promotion of organic farming, we have heard farmers and non-farmers alike
express their growing concern for their diet and health. We also note that
their awareness and demand for pinawa
or brown rice is increasing. Hence, the twist in our suman-making contest,
"Estacio added.
Brown rice is
the common term for the whole grain form of any kind of rice. It still has the
bran, the part that is removed during polishing to make rice white. Thus, its brown color. Because of the bran,
brown or unpolished rice has more protein, dietary fiber, minerals,
antioxidants, B vitamins, and vitamin E compared to white rice.“We want to make
Filipino rice consumers healthier through the promotion of unpolished or brown
rice. Since Filipinos also eat rice during snacks, we also want to develop and
promote rice-based food products made of brown rice. Hence, the event,”
explained Hazel V. Antonio, Be RICEponsible campaign director.
The Be RICEponsible Campaign of DA, has
since 2014, been raising awareness as well as improving the consumption and
production of brown rice in the Philippines. The promotion of brown rice is one
of its pillar messages in making Filipinos responsible rice consumers."Junk
foods are sold almost everywhere. We need to promote healthier alternatives to
these like brown rice suman for snack
and breakfast to nourish our children [and people] better," said Eleanor
De Mesa-Olivar, tourism officer and co-chair of the Suman House exhibit.Farmers'
associations and rural improvement clubs from the eight municipalities of
Aurora joined the contest: Baler, Casiguran, Dilasag, Dinalungan, Dingalan,
Dipaculao, Maria Aurora, and San Luis. San Luis' milky soft suman bagged first
place, taking home P10,000, followed by the latik-laden
entry of Maria Aurora with P7,000, and the cheesy variant of Baler with P5,000.
Reviving lost
tradition
The recently
erected mini Suman House, a
two-storey wooden hut decked with colorful suman-shaped
decorations and other indigenous embellishments reminiscent of the Pahiyas of Quezon province, served as
the venue for the taste off."We are pouring efforts to showcase Aurora's suman-making heritage not just for the sake
of marketing but to inspire community participation in helping revive the Suman Festival, which we last held in
2004," Olivar added.From 1997 to 2004, Aurora is home to the grand
celebration of the Suman Festival,
which also coincides with the province's founding anniversary.
It is believed
that the suman of Aurora started even
before the Japanese came. Travelers from Nueva Ecija and Manila, journey from
three to five days by walking or riding on a horse. This long journey entailed
extra work like bringing food that would keep them full while traveling. This
triggered the preparation of suman,
which was easy to bring and less perishable.
Healthier, taste even better
"All the pinawa suman tasted so good that you can hardly say that the makers used
unpolished rice. I think they even tasted better than all the suman (made with polished rice) I have
ever tasted," remarked Antonio.Lydia Amatorio, a contestant from Baler,
said that although pinawa required
more time to cook, it has a natural flavor that makes the resulting product
taste better than that made with polished glutinous rice.
"The
secret to making a milky rich and soft suman
is in the soaking and amount of coconut milk used," Melba Eberio, the
master cook from the winning San Luis team."If unpolished glutinous rice
will become accessible, it is possible for us to use it regularly for our suman," Eberio added.Meanwhile, suman maker Josie Mambalo of Brgy.
Suguit, Maria Aurora has already begun selling brown rice suman to her clients on a made-to-order basis since their
cooperative acquired a brown rice milling unit in 2015.The Pinakamasarap na Brown Rice Suman
Contest was organized by the local government of Aurora in partnership with the
Be RICEponsible Campaign of DA.
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