PH allows traders to import 187,000T rice
Reuters
Posted at 12/15/2014 7:29 PM
MANILA - The Philippines' state grains procurement agency said
on Monday private traders can import 187,000 tonnes of rice and shipments must
arrive on or before Feb. 28.The volume is on top of the expected purchases by
the National Food Authority (NFA), which is looking initially at importing
600,000 tonnes to boost its stockpile for next year's requirements.Traders may
apply for import permits starting Dec. 28 until Jan. 31, the NFA said in a
statement.They can bring in rice under the government's Minimum Access Volume -
Omnibus Rice Importation programme, which allows each importer to buy up to
5,000 tonnes from any country.
The programme covers only high-value varieties such as glutinous
rice, jasponica rice, basmati rice, and other aromatic varieties. They can also
import 5 percent broken, 10 percent broken, and 15 percent broken varieties.In
June, the government said it would loosen restrictions on rice imports starting
next year, cutting tariff on grain shipped in by the private sector to 35
percent from 40 percent for a maximum annual volume of 805,200 tonnes.The NFA
bought more than 1.8 million tonnes from Vietnam and Thailand over the past 12
months, the biggest annual volume in four years, to shore up its buffer stocks
as local retail prices soared to record highs amid tight domestic supply.
Palay prices drop, but farmers not worried
Pangasinan—The buying price of palay has dropped from P24 per kilo to between
P20 and P21 this month, but rice farmers are not worried.Ponciano Onia, a
farmer from this town in Pangasinan province, says the break-even cost for
palay production is P12 per kilo, so farmers will still net at least P8 if they
sell their harvest to traders. But their profit will be only P5 if they sell to
the National Food Authority (NFA) as the agency buys at P17.However, traders
who bought palay in September and October are complaining. One of them, Roger
Tan, a rice mill owner in Rosales town, said he acquired his stock at P23.50
per kilo in September and P22.50 in October.
“With the buying price
at P20.50 or P21 a kilo now, we are at the losing end. Rice millers did not
expect that the harvest would be so much that prices are dropping. Perhaps we
could just stock the palay and wait for better prices,” Tan says.The dealer
price of a 50-kilo bag of rice used to be between P2,000 and P2,050, but it is
now down to P1,650 and P1,700. Retail prices are marked up by P2 so a bag costs
from P1,750 to P1,800, Tan says.Commercial rice, which used to cost P42 a kilo,
is now sold at P36.Onia and Tan note a slowdown in the market of commercial
rice, citing complaints from traders and retailers. Ramon Cuaresma, manager of
the NFA in eastern Pangasinan, attributes this to the agency’s decision not to
limit the amount of rice that could be bought at retail stores.
“We opened the sale of
NFA rice because of the low prices of commercial rice. If we don’t, we may not
be able to sell anymore. But NFA rice is comparable, in terms of quality, with
commercial rice,” he says.The sale of commercial rice has been slow because
farmers still have stock as the harvest season is just ending, Cuaresma
says.Ninety-five percent of the 124,000 hectares of rice lands in eastern
Pangasinan had already been harvested while the remaining farms would be
harvested by the end of December, he adds.“We are lucky this year that no
serious calamity hit the province, that is why we have a bumper harvest,”
Cuaresma says.The NFA in eastern Pangasinan has 50,000 bags of rice in its
warehouse and is waiting for a shipment of 80,000 bags from the NFA Ilocos
regional office. Yolanda Sotelo, Inquirer Northern Luzon
BJP
Sees Govt-Miller Nexus for Distress Sale of Paddy
By Express News Service Published: 16th December 2014 05:59 AM Last
Updated: 16th December 2014 05:59 AM
BHUBANESWAR: The State BJP on Monday slammed the Government for
leaving farmers at the mercy of rice millers for sale of their paddy.Alleging
nexus between the State Government and millers in paddy procurement during the
current kharif marketing season (KMS), chief spokesperson of BJP Suresh Pujari
said the farmers are not getting minimum support price announced by the Centre
for paddy due to non-participation by Government agencies in the procurement
business.While the Government has fixed paddy yield per acre at 12 quintals in
the procurement policy of the current KMS, the actual production is in the
range of 22 to 32 quintals, he said.
Describing the food policy of the State Government faulty, Pujari
said farmers are now forced to go for distress sale of the balance 10 to 20
quintals of paddy per acre. This led to a standoff between the farmers and the
Government in Koraput and Nabarangpur districts where harvesting of paddy is
over much earlier, he said. He further alleged that the Government not only
delayed the procurement by 10-15 days but also left the process to the whims of
the millers by not engaging its agencies. The unwanted delay in paddy procurement
has badly hit the farmers.
Taking advantage, millers are exploiting the farmers by finding
faults with the quality of paddy and denying them the MSP, he said.The paddy
procurement scam will be worse than the chit fund scam, Pujari said and blamed Revenue
Department, Civil Supply and Consumer Welfare Department, district
administration and rice millers for cheating the farmers.
Access road dispute hampers rice
business
By Josephine Marianne Querubin Ignacio | Dec. 16, 2014 at 12:01am
BALAGTAS, Bulacan—Rice and palay
traders at the Intercity Industrial Estate, a major grains center of the
country along the boundary of Bocaue and Balagtas towns, are caught in a land
dispute over one of their two access roads.Owner’s title. Arturo Mendoza shows
to ManilaStandard documents of ownership to the property,which serves as Gate
II of the Intercity Industrial Estate. JOSEPHINE MARIANNE QUERUBIN IGNACIO
The traders explained to Manila
Standard that the cross-claim on Gate 2 access road in Balagtas has been closed
and opened by either of the contending parties.The case involving Arturo
Mendoza and Verbo Realty Development Corp. has been pending in court for
several years.Mendoza, 74, said the access road was inside his property swapped
for a lot inside the industrial estate.
Since the deal failed to
materialize, he stuck to his parcel of land and closed portion from MacArthur
Highway leading to the different rice mills of the trading center.The traders
in Intercity wrote a letter in the vernacular to Mendoza on the last week of
November to allow traffic to the estate located in Barangay San Juan in
Balagtas.No buyers have been going to their ricemills because it was a long
turn to Gate I, they said.Mendoza agreed to open the gate for a “road terminal
fee” based on size of the vehicles.But Verbo Realty said there was an exchange
of property for the right of way over his claim.The same stalemate happened in
2011, causing undetermined loses to rice millers near the Gate II of the
trading center.Recently, the land developer was able to get a court order
upholding the right of way inside Mendoza’s property.
Palay prices drop, but farmers not
worried
UMINGAN, Pangasinan—The buying
price of palay has dropped from P24 per kilo to between P20 and P21 this month,
but rice farmers are not worried.Ponciano Onia, a farmer from this town in
Pangasinan province, says the break-even cost for palay production is P12 per
kilo, so farmers will still net at least P8 if they sell their harvest to
traders. But their profit will be only P5 if they sell to the National Food
Authority (NFA) as the agency buys at P17.However, traders who bought palay in
September and October are complaining. One of them, Roger Tan, a rice mill
owner in Rosales town, said he acquired his stock at P23.50 per kilo in
September and P22.50 in October.
“With the buying price at P20.50 or
P21 a kilo now, we are at the losing end. Rice millers did not expect that the
harvest would be so much that prices are dropping. Perhaps we could just stock
the palay and wait for better prices,” Tan says.The dealer price of a 50-kilo
bag of rice used to be between P2,000 and P2,050, but it is now down to P1,650
and P1,700. Retail prices are marked up by P2 so a bag costs from P1,750 to
P1,800, Tan says.Commercial rice, which used to cost P42 a kilo, is now sold at
P36.Onia and Tan note a slowdown in the market of commercial rice, citing complaints
from traders and retailers. Ramon Cuaresma, manager of the NFA in eastern
Pangasinan, attributes this to the agency’s decision not to limit the amount of
rice that could be bought at retail stores.
“We opened the sale of NFA rice
because of the low prices of commercial rice. If we don’t, we may not be able
to sell anymore. But NFA rice is comparable, in terms of quality, with
commercial rice,” he says.The sale of commercial rice has been slow because
farmers still have stock as the harvest season is just ending, Cuaresma
says.Ninety-five percent of the 124,000 hectares of rice lands in eastern
Pangasinan had already been harvested while the remaining farms would be
harvested by the end of December, he adds.“We are lucky this year that no
serious calamity hit the province, that is why we have a bumper harvest,”
Cuaresma says.The NFA in eastern Pangasinan has 50,000 bags of rice in its
warehouse and is waiting for a shipment of 80,000 bags from the NFA Ilocos
regional office. Yolanda Sotelo, Inquirer Northern
Luzon
Govt’s ineptness harming agrarian economy of Sindh
December 16, 2014
KARACHI
Due to tug-of-war between powerful lobbies of
growers and millers sitting in Sindh government over the dispute of sugarcane
price and ineptness of PPP-led government causing losses to the agrarian
economy, the spine of national economy. The longest delays of more than two
months in the commencement of sugarcane crushing season on the one hand causing
huge losses to the growers while at the same harming the cash crops - wheat and
cotton.The federal government has refused to mediate in the price dispute between
mills owners and growers, saying that under the 18th Amendment the matter
belonged to the provincial government.The high court intervened and compelled
government to fix cane price.
The government fixed price less than
the last years. Later it was revised to the level of last year, but millers are
not ready to pay the government fixed price
The desperate sugarcane growers of Sindh crying
hoarse and holding protest demonstration at the mills located in their areas as
their sugarcane crop was losing weight which will caused huge losses to them.On
the other, the rice growers also raising hue and cry and calling upon the
government to purchase rice at the support price of Rs1,400 per 40 kg through
the Pakistan Agricultural Storage & Services Corporation (PASSCO) and the
Trade Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) to save growers from suffering colossal
losses.
The Sindh Assembly in its recently prorogued
session has adopted a resolution on the issue urged the government to rescue
the paddy growers.Rice growers said that last year the paddy of coarse rice was
sold at the rate Rs950 to 1000 per 40 kg and rice with 25 per cent broken
grains was being sold at Rs1,400 to Rs1,450 per 40 kg in Karachi market. But
this year the paddy price was pegged at Rs800 to Rs780 per 40 kg at rice mills
and open market, which was quite unfortunate for the growers, who had spent
Rs30,000 to Rs35,000 per acre to grow the crop.
Growers lamented that government was
taking no interest in setting up procurement centres while the Rabi season was
drawing close and the growers needed money to purchase seeds for new crops.When
contacted Abdul Majeed Nizamani, President Sindh Abadgar Board, a leading
growers’ body said that Sindh has produced around 400 million tones of
sugarcane this year which is being dried due to price dispute, thus causing
loses to the growers and at same time hampering the production of wheat and
cotton crops. The delay in harvesting the cane would prolong the period of crop
which will consume more water and expenses.
He said small land owners having 50 acres of
lands or more are the worst sufferers of the delay in cane crushing season as
they were unable to cultivate Rabi crops on time.Talking about the prevailing situation of
agrarian sector, Nizamani said that the governments of rice producing countries
have rescued their growers by purchasing their whole crops thereby saving
agriculture sector.He said that our neighbouring country India has granted
Rs550 million subsidy to the agrarian industry.Pakistani growers were paying
Rs135 billion to the government on account of GST whereas the Indian government
has granted $66 billion subsidy to the growers’, he added.
Citing another comparison, he said a
bag of urea is available in India at a rate of $6, while the growers of
Pakistan paid $18-19 for a bag of urea, what to talk of other subsidies given
to the agriculture sector in electricity and other inputs.He said agricultural
economy of province was at stake and in the prevailing situation the agro-based
industries especially the textile industry so the government ought to intervene
in the matter.Commenting on the situation, political observers are of the view
it seems that the government seems unable to exercise the executive powers
handed to it by the 18th Amendment.
Written by Karen Ross, California Agriculture Secretary
Published: 15 December 2014
Sacramento, California - Sometimes it takes a crisis like
climate change to reveal a golden opportunity. Our rice farmers in Northern
California have long been exemplary stewards of their land, both in terms of
providing habitat for waterfowl and other wildlife and for their ongoing
efforts to work with environmental and research organizations to improve their
farming practices. Now, in response to climate change, they stand ready to take
the next step.This week, the California Air Resources Board will hear a staff
proposal for a set of management practices that will give rice growers
incentives that could be used to reduce the release of methane, a potent
greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. For these farmers, who grow
more than 95 percent of California’s rice within 100 miles of our state capital,
it presents a proactive opportunity to contribute to the state’s climate change
objectives.
The proposed Compliance Offset Protocol Rice Cultivation
Projects would allow rice farmers in the Sacramento Valley to generate
greenhouse gas offsets that can then be sold in the state’s carbon trading
market. Rice would represent the first crop-based agricultural offset protocol,
paving the way for additional agriculture-based protocols to be developed.The
management practices listed in this protocol are based on sound science and
have proved successful around the world. We know that these practices will be
adopted slowly at first, but we are hopeful for increased participation in the
future as more growers learn about the benefits of these practices.I am pleased
to see progress toward this voluntary incentive program for rice farmers in the
Sacramento Valley, where they have already made tremendous strides on other
environmental issues.
For example, rice farmers here provide their agricultural fields
during the winter months as valuable open space and habitat for 230 species of
wildlife and 7 million ducks and geese that migrate along the Pacific Flyway
each year.It is worth noting that, in developing these practices, the ARB took
precautions such as excluding the Butte Sink Wildlife Management Area, which
has the highest concentration of waterfowl per acre in the world, to ensure
that this important wildlife habitat is unaffected by the implementation of any
rice cultivation projects.Even more importantly, the ARB has elected to exclude
program options that could lead to reduced winter flooding throughout the
Valley, a practice that now provides critical habitat to millions of waterbirds
in a state where 95 percent of original wetlands are gone.
Additionally, the
development of this protocol has exemplified what collaboration is all about by
bringing together the rice industry, environmental groups, multiple state
agencies, national organizations and federal partners.We at the California
Department of Food and Agriculture call the multiple benefits to nature
provided by farmers and ranchers beyond food production “Ecosystem Services.”
These services include valuable open space and wildlife habitat and farming
practices that enhance environmental quality, provide recreational
opportunities and offer social benefits.The protocol provides financial
incentives for growers to help the state reach its emission-reduction goals by
2020.
It’s timely, and
recognizes rice farmers for one of the many ecosystem services they provide.
Similar carbon crediting initiatives are taking place all over the country. For
example, the USDA worked with Chevrolet to purchase almost 40,000 carbon
dioxide reduction tons generated on working ranch grasslands in the Prairie
Pothole region of North Dakota.As the magazine Modern Farmer put it, “everyone
agrees that climate change has and will have a disastrous or at least dramatic
effect on agriculture.” With California’s rich history of innovative farmers
who promote environmental stewardship, provide ecosystem services and strive
for sustainability, it makes sense that the California rice industry is at the
forefront of incorporating climate-friendly practices.
This protocol has the potential to move early innovators in the
industry to get involved and start moving the needle on climate change. My
department will continue to work across agencies to encourage its
implementation, along with technology-based verification techniques. Any
protocol proposed to the ARB for consideration must have real, quantifiable,
verifiable and enforceable metrics, without compromising crop yields.California
agriculture is incredibly resilient and innovative, and our farmers offer many
benefits beyond food production. Voluntary incentive programs, such as the rice
protocol, offer farmers in California meaningful opportunities to ensure that
as they produce food, they are also providing important environmental benefits.
Cambodia to begin rice exports to various countries
Tuesday, 16 December 2014 10:07
Cambodia’s
minister of commerce has announced that the country will step up efforts to
export rice to Africa, Middle East and the European Union
Cambodia exported 335,925 tonnes of rice in the first 11 months of
2014, up from 332,009 tonnes in the same period last year. (Image source:
Department of foreign affairs and trade/Flickr)
“We have to diversify our market, we cannot put all our rice into
one basket,” said Sun Chanthol. “We have to export our rice beyond the European
market, so we can improve the livelihood of our farmers.”In his three-day visit
to Kuwait in December 2014, Chanthol aimed at opening new avenues for
Cambodian-made agricultural goods to enter the Middle East region.“We want to
open the new market in the Middle East because we have not focused too much on
the region in past times. And we want to expand our export destinations,” said
Ken Ratha, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce.
“It will also to pave the way for our private sector because the
Ministry of Commerce also set up a department to handle Middle East related
issues, which will facilitate commercial relationships, similar to that of the
European Union,” he added.Khaled Al-Khaled, member of the Kuwaiti Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, noted that Cambodian keenness on encouraging foreign
investment had positive effects on
Kuwaiti investors and prompted them to carry out projects
there.According to Kuwait’s Central Statistical Bureau, Cambodian exports to
Kuwait reached US$4.84mn in Q2 2014.Cambodian rice has already been gaining a
positive reputation overseas. In 2012 and 2013, Cambodian jasmine rice won the
prize for best rice from the Rice Traders World Rice Conference.
NFA opens importation of 187,000-MT
rice
MANILA, Philippines - The National Food Authority (NFA) has opened
to the private sector the importation of 187,000 metric tons (MT) of
high-quality rice under the minimum access volume (MAV) omnibus importation
program..The opening of the private sector importation under the MAV was done
pursuant to the resolution passed by the NFA Council on Dec. 9.Each importer
would be allowed to bring in a maximum of 5,000 MT for the entire allocation
from any country of origin. No more allocations would be issued when the
omnibus origin volume has already been exhausted.Imports would be levied a
tariff of 40 percent which has be paid in advance through the LandBank of the
Philippines. The final assessment of payment shall be conducted by the Bureau
of Customs.Under the MAV omnibus importation program, importers would only be
allowed to import high quality rice varieties such as glutinous rice,
Jasponica, Basmati and other special and aromatic rice varieties.
Regular rice with five percent brokens, 10 percent brokens, and 15
percent brokens may also be imported under this program.Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch:
1 All NFA-licensed importers may
apply to import under this program starting Dec. 28, 2014 until Jan. 31, 2015.
All imports must arrive on or before Feb. 28, 2015.The complete list of
requirements may be found at the NFA website.Interested importers must submit
to the Grains Marketing Operations Department-Foreign Operations Division of
the NFA a letter of intent together with all the documentary
requirements.Corporations and cooperatives interested to participate in the
program must designate, through a board resolution, an authorized
representative to act on behalf of the corporation or cooperative during the application
process.Farmers’ organizations must present an original certificate of good
standing from the government agency where it is registered such as the
Department of Agriculture, Department of Agrarian Reform or National Irrigation
Administration.
They must likewise authorize a
representative.The Philippines has agreed this year to increase the volume of
rice that could enter the country under the MAV to 805,000 MT from 350,000 MT
in exchange for the extension of its special tax treatment on rice by the World
Trade organization (WTO).For now, the country still implements the old MAV
scheme under which, 187,000 MT may be of omnibus origin while 163,000 MT should
be of country-specific origin. Under the country specific program, rice may
only be imported from the following source countries with the respective
allocations: Thailand (98,000 MT), India (25,000 MT), China (25,000 MT) and
Australia (15,000 MT).Food security chief said Francis Pangilinan said the NFA
Council would review and make recommendations on the enforcement of the
country’s commitment with the WTO.“The NFA Council imports committee created
last August has been tasked to review and make recommendations regarding out
WTO commitments. We will await their recommendations,” he said.
http://www.philstar.com/business/2014/12/17/1403418/nfa-opens-importation-187000-mt-rice
Who influences the rice market?
VietNamNet introduces the third part of the roundtable discussion
on “A quarter century of Vietnam’s rice exports”, with the participation of Prof.
Dr. Vo Tong Xuan, Dr. Vu Trong Khai, and Mr. Nguyen Minh Nhi.
From the left: Mr. Nguyen Minh Nhi, Dr. Vu Trong Khai and Prof. Vo
Tong Xuan.
VietNamNet: There is the fact that rice exporters and farmers are most afraid
of an unexpected suspension of rice exports for "food security"
reasons. In 2008 when the demand for rice in the world market was high and the
rice price was rising to benefit farmers, there was suddenly a ban of rice
export issued to ensure "food security". The rice prices in the
domestic market increased by 2- 3 times. In HCM City, supermarkets only allowed
each customer to buy 50kg at a time and they had to show their ID cards.Then
officials sternly "learned from experience" from this case. But the
question is whether the rice market has been swayed by an interest group for a
long time?
Dr. Vu Trong Khai: At that time I strongly opposed the suspension of rice exports for
two reasons. Firstly, the rice crop is only three months, so Vietnam only
needed to keep a rice reserve for three months. The suspension caused heavy
damages for farmers.Thailand immediately took advantage of the situation to
raise the rice price to a record of $1,200 per ton. Then, domestic prices were
also pushed up by threefold. People queued in very long lines in front of rice
stores and supermarkets to buy rice.
The unexpected suspension of rice exports has happened quite often
in Vietnam. State-owned firms that hold a monopoly in rice export can do
something to stop rice exports at harvest time in order to press the price.
They did any trick from selling rice exporting quotas in the past to swaying
the policies to seek profits for themselves.
Mr. Nguyen Minh Nhi: Those tricks are not strange to me. These firms are not good at
competing in the world but good at infringing upon farmers to buy their rice at
low prices.
Until now, the 25th year since
Vietnam resumed exporting rice, private firms are still "crying" that
they cannot compete equally with state-owned rice exporters, as advocated by
the Party and the State’s policies.
Dr. Vu Trong Khai: Private companies have never been able to compete equally with
State-owned firms in rice export. Initially, private firms were requested to
have huge capital to be allowed to export rice. Other barriers have appeared
since then to maintain monopoly for state-owned corporations.
There are rules "making it
difficult" for private rice exporters such as they must have factories, warehouses
and sources of supply. Meanwhile, state-owned corporations receive capital from
the state budget to build factories and warehouses. Why can’t private firms
hire warehouses or association with the firms that have warehouses? Such rigid
regulations have prevented private companies from exporting rice. The monopoly
is still very strong now.
Even state policies for the annual
temporary storage of rice are also inflexible. In fact, the goal of the state
is not achieved, and the farmers do not enjoy anything. State-owned
corporations have never bought rice at harvest time. They only wait until
prices fall to the bottom to buy.
VietNamNet: We would like to ask Dr. Khai said about the concept of "food
security". Based on world criteria, has Vietnam ensured food security yet?
Dr. Vu Trong Khai: According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), food
security "exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic
access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and
food preferences for an active and healthy life". Vietnam just
balances on a national level by multiplying the per capita food output with the
population to have the total demand. Even though Vietnam is a big rice
exporting country, there are still hungry people who do not have money to buy
rice in Vietnam. Therefore, Vietnam does not really have "food
security".
There are many countries importing
food but they always ensure food security as the UK and Malaysia. The people of
England even have one of the highest standards of living in the world.
There are two issues here. The
first is that food prices should be reasonable and the second is the income of
the people must be enough to buy food every day. Vietnam fails to meet these
two conditions.
Prof. Dr. Vo Tong Xuan: The term "food security" has been corrupted by interest
groups.
For example, to ensure "food
security," hundreds of million of US dollars were used to turn alum water
into freshwater in Ca Mau peninsula but the results were very bad. The rice
output did not increase while the aquatic resources were harmed.
I have repeatedly recommended that
with the current great food output, we do not have to worry about loss of food
security. Rice is harvested after only three months so let farmers and businesses
export rice.
Prof. Dr. Vo Tong Xuan: Food security policy has been used in corrupt ways by some
interest groups. The policy was used to prevent the initiatives of diversifying
agricultural produce because the state did not invest in these crops. But if we
keep growing rice and the rice output keeps rising, the rice prices will fall
dramatically.
VietNamNet: This year the state allowed farmers to plant crops that yield
higher profit than rice. However, farmers are confused because they do not know
who will buy their products. What should we do?
Mr. Nguyen Minh Nhi: Vietnam’s "food security" is calculated the same way as
GDP per capita. A wealthy family uses 1kg of rice per meal while a poor one
eats 1kg of vegetable, not rice. But we combine the volume and divide in two to
have each family with 1/2kg of rice and 1/2kg of vegetable and these figures
look okay.
There is one factor that I find
impossible to ignore - the Chinese market. We need to organize and map out a
specific plan for this market to protect our farmers and businesses.This is a
huge market and if they want to buy a kind of agricultural product, they can
push the prices up but if they stop purchasing, our farmers could only throw
away their product. This way of business has placed our farmers in a passive
status.
Building rice trademark urgent for Vietnam: official
Building a national rice trademark is a crucial and
urgent task, stressed Duong Quoc Xuan, Deputy Head of the Steering Committee
for the Southwestern Region (SCSR), at a conference on the future of Vietnamese
rice held in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on December 11.Although Vietnam
is the second largest rice exporter in the world, its rice value is not high as
the country is yet to build its own trademark in the global market, he said.The
Mekong Delta, the rice bowl of the country, lacks investment in rice
development and many localities in the region have not fully tapped their
potential, he said, stressing the importance of building a national rice
trademark to enable the local product to lead the world market.
Sharing Xuan’s views, Vice Chairman of the Can Tho
People’s Committee Dao Anh Dung, said it is necessary for the region to increase
rice productivity and quality as local people remains poor although they
contribute 90 percent of the country’s rice export volume.Many experts held
that domestic rice production has failed to maintain its sustainability,
attributing it to the lack of high-quality rice varieties, high post-harvest
losses, and poor regional connectivity and collaboration among the government,
scientists, businesses and farmers.Developing the rice market is a long-term
measure to stimulate and stabilise production, reduce risks for farmers, and
increase profits, they said, adding that the application of advanced
technologies is needed to find out high yield and quality varieties that can be
resistant to diseases and adapt to climate change.
VietNamNet
Tags:rice
export,vietnamese rice,rice farmers,mekong delta,
NFA release
NFA releases guidelines for
importation of 187,000MT under the Minimum Access Volume Program
From the Office of the
Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization
The National Food Authority (NFA)
has opened the Minimum Access Volume (MAV) – Omnibus Rice Importation program
to the private sector with a total volume of 187, 000 metric tons. The MAV was
opened after the NFA Council, chaired by Presidential Assistant for Food
Security and Agricultural Modernization Francis Pangilinan, ordered the imports
committee to review and amend the importation guidelines to make the process
more transparent and give all industry players a level playing field. The MAV
is the only way by which the private sector can bring in rice into the country
since private sector rice importation was prohibited in 2010.
Under this program, each importer
is allowed a maximum of 5,000 metric tons that can be sourced from any country.
Importers are only allowed to import high value rice varieties such as
glutinous rice, jasponica rice, basmati rice, and other aromatic rice
varieties. 5% broken, 10% broken, and 15% broken rice varieties can also be
imported under this program.All NFA-licensed importers may apply to import
under this program starting December 28, 2014, until January 31, 2015. All
importation must arrive on or before February 28, 2015. For the complete
guidelines, please visit the NFA website www.nfa.gov.ph.
Food exports 'to keep surging next year'
Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation December 17, 2014
1:00 am
The value of Thailand's food
exports, which has already passed the Bt1-trillion mark, should grow by nearly
7 per cent next year, as lower fuel prices reduce the costs of production and
logistics, the baht weakens, and higher demand is seen in new markets,
particularly Russia, experts say.However, some worrying factors remain. These
include low crop prices, the poor economy in many countries causing consumers
to watch their spending, and the cancellation of tariff privileges by the
European Union.
This year, food exports are
expected to surge by 15.4 per cent year on year to reach Bt1.01 trillion for
the first time in history, thanks mainly to higher shipments of rice, tapioca,
chicken, and higher-value-added and processed foods. Shrimp exports are still suffering
from the impact of early mortality syndrome (EMS).
"The value of food exports is expected to continue
growing next year amid the weakening baht, and producers have focused more on
processed foods and value-added products, while lower oil prices will encourage
more consumption. Exports should grow strongly to emerging markets like China,
Russia, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates," said National Food
Institute president Petch Chinabutr.
In the first 10 months of 2014, food exports grew 11.5 per
cent year on year to Bt851.22 billion. Major export products were rice, which
was up by 37 per cent to Bt139.81 billion; tapioca, which rose 24.5 per cent to
Bt76.05 billion; chicken, which was up 24.3 per cent to Bt66.31 billion;
seasoning, which increased 15 per cent to Bt115.86 billion; and fresh and
canned pineapple, which expanded 10 per cent to Bt13.91 billion.
Petch said rice, tapioca, chicken, shrimp, canned tuna and
seasoning would show stronger exports next year. Shrimp shipments should
increase considerably as EMS is eliminated and hatcheries have more shrimp to
supply to the world market.In 2015, rice export is expected to grow by 2.4 per
cent, tapioca 9.4 per cent, chicken 7.1 per cent, shrimp 20.4 per cent, canned
tuna 0.7 per cent, and seasoning 7.4 per cent. Export of seasoning will expand
strongly, thanks to more demand for Thai food and a rising number of Thai
restaurants overseas.
But shipment of canned pineapple is expected to decline 3
per cent next year and sugar to drop 5.4 per cent as import markets for those
products shrink, while drought risks make production uncertain.China, Vietnam,
the UAE and Russia will be highlighted markets for Thai food exports next year.
China has a trade deficit in food every year because of its large population
and economic growth in its large cities. Products that will see strong demand
in China are processed foods, energy drinks, dried fruits, fresh fruits, infant
foods, frozen goods, food supplements and snacks.
Export to UAE will increase strongly next year, since that
country serves as a distribution centre to other parts of the Middle East and
is also home to a lot of foreign labourers. Halal foods will have high
potential for export to that market.Shipments to Russia will also increase
significantly next year as it imports more from Asian markets. Pornsilp
Patchrintakul, chairman of the Board of Trade's farm and food business
committee, said the value of agricultural products was expected to increase
slightly next year, while lower fuel prices would benefit food exports.To
promote growth of the food industry, Pornsilp urged the government to revise
rules and regulations to facilitate exports, particularly under the upcoming
Asean economic integration. He claimed that some regulations, such as those
involving customs and the Food and Drug Administration, were out of date. The
government should update those laws to increase competitiveness and streamline
shipment of foods, as most are fresh and need to be shipped quickly.
Govt agencies procure over 11.4 MT
rice this season
By: Sandip Das |
New Delhi | December 16, 2014 6:03 am
Government agencies till Monday have procured more than 11.4
million tonne of rice in the current marketing season (2014-15) which is
marginally lower than the volume purchased from the farmers during the same
period of previous year.The rice purchase drive by Food Corporation of India
(FCI) in collaboration with state government-owned agencies, which commenced on
October 1, has been completed in Punjab and Haryana, the two biggest
contributors to the central grain pool.
The government has a procurement target of 30 million tonne of
rice during October-September 2015 season.In Punjab, rice procurement this year
has been 7.7 million tonne against 8.1 million tonne achieved during 2013-14
marketing year. In Haryana, the agencies have purchased two million tonne of
rice which is marginally lower than 2.4 million tonne purchased during same
period last year.
A food ministry official said the rice procurement has just
commenced in Telangana and Odisha.However, in Chhattisgarh, which contributed
more than four million tonne of rice to the central pool last year, agencies
have not commenced purchase operations which was slated to start on December 1.
As per the latest data, 7.6 lakh tonne of rice has been
purchased by farmers in Telangana while only 62,000 tonne has been lifted in
Andhra Pradesh so far.In Odisha and Madhy Pradesh, where rice procurement has
began a couple of weeks ago, only 1.2 lakh tonne and 2 lakh tonne respectively
have been purchased by agencies.The FCI and state agencies undertake
procurement of rice and wheat to ensure that farmers get a minimum support
price (MSP) and sufficient foodgrain is available for the Targeted Public
Distribution System (TPDS) and buffer stocks.
Meanwhile, the foodgrain stocks held with the government
agencies have declined to 49.4 million tonne at the start of the month from
51.6 million tonne reported last month and 57.3 million tonne reported three
months back.The lower foodgrain stocks are going to ease storage crunch faced
by the FCI and state agencies to a large extent.However, as the rice
procurement drive for 2014-15 is expected to pick up pace in the next few
months, the grain stocks with the government are expected to see a sharp rise.
Chinese, Cambodian Firms Sign Trade Deals
Six pairs of Chinese and Cambodian firms signed off on a
half-dozen business deals over the past two days in Phnom Penh worth more than
$1.5 billion, the bulk of it for a five-year stone crushing project.“Some
Chinese companies signed business deals to buy products from Cambodian
companies, while some signed deals to sell products to Cambodian companies,”
Chheav Pha, who heads the Commerce Ministry’s marketing department, said Monday
at the start of a four-day trade expo.
Mr. Pha said Cambodia’s King Crushing Stone Company signed a
five-year deal worth $1.5 billion Monday with China’s Yong Jun Stone Crushing
for a project in Cambodia, but had no further details about the agreement.He
said deals were also signed at the expo to export 200,000 tons of cassava chips
to China for $49 million, to import wood drying machines from China for $1.2
million, and for the development of a Chinese-backed condominium project in
Cambodia worth $17 million.
At a separate event in Phnom Penh on Sunday, Khmer Brewery
Limited, the maker of Cambodia beer, inked a deal that will see China’s Fuzhou
Newgroup Industry distribute the beer across China.Sok Chantha, business
development manager for the Chip Mong Group, which owns Khmer Brewery, said
Monday that the deal would last one year, but declined to say how much beer
would be exported or reveal the value of the agreement.“The importer was
interested in our beer and thought that the quality of our beer was good enough
to compete with others in the Chinese market,” Mr. Chantha said. “So they asked
for a deal with us to export our beer over there and we are happy to do it,
because it’s a good opportunity to expand our market.”
Also on Sunday, Cambodia’s Mekong Oryza Trading penned a tentative
deal with a Chinese firm to export 30,000 tons of milled rice over the course
of the coming year.Mekong Oryza director Hun Lak said the price was still under
negotiation.“I think that China will keep importing more milled rice from
Cambodia because the importers recognize the quality of our milled rice,” he
said.In August, Cambodia’s state-owned Greed Trade agreed to a deal with China
to export 100,000 tons of milled rice.
Saudi- Rice prices expected to fall 102 in
Kingdom
MENAFN -
Arab News - 15/12/2014
(MENAFN - Arab News) A prominent rice importer has
predicted that rice prices in the Kingdom are expected to go down by 5-10
percent in the coming months local media said.Meanwhile an Indian rice dealer
told the media that rice prices in India have remained stabilized for the last
period and therefore alleged price hikes in the Saudi markets are
unjustified.Mandeep Singh Bindra an Indian rice dealer and a key figure in the
Emirates Grain Products Company (LLC) ruled out any price hikes in India as
production is nearing 90 million tons and growing remarkably.
Saudi Arabia's rice imports from India are ranging between
1.5-2 million tons annually and imports are poised to grow Bindra told
Al-Eqitsadiah daily.India rice exports to the Kingdom account for 20 percent of
the Indian total exports to all countries he said.
For his part Mohamed Abdulrahman Al-Shaalan one of the key
rice importers said rice prices have stabilized since last Ramadan with minor
price reduction levels in some parts of the year.He said the majority of the
Kingdom's rice imports from India is 'Besmati' brand which represents 70-80
percent of the overall imports.Al-Shaalan said Indian rice production in the
current season was good with surpluses reaching 20 percent compared to last
year's production levels. He affirmed investment relations with their Indian
counterparts were excellent and refuted alleged price exaggerations by the
Indian traders.Saudi markets are expected to witness a remarkable stability in
rice prices over the coming months with a decline to range between 5-10 percent
on the back of oil price falls he said.
Ombudsman junks cases vs top Customs officials
ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at 12/16/2014 11:56 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman junked the
cases filed by a suspected illegal rice importer against top officials of the
Bureau of Customs over the latter's refusal to release its rice shipments.In a
joint resolution, the Ombudsman dismissed Bold Bidder Marketing and General
Merchandise's complaint against Customs Commissioner John Sevilla, Deputy
Commissioners Maria Edita Tan, Agaton Uvero, Ariel Nepumoceno and Jessie
Dellosa, as well as Ernesto Benitez, Jr, Acting District Collector, BOC-Port of
Batangas, because the "refusal to heed a court order must be addressed by
the Court, not by [the Office of the Ombudsman]."Bold Bidder had filed
cases against the Customs officials for alleged violations of the Anti-Graft
and Corrupt Practices Act, citing the BOC's refusal to release their rice
importation despite the issuance of the December 10, 2013 Writ of Preliminary
Injunction by a court in Lemery, Batangas.
The company also filed administrative cases against the said
officials for violating Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public
Officials and Employees.evilla welcomed the dismissal of the cases, saying the
bureau was only doing its job.
"Our laws are very clear: the importation of rice must be
supported by the required NFA permits and we have strictly and consistently
upheld this policy. Bold Bidder and other rice traders who imported rice
without the required NFA permits have danced around our legal system to try to
get their smuggled rice out of the ports. Filing cases against us cannot and
will not stop us from doing our job," Sevilla said.The BOC has already
filed smuggling-related cases against Bold Bidder representative Ivy Souza and
the firm’s customs brokers Denise Kathryn Rosaroso, John Kevin Cisneros,
Francis Rudolph Forneste and Elbert Lusterio for illegally importing over
12.8-million kilograms of rice through ports in Manila and Cebu.Last September,
the Batangas Regional Trial Court had also dismissed Bold Bidder’s petition for
declaratory relief against the NFA and BOC, for lack of jurisdiction
HEALTH MATTERS: Radiographer launches Indian
food business
Head of
Published on the16December 2014
12:00
catering Colin Chapman with radiographer Ananda Logishetty and some examples of her culinary skills
A RADIOGRAPHER with a passion for cooking has teamed up with
chefs for the day to share the authentic taste of Indian cooking.
Ananda Logishetty, who works part time as a senior radiographer
in the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust’s breast screening unit,
has launched a start-up online business which is based in the Tees valley.It is
called Ananda’s Gourmet and it delivers either spice packs or entire meal-kits,
including spices and vegetables to the doorstep of customers.But in a new twist
for one day only, Ananda supplied the spices and recipes to the restaurant
chefs at the North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust.She worked with
them to carefully follow the meal kit instructions and helped them to serve up
the perfect Indian dishes.
Ananda said: “I love working in the NHS, but I also have a real
passion for cooking. The recipes offered by Ananda’s Gourmet are the very same
handed down through generations of my family.“My cooking is very much
influenced by Moghul cooking which has its own distinctive traditions and
flavours.
“I spent my childhood in a big joint family where food was a
central part of life and learnt to cook from the age of ten. My parents are my
leading inspiration, combining their passion for great flavour and their zest
for providing fantastic food for guests.”Ananda said her aim was “to give people
an unforgettable experience of Indian food, which is influenced by different
regions of India. I want you to experience the taste of my kitchen in your own
home.”Her meal kits contain a pre-packed box of fresh ingredients and spices
with easy instructions for home cooking.
The kits contain fragrant Basmati rice and all that customers
need to do is buy the meat or fish. Alternatively, people can also just buy the
spice packs and the products are delivered to their doorstep.”Ananda added: “It
was excellent to experience working in the kitchens with the chefs and then to
see everyone enjoying the food.”Head of catering Colin Chapman: “It was a
fantastic opportunity for Ananda and the chefs to work together and bring
something new to the restaurant. It was so popular, we will be bringing
Ananda’s Gourmet back to the restaurant in the New Year. We had queues coming
out of the door and everyone was talking about how good the food tasted.”
University of Arkansas Research Team Receives Excellence Award
Team Leader, Dr. Trenton Roberts in the lab
FAYETTEVILLE, AR -- In recognition of the importance of
their work for the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of the
rice industry, a team of scientists at the University of Arkansas has been
selected to receive the school's Division of Agriculture John White Team
Award. The researchers developed a
nitrogen soil test method for rice (N-STaR) and carried that process through
wide-scale producer adoption and implementation.
Development of the
new N-STaR soil test provides producers with the ability to manage inputs on a
field-level basis. Nitrogen fertilizer accounts for a significant portion of
the variable input costs associated with rice production and is directly linked
to producer profitability. Farmers who have implemented the N-STaR program
report cost savings as high as $120 per acre by using less nitrogen fertilizer
while at the same time increasing rice yield.
"The development and implementation of N-STaR is a
great example of basic science being applied to a real-world problem to achieve
results, and it is a testament to the importance of interdisciplinary
research," said USA Rice Federation President and CEO Betsy Ward. "I
applaud the team, and on behalf of U.S. rice producers, thank them for putting
another tool in the toolbox to improve efficiency and sustainability."
Contact: Deborah Willenborg (703) 236-1444
The Brazilian paddy rice index
maintained by CEPEA reached around 37.91 real per 50 kilograms as of December
15, 2014, down about 0.11% from around 37.95 real per 50 kilograms recorded on
December 8, 2014.In terms of USD per ton, the index reached around $283 per ton
on December 15, 2014, down about 3% from around $292 per ton recorded on
December 16, 2014.
Guyana's rice production in 2014
has reached around 633,000 tons, up about 18% from around 535,212 tons from
last year, local sources quoted the country's Agriculture Minister as saying.
The Minister noted that output from the final crop reached around 300,000 tons.
He expressed confidence that the country would be able to export over 500,000
tons of rice earning around $250 million in 2014. He noted that already 481,000
tons of rice has been exported so far this year.
Thailand's Attorney General has
sought more evidences from the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) to
conclude the prosecution of the former Prime Minister (PM) Yingluck Shinawatra
in the controversial rice pledging scheme, according to local sources. The Office
of the Attorney-General (OAG) spokesman and the Director-general of the OAG's
litigation department reportedly told at a press conference that the Attorney
General agreed with the findings of an OAG working group that the case in its
present form was incomplete and more people needed to be questioned before
indicting the former PM. They noted that information over
government-to-government (G2G) transactions was not clear and so more evidence
is needed in this regard.
In its December Rice Outlook
report, USDA has forecasted 2014-15 global milled rice production at around
475.2 million tons, about 1.6 million tons down from an estimated 476.8 million
tons in 2013-14, and slightly up from its last month's estimates of around 475
million tons due to estimated increase in production in China, Guyana and
Vietnam.
USDA Post has estimated India's
MY 2014-15 (October - September) rice exports at around 8.7 million tons, down
about 16% from an estimated 10.3 million tons last year due to anticipated
decline in supplies from low production and competition from other rice
exporting countries.Based on preliminary export figures, India's rice exports
during January-October 2014 stood at around 8.8 million tons, down about 1%
from around 8.9 million tons exported during the same period last year. The
Post quoted market sources as saying that exports have been steady to Sri Lanka
and the traditional markets in Africa and the Middle East. The Post expects
India's rice exports in 2014 to reach about 10.5 million tons.
The USDA Post has forecasted
Ghana's MY 2014-15 (October - September) rice imports at around 600,000 tons,
down about 7% from around 644,000 tons last year due to increasing prices of
imported rice resulting from the rapid depreciation of Ghana currency against
the U.S. dollar.The Post finds that demand for rice has been increasing due to
persisting shortfall in production. Share of U.S. rice in Ghana's rice imports
has declined by about 77% to around $16.9 million in 2013-14 from around $73.3
million in 2011-12 due to high prices of U.S. rice. But due to increasing
demand, the Post expects the U.S. to resume its exports to Ghana in 2015.
Currently, Vietnam accounts for about 46% of Ghana's rice imports, Thailand
accounts for about 22%, the U.S. accounts for about 18% and other countries
such as China, Pakistan, India, and
Mexico's Secretariat of Agriculture,
Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Foodstuffs (SAGARPA) has decided to
provide support payments to rice farmers to help them overcome losses from
declining rice prices since August 2012, according to USDA Post. Rough rice
prices on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) have declined about 14% to around
$300 per ton in August-September 2014 from around $350 per ton in August 2012,
says the Post.Also increased low-priced imports from Vietnam and Pakistan since
2013 have been pushing down local rice prices as well, severely impacting
farmers, according to the Post.According to an announcement made on November
27, 2104, SAGARPA's Agency of Commercialization and Agriculture Markets
Development (ASERCA) will provide payments to rice farmers/organizations who
have produced and marketed rice during the 20131-4 fall-winter crop cycle and
spring-summer crop cycle in specific states. It will provide subsidy to about
64,000 tons of rice, with direct grower support of 200 pesos (around $14.4) per
ton.According to SAGARPA figures, rice production in the 2013-14 fall-winter
crop cycle is estimated at around 50,167 tons; while Veracruz rice production
for the 2014 spring-summer crop cycle is estimated at around 22,952 tons in the
irrigated area.
In its December Rice Outlook
report, USDA has forecasted 2015 global rice trade to be strong at around 41.9
million tons, almost unchanged from estimated 41.9 million tons in 2014, due to
large purchases by China and Sub-Saharan Africa and large exportable supplies
by Asian exporting countries.On the exports side, USDA estimates Thailand to
export a record 11 million tons in 2015 based on expected higher purchases by
Indonesia. USDA expects Myanmar's exports to increase to around 1.4 million
tons based on expected increase in shipments to China and Indonesia. It also
expects China's exports to increase to around 400,000 tons based larger
supplies.On the imports side, it is estimating significant increases in imports
by Indonesia to around 1.3 million tons based on a smaller crop.In 2014, USDA
is forecasting Myanmar's exports to increase significantly and on the import
side, it is forecasting China, Indonesia, European Union, Sri Lanka, North
Korea, Sierra Leone and Somalia to increase.