COA, IRRI
ink rice research pact in Philippines
COA Deputy Minister James Sha (front left) and IRRI
Director-General Robert Zeigler celebrate the signing of a memorandum of
understanding boosting two-way collaboration on agricultural research Jan. 26
in Los Banos, the Philippines. (CNA)
Publication Date：01/27/2015
Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture signed a memorandum of
understanding with Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute Jan.
26 in Los Banos, paving the way toward greater collaboration on related
research.Scheduled to take effect next year, the pact requires both sides to
boost bilateral personnel exchanges relating to joint research promotion, as
well as collaborate on rice breeding and varietal improvement.
COA Deputy Minister James Sha said Taiwan will contribute its
experience with best practice in rice cultivation to the IRRI’s pool of
knowledge. “This will advance development of production techniques to benefit
rice-growing countries in East Asia.”Operating on the campus of University of
the Philippines at Los Banos, IRRI was established in 1960 as part of efforts
to achieve the U.N. Millennium Development Goals of reducing poverty and hunger
through environmentally sustainable rice farming.
Taiwan has maintained a close partnership with IRRI—home to the
world’s largest rice gene bank—since its inception, with local agricultural
experts such as T. T. Chang, Paul C. Ma and Shen Tsung-han playing an
instrumental role in launching the nongovernmental organization.In addition,
the International Rice Germplasm Center of IRRI was renamed T. T. Chang Genetic
Resources Center in 2006 to honor the Academia Sinica member’s contribution
spanning three decades.IRRI Director-General Robert Zeigler said the memorandum
allows the COA and the institute to engage in advanced cooperation and take
relations to the next level going forward. (YHC-JSM)
Agriculture Сan Overtake Oil
Posted by: Deolu January 27, 2015
Dr.
Akinwumi Adesina, the minister of agriculture and rural development, states
that the agricultural sector would topple the nation’s oil sector in no distant
time, the Leadership informs.
Adesina
says that this is feasible because the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA)
which is a brainchild of President Goodluck Jonathan’s Transformation Agenda,
is geared towards ushering in agricultural sector-led economic growth.Speaking
on the AGRIFEST 2015, Adesina stated that as the price of crude oil plummets,
he is convinced that agriculture will be the new mainstay of the nation’s
economy.Adesina revealed that one of the last achievements of his ministry is
disbursement of N122million grant to 27 Nagropreneurs across the six
geo-political zones as a measure of boosting agricultural production and also
promoting its newly established project, the Youth Employment in Agriculture
Programme (YEAP).
Noting that Nigeria’s greater future for
inclusive growth lies in agriculture, he said food production had risen
massively and as a nation, Nigeria has produced additional 21 metric tons of
food within the last three years.Adesina also listed other milestones of the
ministry under him to include the establishment of Marketing Corporation,
nationwide census of farmers and supply of subsidised fertilisers to 14million
farmers.He further explained that the elaborate event is aimed at creating a
distinct platform that will further boost the country’s agriculture, and added
that it will also keep Nigerians abreast of the latest evolution in
technologies and food production.
President Goodluck Jonathan commended the
minister at the event, saying agriculture is now the lifeline for
Nigeria.Jonathan said: “As crude oil prices decline, we must create new wealth
from the richness of our soils, the vastness of our rivers and the abundance of
our cheap labour. We will produce more, and we will industrialise the
agricultural sector.When I appointed Dr Akinwumi Adesina as the minister of
agriculture, I charged him to turn agriculture around. My vision was clear –
turn agriculture away from being a sector for managing poverty to one for
creating wealth. We now see agriculture as a business, not as a development
programme. Noting that the rice revolution is taking place across the country,
the president said while high quality Nigerian rice is now competing favourably
with imported rice in the markets, rice importers cannot hold the country
hostage.”He added: “Nigeria, our dear country will not be held hostage by rice
importers.
There
will be no sacred cows under my watch. All those owing Nigeria on rice import
duties must pay.Rice farmers across the country have a new lease of life, due
to the transformation taking place in the sector. Over 6 million rice farmers
have received improved rice seed varieties, boosting domestic rice production
by an additional 7 million metric tons.Our rice millers have taken advantage of
these new opportunities, and the number of integrated rice mills has expanded
from 1 (one) at the beginning of this
administration, to 24 today. And they are all here today. I celebrate you all.
I eat Nigerian rice and can tell you it is better than imported rice”.
Rice farmers want protection against
importers
From DAVID ONWUCHEKWA, Nnewi
The Managing Director/CEO of Stine Rice
Industries, Amichi, Anambra State, Chief Akai Egwuonwu, has called on the
Federal Government not to relent in its effort to checkmate excessive
importation of rice to make local rice farmers thrive.
Egwuonwu,
who expressed his worry at his factory site in Amichi yesterday, said some
local rice producers were becoming stifled because of the sharp competition
generated by rice importers, a situation that had caused excess supply over
demand and subsequent increase in the cost of production for the farmers.
He
lamented that rice farmers in the country were not selling at the right prices
and pleaded that the recent rice allocation to millers by the Federal Ministry
of Agriculture and Rural Development should be adjusted. He complained that his
rice mill, adjudged to be one of the biggest in the country, was allocated only
30,000 metric tonnes as against its annual production capacity of 140,000 to
150,000 metric tonnes.He, however, explained that the committee members that
made the allocation confessed that they did not have the actual capacity
details of the mill.The rice miller said he was hopeful that the adjustment
would be made in subsequent allocation to consider real production capacity of
every mill.
He commended the Minister of Agriculture and
Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, who he said had taken measures to
checkmate the activities of rice importers to help local farmers have a good
share of the market.“He is like a father to us,” Egwuonwu admitted, saying the
only way to encourage self-sufficiency in food production was to give all the
needed assistance to local farmers.He regretted that banks were not really
helping farmers as they should. “Generally speaking, banks have not been best
partners to those in this sector. Their facilities are stringent because of the
short time require to pay back loans. The banks are stampeding the agricultural
sector,” he noted.
Source
with thanks:http://sunnewsonline.com/new/?p=102064
Climate-ready
rice lab to rise in Laguna
Poised to become one of the most
modern research facilities in the world, it will help scientists prepare rice
for climate change
Pia Ranada
Published 6:02 PM, Jan 27, 2015
Updated 6:02 PM, Jan 27, 2015
NEW FACILITY. The Lloyd T Evans
Plant Growth Facility will feature the latest technology to help scientists
make rice ready for the worst of climate change. Pia Ranada/Rappler
LAGUNA, Philippines – Scientists and government officials led
the groundbreaking ceremony for a new research facility that will be devoted to
studying the impacts of climate change on agriculture.The
ceremony took place on Tuesday, January 27, inside the International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI) compound where the building will rise.Named the Lloyd
T. Evans Plant Growth Facility, it is set to become a
"state-of-the-art" building with 8 controlled-environment
glasshouses, plant growth chambers, and plant processing and potting
laboratories.
But the facility's most dominant feature will be a large seed
processing and storage facility.The construction of the $10-million facility,
named after a world-renowned Australian plant physiologist, was funded by the
Australian government. It is expected to be operational by the end of 2015,
said IRRI Deputy Director General for Research Matthew Morell.
Although there are similar controlled-environment laboratories
in Australia and Europe, this new IRRI facility "will be one of the most
modern," said Morell.What sets it apart are the latest in sensor technology,
computing power for collecting data and more precise controls for changing
environmental parameters. It is also one of the few facilities to be fine-tuned
for rice research.Equipped with such technology, the facility will allow
scientists to study how rice is affected by changes in the environment.
"It's important for us to predict future climates and prepare plants or
rice crops so they can flourish in those environments," said Morell.
Predicting nature
The controlled-environment glasshouses and plant growth chambers
will enable researchers to manipulate temperature, relative humidity, light
intensity, photoperiod systems, water management systems, and precise control
of atmospheric gases.This would give them a more accurate picture of how rice
plants would be affected by wide-ranging environments, even the extreme
environments that may become the norm in a world with a rapidly changing
climate.
BREAKING NEW GROUND. Scientists
and government officials lead the ground-breaking ceremony of a new rice
research facility that will be operational by end of 2015. Pia Ranada/Rappler
Rice is a particularly important crop to safeguard against the
destructive effect of global warming. The crop is a staple food for 3.5 billion
people – around half of the world's population.
In Asia, rice contributes up to 70% of the calorie intake of the
impoverished who number around 600 million, according to IRRI.During the
ground-breaking ceremony, Senator Cynthia Villar, chairperson of the Senate
committee on agriculture, said that the research center will directly benefit
Filipino farmers."This is very good for us because we are the number one
at risk due to climate change. They will produce plants that will be adaptable
to every climate.
"Global warming is seen to cause more intense droughts and
more destructive typhoons. It may bring about a world with a lot of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere and where salty ocean water may reach crop fields
thus affecting their productivity.Some general trends already being felt are
increases in temperature, longer dry seasons, colder night time temperatures
and more exposure to destructive typhoons – all of which have grave
consequences on food crops.
More collaboration
Scientists all over the world have conceded that climate change
is a major threat to food security all over the world.Australian funding for the facility is partly
due to effects already being felt, said Morell."Being one of the driest
continents on the Earth, it has first-hand experience of climate change. It has
a rice industry that has been affected by recent droughts. This will be a
facility that Australia should benefit from just as much as other
rice-producing countries."Morell hopes that such a laboratory can
encourage more scientific work on rice.Hundreds of scientists are expected to
make use of the equipment. Such a high-tech laboratory may also serve as a
"magnet" to attract more collaborators from different research
institutes all over the world. –
Rappler.com
Source with thanks:http://www.rappler.com/science-nature/82103-lloyd-evans-facility-irri-climate-change
Efficient rice farming to curb emissions
New water- and cost-efficient farming techniques will allow
Vietnam to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in wet rice production by 15 to 20
percent by 2020, said Mai Van Trinh, Director of the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development's Institute for Agricultural Environment.
Trinh was speaking at a recent
conference on the first phase of the Project on Reduced CH4 Emissions in Wet
Rice Cultivation in Vietnam , jointly held by his institute and the
Manila-based International Rice Research Institute in Hanoi .To achieve the target,
the ministry will use the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), a plan in which
farmers will increase productivity, quality and economic effectiveness, while
reducing pesticides and nitrogenous fertilisers, he said.In addition to these
measures, the ministry will also encourage farmers to use green production
methods. The sector will also apply Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) in
cultivation, which means using techniques that consume less fertilisers and
water, employing better land preparation techniques and reducing methane
emissions.Another technology mentioned at the conference was Alternative
Wetting Drying (AWD).
"Actually, to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions in rice growing, the institute has tried AWD while
implementing a project on reducing CH4 emissions in wet rice cultivation,"
Trinh said, adding that AWD is no longer strange to rice growers in Vietnam, as
it has already been incorporated in several other programmes, including SRI.Vu
Duong Quynh, the project coordinator, said a major challenge with SRI is water
management. Most problems are caused by the unfavourable terrain in many areas,
fragmented rice fields and a lack of cooperation between irrigation staff and
farmers. This is especially troublesome considering the fact that efficient irrigation
is the best way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
To overcome these difficulties,
Quynh said that in its first phase, from October 2014 to June 2016, the project
intends to collect lessons learnt from efficient irrigation models and to
gather data on land and infrastructure in each province, to make a
water-efficient irrigation map."When looking at this map, one can read out
which province can apply AWD, as not all types of land are suitable for this
technology," Quynh said. In the second phase, the project will incorporate
other technologies.
VNA
Thailand to
dump a ‘mountain’ of rice as market suffers glut
PUBLISHED: JANUARY 27, 2015 06:10 PM
With record low prices for rice
and a massive stockpile to be disposed on the market, rice futures are expected
to remain depressed, January 27, 2015. — File pic
BANGKOK, Jan 27 — In a government
building outside Bangkok, along the murky Chao Phraya River, Thailand’s ruling
junta is preparing to unload a mountain of rice on an already oversupplied
world. And there’s more on the way.The biggest exporter stockpiled 17.8 million
metric tons after former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra spent US$27 billion
(RM97 billion) since 2011 buying at above-market prices to aid farmers. The
move threatened the nation’s credit rating and helped fan months of protests.
She was ousted in May by military
leaders, who now plan to auction the grain over two years, with 1 million tons
set for sale at the Department of Foreign Trade on January 29.With global
output poised to be near last year’s record, Thailand will ship more this year
than any country ever, US Department of Agriculture data show. The staple for
half the world plunged to a four-year low in Chicago, helping cut food costs
that the United Nations says are the lowest since 2010.
“We have plenty of rice,” said Mamadou Ciss, who’s traded the grain
since 1984 and is president of Alliance Commodities (Suisse) SA in Geneva.
“Thailand still has huge stocks available, compared with world trade. Anything
more than 10 million tons will take time to clear. Prices will stay
weak.”Global reserves are 30 per cent above a 10-year average, UN Food &
Agriculture Organisation data show. Production for 2014-2015 in the US, the
fifth-largest exporter, is seen rising by the most in a decade, expanding
global grain inventories already at all-time highs following record global
harvests of wheat, corn and soy.
Buying spree
The Thai buying spree from
November 2011 to February 2014 filled more than 1,000 warehouses and left
inventories equal to about 42 per cent of what the world’s importers bought in
2014. Exports from the country will surge 9.7 per cent to a record 11.3 million
tons this year, USDA data show.
Protest groups that opposed
Yingluck’s government say the rice-buying program was part of a pattern of
corruption by politicians allied with her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, who was
deposed as prime minister in a 2006 coup. Since Thaksin’s ouster, the country
has been divided between supporters of the Shinawatra family, mostly farmers in
the north and northeast, and opponents who are mostly urban and middle-class.Yingluck
was impeached on January 23 for failing to heed warnings about the spiraling
cost of rice subsidies, which the FAO said were unsustainable. She also faces
criminal prosecution. Yingluck denies the corruption charges and defends the
subsidies, saying they raised wages for the millions of farmers who voted for
her party in the 2011 elections and boosted economic growth.
Every election
Junta leader Prayuth Chan-Ocha is seeking to clear the
warehouses without torpedoing the market, saying on January 26 the government
wants to accelerate sales to reduce inventory costs while ensuring prices are
acceptable. Since government buying began, Thai 5 per cent broken rice, an Asia
benchmark, tumbled 35 per cent from a three-year high of US$647 a ton in 2011
to US$420 on January 21. On the Chicago Board of Trade, futures reached
US$10.81 per 100 pounds on January 26, the lowest since 2010, and traded at
US$11.045 today.
The government may get unexpected help from a dry spell that’s
reducing output. In the central basin north of Bangkok, irrigation officials
shut the taps after reservoir levels fell to a 15-year low. Farmers are growing
the smaller of two annual harvests that normally accounts for a quarter of
production. The lack of water may cut output 31 percent to 6.7 million tons,
the lowest in a decade, government data show.
‘Welcome development’
“The reduction in production this season would be a welcome
development for the Thai government, whose priority is now to get rid of the
surpluses,” said Concepcion Calpe, a senior economist at the Rome-based
FAO.Kwanchai Mahachuenjai, a 54-year-old farmer in Ayutthaya, said he cut
planting almost in half to 120 rai (47.4 acres) because he’s getting less
water. Yields will drop to 300 to 400 kilograms per rai from 700 to 800
kilograms, he said.
A decline in the quality of the stockpiles also may limit the
impact of sales on prices, which reflect food-grade grain. An audit in 2014
found about 80 per cent was substandard and almost 4 per cent was poor quality,
destined for non-food uses.
Most is still food-grade quality and can be sold as long as it’s
kept dry and fumigated, said Somkiat Makcayathorn, secretary-general of the
Thai Rice Exporters Association.While the government doesn’t want to buy rice,
it plans other support. About 40 billion baht (RM4.3 billion) has been
earmarked for payments to the poorest farmers, and officials are encouraging
the growing of other crops, including sugar.For now, the government is focused
on unloading 10 million tons this year and 7.8 million tons in 2016. T
his week’s auction will be the biggest amount since 2004, said
Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general at Department of Foreign Trade.“It’s good
timing to sell because of low supply ahead of second-crop harvests,” Somkiat
said. “Prices will stay under pressure until the government clears the huge
inventories.” — Bloomberg
Thailand gives priority to new rice markets hunt
Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation
Publication Date : 27-01-2015
The Thai Rice Exporters Association will join forces with the
Commerce Ministry for a business mission to potential new rice-import markets
such as Iran, Iraq, and other Middle East countries. The move will be a bid to
increase rice sales this year in the face of fears that falling oil prices will
affect the purchasing power of major importers of Thai rice.TREA president
Charoen Laothamatas said the association was scheduled to join many trade
missions with the Ministry of Commerce because Thailand needed to aggressively
promote its rice plans and activities to "knock on the doors" of
potential new importers.
"Due to the lowering oil price, some major import countries
such as Nigeria and other countries in Africa, where their incomes have relied
mainly on the oil price, could be affected and cause a lower order for
rice," he said."The ministry and the association thus have plans to
promote more rice sales to other potential markets such as Iran, Iraq, and
other countries in the Middle East to encourage them to buy Thai
rice."Charoen said that Iran and Iraq used to be major Thai rice
importers, but they suspended imports for a few years due to a defaulted
contract with a private exporter. Now was a good time to boost the confidence
of those countries, he added.
Under the Commerce Ministry plan, Commerce Minister General
Chatchai Sarikulya will visit Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait,
Oman, Egypt, Italy, and Indonesia. Charoen said that rice exports this year
should be as high as last year - up to 11 million tonnes - due to high demand
in the world market and drought problems in some rice-producing countries.He
said the price of Thai rice was expected to be steady this year. The price has
climbed slightly over the past few months due to the strengthening baht. At
the moment, the export price of rice is quoted at US$405-$410 for 5 per cent
white rice, while Vietnamese rice is quoted $370 per tonne.
S. Korea seeks to ship rice to China as it
moves to lift export restrictions
Published : 2015-01-27 09:35
Updated : 2015-01-27 09:35
South
Korea is seeking to ship rice to the vast Chinese market as it moves to lift
export restrictions on the staple grain, officials said Tuesday.The agriculture
ministry said it was seeking revisions to the outdated laws and clauses that
restrict the volume and price of rice shipped abroad to open up the export
market starting as early as March. The restrictions had been put in place when
the country did not produce enough rice to feed its own people, which is no
longer the case.Last year, the country's rice harvest hit 4.24 million tons,
much higher than the annual consumption of about 4 million tons.
The
country exported only 2,000 tons of rice for all of last year. Ministry officials say exporting rice
can help balance out supply and demand of the grain and stabilize domestic
prices, especially after South Korea agreed to tariffed rice imports starting
this year.An official said Seoul has been asking China since 2009 to allow
South Korean rice into the country, but Beijing has yet to start studies on disease
and insect pest risks required for such trade.Beijing is a net importer of
grain products, and with demand for higher quality foodstuffs, it could become
a good overseas market, officials say."Rice poses less disease and insect
risks compared to fruits and vegetables," the ministry official said.
He
pointed out that the government asked China to conduct risk assessments twice
last year and has used various channels to nudge the country to consider buying
rice from South Korea.Local rice producers have also said that they may be able
to ship rice to China if all restrictions are lifted. "Because of the high price of
locally produced rice, the grain can only be sold in select markets and to
Koreans living abroad,"another official said. He pointed out that Japan
slaps very high import tariffs on rice, making exports to that country unlikely
and leaving China as the only viable market. (Yonhap)
Philippines
plans to bring in up to 500,000 tons rice
THE PHILIPPINES plans to import up to 500,000 tons of
rice for deliveries starting in March to boost its stockpiles ahead of the lean
harvest season, government and trade sources said.The state grains procurement agency, National Food
Authority (NFA), wants the shipments to arrive in two batches of 200,000 tons
and one for 100,000 tons, to be completed by May, a government official with
knowledge of the plan told Reuters.
The official, who is not authorized to speak to the
media about the plan, said the NFA might go for a government-to-government
deal, similar to its transactions last year with Vietnam and Thailand.Local
rice traders, however, are hoping the NFA will give them import permits for the
planned purchases, which are tariff-free, a Manila-based trader told
Reuters.Fresh demand from the Philippines could give a boost to falling rice
prices in top producers and sellers Thailand and Vietnam, the Philippines’ key
suppliers. The Philippines usually buys rice early in the year to prepare for
the lean harvest season that begins in July.
Private traders have been allowed to import up to
187,000 tons of rice this year, with tariffs as high as 35%, under the
government’s Minimum Access Volume-Omnibus Rice Importation program.Despite
record-high domestic harvests in recent years, including last year’s output,
the Philippines remains one of the world’s biggest rice buyers. The Philippines
bought more than 1.8 million tons from Vietnam and Thailand after typhoon
Haiyan destroyed crops in November 2013, prompting the government to release
supplies from state stockpiles for relief operations and to arrest the sharp
increase in local retail prices.
Last year’s rice purchases were the biggest in four
years. This year’s imports may hit 1.6 million tons, based on a United States
Agriculture department forecast. The government official said, however, that
2015 imports may be less than 1 million tons as local retail prices have eased
from the record highs seen at mid-2014. – Reuters
Thai Junta Unloading Mountain of Rice Amid
World Surplus
27.01.2015
In a government building outside
Bangkok, along the murky Chao Phraya River, Thailand’s ruling junta is
preparing to unload a mountain of rice on an already oversupplied world. And
there’s more on the way.The biggest exporter stockpiled 17.8 million metric
tons after former Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra spent $27 billion since
2011 buying at above-market prices to aid farmers. The move threatened the
nation’s credit rating and helped fan months of protests. She was ousted in May
by military leaders, who now plan to auction the grain over two years, with 1
million tons set for sale at the Department of Foreign Trade on Jan. 29.With
global output poised to be near last year’s record, Thailand will ship more
this year than any country ever, U.S. Department of Agriculture data show.
The staple for half the world
plunged to a four-year low in Chicago, helping cut food costs that the United
Nations says are the lowest since 2010.“We have plenty of rice,” said Mamadou
Ciss, who’s traded the grain since 1984 and is president of Alliance Commodities
(Suisse) SA in Geneva. “Thailand still has huge stocks available, compared with
world trade. Anything more than 10 million tons will take time to clear. Prices
will stay weak.”Global reserves are 30 percent above a 10-year average, UN Food
& Agriculture Organization data show. Production for 2014-2015 in the U.S.,
the fifth-largest exporter, is seen rising by the most in a decade, expanding
global grain inventories already at all-time highs following record global
harvests of wheat, corn and soy.
Buying Spree
The Thai buying spree from November 2011 to February 2014 filled more than
1,000 warehouses and left inventories equal to about 42 percent of what the
world’s importers bought in 2014. Exports from the country will surge 9.7
percent to a record 11.3 million tons this year, USDA data show.Protest groups
that opposed Yingluck’s government say the rice-buying program was part of a
pattern of corruption by politicians allied with her brother, Thaksin
Shinawatra, who was deposed as prime minister in a 2006 coup. Since Thaksin’s
ouster, the country has been divided between supporters of the Shinawatra
family, mostly farmers in the north and northeast, and opponents who are mostly
urban and middle-class.
Yingluck was impeached on Jan. 23
for failing to heed warnings about the spiraling cost of rice subsidies, which
the FAO said were unsustainable. She also faces criminal prosecution. Yingluck
denies the corruption charges and defends the subsidies, saying they raised
wages for the millions of farmers who voted for her party in the 2011 elections
and boosted economic growth.
Every Election
Junta leader Prayuth Chan-Ocha is seeking to clear the warehouses without
torpedoing the market, saying on Jan. 26 the government wants to accelerate
sales to reduce inventory costs while ensuring prices are acceptable. Since
government buying began, Thai 5 percent broken rice, an Asia benchmark, tumbled
35 percent from a three-year high of $647 a ton in 2011 to $420 on Jan. 21. On
the Chicago Board of Trade, futures reached $10.81 per 100 pounds on Jan. 26,
the lowest since 2010, and traded at $11.035 on Tuesday.The government may get
unexpected help from a dry spell that’s reducing output. In the central basin
north of Bangkok, irrigation officials shut the taps after reservoir levels
fell to a 15-year low. Farmers are growing the smaller of two annual harvests
that normally accounts for a quarter of production. The lack of water may cut
output 31 percent to 6.7 million tons, the lowest in a decade, government data
show.
‘Welcome Development’
“The reduction in production this
season would be a welcome development for the Thai government, whose priority
is now to get rid of the surpluses,” said Concepcion Calpe, a senior economist
at the Rome-based FAO.Kwanchai Mahachuenjai, a 54-year-old farmer in Ayutthaya,
said he cut planting almost in half to 120 rai (47.4 acres) because he’s
getting less water. Yields will drop to 300 to 400 kilograms per rai from 700
to 800 kilograms, he said.
A decline in the quality of the stockpiles
also may limit the impact of sales on prices, which reflect food-grade grain.
An audit in 2014 found about 80 percent was substandard and almost 4 percent
was poor quality, destined for non-food uses.Most is still food-grade quality
and can be sold as long as it’s kept dry and fumigated, said Somkiat
Makcayathorn, secretary-general of the Thai Rice Exporters Association.While
the government doesn’t want to buy rice, it plans other support.
About 40 billion baht ($1.2
billion) has been earmarked for payments to the poorest farmers, and officials
are encouraging the growing of other crops, including sugar.For now, the
government is focused on unloading 10 million tons this year and 7.8 million
tons in 2016. This week’s auction will be the biggest amount since 2004, said
Duangporn Rodphaya, director-general at Department of Foreign Trade.“It’s good
timing to sell because of low supply ahead of second-crop harvests,” Somkiat
said. “Prices will stay under pressure until the government clears the huge inventories.”
USA Rice Inspires Young Minds to 'Think Rice'
Get smart
ARLINGTON, VA -- This week, teachers at more
than 2,800 elementary schools in rice producing counties across the six states
will receive the new
Think Rice educational lesson plan. Developed with the award-winning curriculum
experts at Young Minds Inspired (YMI), this education kit is all about
U.S.-grown rice and meets national standards for 3rd - 6th grade students in
social studies, science, and nutrition."From the focus groups, we learned
that many people assume rice comes from Asia and they're unaware of the
connection between rice growing and conservation," said Byron Holmes, an
Arkansas rice farmer and USA Rice Federation Nutrition Subcommittee
chairman.
"The lesson plans address these areas and
also reinforce how U.S. rice can help families meet MyPlate healthy eating
guidelines."The Think Rice kit contains three student activities, a
classroom poster, and a teacher's guide.
Students will learn how rice growing has contributed to American history
since colonial times, and how today's U.S. rice farmers not only help sustain
wetland habitats, but also help reduce carbon emissions by providing a
close-to-home source of good nutrition.
There is
also a recipe-building activity to demonstrate the versatility of U.S. rice and
its role in a balanced diet."The education programs we do across the rice
states are great events with encouraging results, and we will continue to
invest in them," said Holmes.
"This program amplifies our reach to thousands of students who will
in turn go home and teach their families about U.S.-grown rice."Teachers
are encouraged to use the Think Rice education kit during March National
Nutrition Month and complete a survey to measure use, effectiveness, and appeal
of the program. The materials will be
available indefinitely on YMI's website
(http://ymiclassroom.com/lesson-plans/usarice/) so teachers from all around the
country can download and use the activities.These new rice resources and the
U.S. Rice in the Classroompamphlet are available for USA Rice members to use in
their own student outreach as well.
Contact:
Katie Maher (703) 236-1453
CME
Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
|
CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice Futures for January 27
|
March 2015
|
$10.970
|
+ $0.085
|
|
May 2015
|
$11.225
|
+ $0.080
|
|
July 2015
|
$11.465
|
+ $0.075
|
|
September 2015
|
$11.145
|
+ $0.075
|
|
November 2015
|
$11.245
|
+ $0.075
|
|
January 2016
|
$11.335
|
+ $0.075
|
|
March 2016
|
$11.335
|
+ $0.075
|
|
CBN: We May Cut
Forex Support On Rice Importation, Others
— Jan 28, 2015
The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin
Emefiele, has revealed plans by the bank to stop foreign exchange support for
the importation of some commodities such as rice, if the pressure on the naira
does not recede.Speaking during a meeting with stakeholders in the organized
private sector in Lagos yesterday, Emefiele stressed the need for local
production of most of the commodities that are presently imported into the
country, so as to strengthen the naira and develop the country.
“In the course of time, we are not going to ban the importation
of rice but we are not going to provide foreign exchange if you are going to
import rice into the country. So if you are interested in rice, I will advise
that you go into the production of rice,” said Emefiele.“If you want to use
your dollar that you have kept somewhere, there is no problem but at some point
we will not allocate foreign exchange for you to import rice. The same way, we
will graduate it other products.”Emefiele, while dispelling fears of a further
devaluation of the naira and the ability of the CBN to continue to defend the
currency, however, gave the assurance that the apex bank will continue to
provide foreign exchange for legitimate investors and businesses.
Stating that Nigeria had survived an oil price crash with $10
billion in reserves, he said $34 billion is enough to scale through the present
oil price crisis.“The important thing is that anyone who needs foreign exchange
for legitimate purposes will get their Forex even when the interbank is unable
to meet the demands in the market, the CBN will, from time to time, step in and
we will provide the foreign exchange that is needed to meet everybody’s
legitimate demand,” the CBN boss said.For his part, business mogul and chairman
of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, said that his company was planning
to be the major seller of foreign exchange after the CBN by 2018. He also
disclosed that Nigerian would be the biggest exporter of urea and ammonia by
2017.He said, “Based on our plans we will be the highest foreign exchange
seller in the market by the first quarter of 2018, and it’s not from just
refinery alone – because if you do refinery alone you will not make money.
“The profit margin will not be that big unless the refinery is a
huge one where you make gains based on volume. Today, we are doing 3.6 million
tonnes of polypropylene and polyethylene, and even now with the crash of the
price, those prices are not crashing on the same scale with oil; so even as at
today’s prices, our exports are more than $7 billion. Our worry now is how do
we export most of the other products – like aviation fuel, diesel. The only
thing that we will not export is PMS,” he said.Dangote also stated that the
country cannot continue to import consumables and “things that we don’t even
need.”He urged Nigerians to get involved in manufacturing not only for local
consumption but also for export.
No need to panic, Emefiele tells Nigerians,
investors
AS the Nigerian economy struggles with the effect of falling oil prices,
decline in value of the naira and drop in foreign exchange reserves, Governor
of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele has assured
Nigerians, local and foreign investors that “there is no need to panic.
”According to him, though decline in crude oil
prices continues to put demand pressure on domestic economy due to over
dependence on imports; causing speculative and rent seeking activities as well
as increased foreign exchange out flows, the CBN in conjunction with other
stakeholders will certainly find a solution.Specifically, Emefiele said it is not unusual that “external reserves
dwindle as crude oil prices decline, which may lead to depreciation, but one
major lesson from history is that when foreign reserves in the past declined to
$10 billion dollars, the country survived it so, at the current level of $34
billion, the reserves can support Nigerian economy.
Assuring genuine manufacturers of CBN’s
readiness to support them, Emefiele said the bank is considering halting sales
of dollars to importers of goods that are being manufactured in the country as
it seeks to reduce pressure on the local currency hit by a drop in oil
prices.“The only thing that will reduce pressure on our currency is by
producing those things we are importing today. In the course of time, we will
not ban Rice importation but we can stop selling foreign exchange to importers
of Rice” Emefiele said at a conference on Tuesday in Lagos.“We will try as much
as possible not to hurt your business, but we need to be able to work together,
he stated.
”The naira depreciated by 8 per cent and 13 per
cent at the Official and Interbank Markets in 2014 prompting the central bank
to ban the use of dollars purchased at its twice-weekly auctions for the
importation of items including electronics, telecommunication equipment and
generators suspecting that most importers are asking for dollars for
illegitimate businesses.Warning that currency speculators will loose their
money, the governor said CBN “will only meet legitimate demand, but we will not
be concerned about illegitimate demand for dollars. The CBN will not hesitate
to revoke licenses of banks found to be fueling speculative activities in the
forex market.
”On calls by some experts for CBN to allow
exchange rate be determined by market forces, Emefiele said if the central bank
allowed the naira to trade more freely then “it will lead to a major
depreciation” as Nigeria is not yet an export-driven economy.The naira has
slumped 16 percent against the dollar on the interbank market in the past six
months.Emefiele reiterated that the central bank has no plans to further
devalue the currency.His words:“We continue to take all measures to defend the
currency at the current exchange rate. The Bank will continue to monitor
developments and respond appropriately as the need arises.
“Successful management of the current situation
requires effective collaboration among all stakeholders.”Commenting, President
of Dangote Group of companies Alhaji Aliko Dangote assured that his investment
in Sugar plants will ensure that CBN will receive no request for foreign
exchange for sugar importation, rather, Nigeria will be producing and exporting
sugar in the next 4 years.
Report:
U.S. drops bid to end Japanese import rules
David
Shepardson, The Detroit News6:10 p.m. EST January 26, 2015
Washington — The Obama administration
declined to comment on a report Monday that U.S. trade negotiators will end
their bid to convince Japan to lift tough requirements on car imports after
Japan agreed to expand a tariff-free quota for imported U.S. rice.Nikkei Asian
Review reported the U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman’s office will end
efforts to convince Japan to drop standards on car imports in exchange for
Japan’s agreement to import an additional 10,000 tons of U.S. rice.
The report said talks will begin in Washington
on Wednesday aimed at working out the details — and a deal means it is more
likely a final deal on a 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership could be reached
by spring.Trevor Kinkaid, a spokesman for Froman, said the office had no
comment on the report. Froman is set to testify Tuesday in front of the Senate
Finance Committee. It comes as the Obama administration is pushing Congress to
quickly approve “fast track” trade legislation that would guarantee any trade
deal gets a yes or no vote without amendments from Congress.In April 2013,
Japan announced it would more than double the number of motor vehicles eligible
for import under its fast-track rules.
Detroit’s Big Three automakers are now be
allowed to export up to 5,000 vehicles annually of each vehicle type under the
program, compared with the prior ceiling of 2,000 vehicles per vehicle type.The
U.S., Japan, Mexico, Canada and eight other nations have been negotiating the
Trans-Pacific Partnership that would create a free trade zone comprising 40
percent of the world’s economy for more than four years. Australia, Brunei,
Chile, New Zealand, Malaysia, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam are part of the
talks.Automakers have been pushing for at least three years to convince the
Obama administration to include provisions in the agreement barring the
countries from currency manipulation, but Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew and
Froman have repeatedly shown no interest in doing so, arguing such issues are
better addressed by global forums like the World Trade Organization.
Automakers worry that foreign
governments — like Japan — will be able to weaken their currency to undercut
U.S. vehicle production.The administration may be dropping efforts on the auto
provision because automakers have taken a hard line in only seeking currency
changes.“We can compete against anyone anywhere — but we can’t compete against
the Bank of Japan,” said Ziad S. Ojakli, Ford Motor Co.’s group vice president,
government and community relations.Asked if Ford would accept any other provisions
in lieu of currency in a 12-nation free trade deal, Ojakli said no.
“We need to have strong
enforceable disciplines in any thing that moves — whether it is trade promotion
authority or TPP. ... All we’re looking for is the internationally accepted principles
(on currency).”Ojakli said the agreement must put “teeth” in those rules that
are part of other international agreements. “Let’s enforce the rules that we’ve
all agreed to worldwide. How crazy is that?” Ojakli said.A group of Democratic
lawmakers from Michigan are among those strongly opposed to a deal without
currency changes.Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint, is a strong opponent of a free trade
deal without currency.
He notes that Flint once had
79,000 manufacturing jobs, and now has less than 10,000.“(Automakers) are going
to have a difficult time signing off on an agreement that does not include a
currency provision,” Kildee said in a Detroit News interview. “They’re in the
same position that a lot of us are in: trying to make a bad deal as good as we
can knowing that in the end absent a big turnaround — which would be to begin
to negotiate on currency — it’s not going to be something we can support.
”Rep. Brenda Lawrence,
D-Southfield, said Michigan had been devastated by prior trade agreements that
had sent thousands of jobs abroad. “When you are in an environment like
Michigan and watch factories, watch people lose their homes, this is real and
this is about jobs.” Lawrence said.Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, said a bad
deal “could do real damage to the middle class.” Fast-track trade legislation
“does not allow Congress to address countries that manipulate their currency to
gain an unfair advantage, which is the mother of all trade barriers,” she said.
“This is unfair, and it puts U.S.
jobs at risk.”The proposed trade pact is facing strong opposition from U.S.
automakers and the United Auto Workers, which are worried a deal will be
reached that doesn’t do enough to open the Japanese auto sector to American
products. Japan has historically imported very few foreign automobiles, but the
number has been rising significantly in recent years — especially among
European vehicles.The auto sector accounts for more than 70 percent of the U.S.
trade deficit with Japan.
American automakers fear if Japan
intervenes to weaken its currency, its automakers eventually will be able to
dramatically undercut them, especially when U.S. tariffs are phased out — 25
percent on light trucks and 2.5 percent on cars. Automakers want the tariffs
kept in place for at least 25 years or more. And China could seek to enter the
free trade agreement under the same rules down the road.
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