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Indonesia Aims to
Buy 2.7 Million Tons of Rice from Farmers in First Half of 2016
Apr 18, 2016
Indonesia's state
logistics agency Bulog is planning to buy around 2.7 million tons of rice from
local farmers in the first half of 2016, Bloomberg quoted the agency's
President Director.
The official told
reporters that Bulog rice reserves stand at around 1.66 million tons as of
April 17, 2016.
Separately, the
country's Agriculture Ministry noted that it is expecting an output of around
30.5 million tons of paddy (around 19.5 million tons of milled rice) from the
2016 main (March-May) rice harvest.
Earlier this year, the
Director of procurement at the state logistics agency Bulog said that the
country may not import rice this year due to adequate stocks. He noted agency
is planning to buy about 3 million tons of rice from farmers between March to
May this year.
Africa: Innovations Boost Income
for Women Rice Farmers
By Busani Bafana
Malanville, Benin — Salabanya
Tabaitou no longer squints from the irritating wood smoke each time she has to
parboil her rice paddy.Now Tabaitou feeds logs into a chute of a specially
designed brick stove with a chimney that draws away the smoke. The stove with a
stainless steel parboiling vessel cooks her rice in 20 minutes - something she
would have spent two hours doing using the traditional method."The stove
has made parboiling a pleasant activity, less strenuous and something I look
forward to doing because I work with a team unlike in the past when I toiled
alone," Tabaitou says about the innovative heat efficient stove and GEM
parboiler developed by AfricaRice with women farmers in mind.
Parboiling, a task largely done
by women, involves partially boiling rice in the husk before it is milled. The
process protects the rice from breaking during milling, preserves nutrition and
enhances quality. Parboiled rice is competitive, fetches higher price and is in
demand in Benin and many parts of west and central Africa.Rice is a staple in
many parts of Africa but the continent is eating more rice that it produces
locally. Africa produced over 14 million tonnes in 2015 and is a source of
income for more than 35 million smallholder farmers.New
technologies introduced by AfricaRice - a pan African research organisation -
are helping women produce better quality, nutritious local rice that earns them
more income on the market. Half of the rice eaten in Sub Saharan Africa is
imported taking away local jobs and income.
Scientists from AfricaRice -- under the support
to agricultural research for development of strategic crops (SARD-SC) programme
funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) -- introduced the 'innovation
platform' (IP) approach in Benin.Innovation platforms are formal groupings
bringing together in value chains in a given agriculture commodity with the aim
of boosting information and knowledge sharing, and learning, to enhance the
adoption of technological solutions and institutional change. Furthermore, the
platforms show usefulness of new technologies and innovations designed to
improve rice production, productivity and value addition.Two such platforms
have been introduced in Benin: the Glazoué IP in central Benin in the rainfed
rice environment and the Malanville IP in the irrigated rice environment, some
750 km in the north of the capital, Cotonou.
Tabaitou is a member of Malanville IP and one
of the more than 500 women trained in parboiling. The GEM parboiler has
revolutionised how women prepare rice, achieving the triple benefits working
with ease, obtaining high quality rice, and earning better income from it.We
learnt a lot from other women in the Glazoue IP and we are confident this
platform and the technologies that we have access to for parboiling our rice
will increase our income because the GEM parboiling technology has reduced the
labour and the rice we produce is of better quality and over less time to
parboil," Tabaitou told IPS.
Livelihood changes in Glazoué motivated
AfricaRice to replicate the IP in Malanville and about 1,000 women households
have been empowered through the innovation platforms.Dr. Sidi Sanyang, leader
of the Rice Sector Development Program and SARD-SC project coordinator for
AfricaRice says in the Glazoue IP, research evidence shows that the women have
doubled the quantity and income from parboiled rice compared to before they
started using the GEM technology."There were selling less than 2 tonnes of
rice a month now they are selling up to 5 tonnes of rice per month in Glazoué
and the Malanville IP is promising to achieve the same success for women
parboilers," said Sanyang. "The technologies and innovations we have
introduced are aimed at helping farmers especially women drive the market and
in Malanville, there have a huge market potential in nearby Nigeria, a high
consumer of parboiled rice.
"Women make up more than 50 per cent of
rice farmers in Africa, but are a minority in enjoying the same opportunities
that men have in rice farming. Women lacked access to seed, tools and
implements and effective market opportunities that would make them competitive.
This is changing thanks to the IP approach which has availed appropriate
technologies for women rice farmers to produce more, high quality local rice
that increases their food, nutrition and financial security.The GEM parboiling
technology uses less wood and water than the traditional system and is equipped
with hoists and rails to lift and move the heavy vessels in which the paddy is
steamed with ease by women.With the traditional system, the women parboilers
were processing only about 120 kg of paddy per session. Using GEM technology,
they can process up to 400 kg of paddy per session and are now aiming to
increase the amount to 1 tonne.
Besides,
the quality of the parboiled rice is similar to that of premium imported rice.
Research trials conducted by AfricaRice showed that, with GEM technologies and
innovations, there was less burned grains and impurities compared to using the
traditional parboiling system.SARD-SC project coordinator, Dr. Chrysantus Akem,
indicated that the rice value chain of the SARD-SC project covers 11 countries
in West, East and Southern Africa and he is looking to setting up of the GEM
innovation platforms in Nigeria and Niger. In Nigeria, there is high demand for
parboiled rice and the need for higher capacity GEM parboilers.In addition to
the GEM parboiling technology, AfricaRice is also promoting handy weeders and a
mini Axial Flow Thresher (ASI), an improved rice thresher and cleaner suitable
for women who are involved in the planting, weeding, harvesting and
post-harvest operations of rice."Rice is an important cash crop for women
as they play an increasingly important and recognized role in the whole rice
value chain, from seed to the table/mouth," says Afiavi Agboh-Noameshie, a
gender specialist at AfricaRice.
Agboh-Noameshie says in terms of technology
development and dissemination in rice production, there was a huge gender bias
because women were not considered as farmers but "assistants" to the
husbands."All the technologies were developed thinking that it is only men
that are farmers," Agboh-Noameshie, told IPS adding that the use of these
technologies by women includes significant time saving, reduction of workload
and significantly reduced health risk, improvement of productivity, efficiency,
quality of final rice product to consumers, and increased income for the women.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201604180147.html
Rice Importation: Customs Restate
Commitment To Upholding Restrictions
Channels Television. Updated April 17, 2016
Nigeria Customs Service has restated its
commitment to restricting the importation of rice.
The Area Comptroller Customs, Oyo/Osun Command,
Temitope Ogunkua, made the declaration on Saturday at the command headquarters
in Ibadan.Mr Ogunkua advised traders and importers of rice to perfect their
papers for the right channel through the ports.He insisted that there was no
going back on the rice ban, as it had adversely affected Nigeria’s revenue
generation.The Customs officer also lamented that smugglers had explored the
loopholes in porous borders to bring in rice without paying duties.The Oyo
State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi, had implored the Comptroller General of
Customs, Colonel Hameed Ali (Rtd), during a visit to the state, to rethink the
ban and give room for alternatives to be provided before shutting out imported
rice.Some of the traders and consumers have also decried the ban on rice
importation through the borders, coupled with the fuel scarcity, epileptic
power supply and non-payment of salaries
Fungal disease to cause 50pc loss of Boro
yield, fear experts
Yasir Wardad Spread
of 'neck blast' disease in many areas of several districts has caused massive
damage to Boro paddy fields raising concern among farmers, already hit hard by
price fall, growers and officials said. Unexpected rain in many places,
fluctuation in temperature and low-quality seeds are the main reasons for
spread of the 'neck blast' disease, they said. Experts feared that the disease
might cause up to 50 per cent yield loss in the districts where it spread. The
'neck blast' (Magnaporthe grisea) is a plant-pathogenic fungus that causes a
serious disease affecting paddy. The disease has no cure but prevention is the
only way to save rice fields from it. Apart from the fungus, the 'blast' might
occur from attack of pests like majrapoka, gandhipoka and so on, according to
agriculturists. Paddy fields in many areas of Comilla, Chandpur, Gazipur,
Tangail, Mymensingh, Sherpur, Jamalpur, Netrakona, Kisoreganj, Narsingdi,
Munshiganj and Manikganj districts witnessed the 'neck blast' disease.
Farmers from different districts told the FE
that the 'neck blast' has started hitting rice fields at the mature stage of
the crop from the beginning of last March. Md Ali Ahmed, a farmer at Amratoli
Union of Comilla Sadar Upazila, told the FE that his three bighas (33 decimals
per bigha) of Boro field are afflicted with the 'neck blast'. He feared a 50
per cent crop loss this year when harvesting will begin from the first week of
May in his area. However, the disease has further added to the farmers' owes as
they are already in a dilemma of price fall. Md Abdul Gafur, a farmer at
Rajgati union under Nandail Upazila in Mymensingh said he incurred Tk 60,000
loss from the last three cropping seasons as paddy price fell to just Tk 450-Tk
500 per maund against production cost of Tk 680-Tk 720.
"The recent 'neck blast', which hit my
five bighas of land, might cause 40 to 50 per cent crop damage which means
another loss this year," he said. Farmers claimed that apart from odd
climate, low-quality seed varieties could also be a reason for such 'blast'.
Plant pathologist at the Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) Md Jahangir
Alam said only a few places in Mymensingh, Comilla and Dhaka region have been
affected by the 'neck blast' due to untimely rain and fluctuation in weather.
The final report will be made public within a few days, he assured. "The
department has already informed extension officials to take protective measures
so that the disease couldn't spread," he said. Data of the monitoring unit
under the field service wing of the DAE showed 4.7 million hectares of land
have come under Boro farming this year aiming to get 18.9 million tonnes of
rice.
Agricultural regions of Dhaka, Mymensingh and
Comilla comprise 1.55 million hectares of land. However, harvest has also
started in Haor, Baor and Beel areas as harvesting of 3 per cent cultivated
land has already been completed by April 13. Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Rice
Research Institute (BRRI) observed the condition in a few districts recently
and made an awareness-raising statement in its website
(www.knowledgebank-brri.org). Head of the Plant Pathology Division of the BRRI
Dr M A Latif said 'neck blast' is a fungal and mainly airborne disease whose
symptom appears at the base of the panicle. He said most of the high-yielding
and hybrid varieties in Boro season are highly susceptible to this disease. Low
temperature in night and high in day-time, prolonged wetness or dew in the
morning, cloudy sky and drizzle lead to the disease outbreak, he said. He said
if favourable environment does not prevail, most of the cultivated varieties in
Boro season could be infected by 'neck blast'. He pointed out that primary
symptom of 'neck blast' is very hard to diagnose.
So, farmers have little to do when they
identify the disease. "Precautionary measures should be taken by the
farmers to manage this disease," he said. He said the extension officials
will have to take steps to stop further spread of the disease by raising
awareness among the farmers.
tonmoy.wardad@gmail.com
Rice and fall of
great desi crop: India has lost 1.10 lakh traditional varieties
TNN
|Apr 17, 2016, 08.22 AM IST
Rice varieties that could grow during droughts or floods,
tolerate saltwater, and carry distinct aromas or medicinal benefits - India has
lost 1.10 lakh such traditional rice types. Some fifty years ago, these
varieties abounded in the country, which is striving currently to ensure food
security for all. Now, however, only 7,000odd local varieties remain and not
all are grown.A traditional variety of rice is passed from generation to
generation and family to family ."It took almost 12,000 years for these
diverse varieties to be created," said Dr Debal Deb, a rice
conservationist and a biologist."We destroyed or lost them in just 30
years or so. This is the sad state of our heritage."
Deb has preserved 1,200 desi rice varieties, which were showcased in a unique
two-day rice exhibition in Ahmedabad, organized by the Ahmedabad Heritage
Venture Lab (AHVL). In all, 1,800 varieties were displayed at the
exhibition."Some varieties can grow without a single drop of water. Others
can be grown in ponds that are 3 to 4 feet deep. A few grow even under 12 feet
of water," Deb said. Rice varieties such as Jugal have two rice grains in
one kernel, and Sateen has three.According to Deb, some traditional rice
varieties have high levels of micronutrients. Despite billions of dollars of
investment, companies have not been able to create genetically modified crop
which can pack more micronu trients than the in digenous variants.
The value of tradi tional varieties be comes even more important in the imate
change, which wake of climate change, which results in shifting rainfall
patterns and extreme temperatures.The availability of local varieties is
crucial as modern agriculture relies only on limited varieties.Deb blames the
green revolution and high yielding hybrid seeds for the extinction of
traditional seeds. He also rued the fact that not a single government research
institute has evinced interest in carrying out research on local rice varieties
because they are not linked to gross domestic product or biotechnology .Since
1996, Deb has been engaged in conservation of hundreds of traditional rice
varieties with his extensive germplasm-collection expeditions across 11 states
of India.Deb has founded India's largest non-governmental rice gene bank called
Vrihi (Sanskrit for rice) and has conserved 1,120 varieties in situ. He runs a
research farm called Basudha in Odisha.
Gujarat had over 250 varieties of
millet
LatestComment
In last 67 years of
Congress/Communist/Leftist Rule, India has lost MORE than what Brits could have
looted. Apart from wealth, we lost our heritage. We got infested to the disease
called corruption. ...Read MoreSecular Indian
A lthough Gujarat may not have many traditional rice varieties, over 250
indigenous varieties of millets were found in the state and most of them are
lost now.
A serving of silver
O ut of the 1,200 varieties preserved and conserved by Deb, one traditional
variety called `Garib Sal' has silver in it. This variety was found in one
district of West Bengal. The rice was found to be have silver in it. This is
the first time a plant was discovered where silver was absorbed from the land.
However, this variety is not grown presently anywhere in the country. This type
of rice may have been used for medicinal purposes. It is assumed that it was
given to people gastric infections as silver kills germs. "We came across
this rice grain while looking for varieties having metals such as iron and
zinc," Deb added.
Since
the government is engaged in a nationalist versus multinational battle on
genetically-modified Bt cottonseed, and the agriculture minister, Radha Mohan
Singh, has weighed in on yogic farming—boosting seed productivity and soil
fertility through Raj Yoga, the focus on organic farming in the Budget
might be perceived as yet another throwback to practices of a supposedly gilded
past.This year’s budget provides slightly over Rs 400 crore for creating
farm-to-retail supply chains for North-east India’s organic produce and
bringing about 2 lakh rain-fed hectares (ha) under organic farming over three
years. This is a small effort considering that more than half of India’s 140
million ha is dependent on rain. The government perhaps expects the
demonstration effect to charm more farmers. But are the claims made for
‘paramparagat krishi’ (traditional agriculture) ideological exaggerations like
the record harvests produced by collectivist fervour in China’s Sputnik fields
under Mao and the boundless capacity of Stalin’s tireless Stakhonovite workers?
It turns out that the Indian Council of Agricultural Research
(ICAR) has been giving a hard look at organic farming since 2004, when a
countrywide research project was initiated. This government has increased the
test stations from 13 to 20 in just one year. Of 24 crops, 18 have given higher
average yields than those grown with chemical inputs in multi-year,
multi-location trials, says N Ravishankar, national coordinator and principal
scientist, Indian Institute of Farming Systems Research (IIFSR) at Modipuram,
near Delhi.
Organically-grown peas, it was observed, gave the highest (18%)
average yield increase at 6.3 tonnes/ha over conventionally grown ones. But
National Horticulture Board statistics say this is lower than country’s
three-year average of 9.2 t/ha. Basmati rice yielded 3.1 t/ha on average in 67
observations, which is lower again than the output which Punjab farmers extract
for a blockbuster variety called Pusa 1509. In the case of wheat, lentil
(masur), potato, mustard, sunflower and radish, yield declines of up to 5% were
recorded.After a talkathon in January, IIFSR recommended organic farming for
rain-fed, dryland and hilly areas where chemical use for plant nutrition and
pest, disease and weed control is low. The transition in these areas will not
result in any yield loss. It cites the example of Sikkim, where fertiliser use
was 21.5 kg/ha before it went wholly organic. (It is zero now, compared to 51
kg/ha for the north-east zone, and the all India average of 125kg/ha). Sikkim’s
paddy yield has increased from 1.43 t/ha in 2002-03, before the organic project
was initiated, to 1.81 t/ha.
(India’s six year average is 2.3 t/ha). There was reportedly no
yield loss during the transition period. Similar results were seen in maize,
buckwheat and finger millets.For the food bowl areas where intensive
chemical-based agriculture is practiced, a ‘towards organic’ strategy is
recommended, that is, half to three quarters organic manures, with chemical
fertilizers and need-based application of pest, fungus and weed killers. With
this combination the texture of soil improves and microbial population rises
within four to five years, enhancing water-holding capacity and the
use-efficiency of applied nutrients. Yields are said to match that of
fertilizer-based agriculture in five to eight years.
The two-pronged strategy can improve food quality and feed a
growing population, Ravishankar says, provided organic farming is done
scientifically, laying emphasis on the last word. In this sense it is not
a return to pre-Green Revolution practices, when traditional organic farming
kept India dependent on imported cereals.While farmyard manure (FYM or cattle
dung) is rich in micronutrients and organic carbon, it has just 0.5% nitrogen,
up to 0.4% phosphorus, and 0.3% potassium. A plant called dhaincha has a higher
percentage of the first two nutrients but nowhere near that of urea (46%
nitrogen), single superphosphate (16% phosphorous) and muriate of potash (60%
potassium). Is organic farming viable if huge quantities of scarce organics
have to be applied?
To meet the nutrientneeds of rice and wheat grown over one acre,
25-30 tonnes of FYM is needed. Since agriculture is by and large mechanized,
this is impractical. The institute recommends five tonnes each of FYM,
earthworm-digested vermi-compost, and neem- or castor-oil cake per acre.
Besides, a month-old crop of dhaincha grown over the same area should be
ploughed in. A legume crop, say moong or green gram if part of the annual crop
mix can cut nitrogen supplementation by about a quarter, it says.
Such protocols have been devised for 22 cropping systems, says
Alok Sikka, ICAR’s deputy director general.Sceptics might find these practices
imposing additional workload on farming households. The institute disagrees.If
inputs are sourced from within a farm, costs have been observed to be lower
than chemical-based farming by 13 %. If bought, they can be 15-20% higher.
But claims made for Panchagavya, biodynamic preparations and
zero-budget natural farming, for which its champion, Subhash Palekar, was
awarded the Padma Shri earlier this year, seem to be exaggerations. Panchagavya
is a fermented mixture of cow dung, cow piss, water, ghee and curd to which
jaggery and bananas can be thrown in.There are nine biodynamic preparations
made from banyan tree soil filled into cow horns and buried in earth. Overtime,
this is said to produce a microbe-rich culture which can enrich compost and
ward off fungal diseases.
Subhash Palekar’s zero-budget natural farming relies on crop residue mulch and
secret formulations called beejamruth and jeevamruth made from virgin forest
soil.A 2011-12 study, under the organic farming project in Coimbatore, found
that the sole use of Panchagavya gave a per hectare cotton yield of 886 kg.
Biodynamic preparations alone yielded 958 kg/ha.
A combination of
Panchagavya and biodynamic preparations gave 1,085 kg/ha. A mix of FYM,
non-edible oil cake and Panchagavya yielded 1,501 kg/ha. This was the case with
rabi maize too.
Zero budget natural farming tested by the Institute of Organic
farming at the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad over three years
from 2010-13 on four cropping systems involving cotton, groundnut, chickpea
(chana), maize and sorghum gave the lowest yields compared to wholly organic,
wholly inorganic and a combination of the two.The focus on soil health is
necessary to make agriculture sustainable. But organic and ‘towards organic’
farming is constrained by the availability of responsive seeds, since Indian
agriculture is tuned to chemical use. The appropriate seeds will have to be
developed through conventional breeding or by screening for suitable varieties
from the available ones.
Farmers who are not hung up on organic certification can also
use genetically-modified seeds, of which only Bt cotton is approved for
cultivation in India. Such seeds, which produce their own insecticide, are
favoured by conservation zoologists like Ullas Karanth. But ICAR scientists
blanched at the very mention, because GM crops are in a grey zone at the
moment.
The author is editor of www.smartindianagriculture.in
Trade
deficit narrowed 0.25 percent in the first eight months of the fiscal year on
the back of slow import growth.Between July last year and February this year,
trade deficit stood at $4.05 billion in contrast to $4.06 billion a year
earlier, according to Bangladesh Bank's balance of payments data.In the first
eight months of fiscal 2015-16, exports grew 7.18 percent and imports 6.44
percent, which had the effect of slightly squeezing the trade deficit.The
reason for the slow import growth is the lack of investment appetite.
During the period, capital machinery imports declined 7.49
percent, according to customs data. The import of most of the intermediate
goods used in industrial production also saw a decline.For instance, the import
of clinkers dropped 10.47 percent, fertiliser 10.41 percent, raw cotton 6.74
percent, dyeing and tanning materials 6.21 percent.On the other hand, the
import of iron, steel and other base metals, staple fibre, yarn and textiles
rose. Rice imports plummeted 72.04 percent, while milk imports dropped
19.11 percent and sugar 7.08.On the back of the reduced trade deficit, the
balance of payments surplus widened about 42 percent during the period.At the
end of February, the overall surplus stood at $3.14 billion in contrast to
$2.22 billion a year earlier, according to central bank statistics.
One of the reasons for the increase in overall surplus this year
is that the net credit is in favour of Bangladesh, said BB officials.The net
trade credit in the first eight months of fiscal 2015-16 stood at $1.23 billion
in the negative, down from $2.04 billion in the negative a year earlier.The
officials said the customers made less deferred payment against imports, as a
result of which the negative trade credit dropped this year.Another reason for
the increase in surplus is that the net foreign direct investment soared. During
the July-February period, foreign direct investment swelled 27.19 percent from
a year earlier to $1.45 billion.As the overall balance increased, so did the
foreign currency reserves.On April 12, the foreign currency reserve stood at
$28.67 billion, up 23.46 percent from a year earlier. The reserves are enough
to honour 7.84 months' import bills.For an economy, reserves equivalent to 5-6
months' import bill are adequate, whereas Bangladesh has reserves equivalent to
eight months' import bill.The experts said reserves are swelling by the day as
investment is not growing
State govt’s
Pusa 1509 basmati sale is illegal, say millers
Apr 17, 2016, 12.00 AM IST
Bathinda: Rice millers have alleged that Punjab government's
move to invite tenders to sell Pusa 1509 basmati paddy was illegal. They
claimed that Pusa 1509 basmati paddy should be milled and its grain should be
delivered to the Union government's central pool.The state government's
procurement agency Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation
(Markfed) has floated tenders to sell 1.88 lakh tonnes of Pusa 1509 basmati
paddy. At the prevailing market price, the state government expects to raise
nearly Rs 400 crore by selling the unmilled grain.
Tenders have been called for April 22 and financial bids will be
opened on April 25.Rice millers have decided to move the court against tenders
on Monday and alleged that government was for the welfare of farmers not to act
as a trader. To support farmers, Punjab government had purchased Pusa 1509
basmati paddy at Rs 1,450 per quintal — the minimum support price (MSP) for
Grade A common paddy — as the rates of the long-grained commodity had dropped drastically.
Before the government had entered the market, it was being sold for as low as
Rs 1,000 per quintal due to which farmers protested saying they were suffering
losses.Punjab Basmati Rice Millers Association general secretary Ashish
Kathuria and legal cell head Ashok Aggarwal said, "The state government
had purchased Pusa 1509 basmati paddy at the MSP of Rs 1,450 per quintal when
its rates were low to support the farmers and millers. Government was meant to
deliver rice to central pool after custom milling.
The government should not
act as a trader for calling tenders to sell grain since due to its act, the
farmers and millers might have to face losses as prices may not increase in the
coming season. We have prepared a petition and will file it in Punjab and
Haryana high court on Monday."Kathuria alleged acting as a nodal agency,
Markfed had decided to sell Pusa 1509 basmati paddy on behalf of three
state-run agencies and tried to wipe out small players from the selling process
as it had fixed minimum quantity at 600 tonnes. "The paddy though was
purchased at Rs 1,450 per quintal but by adding storage, transportation,
various types of taxes, paddy costs the agencies nearly Rs 2,100 per quintal.
"When contacted, Markfed general manager (procurement) H S
Bains said, "The state government is not acting illegally. The Centre has
de-listed paddy and has allowed the state government to sell it in the open
market." He said that last time, tenders were floated in March at Rs 2,066
per quintal but nobody turned up so no reserve price has been fixed and
purchaser has been asked to quote the price. As for quota of minimum 600
tonnes, he said that the state had to sell 1.88 lakh tonnes and the target
could be achieved by fixing the minimum limit
Like most unsolved riddles, we could
never plumb conditions of famine in the midst of plenty. The Philippines is so
providentially blessed that it is said that if you stick a fresh walking stick
in the soil, it would flower or bear fruit.We have the International Rice
Research Institute in Los Baños…where Thai and Vietnamese pensionados learn how
to be able to export rice to us.There is another curiosity this time of the
year: Nueva Ecija farmers harvest bountiful yield from their rice fields
because of the irrigation waters provided by the Pantabangan Dam’s Casecnan
all-purpose project (which includes flood control and hydropower). Nueva Ecija
farmers harvest twice a year, some farmers harvest three times.
But the rest of the country is
plagued by climate change dry spell. Because of the damage to crops caused by
El Niño “tagtuyot,” the National Food Authority (NFA) released rice stock from
its silos to make the staple available to the populace and to stabilize prices.Now,
Nueva Ecija farmers are surprised to be confronted with the price of palay
plummeting to the floor at P14/kg. (The normal expected price would hover
within the P20/kg range.)
NFA may have overshot the “safety valve” target. Someone explained
the phenomenon as mixing politics and economics: This being an election year,
the administration wants to score “pogi points” for administration candidates.It
is recalled that when Jess Tanco was the administrator in the ’70s, NFA had
some 500 silos throughout the country to store rice. The rice stocks were
purchased from local farmers, not imported from our neighbors. (At one time
during the Marcos era, we were even able to export rice to India.)
This was a period when NFA served its dual role of ensuring rice
supply for the populace and supporting our farmers, (not foreign entities). But
that seems so far and long ago.
NEW ITEMS & COMMENTS
AFP eyes artillery rocket system – Impressed by the capabilities
of the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (Himars) at this year’s Balikatan
Exercise, a senior Philippine military official said that the government should
consider acquiring the weapon.The Philippine Air Force actually had one in the
early ’70s, and it was christined, “Bong-Bong.”Loyola Plans P238M short in
trust fund – Claims of over 100,000 pre-need plan-holders are affected by a
shortage in trust fund of Loyola Plans Consolidate, Inc., which risks being
brought to court by regulators.I hope Loyola doesn’t have the same problem with
its post-need plans in its Memorial Parks.Britain urges refrain in South China
Sea disputes – British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond urged claimants of the
South China Sea to refrain from the use of force and uphold international law
in resolving their disputes.
The problem is that China repeats the same refrain – that it is
their historical waters because it’s named “South China Sea.”PH, US launch
joint South China Sea patrols – The US said it has launched joint South China
Sea naval patrols with the Philippines, as it accused Beijing if “militarizing”
a region which is locked in a territorial dispute with China.NBA. When a
journalist signs off his despatch, he writes “30.” When Kobe Bryant played his
final NBA game, he signed off with “60.”
