The
State of the Union Between Ducks and Rice is Strong
WASHINGTON,
DC - The day after President Trump's State of the Union address, rice industry
advocates took a break from pounding the halls of Congress for a luncheon that
celebrates the unique relationship between rice and waterfowl at the annual
Ducks Unlimited-USA Rice Congressional Luncheon.
Two
hundred USA Rice Government Affairs Conference attendees and Congressional staff
and Members gathered to talk rice and politics.
The menu consisted of several U.S.-grown rice and duck dishes including sushi, arancini, and spicy duck and andouille sausage gumbo served over rice.
"We've been hustling from meeting to meeting, on the Hill and off the Hill, for a day and a half now. It's nice to have a slightly more casual setting to visit with, and feed, the hard-working Congressional staff with our sustainably-grown rice. This also provides the opportunity to naturally talk about the great conservation story rice has thanks to the unique relationship between rice and ducks," explained California rice farmer and Chairman of USA Rice Charley Mathews, Jr.
"We look forward to this event every year so we can showcase our Rice Stewardship Partnership here in Washington," said Kellis Moss, DU's director of public policy, who worked closely with USA Rice to coordinate the event. "We know the benefits rice provides for ducks everyday but it's great to have rice growers in town to help us tell our story to our friends and colleagues in Congress and the Administration who we need as our advocates on policy and legislation."
The break didn't last long. Soon after the luncheon, the USA Rice Hill teams were back on schedule with a host of meetings that took them right into the dinner hour.
The menu consisted of several U.S.-grown rice and duck dishes including sushi, arancini, and spicy duck and andouille sausage gumbo served over rice.
"We've been hustling from meeting to meeting, on the Hill and off the Hill, for a day and a half now. It's nice to have a slightly more casual setting to visit with, and feed, the hard-working Congressional staff with our sustainably-grown rice. This also provides the opportunity to naturally talk about the great conservation story rice has thanks to the unique relationship between rice and ducks," explained California rice farmer and Chairman of USA Rice Charley Mathews, Jr.
"We look forward to this event every year so we can showcase our Rice Stewardship Partnership here in Washington," said Kellis Moss, DU's director of public policy, who worked closely with USA Rice to coordinate the event. "We know the benefits rice provides for ducks everyday but it's great to have rice growers in town to help us tell our story to our friends and colleagues in Congress and the Administration who we need as our advocates on policy and legislation."
The break didn't last long. Soon after the luncheon, the USA Rice Hill teams were back on schedule with a host of meetings that took them right into the dinner hour.
USA Rice Daily
NFA awaits
arrival of last batch of imported rice
Published February
6, 2019, 10:00 PM
By Madelaine B. Miraflor
The National Food Authority
(NFA), which will soon no longer be allowed to import rice, is now waiting for
the delivery of the last batch of imported rice it procured last year.
NFA
logo (Photo courtesy of wikipedia)
A data from the state-run grains
agency showed that of the rice imports contract awarded last year, a total of
1.01 million metric tons have already been delivered in the country.
To recall, NFA was authorized to
procure as much as 1.25 million MT of rice through a series of
government-to-government importation and open tender scheme last year. Most of
this supposed needed supply, or around 750,000 MT, was only secured in the last
few weeks of December.
NFA said that the balance of
236,196 MT of rice from last year’s importation is now in “transit and expected
to arrive soon”.
“With the continued arrival of
our rice imports, we are making the low-priced good quality NFA rice more
accessible to more consumers across the country,” NFA acting administrator
Tomas R. Escarez said.
“As rice import deliveries come
on a staggered basis, through the various designated ports across the country,
we deliver rice to our outlets on a first in-first out basis to avoid
deterioration and ensure that what we sell are fresh stocks all the time,” he
added.
As of now, NFA’s share in the
rice market already went up from an average of 9.18 percent in 2018 to 11.76
percent for the month of January 2019, thanks to the imported supply that
arrived and was delivered to the agency’s warehouse.
This will be the last batch of
imported rice to enter the country that will pass through the supervision of
NFA.
Once the Rice Tariffication Bill
is either signed by President Rodrigo Duterte or lapsed into law by February
17, NFA will no longer have regulatory functions and will only be allowed to
boost its stocks through local palay procurement.
There are now groups asking
Duterte to veto the bill, saying that leaving rice importation to the ‘open
market’ will be dangerous.
The Rice Tariffication Law,
according to Federation of Free Farmers, will “practically remove all”
restrictions on rice imports and will allow any importer to bring in unlimited
volumes of rice from abroad and and at any time, even if local farmers are
harvesting.
This, as importers will only need
to secure a food safety certificate from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI).
In an open letter to Duterte, the
grains industry stakeholders, including the farmers, describe this certain
provision of the Rice Tariffication Law as “anti-people.”
Moreover, they said the removal
of the stabilization and regulatory functions of the NFA will expose rice prices
and supply to manipulation by the private sector. They also fear that the
absence of government control will lead to a more powerful rice cartel in the
country.
Amid these concerns, Escarez said
NFA will do its best to sustain the presence of NFA rice in the market to
ensure that its target beneficiaries – the poor and marginalized sector – will
have continuous supply of affordable good quality rice anywhere in the country.
NFA had so far accredited more
than 6,000 additional rice outlets in January 2019, bringing the total outlets
selling NFA rice at P27 and P32 per kilo to 26,879 nationwide.
“We assure our NFA rice
customers, especially those in highly urban, marginalized areas and island
provinces, that their low-priced good quality rice will be available throughout
the year. Based on our average daily sales, our imported rice stocks will last
until August this year,” Escarez said.
Rice
prices seen to increase
Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine
Star) - February 7, 2019 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Local
farmers yesterday warned the government of an increase in rice prices as the
measure on unlimited rice importation is expected to be enacted into law.
The Federation of Free Farmers
cautioned President Duterte on signing the rice tariffication bill, saying it
would make the government “inutile in responding to price spikes in the
future.”
The measure was submitted to the
Office of the President last month. It will lapse into law if not acted upon by
Feb. 17.
Aside from removing volume
restrictions and imposing tariffs on rice imports, the bill removes the powers
of the National Food Authority in regulating the rice industry.
Efforts on to secure GI tag for ‘royal rice’
MYSURU, FEBRUARY
07, 2019 00:29 IST
Rajamudi is a traditional red
rice variety of Old Mysore region
If all goes as planned, Rajamudi,
a traditional red rice variety of Old Mysore region, which was patronised by
the “royals” (and hence the nomenclature), will join the league of Basmati and
get a Geographical Indication (GI) tag in recognition of its unique qualities.
The Department of Agriculture and
Agricultural Price Commission have joined hands with Sahaja Samruddha, an NGO
working on conservation of traditional and indigenous varieties of agricultural
crops, to set the ball rolling.
This is the first case of an
agricultural crop from the State being promoted for GI status though fruits
such as Kodagu orange or Nanjangud rasabale have been accorded GI tags given
their distinctive nature.
“The best quality of Rajamudi is
cultivated in Mysuru-Hassan-Mandya belt and we intend to prepare a database of
the number of cultivators engaged in production of Rajamudi, the acreage under
cultivation and then proceed further,” said Krishnaprasad of Sahaja Samuruddha.
A Rajamudi utsav and a
consultative workshop have been planned in Mysuru at the office of the Command
Area Development Authority (CADA) on February 9 and 10 to take forward the
agenda. The exercise will help document the knowledge and culture associated
with Rajamudi cultivation and conserve it for posterity.
There are various strains within
Rajamudi which have to be identified and classified and hence farmers, experts
from the Department of Agricultural Science, Bengaluru, Agricultural Price
Commission, and paddy researchers will participate in the workshop, which is
the first step in the long journey to procure the GI tag.
What is significant is that
cultivators of other varieties of rice in Karnataka such as Ratnachoodi,
Gandhasale, and Salem Sanna, which are equally exotic, will also take part as
there are long term plans to secure GI status for some of the lesser-known but
unique rice of the State, said Mr. Krishnaprasad.
Describing the history associated
with Rajamudi, Mr. Krishnaprasad said that it was cultivated in large swathes
of land under the princely Mysuru ruled by the Wadiyars, who preferred it to
other forms of rice.
It was also a preferred choice of
the maharajas to procure it from farmers in lieu of tax.
There is high volatility in
world rice market’
‘
The Hitavada
Date: 07 Feb 2019 09:21:20
Business Bureau,
Ajay Sharma, Managing Director, Lama Rice Pvt. Ltd while sharing his views on global rice scenario at a technical session organised by Vidarbha Industries Association (VIA) and Chirag Agri Ventures Pvt. Ltd said, “In our country traditional farming, use of old seeds and no intervention of technology are the major factor affecting the growth rice industry. Farmers of India are still using the seeds variety of 120 to 140 days with low yield.”
He shared some vital information of rice industry. The world production of rice has been increased at a faster rate than the world population over last three decades. China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of rice. India is the largest exporter and Philippines is largest importer of the rice. Most of the rice is produced, consumed and traded by the Asian countries and main exporters are India, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan and China. The Indian rice market was opened up at the end of 1994 resulting in a quantum jump in exports. Milled rice export from India has reached a high level during 1995 to 1998. India exports about 4 million tonne of Basmati and 8 million tonne of non Basmati rice. Rice is staple food of 70 per cent of the world’s poor living in Asia. Foreign exchange rate is an important factor affecting global rice trade because international rice price is quoted in US dollars. “There is high degree of volatility in the world rice market, because a small change in production or consumption brings a relatively large change in its total trade and rates also varies due to international market,” Sharma said..
He said, “Our country is lacking on the side of testing of raw material in milling plants. De-stoning is very essential in rice mills, stones damages polishers. Drying and parboiling helps to reduce broken percentage in milling process and polish is also good in order to improve shelf life of rice. Millers should be equipped with sorting and grading machines, these machines helps to produce marketable material in domestic as well as international markets,” he said.
In global market, Thailand and Vietnam are the major competitors in rice trading. Parboiled rice is the majorly traded variety. Sharma also shared few facts of India in comparison with world. In last few years major technical investments has been done in Punjab and Haryana. He said, “We are not taking efforts to provide export quality material. APMC plays very important role to set up linkages between farmers and millers.” He said, Nagpur has very conducive eco-system export category materials, produces produced under radius of 300 km and has low pesticide residue in crops. He added, rice industry needs to be upgraded, people who want to start work in this segment have bright future.
Atul Pande, President of VIA, Dr Suhas Buddhe, Secretary, Arun Khobragade, Chairman of VIA Agro Cell, Girdhari Mantri, Harshwardhan Harde and others were present.
Revolutionary new method
for creating disease resistant crops: research
Source:Xinhua Published: 2019/2/6 14:30:26
A global collective of scientists have drastically streamlined
the time it takes to find and introduce disease-resistance genes from wild
plants into domestic crops such as rice, wheat and potato, a research revealed
on Tuesday.
Scientists from the John Innes Center in Britain, along with colleagues from Australia and the United States have created a database known as AgRenSeq, where researchers can easily search for resistance genes already discovered in wild relatives of modern crops.
The study was co-authored by a global expert in cereal rust genetics, Professor Harbans Bariana from the University of Sydney, who said that this technology will underpin fast-tracked discovery and characterization of new sources of disease resistance in plants.
Once researchers have identified resistance genes using AgRenSeq they can clone them and introduce them to domestic crops to protect against diseases and pests such as rusts, powdery mildew and Hessian fly.
"We have found a way to scan the genome of a wild relative of a crop plant and pick out the resistance genes we need and we can do it in record time," Dr. Brande Wulff, a project leader from the John Innes Centre, said.
"This used to be a process that took 10 or 15 years and was like searching for a needle in a haystack," Wulff said.
"We have perfected the method so that we can clone these genes in a matter of months and for just thousands of dollars instead of millions," Wulff said.
The team are highly optimistic about their work, predicting it to be utilized in protecting many crops with wild relatives including soyabean, pea, cotton, maize, potato, wheat, barley, rice, banana and cocoa.
"If we have an epidemic, we can go to our library and inoculate that pathogen across our diversity panel and pick out the resistance genes."
"Using speed cloning and speed breeding we could deliver resistance genes into elite varieties within a couple of years, like a phoenix rising from the ashes," Wulff added.
Scientists from the John Innes Center in Britain, along with colleagues from Australia and the United States have created a database known as AgRenSeq, where researchers can easily search for resistance genes already discovered in wild relatives of modern crops.
The study was co-authored by a global expert in cereal rust genetics, Professor Harbans Bariana from the University of Sydney, who said that this technology will underpin fast-tracked discovery and characterization of new sources of disease resistance in plants.
Once researchers have identified resistance genes using AgRenSeq they can clone them and introduce them to domestic crops to protect against diseases and pests such as rusts, powdery mildew and Hessian fly.
"We have found a way to scan the genome of a wild relative of a crop plant and pick out the resistance genes we need and we can do it in record time," Dr. Brande Wulff, a project leader from the John Innes Centre, said.
"This used to be a process that took 10 or 15 years and was like searching for a needle in a haystack," Wulff said.
"We have perfected the method so that we can clone these genes in a matter of months and for just thousands of dollars instead of millions," Wulff said.
The team are highly optimistic about their work, predicting it to be utilized in protecting many crops with wild relatives including soyabean, pea, cotton, maize, potato, wheat, barley, rice, banana and cocoa.
"If we have an epidemic, we can go to our library and inoculate that pathogen across our diversity panel and pick out the resistance genes."
"Using speed cloning and speed breeding we could deliver resistance genes into elite varieties within a couple of years, like a phoenix rising from the ashes," Wulff added.
This quick rice dish puts end to
lentil confusion
Spiced Lentils and Rice helps cooks to learn the facts about
this sometimes mysterious ingredients. (The Washington
Post/Tom McCorkle)
As versatile and nutritious as
they are, lentils can be confusing. Even once you learn the differences in
cooking times and textures among red, brown, green and black varieties, along
comes something to muddy the issue.
Here’s an example. By “green
lentils,” do I mean the large, khaki-colored ones, sometimes called brown
lentils — or on some packages called just plain lentils? They’re the most
common variety, cook in about 20 to 30 minutes and hold their shape but get
nice and tender. Or do I mean the French ones, sometimes called lentils du Puy,
that are smaller, darker and speckled, take longer and stay firm when cooked?
(They’re perfect for salads.)
I was thinking about this, yet
again, when I tried a Jamie Oliver recipe for spiced lentils and rice that
unfortunately perpetuates even more lentil confusion. The ingredient list calls
for dried red split lentils, but the directions ask you to employ some of the
lentils’ cooking water at one point and to drain the lentils at another. Both
are impossible, really, because as anyone who cooks red (a.k.a. orange, a.k.a.
yellow) lentils knows, they turn to a beautiful mush during cooking, absorbing
the liquid and making them ideal for soups, stews and, of course, dal. To make
matters even more head-scratching, the photo of the finished dish in Oliver’s
book clearly shows distinct, large green lentils scattered among the grains of
brown basmati rice, curls of soft onion and wilted kale.
Just to be sure, I first tried
the recipe as written, and my suspicions were confirmed: No. But in subsequent
tests, when I made it with large green/brown lentils (not French), it worked
like a charm. And the dish comes together in a flash, thanks to precooked,
shelf-stable rice, which is getting easier to come by in supermarkets, and
jarred Indian curry paste, which adds a backbone of complexity.
The recipe is from a book whose
title promises a five-ingredient limit, but there are actually nine. Oliver,
like many others, makes the constraint work only by exempting some staples - in
this case, olive oil, water, salt and pepper. I’m giving you the accurate count
because, the way I see it, clarity beats confusion every time.
SPICED LENTILS AND RICE
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
2 cups water
About 3 ounces (1/2 cup) dried
brown or green lentils, rinsed and picked over (do not use French du Puy)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive
oil
2 tablespoons Indian curry paste,
such as balti, tikka or tandoori paste
2 medium yellow onions, thinly
sliced
8 ounces kale leaves, stripped
from the stems
8 1/2 ounces (2 cups) cooked
brown basmati rice, such as Seeds of Change brand
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or more
as needed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black
pepper
Steps:
Boil the water in a small
saucepan over high heat. Add the lentils; once the water has returned to a
boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook until the lentils are
tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a large skillet
over medium heat, pour in the oil, and, once it shimmers, stir in the curry
paste and cook until very fragrant, 1 minute. Add the onions and cook, stirring
constantly, for 2 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 15
minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions have softened.
Meanwhile, chop the kale leaves.
When the onions are ready, stir the kale into the onions. Scoop out 1/2 cup of
the lentils’ cooking water and add it to the skillet. Increase the heat to
medium, cover tightly and let the mixture cook until the kale wilts, 2 minutes.
Drain the lentils and add them to
the skillet, along with the cooked brown rice. Cover and cook for 3 minutes,
until the rice is heated through. Uncover, add the salt and pepper, stirring to
incorporate. Taste, and add more salt, as needed.
Nutrition: Calories: 280; Total Fat: 7 g; Saturated Fat: 1 g;
Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 330 mg; Carbohydrates: 46 g; Sugars: 3 g; Protein:
10 g.
Kharif production expected to fall
further in second estimate
THE ASIAN AGE. | SANGEETHA
G
Published : Feb
6, 2019, 3:08 am IST
Updated : Feb
6, 2019, 3:08 am IST
Among cereals, rice was least affected by the irregularity in
monsoon as it is grown mostly in well irrigated areas.
Among cereals, rice was least affected by the irregularity
in monsoon as it is grown mostly in well irrigated areas.
Chennai: Kharif production of coarse cereals, pulses, oil seeds and
cotton are expected to fall in 2018-19, finds the second estimate of National
Bulk Handling Corporation.
In its first estimate, NBHC had
found that in the year 2018-19, the production of coarse grains, pulses and
cotton are expected to decline by 9.78 per cent, 2.68 per cent and 4.57 per
cent over 2017-18. However, in the assessment, the pulses and oil seed have
marginally pushed themselves further in the negative region with an expected
decline of 2.68 per cent and 5.36 per cent over the last estimate.
Among cereals, rice was least
affected by the irregularity in monsoon as it is grown mostly in well irrigated
areas. For the year 2018-19, rice production has expected to decline marginally
by 0.73 per cent over last year and decline marginally by 1.91 per cent over
last estimate. However, basmati rice production is expected to fall by about
9.24 per cent to 5.18 million metric tonnes. But this short fall is being
compensated by the increase in the non-basmati rice.
Maize is expected to decline
significantly by about 10.41 per cent over last year. The decline in the sowing
area in Karnataka and Telangana was the main cause for the decline in
production. "Maximum Stress is expected in Maize as the production is
expected to decline by over 10 per cent and we can expect an import of about
3-5 million metric tonnes,” said Hanish Kumar Sinha, Head - Research &
Development, National Bulk Handling Corporation (NBHC). Jowar is expected to
decline by 10.59 per cent over last year. However, production of minor cereals,
small millets, ragi and bajra is expected to improve.
Pulses production is projected to
drop marginally to 9.10 million metric tonnes from 9.35 million metric tonnes
last year due to the fall in urad output by 10.11 per cent. Urad output was hit
as farmers shifted to soybean in some parts of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Total oilseeds production is
estimated to be 19.87 million metric tonnes, which is 5.36 per cent lower than
last year’s production of 21.00 million metric tonnes.
French, German farmers destroy crops
after GMOs found in Bayer seeds
PARIS
(Reuters) - Bayer said on Wednesday that farmers in France and Germany were
digging up thousands of hectares of rapeseed fields after traces of genetically
modified organisms (GMOs) banned for cultivation were found in seeds sold by
the company.
FILE
PHOTO: A farmer drives his tractor behind a rapeseed field in Estourmel near
Cambrai, France April 26, 2018. REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol/File Photo
GMO
crops are widely grown across the world, but they remain controversial in
Europe, where very few varieties are authorized for growing and some countries
like France have completely outlawed their cultivation, citing environmental
risks. Checks by the French authorities during the autumn showed minute
quantities of GMO seeds, estimated at less than 0.005 percent of the volume, in
three batches of rapeseed seeds sold under the Dekalb brand, Catherine
Lamboley, Bayer’s chief operating officer for France, said.
Dekalb
was previously a Monsanto brand before the U.S. company was taken over by Bayer
last year. The GMO found, which is a rapeseed variety grown in Canada, is not
authorized for cultivation in Europe, although it is allowed in imports
destined for food and animal feed, Lamboley said. Bayer issued a product recall
but some of the seed had already been sown, representing about 8,000 hectares
in France and 2,500-3,000 hectares in Germany, which are in the process of
being dug up, Bayer said.
It
was not yet known what caused the contamination of the rapeseed seeds, produced
in Argentina in a GMO-free area, Lamboley said. “We decided to immediately stop
all rapeseed seed production in Argentina,” she told Reuters in a phone
interview. Bayer’s Argentine rapeseed seeds were destined for the European
market and represent 12 percent of its rapeseed supply for France, the company
added. Bayer declined to estimate the overall cost of the GMO contamination but
said it will offer compensation of 2,000 euros ($2,277.80) per hectare to
affected farmers, suggesting a payout of around 20 million euros in France and
Germany.
High-margin
pickup trucks drive GM profit
The
compensation reflected the loss of rapeseed fields this season and the fact
farmers would not be able to grow the crop next either as a precaution to avoid
re-emergence of the GMO strain, Lamboley added. The order to destroy some crops
is another blow for European rapeseed growers who had already cut sowings
sharply due to dry weather. However, the area is small compared to the total
French winter rapeseed area, which the farm ministry in December forecast at
1.23 million hectares. The corresponding German crop area is seen at close to 1
million hectares. ($1 = 0.8780 euros)
‘No
more limit’: Philippines import cap removal could see 1.2m MT of rice entering
the country
The Philippines’ lifting of a
20-year old rice import cap is likely to result in some 1.2 million metric tons
of rice being imported into the country in the wake of ongoing shortages and
price hikes, the National Food Agency (NFA) has said.
Paddy rice production
reaches 7.4 million in 2018
Cambodia produced 7.4 million
tonnes of paddy rice in 2018, a 3.5 percent increase, according to the Ministry
of Agriculture’s annual report. In its report, the ministry said total
production in 2018 was only 88.47 percent of what the government expected,
adding that 2.4 million hectares were harvested out of 2.7 million hectares of
available agricultural land. On average, each hectare produced 3.07 tonnes of
rice, the report says, noting that in 2006 the average yield was only 2.6
tonnes. The report shows that 96 percent of the land was cultivated using
machinery, while livestock was used in only 3.5 percent of land. “Hoping to
help hard-working farmers during the wet season, the ministry also rolled out
initiatives to provide technical assistance for the benefit of farmers dealing
with natural disasters and pests,” the report reads. Veng Sakhon, the Minister
of Agriculture, said yield increases were made possible by better irrigation
systems and the use of technology. He noted that the government has accelerated
work on identifying the best areas to grow each variety, which also played a role
in boosting yields. “Officials are studying what environment and conditions are
best for each rice variety so that we can maximise yields and quality, as well
as resilience to disease and climate change,” Mr Sakhon said. Chim Yoab, a rice
farmer in Takeo province’s Bati district, told Khmer Times that she is able to
harvest rice twice a year – in the wet and in the dry season – because she
enjoys access to irrigation. “Yields are quite irregular,” she explains. “When
it rains a lot yields are very high, but during droughts, they are
significantly lower.” On average, she produces three to four tonnes of rice per
hectare, she added. Last year, total exports of milled rice decreased by 1.5
percent, reaching only 626,225 tonnes, which were sent to 61 different
countries around the world. China was the biggest buyer, importing 170,154
tonnes.
Duterte urged to veto rice
tariffication bill
February 06, 2019
BUTIL Rep. Cecil Chavez yesterday
pleaded in behalf of the farmers to President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte to veto
the rice tariffication measure which underlying justification is unrealistic
ill-advised, and should not be the anchor of the country’s rice supply
stabilization program.
Chavez also warned the promise of
at least P10 billion yearly in support fund to rice farmers under the rice
tariffication measure will not also work “given the inefficiency of the
institutions that will oversee the P10 billion fund.”
“There is also the temptation
that the bureaucrats that will oversee the P10 billion fund will treat it as a
generic government revenue which can be diverted to other concerns that are not
related to helping and supporting the almost 3 million Filipino rice farmers, “
said Chavez.
Chavez said her main opposition
to the measure is that a permanent policy of rice importation is an
“existential threat” to the country’s rice supply stabilization program, given
the volatile nature of the global rice supply.
“Put simply, unlimited rice
importation is a threat to the country’s national food security goals,” said
Chavez.
She also warned that the
country’s rice farmers will cease to exist in a few years should the government
stick to a policy of unlimited rice importation. Chavez said that a close study
of the global rice supply market would show a “ very thin global
surplus”.
“Any minor tweak in the rice production in China and in the
Indo-China regions would send global supply into a tight, pricey market which
would be beyond the capacity of the Philippines to buy,” she said.
NFA awaits arrival of last batch of imported rice
Published February 6, 2019, 10:00 PM
By Madelaine B. Miraflor
The National Food Authority
(NFA), which will soon no longer be allowed to import rice, is now waiting for
the delivery of the last batch of imported rice it procured last year.
NFA logo (Photo courtesy of wikipedia)
A data from the state-run grains
agency showed that of the rice imports contract awarded last year, a total of
1.01 million metric tons have already been delivered in the country.
To recall, NFA was authorized to
procure as much as 1.25 million MT of rice through a series of
government-to-government importation and open tender scheme last year. Most of
this supposed needed supply, or around 750,000 MT, was only secured in the last
few weeks of December.
NFA said that the balance of
236,196 MT of rice from last year’s importation is now in “transit and expected
to arrive soon”.
“With the continued arrival of
our rice imports, we are making the low-priced good quality NFA rice more
accessible to more consumers across the country,” NFA acting administrator
Tomas R. Escarez said.
“As rice import deliveries come
on a staggered basis, through the various designated ports across the country,
we deliver rice to our outlets on a first in-first out basis to avoid
deterioration and ensure that what we sell are fresh stocks all the time,” he
added.
As of now, NFA’s share in the
rice market already went up from an average of 9.18 percent in 2018 to 11.76
percent for the month of January 2019, thanks to the imported supply that
arrived and was delivered to the agency’s warehouse.
This will be the last batch of
imported rice to enter the country that will pass through the supervision of
NFA.
Once the Rice Tariffication Bill
is either signed by President Rodrigo Duterte or lapsed into law by February
17, NFA will no longer have regulatory functions and will only be allowed to
boost its stocks through local palay procurement.
There are now groups asking
Duterte to veto the bill, saying that leaving rice importation to the ‘open
market’ will be dangerous.
The Rice Tariffication Law, according
to Federation of Free Farmers, will “practically remove all” restrictions on
rice imports and will allow any importer to bring in unlimited volumes of rice
from abroad and and at any time, even if local farmers are harvesting.
This, as importers will only need
to secure a food safety certificate from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI).
In an open letter to Duterte, the
grains industry stakeholders, including the farmers, describe this certain
provision of the Rice Tariffication Law as “anti-people.”
Moreover, they said the removal
of the stabilization and regulatory functions of the NFA will expose rice
prices and supply to manipulation by the private sector. They also fear that
the absence of government control will lead to a more powerful rice cartel in
the country.
Amid these concerns, Escarez said
NFA will do its best to sustain the presence of NFA rice in the market to
ensure that its target beneficiaries – the poor and marginalized sector – will
have continuous supply of affordable good quality rice anywhere in the country.
NFA had so far accredited more
than 6,000 additional rice outlets in January 2019, bringing the total outlets
selling NFA rice at P27 and P32 per kilo to 26,879 nationwide.
“We assure our NFA rice
customers, especially those in highly urban, marginalized areas and island
provinces, that their low-priced good quality rice will be available throughout
the year. Based on our average daily sales, our imported rice stocks will last
until August this year,” Escarez said.
Bumper
harvest at last for rice outgrowers
· Posted
On: 06th Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT +0300
Monica Awino
spreads rice to dry before milling at Nyang'ande in Nyando, Kisumu county on
February 03,2019. The farmers in the area have devised modern farming methods
to boost their yield. [Photo:
Denish Ochieng/ Standard]
As Monica Awino spreads her rice in the sun to dry at her
Nyang’ande home in Nyando, she expects a windfall.
For over two decades, Ms Awino toiled and prayed for a better
harvest in vain.
However, the past two seasons have seen her prayers shift
from better harvest to reliable market, courtesy of a new technology dubbed system
for rice intensification (SRI).
The system, borrowed from Mwea Irrigation Scheme, involves
intensive utilisation of water, where farmers have equal access to the limited
commodity for a particular number of days, then they give it to other farmers,
and the cycle continues.
The system also promotes mechanisation, use of certified
seeds and intensive sensitisation. This has seen the likes of Awino embrace
team work right from land preparation, planting, harvesting and marketing.
Three plots away from Awino’s is Jack Otange's land. He has
been in the trade for 10 years.
The 30-year-old farmer has three quarters of an acre. Last
week he harvested 32 bags of paddy rice, a big improvement from the 10 bags he
used to get.
Hybrid seed
Just like Awino, he planted a hybrid seed, Arize 644, which
has become the scheme’s preferred variety in the recent past.
Austin Abuto, whose 1.1 acres earned him 50 bags, said the
development has revived people’s hopes in rice farming.
“I first ventured into the trade in 1992, but I pulled out
after it proved not viable. But five years ago, with news of improved farming
techniques, I got back to the farm and I do not regret.”
However, Mr Abuto is worried about the low prices coming with
the bumper harvest.
In 2015, a group of farmers from the scheme visited Mwea
Irrigation Scheme in Kirinyaga County for a learning tour, and this has changed
their farming for the better.
“We realised that apart from lack of uniformity, our people
had not embraced the spirit of mechanisation due to the small size of parcels
here,” said Paul Omanga, who was in the tour team.
Dr Omanga later mobilised farmers through Nyabon, a technical
advisory team implementing farm mechanisation at the scheme, organised them
into four blocks, making it easy to pool resources and seek the assistance of
other players.
“Convincing farmers to come together was not an easy task,
and the first season saw only 50 acres of land put into use. In the second
season, there were 25 more acres, and today the entire scheme, lying on 100
acres, is utilised,” said Omanga.
This has pushed up the harvest, with farmers like Awino
lacking space in their houses to store the produce. They have come together to
construct a makeshift store at Nyang’ande market.
Rice production in Nyanza is set to increase further after
the Government released Sh100 million to revamp Kibos rice milling plant.
Yesterday, The Standard learnt that the Lake Basin
Development Authority (LBDA), which manages the mill, had received the money
from the Treasury.
Annual production
The plant will now produce up to 24,000 tonnes of rice a
year, an improvement on the initial annual production of less than 10,000
tonnes.
Ken Obura, the Chief Administrative Secretary for EAC, urged
farmers to grow more rice because of the revitalised and expanded operations.
He spoke just a day after the new LBDA managing
director, Raymond Omollo, took over from Evans Atera.
Rice Prices
as on :
07-02-2019 11:21:15 AM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Barhaj(UP)
|
110.00
|
10
|
3998.00
|
2200
|
2250
|
-
|
|
Puranpur(UP)
|
95.00
|
-24.9
|
4889.50
|
2380
|
2400
|
6.97
|
|
Hapur(UP)
|
70.00
|
16.67
|
1100.00
|
2670
|
2680
|
-0.37
|
|
Mugrabaadshahpur(UP)
|
30.00
|
-21.05
|
284.00
|
2300
|
2300
|
-
|
|
Basti(UP)
|
29.00
|
-6.45
|
872.50
|
2260
|
2270
|
4.15
|
|
Khatra(WB)
|
28.00
|
16.67
|
440.00
|
2650
|
2650
|
3.92
|
|
Bishnupur(Bankura)(WB)
|
15.00
|
7.14
|
201.00
|
2650
|
2650
|
3.92
|
|
Chandoli(UP)
|
12.00
|
-29.41
|
215.00
|
2355
|
2345
|
7.05
|
|
Etah(UP)
|
9.00
|
50
|
115.00
|
2530
|
2530
|
-
|
|
Utraula(UP)
|
9.00
|
12.5
|
69.00
|
1860
|
1860
|
16.25
|
|
Vilthararoad(UP)
|
8.00
|
-20
|
428.00
|
2150
|
2150
|
3.37
|
|
Chitwadagaon(UP)
|
7.00
|
75
|
250.00
|
2100
|
2150
|
NC
|
|
Kosikalan(UP)
|
6.50
|
NC
|
103.30
|
2680
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Ruperdeeha(UP)
|
6.00
|
NC
|
139.00
|
2000
|
1800
|
-
|
|
Mirzapur(UP)
|
4.00
|
-27.27
|
258.50
|
2265
|
2260
|
6.09
|
|
Alibagh(Mah)
|
3.00
|
NC
|
49.00
|
7200
|
7200
|
44.00
|
|
Murud(Mah)
|
3.00
|
NC
|
49.00
|
7200
|
7200
|
44.00
|
|
Amroha(UP)
|
2.00
|
NC
|
88.00
|
2600
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Jambusar(Kaavi)(Guj)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
16.00
|
3100
|
3400
|
-
|
Published
on February 07, 2019
Rice Prices
as on :
06-02-2019 10:50:35 AM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in
Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Khatra(WB)
|
24.00
|
-20
|
412.00
|
2650
|
2650
|
3.92
|
|
Falakata(WB)
|
20.00
|
NC
|
400.00
|
2600
|
2600
|
-
|
|
Bishnupur(Bankura)(WB)
|
14.00
|
7.69
|
186.00
|
2650
|
2650
|
3.92
|
|
Ruperdeeha(UP)
|
6.00
|
NC
|
133.00
|
1800
|
1700
|
-
|
|
Doharighat(UP)
|
1.50
|
NC
|
46.50
|
2000
|
2000
|
-
|
|
Khairagarh(UP)
|
1.40
|
100
|
37.70
|
2530
|
2560
|
1.20
|
|
Jambusar(Kaavi)(Guj)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
15.00
|
3400
|
3400
|
|
Saltwater is invading rice fields
and damaging crops
Rice is a
staple for more than half of the world's population.
Rice is a staple food for more than half of all people worldwide. But in many regions, rising temperatures and more extreme weather are making it harder to grow rice.
For example, in the coastal wetlands of Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, droughts are becoming more frequent.
When there’s not enough freshwater flowing down the Mekong River, more salt water from the South China Sea washes into coastal waterways. It ends up on fields and in soil, where it can devastate rice crops.
Bjoern Ole Sander of the International Rice Research Institute says that in 2016, during a very hot, dry period …
Sander: “We had much higher levels of salinity in the water and that strongly impacted rice production.”
It’s a problem that will only get worse as rising seas push even more salt water inland.
So to help farmers cope, Sander’s organization is breeding new varieties of rice …
Sander: “… that are more tolerant to certain stresses like salinity stress or drought stress or heat stress.”
Other rice farmers have switched to raising shrimp, which can handle the saltier conditions.
So as the climate warms, farmers around the world will likely need to change how – or what – they farm.
Reporting credit: Sarah Kennedy/ChavoBart Digital Media.
Image credit: IRRI video screen capture.
