Stop
burning fields to cut smog and boost profits, scientists tell Indian farmers
· AUGUST 8, 2019 / 11:45 PM
(This August 8 story is refiled to
add missing word in first paragraph.)
By Thin Lei Win
ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) -
Every year, a choking smog descends on northwest India as the region’s farmers
burn their fields following the rice harvest - a phenomenon that has helped
make New Delhi one of the world’s most polluted cities.
Now, scientists have come up with a
method that would allow farmers to sow their winter crop, usually wheat,
without burning off the stubble left behind after the rice harvest.
Researchers tested 10 alternatives
to burning, finding the biggest profits could be achieved with a machine called
the Happy Seeder.
The new method would allow farmers
to produce more food, boost profits by up to 20%, and cut greenhouse gas
emissions by as much as 78%, according to a study published on Thursday.
“Our analysis suggests that it is
possible to reduce air pollution and GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions in a way
that is profitable to farmers and scalable,” said the study, by a group of
scientists from India and other countries.
“Our analysis strongly suggests that
India has an opportunity, through coordinated public and private actions, to
reduce burning, increase incomes, and transition to more sustainable
agriculture while addressing the urgent problem of seasonal air pollution.”
The Happy Seeder is already being
used on about 800,000 hectares of farmland used to grow wheat in winter and
rice in summer - but that represents a tiny proportion of the 4 million
hectares in northwest India known as the country’s breadbasket.
“The plan next year is to reach
close to 2 million hectares. We’re hopeful,” said co-author M.L. Jat, principal
scientist with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).
With a Happy Seeder costing $2,000,
cost remains a major barrier, but farmers can hire a contractor to plant their
crops with the machine, Jat told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The study’s authors are urging the
government and private sector to promote the machine’s use through subsidies.
Every year, farmers in northwest
India burn an estimated 23 million tonnes of rice straw to clear the land
quickly and cheaply in time to grow wheat, the study said.
If piled on top of each other, the
amount would cover 1.1 times the distance to the moon.
India officially restricts the use
of crop burning, but the practice persists and bans are rarely enforced.
The resulting seasonal smog disrupts
transportation and threatens public health, said the paper, published hours
after a major U.N. report called for big changes to farming to curtail global
warming.
Reporting By Thin Lei Win @thinink,
Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the
charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, climate
change, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, and property rights. Visit
www.trust.org
Climate Experts Advise Eating More Vegetables, Less Meat
After issuing a new report detailing farming’s contribution to warming,
researchers suggested diet changes to reduce the impact
By
Robert Lee Hotz and
Jacob Bunge
Updated Aug. 8, 2019 2:20 pm ET
Climate experts meeting in Geneva recommended changes to the
foods people eat and farm in an effort to stave off the disruptive effects of
rising global temperatures, while growers and major food producers attempt to
adapt.
People should consider eating more vegetables and less meat, the
researchers said Thursday. The switch may help slow greenhouse-gas emissions,
they said, because farming vegetables releases less greenhouse gases than
livestock production.
...
TO READ THE FULL STORY
How the quest to bake a better
banana bread helps us understand GMOs
Lucy Stitzer | August 8, 2019
GMOs are hard to understand. What if we told you that enhancing
your banana bread recipe with additional nutrients is similar in concept to
adding a gene to a plant? This is otherwise known as genetic engineering.
Banana bread starts with a recipe of basic ingredients
My son has a hankering for
homemade banana bread, and suddenly the whole family wants a slice, including
me. So I go to the kitchen to whip up a loaf. While the oven is preheating, I
put the ingredients on the counter: bananas, butter, baking soda, salt, sugar,
egg, vanilla, and flour.
For the best taste and
consistency, mixing the ingredients in order is important. I mash the bananas
and the butter together before folding in the rest, and end with the flour.
Then, I pour batter in a loaf pan and bake. We patiently let it cool, then
slice it up and everyone gets a homemade treat.
Our family loves banana bread and
I also want to give them extra nutrition. So I add flaxseed for omega 3 fatty
acids and yogurt for protein and calcium.
How is banana bread similar to a GMO?
First, the plant breeder starts
with a plant they want to modify. Let’s take rice as an example, a staple food
for more than half the world’s population. Many people, particularly children,
in the developing world are deficient in vitamin A which can compromise their
immune system and cause night blindness. The International Rice Research
Institute in the Philippines created a more nutritious food by enabling rice to
express its beta-carotene gene, the precursor to vitamin A.
Golden Rice technology was based
on the premise that rice already has the ability to make beta-carotene, but
this conversion was only in the leaves. In order for the beta-carotene to be
present in the rice itself, rice breeders added two new genes to basic rice:
one from corn and one from a commonly ingested soil bacterium. Together, these
genes enable rice to synthesize the beta-carotene found in the leaves. Now a
cup of rice a day can keep children healthier and fortified. Breeders in Uganda
are working on a similar process to make golden bananas.
What is the process?
1. Banana bread recipe = DNA
Just like banana bread, rice
(like every living organism) has a recipe. Just as the directions to make
banana bread is in the recipe, the directions to make rice is in its DNA.
2. Banana bread ingredients = genes
When laid out on your counter,
the ingredients for banana bread don’t mean much. However, when combined
together, they yield a delicious treat. On a much simpler scale, when you mix
the banana bread ingredients in a different order and with different ingredient
amounts, you get a different recipe all together – banana pancakes!
All living organisms have the
same concept. Each human, plant, or animal has thousands of genes that create
their living structure. What makes a human a human and rice- rice is that 99%
of the genes – otherwise called the genetic alphabet – are written in a certain
order. For instance, humans are made up of approximately 23,000 genes compared
to rice which contains around 32,000 genes. Per the gene graphic above, if the
sequence on the right was changed from red-purple-red-yellow-yellow to
yellow-red-red-purple-red it would be a completely different organism.
Alternatives to burning can increase Indian farmers' profits and
cut pollution
Burning of rice residues in southeast Punjab, India,
prior to the wheat season. Credit: Neil Palmer/CIAT
A new economic study in the
journal Science shows that thousands of farmers in northern
India could increase their profits if they stop burning their rice straw and
adopt no-till practices to grow wheat. Alternative farming practices could also
cut farmers' greenhouse gas emissions from on-farm activities by as much as 78%
and help lower air pollution in cities like New Delhi.
The new study compares the costs
and benefits of 10 distinct land preparation and sowing practices for northern
India's rice-wheat cropping rotations, which are spread across more than 4
million hectares. The direct seeding of wheat into unplowed soil and shredded
rice residues was the best option—it raises farmers' profits through higher
yields and savings in labor, fuel, and machinery costs.
The study, conducted by a global
team of eminent agriculture and environmental scientists, was led by
researchers from The Nature Conservancy, the International Maize and Wheat
Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research
(ICAR), the Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA) and the University of
Minnesota.
A burning issue
To quickly and cheaply clear
their fields to sow wheat each year, farmers in northern India burn an
estimated 23 million tons of straw from their rice harvests. That enormous mass
of straw, if packed into 20-kilogram 38-centimeter-high bales and piled on top
of each other, would reach a height of over 430,000 kilometers—about 1.1 times
the distance to the moon.Regulations are in place in India to reduce
agricultural fires but burning continues because of implementation challenges
and lack of clarity about the profitability of alternate, no-burn farming.
Farmers have alternatives, the study shows. To sow wheat directly without
plowing or burning rice straw, farmers need to purchase or rent a
tractor-mounted implement known as the "Happy Seeder," as well as
attach straw shedders to their rice harvesters. Leaving straw on the soil as a
mulch helps capture and retain moisture and also improves soil quality,
according to M.L. Jat, CIMMYT Principal Scientist, cropping systems specialist and
a co-author of the study.
A combine harvester equipped with the Super Straw
Management System, or Super SMS (left), works alongside a tractor fitted with a
Happy Seeder. Credit: CIMMYT
Win-win
The Science study
demonstrates that it is possible to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas
emissions in a way that is profitable to farmers and scalable.
The paper shows that Happy
Seeder-based systems are on average 10%-20% more profitable than straw burning
options.
"Our study dovetails with
2018 policies put in place by the government of India to stop farmers from
burning, which includes a US$166 million subsidy to promote mechanization to
manage crop residues within fields," said Priya
Shyamsundar, Lead Economist, Global Science, of The Nature Conservancy and
first author of the study.
Shyamsundar noted that relatively
few Indian farmers currently sow their wheat using
the Happy Seeder but manufacturing of the Seeder had increased in recent years.
"Less than a quarter of the total subsidy would pay for widespread
adoption of the Happy Seeder, if aided by government and NGO support to
build farmer awareness
and impede burning."
"With a rising population of
1.6 billion people, South Asia hosts 40% of the world's poor and malnourished
on just 2.4% of its land," said Jat, who recently received India's
prestigious Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award for outstanding and impact-oriented research
contributions in natural resource management and agricultural engineering.
"Better practices can help farmers adapt to warmer winters and extreme,
erratic weather events such as droughts and floods, which are having a terrible
impact on agriculture and livelihoods. In addition, India's efforts to
transition to more sustainable, less polluting farming practices can provide
lessons for other countries facing similar risks and challenges."
In November 2017, more than 4,000
schools closed in Delhi due to seasonal smog. This smog increases during
October and November when fields are burned. It causes major transportation
disruptions and poses health risks across northern India, including Delhi, a
city of more than 18 million people. Some of these problems can be resolved by
the use of direct sowing technologies in northwestern India.
"Within one year of our
dedicated action using about US$75 million under the Central Sector Scheme on
'Promotion of agriculture mechanization for in-situ management of crop residue
in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and NCT of Delhi,' we could
reach 0.8 million hectares of adoption of Happy Seeder/zero tillage technology
in the northwestern states of India," said Trilochan Mohapatra, director
general of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
"Considering the findings of the Science article as well
as reports from thousands of participatory validation trials, our efforts have
resulted in an additional direct farmer benefit of US$131 million, compared to
a burning option," explained Mohapatra, who is also secretary of India's
Department of Agricultural Research and Education
Valuable
anti-diabetic compounds found in Quang Tri organic white rice
Illustrative
image (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Two chemical
compounds, Momilactone A and Momilactone B (MA and MB), that can prevent
diabetes, obesity and gout through their ability to inhibit enzymes relating to
the diseases, have been found in white rice grown in the central province of
Quang Tri, scientists have announced.
Research by Associate Professor and Dr Tran Dang Xuan, head of the Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry in Japan’s Hiroshima University, found the MA and MB compounds in Ong Bien organic rice grown in Quang Tri province under schemes and technology provided by Dai Nam Ong Bien Group Joint Stock Company based in the south-central province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.
The content of the two compounds in Ong Bien organic rice is 100 times higher than those found in other varieties of rice.
Their study revealed that the compounds played an active role in the diabetes inhibitory potential of rice bran.
MA and MB compounds are very rare and have not been fully studied for biological and pharmacological activities. The compound was sold at 125 USD per 0.1 mg on carbosynth.com, a company that sells famous biochemical products.
Xuan said that the MA and MB compounds were about as 30,000 times more precious than gold and that “the discovery of the two compounds in white rice created a breakthrough in the world’s plant physiology, especially rice.”
Some studies have previously found rice to have compounds that inhibit diabetes, but only in brown or red rice, which are often of poor quality and difficult to consume.
“Today, people tend to have less rice in their diet because rice contains starch which causes obesity and diabetes. However, with high content of MA and MB, Ong Bien organic rice can help prevent the disease,” Xuan said.
Several recent reports indicate that there are more than 3 million people in Vietnam suffering from or at risk of diabetes, so the results of this study are particularly significant.
Vietnam’s Health Ministry and relevant agencies have not yet commented or verified the claims – including the rice's nutrition values, its content of MA and MB and its anti-diabetics ability.
Tran Ngoc Nam, Director General of Dai Nam Trade and Production Ltd Company said that since 2016, the company cooperated with Quang Tri province’s Agriculture and Rural Development Department to grow the variety.
Under their cooperation programme, rice was watered and fertilised with only organic fertilisers made by the company. No other plant protection product or chemical fertiliser was used for the rice.
The rice is now grown on a total area of about 200 ha in Quang Tri province, generating stable income of 30-40 million VND per hectare for farmers, according to Nam.
The rice is available in supermarkets across Vietnam branded Ong Bien Organic rice or Quang Tri organic rice. — VNS/VNA
Research by Associate Professor and Dr Tran Dang Xuan, head of the Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry in Japan’s Hiroshima University, found the MA and MB compounds in Ong Bien organic rice grown in Quang Tri province under schemes and technology provided by Dai Nam Ong Bien Group Joint Stock Company based in the south-central province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.
The content of the two compounds in Ong Bien organic rice is 100 times higher than those found in other varieties of rice.
Their study revealed that the compounds played an active role in the diabetes inhibitory potential of rice bran.
MA and MB compounds are very rare and have not been fully studied for biological and pharmacological activities. The compound was sold at 125 USD per 0.1 mg on carbosynth.com, a company that sells famous biochemical products.
Xuan said that the MA and MB compounds were about as 30,000 times more precious than gold and that “the discovery of the two compounds in white rice created a breakthrough in the world’s plant physiology, especially rice.”
Some studies have previously found rice to have compounds that inhibit diabetes, but only in brown or red rice, which are often of poor quality and difficult to consume.
“Today, people tend to have less rice in their diet because rice contains starch which causes obesity and diabetes. However, with high content of MA and MB, Ong Bien organic rice can help prevent the disease,” Xuan said.
Several recent reports indicate that there are more than 3 million people in Vietnam suffering from or at risk of diabetes, so the results of this study are particularly significant.
Vietnam’s Health Ministry and relevant agencies have not yet commented or verified the claims – including the rice's nutrition values, its content of MA and MB and its anti-diabetics ability.
Tran Ngoc Nam, Director General of Dai Nam Trade and Production Ltd Company said that since 2016, the company cooperated with Quang Tri province’s Agriculture and Rural Development Department to grow the variety.
Under their cooperation programme, rice was watered and fertilised with only organic fertilisers made by the company. No other plant protection product or chemical fertiliser was used for the rice.
The rice is now grown on a total area of about 200 ha in Quang Tri province, generating stable income of 30-40 million VND per hectare for farmers, according to Nam.
The rice is available in supermarkets across Vietnam branded Ong Bien Organic rice or Quang Tri organic rice. — VNS/VNA
RELATED
NEWS
The Japanese Diet That Holds the Key to
Longevity
1
The
health benefits of Japanese cooking are widely touted, but the Big Q is: what
exactly is a healthy Japanese diet?
Food
scientists in Japan have homed in on the nutritional Keys to health and
longevity. The new life expectancy for men and women is at a new record high.
Japan
boasts one of the longest life expectancies on earth, and it also a world
leader in “healthy life expectancy”, the number of years of good health people
can expect on average.
Since
diet is believed to play a Key role in a population’s health and longevity,
researchers around the world have been studying the benefits of the Japanese
diet for some time.
The
people of Japan do not dine primarily on sushi, tempura, or other well-known
Japanese specialties.
And,
their eating habits have changed over the years.
This
study used national surveys to compile weekly menus representative of the
Japanese diet at various points in time over the past 50 years.
The
research found the Secrets of the 1975 Diet
What
distinguishes the Japanese diet of 1975 to today’s Westernized diet is it
strengths of the former can be boiled down to the following:
Variety: The
daily menu featured a relatively large number of small dishes, typically at least
3, in addition to soup and rice.
Cooking
methods: The
Top 3 modes of preparation were simmered, steamed, and raw, followed by boiled
and grilled. Frying and sauteeing were somewhat less common. Cooking at high
heat, as when frying in oil, can cause nutrients to break down. For example,
oily fish like horse mackerel
(aji)
are rich in the healthy omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. However, the fried
version provides only about 1/10th the EPA and DHA of sashimi.
Ingredients: The
1975 diet was rich in soy products, seafood, tubers, green and yellow
vegetables including pickles, fruit, seaweed, mushrooms, and green tea. Eggs,
dairy products, and meat were consumed as well, but in moderation.
Seasoning: The
skillful use of fermented seasonings (soy sauce, miso, vinegar, mirin,
and sake) along with dashi broth helped impart a
satisfying flavor to foods without the heavy use of salt and sugar.
For the
experiments, the researchers incorporated all of the above features into weekly
menus to scientifically verify and measure the health benefits of the “1975
Japanese Diet.”
Sample
Menu from the 1975 Japanese Diet
|
Breakfast
|
Lunch
|
Dinner
|
|
Rice, grilled salted salmon, nattō(fermented soybeans), miso
soup with Chinese cabbage & bean sprouts
|
Kitsune udon (udonnoodles
with aburaage), fruit
|
Rice, nikujaga (potato & meat
stew), vinegared mozukuseaweed,clear soup with
cabbage and egg
|
|
Raisin bread, omelet, sausage sautéed with cabbage, fruit, milk
|
Fried rice, wakameseaweed soup
|
Rice, chikuzen-ni (root vegetables
simmered with chicken), cold tōfu, miso soup with spinach & aburaage(deep-fried
sliced tōfu)
|
|
Rice, dried horse mackerel, komatsuna spinach with
clams, sweet & savory runner beans, miso soup with eggplant
|
Fried noodles, mitsumame (sweet agar jelly)
with fruit
|
Rice, cream stew, blanched Chinese cabbage with dried shrimp in
broth, cucumber & hijiki salad
|
|
Toast, bacon, eggs, fruit, yogurt
|
Rice steamed with sweet potato, simmered kōyadōfu (freeze-dried
tōfu), miso soup with pork & root vegetables
|
Rice, mackerel simmered with miso, soybeans with mixed
vegetables, clear soup with Chinese cabbage & wakame
|
|
Rice, Japanese rolled omelet, nattō, miso soup with cabbage
& aburaage, fruit
|
Oyako donburi (chicken
& egg bowl), vinegared daikon radish &
carrot, tsukudani (vegetables or
shellfish stewed in soy sauce and mirin)
|
Rice, horse mackerel escabeche, miso dengaku(skewered
tōfu & vegetables glazed with miso sauce), clear soup with Japanese
pumpkin & komatsuna spinach
|
|
Toast, boiled egg, tuna & broccoli salad, fruit, milk
|
Rice, eggplant sauteed with ground chicken, simmered hijiki seaweed
|
Rice, simmered flounder, okara (tōfu lees), miso soup
with taro root & daikon radish
|
|
Rice, clams & cabbage steamed in sake, nattō,
miso soup with tōfu and aburaage
|
Sandwiches, consomme, fruit
|
Rice, sashimi, satsuma-age(fried fish paste)
simmered with Chinese cabbage, white salad (with tōfu dressing)
|
Eat
healthy, Be healthy, Live long and lively
The Japanese Diet That Holds the Key to Longevity added by Paul Ebeling on August 9,
2019
View all posts by Paul Ebeling →
View all posts by Paul Ebeling →
Farmers wary of further palay price declines as traders reluctant to
buy
August 8, 2019 | 9:41 p
PHILSTAR/MICHAEL VARCAS
FARMERS have asked the government
to address the steep decline in farmgate prices for palay, or unhusked rice,
warning that the traders who buy from farmers are inactive in the market
because they are stuck with expensive inventory from before the government
allowed imports of cheaper foreign rice.
In a statement, the Federation of
Free Farmers (FFF), citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)
said the farmgate price for palay, the form in which domestic farmers sell
their harvest, has declined 23% from their peak in September of P22.88 per
kilogram (kg).
The FFF warned that prices could
decline further with the harvest season about to start in September, because of
the combination of ample supply and reluctant buyers.
“Many local traders cannot unload
their stocks from the previous season due to the large volume of imported rice
in the market. Unless they find a way to free up their inventories, they will
either stop buying palay, or they will buy at much lower prices in order to
cover for anticipated trading losses. Either way, farmers will end up carrying
the bag,” FFF National Manager Raul Q. Montemayor said in a statement.
He estimated that farmers have
foregone some P40 billion in revenue as of the end of June due to the falling
farmgate price from peak levels, based on a harvest of 8 million tons of palay
in the first half.
The government liberalized rice
imports earlier this year, allowing more private entities to import rice while
paying a tariff of 35% on grain from Southeast Asia.
Mr. Montemayor also asked the
Department of Agriculture (DA) to start imposing additional levies on top of
the 35% tariff, such as as safeguard measures and anti-dumping duties.
Farmers have claimed that tariffs
generated by the Bureau of Customs (BoC) on rice imports are out of line with
the landed cost of the volumes imported, suggesting widespread
underdeclaration.
Underdeclaration means the proper
tariffs are not collected, thereby shortchanging the Rice Competitiveness
Enhancement Fund (RCEF), which is funded by tariffs.
Mr. Montemayor said if duties are
imposed, it will result in more expensive imported rice, which will make
domestic rice more competitive and make traders more willing to dispose of
their stocks and resume purchasing.
He also added that this will not
result in higher retail prices due to the large gap between the cost of
imported rice and domestic rice prices.
BoC data, he said, suggests that
imported rice is landed at P24 per kg including tariffs, but is sold at P35.
“At the moment, there is a lot of
profiteering going on. Even if import prices go up because of the remedial
tariffs, there is still room for retail prices to actually go down,” Mr.
Montemayor said.
He also urged that importers be
required to obtain certifications that their shipments are pest- and
disease-free, and to secure food safety certificates before bringing in their
shipments.
He said rice imports are only
randomly tested for hard metals, chemical residue, and general food safety
after arrival, and brought up the huge costs the industry might incur if a
shipment should contain disease, pests or contaminants.
He said the tariffs the
government hopes to raise for RCEF are small relative to the potential damage
on the farm sector from competition from imports.
RCEF ”will help, but it is not
the saving grace that some legislators are projecting it to be. RCEF is
intended to improve the competitiveness of rice farmers by reducing their costs
of production and increasing their yields. This will not happen overnight, nor
is success guaranteed,” Mr. Montemayor said.
“Although RCEF funds can be used
for mechanization, better seed, credit, training and extension, other interventions
that are not funded by RCEF such as irrigation, fertilizers and pesticides, and
marketing are equally important,” he said. — Vincent Mariel P. Galang
Floods to slash 400,000t from rice harvest in
Bangladesh
AFP
. Dhaka | Update: 21:51, Aug 08, 2019
Floods have washed away crops in Bangladesh
that would have yielded nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, according to estimates
from the agriculture ministry.
This could be a major blow to the country,
which has historically relied on imports to cope with shortages caused by
natural disasters such as floods or drought.
The nation's farmers, though, have recently
been struggling to secure fair prices for their produce amid a surplus of the
grain, with no overseas deals in sight since the country lifted an export ban
in May to support the market.
The flooding triggered by heavy monsoon rains
has killed at least 108 people and affected more than 6 million people in
Bangladesh and damaged other crops, mostly in the northern region.
"This is a huge loss for the
farmers," said Mir Nurul Alam, director general of the Department of
Agricultural Extension.
"But I don't think this will have much
impact on the overall rice stocks," he said, given the nation's ample
reserves.
Bangladesh's weather bureau, meanwhile, has
forecast another spell of floods could hit the low-lying country of more than
160 million people this month.
The central bank instructed local lenders not
to press for repayment of previous loans and to provide new ones to help
farmers hit by the floods.
Agriculture minister Abdur Razzaque also said
the government has allocated a total of 638 million taka ($7.5 million) in
emergency aid for farmers in flood-hit areas.
Besides the emergency aid, a farm
rehabilitation plan is being worked out to provide free seed and fertiliser for
affected farmers for the next crop season, he said.
"We have taken a slew of measures to
ensure fair prices for the farmers ... instructions have been given to
(district officials) to buy rice directly from farmers," Razzaque said.
Market insiders, however, said the move would
not benefit most growers in dire need of cash, since they are often compelled
to sell their crop to millers or middlemen at much cheaper rates to meet loan
payments.
In 2017, Bangladesh was forced to massively
increase imports to shore up its reserves after floods destroyed crops and
pushed local prices to records. Domestic stocks have greatly improved since
then.
In May, Bangladesh raised its rice import duty
to 55% from 28% and lifted a long-standing ban on exports to support farmers
amid widespread protests by growers over a drastic fall in domestic prices.
Bangladesh, the world's fourth-biggest rice
producer with nearly 35 million tonnes of output a year, has been unable to
clinch overseas deals since the export ban was lifted because its rice is more
expensive than supplies from India or Thailand, even after the recent fall in
local prices.
· s
· More
Stop
burning fields to cut smog and boost profits, scientists tell Indian farmers
AUGUST
8, 2019 / 11:45 PM
(This
August 8 story is refiled to add missing word in first paragraph.)
By
Thin Lei Win
ROME
(Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Every year, a choking smog descends on northwest
India as the region’s farmers burn their fields following the rice harvest - a
phenomenon that has helped make New Delhi one of the world’s most polluted
cities.
Now,
scientists have come up with a method that would allow farmers to sow their winter
crop, usually wheat, without burning off the stubble left behind after the rice
harvest.
Researchers
tested 10 alternatives to burning, finding the biggest profits could be
achieved with a machine called the Happy Seeder.
The
new method would allow farmers to produce more food, boost profits by up to
20%, and cut greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 78%, according to a study
published on Thursday.
“Our
analysis suggests that it is possible to reduce air pollution and GHG
(greenhouse gas) emissions in a way that is profitable to farmers and
scalable,” said the study, by a group of scientists from India and other
countries.
“Our
analysis strongly suggests that India has an opportunity, through coordinated
public and private actions, to reduce burning, increase incomes, and transition
to more sustainable agriculture while addressing the urgent problem of seasonal
air pollution.”
The
Happy Seeder is already being used on about 800,000 hectares of farmland used
to grow wheat in winter and rice in summer - but that represents a tiny
proportion of the 4 million hectares in northwest India known as the country’s
breadbasket.
“The
plan next year is to reach close to 2 million hectares. We’re hopeful,” said
co-author M.L. Jat, principal scientist with the International Maize and Wheat
Improvement Center (CIMMYT).
With
a Happy Seeder costing $2,000, cost remains a major barrier, but farmers can
hire a contractor to plant their crops with the machine, Jat told the Thomson
Reuters Foundation.
The
study’s authors are urging the government and private sector to promote the
machine’s use through subsidies.
Every
year, farmers in northwest India burn an estimated 23 million tonnes of rice
straw to clear the land quickly and cheaply in time to grow wheat, the study
said.
If
piled on top of each other, the amount would cover 1.1 times the distance to
the moon.
India
officially restricts the use of crop burning, but the practice persists and
bans are rarely enforced.
The
resulting seasonal smog disrupts transportation and threatens public health,
said the paper, published hours after a major U.N. report called for big
changes to farming to curtail global warming.
Reporting
By Thin Lei Win @thinink, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson
Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers
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Nzenweofor
Foundation surprises military widows with 500 bags of rice
The group’s chairman, Chief Ndubuisi Nzenweofor in his address at the Army Headquarters Command Officers’ Mess 1, Abuja on Wednesday stated that the group’s gesture was essentially to support the vulnerable families left behind by Nigerian soldiers who lost their lives in rendering services to the nation, adding that sacrifices with one’s life for others cannot be quantified or overemphasized.
He regretted that over the years, deceased soldiers’ families are neglected to be languishing in abject poverty despite their enormous contributions to public security which he described as height of injustice, and therefore called on other well meaning Nigerians to always remember the families of deceased servicemen that died in warfronts.
MIWA President, Mrs. Veronica Aloko in her welcome address expressed gratitude for the exemplary action of the foundation, and sought for its continuity adding that the anguishes alongside trauma of military widows are better imagined than experienced.
The Vice chairman, Board of Trustees (BOT MIWA), Dr. (Mrs.) Aisha Lemu while also expressing gratitude added that though widows exist in all vocations but the peculiarity and common feature of military widows is that in most cases, their deceased husbands never say ‘goodbye’ before passing on but suddenly dropped dead in painful circumstances particularly by bullets from guns, while corpses of some are never seen for a farewell.
Other speakers at the event are Mrs. Juliet Adaa; Vice chairman, Mrs. Biddy Salubi; treasurer, Hon. Rakia Ibrahim; Welfare officer amongst other state executive members. Each of the speakers respectively poured tributes for the gestures and eulogized the arrowhead as a role model who deserved accolades and emulations emphasizing that the generosity was well timed in support of the vulnerable families. The widows uncontrollably shed tears of joy with songs of praises and dances stating that the donor was divinely sent for their comfort.
Responding, Chief Ezenweofor while assuring the mammoth gathering of widows to always count on his supports even beyond rice donation added that education, economic empowerment and other welfares for the children of slain soldiers left behind must not continue to suffer defects, and promised to extend to that direction in no distant time. He also stated that the gestures will soon be extended to other national security agencies including personnel of the Department of State Security Service (DSS) amongst others.
India Grain: Wheat price dn on low demand, basmati up on better buys
Thursday, Aug 8
By Sampad Nandy
NEW DELHI – Prices of mill quality wheat fell sharply today due
to a decline in demand from flour millers, traders said. A gradual decline
in arrivals was also unable to limit the fall in prices, they said.
"Demand fell today as most bulk buyers have piled up enough
stocks and have reduced their purchases at higher prices," Indore-based
trader N. K. Agarwal said.
Prices are seen falling further in the coming days as bulk
buyers are unlikely to increase their purchases in the near term as prices have
risen sharply due to a decline in arrivals, a Delhi-based flour mill owner
said.
Tracking spot cues, futures contracts of wheat, too, fell
on the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange. The most-active September
contract closed 0.3% lower today at 2,086 rupees per 100 kg.
In the case of basmati paddy, prices of the Pusa basmati 1121
variety rose marginally today due to a rise in demand from domestic millers and
stockists, traders said.
"Demand rose today as local millers are picking up more
stocks anticipating a rise in demand of basmati rice due to Id-ul-Zuha," a
Delhi-based rice mill owner said.
Rise in prices were, however, capped today as demand from
exporters remained subdued, traders said. Bulk export demand remained weak due
to persisting uncertainty over trade with Iran, the largest importer of
Indian basmati rice, traders said.
Futures contracts of Pusa basmati 1121 paddy rose today due
to the rise in domestic demand, traders said. The September Pusa 1121
basmati paddy contract on the Indian Commodity Exchange ended at 3,262 rupees
per 100 kg, 2.7% higher than the previous close.
Prices of maize across key spot markets remained steady today
amid weak demand from bulk buyers and low arrivals, traders said. Maize
futures on NCDEX, too, were steady on spot cues, traders said. The most active
August contract ended steady at 2,155 rupees per 100 kg.
Following are today's prices for wheat, maize, and paddy, in
rupees per 100 kg, in key wholesale markets, and the change from the previous
day:
|
Commodity
|
Market
|
Price
|
Change
|
|
Wheat
|
Kota
|
2,020-2,040
|
(-) 10-15
|
|
Wheat
|
Indore
|
2,020-2,050
|
(-) 10-15
|
|
Maize
|
Nizamabad
|
2,420-2,450
|
—
|
|
Maize
|
Purnea
|
2,330-2,350
|
—
|
|
Pusa
1121 basmati
|
Amritsar
|
3,750-3,800
|
10-20
|
End
Edited by Maheswaran Parameswaran
Cogencis Tel +91 (11) 4220-1000
Send comments to feedback@cogencis.com
This copy was first published on the Cogencis WorkStation
INDIA‘S
NON-BASMATI RICE EXPORT FALLS AFTER GOVT WITHDRAWS TAX INCENTIVE
on August 7, 2019
span.p-content
div[id^=”div-gpt”]{line-height:0;font-size:0}
India’s exports of non-basmati
rice declined by half between April and May this year after the government
withdrew 5 per cent incentives from April 1.
Data compiled by the
government-owned Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority (Apeda) showed India’s overall exports at 711,837 tonnes for
April-May 2019 compared to 1.53 million tonnes shipped for the corresponding
period of the previous year. In value term, India’s overall non-basmati rice
exports plunged by more than 50 per cent to $294 million (Rs 2046 crore) for
the first two months of FY 2019-2020 as against $652 million (Rs 4347 crore) in
the same period last year.
The decline in non-basmati rice
exports raises questions about India’s policy making, say analysts. In order to
help farmers, the government has increased minimum support price (MSP) for the
last several years. This has made Indian rice uncompetitive for exports. A 5
per cent tax cushion encouraged 7-8 million tonnes in exports of non-basmati
rice annually.
“Some importing countries like
Bangladesh have started growing rice on their own which reduced their overall
annual import. Trade sources are also blaming continuous increase for a
reduction in India’s non-basmati rice exports,” said a senior Apeda official.
Bangladesh had emerged as the
largest importer of India’s non-basmati rice with 1.87 million tonnes in
2017-18. In the following year, however, farmers in Bangladesh expanded their
sowing area resulting into higher output from local sources and thus proportionate
decline in their overall non-basmati rice import. Thus, in FY 2018-19, India’s
non-basmati rice exports plunged by a drastic 70 per cent to Bangladesh to a
mere 480,567 tonnes.
With favourable agro climatic
condition continues this year as well, United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) reported Bangladesh’s rice output to rise further 35.3 million tonnes
this year as compared to 34.9 million tonnes and 32.6 million tonnes in 2018-19
and 2017-18 respectively.
“Declining import from Bangladesh
is self-explanatory as to why India’s non-basmati rice exports are falling,”
said the Apeda official.
In fact, exporters are worried
over sustained rise in the of paddy which translates into the proportionate
increase in rice prices. To attract farmers, the National Democratic Alliance
(NDA) government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has raised of common
variety of paddy by 30 per cent in the last four years from Rs 1410 a quintal
in 2015-16 to Rs 1815 a quintal in 2019-20.
“The sustained hike in MSP has
made India outpriced by $25 in the world market resulting into lower demand of
Indian rice. Other rice growing countries including Pakistan and Thailand have
filled the gap,” said Gurnam Arora, Joint Managing Director, Kohinoor Foods,
one of the largest exporters of basmati and non-basmati rice in India.
With no relief in sight, India’s
non-basmati rice exports are likely to fall steeply in coming months.
Meanwhile, bumper local
production and possibility of less export are expected to worsen challenges for
storage and handling of rice in India.
India’s total rice output is
estimated at 115.6 million tonnes for 2018-19 as compared to 96.48 million
tonnes reported in the previous year. India’s annual rice consumption is
estimated at around 90 million tonnes.
ports drop 18.3pc in July’
By
-
August
7, 2019
Listen to Article
· PM’s
adviser says he will visit Afghanistan on 20th to share the agenda of bilateral
trade
ISLAMABAD: Adviser to Prime Minister on
Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood said on Wednesday that Pakistan’s exports had
increased by 14.23pc in July this year, as compared to the same month of last
year.
In term of dollars, the country’s
exports increased from $1.63 billion in July 2018 to $1.87 billion in July
2019, the adviser informed while addressing a press conference at the commerce
ministry.
He continued that Pakistan’s
imports from other countries also reduced by 18.39pc during the month.
The adviser said during the period
under review, an increase in exports was witnessed in various sectors,
including rice (71pc), readymade garments (17pc), home textiles (14pc), plastic
goods (34pc), chemicals (26pc), mangoes (33pc) and footwear (24pc).
Replying to a question, he said that
China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA), a comprehensive tariff policy,
reforms in National Tariff Commission (NTC) and an increase in local exports
were among the major hallmarks of his ministry during the first year of this
government.
He informed media that
Afghanistan had offered a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) to Pakistan in
order to enhance trade between the two countries.
During the visit of Afghan
President Ashraf Ghani, both sides had discussed issues pertaining to bilateral
transit trade, he said, adding that both countries were willing to increase the
volume of bilateral trade.
He said Afghan Ambassador
Shukrullah Atif Mashal had invited him to visit Afghanistan on August 20th.
“I will visit Afghanistan to
share the agenda of bilateral trade and to chalk out ways to increase the
volume of transit trade.”
On a query, the adviser said that
Pakistan had successfully gotten market access to the China, European Union
(EU), Indonesia, Malaysia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
“We are committed to getting
trade access to the potential markets of the United States (US), Canada, Japan,
South Korea and Australia so as to increase the volume of our exports,” he
maintained.
Regarding his recent visit to
South Korea, Dawood informed that during his visit, he held meetings with
various Korean companies who were willing to bring their investment to
Pakistan, particularly in the textile and agriculture sectors.
He noted that Pakistan has been
facing a trade deficit with South Korea, as the former’s exports to latter were
$300 million as compared to the imports of $600 million.
“We have arranged the
business-to-business meetings with Korean investors in order to negotiate on a
Free Trade Agreement (FTA), similar to those it signed with India, Vietnam,
Bangladesh and Chile,” he stated. “Both sides decided to hold a working group
meeting in October to discuss ways to increase the volume of bilateral trade.”
U.S.
Rice Develops Trade Relations Amid Trade Tensions
By Sarah Moran
SHENZHEN, CHINA -- USA Rice hosted two trade seminars in
Shanghai and Shenzhen over the last week utilizing Agricultural Trade Promotion
and Emerging Markets Program funding from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
(FAS).
There were approximately 40 attendees in Shanghai and more than 70 in Shenzhen. Even though the Trump Administration had announced new proposed tariffs on Chinese goods exported to the U.S. one day prior to the first seminar, attendance and interest ran high among the attendees.
"While we've certainly spent time over the past several years getting to know the China market, these trade seminars were invaluable for introducing us to a wide range of importers all of whom are interested in U.S. rice," said Mark Holt, from Riceland Foods, who participated.
Six U.S. exporters took advantage of the opportunity to introduce their company and products and join in a one-on-one "speed dating" event at which USA Rice provided interpreters where needed. Rice from California and the South was taste tested at the seminar in Shanghai and at a hosted dinner in Shenzhen.
"The day after the announced tariffs, we heard credible reports that the Chinese government had contacted agricultural importers and advised them to avoid purchasing U.S. agricultural products," said Jim Guinn, USA Rice director of Asia promotion programs, who helped coordinate both seminars. "A number of attendees spoke about the trade tensions but it didn't seem to temper their longer term interest in U.S. rice, especially among private importers. However, given this setback in trade relations, the short term outlook for rice sales is not very positive in the absence of a trade deal."
There were approximately 40 attendees in Shanghai and more than 70 in Shenzhen. Even though the Trump Administration had announced new proposed tariffs on Chinese goods exported to the U.S. one day prior to the first seminar, attendance and interest ran high among the attendees.
"While we've certainly spent time over the past several years getting to know the China market, these trade seminars were invaluable for introducing us to a wide range of importers all of whom are interested in U.S. rice," said Mark Holt, from Riceland Foods, who participated.
Six U.S. exporters took advantage of the opportunity to introduce their company and products and join in a one-on-one "speed dating" event at which USA Rice provided interpreters where needed. Rice from California and the South was taste tested at the seminar in Shanghai and at a hosted dinner in Shenzhen.
"The day after the announced tariffs, we heard credible reports that the Chinese government had contacted agricultural importers and advised them to avoid purchasing U.S. agricultural products," said Jim Guinn, USA Rice director of Asia promotion programs, who helped coordinate both seminars. "A number of attendees spoke about the trade tensions but it didn't seem to temper their longer term interest in U.S. rice, especially among private importers. However, given this setback in trade relations, the short term outlook for rice sales is not very positive in the absence of a trade deal."
Local farmers react to China’s
refusal to buy U.S. crops
China
refuses to buy U.S. agricultural goods as the trade war continues
By Robin Richardson |
LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - China
is officially refusing to buy U.S. Agricultural products, costing American
farmers one of their biggest customers. 7News spoke with local farmers about
the impact.
The continuing trade war has left
rice farmer Paul Johnson and former soybean farmer Kevin Berken worried.
“In the U.S. rice industry we’re
heavily dependent on exports we export about 50% of our crop," Johnson
said.
Former soybean farmer Kevin
Berken agrees.
“Our prices will more than likely
go down lower than they probably are now if not drastically lower if something
is not done," Berken said.
For Johnson, his fear lies with
what could be a surplus of rice crops due to soy bean farmers switching to
something more profitable.
“They historically have bought a
lot of soy beans out of the United States," Johnson said. "When that
market is taken away from the soybean growers, then they have to look to
alternative crops.”
An alternative crop available in
our area is rice. Johnson says the more farmers produce rice the more prices
are driven down.
“Right now rice is selling for
about $18 a barrel, which is about $5 a barrel below the cost of
production," Johnson said.
The USDA announced the
details of a $16 billion support package that will help aid
farmers effected by China’s trade retaliation.
“USDA had already came out with
those numbers here in the last couple of weeks on a per parish per county
basis," Berken said.
In the meantime, Johnson holds
out hope.
“Most in the rice industry would
see it as a short term deal," Johnson said. " I think the long term
goal of the current administration will be good for the rice industry and
agriculture in general.”
GIEWS Country Brief: Republic of Korea 08-August-2019
REPORT
Published on 08 Aug
2019 —View Original
FOOD
SECURITY SNAPSHOT
· Paddy
production in 2019 expected to remain at below-average level
· Cereal
import requirements in 2018/19 marketing year estimated slightly above the five-year
average
Paddy
production in 2019 expected to remain at below-average level
Planting of the 2019 paddy crop,
to be harvested in September and October, concluded in June, and the area sown
is expected to be similar to last year’s below‑average level. The planted area
with paddy crops has been steadily declining since 2002, as farmers have
progressively switched to alternative crops, in part reflecting a decrease in
rice consumption.
Weather
conditions this season have been generally conducive for crop growth, with well
distributed and adequate rainfall amounts recorded between April and July 2019.
Reflecting these weather patterns, as of mid‑July remote sensing data indicated
average to above‑average vegetation conditions (see ASI map) in the main paddy
producing areas.
Mostly
reflecting the reduced plantings, the 2019 paddy production is preliminary
forecast at 5.2 million tonnes, about 6 percent below the five‑year average,
which would be the second lowest output in the last 10 years.
Harvesting
of the 2019 winter crops, mainly barley and wheat, concluded in June and
harvests are estimated at near‑average levels of 127 000 and 31 000 tonnes,
respectively.
Cereal
import requirements in 2018/19 marketing year estimated slightly above the five‑year
average
The
country relies on imports to satisfy its domestic demand as local production
covers only a fifth of domestic cereal requirements.
Total
cereal import requirements in the 2018/19 marketing year (October/September)
are estimated at 14.2 million tonnes, virtually unchanged from the previous
year’s average level.
Maize
import, which account for the largest share of annual cereal imports, are
forecast at 10 million tonnes in 2018/19, close to the five‑year average,
reflecting sustained demand from the feed industry. Wheat import requirements
are estimated to reach 3.7 million tonnes, close to the previous year’s below‑average
level. This reduction reflects a slowdown in demand for feed use, as maize is
expected to partially substitute the use of wheat in the feed compounds.
Imports of rice in the 2019 calendar year are forecast at 410 000 tonnes, about
6 percent above the five‑year average.
RPT-Asia
Rice-Thai rates gain as drought hits supply; Vietnam eyes S.America market
Swati
Verma
AUGUST
9, 2019 / 6:35 AM
(Repeats
with no changes)
*
India’s exports may fall to 7-year low -industry officials
*
Bangladesh continues to battle widespread flooding
*
Vietnam exports 651,000 tonnes in July, beating forecasts
By
Swati Verma
BENGALURU,
Aug 8 (Reuters) - Rice export prices in Thailand rose this week on worries that
the country’s worst drought in about a decade could further squeeze supply,
while Vietnam explored potential deals in the south American market.
Thailand’s
benchmark 5-percent broken rice RI-THBKN5-P1 prices rose to $406-$425 a tonne
on Thursday from $395-$405 quoted last week.
“Harvesting
has started in some areas and the dry conditions have affected the quality of
the rice ... which led to an increase in domestic rice prices,” a Bangkok-based
trader said.
Water
levels in dams nationwide are far short of the monthly average, Thailand’s
meteorological department said.
“Many
exporters are also trying to buy rice to shore up their stocks amid concerns
over a possible shortage, and this drove the price up,” another rice trader
said.
Thai
prices were also higher than other Asian hubs, with a strong baht also
contributing to the high rates even as demand remained flat.
Meanwhile,
Vietnam’s rates for 5% broken rice RI-VNBKN5-P1 remained unchanged from last
week at $340-$350 a tonne.
Preliminary
data showed 103,000 tonnes of rice is to be loaded at Ho Chi Minh City ports
during Aug. 2-10, with 42% bound for West Africa, 29% for Iraq and the
remainder for the Philippines and Malaysia.
A
delegation from the Vietnam Food Association was in Mexico earlier this week to
seek opportunities to ship Vietnamese rice to south America as the country was
seeking new markets for the grain, a source with the association said.
Data
from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development released on Wednesday
showed Vietnam exported 651,000 tonnes of rice in July, beating a government
forecast of 600,000 tonnes.
Prices
for top-exporter India’s 5 percent broken parboiled variety RI-INBKN5-P1 fell
to around $377-$381 per tonne this week from $381-$384 last week due to a
depreciation in the rupee.
“As
the government has procured a large amount of paddy rice, supplies are limited
in the market. Exporters have to pay higher prices for paddy,” said Ashwin
Shah, director at Shah Nanji Nagsi Exports Pvt. Ltd, an exporter based in
Nagpur in central India.
India’s
rice exports are likely to fall to their lowest in seven years, industry
officials said, on weak demand from Africa and as shippers absorb the lack of
government incentives that supported previous sales.
In
neighbouring Bangladesh, floods washed away crops that would have yielded
nearly 400,000 tonnes of rice, according to estimates from the agriculture
ministry. (Reporting by Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Panu Wongcha-um in Bangkok, Ruma
Paul in Dhaka and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; editing by Arpan Varghese and
David Evans)
