Vietnam should improve rice quality in long-term
strategy
Vietnam needs a long-term
strategy to increase the quality of its rice exports to create sustainable
growth in the future, experts say.
VNA Monday, October 14, 2019
18:54
Sacks of
rice are loaded for export (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnam needs a long-term
strategy to increase the quality of its rice exports to create sustainable
growth in the future, experts say.To meet the changing demands of export markets, Bui Thi Thanh Tam, general director of VinaFoods 1 Corporation, said firms should invest in domestic production to increase the quality of rice.
To do that, the agriculture sector needed support from relevant ministries.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade focuses on developing markets and negotiating free trade agreements (FTAs) to create favourable conditions for rice exports. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is in charge of production, including improving rice quality.
Local authorities needed to guide and encourage farmers to produce organic rice so that Vietnam could offer clean materials to meet market demands. Businesses also needed to ensure the quality of the rice they were exporting. If those parts were linked, it would ensure the sustainable growth of rice exports, Tam said.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said the global rice market was at present about 36-40 million tonnes per year. Of this figure, Vietnam exported 7 million tonnes of rice per year, but had failed to reach high export value due to its passive approach.
In the long-term strategy, the agriculture sector should look at reducing the total area of rice plantations to a level that ensured food security and partial exports.
Cuong said the domestic market needed to ensure supplies and the quality of rice and packaging. Regarding export markets, Vietnam should promote and expand markets, for examples, in Africa and the Middle East, as well as regional markets such as Indonesia and the Philippines.
He said this year, the winter-spring rice crop in the Mekong Delta had yielded up to 14 million tonnes. Despite a significant drop in exports to China, Vietnam had still gained growth in export volume.
"The Government plans to put 200,000 tonnes of rice in reserve to maintain rice prices and develop the market. Vietnamese enterprises have expanded into the American market," Cuong told Kinh te Nong thon (Rural Economy) newspaper.
Vietnam’s major competitor, Thailand, was facing a severe drought, affecting the country's rice production. Singapore, which regularly imported 30-40 percent of its rice from Thailand, was considering a strategy to diversify imports from other sources, according to MARD.
Opportunities to exporting rice to Singapore would result for many other countries, especially Vietnam and Cambodia.
In addition, Japan, which regularly imported 50 percent of its rice demand from the US, was also considering switching to importing rice from CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership) members, including Vietnam.
MARD said the rice export volume in the first nine months was estimated at 5.2 million tonnes, earning 2.24 billion USD, up 5.9 percent in volume but down 9.8 percent in value compared to the same period in 2018.
Of which, rice exports in September were estimated at 586,000 tonnes, earning 251 million USD.
Deputy Director of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Import and Export Department Tran Thanh Hai said China had been Vietnam’s largest rice export market for many years, but this year exports had fallen by 65 percent.
In 2018, China tightened control on rice from Vietnam including quality control and traceability. It has also set an import quota of about 5 million tonnes of rice this year, but in fact, it is only likely to import about 3.3 million tonnes.
Tam said China had adopted a plant quarantine policy. This had forced local firms to promote rice exports in other markets. For example, exports to the Philippines had doubled or even tripled against previous years. The Iraqi market had also imported up to 400,000 tonnes of Vietnamese rice.
Despite these difficulties, Tam said Vietnam would still reach its target of exporting more than 6.5 million tonnes of rice this year./.
VNA
Licence No. 1374/GP-BTTTT dated September 11, 2008 by the Ministry of Information and Communications.
Emerging gains and losses of Nigeria’s border closure
Seme border
The closure of the Seme and Idiroko borders presents different
scenarios to the country, its neighbours and the residents of border
communities. ANNA OKON reports
The continued closure of Nigeria’s borders with her closest West
African neighbours has continued to generate reactions within and outside the
country.
Many travellers were struck by the reality of the situation on
August 22, 2019 when they found themselves stranded, following the sudden
closure of the busy Seme and Idiroko borders, which separated Nigeria and
neighbouring Republic of Benin.
Initially the Nigeria Customs Service had denied the Federal
Government’s involvement in the closure of the borders, but it owned up to the
truth later and described the development as a joint security exercise ordered
by the government and tagged, ‘Operation Ex-Swift Response’.
It was not until President Muhammadu Buhari explained to his
Beninnoise counterpart, Mr Patrice Talon, that Nigeria shut the border to
prevent smugglers from bringing rice into the country that the narrative changed
and every Nigerian knew what was going on.
The spokesman of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr Joseph Attah,
described the exercise as a joint operation coordinated by the Office of the
National Security Adviser and involving the NCS, the Nigeria Immigration
Service and the Nigeria Police Force, as well as other security and
intelligence agencies in the country.
Attah noted that the exercise was aimed at checking the
unbridled influx of smuggled goods, small arms and ammunition, as well as
illegal immigrants, to Nigeria.
Although it was not the first time that Nigeria moved to check
the activities of smugglers at her borders, this time the Federal Government
had deemed it necessary to act in order to boost local production of food items
and manufactured goods. In line with this, the Central Bank of Nigeria drew up
a list of 41 items whose importation would no longer be welcomed in the
country. Rice and other food items featured prominently on this list.
Prior to the closure of Seme and Idiroko borders, the Federal
Government had stopped the issuance of Form M to importers willing to bring in
goods by sea. As a result, no goods were imported to the country through the
seaports in the last four years.
Similarly, the Nigeria Customs Service had in 2016, banned importation
of rice through the land borders. Despite these measures, imported rice
continued to flood the Nigerian market at rock bottom prices, thereby rendering
locally-produced rice very unattractive to buyers.
The fight to put an end to the smuggling of rice across the
border also saw operatives of the NCS engage in shootouts with smugglers, which
sometimes resulted in the loss of lives.
The Gainers
Amid persistent complaints from many affected Nigerians, the
Nigeria Customs Service and some members of the public have endorsed the
Federal Government’s decision to close the borders, describing it as the most
successful and effective measure so far adopted, in terms of curtailing the
influx of smuggled rice and other goods to the country.
Truck
loads of perishable goods at Seme
The Comptroller-General of the NCS, Col Hameed Ali, said the
agency’s revenue had risen to over N5bn daily, since the closure.
Also, more than 200 illegal immigrants, he added, were
apprehended across the border and thousands of bags of rice and other
contrabands confiscated.
The impact of the closure on fuel smuggling was not left out. In
September, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation, Mele Kyari, tweeted that the closure of Nigeria’s borders, as well
as other interventions, had helped to check the smuggling of Premuim Motor
Spirit (petrol) outside Nigeria.
The Losers
Most importers of perishable goods, valued at millions of naira,
had their consignment of goods trapped in Cotonou, capital of Benin Republic,
for several weeks because the Seme and Idiroko borders were closed without
warning.
“Some of those goods are perishable and the Nigerian Government
has collected duty on them. I don’t know why they won’t allow the goods to come
in.
“There are some perishable goods that will go bad in 28 days
when this operation ends. We brought in two trailers from Ghana on Thursday and
they have not been allowed to come in,” a clearing agent based in Seme,
Khally Momodu, told our correspondent.
As expected, the prices of food consumed by ordinary Nigerians
have hit the roof.
Food items, such as frozen foods, were reported to have gone up
by 65 per cent.
The price of foreign parboiled rice also went up by 29.4 per
cent from N17, 000 to N22, 000.
The demand for local rice in the absence of foreign rice drove
the price of local rice up from N15, 000 to N17, 000.
The situation has left many people questioning the wisdom in
shutting the borders against rice imports, whereas Nigeria has not been able
produce enough to meet local demand.
The volume of local rice production in the country is put at 3.7
million tonnes per annum, while consumption is almost 7 million tonnes. The
wide gap between the production and consumption of the item is filled with
imports. But the Federal Government had decided that spending the sum of $35bn
on the importation of food annually was not healthy for the economy.
The joint security exercise also threw up unexpected revelations
from countries whose products were not allowed free entry into Nigeria.
Although the border closure affected all the six geopolitical
zones in the country, the impact was not as visible and audible as the one felt
in Seme, the closest border with Benin Republic and Lagos, the commercial
capital of Nigeria.
Reports had it that recently in the Benin Republic many people
called for the resignation of President Talon. Thousands of women and youths
allegedly gathered in Cotonou to register their frustration and displeasure
with the government, shouting, ‘Talon, you must go.’
Accounts of trade dealings between Nigeria and Benin Republic
have explained why the people acted in that manner.
Officially, Beninoise exports to Nigeria are estimated at three
per cent of its total annual export volume, but the World Bank had
reported that informal trade between both countries accounts for 20 per cent of
Benin Republic’s Gross Domestic Product.
A 2018 data disclosed that Benin topped the list of 184
countries importing rice from Thailand. And Nigeria had always suspected that
its neighbour used its port as transit route for rice and other goods coming
into Nigeria from Asia.
Ali testified that about 20 million tonnes of rice were
stuck in Benin during the seven weeks period of the border closure.
Benin Republic is a small country with a population of 11.8
million. Ali doubted that such a small population consumed 20 million tonnes of
rice.
He concluded that the final destination of the rice was Nigeria.
Also lending credence to these claims, Talon met Buhari in
Japan, ahead of the second Tokyo International Conference on African
Development in Yokohama and pleaded with him to reopen the borders and save his
people from further suffering.
The Director-General of Benin’s Customs Administration, Moussa
Saca Boco, also met with Ali over the border closure on October 9.
Boco’s colleague, the Minister of State for Planning and
Development, Abdoulaye Bio Tchane, expressed the feared that if allowed
to linger, the closure could reduce Benin’s tax revenue and impact on its
expected economic growth for 2019 and the forecast for subsequent years.
Since the closure of their borders with Nigeria, Niger and Benin
have reportedly banned the importation of rice to their countries.
Talon explained that this was done to honour the ECOWAS terms
between his country and Nigeria and to get the latter to change its mind and
open its borders.
Many Nigerians who commended the closure of their country’s
borders with neighbouring countries also expressed some reservations.
Even lawmakers who expressed their opinion on the joint security
exercise across Nigeria’s borders spoke the minds of many Nigerians. Senator
Solomon Adeola, representing Lagos West Senatorial District, for example,
described the exercise as commendable. However, he wondered if closing the borders
was a permanent solution to the problem of smuggling.
On his part, the Senator for Ogun West Senatorial District, Tolu
Odebiyi, urged the Federal Government to give the people enough time to think
about the possible effects and make arrangements for alternatives before
embarking on such initiative in the future.
Former Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, on his part,
called for a permanent solution to smuggling, instead of leaning heavily on
border closure to check the social malaise.
Amosun said that since people had been doing genuine business on
both sides of Nigeria’s borders with her neighbours and under the free trade
movement agreement that the country had signed, an indefinite closure of the
borders would affect them.
Also reacting, Senator Suswam Gabriel pointed out that Nigeria
had bilateral agreements with other countries in the West African sub-region,
which required her to open her borders to all kinds of people and services.
Water usage in animal
systemway too high, says ICAR chief
TIRUPATI, OCTOBER
15, 2019 00:32 IST
‘Study from all angles, suitable intervention need of the hour’
It requires 15,450, 8,763 and
5,988 litres of water respectively to produce just one kg of bovine meat,
mutton and pig meat. The paddy and sugarcane crops ‘guzzle’ up 2,000 litres to
produce one kg of rice and sugar.
Trilochan Mohapatra,
Director-General of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the highest
policy-making body on agrarian issues in the country, urged the fraternity to
work towards achieving higher productivity and better water efficiency.
Speaking at the national conference titled ‘Issues and strategies for
physiological capacity building in animals,’ conducted concurrently with the
second annual meeting of the Animal Physiologists Association (APA) at the Sri
Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU) here on Monday, Dr. Mohapatra said
the animal system was grossly inefficient and hence required suitable
intervention, as the preference for non-vegetarian food was growing across the
country.
He cited Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s clarion call to achieve ‘More crop per drop’ and the need for the
scientists to work towards achieving the goal, both for the benefit of the
farming community as well as the environment. A thorough study of the
physiology, biochemistry and genetics of animals, akin to the case of plants,
and suitable intervention wherever required would go a long way in bringing
down water usage.
Reduction of footprint
“Apart from ensuring reduction of
‘water footprint’ on food, scientists should also work towards achieving higher
grain yield per hectare with lower fertilizer use,” he said.
Vice-Chancellors R.K. Singh (Indian
Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar) and Y. Hari Babu (SVVU Tirupati)
aired similar views and sought steps to tackle the rising temperature and green
house gases. APA president G.Taru Sharma and general secretary V.P. Maurya
spoke, and SVVU Dean (faculty of veterinary science) T.S. Chandrasekhara Rao
presided over the conference. \
Associate dean K. Nalini Kumari
and organising secretary B. Rambabu Naik were among the participants.
China ‘must
ensure its own food security’, but soybean imports to continue
·
The country must fill its rice
bowl with more of its own food, researchers say in a national white paper
·
Such a move would disappoint
overseas producers hoping that Beijing will increase imports to meet the
country’s demand
Published: 10:00pm, 14 Oct, 2019
Soybean imports are crushed into
animal feed to fuel China’s growing demand for meat. Photo: AFP
China must rely on its own
resources to ensure its food supplies, officials said in a white paper released
on Monday, dimming hopes among overseas producers that Beijing will expand
imports to meet domestic demand.
Unveiling the document in
Beijing, Zhang Wufeng, head of the National Food and Strategic Reserves
Administration, said China’s food security was “the best in history”, citing
the country’s high levels of food production and reserves, and its stable food
prices.
“We must hold the rice bowl
firmly in our hands, and fill it with even more Chinese food,” said Zhang, who
is also a member of the National Development and Reform Commission’s (NDRC)
Communist Party leadership group.
He said grain output was expected
to reach about 780 million tonnes in 2019 – for the fifth year in a row.
Chinese children play around bags
of soybeans at a grain wholesale market in Beijing in August. Photo: EPA-EFE
Share:
But the white paper said that
grain output and demand would remain “closely aligned”, meaning there would be
little excess production.
“Looking to the future, China has
the conditions, capabilities and confidence to enhance food security relying on
its own efforts,” the document said.
The white paper outlined a series
of measures to better protect supplies of staples, including soybeans, which
China has traditionally bought from major suppliers on the world market such as
the United States and Brazil.
NDRC deputy secretary general Su
Wei said China would continue to import the crop to “manage a shortage in
varieties”.Most of China’s soybean production is for domestic consumption in
soy-based foods for human consumption, while imports are crushed into animal
feed to fuel the country’s growing demand for meat.
“Of course, we still import some
food products like soybeans, which everyone is paying attention to,” Su said.
According to the white paper,
soybeans accounted for 75.4 per cent of China’s food imports between 2001 and
2015, while imports of rice and wheat were less than 6 per cent. China imported
more than 88 million tonnes of soybeans in 2018, the paper said.
Soybeans were China’s single
biggest agricultural import from the US before the trade war between the two
countries broke out more than a year ago.
After negotiators from the two
countries ended a new round of trade talks in Washington on Friday, US
President Donald Trump said China would buy up to US$50 billion in agricultural
products from the US. On Sunday, Trump tweeted that China had already begun to
make the purchases, but did not give details.
Tommy Wu, senior economist at
Oxford Economics in Hong Kong, said soybeans were still a major bargaining chip
in the drawn-out US-China trade war.
“The reduction in soybean
purchases hurt US farmers, and strikes at the heart of states supporting
Trump,” Wu said.
Farmers harvesting soybeans near
Harvard, Illinois on Thursday. Photo: EPA-EFE
Share:
E. Wayne Johnson, from Enable
AgTech Consulting in Beijing, said it was natural for China to emphasise
self-sufficiency to ensure food security.“Food security is of paramount
importance for every nation. Reliance on imports for the staple components of
the food supply is a shaky foundation in terms of food security,” Johnson said.
“The most effective barrier to
the real threat posed by security-damaging imports is a vibrant and efficient
staple food production system.”
China was forced to expand pork
imports this year after domestic production was hit by outbreaks of African
swine fever.
This article appeared in the
South China Morning Post print edition as: China ‘must ensure its own food
security’
Are researchers ‘crazy’ to engage in their
work?
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 04:03 AM October 15, 2019
I can’t help but feel low after
reading a recent comment of a senator who looked down at research as not worth
the budget being allocated for it by the Department of Agriculture.
She was quoted as saying: “Why does
it seem like all your budget goes into research? You’re crazy over research.
What will you do with this research?”
This mindset pretty much sums up
the sad state of science and technology in the country, why we’re slowly
slipping down in our global competitiveness, why our gifted scientists are
shifting to more pragmatic means to put food on their table, rather than engage
in potentially breakthrough researches that can fulfill a serious need in the
country as well as the world.
If a nation’s progress were an
engine, research is the spark plug which starts it and revs it up. It can give
back more than a dozen-fold of the investment, in terms of enhanced
productivity, better outcomes and more cost-effective interventions.
Even in business, which the good
senator must be well-versed on, market research is crucial in arriving at
certain decisions.
Research in various aspects is part
of due diligence. So, if one does not believe in research, one stands the risk
of being negligent.
Second-rate
Time and again, I’ve lamented in
this column the lukewarm attitude our government is showing toward research.
Though I’m privileged to be occasionally invited to speak in international
congresses, I confess to feeling somewhat a second-rate expert—compared to
foreign colleagues whose sophisticated research works are funded by their
government and other agencies.
I remember in the 1960s to the
’80s, the Philippine-based International Rice and Research Institute (Irri) was
the epicenter of agricultural research in Asia, and one of the best sources of
innovative rice-growing technologies in the world. The key to its success is
its generous funding, no thanks to the Philippine government, but to
international nongovernment organizations like the Rockefeller and Ford
foundations.
The University of the Philippines
College of Agriculture (UPCA), in Los Baños, Laguna
—where Irri is based—was known worldwide as the strongest academic institution on agriculture in Asia. Scientists from all over Asia were sent to the UPCA and Irri to study and train.
—where Irri is based—was known worldwide as the strongest academic institution on agriculture in Asia. Scientists from all over Asia were sent to the UPCA and Irri to study and train.
We exported rice to neighboring
countries and the rest of the world. Now, we’re the ones importing rice from
Thailand and other countries. The former mentor is now the beneficiary of the
science gained by the student.
High-impact
Irri granted numerous research
scholarships to Filipino and Asian researchers and scientists for their MS and
PhD degrees, and their research works were published in high-impact
international publications.
There was also a generous budget
for postmasteral and postdoctoral fellows, who were offered training courses in
research.
Because these scientists could
focus on their researches full-time, they also finished their works promptly
and translated it to actual benefits in the agricultural fields.
Those were the heyday of
agricultural research in the country. When the funding from the international
foundations started to dry up, the national government failed to sustain it
with an equal budgetary leverage it used to get.
I remember, too, in the ’70s and
early ’80s, the Philippine Heart Center (PHC) was known as the PHC for Asia,
the premier cardiovascular center in Asia.
Royalties and dignitaries were
brought there for treatment of their complicated heart ailments. Young doctors
from other Asian countries were also sent to PHC to be trained as heart experts
and cardiovascular surgeons.
In the mid-’80s, when Dr. Espie
Cabral took over, it was deemed fit to remove the tag “… for Asia” in its name.
Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong have progressed by
leaps and bounds through their modernization programs and productive
researches.
Meager funds
The PHC remains a good training
ground for future cardiovascular experts, but we failed to match the momentum
of development—with research as one of the main pillars—which other countries
had adopted.
With meager or no funds at all,
Filipino researchers have been trying to do meaningful work—simply for the love
of science. But they have to be practical, too, with bills to pay. So, the
motivation of our promising local scientists eventually dissipates, and they
shift to more productive ways to earn a decent living.
Recently, we’ve been trying to help
young doctors get their papers published in reputable international journals.
But most journals now require article publishing charges (APCs) to cover for
the indexing of papers in various international databases, so that the
international scientific community could read about it and learn from it, too.
Sadly, in the various fields of
medicine, our citation index is among the lowest in the world. It’s simply
because we’re not able to publish our research works in internationally indexed
scientific journals. Young researchers will have to dig deep into their pockets
to fork out the $1,500-5,000 APCs which top-tier medical journals are asking.
We’ve written to government
research agencies for assistance to help defray the costs of APCs, but we have
not heard from them. We take it as—“We don’t have any budget to assist you.”
I believe it’s a mindset issue, as
exemplified by the senator’s hurtful remarks. I don’t believe we don’t have
funds. It’s just that we allocate money only when we truly believe it’s worth
every peso spent for that project or program.
If we can allocate P2 billion for a
small modern jet for top officials in the rare event of a crisis, it’s because
the government believes it’s a necessity. If we can’t even allocate P50,000 to
get one of our world-class researches published, it means we don’t believe it’s
worth that amount.
It’s about time we reprogram a
faulty mindset on research, and start to actively contribute to global
innovation. I hope the government shows its concern by giving research the shot
in the arm it badly needs.
Dangers
Of Eating 5-Day-Old Pasta, Rice: Liver Failure And Death
Majority of food prepared at home
should be consumed immediately or a day after cooking. But some people tend to
store food for days in the fridge for the other night’s dinner.
That sounds good for people who
hate wasting food. But storing certain cooked food for up to five days could
harm you.
Rice and pasta may grow the
bacterium Bacillus cereus. This rare bacteria is commonly present in the soil
and plants but can also affect food and humans.
"The
known natural habitats of B. cereus are wide-ranging, including soil, animals,
insects, dust and plants," Anukriti Mathur, a biotechnology researcher at
the Australian National University, told Science Alert. "The bacteria will
reproduce by utilizing the nutrients from the food products [..] including
rice, dairy products, spices, dried foods and vegetables."
B. cereus has both positive and
negative effects. It could support the probiotics in the body.
The bad effects of the bacteria
occur when food is stored in the wrong conditions, which enable the B. cereus
to grow and proliferate. When they are present in rice and pasta at high
levels, exposure could lead to liver damage and even death.
There are multiple cases of
serious health conditions linked to B. cereus in the past. A study in 2005
detailed how the bacteria affected five children in a single family after eating
four-day-old pasta salad.
Researchers found that the pasta
was prepared on a Friday, taken to a picnic on Saturday and stored in the
fridge until Monday evening for dinner. Right after their meals, the children
started vomiting.
The kids were rushed to the
hospital for food poisoning. Three of them only needed fluids to treat their
conditions, one child had a liver failure but the youngest child died.
Another B. cereus food poisoning
was reported in 2011 in Belgium. A 20-year-old student ate spaghetti with
tomato sauce, which he prepared five days earlier.
He experienced diarrhea,
abdominal pain and profuse vomiting after consumption. The student died later
that night.
There are more cases that left
people dead after eating days old pasta and rice harboring B. cereus. Experts
said the number of patients could be higher due to unreported cases.
"It is important to note
that B. cereus can cause severe and deadly conditions, such as sepsis, in
immunocompromised people, infants, the elderly and pregnant women," Mathur
said.
B. cereus can cause severe food
poisoning by releasing toxins in the food. Reheating the food may not help
since these toxins could withstand 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
When ingested, B. cereus toxins
could cause cell death and inflammation in the body.
Rice and pasta could grow the
potentially deadly bacterium Bacillus cereus when stored for more than four
days after cooking. Pixabay
·
·
·
·
JOIN THE DISCUSSION
Nigeria’s Land Borders
A No-Go-Area For Goods As Gov’t Places Total Ban On Imports/Exports
By Nzekwe Henry October 14, 2019
ow
Nigeria appears to be taking the much-talked-about campaign
against illegal/illicit imports to a whole new level. And that’s even as people
continue to lament the hike in the price of certain commodities, especially
food, since a partial border closure
was first announced in August.
The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has just announced a complete
ban on imports and exports through the country’s land borders effective
immediately. By the new directive, exports will no longer be allowed via land
borders until certain conditions are met.
Hameed Ali, comptroller-general of NCS, made this known at a
press conference in Abuja on Monday.
He said the measure would enable security agencies to be able to
scan the goods entering the country.
Ali stated that, for now, goods can only enter the country
through the air and seaports, where they can undergo thorough scanning and
certified fit for consumption.
“We hope that by the time we get to the end of this exercise, we
would have agreed with our neighbours on the type of goods that should enter and
exit our country,” he said.
“For now, all goods, whether illicit or non-illicit, are banned
from going and coming into Nigeria.
“Let me add that for the avoidance of doubt that we included all
goods because all goods can equally come through our seaports,” he remarked.
“For that reason, we have deemed it necessary for now that
importers of such goods should go through our controlled borders where we have
scanners to verify the kind of goods and how healthy they are for people.”
He insisted that despite the rights for movement of persons the
enabling ECOWAS protocols, there must be primacy of security over such rights.
Ali, who was asked whether the federal government had not
breached the rights of the citizenry to movement and international trade, said:
“When it comes to security, all laws take back a seat.
“We want to our nation, we want make sure that our people are
protected. You must be alive and well for you to begin to ask for your rights.
Your rights come when you are well and alive.
“Go and the people in Maiduguri when Boko Haram was harassing
their lives, the only question was survival, there is no question of right.
This time Nigeria must survive first then before we begin to ask for our
rights.”
The recent blockade is the latest of a series of measures taken
by the Nigerian government to curb the importation of certain products,
especially those that are believed to be produced in sufficient amounts
locally.
Rice, a popular Nigerian staple, is one of such products.
However, since the measures at the border first kicked in, the price of rice has only
soared as traders lament scarcity and hoarding which has forced
prices up. And rice is only of the many commodities that have seen increments
in price.
Earlier today, the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) asked rice farmers in the country not to increase
the price of the product as a result of the border closure.
In a statement in Abuja on Monday, Godwin Emefiele, CBN
governor, urged members of the Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) and
other stakeholders in the value chain not to hoard rice.
Border closure: Local
rice varieties now rule markets
By Hussein Yahaya, Vincent A. Yusuf
(Abuja), Idris Mahmud, (Katsina), Eyo Charles, (Calabar), Ibrahim Musa Giginyu
(Kano) & Hope Abah Emmanuel
(Makurdi) | Published Date Oct 15, 2019 4:17 AM TwitterFacebookWhatsAppTelegram
Dealers re-bag locally processed rice as foreign — Consumers Why price is on
the high side — Processors Farmers ready for massive paddy rice production
Locally processed rice is now common in markets and departmental shops, a
market survey carried out by Daily Trust recently has shown. Miva rice, Mama
Gold dominate markets in Benue with a 50kg bag of each costing between N16,000
and N18,500. ADVERTISEMENT In Cross River State, Bansanra rice and Ayade
Vitaminised & Nutrient Rice are common in most of the local markets in the
state with a 50kg bag sold for N15,500 to N17,000, depending on the market.
ADVERTISEMENT OVER 5,000 NIGERIAN MEN HAVE OVERCOME POOR BEDROOM PERFORMANCE
SYNDROME DUE TO THIS BRILLIANT DISCOVERY Our correspondent in Kano reports that
the popular Jamila rice now being bagged is gradually taking the place of
foreign rice in the state alongside Umza rice. They both cost N16,000 to
N17,500 per 50kg bag also depending on place of purchase. In Abuja market and
some notable stores, Mama Gold, Mama Pride produced by Olam go for N16,000 to
N18,000 per 50kg bag, depending on the market. This has been the price since
the border closure, it was discovered. Similarly, brands like Umza from Kano,
Bull from WATCO in Argungu (Sokoto State), and other brands have remained at
N14,500 to N17,000 depending on the market they are purchased from. Other local
brands like Mas Rice in Gombe, Anambra Rice, Mama Happy Rice in Niger, Ofada
Rice, Abakaliki Rice and Igbemo Rice now dominate major markets across the
country. Consumers’ new rush for local rice brands Daily Trust reports that
because of the border closure, the quantum of foreign rice is gradually
reducing in both local markets and major stores. The closure is also forcing
the price of the product out of reach of many consumers. A 50kg bag of Tomato
rice, one of the notable foreign rice brands now costs between N20,000 and
N22,000 depending on the market while Royal Stallion goes for slightly higher.
The same goes for other foreign rice brands wherever you can find them at the
market. A measure (small mudu) of foreign rice now costs between N700 and N750
compared to the locally processed rice that sells for between N500 and N550,
depending on the market and the state. A consumer in Abuja, Madam Rose Isah,
attributed her new love for locally processed rice to the price disparity,
saying she can save as much as N200 per measure if she buys the locally
processed rice. A rice retailer at Wuse market told Daily Trust that many
residents now patronise local rice as the prices of the foreign varieties were
going higher by the week. Dealers re-bagging locally processed rice as foreign
– Consumers Consumers and local rice merchants in Katsina State have decried
how some rice mills and foreign rice dealers were purchasing and allegedly
re-bagging locally processed rice which they resell as foreign at exorbitant
prices. Border closure has seriously affected the importation of foreign rice
into the country, a situation that has increased demand for the locally
produced variety, especially with the proliferation of modern rice mills across
the country. Farouk Abdu, a local rice dealer, said besides the newly
established modern mills that were purchasing paddy rice in bulk, some foreign
rice dealers have resorted to mopping up locally processed rice and re-bagging
it to be sold at high price as foreign rice. “If you go to Dandume, Kafur and
Bakori, you will see how those rice dealers are mopping up the locally milled
rice which they transport to Kano, where they just sieve and re-bag it as
foreign one,” he said. Farouk added that the development has caused the market
price of the locally processed rice to skyrocket. “This year we started selling
the locally processed rice at N490 per measure and 100kg at N19,500, but now
because of high demand, a bag costs N28,000 and a measure N700, the price that
normally comes after the harvest period, which is around March,” Farouk also
said. He said many trailers load local rice on weekly basis out of Bakori,
Kafur and Dandume, the three major local rice markets in the state. Alhaji
Abdullahi Namairo, one of the dealers purchasing locally processed rice, told
this reporter that because of high demand for rice generally, locally
established rice mills could not meet up with the increasing demand of the
produce hence they resorted to purchasing the already locally processed rice,
which they sieve and polish before it is bagged and sold as made in Nigeria
rice. “Unlike how it was widely speculated, we add value to the produce we buy
before we sell it as Nigerian rice, not foreign rice,” said Namairo. He added
that even those with penchant for foreign rice have no option now than to buy
the local one because the foreign one is now either scarce or costly in the
market. Daily Trust noticed that there was bulk purchase of locally processed
rice in Katsina markets but could not ascertain whether the produce was being
re-bagged and sold as foreign rice as alleged by some merchants and consumers;
especially that the ones purchased were being transported to Kano. Usman Sani,
a rice farmer, said the complaints came mainly from consumers and some dealers
but farmers were celebrating the high cost of the produce. “Rice farmers this
year are happy because of the high demand of both paddy and locally processed
rice in the market. It has reached the extent that farmers are being followed
to their farms to buy paddy rice at not less than N10,000 depending on the
variety,” said Sani. Why prices are on the high side now -Processor In the last
couple of weeks, the prices of paddy rice have changed twice. This caused fear
among processors that the price of milled rice may further go up. Although the
wet season harvest has just commenced, there is high demand for the product at
the moment as buyers go after those who have already harvested. Daily Trust can
confirm that this is the case in Doma area of Nasarawa State which is home to
Olam Nigeria, one of the biggest producers and processors, where this reporter
visited. “Two weeks ago, I sold a 100kg of paddy at N11,000, surprisingly a
week later I sold 12 bags at N14,000 each and the buyer came here (the
village),” a farmer, Dauda Bako told Daily Trust in Doma. However, a paddy
buyer, Ibrahim Maishinkafa, said processors are rushing for the paddy in
anticipation of the yuletide season – Christmas and New Year. “This rush will certainly
trigger price rise,” he said, adding that “as more harvest hit the market, we
expect some stability”. In an earlier interview with Daily Trust, the Managing
Director, Labana Rice Mills Ltd, Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State, Alhaji Abdullahi
Idris Zuru explained the rise in price. “To be honest with you, the price has
increased to some extent because the millers went to get paddy from the farmers
and the farmers, knowing that the borders have been closed, and the millers
will come for it, increased their price. And only a few of them have it because
some had earlier given up the business because the price was not encouraging.
“A ton of rice which was sold at N100,000 is now about N120,000 to N122,000. If
the farmers are encouraged and returned to farm based on this policy and
produce, the price will crash.” He was optimistic that the millers will process
more and with additional mills coming on board, the price will come down.
“The current price is just
because the (border closure) policy just
came into force,” Alhaji Abdullahi said. Farmers ready for massive paddy rice
production The farmers are optimistic of a promising future as the National
President of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN), Alhaji Aminu Goronyo,
told Daily Trust in a phone interview. Alhaji Aminu said farmers are already
planning big for the forthcoming dry season as they are targeting to cultivate
one million hectares with an average of seven tons. The wet season harvest has
already begun across the country. “We had planned and proposed to government
for this border closure to cultivate a minimum of one million hectares by the
forthcoming dry season. We expect to get a minimum of seven million metric tons
of rice; and what we consume in Nigeria is between 7 to 8 million metric tons
per annum. “So you can see in this one production circle, which is the dry
season, that 7 million can be cultivated and we can do this three times in a
year. So we are hoping that the commodity will be available and affordable,” he
said. Goronyo also said they were working closely with the processors to
support the federal government to make sure that it succeeds in its
self-sufficiency drive. He reiterated that the current policy is already
incentivizing the production as many people are already warming up for dry
season production, adding that as more farmers go into production and millers
off-take, the prices would come down.
Meanwhile, despite the increase in the prices
of paddy in the last few weeks, the prices of the finished products have been
stable in the market, Daily Trust gathered. Related
Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to
know this Tuesday morning
October 15, 2019
By
Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:
1. The Supreme Court has told the
Coalition of United Political Parties, CUPP, that it had yet to constitute the
panel that would hear the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party and its
presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
2. Nigeria’s First Lady Aisha
Buhari has made revelations on the power tussle at the State House in the
Presidential Villa, Abuja. Mrs. Buhari confirmed the viral video that
circulated online last week. The First Lady said she ranted after she was
denied access to parts of the villa by Mamman Daura and his family.
3. About $665billion has been lost
in the last three years globally to disasters. A large percentage of the loss
was recorded by high-income countries.
The Director General of National
Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Engr. Mustapha Maihaja stated this on
Monday.
4. The Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation has blamed the moribund state of the country’s refineries on lack
of proper maintenance of the facilities over the years. The NNPC said that
Nigeria has one of the highest number of technicians in the petroleum sector in
the world, but that the experts have not been adequately engaged.
5. The Minister for Finance, Budget
and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, has said that fuel subsidy will gulp
N450 billion in 2020. She said this on Monday in Abuja, at the public
presentation of the 2020 budget proposals.
6. The Comptroller-General of
Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), retired Col. Hammed Ali, said operatives of the
ongoing Joint Border Security had seized items worth N1.4 billion since the
partial closure of borders.
7. The Association of Senior Civil
Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari, to
reverse the tenure extension for seven permanent secretaries in the federal
civil service who are already due for retirement.
8. The ECOWAS Court of Justice has
ordered the Federal Republic of Nigeria to pay N10 million compensation for the
violation of right to work to Pte. Barnabas Eli, a dismissed Nigerian soldier.
9. Fatima, the daughter of Mamman
Daura, has accused the wife of the president Aisha Buhari of attacking her
inside the presidential villa in Abuja. Fatima is family member to President
Muhammadu Buhari.
10. Governor of the Central Bank of
Nigeria, CBN, has urged members of Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN)
and other stakeholders in the rice value chain not to increase the price of the
product due to the border closure.
Border Closure: CBN appeals to Rice millers, stakeholders not to
increase price
CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele
The Central Bank of Nigeria has appealed to members of Rice
Millers Association of Nigeria and other stakeholders in the rice value chain
not to increase the price of rice over border closure.
Mr Godwin Emefiele, the CBN governor said this in a statement
issued and made available to newsmen on Monday in Abuja by Mr Muhammed Tijani,
Media Assistant to RIMAN’s Chairman.
Emefiele also called on them not to hoard rice as a result of
the closure of the borders in order to increase the price, adding that such
acts were unpatriotic.
The CBN governor said that the border closure was meant to
promote the growth of the Nigerian economy and ensure that the country attained
food self-sufficiency in the rice value chain.
He said that this was for the benefit and wellbeing of the
citizenry.
He said that imported rice into the country was chemicalised for
preservation, therefore not good for the consumption.
Emefiele said that there was a need to increase rice production
and discourage hoarding leading to a price increase while calling on rice
millers to support government’s effort in the rice value chain sector.
He said that hoarding rice with a view to increasing the prices
of rice would bring hardship to Nigerians.
He said that the CBN under his leadership would support rice
millers to stem off smuggling in the country and grow the rice sector for food
self–sufficiency.
Emefiele called on Nigerians to support the government action on
the closure of the border, adding that government took the decision in the best
interest of Nigerians as it was meant to secure the country.
He said that this would also secure the health of the citizenry
from heavily chemicalised products that were injurious to the health of the
country.
Mr Peter Dama, the RIMAN Chairman assured the CBN of the
supports of its members on the Federal Government’s action on border closure.
He said that its members would not succumb to pressure to
reverse the policy on borders’ closure.
He urged the CBN for financial support to build capacity and
expand milling activities to stimulate further growth in the rice sector.
Water usage in animal
systemway too high, says ICAR chief
TIRUPATI, OCTOBER
15, 2019 00:32 IST
‘Study from all angles,
suitable intervention need of the hour’
It requires 15,450, 8,763 and
5,988 litres of water respectively to produce just one kg of bovine meat,
mutton and pig meat. The paddy and sugarcane crops ‘guzzle’ up 2,000 litres to
produce one kg of rice and sugar.
Trilochan Mohapatra,
Director-General of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the highest
policy-making body on agrarian issues in the country, urged the fraternity to
work towards achieving higher productivity and better water efficiency.
Speaking at the national conference titled ‘Issues and strategies for
physiological capacity building in animals,’ conducted concurrently with the
second annual meeting of the Animal Physiologists Association (APA) at the Sri
Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU) here on Monday, Dr. Mohapatra said
the animal system was grossly inefficient and hence required suitable
intervention, as the preference for non-vegetarian food was growing across the
country.
He cited Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s clarion call to achieve ‘More crop per drop’ and the need for the
scientists to work towards achieving the goal, both for the benefit of the
farming community as well as the environment. A thorough study of the
physiology, biochemistry and genetics of animals, akin to the case of plants,
and suitable intervention wherever required would go a long way in bringing
down water usage.
Reduction of footprint
“Apart from ensuring reduction of
‘water footprint’ on food, scientists should also work towards achieving higher
grain yield per hectare with lower fertilizer use,” he said.
Vice-Chancellors R.K. Singh
(Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar) and Y. Hari Babu (SVVU
Tirupati) aired similar views and sought steps to tackle the rising temperature
and green house gases. APA president G.Taru Sharma and general secretary V.P. Maurya
spoke, and SVVU Dean (faculty of veterinary science) T.S. Chandrasekhara Rao
presided over the conference. \
Associate dean K. Nalini Kumari
and organising secretary B. Rambabu Naik were among the participants.
Rice Irrigation Worsened Landslides In Deadliest Earthquake Of
2018 Finds NTU Study
:
Oct 14, 2019 01:47 AM EDT
Heavily
irrigated rice padi fields artificially raised the water table to almost ground
level, worsening the 2018 earthquake-triggered landslides in Palu, Indonesia.
(Photo : Gilles Brocard/University of Sydney)
(Photo : Gilles Brocard/University of Sydney)
Irrigation significantly exacerbated the earthquake-triggered
landslides in Palu, on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, in 2018, according to
an international study led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU
Singapore) scientists.
The 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Indonesian city on 28 September 2018, taking the lives of over 4,300 people, making it the deadliest earthquake in the world that year.
Writing in Nature Geoscience, researchers from NTU Singapore's Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS) and the Asian School of the Environment (ASE), together with collaborators from institutions in Indonesia, the United States, the United Kingdom, China and Australia, reveal that the landslides in Indonesia's Palu Valley resulted from widespread liquefaction in areas that were heavily irrigated for rice cultivation.
A century-old aqueduct, constructed to bring enough water into the Palu Valley to irrigate rice, artificially raised the water table to almost ground level. This elevation increased the potential for liquefaction - a situation where buried sediment becomes fluid-like due to strong seismic ground-shaking.
The combination of this fluid-like sediment and the slope of the valley floor exacerbated the catastrophe, creating wide lateral spreading of water, landslides, and debris, which swept through the villages.
This deadly cocktail marked Indonesia´s deadliest earthquake since Yogyakarta in 2006.
"This event is a wake-up call for any area where active faults and irrigation coincide," said Dr Kyle Bradley, a principal investigator at NTU's EOS who led the research.
"We need to improve the awareness and understanding of liquefaction-related landslides and pay closer attention to places where irrigation has artificially raised the water table, said Dr Bradley, who is also a lecturer at NTU's ASE.
The research highlights the urgency for Southeast Asian nation-states to review locations with intensive rice farming activities which lie among active faults.
Dr Bradley said, "This is of particular concern in Southeast Asia as the pace of development is often faster than the return time of large earthquakes - the average time period between one earthquake and the next. Most other similarly irrigated areas have not yet been tested by extreme ground shaking, and some of those areas could also pose a major hazard."
Research used historic and current satellite data
By analysing satellite images taken before and after the earthquake to identify areas affected by landslides, NTU researchers discovered that irrigated paddies and fields were strongly affected, while areas planted with trees were more stable.
This suggested that heavy irrigation and a raised water table were responsible for creating a new liquefaction hazard.
"Hazards that are created by humans can often be more readily moderated than other natural hazards. Based on the relative resiliency of areas planted with mixed tree crops and irrigated fields, we propose that more intermixed planting could decrease the hazard of large landslides in the future," said Dr Bradley.
The satellite image mapping was complemented by field observations of the landslides and of the local irrigation system and practices, produced by an international team of scientists led by Dr Ella Meilianda of the Tsunami and Disaster Mitigation Research Center at Syiah Kuala University in Banda Aceh.
Professor Thomas Dunne of the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who was not affiliated with the study, said "The study has demonstrated how Earth scientists with strong field-based understanding of land surface mechanics can use the rapidly growing toolbox of remote sensing to analyse dangerous processes. The landscape-scale survey approach could be applied elsewhere for systematic assessment and avoidance of dangers that are often overlooked when large infrastructure is first proposed in rapidly developing, but potentially unstable terrains."
The research team plans to continue their study by assessing the effects of local land use on outcomes during the Palu earthquake.
The 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Indonesian city on 28 September 2018, taking the lives of over 4,300 people, making it the deadliest earthquake in the world that year.
Writing in Nature Geoscience, researchers from NTU Singapore's Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS) and the Asian School of the Environment (ASE), together with collaborators from institutions in Indonesia, the United States, the United Kingdom, China and Australia, reveal that the landslides in Indonesia's Palu Valley resulted from widespread liquefaction in areas that were heavily irrigated for rice cultivation.
A century-old aqueduct, constructed to bring enough water into the Palu Valley to irrigate rice, artificially raised the water table to almost ground level. This elevation increased the potential for liquefaction - a situation where buried sediment becomes fluid-like due to strong seismic ground-shaking.
The combination of this fluid-like sediment and the slope of the valley floor exacerbated the catastrophe, creating wide lateral spreading of water, landslides, and debris, which swept through the villages.
This deadly cocktail marked Indonesia´s deadliest earthquake since Yogyakarta in 2006.
"This event is a wake-up call for any area where active faults and irrigation coincide," said Dr Kyle Bradley, a principal investigator at NTU's EOS who led the research.
"We need to improve the awareness and understanding of liquefaction-related landslides and pay closer attention to places where irrigation has artificially raised the water table, said Dr Bradley, who is also a lecturer at NTU's ASE.
The research highlights the urgency for Southeast Asian nation-states to review locations with intensive rice farming activities which lie among active faults.
Dr Bradley said, "This is of particular concern in Southeast Asia as the pace of development is often faster than the return time of large earthquakes - the average time period between one earthquake and the next. Most other similarly irrigated areas have not yet been tested by extreme ground shaking, and some of those areas could also pose a major hazard."
Research used historic and current satellite data
By analysing satellite images taken before and after the earthquake to identify areas affected by landslides, NTU researchers discovered that irrigated paddies and fields were strongly affected, while areas planted with trees were more stable.
This suggested that heavy irrigation and a raised water table were responsible for creating a new liquefaction hazard.
"Hazards that are created by humans can often be more readily moderated than other natural hazards. Based on the relative resiliency of areas planted with mixed tree crops and irrigated fields, we propose that more intermixed planting could decrease the hazard of large landslides in the future," said Dr Bradley.
The satellite image mapping was complemented by field observations of the landslides and of the local irrigation system and practices, produced by an international team of scientists led by Dr Ella Meilianda of the Tsunami and Disaster Mitigation Research Center at Syiah Kuala University in Banda Aceh.
Professor Thomas Dunne of the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who was not affiliated with the study, said "The study has demonstrated how Earth scientists with strong field-based understanding of land surface mechanics can use the rapidly growing toolbox of remote sensing to analyse dangerous processes. The landscape-scale survey approach could be applied elsewhere for systematic assessment and avoidance of dangers that are often overlooked when large infrastructure is first proposed in rapidly developing, but potentially unstable terrains."
The research team plans to continue their study by assessing the effects of local land use on outcomes during the Palu earthquake.
Niger Republic bans rice export to Nigeria
October 14
14:282019
Niger Republic has banned the exportation of rice to Nigeria,
following the closure of nation’s borders.
At a press briefing in Abuja on
Monday, Hameed Ali, comptroller-general of the Nigerian Customs Service, said
Niger Republic took the action as a result of the closure of borders.
“The government, through diplomatic
channels will continue to engage our neighbours to agree to comply with ECOWAS
Protocol on transit,” he said.
“Goods that are on the prohibition
list in Nigeria, such as rice, used clothes, poultry products and vegetable oil
should not be exported to the country.
“As a result of this border
closure, Niger Republic has already circulated an order banning exportation of
rice in any form to Nigeria.”
In August, Nigeria shut its borders
across the country, an action President Muhammadu Buhari said was taken to
checkmate smuggling.
Speaking when he met Patrice Talon,
his Beninois counterpart, on the sidelines of the seventh Tokyo International
Conference for African Development (TICAD7), in Yokohama, Japan, in August,
Buhari had said smuggling was a threat to his administration’s agricultural
policies.
“Now that our people in the rural
areas are going back to their farms, and the country has saved huge sums of
money which would otherwise have been expended on importing rice using our
scarce foreign reserves, we cannot allow smuggling of the product at such alarming
proportions to continue,” Buhari was quoted to have said.
The president had added that the closure
was to allow Nigeria’s security forces develop a
strategy on how to “stem the dangerous trend and its wider ramifications”.
India and Sierra Leone sign $30 million loan to boost rice
production
Sierra Leone Telegraph: 13 October
2019:
India’s vice president Shri
Venkaiah Naidu, met with Sierra Leone’s president Julius Maada Bio at State
House in Freetown today Sunday, where he announced major areas of support for
Sierra Leone to promote economic development in the country.
The support package includes a
US$30 million credit line to implement a major irrigation development project
that will boost Tomabom rice farming and help Sierra Leone achieve food
self-sufficiency.
Praising president Bio and his
government for the ongoing economic reforms, the Indian vice president said
that the agreement with Export–Import Bank of India would encourage
public-private partnerships, and development of Sierra Leone’s private sector.
Speaking at a joint press
conference, Sierra Leone’s vice president- Dr Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh and his
Indian counterpart said that both the Indian and government of Sierra Leone
have signed other cooperation agreements, including the establishment of a
joint commission, cultural exchange and capacity building programmes aimed at
promoting president Bio’s flagship human capital development agenda.
Sierra Leone’s minister of foreign
affairs – Mrs. Nabeela Tunis, and the Indian Director of Telecommunications
Consultants – Mr. Kamendra Kumar, also signed an MoU to participate in the
e-VBAB Network Project – a Pan-Africa e-Network venture.
The Indian vice president is
visiting Sierra Leone along with his country’s Minister of State for Animal
Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries – Shri Sanjeev Kumar Balyan; a Member of
Parliament in the upper House of the bicameral Parliament of India – Shri
Ramvichar Netam; and senior officers of the Government of India.
President Bio paid tribute to the
long-standing relationship between the two countries, mentioning the role the
Indians played as peacekeepers with the United Nations in post-war Sierra
Leone.
He said that the Indian community
in Sierra Leone has contributed greatly to Sierra Leone’s economic development.
“Sierra Leone and India have had a
long-standing relationship. Today, as a country, we want to assure the people
of India that we will continue to strengthen that relationship for our mutual
benefit. Enjoy your stay and thanks for visiting Sierra Leone,” president Bio
said.
Speaking about the importance of
the meeting, vice president Naidu, who concludes his three-day visit to Sierra
Leone tomorrow Monday, 14 October, said the visit is the first ever high-level
visit the West African nation has had from the Republic of India.
PHL could be
2nd top rice importer
October 14, 2019
THE Philippines’s rice imports
this year could reach a record-high 3.1 million metric tons, nearly matching
China’s, the world’s top buyer of the staple, with its purchase of 3.15 MMT,
the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) said.
In its monthly global grain
situation report, the USDA pointed out that the Philippines would become the
world’s second top rice buyer this year, accounting for 7 percent of total
global imports.
“In just a few years, the
Philippines has emerged as one of the top global importers of rice, nearly on a
par with China,” it said in its report published recently.
“The Philippines’s rice imports
have nearly quadrupled, from 800,000 metric tons in 2016 to 3.1 million
anticipated for 2019, representing 7 percent of total global rice imports,” it
added.
“In comparison, China’s share of
global rice imports has almost reduced by half, to just over 7 percent,” the
report added.
The country’s estimated rice
imports this year is 24 percent higher than the 2.5 MMT recorded last year,
following the opening up of the domestic rice market in March. This is the
first time that the country’s rice imports breached the 3-MMT level.
“While China rice imports
continue to shrink, Philippine purchases provide much-appreciated reprieve from
nearby exporters in Southeast Asia,” the USDA said.
“Vietnam is its primary supplier
with a market share of about 70 percent, followed by Thailand, Pakistan, and
Burma,” it added.
The country’s rice imports next year
is forecast to decline by 12.9 percent to 2.7 MMT due to higher ending stocks
this year, USDA said.
“With a forecast for adequate
production and large stocks, Philippine rice imports are expected to decline in
2020, but still remain above the five-year average,” it added.
Due to the opening up of the
domestic rice market, the country’s demand for the staple is projected to
increase next year to 14.6 MMT, 3.55 percent over the 14.1 MMT estimated
consumption this year, USDA said.
Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI)
data showed that a total of 208 private entities, including big firms,
imported more than 1.6 MMT of rice seven months after the government eased
import restrictions on the staple.
Figures from the BPI, an attached
agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), showed that cooperatives, traders
and institutions imported 1.614 MMT of rice as of October 4 after the rice
trade liberalization law took effect on March 5.
The BPI data indicated that
importers bought rice from India, Italy, Myanmar, Pakistan, Spain, Thailand and
Vietnam.
Topping the list of importers is
Puregold Price Club Inc., the grocery-chain operator owned by businessman Lucio
Co, which imported 52,021.850 metric tons during the seven-month period.
Puregold accounted for 3.22 percent of the total rice volume that arrived in
the country.
Delaying
safeguard duty on rice imports to hurt farmers more’
October 14, 2019
THE delay in the imposition of
safeguard duties on rice imports could further hurt farmers, as the inflow of
the staple is expected to continue amid the harvest season, the Federation of
Free Farmers (FFF) has warned.
FFF pointed out that this “runs
counter to President Duterte’s public instructions not to allow imports during
harvest time.”
The imposition of safeguard
duties, which could effectively double tariffs on rice imports, is a measure
seen by groups like FFF to deter further entry of imported rice.
Under the rules of the WTO and
Republic Act 8800, general safeguard duties may be temporarily imposed on
imports of rice, on top of regular tariffs, if there is evidence of a surge in
rice imports and this surge has resulted in, or threatens to cause, serious
injury to the rice farmers, FFF explained.
“There seems to be no sense of
urgency and no appreciation of the serious difficulties that rice farmers are
facing at present because of the surge of cheap rice imports,’ FFF National
Manager Raul Q. Montemayor said in a statement over the weekend.
“The rules on general safeguard
duties were designed by the WTO precisely to allow governments to quickly and
effectively address market emergencies brought about by trade
liberalization. Delaying a decision defeats the purpose of the law, and
may make the harm on farmers irreparable,” Montemayor added.
Safeguard
probe terminated
Last Friday, the Department of
Agriculture (DA) revealed that it terminated its safeguard investigation on
rice imports pending a dialogue with the government’s economic managers.
“We started the study on the
possibility of having to tap the general safeguards duty. The decision of the
department is to have this discussed first with economic development managers,”
said Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar, in a five-minute press briefing on
Friday.
“That’s our decision: we
terminated the first study. We will now actively discuss with the economic
development managers on October 24,” Dar added.
Dar’s disclosure came a day after
the DA’s 30-day deadline to reveal the findings of its preliminary safeguard
investigation.
“If the DA Secretary felt that
the economic managers should be consulted on the matter, he should have done
this in advance given the urgency of the situation. Now it appears he is
simply tossing the problem to the EDC,” Montemayor said.
In a news statement on September
21, the DA said it initiated the preliminary investigation to “arrest” the
influx of imports, “particularly this forthcoming main harvest season.”
The DA pointed out that the
imposition of a safeguard duty on rice imports is one of the measures it is
banking on to stabilize the supply and price of rice.
“We have to holistically and
systematically protect the consuming public and much more, our small farmers,”
Dar was quoted as saying in the statement.
“So, I have taken the necessary
steps and the direction where we will enforce legal measures during these times
when we have greatly exceeded the volume needed to fill up the slack in
national rice supply, most particularly in Metro Manila and major urban rice
consumption centers,” Dar added.
Dar said at least 2.4 million
metric tons of rice have entered the country, which “has gone beyond what is
needed by the country.”
“We will protect our small
farmers by not allowing additional imports especially this main harvest season.
We want them to benefit from the respectable farm-gate prices of palay set by
the government through the National Food Authority (NFA),” he said.
Vietnam should
improve rice quality in long-term strategy
14/10/2019 10:42
GMT+7
Experts believe Vietnam needs a
long-term strategy to increase the quality of its rice exports to create
sustainable growth in the future.
 |
|
Sacks of rice are loaded for export. — Photo vneconomy.vn
|
To meet the changing demands of
export markets, Bui Thi Thanh Tam, general director of VinaFoods 1 Corporation,
said firms should invest in domestic production to increase the quality of
rice.
To do that, the agriculture
sector needed support from relevant ministries.
The Ministry of Industry and
Trade focuses on developing markets and negotiating free trade agreements
(FTAs) to create favourable conditions for rice exports. Meanwhile, the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is in charge of
production, including improving rice quality.
Local authorities needed to guide
and encourage farmers to produce organic rice so that Viet Nam could offer
clean materials to meet market demands. Businesses also needed to ensure the
quality of the rice they were exporting. If those parts were linked, it would
ensure the sustainable growth of rice exports, Tam said.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural
Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said the global rice market was at present about
36-40 million tonnes per year. Of this figure, Viet Nam exported 7 million
tonnes of rice per year, but had failed to reach high export value due to its
passive approach.
In the long-term strategy, the
agriculture sector should look at reducing the total area of rice plantations
to a level that ensured food security and partial exports.
Cuong said the domestic market
needed to ensure supplies and the quality of rice and packaging. Regarding
export markets, Viet Nam should promote and expand markets, for examples, in
Africa and the Middle East, as well as regional markets such as Indonesia and
the Philippines.
New markets
Cuong said this year, the
winter-spring rice crop in the Mekong Delta had yielded up to 14 million
tonnes. Despite a significant drop in exports to China, Viet Nam had still
gained growth in export volume.
"The Government plans to put
200,000 tonnes of rice in reserve to maintain rice prices and develop the
market. Vietnamese enterprises have expanded into the American market,"
Cuong told Kinh te Nong thon (Rural Economy) newspaper.
Viet Nam's major competitor,
Thailand, was facing a severe drought, affecting the country's rice production.
Singapore, which regularly imported 30-40 per cent of its rice from Thailand,
was considering a strategy to diversify imports from other sources, according
to MARD.
Opportunities to exporting rice
to Singapore wwould result for many other countries, especially Viet Nam and
Cambodia.
In addition, Japan, which
regularly imported 50 per cent of its rice demand from the US, was also
considering switching to importing rice from CPTPP (Comprehensive and
Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership) members, including Viet
Nam.
MARD said the rice export volume
in the first nine months was estimated at 5.2 million tonnes, earning US$ 2.24
billion, up 5.9 per cent in volume but down 9.8 per cent in value compared to
the same period in 2018.
Of which, rice exports in
September were estimated at 586,000 tonnes, earning $251 million.
Deputy Director of the Ministry
of Industry and Trade’s Import and Export Department Tran Thanh Hai said China
had been Viet Nam's largest rice export market for many years, but this year
exports had fallen by 65 per cent.
In 2018, China tightened controls
for rice from Viet Nam including quality control and traceability. It has also
set an import quota of about 5 million tonnes of rice this year, but in fact, it
is only likely to import about 3.3 million tonnes.
Tam said China had adopted a
plant quarantine policy. This had forced local firms to promote rice exports in
other markets. For example, exports to the Philippines had doubled or even
tripled against previous years. The Iraqi market had also imported up to
400,000 tonnes of Vietnamese rice.
Despite these difficulties, Tam
said Viet Nam would still reach its target of exporting more than 6.5 million
tonnes of rice this year. — VNS
Rice stocks still
growing
Louise
Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star) - October 13, 2019 -
12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The country’s rice inventory has maintained
its upward trend, rising by 14 percent in September, the Philippine Statistics
Authority (PSA) reported.Latest data from the PSA showed that total rice inventory stood at 1.84 million metric tons (MT) as of September, 13.7 percent higher than the 1.16 million MT recorded last year.
However, this is lower by 14 percent from the previous month’s 2.13 million MT.
The PSA did not specify the number of days that the stock inventory of Filipinos’ main staple will be sufficient.
But, based on the average daily consumption of Filipinos of 32,000 MT, the current inventory is enough for 58 days.
Commercial warehouses had almost half of total inventories at 41.2 percent while households held about 36.5 percent. Supplies from the National Food Authority depositories cornered 22.2 percent of the total.
On a monthly basis, rice stocks inventory in the households, commercial warehouses and NFA depositories were down by 15 percent, 14 percent and 11 percent, respectively.
Meanwhile, the National Food Authority is gearing up for the procurement of more palay as the main harvest season begins with the aim of exceeding its target of 14.6 million bags for the year.
NFA administrator Judy Dansal said the grains agency already started to procure high volume of palay last month as wet season harvest started early in some areas.
For September alone, NFA procured 621,430 bags of palay, mostly in Western Visayas and some areas in Luzon, increasing total procurement to 6.6 million bags.
“We have already reached 46 percent of our target for the year, but we are hopeful we can achieve 100 percent or more as the main crop traditionally yields about 70 percent of the total annual production,” Dansal said.
“Aside from the increased buying price, we want to have more than sufficient space for the stocks we will be procuring. We are clearing our warehouses by selling our rice stocks and we are also trying to acquire additional temporary warehouse spaces through lease,” she said.
Nagpur
Foodgrain Prices Open- October 14, 2019
OCTOBER 14,
2019 / 2:58 PM
* * * * * *
Nagpur
Foodgrain Prices – APMC/Open Market-October 14, 2018 Nagpur, Oct 14 (Reuters) –
Gram prices zoomed up in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and Marketing Committee
(APMC) here on increased demand from local millers amid tight supply from
producing regions. Fresh hike in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and reported demand
from South-based millers also boosted prices. About 350 bags of gram reported
for auction, according to sources.
GRAM
*
Gram varieties reported down in open market here on poor demand from local
traders.
TUAR
*
Tuar varieties recovered in open market here on renewed demand from local
traders
*
Udid varieties reported strong in open market here on good demand from
local
traders.
*
In Akola, Tuar New – 5,500-5,700, Tuar dal (clean) – 8,100-8,200, Udid Mogar
(clean)
–
7,600-8,500, Moong Mogar (clean) 8,200-8,900, Gram – 4,300-4,400, Gram Super
best
–
5,600-6,000 * Wheat, rice and other foodgrain items moved in a narrow range in
scattered
deals and settled at last levels in thin trading activity.
Nagpur
foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg
FOODGRAINS
Available prices Previous close
Gram
Auction 3,900-4,600 3,700-4,500
Gram
Pink Auction n.a. 2,100-2,600
Tuar
Auction n.a. 4,700-5,250
Moong
Auction n.a. 3,950-4,200
Udid
Auction n.a. 4,300-4,500
Masoor
Auction n.a. 2,200-2,500
Wheat
Lokwan Auction 1,975-2,085 2,000-2,060
Wheat
Sharbati Auction n.a. 2,900-3,000
Gram
Super Best Bold 5,800-6,200 6,000-6,200
Gram
Super Best n.a. n.a.
Gram
Medium Best 5,500-5,700 5,700-5,900
Gram
Dal Medium n.a. n.a
Gram
Mill Quality 4,450-4,550 4,500-4,600
Desi
gram Raw 4,500-4,600 4,550-4,650
Gram
Kabuli 8,500-10,000 8,500-10,000
Tuar
Fataka Best-New 8,300-8,500 8,300-8,400
Tuar
Fataka Medium-New 7,800-8,200 7,800-8,100
Tuar
Dal Best Phod-New 7,500-7,800 7,400-7,700
Tuar
Dal Medium phod-New 6,900-7,400 6,800-7,300
Tuar
Gavarani New 5,700-5,800 5,650-5,750
Tuar
Karnataka 5,950-6,050 5,900-6,050
Masoor
dal best 5,400-5,700 5,400-5,700
Masoor
dal medium 5,100-5,300 5,100-5,300
Masoor
n.a. n.a.
Moong
Mogar bold (New) 8,500-9,000 8,500-9,000
Moong
Mogar Medium 7,000-7,800 7,000-7,800
Moong
dal Chilka New 7,300-7,850 7,300-7,850
Moong
Mill quality n.a. n.a.
Moong
Chamki best 8,500-9,000 8,500-9,000
Udid
Mogar best (100 INR/KG) (New) 8,000-9,000 7,800-8,800
Udid
Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 6,200-7,200 6,000-7,000
Udid
Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 4,900-5,500 4,700-5,300
Mot
(100 INR/KG) 5,800-6,800 5,800-6,800
Lakhodi
dal (100 INR/kg) 4,500-4,800 4,500-4,800
Watana
Dal (100 INR/KG) 4,700-5,000 4,700-5,000
Watana
Green Best (100 INR/KG) 6,850-7,100 6,850-7,100
Wheat
308 (100 INR/KG) 2,250-2,350 2,250-2,350
Wheat
Mill quality (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,200 2,100-2,200
Wheat
Filter (100 INR/KG) 2,650-2,750 2,650-2,750
Wheat
Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 2,550-2,650 2,550-2,650
Wheat
Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 2,300-2,450 2,300-2,450
Lokwan
Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a.
MP
Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 3,200-4,000 3,200-4,000
MP
Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 2,600-3,100 2,600-3,100
Rice
Parmal (100 INR/KG) 2,400-2,500 2,400-2,500
Rice
BPT best new (100 INR/KG) 3,200-3,600 3,200-3,600
Rice
BPT medium new(100 INR/KG) 2,700-3,100 2,700-3,100
Rice
Luchai (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,100 3,000-3,100
Rice
Swarna best new (100 INR/KG) 2,500-2,700 2,500-2,700
Rice
Swarna medium new (100 INR/KG)2,300-2,400 2,300-2,400
Rice
HMT best new (100 INR/KG) 4,000-4,200 4,000-4,200
Rice
HMT medium new (100 INR/KG) 3,500-3,700 3,500-3,700
Rice
Shriram best new(100 INR/KG) 4,600-5,000 4,600-5,000
Rice
Shriram med new (100 INR/KG) 4,200-4,500 4,200-4,500
Rice
Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 8,500-13,500 8,500-13,500
Rice
Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 5,000-7,200 5,000-7,200
Rice
Chinnor best new 100 INR/KG) 5,400-5,500 5,400-5,500
Rice
Chinnor medium new(100 INR/KG)5,000-5,200 5,000-5,200
Jowar
Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 2,350-2,550 2,350-2,550
Jowar
CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 2,050-2,250 2,050-2,250 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 33.4
degree Celsius, minimum temp. 19.7 degree Celsius Rainfall : Nil FORECAST:
Partly cloudy sky. Maximum and minimum temperature likely to be around 33
degree Celsius and 20 degree Celsius respectively. Note: n.a.—not available
(For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but included
in market prices)
Rice Prices
as on : 14-10-2019 02:28:01 PM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Gadarpur(Utr)
|
1500.00
|
27.55
|
59917.00
|
2400
|
2205
|
-
|
|
Bindki(UP)
|
250.00
|
25
|
5040.00
|
2440
|
2440
|
9.91
|
|
Siliguri(WB)
|
235.00
|
62.07
|
6268.00
|
3800
|
3800
|
-
|
|
Hardoi(UP)
|
190.00
|
137.5
|
4060.00
|
2450
|
2530
|
-3.16
|
|
Barhaj(UP)
|
120.00
|
NC
|
5083.00
|
2420
|
2400
|
7.08
|
|
Kanpur(Grain)(UP)
|
80.00
|
6.67
|
4040.00
|
2375
|
2450
|
6.74
|
|
Muzzafarnagar(UP)
|
78.00
|
73.33
|
1118.00
|
2800
|
2810
|
4.67
|
|
Ballia(UP)
|
75.00
|
25
|
1965.00
|
2440
|
2440
|
7.49
|
|
Kalna(WB)
|
60.50
|
NC
|
872.50
|
2950
|
2950
|
-1.67
|
|
Jorhat(ASM)
|
45.00
|
63.64
|
1297.50
|
3400
|
3400
|
6.25
|
|
Hanagal(Kar)
|
45.00
|
21.62
|
421.00
|
1900
|
1900
|
11.76
|
|
Vasai(Mah)
|
45.00
|
4.65
|
953.00
|
3390
|
3425
|
4.31
|
|
Kopaganj(UP)
|
45.00
|
9.76
|
807.00
|
2460
|
2465
|
9.82
|
|
Karimpur(WB)
|
45.00
|
NC
|
920.00
|
3220
|
3310
|
-9.30
|
|
Bazpur(Utr)
|
42.80
|
82.13
|
3219.10
|
2200
|
2200
|
-8.33
|
|
Karimganj(ASM)
|
40.00
|
NC
|
460.00
|
2450
|
2450
|
-
|
|
Pandua(WB)
|
40.00
|
-4.76
|
1164.00
|
2950
|
2950
|
-1.67
|
|
Howly(ASM)
|
36.00
|
20
|
531.00
|
2500
|
2400
|
6.38
|
|
Jangipura(UP)
|
36.00
|
5.88
|
924.00
|
2400
|
2380
|
5.26
|
|
Naugarh(UP)
|
35.00
|
-15.66
|
1977.50
|
2475
|
2465
|
10.00
|
|
Gazipur(UP)
|
32.00
|
-33.33
|
4824.50
|
3310
|
3300
|
12.20
|
|
Chintamani(Kar)
|
30.00
|
11.11
|
202.00
|
2700
|
2800
|
20.00
|
|
Kayamganj(UP)
|
30.00
|
NC
|
943.00
|
2710
|
2710
|
13.87
|
|
Azamgarh(UP)
|
29.00
|
-3.33
|
2479.50
|
2450
|
2460
|
7.46
|
|
Madhoganj(UP)
|
28.00
|
75
|
1624.50
|
2320
|
2340
|
2.65
|
|
Lalitpur(UP)
|
27.00
|
-10
|
872.00
|
2470
|
2450
|
-3.14
|
|
Karsiyang(Matigara)(WB)
|
25.80
|
5.31
|
601.00
|
3600
|
3400
|
20.00
|
|
Dadri(UP)
|
25.00
|
66.67
|
683.00
|
2930
|
2940
|
6.55
|
|
Badayoun(UP)
|
20.00
|
150
|
400.50
|
2620
|
2625
|
11.49
|
|
Durgapur(WB)
|
20.00
|
-16.67
|
1267.60
|
2700
|
2750
|
-4.42
|
|
Jayas(UP)
|
19.00
|
5.56
|
868.40
|
2075
|
2060
|
6.41
|
|
Ulhasnagar(Mah)
|
18.00
|
-14.29
|
454.00
|
4500
|
4700
|
25.00
|
|
Bhivandi(Mah)
|
18.00
|
-43.75
|
605.00
|
2350
|
2200
|
-14.23
|
|
Safdarganj(UP)
|
17.00
|
-10.53
|
403.00
|
2480
|
2460
|
8.77
|
|
Bangarmau(UP)
|
16.00
|
344.44
|
135.10
|
2550
|
2450
|
12.09
|
|
Sirsaganj(UP)
|
16.00
|
14.29
|
323.00
|
2660
|
2640
|
-4.32
|
|
Asansol(WB)
|
16.00
|
-42.86
|
1817.30
|
3000
|
3000
|
3.45
|
|
Akbarpur(UP)
|
15.00
|
-16.67
|
687.00
|
2465
|
2465
|
10.04
|
|
Bharthna(UP)
|
15.00
|
-25
|
3585.00
|
2710
|
2680
|
9.72
|
|
Sahiyapur(UP)
|
14.00
|
-12.5
|
866.50
|
2455
|
2460
|
11.85
|
|
Chhibramau(Kannuj)(UP)
|
13.50
|
145.45
|
204.50
|
2680
|
2750
|
16.52
|
|
Kannauj(UP)
|
11.50
|
-8
|
264.50
|
2650
|
2650
|
10.42
|
|
Vilthararoad(UP)
|
10.00
|
NC
|
601.00
|
2150
|
2150
|
NC
|
|
Karvi(UP)
|
10.00
|
17.65
|
306.50
|
2360
|
2360
|
6.31
|
|
Chitwadagaon(UP)
|
9.00
|
NC
|
216.00
|
2100
|
2100
|
-
|
|
Etah(UP)
|
8.00
|
14.29
|
184.50
|
2560
|
2560
|
-6.57
|
|
Fatehpur(UP)
|
6.50
|
44.44
|
739.50
|
2385
|
2400
|
9.40
|
|
Ruperdeeha(UP)
|
6.00
|
NC
|
287.00
|
2250
|
2250
|
12.50
|
|
Tamkuhi Road(UP)
|
4.50
|
-27.42
|
428.40
|
2300
|
2250
|
6.48
|
|
Kosikalan(UP)
|
3.40
|
-2.86
|
165.30
|
2610
|
2600
|
1.95
|
|
Sehjanwa(UP)
|
3.00
|
-40
|
190.00
|
2160
|
2160
|
NC
|
|
Tundla(UP)
|
2.00
|
NC
|
187.70
|
2580
|
2600
|
2.38
|
|
Balarampur(WB)
|
1.82
|
0.55
|
25.40
|
2580
|
2580
|
-1.53
|
|
Gadaura(UP)
|
1.50
|
-16.67
|
372.90
|
2400
|
2400
|
14.29
|
|
Jambusar(Kaavi)(Guj)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
71.00
|
3200
|
3200
|
-
|
|
Aroor(Ker)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
9.00
|
10000
|
10000
|
9.89
|
|
Penugonda(Mah)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
20.00
|
4090
|
4090
|
0.25
|
|
Alibagh(Mah)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
82.00
|
2200
|
2200
|
-56.00
|
|
Murud(Mah)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
83.00
|
2200
|
2200
|
-45.00
|
|
Ujhani(UP)
|
0.60
|
NC
|
17.60
|
2650
|
2590
|
10.88
|
|
Lamlong Bazaar(Man)
|
0.60
|
NC
|
14.00
|
4600
|
4600
|
-
|
Could jackfruit flour
be a healthier alternative to white rice?
OCTOBER 14, 2019 17:00 IST
A tropical fruit that grows on a
tree of the Mulberry family. It is eaten raw, dried, or in cooked form in
Southeast Asia and India. Sometimes called Langka. This cluster is on a tree
growing in a village in the Mekong delta of Vietnam. | Photo
Credit: earleliason
With the availability of jackfruit flour, it is now easy to
include raw jackfruit in our diet
For people from Kerala, summer is
associated with the fruity smell of ripe jack fruit. The trees are found in the
backyard of almost all houses and the fruit requires a certain skill to cut
open. The fruit is used in all its forms; tender, mature and ripe. While the
tender ones are used to make curries, the mature ones are made into a puzhukku (where
the bulbs are cooked with shredded coconut). It is also sliced into strips and
fried to make chips. The ripe ones are eaten as such or made into snacks
like kumbilappam and
desserts like chakka pradhaman.
Even so, have we used it to its
full potential commercially? “Not really. It is still hard to find jackfruit in
hotel menus. It is also often looked down upon as a poor man’s food,” says James
Joseph, founder of Jackfruit 365, a company that sells raw jackfruit flour. Not
many studies have been done on the jackfruit. “The lack of awareness about its
nutritional benefits is the biggest reason for this. People are reluctant to
experiment with a fruit that they are familiar with.” The state of Kerala
declared it as its official fruit in 2018. “This changed a lot of things. It
was seen in the market, selling for ₹20 to ₹25 per kilogram,” he says.
James was working with Microsoft
when he got interested in jackfruit. “I spend many years of my life abroad, and
when I came back home on vacation, I realised that including jackfruit in my
diet made me feel lighter. I had the same feeling as having a Caesar salad.”
Later, while he was dining at a restaurant, he noticed that it was not usually
used as a substitute for meat in dishes, except in North India. “The chef told
me about the practical difficulties in using it. It was messy, smelly and
seasonal. In addition to this, only an experienced chef would know how to cut
it.”
He realised that there was an
untapped potential for jackfruit in the market and started experimenting with
it. “I worked with a few chefs and they made a burger with raw jackfruit and
jackfruit pie with the ripe one. I was amazed at the texture and the taste.” In
2012, he quit his job and launched his brand in 2013. “Initially, I sold
freeze-dried jackfruit. But I realised that for it to have a wider reach, I
should make it into a flour that can go into idli, dosa batter
and usual roti flour. I stopped
producing it and instead made flour out of it in 2017,” he says.
James also invested in research.
According to the ‘Nutritional, Glycemic and Ecological Assessment of Green
Jackfruit for Diabetes in Kerala’, a research study commissioned by him and
published in the International Journal of Diabetes,
the calorie, carbohydrate and glycaemic load of raw jackfruit is 40% less in
comparison to rice. This could potentially make it a healthier alternative to
white rice, for those who have diabetes.
It also shows that the fibre
content of raw jackfruit is two times more. James adds a compound called
pectin, extracted from jackfruit, to improve its binding quality.
Dr Lalitha Appukuttan, general
physician and HOD, Naturopathy department, NIMS Medicity, Thiruvananthapuram,
says, “I have been suggesting it to my patients for the past two years. Over
the course of time, I have noticed that their blood sugar levels have decreased.
There is also an increase in their energy level. Many lifestyle diseases are
because of our high-calorie and low-fibre diet. I believe that raw jackfruit
flour has a capacity to control it to an extent,” she says.
Chef Sunil Chauhan, Co-founder of
Fab Café, says that he has been using jackfruit flour for the past one year.
“Now, people are very health conscious and they are looking for gluten-free
options to include in their diet. We had chapatis made out of wheat
flour, which is temporarily taken out of the menu. The chapatis were
softer and had a slight bitter taste compared to the ones made with wheat
flour. But, it is not easy to knead and roll it out.” Sunil adds that the
availability of jackfruit flour has made it easier to use. “It is also sustainable,
being available easily in our country.” The café now serves momos made of a
blend of jackfruit flour and root starches. “Our customers were eager to try it
out and I got a lot of positive feedback.”
What James wants is for more
research to be invested on raw jackfruit flour, in order to understand its true
nutritional benefits.
Philippines supports IRRI’s proposal to advance rice breeding in
ASEAN +3 countries
Created: Tuesday, 15 October 2019 07:41
Recognising the importance of developing new varieties to bring
the production capacity of rice in a climate change-challenged world, the
Philippines is strongly supporting the International Rice Research Institute’s
(IRRI) proposal to the ASEAN +3 (Japan, Korea, China)
IRRI’s proposal is set to build
a comprehensive testing and selection that is also backed up by training
capacity for its national partners. (Image source: Department of agriculture of
the republic of the Philippines)
“The Philippines, being the host
country of IRRI, will reiterate its strong support to its proposal to the 41st
ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF) Meeting, hoping that Korea,
Japan, and China can really come together and significantly push forward this
initiative,” said Agriculture Secretary William Dar during a bilateral meeting
held on 14 October in Brunei Darussalam.
IRRI’s proposal hopes to bring the
ASEAN +3 to be involved in the selection and the development of new rice
varieties that are resilient to multiple environmental stresses, pest and
diseases thereby elevating the production capacity in the region.
“We need to combine these strengths
and to have the right rice varieties that can adapt to all potential scenarios
and also meet the market readiness and expectation acknowledging that in
Southeast Asia consumers have particular preferences,” said IRRI Director
General Matthew Morell.
Morell added that the IRRI’s
proposal is set to build comprehensive testing and selection that is also
backed up by training capacity for its national partners.
“We are not just transferring these
new varieties but we are doing it with the national partners for them to
conduct it themselves,” he added.
Boost to
biofuel research at IIT Madras
Sunderarajan
Padmanabhan New Delhi | Updated on October 14, 2019 Published on
Indian Institute of Technology
Madras has signed an agreement with ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company
for conducting collaborative research on energy and biofuels.
The five-year agreement is
focused on data analytics, gas conversion and transport, and is aimed towards
finding low-emission solutions. One of the projects being taken up is for
developing novel approaches to convert agro residue biomass to sugars and high
value chemicals.
“The objectives of this program
are three-fold. We aim to effectively deconstruct rice straw, bagasse and other
biomass varieties of Indian origin to produce sugars, which will directly feed
into Exxon Mobil’s bioconversion platform. Secondly, we intend to convert the
lignin present in biomass to valuable phenols using novel catalysts, and finally,
we aim to evaluate the environmental and economic implications of performing
such conversions at scale,” said Dr. R. Vinu, Associate Professor of Department
of Chemical Engineering, who is leading the project at IITM.
The current trend is to develop
fuels and fine chemicals from non-food lignocellulosic biomass and agricultural
residues, known as second-generation biomass. Lignocellulosic biomass is the
only source of renewable carbon with the ability to maintain carbon neutrality
in the environment by reducing the net greenhouse gas emissions.
India is the third highest
producer of agro-residues globally with surplus potential of over 230 million
tons annually, after China and Brazil. The biofuel potential is expected to get
realized in the near future with the new biofuel policy of the government.
“This agreement expands our
commitment to research at the university level. We work with over 80
universities around the world. This pact gives us a position in the Indian
academia,” Dr. Vijay Swarup, a senior official of ExxonMobil. (India
Science Wire)
Twitter handle: @ndpsr
So-called plastic rice could have
been the real deal, but stored for a decade
By on October 15, 2019
Reports about “plastic rice” are
likely incorrect according to a food fraud expert who says it could have been
actual rice that had been poorly stored for up to a decade.
Chris Elliott, professor of food
safety and founder of the Institute for Global Food Security at Queen’s
University Belfast, said he has been investigating rice fraud for a number of
years.
“That all started off by lots of
reports coming from different parts of the world about what was called plastic
rice. People were claiming that they were being sold rice that was made from
plastic. As someone who studies food fraud I was quite interested in this,” he
told Food Safety News while he
was in Edinburgh to meet the head of the Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit
(SFCIU).
“The first thing, when we looked
at the economics, actually plastic is more expensive than rice so you (know) it
is not made from plastic. Then you think why would people think they are eating
rice made from plastic? It took quite a long time to uncover what we think was
going on and I spent some time in South East Asia asking lots of questions.
“Plastic rice is not made from
plastic, it is rice that has been stored for up to 10 years and not stored
particularly well. The rice had become badly contaminated with molds and
instead of that nice white color, had turned into an unpleasant green color and
what the fraudsters had done was they had taken that rice out of the stores and
bleached it to get back the white color.
“The only problem was whenever
you bleach rice it loses the nice shiny surface so to get that back they
sprayed it with paraffin wax. With that paraffin coating on it, it didn’t cook
properly, hence the reason it was called plastic rice.”
Smartphone-based analysis
The university has been trying to
develop quick analytical tests for the past couple of years so people can
detect the difference between genuine rice and product that has been treated
badly in terms of chemicals.
“There has been a big push in
terms of how science and technology can detect and deter food fraud,” said
Elliott.
“In terms of my own work at
Queen’s University, we are looking at how we can use the thing that we all have
in our pocket to detect food fraud. So doing a lot of smartphone-based
analysis. Using fingerprints of food we can build these mathematical models of
what the fingerprint of food should look like. Just six weeks ago I was in a
marketplace in Ghana checking for fraud in rice using my smartphone.”
Elliott said Europe has a good
food safety network so people would not try to sell very low quality product
into the region because the systems would pick it up.
“In the U.K. and wider Europe we
don’t need consumers to check if our food has been fraudulently produced. We’ve
got a great infrastructure of government agencies and a fantastic food industry
that are doing all that for us,” he said.
“What we want to do is put these
tools in the hands of people in the food industry, government inspectors and
environmental health officers to do that checking for us. In the developing
world it is very different because that infrastructure doesn’t exist there, we
want to put those tools in the hands of consumers to make informed decisions.
“The plastic rice is being sold
to parts of the world that don’t have those checks and measures. It is not just
in South East Asia; in Sub-Saharan Africa it crops up regularly where it is not
only rice, they are generally sold the worst of the worst. Anything that cannot
go into Europe because of food safety standards will end up getting dumped in
Sub-Saharan Africa. They will sell to countries where they don’t have the
measures to check and test for these things.”
Elliott led the independent
review of Britain’s food system following the 2013 horsemeat scandal and is
joint coordinator of EU-China-Safe, an EU Horizon 2020 project that runs until
August 2021. There are 16 participants from the EU and 17 from China with an
aim to improve food safety and combat fraud.
Predictions and problems caused
by Brexit
A lot of work goes into trying to
predict what the next problem might be.
“We’re developing predictive
analytics, gathering lots of information from different parts of the world,”
said Elliott.
“Thinking about what is happening
to our climate and the way food is traded around the world, to try and predict
where there will be problems, shortages and more demand than availability of
foodstuffs. That is not only to guide our research but we inform the industry
and government agencies about what we think their surveillance program should
be not now but six months or a year down the road.”
Regarding Brexit, Elliott said it
is not a question of if it will cause problems but how big they will be.
“As soon as you start to change
rules and regulations that gives a massive opportunity for people who cheat and
that happens the world over. There will be potentially a massive amount of
fraud around tariffs as they are going to change. I think the potential for
lots of smuggling from the Republic of Ireland into Northern Ireland and the
rest of Great Britain will happen as well,” he said.
“The other big factor, the thing
that worries me even more, is that the U.K. will get cut off from the
established European networks that share information and intelligence.
Fraudsters aren’t silly, they will know the disconnect between the U.K. and
Europe and they will maximize that opportunity.
“There will be difficulties in
terms of the informal relationships as well, I know the regulatory agencies
across the country can pick up the phone and talk to their counterparts in
Germany or France but will that be the same case going forward, I doubt it
somehow. It has not been a frictionless proposition about leaving Europe, I
think it is going to take years to rebuild some of those relationships that we
once had.”
