Friday, August 03, 2018

3rd August,2018 daily global regional local rice e-newsletter





U.S. Administration, USA Rice of Like-Mind on Rice Imports from China
By Bob Cummings
 
WASHINGTON, DC -- On Wednesday, President Donald Trump instructed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to consider increasing the level of an additional duty on imports of $200 billion from China, including rice, from 10 percent to 25 percent.  Action by Ambassador Lighthizer to raise duties on the $200 billion in imports began on July 10 under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974."USA Rice supported the Administration's initial action to increase import duties on rice from China," said Bobby Hanks, chairman of the USA Rice International Trade Policy Committee and a Louisiana miller.   "We can't ship U.S. rice to China, yet China is shipping increasing amounts of rice to the United States, and China raised import duties on U.S. rice to 25 percent - where is the fairness in any of this?  We support the President's instruction yesterday to Ambassador Lighthizer."    

USA Rice, with the support of successive U.S. administrations, has sought for more than a decade to achieve regulatory approval from the Chinese government to export U.S. milled rice to China.  Despite signing a government-to-government phytosanitary protocol last July and positive follow-up this summer, progress has stalled.  In the meantime, imports of rice from China have soared, triple the volume in 2017 versus 2016, and up 75 percent again in the first five months of 2018.  Most of these imports are shipped to Puerto Rico. 

China also placed retaliatory import duties of 25 percent on U.S. rice last month because of U.S. actions in response to China's policies on intellectual property and technology transfer.

According to a statement by Lighthizer:  "The increase in the possible rate of the additional duty is intended to provide the Administration with additional options to encourage China to change its harmful policies and behavior, and adopt policies that will lead to fairer markets and prosperity for all of our citizens."

As with past increases in duties on imports from China, there is a comment period, including a public hearing, followed by administrative review prior to implementation.  Because of the President's direction yesterday, the close of the written comment period has been extended from August 30 to September 5.

"We were ready before the President's instruction to recommend that imports of rice from China face an additional duty of 25 percent, and we will do so as part of the formal comment period," said Hanks.  "We have long sought normal commercial relations with China, but that means reciprocal fairness, and we have neither right now."

Time is of the essence
Senate Farm Bill Conferees Named
By Jamison Cruce
 WASHINGTON, DC -- Yesterday, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) named U.S. Senate conferees for the Farm Bill.  The announcement was made immediately following the Senate's approval of four of their twelve Fiscal Year 2019 appropriations bills, which included agriculture and related funding.  A total of nine senators, five Republicans and four Democrats, received appointments to the committee:
Senate Agriculture Committee

Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS)
Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Sen. John Boozman (R-AR)
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA)
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND)
Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND)
Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT)

The Senate made the procedural move to go to conference this past Tuesday, which now officially leads to House and Senate negotiations on conference report that will have to again be considered by both chambers.  Last week, the House named 47 conferees, 29 Republicans, and 18 Democrats (see USA Rice Daily, July 23, 2018).

"USA Rice is pleased that with the naming of conferees, the conference process can now formally begin," said Joe Mencer, Arkansas rice farmer and chairman of the USA Rice Farmers. "With the appointment of Representatives Rick Crawford (R-AR), Ralph Abraham (R-LA), Bruce Westerman (R-AR), and Senator Boozman to the Farm Bill conference committee, the U.S. rice industry has exceptional champions who will strongly advocate for our industry as these negotiations proceed."

The 2014 Farm Bill expires on Sept. 30, leaving 11 legislative days with both the House and Senate in session to agree a conference report in both chambers and get a bill to President Trump's desk without having to pass an extension.

USA RICE





Governor Badaru: How Jigawa achieved five tons of rice per hectare


Jigawa State Government
Gov. Badaru Abubakar of Jigawa says the state government has assisted farmers in the state to enhance their rice yield from 2.5 to 5 tons per hectare.The governor made the disclosure at the validation workshop on capacity gaps for implementing Holistic Empowerment for Livelihood Program (HELP), held on Wednesday in Kaduna.
He said farmers are being clustered to produce rice by providing them with knowledge on agronomic practices, seeds, insecticides and fertilizer in order to increase competitiveness.“This has also provided jobs to over 145 youths across the value chain. They have been trained on manual planters, per boiling and also act as service providers to plant and transplant rice for farmers.
“They are also connected with rice dealers/millers who sell to them at factory price.“I believe this workshop is meant for us, because we are in dire need of help, advice and guidance to record more successes in Agricultural development.“Hence, the need for me to come along with all stakeholders in the sector,” he said.
Badaru disclosed that his counterpart governors in the Northwest region have met and agreed that the region’s future lies in agricultural development.Jigawa has five functional rice mills and Dangote Group is presently building a 36 tons per hour rice mill.In his opening remarks, the Executive Director, Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), Yemi Akinbamijo, said it is as a result of the commitment demonstrated by Jigawa and Oyo State governments that FARA developed the HELP initiative.
According to him, the philosophy behind HELP is the promotion of triangular collaboration involving the private sector, universities, research centres and policy makers in Africa, in collaboration with international agencies.He stated that HELP also offers the opportunity to exchange information on relevant agricultural technologies and innovations.“Already, FARA-Jigawa joint engagement with the Cuban government has yielded some positive results leading to the development of Afro-Cuba partnership for Agricultural Research and Development ,” he said.
Akinbamijo also noted that the workshop represents the first major step in the implementation of HELP during which capacity gaps earlier identified by the Arewa Research and Development Project will be validated.He said new gaps would be identified and partnership for realising the vision of HELP mapped out.According to him, the gathering is expected to come up with a draft that will eventually become country-specific work program aimed at guiding activities of all stakeholders for implementation.
On his part, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Agriculture, Daniel Manzo, said a lot needs to be done in the sector.He however said authorities have initiated innovations to boost value chains in tomatoes and maize, particularly in Kaduna and Kano States.
“The gap in agricultural capacity has kept us in a circle of crippling poverty, if only our small farmers had capacity and are able to cluster themselves together, they can move the world.
“Even as scattered and sporadic their efforts are, they still contribute significantly to the nation’s economy,” he said.The workshop had in attendance major stakeholders in the agricultural sector drawn from Northwestern Nigeria, International partners and top government officials.
Get more stories like this on Twitter & Facebook
AD: To get thousands of free final year project topics and materials sorted by subject to help with your research [click here]

Scientists Develop A Strain Of Genetically Modified Rice That Neutralizes HIV


BOULENGER XAVIER/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

By Rosie McCall
An international team of researchers has come up with an innovative solution to the HIV pandemic – genetically modified rice. GMO rice has already been developed to tackle malnutrition and climate change. Now scientists from the US, UK, and Spain have developed a new strain to manage HIV symptoms in countries where traditional medicines can be hard to access. The results of a new study were published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences earlier this week.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there were 36,900,000 people living with HIV in 2017, 25,700,000 of whom were in Africa. And while the spread of the immunocompromising virus has stalled since the epidemic of the 1980s, there were still 2.1 million people newly infected with HIV in 2015. 
Right now, exciting new drugsvaginal implants, and experimental HIV vaccines to prevent and manage the virus are in development – human trials for the latter are expected to start in 2019. As of 2018, however, medics rely on two methods, sexual health education and oral medication, to control the spread of the virus.
Only one person has ever been fully cured but patients with HIV typically take an antiretroviral drug that prevents the virus from replicating inside the body, essentially stalling the onset of AIDS. If properly treated, the virus can be managed and patients can expect to live a long and healthy life. The problem is not everybody has access to these drugs. The team says their GMO rice could offer an effective – and affordable – solution to HIV positive patients in developing countries. 
It works because the rice seeds produce three proteins – the monoclonal antibody 2G12, and the lectins griffithsin and cyanovirin-N – which preliminary in vitro tests show bind to gp120 (the glycoprotein that enables the virus to target cells) and neutralize HIV. These seeds can be ground up to form a paste that can then be applied as a topical cream, which counterbalances the virus in the exact same way as the antiretroviral medication.
Importantly, when the crops are fully grown, the seeds can be produced on-site for almost no cost, making the treatment extremely accessible to those who might otherwise have to travel miles to reach a medical clinic. Cereal seeds, the researchers explain, are some of the most suitable materials for producing medication because the infrastructure is already there.
There are a few hurdles researchers will have to jump before the rice becomes widely available, not least people's aversion to anything GMO. Scientists will first have to show that there are no harmful side effects and second have to meet the various regulatory restrictions in place in the countries they hope to reach – but the results so far are promising.
“This groundbreaking strategy is realistically the only way that microbicidal cocktails can be manufactured at a cost low enough for the developing world, where HIV prophylaxis is most in demand," the study authors explain.

Scientists create GMO rice that neutralises HIV

16

Cheaply made and readily available, this strand of GMO rice is set to bring relief to those suffering from HIV.

According to the World Health Organization, 36,900,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in 2017, 25,700,000 of whom were in Africa. And while the spread of the virus has stalled since the epidemic of the 1980s, the question of treatment becomes an important one to answer, particularly in places where the right medicine is hard to come by.
Scientists from the US, UK, and Spain have developed a new strain of GMO rice to manage HIV symptoms. The outstanding results of the study were published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences earlier this week.
It works because the rice seeds produce three proteins which have neutralised HIV in vitro tests. The beauty is the ease of availability, as these seeds can be grown and applied as a topical cream, which counterbalances the virus in the exact same way as the antiretroviral medication.
Now, the cynic in all of us raising its bony hands at the point, asking about the price, accessibility and the chances of a large conglomerate of some type will buy the tech and bury it forever.
Well, when the crops are fully grown, the seeds can be produced on-site for almost no cost. Cereal seeds, the researchers explain, are some of the most suitable materials for producing medication because the infrastructure is already there.
As with anything worth our interest, the researchers have one more thing to scale – our own collective ignorance. They will have to prove that the genetically modified product poses no harm to those it hopes to save.
Fingers crossed.

HIV Infections Could Be Prevented With the Use of Genetically Modified Rice

The seeds of the GM rice can be crushed to make a topical cream for use in preventing the spread of HIV infection.


August, 02nd 2018
Scientists have developed a form of genetically modified rice that could help prevent the spread of HIV. In a recent journal article published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers explained how they modified the strain to rice so that it can now produce HIV-neutralizing proteins. 
The news is the latest novel way to deal with the devastating widespread disease. Despite massive leaps forward in knowledge and prevention methods, there are still about 37 million people living with HIV around the world. 

One in 25 African adults affected by HIV

According to to the World Health Organization, that’s about 0.8 percent of adults between 15 and 49 years old. Africa has the largest population of people living with HIV, about one in twenty-five adults are affected by the illness. In 2017 alone more than, 900,000 people died from HIV-related illnesses. 
For many economic and political reasons, HIV treatment has become more widely available in the West. In the US, known cases of HIV infections dropped from 135,000 in 1985 to 50,000 in 2010, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 
This dramatic reduction in the disease is achieved through a combination of better education about the spread of the disease as well as the development of oral HIV medication. However many of these medicines are not available in developing countries so scientists are looking for other ways to help reduce the disease. 
The modified rice produces two types of proteins and one kind of antibody that can bind to HIV viruses. Once the rice is grown its seeds can be processed on-site to make a topical cream containing the proteins. 

Rice cream can be applied directly to skin

The cream can then be applied to the skin to allow the proteins to enter the body.
The researchers say the cost of making the cream is really low and that they hope people living in affected areas can grow the rice, make the paste and apply it themselves. 
While the idea is an exciting breakthrough in helping reduce the number of HIV infections, the scientists still have a lengthy testing process to do to ensure that the genetically modified rice doesn’t pass on any harmful side effects to humans. 
The idea also goes some way to perpetuate the gap between different expectation for people around the world. It would be unheard of to expect a person living in New York to grow their own rice to then make a cream for application to assist in the prevention of a deadly disease, but structural racism and corporate greed means this is a genuine suggestion for people in third world countries.
The research has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

 


RESEARCHERS DISCOVER REGULATOR OF ENDOSPERM DEVELOPMENT IN RICE

Abnormally developed endosperm strongly affects rice appearance and grain weight. Endosperm formation is a complex process, but several factors remain largely unknown. Scientists from the China National Rice Research Institute studied a recessive mutant, wb1, in hopes of studying factors affecting endosperm development in rice.
The wb1 mutant develops a white-belly endosperm and abnormal starch granules in the inner portion of white grains. Grains of wb1 also showed higher grain chalkiness and a lower 1000-grain weight, a 34% decrease from that of wildtype grains. The contents of amylose and amylopectin in wb1 significantly decreased, and its physical properties were also altered.
The analysis identified 12 candidate genes that could be implicated for the wb1 mutant. Further analysis of transcript levels of all candidate genes showed that White Belly 1 (WB1), which encodes a cell-wall invertase, was the most probable cause of white-belly endosperm phenotype.Switching off of WB1 using the CRISPR-Cas9 system in Nipponbare rice lines confirms that WB1 regulates endosperm development and is responsible for the wb1 mutation.
For more information, read the article in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Chines experts to train 40 Pakistani scientists on hybrid ricev

APP

3:55 PM | August 02, 2018
ISLAMABAD: A group of Chines hybrid rice experts would arriving Pakistan in September to impart training to Pakistani scientists for the promotion and development of hybrid seed verities across the crop sowing areas of the country to boost local output.In first phase a batch of 40 scientists selected all across the country would be trained to promote and develop the hybrid rice production technology in the country, said Member Plant Science of the Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) Dr Muhammad Yousuf.
He said that Pakistan and Chines Government had signed a memorandum of understanding for the promotion of hybrid rice verities in Pakistan as well as capacity building of local scientists in the field of hybrid rice.
Under the agreement, he said that 28 scientists all across the country were selected for the training programme and they had completed their training form China and now they were extending their services for the promotion and development of hybrid rice seed in the country.
He said that hybrid rice cultivation across the crop sowing areas during the current season had registered significant increase and it is expected that the trend of hybrid rice seed would gain momentum during the next season.
“Hybrid rice had been cultivated over 800,000 hectares of land across the crop producing areas of the country, which was a healthy trend and give boost to the local output of the rice”, he added.
The area under hybrid rice production was gradually increasing and it was phasing-out the trend of conventional seed, adding that it would help in boosting the local output that would also result in enhancing the exports and fetch more foreign exchange for economic development.
Meanwhile, he said that rice had been cultivated over approximately 2.8 million hectares of land to produce about 7.4 million tons of the above-mentioned commodity. He said that out of the total produces, 60 percent was consumed locally, where as 40 per cent was exported.
It is worth mentioning here that country earned $2.073 billion by exporting about 4.106 million tons of rice during 12 months of last financial year as compared the exports of 3.523 million tons valuing $1.606 billion of the corresponding period of last years.
During the period from July-June, 2017-18, about 520,759 metric tons of basmati rice worth US$ 540.231 million were exported as against 496,263 metric tons valuing $453.441 million of same period of last year, showing an increase of 19.14 per cent growth.
https://nation.com.pk/02-Aug-2018/chines-experts-to-trains-40-pakistani-scientists-on-hybrid-rice

Rice Research center at Stuttgart adds greenhouse, growth chambers

This photo shows the inside of the new research greenhouse at the Rice Research and Extension Center on July 2. Special to The Commercial/U of A System Division of Agriculture, Ehsan Shakiba
Officials prepare to cut the ribbon, formally opening the new research greenhouse and growth chambers at the Rice Research and Extension Center at Stuttgart. Special to The Commercial/U of A System Division of Agriculture, Sarah Cato
This photo shows the inside of the new research greenhouse at the Rice Research and Extension Center on July 2. Special to The Commercial/U of A System Division of Agriculture, Ehsan Shakiba
Officials prepare to cut the ribbon, formally opening the new research greenhouse and growth chambers at the Rice Research and Extension Center at Stuttgart. Special to The Commercial/U of A System Division of Agriculture, Sarah Cato
This photo shows the inside of the new research greenhouse at the Rice Research and Extension Center on July 2. Special to The Commercial/U of A System Division of Agriculture, Ehsan Shakiba

Rice Research center at Stuttgart adds greenhouse, growth chambers


  
STUTTGART – A research greenhouse formally opened Thursday further enables efforts by University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture to stem rice yield loss after milling due to high nighttime temperatures, officials said.
Jay Coker, chairman of the Rice Research and Promotion Board, said the need for an advanced facility to help develop resilient rice varieties became apparent after Arkansas rice producers lost yield after milling due to high nighttime temperatures in 2016.
“The greenhouse and growth chambers projects are both an immediate and direct response to the impact of high nighttime temperatures that negatively impacted rice growers in 2016,” Coker said. “This investment of research funds will allow researchers to overcome these issues and bring higher yielding and better quality rice varieties in an expedited manner into the hands of the Arkansas rice grower.”
The Rice Research and Promotion Board fully funded the $1.88 million cost for the research greenhouse and growth chambers, officials said.
Eshan Shakiba, a rice breeder for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said the growth chambers and rest of the greenhouse are digitally controlled, enabling researchers to precisely create whatever environment is needed for research. Researchers can control temperature, light intensity, humidity, carbon dioxide levels, length of day and other factors as needed for variety testing, as well as being alerted should something go awry. A reverse osmosis system ensures pure water for plant growth.
These new programs also keep data readily available for researchers.
“These facilities are unique in our region in that they are controlled by a computer. It has a sophisticated system for moisture, light and heat control,” Shakiba said. “If something happens it can notify us via Bluetooth. Also, it is all connected to the Internet, so we can take data from the computer and put that information on a flash drive if needed.”
The 40 by 80-foot greenhouse will be used to breed hybrid and conventional rice that is tolerant to high nighttime temperatures. The greenhouse will be used primarily for hybrid rice breeding activities. The 10- by 20-foot growth chambers will be used for screening hybrid and conventional rice lines for tolerance to high nighttime temperatures.
Along with advanced technology, the growth chambers also offer researchers the space they need to test the 72 different cultivars in the high nighttime temperatures study.
“Most growth chambers are small, like closets,” Shakiba said, “But we needed something to test multiple cultivars simultaneously in different conditions.”
Jean-Francois Meullenet, associate vice president for agriculture research, said the new facilities are in good hands with the rice breeders at the Rice Research and Extension Center.
“The Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board have been very supportive of our research, and it’s comforting to know that their dollars are being put to good use,” Meullenet said. “This research will, in time, have a great impact on our rice growers.”
The project has been a group effort between Division of Agriculture rice breeders, University of Arkansas scientists and administrators, architects and the Rice Promotion Board. Shakiba said seeing all of their hard work come to fruition has been satisfying.
“We traveled and spoke with people across the state and in other states to ask questions about their greenhouses. We asked about what worked and what didn’t,” Shakiba said. “We worked very hard on this and we are very proud of it.”
For more information on rice research in Arkansas visit https://www.uaex.edu/media-resources/ArkansasRicePeakPerformance/.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs to all eligible persons without discrimination.

Hybrid rice seed to significantly increase yield, exports

LAHORE: The commercialisation of Hybrid Basmati seed, expected to be achieved by 2019-2020, will boost farm income as well as exports, Shahzad Ali Malik, chief executive officer of Guard Agricultural Research and Services (Guard Agri) said.
Talking to a group of journalists, Malik said with the development of high-yielding fine rice seed varieties, Pakistan would finally end stalemate in production of Basmati rice. The development of an ideal hybrid Basmati seed was a cumbersome process.
“It is not a simple job. We have been working on development of Basmati strain with the help of hybridisation for last several years. After going through a tedious task, with the help of Chinese experts, our scientists have arrived at the advance stage of carrying out its trial,” he said.
Malik, who has pioneered the launch of high-yielding coarse varieties of hybrid rice seed in the country, said farmers of fine rice varieties would also be able to earn significantly more income soon with the cultivation of hybrid Basmati rice.
The development and launch of hybrid rice seed of coarse varieties has helped many farmers in Sindh and Balochistan to double the per acre yield as compared to earlier varieties, reduce cost of production, and increase income significantly. At the national level, quantum jump in rice production has resulted in export surpluses, leading to rise in export earnings tremendously.
Local consumption of premium rice has also been on the rise with passage of time. However, it requires jump in Basmati rice production, which has been prime choice of farmers living in north and central Punjab for centuries.
Keeping in view the consumption trend in local and overseas markets, Malik said the intensification of Basmati rice assumes paramount importance. Thus, share of Basmati trade in overall rice export needs to be increased in coming years to spur growth on a sustained pattern.
With the launch of hybrid Basmati strains, he said the competitive edge of Pakistani Basmati exporters would be bolstered by greater exportable surplus, which might lead to add another billion dollars in rice exports in the coming years.
Pakistan has seen a surge in rice exports in recent year, but it still needs to be improved given the immense agrarian base of the country and potential of scientific development in research. With the Chinese assistance, new varieties of rice hybrid seed already resulted in increasing productivity and exports. It is a win-win situation for all stakeholders, ultimately playing a role in building the national economy, the CEO of Guard Agri said.
With the addition of the new hybrid Basmati rice varieties, farmers in Punjab would be able to increase production manifold. The added quantities would definitely increase exports to traditional markets, Malik said.
Coming back to hybrid Basmati seed, Malik said, typically, minimum seven to eight years were required to develop a new seed variety. “We are facing a few challenges in development of hybrid Basmati, which are being addressed with back-crossing by breeders this year.”
The CEO said, “We are hopeful of increasing hybrid Basmati rice yield to 70 to 80 maunds per acre, which is almost double the present average yield.” The new hybrid Basmati variety would be extra-long grain, especially after cooking and non-stickiness.
“We are expecting to retain some aroma in hybrid Basmati seed, although, now it is not one of the primary features of new varieties being developed in other countries. The hybrid Basmati available in world markets nowadays doesn’t have much of aroma, so it is no more a primary characteristic of Basmati rice,” he observed.
It may be noted that after attaining two billion dollar mark in export of rice a few years back, a slump was seen for a couple of years. However, for the last one year, export of rice from Pakistan has picked up.
The country recorded around $2 billion worth of rice exports in the outgoing fiscal year. Rice exports had reached $2 billion for the first time in fiscal year 2015.

Global Basmati Rice Market Types, Applications, Trends and Industry Overview 2023

 sambit August 1, 2018
The ‘Basmati Rice market’ Report presents a brief analysis of market by types, applications, players and regions. This report also forecast the production, Consumption, revenue, Gross margin, Cost, Gross, market share, CAGR, and Market influencing factors of the Basmati Rice industry till 2023 in USA, EU, China, India, Japan and other regions.
Basmati Rice Market Research Report paints a clear image about the emerging dynamics and status of the global market in 2023. The research document provides major details about the current competitive scenario, including the market hold, sales of units, and revenue distribution, the solutions and the strategies that have been implemented to overcome the problems.
The report also gives an in-depth analysis of the market in terms of revenue and emerging market trends. This report also includes an up to date analysis and forecasts for various market segments and all geographical regions.
Get Sample PDF at:
The prime objective of this report is to help the user understand market share distribution of number of companies in the Basmati Rice market. Along with overall market analysis, price and capacity details are also included in this research. The regional segmentation helps the market players to understand where to make investments and where there will support from both the consumers and government.
Basmati Rice Market Analysis by Players: This report includes following top vendors in terms of company basic information, product category, sales (volume), revenue (Million USD), price and gross margin (%). 
KRBL Limited, Amira Nature Foods, LT Foods, Best Foods, Kohinoor Rice, Aeroplane Rice, Tilda Basmati Rice, Matco Foods, Amar Singh Chawal Wala, Hanuman Rice Mills, Adani Wilmar, HAS Rice Pakistan, Galaxy Rice Mill, Dunar Foods, Sungold
Market Segmentation by Regions: Each geographical region is analyzed as Sales, Market Share (%) by Types & Applications, Production, Consumption, Imports & Exports Analysis, and Consumption Forecast.
USA, Europe, Japan, China, India, Southeast Asia, South America, South Africa, Others
Market Segmentation by Types: Each type is studied as Sales, Market Share (%), Revenue (Million USD), Price, Gross Margin and more similar information.
Indian Basmati Rice, Pakistani Basmati Rice, Kenya Basmati Rice, Other
Basmati Rice Market Analysis by Applications: Each application is studied as Sales and Market Share (%), Revenue (Million USD), Price, Gross Margin and more similar information.
Direct Edible, Deep Processing,
Enquiry for Basmati Rice Market Report at:
Points covered in the Basmati Rice Market research reports:
Section 1: Industry Overview Basmati Rice
Section 2: Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis Basmati Rice
Section 3: Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis Basmati Rice
Section 4: Global Basmati Rice Overall Market Overview
Section 5: Basmati Rice Regional Market Analysis
Section 6: Global 2012-2018 Basmati Rice Segment Market Analysis (by Type)
Section 7: Global 2012-2018 Basmati Rice Segment Market Analysis (by Application)
Section 8: Major Manufacturers Analysis of Basmati Rice
Section 9: Development Trend of Analysis of Basmati Rice Market
Section 10: Basmati Rice Marketing Type Analysis
Section 11: Consumers Analysis Basmati Rice
Section 12: Conclusion of the Global Basmati Rice Market Professional Survey Report 2018
Purchase Basmati Rice Market Report at:
This Basmati Rice report focus on and regional market, providing information on major players like manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, traders, customers, investors and etc., major types, major applications and etc. Data type include capacity, production, market share, price, revenue, cost, gross, gross margin, growth rate, consumption, import, export etc. Industry chain, manufacturing process, cost structure, marketing channel are also analyzed in this report.

Pakistan develops high-yield hybrid basmati seed with China’s help

LAHORE: With the development of a high-yielding fine rice seed, the commercialisation of hybrid basmati is expected to be achieved by 2019-20, announced Guard Agricultural Research and Services (Guard Agri) Chief Executive Officer Shahzad Ali Malik.Talking to a group of journalists, Malik pointed out that the development of an ideal hybrid basmati seed was a cumbersome process. “It is not a simple job, we have been working on introducing the seed for the past several years,” he said, as reported by The Express Tribune.
“After going through a tedious process, our scientists, with the help of Chinese experts, have reached an advanced stage of carrying out the seed’s trial.” According to Malik, seven to eight years are at least required to introduce a new seed variety. “We are facing a few challenges in developing the hybrid basmati variety, which are being addressed by breeders this year.”
Malik, who have launched high-yielding coarse hybrid rice seed varieties in the country, said farmers planting fine rice varieties would also be able to earn a significantly higher income with the cultivation of hybrid basmati rice.
With the marketing of hybrid seeds for coarse rice varieties, many farmers in Sindh and Balochistan have been able to double the per-acre yield, which has also brought down the cost of production and increased their income significantly.
At the national level, a quantum jump in rice production has led to export surplus and a tremendous rise in export earnings. “We are hopeful of increasing the hybrid basmati rice yield to around 70 to 80 maunds per acre, which is almost double the present average yield. The new hybrid variety will be an extra-long grain that elongates after cooking,” he said.
The company expects to keep some aroma in the hybrid basmati variety, though it is not among primary features of new varieties being developed in other countries. The hybrid basmati available in world markets nowadays did not have much aroma, so it was no more a primary characteristic of the rice variety, he noted.
Malik was of the view that the competitive edge enjoyed by Pakistan’s basmati exporters would widen with the more exportable surplus in the next couple of years, which may lead to a jump of $1 billion in rice exports. Pakistan’s rice shipments have gone up rapidly in recent years. With Chinese assistance, new varieties of hybrid seeds have enhanced productivity, profitability, and exports.
It is a win-win situation for all stakeholders that will play a role in building the national economy. With the addition of new hybrid basmati varieties, Punjab farmers will be able to raise production manifold and exports to traditional markets will increase.

Kalimbeza loses over half a million worth of rice to floods

 01 Aug 2018 
Albertina Nakale
WINDHOEK – The early floods experienced this year have destroyed unharvested rice fields worth more than N$500 000 at the Kalimbeza Rice Project in Zambezi Region.
Kalimbeza farm manager, Patrick Kompeli, who is also the agricultural research technician in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry confirmed the financial losses experienced due to heavy deluge that flooded fields planted with three rice varieties.
The rice farm in the Zambezi Region around March experienced heavy floods after the recent heavy rains, forcing the project to resort to manual harvesting as mechanical harvesters cannot be used in water and mud.
He said that this year’s flood was very high and the project lost 10 hectares of Irga rice (medium grain), 8 hectares of Basmati rice and 11 hectares of Supa rice (long grain).
Kompeli revealed that out of the rice varieties lost, the farm had planted about 50 hectares of Supa rice, which could not be harvested and has translated into a loss of N$227 700. The Irga rice was planted on 48 hectares, and the loss of unharvested crop is estimated at N$138 888, while the loss of 10 hectares of basmati rice amounted to N$165 600. The three loses translate into a total of N$532 188 of lost produce.
However, he was quick to say the long grain was ready for harvesting during the flood and harvesting was delayed as it was done manually.
For the 2018/19 financial year, government allocated an amount of N$4.2 million for the Kalimbeza Rice farm.
Regarding drought experienced over the past three years countrywide, Kompeli said the project is not affected by drought since it is an irrigation project, as it does not rely on rainwater. He noted that over the past three years, production has been steady but affected by the number of issues such as high number of birds and recently by the floods. Asked on some of the planned activities for this year at the project, he mentioned the development of the new area for vegetable production, repairing of the damaged fence and construction of the drying slab and of course increase the hectares for long grain rice.
On some of the major challenges that project faces which hampers its full production as mandated by government, he said the main problems are birds, weeds, uneven land surface that makes irrigation difficult and huge electrical bills.
Over the past couple of years, the issue of elephants destroying the fence has been reported as rampant. However, Kompeli said the elephants are no longer destroying the fence.



Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- AUG 02, 2018
AUGUST 2, 2018

Nagpur Foodgrain Prices – APMC/Open Market-August 2, 2018

Nagpur, Aug 2 (Reuters) – Gram prices reported down in Nagpur Agriculture Produce Marketing
Committee (APMC) on lack of demand from local millers amid high moisture content arrival.
Downward trend in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and release of stock from stockists also pushed
down prices in weak trading activity.
About 400 bags of desi gram reported for auction in Nagpur APMC, according to sources. 

    FOODGRAINS & PULSES   
     
    GRAM
    * Desi gram showed weak tendency in open market on poor demand from local traders.

    TUAR
    * Tuar varieties ruled steady in open market here on subdued demand from local
      traders amid ample stock in ready position.

    * Rice BPT reported down in open market on poor demand from local traders.
                                                                            
   * In Akola, Tuar New – 3,950-4,075, Tuar dal (clean) – 5,700-5,850, Udid Mogar (clean)
    – 6,900-7,600, Moong Mogar (clean) 7,300-8,100, Gram – 4,050-4,200, Gram Super best
    – 5,200-5,300

   * Wheat, other varieties of 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                  3,200-4,170         3,430-4,280
     Gram Pink Auction            n.a.           2,100-2,600
     Tuar Auction                n.a.                3,300-3,840
     Moong Auction                n.a.                3,900-4,200
     Udid Auction                n.a.           4,300-4,500
     Masoor Auction                n.a.              2,600-2,800
     Wheat Mill quality Auction        1,940-2,075         1,900-2,075
     Gram Super Best Bold            6,000-6,500        6,000-6,500
     Gram Super Best            n.a.            n.a.
     Gram Medium Best            5,600-5,800        5,600-5,800
     Gram Dal Medium            n.a.            n.a
     Gram Mill Quality            4,250-4,350        4,250-4,350
     Desi gram Raw                4,150-4,250         4,200-4,300
     Gram Kabuli                8,000-10,000        8,000-10,000
     Tuar Fataka Best-New             6,000-6,300        6,000-6,300
     Tuar Fataka Medium-New        5,700-5,900        5,700-5,900
     Tuar Dal Best Phod-New        5,500-5,650        5,500-5,650
     Tuar Dal Medium phod-New        5,200-5,400        5,200-5,400
     Tuar Gavarani New             3,950-4,050        3,950-4,050
     Tuar Karnataka             4,400-4,500        4,400-4,500
     Masoor dal best            4,800-5,200        4,800-5,200
     Masoor dal medium            4,600-4,800        4,600-4,800
     Masoor                    n.a.            n.a.
     Moong Mogar bold (New)        7,500-8,500         7,500-8,200
     Moong Mogar Medium            6,500-7,300        6,500-7,300
     Moong dal Chilka New            5,800-6,000        5,800-6,000
     Moong Mill quality            n.a.            n.a.
     Moong Chamki best            7,500-8,500        7,500-8,500
     Udid Mogar best (100 INR/KG) (New) 6,800-8,000       6,800-8,000
     Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG)    5,000-5,500        5,000-5,500   
     Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG)        4,200-4,500        4,200-4,500    
     Batri dal (100 INR/KG)        5,500-5,800        5,500-5,700
     Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg)          3,650-3,750         3,650-3,750
     Watana Dal (100 INR/KG)            5,000-5,100        5,000-5,100
     Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG)    5,300-5,600        5,300-5,600  
     Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG)        2,000-2,100        2,000-2,100
     Wheat Mill quality (100 INR/KG)    2,000-2,050        2,000-2,050  
     Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG)         2,250-2,400           2,250-2,400        
     Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG)    2,350-2,450        2,350-2,450   
     Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG)   2,100-2,300        2,100-2,300
     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)    2,400-2,800        2,400-2,800          
     Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG)        2,100-2,200        2,100-2,200
     Rice BPT best (100 INR/KG)        3,400-3,800        3,200-3,800   
     Rice BPT medium (100 INR/KG)        2,800-3,000        2,600-2,900       
     Rice Luchai (100 INR/KG)         2,800-3,000        2,800-3,000     
     Rice Swarna best (100 INR/KG)      2,600-2,800        2,600-2,800  
     Rice Swarna medium (100 INR/KG)      2,500-2,600        2,500-2,600    
     Rice HMT best (100 INR/KG)        4,000-4,400        4,000-4,400    
     Rice HMT medium (100 INR/KG)        3,600-3,900        3,600-3,900       
     Rice Shriram best(100 INR/KG)      5,200-5,500        5,200-5,500
     Rice Shriram med (100 INR/KG)    4,500-4,800        4,500-4,800      
     Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG)    9,500-14,000        9,500-14,000    
     Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG)    5,000-7,500        5,000-7,500   
     Rice Chinnor best 100 INR/KG)    6,600-7,000        6,500-7,000   
     Rice Chinnor medium (100 INR/KG)    6,200-6,400        6,100-6,300       
     Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG)        2,000-2,200        2,000-2,100   
     Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG)         1,800-2,000        1,700-2,000

WEATHER (NAGPUR) 
Maximum temp. 34.0 degree Celsius, minimum temp. 24.7 degree Celsius
Rainfall : Nil
FORECAST: Generally cloudy sky with one or two spells of rains or thunder-showers. Maximum and
minimum temperature would be around and 34 and 25 degree Celsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available
(For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but
included in market prices)

Rice Fields in China Double Yields by “Ratooning”

01 Aug 2018
Just as grass lawns regrow after they are mowed, rice fields can regrow after they are harvested. This second harvest – known as a ratoon crop – has traditionally yielded only a small fraction of the first harvest. But farmers in China are now benefitting from laboratory and field studies conducted by the Joint FAO/IAEA Division that used nuclear techniques to determine the best rice varieties and the best fertilizer regimes for increasing second harvest yields, often resulting in second harvests as large as the first – meaning the farmers who ratoon correctly are doubling their yields – and their income.
The word “ratoon” meaningfully can be traced to two Latin words: retonsus which means “to cut down” and retono which means “to thunder back”. It’s meaningful because when ratoon is used in relation to agriculture, it means both: a crop is “cut down” at harvest, but its roots are left behind and from that stubble, a second crop “thunders back”. Although, realistically, it’s only been recently – thanks to an increased focus on fertilizer management and plant breeding – that the second “ratoon” crop has returned with any kind of thunderous energy.
Not all crops can regenerate. For example, maize cannot produce a second crop, but sugarcane, sorghum, pigeon pea and, importantly, rice can. The Joint FAO/ IAEA Division began working on improving the outcome of rice ratooning – also called “stubble cropping” – in China’s Fujian Province in 2012. This included studying fertilizer and water management practices for Jiafuzhan, an early maturing rice variety developed by Chinese plant mutation breeders.

Appropriate fertilization: for economic and environmental results

In addition to working with China’s mutation breeders to develop and promote climate-resilient early-yield varieties, the Joint Division used nitrogen-15 stable isotope tracing to determine the optimum application rate for nitrogen fertilizers. Both the nitrogen-15 technology and the mutation induction for developing improved varieties were monitored and fine-tuned in the Joint Division’s Agriculture & Biotechnology Laboratories in Seibersdorf, Austria, and then applied in the farmers’ fields.
The nitrogen-15 technology was able to discern how well the main crop had absorbed the fertilizer, how much was left in the field after the first harvest, and how much more would be needed for the ratoon crop. A major goal is to avoid over-application, which, in addition to being an unnecessary expense, could have environmental implications if the fertilizer is converted as a greenhouse gas and emits into the atmosphere or is washed away and becomes a water pollutant. In this study, the optimum fertilizer application needed for their ratoon harvest was 150 kg of nitrogen per hectare.
Efficient and economic ratooning requires developing and adopting crop varieties with high ratooning capability plus following the fertilizer management practices prescribed by the study. Success depends on the two being combined. The study found that farmers who adopted the combination of improved varieties and fertilizer management saw yields almost double from 6.7 to 12.3 tonnes per hectare. The only expense they incurred for the second crop was buying the required amount of supplemental fertilizer and the only labour required was having to spread the fertilizer, no replanting was needed.
Once the results were known, other farmers were eager to adopt the improved varieties and fertilizer management practices, and now ratooning is underway on 42 000 ha. In addition to nearly doubling rice yields, the farmers in Fujian Province saw their profits increase by USD 3 260 per hectare, which, combined with a 30 percent decrease in the cost of fertilizer, has proven extremely beneficial to the province.
In the past, many upland farmers had ratooned their rice crops, based solely on their awareness that a second harvest was possible. But their second harvest was much smaller than the first, sometimes dropping from 3 tonnes per hectare to 0.5 tonnes per hectare. At that time, they were happy even with a small second harvest. But now they know that with proper management, their ratoon crop can be almost equal to their main crop.
The success in China has indicated that improving ratooning yields also has potential for other rice-producing countries in Asia. They know what they will need: a rice variety bred for high ratooning capabilities, and nitrogen management which uses tracing studies to determine the amount of fertilizer needed to support a high yielding second harvest.

Rice prices to go down with tariffs in place: solon

ABS-CBN News
Aug 02 2018 09:47 AM
Government-subsidized rice is sold at a Quezon City market. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News
MANILA -- Taxing rice imports will help bring down the price of the staple grain by P7 to P8 per kilo, a lawmaker who is pushing for the tariff said Thursday.A bill seeking tariffs on rice in place of import quotas will be put to a vote on second reading next week, said House Agriculture and Food Committee chairman Jose Panganiban, who represents the ANAC-IP party list.
Revenue from tariffs will be used to fund subsidies for farmers, Panganiban told ANC's Headstart.Without tariffs, imported rice costs P27 per kilo, lower than the P34 to P35 per kilo production cost of local rice, he said.President Rodrigo Duterte's economic managers are also pushing for rice tariffs to help tame inflation.
NFA interagency council pushes for rice importation
Louise Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star) - August 2, 2018 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — State-run National Food Authority is hopeful the interagency NFA Council will heed the advice of House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to import 500,000 metric tons (MT) of rice as part of efforts  to control inflation.The Speaker recently met with President Duterte’s economic managers to discuss measures to control the prices of basic commodities, particularly rice.
To temper inflation, the House recommended that the NFA be allowed to purchase 500,000 MT of well-milled rice with staggered deliveries over the next five months.
The economic team also comprises members of the NFA Council which approves the grain agency’s recommendations for importation.
“Hopefully, they consider it because it will be good for everybody,” NFA spokesperson Rex Estoperez told The STAR.
NFA, however, does not want to be overly confident just because its proposal to  import 500,000 MT of rice gained support from the House.
“I cannot assure that they will approve it because there a lot of factors that they need to look into,” Estoperez said.NFA, however, has yet to submit its proposal as it is still awaiting the latest data on production forecast from the Department of Agriculture, household rice inventory from the Philippine Statistics Authority and the weather outlook from PAGASA for the second semester as basis for its own recommendation.NFA inventory is currently  good for three days, still below its mandated buffer stock of 30 days during the lean season.
Continuous unloading and arrival of two batches of earlier imports, however, are expected to add to the inventory of up to five days.

Mekong Delta farmers struggle with floods

REPORT
 02 Aug 2018 
HÀ NỘI - Farmers in Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta provinces are struggling to fight floodwaters caused by heavy rains, rising tides and water released in the wake of a dam breach in Laos.
Mekong countries have also discharged water from their reservoirs after the dam breach in Laos, causing water levels to rise in the delta, Trần Bá Hoằng, head of the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research, told vietnamplus.vn.
The water level was expected to peak at 3.4-3.6m, he said.
According to Người Lao Động (The Labourer) newspaper, thousands of hectares of rice and cash crops in An Giang Province had been submerged in An Phú, Tịnh Biên, Châu Đốc and Tân Châu, causing huge losses to farmers.
Trần Anh Thư, director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said flooding caused by the rising level of Mekong River would occur earlier than usual this year.
The provincial agriculture sector has instructed localities to closely monitor the weather and tides in order to inform people of when they would need to harvest crops not protected by dyke systems.
Local authorities had been helping farmers to upgrade dykes, drain water from rice fields and harvest crops quickly to minimize losses, Thư said.
Võ Hùng Kiệt, vice chairman of the People’s Committee of Thạnh Hưng Commune in Long An Province, said the flood water was rising by 5-7cm each day but the dyke system was incomplete, so farmers had no time to harvest tens of hectares of rice.At a recent meeting on natural disasters in the Mekong River Delta, Nguyễn Trường Sơn, deputy head of office of the Central Steering Committee on Disaster Prevention, said localities had been instructed to closely monitor the situation and provide updated information to authorized agencies and local residents.
He also asked provinces in the Mekong Delta to prepare disaster response plans and be ready to evacuate, and the provinces of Đồng Tháp, Long An and An Giang to harvest the early summer-autumn rice crop, especially in low-lying areas.According to forecasts, water levels in the Mekong Delta will continue to rise quickly over the next 2-3 days due to floods from upstream, but then recede due to low tides.
Water levels will peak at 3.7m at the Tân Châu Station on the Tiền River and 3.7m at the Châu Đốc Station on the Hậu River by August 18.
Regarding the situation in the North, Sơn said the Central Steering Committee on Disaster Prevention was also monitoring floods in the Bùi and Hoàng Long rivers and directing local authorities to ensure the safety of dyke systems and key irrigation works. - VNS


Mekong farmers urged summer-autumn rice harvest

Thursday, August 02, 2018 12:36
Due to the week-long heavy rains accompanied by the Sepien Senamnoy dam collapse in Laos’ Attapeu province caused floodwaters in the upper section of the Mekong River are coming earlier and higher than previous years.
The areas near the border with Cambodia such as Tinh Bien, Tan Chau, An Phu (An Giang Province); Hong Ngu (Dong Thap Province), Dong Thap Muoi (Long An), floodwaters are forecast be able to break the dyke systems.Hundred hectares of rice crop outside dyke-protected areas have been flooded though local authorities issued flood warnings to local people about complicated flooding earlier.
Dong Thap province’s Hong Ngu district department of agriculture & rural development said local farmers have harvested the autumn-summer rice crop of over 7,000 hectares out of 11,000 hectares. It is predicted the harvesting of 100 percent of crop will be done on August 5.However, floodwaters are threating many hectares of vegetables and fruit in the Mekong Delta region which were planted at the midland and down land areas.
SGGPNews shot photos in the Mekong Delta provinces:

N. Korea says 'unprecedented' heatwave causing heavy crop damage

Seoul, South Korea | August 3, 2018, Friday @ 08:30 in World » GENERAL | By: AFP 
In this photo taken on July 27, 2018, women wearing traditional dress shield their faces from the sun as they cross a street in Pyongyang. North Korea on August 2 warned its people of "unprecedented" heatwaves that hit the peninsula and urged efforts to save crops against drought that may hamper food production at the impoverished country. (Ed JONES / AFP)

 (AFP) - North Korea on Thursday warned that an "unprecedented" heatwave has caused heavy damage to crops as it urged citizens to "join the struggle" to prevent drought-like conditions from worsening and hampering food production in the impoverished country.The Korean peninsula has been gripped by a scorching heatwave in recent weeks, with dozens of deaths in the South blamed on soaring temperatures that have hit all-time highs.The temperature in North Korea's capital Pyongyang climbed to a record high of 37.8 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, with state TV warning that it was "taking a toll on the economy".
It did not elaborate on the scale of the damage.But the rising temperatures have already inflicted heavy losses on the richer South, which has reported more than three million deaths of livestock and a fivefold increase in deaths from heat-related illnesses, while vegetable prices have doubled due to supplies being affected.
The North's state-run Rodong newspaper on Thursday said that curbing further damage to the agriculturesector was an "extremely important and urgent task".
"Rural areas across the country... are reporting damages to crops including rice and corn due to extremely high temperatures and drought," it said in an editorial.

"Today's reality is calling for every single individual across the country to join the struggle to contain the damages stemming from high temperature and drought," it said, urging citizens to "display their patriotic zeal" and "save every single dollop of water"."This year's high temperature is an unprecedented natural disaster but it is not an insurmountable difficulty," it added.The North has a fragile economy and has been frequently condemned by the international community for decades of prioritising its military and banned nuclear weapons programme over adequately providing for its people.

It has also been slapped with UN sanctions over its nuclear and missile tests, with the restrictions remaining in place despite an ongoing diplomatic rapprochement that has seen the North's leader Kim Jong Un hold a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump.
The country has periodically been hit by famine, and hundreds of thousands of people died -- estimates range into millions -- in the mid-1990s. The food situation has improved in recent years however, partly due to reforms in agriculture and increasing trade at state-sanctioned private markets that have cropped up nationwide.But the nation remains vulnerable to natural disasters including flood and drought due to chronic lack of infrastructure, deforestation and decades of state mismanagement.
India rice rates up on monsoon lull; flood threat looms in Thailand, Vietnam
Sethuraman N R
AUGUST 2, 2018 / 4:15
BENGALURU (Reuters) - Rice prices in top exporter India rose this week on concerns of lower production due to below-normal rainfall, while traders in Thailand and Vietnam kept a close eye on the possibility of flooding in major rice growing regions.

FILE PHOTO: Farmers plant saplings in a rice field in Srinagar June 5, 2018. REUTERS/Danish Ismail/File Photo
Rates for India’s 5 percent broken parboiled variety rose by $3 to $392-$396 per tonne this week amid modest demand, after falling to the lowest level since April 20, 2017 last month.

“In many rice growing pockets rainfall is lower than usual. It could hit production,” said an exporter based at Kakinada in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.Farmers in India had planted summer-sown paddy rice on 19.76 million hectares as of July 20, down 12.4 percent from a year ago.
India is likely to receive below-normal monsoon rains in 2018, a private weather forecaster said on Wednesday, raising concerns over farm output in Asia’s third-biggest economy.Meanwhile, a senior food ministry official from neighbouring Bangladesh, which emerged as a major importer of rice in 2007, said the country does not have any plan to import rice for now due to higher local procurement.
Thailand’s benchmark 5 percent broken rice rose slightly to $385-$393 per tonne this week free on board (FOB) Bangkok, from $380-$385 last week on a stronger bhat, but demand remained flat, traders said.“There is interest from markets like the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, without any deals ... If prices remain low, these might turn into deals,” a Bangkok-based rice trader said.
Thailand is in the middle of harvesting its off-season crops. But, heavy rainfall has increased the risk of flooding, which could pressure supplies.Traders are also keeping an eye on the water levels at 11 major dams, including several located upstream to the rice bowl in central Thailand, which have risen to near their storage limit.Authorities, however, have stressed that flooding is not imminent.
“If the release of water results in prolonged flooding, then it could damage crops and increase prices,” another trader said.In Vietnam, rates for 5 percent broken rice were $385-$395 a tonne, versus $390-$395 a week ago.Trade is quiet as we are focusing on delivering the deals signed before,” a Ho Chi Minh City-based trader said.“Flood water is rising in the Mekong Delta, prompting farmers to speed up their harvest of the summer-autumn crop.”
Government officials said on Wednesday floods from a burst dam in Laos had inundated thousands of hectares of paddy fields in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam’s rice bowl, although the damage is limited and not expected to affect the country’s export crop.

Farmers in the delta provinces have planted more than 1.69 million hectares of rice for the summer-autumn crop, government data showed.

Boro rice output hits new record

August 02, 2018
Rice production in the immediate past boro season shot up to a new high of 1.95 crore tonnes, pulling the total output of the staple to 3.62 crore tonnes in the immediate past fiscal year, enough to meet domestic demand.The latest production estimate of boro is 8.67 percent higher than 1.80 crore tonnes harvested in 2016-17, according to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.
“Based on the production figures, we should have a surplus of about 30 lakh tonnes,” said Md Shahjahan Kabir, director general of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), the state agency responsible for developing improved rice varieties.The BRRI estimates that the country's annual demand for rice stands at 3.30 crore tonnes.
“The area for plantation increased in the last boro season. There is also improvement in the yield,” Kabir said.Farmers grew rice on 48.59 lakh hectares of land in the last boro season, up 8.58 percent from a year ago, BBS data showed.Areas dedicated to the previous two crops – aus and aman – had also risen amid farmers' enthusiasm to cultivate rice on the back of higher prices prevailing in the domestic market for more than a year.
Rice production in the aus season shot up 27 percent year-on-year to 27.09 lakh tonnes in 2017-18. Aman output rose 2.46 percent to 1.39 crore tonnes in the just concluded fiscal year.
Kabir said the increased area for plantation, favourable weather, and increased use of quality seed contributed to the good crops.He said farmers and agricultural extension officials were trained on safe boro cultivation in the haor areas in the northeast region following floods that washed away crops in 2017 boro season.
BRRI's 78 scientists and officials of state-run Department of Agricultural Extension were in the field to monitor the crop situation and tackle pest attacks and other problems quickly. The government continuously monitored the cultivation situation, he said.Kabir said aus paddy, which is now on the field, also looks promising and its acreage has increased further this year, spurred by the higher price and the government's incentive to promote the farming of the crop.
DAE data showed that aus area under plantation exceeded the target of 11.40 lakh hectares in 2018-19.As a result, aus production will rise, said Kabir, adding that transplantation has completed on 20 percent of the area so far.The boro season starts in December-February and ends in April-May.
Planting of aus starts in April-May and the harvesting takes place in July-August, while the aman season begins in April-May and ends in November-December.
https://www.thedailystar.net/business/boro-rice-output-hits-new-record-1614844+&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pk