Azerbaijan-Pakistan
security cooperation enhancing: Ambassador Ali Alizada
By DND
January 28, 2019
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The
Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Pakistan Ali Alizada has reiterated
his country’s keenness to further strengthen military ties with Pakistan,
hoping that robust security cooperation with Islamabad helps it deal with its
territorial dispute issues more efficiently.
The ambassador was of the view
that two countries are suffering from terrorism and extremism, and their
bilateral cooperation may reciprocate each other’s support to a large extent.
In an exclusive interview with
the Chief Editor Dispatch News Desk (DND) news agency Agha Iqrar Haroon here in
Islamabad, Ali Alizada said that military to military relationship between
Pakistan and Azerbaijan is of importance since both the countries have long
been dealing with issues of same nature.
Ambassador
Azerbaijan Ali Alizada while giving interview to Chief Editor Dispatch News
Desk (DND) news agency Agha Iqrar Haroon
The ambassador said that if
Pakistan has fought a tortuous war against terrorism and rendered matchless
sacrifices, Azerbaijan has also had to suffer atrocities and brutalities from
the Arminian side.
It is worth mentioning that
Azerbaijan and Armenia have been archrivals for decades over the illegal
occupation of historical Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven other
adjacent regions by Armenia.
“Our 20 percent of territory is
occupied by the aggressive country of Armenia. Unfortunately, we have one
million refugees and IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) in our Country,” Ali
Alizada said.
Azerbaijan Ambassador stated that
his country faced heart-wrenching massacres and genocides from Armenia, and on
February 26, they are going to commemorate victims of the Khojaly genocide on
its twenty seventh anniversary. Ali Alizada said that under these circumstance,
the two countries may make full use of their expertise to help each other.
“Military cooperation between Azerbaijan and
Pakistan is very important. We are keen to further strengthen these military
relations,” the ambassador said.
When asked about the status of
bilateral trade between Azerbaijan and Pakistan, the ambassador said that their
bilateral trade has gradually been growing. But, he added, in the last year,
the trade volume witnessed a surge around 25 percent.
Ali Alizada said that the two
countries have enough potential to take their bilateral trade to new heights.
Therefore, he added that, there exist a number of opportunities and
possibilities that Pak-Azerbaijan bilateral trade gets a further boost in the
future.
Further commenting of bilateral
trade, the ambassador said that the two countries can kick off energy
cooperation, and added that Azerbaijan has already offered Pakistan the supply
of oil and oil products.
Azerbaijan Ambassador said that
apart from the energy field, the two countries have also deliberated upon to
work together in other sectors including agriculture. He said that Pakistan can
import agricultural products from Azerbaijan, and likewise, Pakistan can export
its agricultural products such as rice, fruits, sports goods and surgical
instruments to Azerbaijan.
The envoy said that Pakistan and
Azerbaijan can explore each other’s markets to supply their respective
products. He said that if tangible initiatives are taken in this regard,
Pak-Azerbaijan bilateral trade volume will take no time to grow more.
In response to a question that
how can we enhance people to people contacts between Pakistan and Azerbaijan,
Ali Alizada said that we have increased the number of visitors from Pakistan as
in 2017, the number of visitors from both the countries to each other was
around 4,000 and now by end of last year, it has increased to more than 41,000.
The ambassador that a large
number of tourists from Pakistan are flocking to Azerbaijan’s popular cities
such as Baku, Ganja, Nakhchivan, Quba and Qabala to enjoy the natural beauties.
“Now more people from Azerbaijan
are also visiting Pakistan, which make us happy,” he said.
Ali Alizada was of the view that
the two countries can also increase the people to people contacts through the
cultural, science and education exchange programmes.
“We can expand our cultural
programs in the two countries,” he said.
The envoy said that last year, we
arranged a lot of events in Pakistan such as celebration of 100th anniversary
of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR). He said that they also arranged
cultural evenings in Lahore and Islamabad, and organized events to mark
Azerbaijan National Day Celebrations, Armed Forces Day.
Azerbaijan
Ambassador Ali Alizada and Agha Iqrar Haroon pose for picture
Moreover, he said that they can
also organize official events, and telecast cultural programs and movies on TV
screens, depicting the rich heritage of their respective history, places,
tourism, and social values.
The ambassador said that at the
moment, a lot of Pakistanis students are studying in Azerbaijan, and they are
endeavoring to attract more Azerbaijani students to study in Pakistan.
“We can provide more scholarship
programs to each other,” Ali Alizada remarked, adding that the education
exchange between scholars and professors of different research Universities of
both the countries can help bring them further closer.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijan Ambassador
Ali Alizada expressed gratitude to DND news agency for its interest for the
promotion of Pakistan-Azerbaijan bilateral relations.
“We are grateful to DND for its
effort to promote bilateral ties,” the ambassador said.
Rice exports to China: pipedream or reality?
BR ResearchJanuary 28, 2019
Rice occupies a prominent position in Pakistan’s export market.
While the cereal has found a market in far flung destinations of Africa and EU,
inroads in China’s market have been limited.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
In a recent conference held in
Karachi, Razaq Dawood indicated that this skew would be addressed. Rice and
sugar were highlighted as two exports which would lead the $1 billion increase
in exports to China. Keeping sugar aside for the moment, the potential of
increase in rice exports has to be considered.
On one hand, ASEAN countries have
a significant advantage over Pakistan’s exports in terms of tariffs. As a rice
producing country, China has put rice on its no concession list under the
Pakistan China Free Trade Agreement (PCFTA). Pakistan’s exports face 65 percent
tariffs. On the other hand, ASEAN China FTA (ACFTA) allows rice imports at an
average tariff of 31 percent.
This barrier is one of the
several that have prevented any real increase in the export of rice to China.
Pakistan is not the only country trying to get a bigger piece of the Chinese
pie. India has also been pushing China to increase rice imports to correct the
trade deficit which is in the latter’s favour.
China’s preferred rice variety
from Pakistan is long grained non-basmati. Even if China is willing to buy
rice, with or without adjusting tariffs, there needs to be sufficient supply
available for the exports to take place. Exports worth $1 billion translate
roughly into 2 million tons of rice with PBS data putting FY18’s total rice
exports at 4.1 million tons that fetched $2 billion.
Despite the hurdles, one of
Pakistan’s leading rice exporting companies, Matco’s views were positive on the
matter. While the $1 billion increase in rice exports may not be realized in
FY19, the next 2-3 years could see the high number come to fruition.
Speaking to BR Research, Faizan
Ghouri, director of the vertically integrated Matco, talked about the need for
improvements on the agri-side. Seeds here have good yields but high postharvest
damage reduces quality and quantity.
Not only is there lack of milling infrastructure, there is also
grain damage of drying equipment. A source in REAP lamented weather change
which has made field drying of paddy less effective. Less sunlight during
winters in Punjab increases the need for more dryers to prevent rise in
aflatoxin levels. Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring toxin that can cause
damage to health. Various countries have various acceptable limits with EU
arguable having the toughest (meaning lowest) acceptable limit. (For more
details read “Fungi, toxins, and basmati exports” published
on January 15, 2019)
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
The rice sector does not need
subsidies to become export competitive, but it does need infrastructural
support to be able to increase volume by 50 percent in a short time frame.
15
hospitalised in Karachi after consuming poisonous food
BY STAFF
REPORT , (LAST UPDATED
KARACHI: Fifteen members of
a family, on Monday morning, fell unconscious after consuming hazardous rice
from a street shop at Super Highway Adam Hingora Goth, Karachi.
According to details, a family of
fifteen people, including women and kids were admitted to the hospital after
consuming toxic food.
Police sources stated that all
fifteen members’ health was termed ‘out of danger’ after they were admitted to
a nearby hospital on an immediate basis.
Police sealed the shop from where
the family bought rice and also arrested the shop keeper. Moreover, samples
from the supplied food and shop utensils were collected and sent to a
laboratory for carrying out tests on them.
According to the SSP Malir, the
affected family bought yellow pigment and rice from a local area shop yesterday
(Sunday).
Later, a day ahead, as the family
cooked and ate food using same rice and pigment to make ‘Zarda’, the health of
all 15 members deteriorated and had to be admitted to the hospital abruptly.
NAFCO
vows to cut foreign rice importation
Ghana
currently imports almost all of the rice it eats but NAFCO wants to change the
narrative
The Ghana National Food Buffer Stock
Company (NAFCO) says the importation of foreign rice into the country,
especially to feed students in second cycle institutions, will soon be a thing
of the past.As part of its mandate, NAFCO supplies food to students of second
cycle institutions under government’s flagship programme – the Free Senior High
School initiative.Speaking to 3news.com in the Upper East Region where NAFCO
validated its warehouses and packhouses in the area, Chief Executive Officer
Hanan Abdul-Wahab said that revamping the Builsa South Warehouse, in the
rice-cultivating zone, will get farmers there produce more rice, thereby
cutting down foreign rice importation into the country.“Once we are able to produce what we consume, there is no point bringing in the foreign rice. It is government’s intention to actually cut off the importation of foreign rice.
“Today, if we say we are cutting off foreign rice, the local rice will not be able to sustain government’s flagship programme [of Free SHS].
“Gradually, we are reducing the number of foreign rice/food we feed into our second cycle institutions,” Mr. Hanan said on Thursday.
A representative of the District Director of Builsa South, Michael Anokye, who also spoke to 3news.com as the Bulsa South Warehouse was officially handed over to NAFCO, expressed optimism that the warehouse going to be operational will see farmers in the area cultivating rice on large scale.
“This year, for instance, some people [farmers] had more than 6.0 or 6.5 metric tons per hector [of rice],” he said, “meaning, if we have the valleys [at Bulsa South] developed, more farmers will come here to produce and once they produce and NAFCO is here, they know they have a ready market.”
An inspection at the Zuarugu Warehouse at Zuarugu, also in the Upper East Region, saw two KIA trucks loading bags of fertilizer that currently occupied the facility.
This, NAFCO says, would pave way for fumigation of the facility so it starts buying from farmers their produce to stock the warehouse.
A visit was also made to the Pwalugu Packhouse [a facility with inbuilt refrigerator to store fruits and vegetables] and also to the premises of the Navrongo Fire Service command, Navrongo, where a structure there would be renovated to serve as a temporary warehouse.
Rice exports to China: pipedream or reality?
BR
ResearchJanuary 28, 2019
Rice
occupies a prominent position in Pakistan’s export market. While the cereal has
found a market in far flung destinations of Africa and EU, inroads in China’s
market have been limited.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
In
a recent conference held in Karachi, Razaq Dawood indicated that this skew
would be addressed. Rice and sugar were highlighted as two exports which would
lead the $1 billion increase in exports to China. Keeping sugar aside for the
moment, the potential of increase in rice exports has to be considered.
On
one hand, ASEAN countries have a significant advantage over Pakistan’s exports
in terms of tariffs. As a rice producing country, China has put rice on its no
concession list under the Pakistan China Free Trade Agreement (PCFTA).
Pakistan’s exports face 65 percent tariffs. On the other hand, ASEAN China FTA
(ACFTA) allows rice imports at an average tariff of 31 percent.
This
barrier is one of the several that have prevented any real increase in the
export of rice to China. Pakistan is not the only country trying to get a
bigger piece of the Chinese pie. India has also been pushing China to increase
rice imports to correct the trade deficit which is in the latter’s favour.
China’s
preferred rice variety from Pakistan is long grained non-basmati. Even if China
is willing to buy rice, with or without adjusting tariffs, there needs to be
sufficient supply available for the exports to take place. Exports worth $1
billion translate roughly into 2 million tons of rice with PBS data putting
FY18’s total rice exports at 4.1 million tons that fetched $2 billion.
Despite
the hurdles, one of Pakistan’s leading rice exporting companies, Matco’s views
were positive on the matter. While the $1 billion increase in rice exports may
not be realized in FY19, the next 2-3 years could see the high number come to
fruition.
Speaking
to BR Research, Faizan Ghouri, director of the vertically integrated Matco,
talked about the need for improvements on the agri-side. Seeds here have good
yields but high postharvest damage reduces quality and quantity.
Not
only is there lack of milling infrastructure, there is also grain damage of
drying equipment. A source in REAP lamented weather change which has made field
drying of paddy less effective. Less sunlight during winters in Punjab
increases the need for more dryers to prevent rise in aflatoxin levels.
Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring toxin that can cause damage to health.
Various countries have various acceptable limits with EU arguable having the
toughest (meaning lowest) acceptable limit. (For more details read “Fungi, toxins, and basmati exports” published
on January 15, 2019)
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
The
rice sector does not need subsidies to become export competitive, but it does
need infrastructural support to be able to increase volume by 50 percent in a
short time frame.
Korean govt to defend 513% tariff
rate on rice imports
2019.01.28
15:35:51 2019.01.28 15:36:33
The Seoul government is committed to defend the
513-percent duties on rice imports amid protracted verification process from
the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and
Rural Affairs said in a statement Monday.
Korea has won a 10-year moratorium on tariffs on foreign rice since the Uruguay Round agreement in 1994. From 2015, it has employed tariff rate quota, referring to the amount of rice the country must import on low tariff rate.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
Korea has won a 10-year moratorium on tariffs on foreign rice since the Uruguay Round agreement in 1994. From 2015, it has employed tariff rate quota, referring to the amount of rice the country must import on low tariff rate.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
By Lee Yu-sup and Choi Mira
https://pulsenews.co.kr/view.php?year=2019&no=57678NAFCO vows to cut foreign rice importation
Ghana
currently imports almost all of the rice it eats but NAFCO wants to change the
narrative
The Ghana National Food Buffer Stock
Company (NAFCO) says the importation of foreign rice into the country,
especially to feed students in second cycle institutions, will soon be a thing
of the past.As part of its mandate, NAFCO supplies food to students of second
cycle institutions under government’s flagship programme – the Free Senior High
School initiative.Speaking to 3news.com in the Upper East Region where NAFCO
validated its warehouses and packhouses in the area, Chief Executive Officer
Hanan Abdul-Wahab said that revamping the Builsa South Warehouse, in the
rice-cultivating zone, will get farmers there produce more rice, thereby
cutting down foreign rice importation into the country.“Once we are able to produce what we consume, there is no point bringing in the foreign rice. It is government’s intention to actually cut off the importation of foreign rice.
“Today, if we say we are cutting off foreign rice, the local rice will not be able to sustain government’s flagship programme [of Free SHS].
“Gradually, we are reducing the number of foreign rice/food we feed into our second cycle institutions,” Mr. Hanan said on Thursday.
A representative of the District Director of Builsa South, Michael Anokye, who also spoke to 3news.com as the Bulsa South Warehouse was officially handed over to NAFCO, expressed optimism that the warehouse going to be operational will see farmers in the area cultivating rice on large scale.
“This year, for instance, some people [farmers] had more than 6.0 or 6.5 metric tons per hector [of rice],” he said, “meaning, if we have the valleys [at Bulsa South] developed, more farmers will come here to produce and once they produce and NAFCO is here, they know they have a ready market.”
An inspection at the Zuarugu Warehouse at Zuarugu, also in the Upper East Region, saw two KIA trucks loading bags of fertilizer that currently occupied the facility.
This, NAFCO says, would pave way for fumigation of the facility so it starts buying from farmers their produce to stock the warehouse.
A visit was also made to the Pwalugu Packhouse [a facility with inbuilt refrigerator to store fruits and vegetables] and also to the premises of the Navrongo Fire Service command, Navrongo, where a structure there would be renovated to serve as a temporary warehouse.
Rice exports to China: pipedream or reality?
BR
ResearchJanuary 28, 2019
Rice
occupies a prominent position in Pakistan’s export market. While the cereal has
found a market in far flung destinations of Africa and EU, inroads in China’s
market have been limited.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.
In
a recent conference held in Karachi, Razaq Dawood indicated that this skew
would be addressed. Rice and sugar were highlighted as two exports which would
lead the $1 billion increase in exports to China. Keeping sugar aside for the
moment, the potential of increase in rice exports has to be considered.
On
one hand, ASEAN countries have a significant advantage over Pakistan’s exports
in terms of tariffs. As a rice producing country, China has put rice on its no
concession list under the Pakistan China Free Trade Agreement (PCFTA). Pakistan’s
exports face 65 percent tariffs. On the other hand, ASEAN China FTA (ACFTA)
allows rice imports at an average tariff of 31 percent.
This
barrier is one of the several that have prevented any real increase in the
export of rice to China. Pakistan is not the only country trying to get a
bigger piece of the Chinese pie. India has also been pushing China to increase
rice imports to correct the trade deficit which is in the latter’s favour.
China’s
preferred rice variety from Pakistan is long grained non-basmati. Even if China
is willing to buy rice, with or without adjusting tariffs, there needs to be
sufficient supply available for the exports to take place. Exports worth $1
billion translate roughly into 2 million tons of rice with PBS data putting
FY18’s total rice exports at 4.1 million tons that fetched $2 billion.
Despite
the hurdles, one of Pakistan’s leading rice exporting companies, Matco’s views
were positive on the matter. While the $1 billion increase in rice exports may
not be realized in FY19, the next 2-3 years could see the high number come to
fruition.
Speaking
to BR Research, Faizan Ghouri, director of the vertically integrated Matco,
talked about the need for improvements on the agri-side. Seeds here have good
yields but high postharvest damage reduces quality and quantity.
Not
only is there lack of milling infrastructure, there is also grain damage of
drying equipment. A source in REAP lamented weather change which has made field
drying of paddy less effective. Less sunlight during winters in Punjab
increases the need for more dryers to prevent rise in aflatoxin levels.
Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring toxin that can cause damage to health.
Various countries have various acceptable limits with EU arguable having the
toughest (meaning lowest) acceptable limit. (For more details read “Fungi, toxins, and basmati exports” published
on January 15, 2019)
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
The
rice sector does not need subsidies to become export competitive, but it does
need infrastructural support to be able to increase volume by 50 percent in a
short time frame.
Korean govt to defend 513% tariff
rate on rice imports
2019.01.28
15:35:51 2019.01.28 15:36:33
The Seoul government is committed to defend the
513-percent duties on rice imports amid protracted verification process from
the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and
Rural Affairs said in a statement Monday.
Korea has won a 10-year moratorium on tariffs on foreign rice since the Uruguay Round agreement in 1994. From 2015, it has employed tariff rate quota, referring to the amount of rice the country must import on low tariff rate.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
Korea has won a 10-year moratorium on tariffs on foreign rice since the Uruguay Round agreement in 1994. From 2015, it has employed tariff rate quota, referring to the amount of rice the country must import on low tariff rate.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
By Lee Yu-sup and Choi Mira
UK-Thailand research yields rice
progress
opinion January 29, 2019 01:00
By Brian Davidson
Special to the Nation
Special to the Nation
Science and
innovation is at the forefront of the modern partnership between Thailand and
the UK. Both countries recognise the importance of strong science as key to our
continuing development and prosperity. We also recognise the importance of
international collaboration to accelerate the pace of scientific
discovery.
This international collaboration is
exemplified by the Newton UK-Thailand Research and Innovation Partnership Fund.
Launched in 2014, the Fund is supporting up to Bt325 million worth of joint
science and innovation activities – and is jointly funded by both the UK and
Thailand.
Under the Partnership Fund, the UK
and Thai governments support a diverse range of world class science. This includes
research on human and animal health, agriculture; resilience against drought
and other extreme weather, as well as the promotion of innovation and
entrepreneurship. This work helps to tackle difficult global challenges, as
well as supporting Thailand 4.0, the Kingdom’s ambitious economic development
strategy.
Earlier this month, Thailand’s
National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) and the UK’s
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), hosted a
workshop in Bangkok on sustainable rice production. The workshop brought
together scientists from the UK, Thailand, China, the Philippines and Vietnam
to discuss the outcomes of their joint research, which was funded through the
Sustainable Rice Research Initiative under the Newton Fund.
The scientists presented some of
the key findings from their research. They also discussed some of the
opportunities and challenges in relation to rice. These included improving rice
breeding and the development of new strains, increasing the nutritional value
of rice, as well as maintaining crop yield under difficult environmental
conditions.
After three years of research,
initial findings look promising. The researchers are helping to make rice
production more resilient to the growing risks of climate change, ensuring it
will continue to play its vital role as a staple food in both Thailand and the
region. The burning of rice straw is also a major contributor to pollution and
greenhouse gases, and researchers are looking closely at the alternatives.
At the workshop in Bangkok, Deputy
Prime Minister Prajin Jantong presented awards to some of the most exciting and
innovative projects in the initiative. He spoke about the importance of rice to
the Thai economy and the Thai people, as well as to consumers around the world.
He also spoke about the importance of research into improvements to the way
rice is bred and grown, so that it can be more resilient to the threats of
pests, climate change and weather extremes.
This Sustainable Rice Research Initiative
has brought together UK and Thai scientific excellence, with partners from
around the region, to improve our understanding of a crop which is vital for
health and economic wellbeing. I look forward to further work under the Newton
UK-Thailand Research and Innovation Partnership Fund in other, equally
important, areas of science and innovation, and to continuing to deepen our
research and innovation cooperation with Thailand.
Brian Davidson is British
ambassador to Thailand.
Egypt’s
GASC tender attracts 4 offers for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice — traders
A
farmer is seen next to freshly harvested wheat at a field in Beni Suef, south
of Cairo, Egypt April 24, 2017. Picture taken April 24, 2017. (Reuters)
Updated 27 January 2019
REUTERS
January 27, 201913:18
CAIRO: Egypt’s state grain buyer,
the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC), on Sunday received four
offers at its first international purchase tender for rice in 2019, traders
said.
The offers presented were for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice, the traders said.
GASC said it was seeking white rice with 10 percent to 12 percent broken parts on a cost, insurance and freight (CIF) basis for arrival March 20-April 20 and/or April 1-30. Each bidder should present samples alongside its offer to be tested by the Ministry of Agriculture.
Traders gave the following breakdown of the offers presented, however prices were not immediately available:
* Hakan: 20,000 tons of Indian rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Mufaddal: 25,000 tons of Vietnamese rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Wakalex: 20,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from March 20 — April 20 and 48,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Al Amal: 20,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30
The offers presented were for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice, the traders said.
GASC said it was seeking white rice with 10 percent to 12 percent broken parts on a cost, insurance and freight (CIF) basis for arrival March 20-April 20 and/or April 1-30. Each bidder should present samples alongside its offer to be tested by the Ministry of Agriculture.
Traders gave the following breakdown of the offers presented, however prices were not immediately available:
* Hakan: 20,000 tons of Indian rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Mufaddal: 25,000 tons of Vietnamese rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Wakalex: 20,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from March 20 — April 20 and 48,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Al Amal: 20,000 tons of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of
rice reaches 94.2% in 2017: CAPMAS
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of
rice reached 94.2% in 2017, with an average rice consumption per capita of 38.7
kg versus 34.7 kg in 2016, an increase of 11.5%,” the Central Agency for Public
Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS) announced in its annual bulletin of
production movement, foreign trade, and available agriculture commodities for
consumption in 2017. …
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of rice reached 94.2% in 2017,
with an average rice consumption per capita of 38.7 kg versus 34.7 kg in 2016,
an increase of 11.5%,” the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and
Statistics (CAPMAS) announced in its annual bulletin of production movement,
foreign trade, and available agriculture commodities for consumption in 2017.
It continued that the self-sufficiency rate of wheat stood at
34.5% in 2017 with an average wheat consumption per capita of 163.9 kg versus
137.8 kg in 2016, an increase of 18.9%.
The self-sufficiency rate of vegetables was 103% in 2017 with an
average vegetables consumption per capita of 79.3, kg down from 86.3 kg in
2016, a decrease of 8.1%, according to the CAPMAS.
The agency also declared that the self-sufficiency rate of
fruits reached 99.3% in 2017, with an average fruits consumption per capita of
62.9 kg up from 62.6 kg in 2016, an increase of 0.5%.
Furthermore, it stated that the self-sufficiency rate of red
meat amounted to 55.9% in 2017, with an average red meat consumption per capita
of 10.7 kg versus 9.6 kg in 2016, an increase of 11.5%.
Meanwhile, the self-sufficiency rate of poultry and bird meat
reached 91.5% in 2017, with an average per capita of 10.0 kg versus 10.1 kg in
2016, a decrease of 1.0%
The CAPMAS is the official statistical agency of Egypt that
collects, processes, analyses, and disseminates statistical data, and conducts
the census.
Lagos denies disappearance of Lake Rice during yuletide
By Gbenga
Akinfenwa
27 January 2019
| 3:12 am
Lake Rice
The Lagos State Government producers of Lake Rice told The Guardian last week that it sold a total of 18,494 bags of the 50kg size, 2,034 of 25kg and 72 bags of 10kg of the product between Saturday, December 22, 2018 and Tuesday, January 22, 2019, contrary to reports of its disappearance from markets during the festive period.
In
addition, it said it has embarked on continuous production of the rice, with
two to three trailers coming to Lagos daily from Kebbi State and offloading the
commodity in Agege, Itoikin or Ojo, a suburb of Lagos.
The
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Olayiwole Onasanya, who
disclosed this to The Guardian in his office, said between December 2018 and
March 2019, the state booked a total of 50,000 bags of the 50kg, 20,000 bags of
25kg and 40,000 bags of 10kg, noting that part of these had been sold out.
He said:
“Though people will complain, especially due to the population of the state,
but the fact is that we sold rice during the yuletide directly to the public
through our designated centres and through our distributors and we are still
selling. Our distributors are still coming to take rice to their shops. During
festive period, like Christmas, New Year, and Ileya, we sell directly to the
public.
“Our
major challenge is just logistics, getting the rice down here from Kebbi. It
takes four days for trailers to move the rice here from Kebbi, yet we are
meeting distributors’ demand. We still have them in abundance in Oko Oba, Agege
and other designated centres. We have 20 major distributors. It is not true
that Lake Rice was not sold during the yuletide, we sold to the public and we
are still selling.”
He noted
that the state subsidise each bag with at least N3, 000, including the cost of
transportation, and that a total of N1.5b has been spent on subsidy, to bring
the price down for Lagosians.“We used to sell the rice at Surulere Farmers’
Mart, but last December, it was sold at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, many people
did not know this, maybe because they are used to the farmers’ mart, that was
why they claim the rice disappeared in markets. Now, our distributors in
Daleko, Iddo and other major markets have the rice.
“We are
already building our rice mill at Imota, Ikorodu, and installation has started.
It will be the biggest mill in Sub-Saharan Africa, with 32 metric tons per hour
to sustain the production and processing of local rice, which will create over
500,000 jobs directly and indirectly. When it is ready, the logistic challenge
and other issues will be permanently removed,” he said.
The
permanent secretary added that: “Lake rice will not disappear with our
administration. With what government has put in place, other administrations
will enjoy it. Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has put a lot of funds into the
project and incoming administrations will not want it to waste.
Scientists
have put forward a new hypothesis for the origin of life on Earth
By paradox
27.01.2019
Probable scenario of the origin of carbon, nitrogen and sulfur in the silicate part of the Earth not appear funny, as earlier, most likely a meteor stream, was the cause of the origin of the bacteria.
There are many theories about how
life originated on Earth, many of which try to explain how our planet has the
ingredients for life: elements like carbon and nitrogen. One new study suggests
that a previously unknown collision helped “to light” life on Earth.
Previously, scientists thought
that meteorites brought life-giving elements on Earth. Although isotopic
signatures of these elements on the planet coincide with these objects, the
ratio of carbon and nitrogen is not entirely true. While the meteors supposedly
brought to the Earth elements that are critical for life (known as carbonaceous
chondrites) contain 20 parts carbon to every part nitrogen, this ratio is
around 40-1 on Earth. Instead, these important elements could be in a
collision, says a group of petrologic from rice University. Scientists know
that the long-standing clash between the ancient planet Earth and an object the
size of Mars created the moon, that same drummer may also gave us the elements
for sparking life, they say.
To come to this conclusion, the
research team created a simulation of this event on the basis of a series of
experiments in which they tested the behavior of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur
in the process of forming a core on a rocky planet. Then the team simulated
high pressures and temperatures during core formation, and estimated how much
carbon or nitrogen may be on the planet the size of Mars with a core, rich in
sulfur. Through their simulation, along with the known ratios and
concentrations of elements on Earth, the team found that instead of the rain of
meteorites, delivering essential elements, a more likely explanation is that
they came from.
“The results of our simulation
showed that the most likely scenario for the origin of carbon, nitrogen and
sulfur in the silicate part of the Earth is when these elements are brought the
size of Mars (8-10% by weight of a modern Earth),” says Rajdeep Dasgupta,
co-author of the article in an email, stressing that life on Earth is “flashed”
because of the violent collisions in space.
In addition, this planet probably
would have a core, rich in sulfur. The results do not cover the question of how
life originated on Earth, but they begin to answer the question of how the
ingredients for life could appear on earth.
“There are many unanswered questions about how to actually life originated. Our study, however, provides a mechanism for obtaining the raw materials necessary for life recipe, ” said Dasgupta.Thus, there is a probability of collisions in space and hence may be somewhere there is a prototype of life on Earth.
“There are many unanswered questions about how to actually life originated. Our study, however, provides a mechanism for obtaining the raw materials necessary for life recipe, ” said Dasgupta.Thus, there is a probability of collisions in space and hence may be somewhere there is a prototype of life on Earth.
ANGRAU to set up National Rice Research Institute in
Srikakulam dist
THE
HANS INDIA | Jan 27,2019 , 12:39 AM IST
ANGRAU to set up
National Rice Research Institute in Srikakulam dist
- It will
come up at Naira
- The
agriculture university has earlier set up maize research institute at Vijayarai
in WG district
- ANGRAU VC
Dr Vallabhaneni Damodar Naidu says soon vacancies will be filled up in the
university
Guntur: Acharya N G Ranga Agriculture University will
set up National Rice Research Institute at Naira in Srikakulam district and
changed the name of the rice research institute at Bapatla as Agriculture
Research Institute in Guntur district, according to university Vice-Chancellor
Dr Vallabhaneni Damodar Naidu.
He said a maize research centre was set up at Vijayarai in
West Godavari district. He hoisted the national flag at ANGRAU premises in
Guntur city on the occasion of Republic Day on Saturday.
Speaking on this occasion, he said that steps should be taken
to promote research in agriculture. He said university buildings were constructed
at a cost of Rs 135 crore and solar power system was introduced in the
university.
He pointed out that the agriculture scientists of the
university visited the Titli cyclone affected agriculture fields in Srikakulam
and provided suggestions and advise to the farmers.
The university released new seeds of paddy, black gram,
sugarcane and groundnut and imparted training to the farmers to improve their
skills.
He said that steps will be taken to soon fill the vacant
posts in the agriculture university.
ANGRAU board member Mekala Lashminarayana said that they have
taken up construction of buildings in the research centres at a cost of Rs 31.5
crore which was sanctioned under Rastriya Krishi Vikas Yojana.
He said that they will give 40% of the seats to the children of the farmers. Earlier it was meant to children of ryots who had three acres of land and now it has been reduced to one acre.
He said that they will give 40% of the seats to the children of the farmers. Earlier it was meant to children of ryots who had three acres of land and now it has been reduced to one acre.
He further said that they increased dress code allowance to
the SC,ST students from Rs 200 to Rs 600.
ANGRAU Registrar Dr D Bhaskar Rao, scientists Dr
L V Naidu, Dr K Yella Reddy, Dr L Uma Devi and Dr S R Koteswara Rao were among
those who participated. https://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Andhra-Pradesh/2019-01-27/ANGRAU-to-set-up-National-Rice-Research-Institute-in-Srikakulam-dist/482885
U.S.
Rice Varieties Spark Keen Interest in Mexico
By Sarah Moran
GUADALAJARA,
MEXICO CITY, & VERACRUZ, MEXICO -- Last week, USA Rice's Dr. Steve
Linscombe and Asiha Grigsby along with USA Rice consultant Marvin Lehrer met
with the top wholesalers, millers, and packers in Mexico to provide samples of
several varieties of high quality U.S. rice suitable for the Mexican
market. This tour was a follow-up to a successful USA Rice trade mission
last November in Mexico City that brought together a 10-member delegation,
staff, and the most important stakeholders in the Mexican rice industry to
discuss the issues of U.S. rice quality and future export partnerships. Historically, the United States enjoyed nearly 100 percent market share of rice exports in Mexico. However, over the last ten years, Mexican buyers have expressed growing concerns about the quality of U.S. rice. Their concerns led them to begin sourcing rice from other countries such as Uruguay, Thailand, and Argentina. Last year Uruguay unseated the U.S. as the principle supplier of milled rice in Mexico and is increasingly preferred by importers as the quality leader. The current U.S. market share has fallen to 76 percent for all types of rice. This trip was meant to recapture lost U.S. market share by making Mexican importers aware of the higher quality varieties of available U.S. rice.
 |
|
 Under the bright lights at
Mexico City Central Market |
|
The itinerary included meetings with the leadership of major
Mexican companies and buyers who showed interest in sourcing U.S. rice during
the November trade mission. The USA Rice team visited the headquarters of
the top millers, Schettino and Promexa, 22 of the top wholesalers at Mexico
City's Central Market, and the country's top rice packer, Verde Valle.
"It's an honor and a great opportunity to have the USA Rice team at Verde Valle," said German Rosales, the company's president and CEO. "It allows us to compare U.S. rice varieties to the quality that we are looking for and opens the possibility of once again purchasing from this country. We have come to an understanding and gained valuable knowledge from the USA Rice team today." The Verde Valle brand is the gold standard for long grain white rice and previously used U.S. rice in their products until quality concerns forced them to diversify their suppliers. They currently source long grain white rice from Uruguay.
At each stop on the tour, eight samples of U.S. rice were distributed in a blind test, and evaluated by industry experts based on preferred rice characteristics in the Mexican market. The same three varieties were consistently chosen by the testers in every region. The exercise provided overwhelmingly positive feedback that USA Rice will use to further liaise with their Mexican counterparts and provide competitive rice varieties.
"It is obvious from our meetings that most of these companies would like to source higher quality rice from the U.S.," said Linscombe. "The November trade mission and last week's tour should facilitate accomplishing this goal moving forward."
Mexico is the number one export market for paddy rice and number two in milled long grain rice behind Haiti. As of November 2018 the U.S. exported 600,345 MT of all types of rice to the country.
"It's an honor and a great opportunity to have the USA Rice team at Verde Valle," said German Rosales, the company's president and CEO. "It allows us to compare U.S. rice varieties to the quality that we are looking for and opens the possibility of once again purchasing from this country. We have come to an understanding and gained valuable knowledge from the USA Rice team today." The Verde Valle brand is the gold standard for long grain white rice and previously used U.S. rice in their products until quality concerns forced them to diversify their suppliers. They currently source long grain white rice from Uruguay.
At each stop on the tour, eight samples of U.S. rice were distributed in a blind test, and evaluated by industry experts based on preferred rice characteristics in the Mexican market. The same three varieties were consistently chosen by the testers in every region. The exercise provided overwhelmingly positive feedback that USA Rice will use to further liaise with their Mexican counterparts and provide competitive rice varieties.
"It is obvious from our meetings that most of these companies would like to source higher quality rice from the U.S.," said Linscombe. "The November trade mission and last week's tour should facilitate accomplishing this goal moving forward."
Mexico is the number one export market for paddy rice and number two in milled long grain rice behind Haiti. As of November 2018 the U.S. exported 600,345 MT of all types of rice to the country.
 Comparing cooking characteristics
at Verde Valle |
If the ball isn’t dropped, this
just might work
By Nasir Jamal
THE so-called mini-budget, or the economic reforms
package, comprising an array of tax incentives and administrative actions placed before the national assembly last
week has provoked highly polarised commentary on the suggested measures that
seek to boost economic activity and investment.
The supporters of the six-month-old PTI government contend that
Asad Umar, the finance minister, who laid down the proposals for the assembly’s
approval through the second amendment in the finance bill 2018-19, has ‘nailed
it’, arguing that implementation of the package will facilitate industrial
growth, and stimulate a sluggish economy and stagnant exports forthwith.
The critics of the government appear to have taken the other
extreme position, insisting that the measures will put more money into the
pockets of the rich (which government hasn’t done that before?).
They have focused more on what wasn’t part of the proposals: a
plan to control growing fiscal deficit, mounting inter-corporate debt in the
power sector and widening current account gap.
The government’s economic team took its time in rolling out its
economic strategy, but the argument that it does not have a clear policy
direction does not hold water
Many have argued that the government of Prime Minister Imran
Khan has clearly demonstrated the lack of a plan or direction to address these
‘macro issues’ by not tackling them in the mini-budget. Some say the lack of a
strategy to drastically document the economy and increase the tax revenues will
hurt Pakistan’s position in ongoing negotiations with the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout loan deal.
Any government action, policy or decision has to anticipate
criticism. Yet the PTI government has attracted more than its fair share of
criticism for its economic and financial policies owing to a number of
political and economic factors, including growing political division and
declining business confidence in the country.
Indeed, the government’s economic team took its time — in
certain cases longer than expected — in rolling out its economic strategy, but
the argument that it does not have a clear policy direction does not hold
water.
Given the fact that the PTI had inherited a broken economy on
coming into power — the fiscal deficit was mounting, an external sector propped
up on expensive foreign debt was fast unravelling, inflation was going north
and so on — it was but natural for it to take some time in rolling out its
economic and fiscal policies to stabilise the collapsing economy. Last week’s
economic reforms package also needs to be seen in this context.
Ever since it took over the reins, the Imran Khan government
appears to have worked on a two-pronged strategy to steer the economy out of
the deep mess the previous PML-N government had left behind, without
immediately turning to the IMF for its funding needs in an attempt to avoid its
strict conditions.
On the one hand, it went out to stabilise the external sector in
the short-term by arranging much-needed cash from the Gulf States and China to
finance the country’s widening current account gap, and implementing measures
to compress aggregate demand in the economy, mainly through new curbs on
imports, massive currency devaluation and higher interest rates.
On the other, it is trying to pursue a policy that it believes
will help unshackle the manufacturing potential of the country, boost
investments in new industrial projects and increase exports, thus unleashing
growth in the medium to long term.
The latest tax and administrative reforms package for the
industry and agriculture is but a part of the second prong of the government
strategy to deploy supply side, business-friendly and pro-growth policies to
improve market sentiments and put the slowing economy back on the track to
recovery and sustainable growth.
The government has been able to provide some fiscal space for
industrial growth and fresh investment because it did not rush for a bailout
from the IMF as many of us wanted it to. Had it gone for the Fund programme, it
would have found its hands tied as in the case of the previous two governments.
However, it would be naïve to expect the new policies to yield
immediate results. Economic growth is unlikely to pick up pace in the next
couple of years. Also, it will be wrong to assume that enough has been done to
clean up the mess.
The government will have to follow up on the measures so far
announced in the next budget through more reforms aimed at pushing investment
in the manufacturing industry, broadening the tax net and rationalising
unproductive public expenditure, and stabilising the external sector.
A break, however short it is, can reverse the impact of the
whole effort.
Disappointed
farmers
January 28, 2019
THE farmers’ community seems to be
dissatisfied with the measures announced in the second mini-budget of the
fiscal year.
In his speech, Finance Minister
Asad Umar announced a few steps to help the agriculture sector. He incentivised
banks to offer agricultural loans by reducing the tax rate from 39 per cent to
20pc on their interest income. The proposed measures include reducing the Gas
Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) for fertiliser units by half and the
duty-free import of diesel engines for irrigation purposes.
The farming community believes the
mini-budget will not benefit small landholders and that the “economic reforms
agenda” is bereft of measures needed for a turnaround in the sector.
“The sector needs a reduction in
the cost of production and an increase in the small farmers’ access to
financing in the short run. The government should subsidise farm mechanisation
as well as fix support prices at least for major crops in the long run,” says
Khalid Mahmood Khokhar, president of the Pakistan Kissan Ittehad, the
representative body of small landholders.
The agriculture sector requires
policy-level interventions, like aggressive diplomacy to find new international
markets’
Quoting a document of the Punjab
government, he says the cost of production for basmati rice in Pakistan is 34pc
higher than India. It is 37pc, 57pc, 44pc and 34pc higher in the cases of
wheat, cotton, onion and gram.
Mr Khokhar argues that the country
needs to allocate at least 1pc of the agricultural GDP against the present
0.2pc for research because the sector is prone to natural disasters and
requires continuous research to improve farm yield and ensure protection from
pests and diseases.
He notes that the two commodities
that enjoy the support price facility — wheat and sugar cane — are in surplus.
His point is endorsed by Ebadur
Rehman Khan of the Farmers Associates Pakistan. He says the growers need a
better price for their produce more than they need subsidies on inputs.
“Reducing the farm inputs’ cost is a good but temporary step. The sector
requires policy-level interventions, like aggressive diplomacy to find new
markets along with the revival of old ones on the external front and ensuring a
fair and better price to the farmers on the internal front,” he says.
He says that even a reduction of
Rs500 in the price of a bag of fertiliser will bring the small farmer a relief
of only Rs1,000-1,500 per acre. But if the government ensures a stable market
through a support price-like mechanism, the same farmer may increase his
per-acre earnings by around Rs10,000.
Despite being uncompetitive
internationally because of its higher production cost, some of the local
produce may still find clients in the world market because of the
unavailability of alternatives, he insists.
In reference to the lifting of ban
on Pakistani rice by Qatar and China agreeing to import our rice and potato, Mr
Khan says the government should continue its aggressive diplomacy to open new
markets and revive the lost ones. “Our produce like basmati rice, kinno and
mango are unmatched in the world because of their taste,” he says.
The Kissan Board Pakistan (KBP)
believes a fair and just agriculture marketing system along with the timely
payment of official rates to the growers is essential for the agriculture
sector’s development. “Eliminate the role of the middleman by allowing the
growers to directly sell their produce in the market. But no such step was
taken in the two mini-budgets,” says KBP Punjab President Amanullah Chathha.
He says the authorities expect the
farmers to turn to high-value crops like oilseeds without extending any
guarantee about the procurement/marketing of the yield. At the same time, the
government is allowing unchecked imports of poor-quality palm oil, he adds. “The
government needs to revisit its palm oil and dry milk import policies to help
the overstressed oilseed growers and livestock farmers.”
Some observers challenge the
veracity of the projected relief to the farmers’ community.
“The tax incentive for banks won’t
improve the farmers’ access to finance. Loans for agriculture production and
agriculture processing units have been brought under one head since Dr Ishrat
Husain’s stint as governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). In the name of
agriculture, loans are now being offered to feed mills, hatcheries and other
processing units,” says Kissan Rabita Committee Pakistan General Secretary
Farooq Tariq. The duty-free import of diesel engines will likely be misused
because such engines are already being manufactured locally, he adds.
Published in Dawn, The Business and
Finance Weekly, January 28th, 2019
Only a minority of farmers prefer hybrid rice seed
January 28, 2019 | 12:05 am
PHILSTAR
MOST rice farmers in the
Philippines still prefer inbred seed instead of hybrid varieties despite the
latter’s higher yields, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said.
In a briefing, IRRI Plant
Breeding Rice Breeding Platform Senior Scientist II Arvind Kumar said that in
the Philippines, 90% of agricultural lands are planted to inbred seed, and only
10% at most are planted to hybrid varieties.
“Hybrid seed is supposed to give
10% or 15% higher yields as compared to inbred seed provided that farmers have
access to better practices and knowledge about how to manage the hybrid seeds,”
Mr. Kumar said.
According to Mr. Kumar, cost is
also a factor for farmers choosing which seed variety to plant.
“Both inbred and hybrid play [a
role] in rice contribution,” Mr. Kumar said.
“Hybrid is still a bid costlier
than inbred seed. The cost is an effective thing to consider which seed you
select for,” according to Mr. Kumar.
According to IRRI, in choosing a
rice variety, farmers consider grain quality, price at market, optimum yield
potential and stability over seasons, maximum tillering capacity for weed
competition, resistance or tolerance to major diseases, insects and other
stresses, the right growth duration to match the season, and resistance to
lodging under normal management.
Meanwhile, Mr. Kumar said that
IRRI continuously develops rice seed that can withstand climate change, noting
that there are eight drought-tolerant rice seed varieties in the Philippines
available for highland and lowland planting. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio
Duterte ‘ignores’ Dinagyang
invitation
“The safety of the people shall be
the highest law.” – Marcus Tullius Cicero
NEW YORK CITY – Ilonggos shouldn’t
consider it as a big deal that President Rodrigo R. Duterte “ignored” Iloilo
City Hall’s invitation to grace the just-concluded Dinagyang Festival in Iloilo
City in the Philippines.
The president can’t just say yes to
all the invitations in all the festivals and other social, political, religious
and even business gatherings anywhere in the Philippines.
If he accepts one invitation and
rejects another, he will be accused of playing favorites.
January is the month of religious
and cultural festivals.
Iloilo City was only one of the
many cities and municipalities in the Philippines that celebrated the feast of
Senior Santo Niño aside from the Sinulog Festival in Cebu City.
Either his schedule wouldn’t allow
it, or President Duterte probably decided to skip the Dinagyang Festival on
January 25-27, 2019 for security or even health reasons.
The safety of a sitting president
is always a paramount concern over other considerations.
Many Ilonggos still couldn’t forget
when he called Iloilo City as “the most shabulized” and when he threatened to
kill the former mayor, Jed Patrick Mabilog, for being a “protector” of illegal
drugs.
It would have been a security
nightmare for the “overloaded” Regional Police Office 6 (RPO-6) led by Director
John Bulalacao if the president came after being officially invited by Mayor
Jose “Joe III” Espinosa III.
-o0o-
As Iloilo aims to harvest one
million metric tons of rice this year, rice traders in the Philippines are
reportedly set to import about 1.2 million tonnes of the staple food, as the
Southeast Asian country lifts a two-decade-old cap on purchases.
This developed as the National Food
Authority (NFA) has approved initial applications from 180 rice traders for
permits to import a total of 1.186 million tonnes of either 5-percent or
25-percent broken white,
It was also reported that bigger
rice purchases by the Philippines, already one of the world’s top importers and
consumers of the grain, could underpin export prices in Vietnam and Thailand,
traditionally its key suppliers.
According to Reuters, prices in
Vietnam fell last week ahead of the country’s largest harvest this month, while
the Thai market is likely to see additional supply towards the end of January
from the seasonal harvest.
Dr. Sailila E. Abdula, acting
executive director of Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), has
rallied workers to support the upcoming Rice Tariffication Act or currently the
Senate Bill 1998, which aims to replace import restrictions on rice with tariffs.
Abdula said cost-effective
technologies should be further generated for the farmers to survive the
possible influx of cheap rice from the international market.
Under the Senate Bill already
signed by Senate President Vicente Sotto III and House Speaker Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo, PhilRice will annually receive P3 billion for six years,
which will be used for “developing, propagating, and promoting inbred rice
seeds to rice farmers and in organizing rice farmers into seed growers
associations to be engaged in seed production and trade.”
-o0o-
The Family Planning Organization of
Philippines (FPOP) Iloilo Chapter reportedly distributed thousands of condoms
to revelers during the highlight days of the recent Dinagyang Festival in
Iloilo City.
FPOP Iloilo Chapter program manager
Monalisa Diones said they have chosen the festival as a perfect venue to exhort
the revelers to practice safe sex and to spread public awareness against the
rising cases of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immunodeficiency
Syndrome (AIDS) in Iloilo City.
We suggest that FPOP go directly to
the barangays and educate the couples not only to practice safe sex, but also
to minimize producing battalions of babies.
One major reason why many Filipinos
are still wallowing in abject poverty is because of overpopulation.
For lack of proper education and
training, many couples in slum areas continue to transform their households
into bodegas of babies.
The number of mouths to be fed
isn’t proportionate to their income, thus many of them continue to live below
the poverty level despite working like dogs.
Lalmonirhat rice mills lie idle
as govt's paddy purchase scanty
12:00 AM, January 28, 2019 / LAST
MODIFIED: 01:05 AM, January 28, 2019
The crop remains stockpiled with farmers, many labourers go jobless
Two
labourers work at a chatal (paddy drying field) of a rice mill at Uttar Saptana
village in Lalmonirhat Sadar upazila. Photo: Star
Following the government's decision
to procure less rice from the local rice mills (chatal) this year than that of
the previous years, most of the rice mills in the district are idle now.
As a result, a huge number of day
labourers, who earn their livelihood by working as rice mill workers, have become
unemployed this year.
Moreover, as the government does
not intend to procure a large quantity from the rice mills, mill owners are not
showing interest in purchasing paddy from the farmers as well.
According to the District Food
Control Office in Lalmonirhat, about 467 rice mills, including seven auto and
three semi-auto rice mills, are enlisted under the government's rice
procurement scheme this year.
Although the government has a
target to procure 7,958 tonnes of rice from the enlisted rice mill owners by
the end of February this year, about 70 percent of the procurement target has
already been fulfilled.
Rice mill owner Matiar Rahman of
Uttar Saptana village in Sadar upazila said he got allotment of only 10 tonnes
of rice under the procurement scheme this year which is insufficient to run a
mill in full swing.
“As the allotment was three times
more last year, many labourers got job opportunities then but the number of
labourers is almost half this year,” Matiar said.
“As the government has allotted a
very small quantity this year, we are buying limited quantity of paddy from the
farmers,” another rice mill owner Haider Ali of Durakuti village in Aditmari
upazila said.
Nilphamari District Food Controller
Kazi Saifuddin, who is also performing additional duty as Lalmonirhat District
Food Controller, said the government has been purchasing each kilogram of rice
from the mill owners at Tk 36 while it's being sold at Tk 28 in local markets.
“Although the millers got a small
allotment this year, they are getting more profits than that of the previous
year,” Saifuddin said, adding that the government might issue a fresh directive
soon to procure more rice from the millers.
Abdul Karim, a rice mill worker of
Uttar Saptana village, said only four workers are now working in the mill
though the number was eight last year.
“We used to earn Tk 400 to Tk 500
daily on production basis earlier, but we manage to earn only Tk 200 to Tk 250
this year,” Karim said.
“Due to less paddy processing and
rice production work about 50 percent labourers became unemployed this year,”
another worker Shafiqul Islam of the village said.
Thank you China
for smoking: Indian tobacco heads to biggest market
Commerce
Department has secured market access rights for Indian tobacco in China- the
global leader in smoking
Subhayan Chakraborty
| New Delhi Last Updated at January 28, 2019 21:18 IST
37
Hemmed in by increasingly
restrictive policies and changing social mindset, Indian tobacco growers
may find solace soon in sending out shipments to China, the nation with the
highest number of smokers globally.The decision was taken during a two-day
visit by Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan to
Beijing last week, the government said on Monday. In a meeting with Zhang
Jiwen, Vice Minister of General Administration of China Customs (GACC), India
has pushed rights for market access and sought to calm Chinese concerns over
quarantine issues for agriculture and allied products.
Quality tobacco on a par with
international standards is available in India at competitive prices and there
is good potential for export of Indian tobacco to
China, according to the government. The revival of the phytosanitary protocol
with China is expected to boost tobacco exports to China and prove economically
beneficial to Indian farmers.
India exported a total $934 billion
worth of tobacco - both raw and processed as well as manufactured products like
cigarettes - and tobacco substitutes in 2017-18. A majority of these headed to
Belgium and the United Arab Emirates, with only a negligible amount finding its
way to India’s northern neighbour.
China is a smokers’ paradise, with
more than 300 million smokers (nearly one-third of the world’s total), making
it the largest market for tobacco. According to the World Health Organization,
about one in every three cigarettes smoked in the world is sold in China. A
mind-boggling 2.3 trillion cigarettes were consumed in China in 2009 – more
than in the other top 4 tobacco-consuming countries (Indonesia, Japan, the
Russian Federation, and the US) combined, it adds.
The international arm of China’s
gigantic state tobacco monopoly, China National Tobacco Corp, is planning on
going public. Documents necessary for an initial public offering were recently
submitted by it in Hong Kong.
Market access push
Talks on allowing market access to
Indian agri produce gained pace last year after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan. Subsequently, a protocol on exports
of non-basmati rice was signed in June, while the GACC has also approved six
Indian mills for export of rapeseed meal. Finally, the protocol on exports of
fish meal and fish oil was signed during the visit of China’s Vice Minister of
GACC to New Delhi in November 2018.
The GACC has also deputed experts
to inspect Indian soybean meal establishments and pomegranate orchards and pack
houses in December 2018. The SPS Protocols for these products are at an
advanced stage of negotiation, the government said.
In the latest meet, the government has
requested Beijing to expedite market access for other products like okra,
soybean, bovine meat, and dairy products.
India’s trade deficit with China
hit a historic high of $63 billion in the last financial year.
Business Standard
Thank you
China for smoking: Indian tobacco heads to biggest market
Commerce
Department has secured market access rights for Indian tobacco in China- the
global leader in smoking
Subhayan Chakraborty
| New Delhi Last Updated at January 28, 2019 21:18 IST
37
Hemmed in by increasingly
restrictive policies and changing social mindset, Indian tobacco growers
may find solace soon in sending out shipments to China, the nation with the
highest number of smokers globally.
The decision was taken during a
two-day visit by Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan to
Beijing last week, the government said on Monday. In a meeting with Zhang
Jiwen, Vice Minister of General Administration of China Customs (GACC), India
has pushed rights for market access and sought to calm Chinese concerns over
quarantine issues for agriculture and allied products.
Quality tobacco on a par with
international standards is available in India at competitive prices and there
is good potential for export of Indian tobacco to
China, according to the government. The revival of the phytosanitary protocol
with China is expected to boost tobacco exports to China and prove economically
beneficial to Indian farmers.
India exported a total $934 billion
worth of tobacco - both raw and processed as well as manufactured products like
cigarettes - and tobacco substitutes in 2017-18. A majority of these headed to
Belgium and the United Arab Emirates, with only a negligible amount finding its
way to India’s northern neighbour.
China is a smokers’ paradise, with
more than 300 million smokers (nearly one-third of the world’s total), making
it the largest market for tobacco. According to the World Health Organization,
about one in every three cigarettes smoked in the world is sold in China. A mind-boggling
2.3 trillion cigarettes were consumed in China in 2009 – more than in the other
top 4 tobacco-consuming countries (Indonesia, Japan, the Russian Federation,
and the US) combined, it adds.
The international arm of China’s
gigantic state tobacco monopoly, China National Tobacco Corp, is planning on
going public. Documents necessary for an initial public offering were recently
submitted by it in Hong Kong.
Market access push
Talks on allowing market access to
Indian agri produce gained pace last year after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan. Subsequently, a protocol on exports
of non-basmati rice was signed in June, while the GACC has also approved six
Indian mills for export of rapeseed meal. Finally, the protocol on exports of
fish meal and fish oil was signed during the visit of China’s Vice Minister of
GACC to New Delhi in November 2018.
The GACC has also deputed experts
to inspect Indian soybean meal establishments and pomegranate orchards and pack
houses in December 2018. The SPS Protocols for these products are at an
advanced stage of negotiation, the government said.
In the latest meet, the government
has requested Beijing to expedite market access for other products like okra,
soybean, bovine meat, and dairy products.
India’s trade deficit with China
hit a historic high of $63 billion in the last financial year.
What is the
lowdown on zearalenone in cereals?
JANUARY 26, 2019 21:11 IST
MORE-IN
What is it?
Zearalenone is a fungal toxin
infesting cereals such as wheat, maize and barley. It attacks crops while they
are growing, but can also develop when cereals are stored without being dried
fully. While numerous studies document this toxin in cereals across the world,
no data existed for India until now. This month, a Journal
of Food Science study detected zearalenone in wheat, rice,
corn and oats from markets in Uttar Pradesh. The study, by researchers from
Lucknow’s Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (IITR), found the substance
in 70 of the 117 samples tested. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of
India does not impose maximum limits for zearalenone, though the European Union
(EU) does. Twenty-four of the U.P. samples exceeded the EU regulatory limits of
100-200 mcg/kg of cereals. Based on this, the authors say India should set
limits on zearalenone in cereals. “It is definitely a worry,” Mukul Das, a food
toxicologist at the IITR and an author of the study, told The
Hindu.
How did it come about?
Fungal toxins are commonly found
in food, and can be a public health concern, says Vasanthi Siriguri, a
researcher at Hyderabad’s National Institute of Nutrition, who was not involved
in the study. India regulates the levels of some of these, including aflatoxin,
deoxynivalenol, ergot and patulin. The first three infest cereals, while
patulin is found in apples. Each of these toxins has been associated with
disease outbreaks. For example, in 1974, a hepatitis outbreak in Rajasthan and
Gujarat, which made 398 people sick and killed 106, was linked to aflatoxin in
maize. Meanwhile, chronic aflatoxin consumption has been shown to cause liver
cancer. Given this, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
classifies aflatoxin as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning there is enough evidence
for its carcinogenicity. In zearalenone’s case, there is no strong evidence of
toxicity in humans so far, though several research groups are investigating,
says Dr. Siriguri. As a result, the IARC classifies it as a Group 3 carcinogen,
which means evidence is not sufficient for an evaluation yet.
Why does it matter?
Zearalenone behaves like
oestrogen, the female sex hormone, and could cause endocrine disturbances in
humans. Its nasty effects in animals, such as pigs, are documented. When fed
with mouldy corn, pigs develop inflamed vaginas, infertility and other
symptoms. This is why countries like Brazil regulate zearalenone levels in animal
feed. In humans, the data are fuzzier. It is probably dangerous to humans too,
but to be certain, we need to know how much humans consume, how it is
metabolised, and how exposure is correlated with disease. Some experiments
suggest its ill-effects: in one, when oestrogen-sensitive breast cancer cells
were exposed to the chemical in a lab, they proliferated. In 2014, a Tunisian
case-control study found a correlation between a zearalenone metabolite in
urine and breast-cancer risk in women. But other studies did not find similar
links. In the Journal of Food Science study,
Dr. Das and colleagues also looked at National Sample Survey Office data on
Indian diets to calculate how much zearalenone people could be consuming. They
found that average daily consumption through wheat and rice was 0.27 and 0.3
mcg/kg of body weight — higher than the EU limit of 0.25 mcg/kg. In highly
contaminated samples, exposure could be as high as 16.9 times the EU limit.
What next?
Dr. Siriguri says more data are
needed from cereals in other States, and from other storage conditions, before
India decides to set limits. Since zearalenone favours cool climates, such
contamination could be limited to a few States. Also, strong epidemiological
data linking human zearalenone levels with diseases such as breast cancer are
important. The paper is an excellent starting point, since nothing was known
about the chemical in India so far. It is time to build upon it.
The article has been edited to correct a factual error. An earlier
version of the copy said, For example, in 1974, a hepatitis outbreak in
Rajasthan and Gujarat, which made 398 people sick and killed 106, was linked to
aflatoxin in wheat instead of maize.
Rice farmgate prices drop
Government has reduced rice
farmgate prices in a move that has raised the prospects of a dip in revenues
for farmers. Last week, the Ministry of Trade and Industry set new farmgate
prices for short gain rice at Rwf270 and Rwf290 for long grain rice. This means
that farmers will now get Rwf18 less for a kilogramme of short grain rice and
Rwf8 less for long grain rice compared to the previous season. Apollinaire
Gahiza, the president of Rice Farmers’ Federation (FUCORIRWA), told The
New Times that the new prices imply that, overall, a
farmer will get about 20 per cent in profits compared to the investment they
made, which reflects a reduction of five percentage points. Cassien Karangwa,
the Director of Domestic Trade at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, said that
was triggered by complains from processing factories saying that they had
witnessed high supply from framers yet they still had stock from last season.
According to the ministry, as at January 8, 2019 rice processing firms across
the country had an estimated stock of 5,000 tonnes of short grain rice and
1,600 tonnes of long grain rice carried forward from the previous season. The
ministry and analysts say the reduction in rice farmgate prices was also caused
by changing consumer behaviours, with more and more people resorting to other
staple foods such as cassava, bananas and corn. Last year, Rwanda produced
113,880 tonnes of rice, up from 83,338 tonnes in 2017, according to information
from the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources. Yet the country produces
more than 1.12 million tonnes of cassava in 2018 from 1.04 million in 2017 as
banana yields rose from 724,544 tonnes to 759,696 tonnes in the period under
review. Production of Irish potato increased to 835,576 tonnes in 2018, from
776,722 tonnes in 2017 while maize yields increased to 424,204 tonnes from
357,665 tonnes. Now with the rise in the output of other staples, consumers
prefer more affordable commodities. “The Government sets minimum rice price
to protect farmers’ interests so that they do not incur losses that might be
caused by their weak bargaining power. Also, putting in place minimum prices
helps farmers have contracts with agro processing factories as well as banks as
it helps to make reliable estimates of finance based on projected production,”
he said. While government intervenes in setting farmgate prices, it does not
have control over commodity prices in the retail market, leaving it to be
determined by market forces. Peter Uwamahoro, the Vice Chairman of Rwanda Forum
of Rice Millers, told The New Times that while the prices that
were set last year were favourable for farmers, they did not cater for the
interests of rice millers whose business expenses were high. “We were expecting
to sell a 25 kilogramme sack of short grain rice at between Rwf14,500 and
Rwf15,000, but we ended up selling it at Rwf12,500,” Uwamahoro said. He added
that the factory price for a sack of 25 kilogramme for short grain rice is
Rwf16,000, some Rwf1, 000 lower than it was projected. Short grain rice—locally
known as Kigori—is the one which is attracting low demand from
milling firms, a situation that is partly blamed on quality. Gahiza said that
only between 30 and 40 per cent of the rice the farmers grow is long grain.
“Long grain rice does not develop well in cold areas. So, we are telling
farmers who have farmland suitable for such a variety to grow it based on the
factories’ demand. We want to have 70 per cent of rice production occupied by
long grain variety,” he said.
Local demand for rice increases
There
is an increase in the demand for rice for local consumption.
To
help address the issue, the Agriculture ministry is working to identify areas
suitable for rice farming. Rewa Senior Agriculture Officer Mohammed Khan says
they also have training strategies and incentives for farmers who wish to
utilize their land for rice farming. Khan says this will also contribute to the
sustainable food security in the country and for commercial use. “Government
has been working had for food security – rice which is consumed at and is the
number 1 edible food for most in Fiji because of our eating habit now, we are
moving away from root crops and so forth.” Khan says the Chinese
government has also put in place incentives to support local rice farmers. The
ministry has identified 15,000 hectares in the Rewa Delta ideal for rice farming
in the Central Division.
Date: 28-Jan-2019
Only a minority of farmers prefer
hybrid rice seed
MOST rice farmers in the
Philippines still prefer inbred seed instead of hybrid varieties despite the
latter’s higher yields, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said.
In a briefing, IRRI Plant Breeding Rice Breeding Platform Senior Scientist II
Arvind Kumar said that in the Philippines, 90% of agricultural lands are
planted to inbred seed, and only 10% at most are planted to hybrid varieties.
“Hybrid seed is supposed to give 10% or 15% higher yields as compared to inbred
seed provided that farmers have access to better practices and knowledge about
how to manage the hybrid seeds,” Mr. Kumar said. According to Mr. Kumar, cost
is also a factor for farmers choosing which seed variety to plant. “Both inbred
and hybrid play [a role] in rice contribution,” Mr. Kumar said.
“Hybrid is still a bid costlier
than inbred seed. The cost is an effective thing to consider which seed you
select for,” according to Mr. Kumar. According to IRRI, in choosing a rice
variety, farmers consider grain quality, price at market, optimum yield
potential and stability over seasons, maximum tillering capacity for weed
competition, resistance or tolerance to major diseases, insects and other
stresses, the right growth duration to match the season, and resistance to
lodging under normal management. Meanwhile, Mr. Kumar said that IRRI
continuously develops rice seed that can withstand climate change, noting that
there are eight drought-tolerant rice seed varieties in the Philippines
available for highland and lowland planting. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio
Rice exports to China: pipedream or reality?
The ITC data indicate that China imported about $2 billion worth of rice in 2017, most of which is sourced from ASEAN countries. Pakistan’s share in China’s rice imports import was an insignificant 5 percent. Similarly, China’s share as a percentage of total rice exports of Pakistan in FY18 was 7 percent, as per SBP data.In a recent conference held in Karachi, Razaq Dawood indicated that this skew would be addressed. Rice and sugar were highlighted as two exports which would lead the $1 billion increase in exports to China. Keeping sugar aside for the moment, the potential of increase in rice exports has to be considered.
On one hand, ASEAN countries have a significant advantage over
Pakistan’s exports in terms of tariffs. As a rice producing country, China has
put rice on its no concession list under the Pakistan China Free Trade
Agreement (PCFTA). Pakistan’s exports face 65 percent tariffs. On the other
hand, ASEAN China FTA (ACFTA) allows rice imports at an average tariff of 31
percent.
This barrier is one of the
several that have prevented any real increase in the export of rice to China.
Pakistan is not the only country trying to get a bigger piece of the Chinese
pie. India has also been pushing China to increase rice imports to correct the
trade deficit which is in the latter’s favour.
China’s preferred rice variety
from Pakistan is long grained non-basmati. Even if China is willing to buy
rice, with or without adjusting tariffs, there needs to be sufficient supply
available for the exports to take place. Exports worth $1 billion translate
roughly into 2 million tons of rice with PBS data putting FY18’s total rice
exports at 4.1 million tons that fetched $2 billion.
Despite the hurdles, one of
Pakistan’s leading rice exporting companies, Matco’s views were positive on the
matter. While the $1 billion increase in rice exports may not be realized in
FY19, the next 2-3 years could see the high number come to fruition.
Speaking to BR Research, Faizan
Ghouri, director of the vertically integrated Matco, talked about the need for
improvements on the agri-side. Seeds here have good yields but high postharvest
damage reduces quality and quantity.
Not only is there lack of milling
infrastructure, there is also grain damage of drying equipment. A source in
REAP lamented weather change which has made field drying of paddy less
effective. Less sunlight during winters in Punjab increases the need for more
dryers to prevent rise in aflatoxin levels. Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring
toxin that can cause damage to health. Various countries have various
acceptable limits with EU arguable having the toughest (meaning lowest) acceptable
limit. (For more details read “Fungi, toxins, and basmati exports” published
on January 15, 2019)
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
While, Ghouri opined that $500 million in 2-3 years is a realistic figure to target it cannot be achieved without government support.
The rice sector does not need
subsidies to become export competitive, but it does need infrastructural
support to be able to increase volume by 50 percent in a short time frame.
Egypt’s GASC tender attracts 4
offers for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice – traders
CAIRO,
Jan 27 (Reuters) - Egypt’s state grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply
Commodities (GASC), on Sunday received four offers at its first international
purchase tender for rice for arrival March 20-April 20 and/or April 1-30,
traders said. The offers presented were for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian
rice, the traders said. GASC said it was seeking white rice with 10 percent to
12 percent broken parts on a cost, insurance and freight (CIF) basis. Each
bidder should present samples alongside its offer to be tested by the Ministry
of Agriculture. (Reporting by Nadine Awadalla, Maha El Dahan and Michael Hogan;
Writing by Nadine Awadalla; Editing by Mark Potter)
VENTURE
INTO RICE PRODUCTION-GOVT
Government has called on investors to invest in Rice production
and value addition in Western Province.
Agriculture Minister Michael Katambo says attraction of
investments in the rice industry in Western Province is important because of
the region’s favorable climatic conditions for the crop.
Speaking when he toured Namushakende Farm Institute in Mongu
that is producing various rice seed varieties, Mr. Katambo observed that
increased investment in the sector will attract some out-grower schemes were
farmers would be empowered to grow the crop.
Mr. Katambo said increased investments in Rice production and
value addition will also help create market linkages for farmers within the
region through the formation of bulking centers.
He stated that the production of rice seed varieties at
Namushakende Farm Institute needs to be replicated in other provinces that are into
rice production.
And Western Province Agricultural Coordinator Roy Lumamba said
the province has great potential for rice production due to availability of
water in the Zambezi flood plains.
Meanwhile, Namushakende Farm Institute Principal Chama Mwila
said the institute has this year embarked on production of rice varieties only,
and that 10 hectares has so far been planted.
UK-Thailand research yields rice
progress
opinion January 29, 2019 01:00
By Brian Davidson
Special to the Nation
Special to the Nation
Science
and innovation is at the forefront of the modern partnership between Thailand
and the UK. Both countries recognise the importance of strong science as key to
our continuing development and prosperity. We also recognise the importance of
international collaboration to accelerate the pace of scientific
discovery.
This
international collaboration is exemplified by the Newton UK-Thailand Research
and Innovation Partnership Fund. Launched in 2014, the Fund is supporting up to
Bt325 million worth of joint science and innovation activities – and is jointly
funded by both the UK and Thailand.
Under
the Partnership Fund, the UK and Thai governments support a diverse range of
world class science. This includes research on human and animal health,
agriculture; resilience against drought and other extreme weather, as well as
the promotion of innovation and entrepreneurship. This work helps to tackle
difficult global challenges, as well as supporting Thailand 4.0, the Kingdom’s
ambitious economic development strategy.
Earlier
this month, Thailand’s National Science and Technology Development Agency
(NSTDA) and the UK’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
(BBSRC), hosted a workshop in Bangkok on sustainable rice production. The
workshop brought together scientists from the UK, Thailand, China, the
Philippines and Vietnam to discuss the outcomes of their joint research, which
was funded through the Sustainable Rice Research Initiative under the Newton
Fund.
After
three years of research, initial findings look promising. The researchers are
helping to make rice production more resilient to the growing risks of climate
change, ensuring it will continue to play its vital role as a staple food in
both Thailand and the region. The burning of rice straw is also a major
contributor to pollution and greenhouse gases, and researchers are looking
closely at the alternatives.
At the
workshop in Bangkok, Deputy Prime Minister Prajin Jantong presented awards to
some of the most exciting and innovative projects in the initiative. He spoke
about the importance of rice to the Thai economy and the Thai people, as well
as to consumers around the world. He also spoke about the importance of
research into improvements to the way rice is bred and grown, so that it can be
more resilient to the threats of pests, climate change and weather
extremes.
This
Sustainable Rice Research Initiative has brought together UK and Thai
scientific excellence, with partners from around the region, to improve our
understanding of a crop which is vital for health and economic wellbeing. I
look forward to further work under the Newton UK-Thailand Research and
Innovation Partnership Fund in other, equally important, areas of science and
innovation, and to continuing to deepen our research and innovation cooperation
with Thailand.
Brian Davidson is British ambassador to Thailand.
Internal reform needed to survive
tariffs: Ministry
Sok
Chan / Khmer Times
With the recent imposition of
tariffs by the European Union, the local rice sector needs to focus on
enhancing competitiveness by increasing efficiency and reducing costs, the
Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement this week.
Creating a high-quality fragrant
rice seed must also be a priority, the ministry noted, calling on government
agencies and research institutes to continue studies and on the private sector
to help fund this research.
The statement highlights the need
to streamline import procedures for fertilizers and pesticides, as well as to
reduce the time it takes to conduct quality inspections, which will save
exporters time and help them reduce costs.
. .
“Exporters must ensure the purity
of their fragrant rice and make sure it is not mixed with other varieties,” the
statement reads. “This is necessary to protect trust on our products.”
According to the statement, the
ministry will provide technical support to industry players to increase yields
and slash expenses.
The announcement mentions that
the European Union re-imposed tariffs on rice imports from Cambodia this month,
adding that the tax will make Cambodian rice more expensive and thus less
competitive in Europe.
“To face the new tariffs imposed
by the EU, the sector must strengthen the competitiveness of their products and
reduce production costs,” the announcement notes.
Chan Pich, general manager of
Signatures of Asia, told Khmer Times that the government must help industry
player reduce costs.
. .
“The government should consider
lowering electricity tariffs, while encouraging lower interest rates and lower
logistics costs.
“We also ask the government to
build warehouses near railway stations, which will facilitate the transport of
rice,” Mr Pich said.
Ouk Makara, director of the
Cambodian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI), a body of
the Ministry of Agriculture, told Khmer Times that his institution is working
on creating high-quality fragrant rice seeds.
He said the institution has
already produced a foundation seed resilient against droughts and floods.
Last year, Cambodia exported
626,225 tonnes of rice to international markets, a drop of 1.5 percent compared
to 2017.
. .
Local firms exported mainly three
types of rice: fragrant rice (493,597 tonnes shipped, or 78.82 percent of total
rice exports), long-grain white rice (105,990 tonnes, or 16.93 percent), and
long-grain parboiled rice (26,638 tonnes, or 4.25 percent).
IGAU develops three new rice
varieties
Source:
The Hitavada Date: 29 Jan 2019 11:44:38
|
Staff Reporter,
RAIPUR,
Developed by the Indira Gandhi
Agriculture University (IGAU), Raipur, Central Variety Release Committee has
released three new varieties of rice for Chhattisgarh.
These three varieties are named ‘Trombay Chhattisgarh Dubraj Mutant-1, Chhattisgarh Devbhog and Chhattisgarh Zinc Rice-2. These varieties were notified for the State of Chhattisgarh taking in view the suitability, high production capacity, quality, nutrient value, resilience to insects and diseases, capacity to survive hostile weather conditions, medicine and other characteristics at Indian Institute of Rice Research, Hyderabad, recently. Chhattisgarh State Seeds Sub-Committee had already approved these varieties.
These three varieties are named ‘Trombay Chhattisgarh Dubraj Mutant-1, Chhattisgarh Devbhog and Chhattisgarh Zinc Rice-2. These varieties were notified for the State of Chhattisgarh taking in view the suitability, high production capacity, quality, nutrient value, resilience to insects and diseases, capacity to survive hostile weather conditions, medicine and other characteristics at Indian Institute of Rice Research, Hyderabad, recently. Chhattisgarh State Seeds Sub-Committee had already approved these varieties.
Salient features of these varieties are as follows: Trombay Chhattisgarh Dubraj Mutant-1 is the first variety developed using Gama Radiation induced mutation with the assistance of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai. It’s a medium dwarf variety which qualitatively alike Dubraj. It was developed considering the popularity of the Dubraj. It grows up to 90 to 95 centimeters derived from the local Dubraj which grows around 135 to 150 cm, which affects production and quality due to lodging. Its fertilising capacity is also quite good, which is found at 47 quintals per hectare at national-level. Its yield is quite high even with less fertilizer. The variety has been recommended for irrigated state.
Second variety of Chhattisgarh Devbhog has been developed through the process of selection, in which seeds of Swarna and Jirasankar varieties were selected as Germinatives for cross germination. Its yield is around 45 to 50 quintals per hectare within 135 to 140 days. This variety has a rice producing capacity of 67.6 per cent. This has been recommended for irrigated state in Chhattisgarh.
Chhattisgarh Zinc Rice-2 has been developed with the bio-certified technique. With 22-24 ppm Zinc content, this is a premium variety. It’s a small grain variety, which is tasty to eat. It has been found 42 quintal per hectare yield, higher than other nutri-rich varieties at national level. It also has higher rice bran oil content than other varieties. High content of zinc makes it nutritious and makes it suitable in controlling diarrhoea in younger children. It was developed by adopting the pedigree after the cross germination of IR-68144-B-18-2-1-1 and PKV HMT.
JANUARY 27, 2019 / 6:20 PM / 2 DAYS AGO
UPDATE 1-Egypt's GASC
tender attracts 4 offers for Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice - traders
CAIRO,
Jan 27 (Reuters) - Egypt’s state grain buyer, the General Authority for Supply
Commodities (GASC), on Sunday received four offers at its first international
purchase tender for rice in 2019, traders said.The offers presented were for
Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian rice, the traders said.GASC said it was seeking
white rice with 10 percent to 12 percent broken parts on a cost, insurance and
freight (CIF) basis for arrival March 20-April 20 and/or April 1-30. Each
bidder should present samples alongside its offer to be tested by the Ministry
of Agriculture.
Traders
gave the following breakdown of the offers presented, however prices were not
immediately available:
*
Hakan: 20,000 tonnes of Indian rice for arrival from April 1-30
*
Mufaddal: 25,000 tonnes of Vietnamese rice for arrival from April 1-30
*
Wakalex: 20,000 tonnes of Chinese rice for arrival from March 20 - April 20 and
48,000 tonnes of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30
* Al
Amal: 20,000 tonnes of Chinese rice for arrival from April 1-30 (Reporting by
Nadine Awadalla, Maha El Dahan and Michael Hogan; Writing by Nadine Awadalla;
Editing by Mark Potter) https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-shutdown-nativeamericans/we-know-how-to-survive-but-u-s-shutdown-cut-deep-for-native-americans-idUSKCN1PN18G
India, China hold talks on
providing market access to domestic products
PTI|Jan
28, 2019, 02.29 PM IST
NEW
DELHI: India and China have held wide ranging discussions on various issues,
including providing market access to domestic products in the neighbouring
country, the commerce ministry said Monday.
The meeting was held last week in Beijing between Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan and Vice-Minister of General Administration of China Customs (GACC) Zhang Jiwen.
Both the countries have signed a protocol for exporting non-basmati rice, fish meal and fish oil to China, it said.
GACC has also approved six Indian mills for export of rapeseed meal to China, it added.
Both the nations have also inked a protocol to export Indian tobacco leaves to China, which is the largest consumer and producer of tobacco with over 350 million smokers - the world's highest.
These developments assume significance as India wants to increase exports to China with a view to bridge the ballooning trade deficit, which has increased to USD 63.12 billion in 2017-18 from USD 51.08 billion in the previous fiscal.
The meeting was held last week in Beijing between Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan and Vice-Minister of General Administration of China Customs (GACC) Zhang Jiwen.
Both the countries have signed a protocol for exporting non-basmati rice, fish meal and fish oil to China, it said.
GACC has also approved six Indian mills for export of rapeseed meal to China, it added.
Both the nations have also inked a protocol to export Indian tobacco leaves to China, which is the largest consumer and producer of tobacco with over 350 million smokers - the world's highest.
These developments assume significance as India wants to increase exports to China with a view to bridge the ballooning trade deficit, which has increased to USD 63.12 billion in 2017-18 from USD 51.08 billion in the previous fiscal.
Telangana’s
FPC overcomes challenges to bring handsome profits to Kamareddy small farmers
By Gargi Parsai
Kamareddy (Telangana), Jan 27 (UNI) Overcoming challenges of dry land and formidable middle-men, a Farmers Producer Company with membership from 23 Telangana villages in Kamareddy district here has notched up a profit of over Rs 5 lakh in the sixth year of its formation, bringing handsome income to its individual growers including women.
The FPC--Kamareddy Progressive Farmers Producer Company Limited (KPFPCL)-- did not only empower growers but also effectively addressed agrarian distress in back-of-the-beyond villages in a rainfed, arid zone.
The financial success of the company reflected in the smile of Kadham Laxmibai, the secretary of a mandal who shared with this correspondent as part of a visiting media team here last week, how she, as a member of a Village Association cluster and member of FPC, was able to repay a loan of Rs 1 lakh and was able to marry off her daughters, which seems like a dream to her.
She said her farm income had increased 30 per cent annually as also for other farmers, many of who had started taking three crops in a year. There are no farmers suicides in the district, she told UNI.
Indeed in the last five years, the yields of major crops such as soyabean, maize and paddy have almost doubled enhancing farmers income.
Watershed approach helped recharge of groundwater and ensuring ecological and nutrition security for villagers who were initiated into forming Village Associations (and Village Development Plans) by the Reliance Foundation under its Rural Transformation--Bharat-India-Jodo—initiative in 140 villages in the district.
The plan is to bring 14000 hectares of dry land in the region into cultivable area and so far about 9000 ha including about 2000 ha in Kamareddy district has been made cultivable through various interventions especial in water and resource conservation.
``Our objective is to bring holistic and sustainable rural transformation. FPO is the last-mile connectivity to the market.,’’ said Rama Krishna Yarlagadda, RF Programme Integrator for the Southern Region.
He said their organisation encourages farmers to form Village Associations. ``We don’t tell them what to grow but help them identify their critical challenges be it roads, ponds, electricity, water, farm inputs, machinery, markets and so on.
``They bring their own contributions and do shram daan as well. We ask them to contribute for development of the community as a whole and encourage them to set up a village development fund. We orient then to government schemes and funds and help them to avail funds and services,’’ he said.
Ashutosh Deshpande, the Project Lead looking after Market Linkage said just recently the RF helped KPFPCL avail a grant of Rs 10 lakh from the Small Farmers Agriculture Consortium. They also help them with licences and certification.
With the financial help, the FPO has moved away from custom hiring of combines and was able to buy their own combine harvesters. They also serve as aggregators for selling produce at the Minimum Support Price to the Civil Supplies Department of the Telangana Government.
For now, depending upon produce it is sold to solvent factories (soyabean), poultry feed manufacturers or rice millers etc.
There are envious middle-men and domestic traders who try to put a spoke but the strength of KPFPCL is the unity amongst its 2213 members who are share holders.
For Amrutha Mohan Rao, a small farmers in Lingampally village, his joining a Village Association was a boon as he was abe to develop his arid land using soil water conservation activities such as trench-cum-bunding, creation of a farm pond and silt application.
He not only started taking two crops in a year but because of fodder cultivation he could raise dairy animals. ``I have reduced the cost of cultivation and increased my profit with the use of micro irrigation like sprinklers and drip irrigation.’’ he told the visiting media persons.
This back-of-the-beyond village has now become a progressive village and attained for itself a panchayat to which the Chairman of KPFPCL Chandar Rao was elected unopposed.
A unique feature of this earlier water-scarce village smart-card operated RO water services to villages at the cost of Rs 3 per filling of a can of 20 litres.
However, the time for baby steps is over. KPFPCL is now eyeing bigger markets and even exports. Chander Rao hopes to increase shareholder farmers from 2213 to 10,000 by 2025 and achieve a turnover of Rs 50 crore annually.
The Foundation, which worked as a facilitator and provided seed money, is ready to bow out as it sees this FPC as ``replicable and scalable’’.
Kamareddy (Telangana), Jan 27 (UNI) Overcoming challenges of dry land and formidable middle-men, a Farmers Producer Company with membership from 23 Telangana villages in Kamareddy district here has notched up a profit of over Rs 5 lakh in the sixth year of its formation, bringing handsome income to its individual growers including women.
The FPC--Kamareddy Progressive Farmers Producer Company Limited (KPFPCL)-- did not only empower growers but also effectively addressed agrarian distress in back-of-the-beyond villages in a rainfed, arid zone.
The financial success of the company reflected in the smile of Kadham Laxmibai, the secretary of a mandal who shared with this correspondent as part of a visiting media team here last week, how she, as a member of a Village Association cluster and member of FPC, was able to repay a loan of Rs 1 lakh and was able to marry off her daughters, which seems like a dream to her.
She said her farm income had increased 30 per cent annually as also for other farmers, many of who had started taking three crops in a year. There are no farmers suicides in the district, she told UNI.
Indeed in the last five years, the yields of major crops such as soyabean, maize and paddy have almost doubled enhancing farmers income.
Watershed approach helped recharge of groundwater and ensuring ecological and nutrition security for villagers who were initiated into forming Village Associations (and Village Development Plans) by the Reliance Foundation under its Rural Transformation--Bharat-India-Jodo—initiative in 140 villages in the district.
The plan is to bring 14000 hectares of dry land in the region into cultivable area and so far about 9000 ha including about 2000 ha in Kamareddy district has been made cultivable through various interventions especial in water and resource conservation.
``Our objective is to bring holistic and sustainable rural transformation. FPO is the last-mile connectivity to the market.,’’ said Rama Krishna Yarlagadda, RF Programme Integrator for the Southern Region.
He said their organisation encourages farmers to form Village Associations. ``We don’t tell them what to grow but help them identify their critical challenges be it roads, ponds, electricity, water, farm inputs, machinery, markets and so on.
``They bring their own contributions and do shram daan as well. We ask them to contribute for development of the community as a whole and encourage them to set up a village development fund. We orient then to government schemes and funds and help them to avail funds and services,’’ he said.
Ashutosh Deshpande, the Project Lead looking after Market Linkage said just recently the RF helped KPFPCL avail a grant of Rs 10 lakh from the Small Farmers Agriculture Consortium. They also help them with licences and certification.
With the financial help, the FPO has moved away from custom hiring of combines and was able to buy their own combine harvesters. They also serve as aggregators for selling produce at the Minimum Support Price to the Civil Supplies Department of the Telangana Government.
For now, depending upon produce it is sold to solvent factories (soyabean), poultry feed manufacturers or rice millers etc.
There are envious middle-men and domestic traders who try to put a spoke but the strength of KPFPCL is the unity amongst its 2213 members who are share holders.
For Amrutha Mohan Rao, a small farmers in Lingampally village, his joining a Village Association was a boon as he was abe to develop his arid land using soil water conservation activities such as trench-cum-bunding, creation of a farm pond and silt application.
He not only started taking two crops in a year but because of fodder cultivation he could raise dairy animals. ``I have reduced the cost of cultivation and increased my profit with the use of micro irrigation like sprinklers and drip irrigation.’’ he told the visiting media persons.
This back-of-the-beyond village has now become a progressive village and attained for itself a panchayat to which the Chairman of KPFPCL Chandar Rao was elected unopposed.
A unique feature of this earlier water-scarce village smart-card operated RO water services to villages at the cost of Rs 3 per filling of a can of 20 litres.
However, the time for baby steps is over. KPFPCL is now eyeing bigger markets and even exports. Chander Rao hopes to increase shareholder farmers from 2213 to 10,000 by 2025 and achieve a turnover of Rs 50 crore annually.
The Foundation, which worked as a facilitator and provided seed money, is ready to bow out as it sees this FPC as ``replicable and scalable’’.
Korean rice consumption falls to all-time low in 2018
· Published
: Jan 28, 2019 - 14:01
· Updated
: Jan 28, 2019 - 14:01
Per capita rice consumption in
South Korea dropped to a record low in 2018, data showed Monday, although the
rate of decrease slowed compared with recent years on the back of the
popularity of ready-to-eat meals.
According to the data by Statistics Korea, the average annual consumption of rice per person came to 61 kilograms last year, down from 61.8 kg posted in 2017.
According to the data by Statistics Korea, the average annual consumption of rice per person came to 61 kilograms last year, down from 61.8 kg posted in 2017.
 |
(Yonhap)
|
Rice is a key staple food for Koreans, but its consumption has been on a decline since 1980, when it reached 132.7 kg. The figure came to 136.4 kg in 1970.
The on-year drop of 1.3 percent in 2018 accelerated from the 0.2 percent annual dip posted in 2017, but the figure was lower compared with the average on-year decline of 1.79 percent posted for the 2008-2017 period, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said.
The ministry said the rice consumption is contracting at a slower pace as the government started to include one-member households in the survey in 2017, with more people consuming ready-to-eat meals that are eaten with rice, such as soups and stews.
The ministry, however, said it still needs to closely monitor rice market developments for two or three more years to determine the overall trend.
The government will continue to support local firms to develop food products based on rice to promote further demand and roll out marketing programs to promote the nutritional benefits of rice to the people, it added. (Yonhap)
Korean govt to defend 513% tariff
rate on rice imports
2019.01.28
15:35:51 2019.01.28 15:36:33
The
Seoul government is committed to defend the 513-percent duties on rice imports
amid protracted verification process from the World Trade Organization (WTO),
the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs said in a statement
Monday. Korea has won a 10-year moratorium on tariffs on foreign rice
since the Uruguay Round agreement in 1994. From 2015, it has employed tariff
rate quota, referring to the amount of rice the country must import on low
tariff rate.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
Farming majors like the United States, China, Australia, Thailand, and Vietnam have complained over Seoul’s tariff rate of 513 percent, and the WTO has been reviewing the matter since then.
By Lee Yu-sup and Choi Mira
North Korean authorities demand
rice from new Party members in North Pyongan Province
By Ha Yoon Ah
2019.01.28 5:31pm
The
fifth session of the 13th Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) in April 2017. Image:
Rodong Sinmun
The North Korean authorities are
ordering newly-appointed Party members in North Pyongan Province to contribute
supplies in exchange for their new status. North Korean society has long seen
Party membership become accessible to those offering money or other bribes, but
recently the authorities have started to formerly demand contributions in
return for Party membership cards.
“A ceremony was held in December to issue the new Party
membership cards. Suddenly, the managing secretary ordered all of the new Party
members to contribute one ton of rice to the state,” said a Sinuiju, North
Pyongan Province-based source.
“I heard about the story right after it happened. One particular
man had worked hard to become a Party member and had given bribes to higher-ups
to speed up the process. So he was really taken aback by what happened.
“He was granted membership in mid-December thanks to a recommendation
from his workplace and attended a ceremony later to receive his membership
card. But the managing secretary suddenly told them after the ceremony ended
that they had to immediately contribute one ton of rice each, which caused an
uproar among the attendees.”
The man ended up borrowing rice from neighbors and friends to
meet the quota, but he now faces the difficulty of having to pay back the debt, which according to current market rates amounts to over 500 USD.
“I worked hard with the belief that getting a Party membership
card would be the best thing for me, but now I’ve just been saddled with debt,”
he said, according to a separate source in North Pyongan Province close to the
matter, who noted that “other people are in dire straits because of this.”
“People tell me that becoming a Party member isn’t as much of an
honor as it used to be, and that you can survive without a membership card. All
you need is money.”
The growing marketization that North Korea is experiencing has
led many residents to avoid Party membership. Members are required to attend
all Party-related activities and are thus less free to engage in private
business activities than non-members. If Party members are caught engaging in
such activities, they may be expelled and placed on a surveillance list.
North Koreans with poor “songbun,” or social status, are
increasingly offering bribes to join the Party, which has led many North
Koreans to believe that membership is not as prestigious as it was in the past.
An additional North Pyongan Province-based source reported that
the common sentiment among many residents is that “Party members outwardly
support socialism but are capitalists through and through once they’ve gotten
their membership cards.”
Only a minority of farmers prefer hybrid rice seed
January 28, 2019 | 12:05 am
PHILSTAR
MOST rice farmers in the
Philippines still prefer inbred seed instead of hybrid varieties despite the
latter’s higher yields, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said.
In a briefing, IRRI Plant
Breeding Rice Breeding Platform Senior Scientist II Arvind Kumar said that in
the Philippines, 90% of agricultural lands are planted to inbred seed, and only
10% at most are planted to hybrid varieties.
“Hybrid seed is supposed to give
10% or 15% higher yields as compared to inbred seed provided that farmers have
access to better practices and knowledge about how to manage the hybrid seeds,”
Mr. Kumar said.
According to Mr. Kumar, cost is
also a factor for farmers choosing which seed variety to plant.
“Both inbred and hybrid play [a
role] in rice contribution,” Mr. Kumar said.
“Hybrid is still a bid costlier
than inbred seed. The cost is an effective thing to consider which seed you
select for,” according to Mr. Kumar.
According to IRRI, in choosing a
rice variety, farmers consider grain quality, price at market, optimum yield
potential and stability over seasons, maximum tillering capacity for weed
competition, resistance or tolerance to major diseases, insects and other
stresses, the right growth duration to match the season, and resistance to
lodging under normal management.
Meanwhile, Mr. Kumar said that
IRRI continuously develops rice seed that can withstand climate change, noting
that there are eight drought-tolerant rice seed varieties in the Philippines
available for highland and lowland planting. — Reicelene Joy N. Ignacio
79K bags of
NFA rice from Vietnam unloaded in Bacolod City
By
Erwin Nicavera/PNA
BACOLOD CITY — The National Food Authority (NFA) in Negros Occidental
awaits the completion of the unloading of 79,000 bags of rice from Vietnam,
which is the third and last import allocation for the province for 2018.
Frisco Canoy, provincial manager of NFA-Negros Occidental, said
as of Sunday, a total of 58,461 bags were already unloaded and stored in
warehouses in the province.
The 79,000 bags shipped via MV Han Binh 16 and arrived at the
Bredco Port here last December 30.
Canoy said the vessel started discharging the stocks only on
January 19 and on January 27, a total of 14,321 bags have been unloaded.
“If the good weather continues, the unloading of the remaining
20,539 bags will be completed in two days,” he added.
The previous stocks came from Myanmar and Thailand, which
delivered the final shipment last November.
Records showed that of the 160,000 bags of rice from Myanmar
shipped via MV Tan Binh 79, only 159,739 bags were considered good stocks and
fully unloaded on January 19.
The NFA does not accept “bad order” stocks from the supplier
thus, unloading activity is suspended during rains as the rice may be damaged
if wet.
Canoy said that in terms of distribution, the NFA-Negros
Occidental is implementing a “first in, first out” scheme.
They have yet to complete the distribution of all stocks from
Myanmar before those from Vietnam could reach the market, he pointed out.
He added that with the present volume of available government
rice in Negros Occidental, the weekly allocation for retailers has returned to
normal.
During the last two quarters of 2018 when the buffer stocks were
limited, the allocation was based on the availability of stocks and the level
of need of an area.
For major markets in Bacolod City, the NFA-Negros Occidental is
currently distributing 140 bags per week.
Those in markets outside Bacolod are receiving a weekly
allocation of 80 bags while those outside markets, like stores in the barangay
level, are getting 60 bags every week.
Some 113 “Tagpuan” centers in Negros Occidental with a weekly
allocation of 50 bags were also reactivated.
EU imposes tariffs on rice imported from
Cambodia, Myanmar
Source:
Xinhua| 2019-01-17 16:16:01|Editor: xuxin
PHNOM PENH, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission has
imposed tariffs on rice imported from Cambodia and Myanmar in a bid to curb a
surge in rice imports from the two Southeast Asian countries.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the European Union (EU)
said a significant increase of imports of Indica rice from Cambodia and Myanmar
into EU caused economic damage to the EU producers.
"The European Commission has therefore decided today to
re-introduce import duties that will be steadily reduced over a period of three
years," the statement said.
According to the commission's decision, from Friday, the EU will
reinstate the normal customs duty on this product of 175 euros (199 U.S.
dollars) per ton in the first year, progressively reducing it to 150 euros (171
U.S. dollars) per ton in the second year, and 125 euros (142 U.S. dollars) per
ton in the third year.
During the investigation launched in March 2018, the commission
found that imports of Indica rice from both countries combined have increased
by 89 percent in the past five rice-growing seasons, the statement said.
At the same time, the investigation found that the prices of the
imported rice were substantially lower than those on the EU market and had
actually decreased over the same period, the statement said.
"This surge in low-price imports has caused serious
difficulties for EU rice producers to the extent that their market share in the
EU dropped substantially from 61 percent to 29 percent," the statement
added.
Cambodia and Myanmar are beneficiaries of the EU's Everything
But Arms (EBA) trade scheme, which unilaterally grants duty-and quota-free
access to the world's least developed countries, according to the statement.
Cambodia exported a total amount of 626,225 tons of milled rice
in 2018, with 42.9 percent of it going to the European markets, government
figures showed.
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of
rice reaches 94.2% in 2017: CAPMAS
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of rice reached 94.2% in 2017,
with an average rice consumption per capita of 38.7 kg versus 34.7 kg in 2016,
an increase of 11.5%,” the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and
Statistics (CAPMAS) announced in its annual bulletin of production movement,
foreign trade, and available agriculture commodities for consumption in 2017. …
Egypt’s self-sufficiency rate of rice reached 94.2% in 2017,
with an average rice consumption per capita of 38.7 kg versus 34.7 kg in 2016,
an increase of 11.5%,” the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and
Statistics (CAPMAS) announced in its annual bulletin of production movement,
foreign trade, and available agriculture commodities for consumption in 2017.
It continued that the self-sufficiency rate of wheat stood at
34.5% in 2017 with an average wheat consumption per capita of 163.9 kg versus
137.8 kg in 2016, an increase of 18.9%.
The self-sufficiency rate of vegetables was 103% in 2017 with an
average vegetables consumption per capita of 79.3, kg down from 86.3 kg in
2016, a decrease of 8.1%, according to the CAPMAS.
The agency also declared that the self-sufficiency rate of
fruits reached 99.3% in 2017, with an average fruits consumption per capita of
62.9 kg up from 62.6 kg in 2016, an increase of 0.5%.
Furthermore, it stated that the self-sufficiency rate of red meat
amounted to 55.9% in 2017, with an average red meat consumption per capita of
10.7 kg versus 9.6 kg in 2016, an increase of 11.5%.
Meanwhile, the self-sufficiency rate of poultry and bird meat
reached 91.5% in 2017, with an average per capita of 10.0 kg versus 10.1 kg in
2016, a decrease of 1.0%
The CAPMAS is the official statistical agency of Egypt that
collects, processes, analyses, and disseminates statistical data, and conducts
the census.
The Rice Market &
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RMTC 2019 will be held at the Marriott – New
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