FUTURE STRATEGY OF AZADI MARCH IN COMING DAYS: FAZLUR REHMAN
NOV 11
2019 
BY NEWSWEEK PAKISTAN
BY NEWSWEEK PAKISTAN
JUIF CHIEF SLAMS PTI-LED GOVERNMENT FOR MISHANDLING PAKISTAN’S
ECONOMY AT CRITICAL JUNCTURE
The joint opposition will devise
the future strategy of the Azadi March dharna in the coming days, said Jamiat
Ulema-e-Islam (JUIF) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Sunday.
Addressing tens of thousands of
supporters who have been camped out in the federal capital for 10 days, Rehman
said the struggle to oust the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf from power would
continue. “There is a belief that the ‘powers’ support this government,” said
Rehman. “Our ongoing protest has negated those views and put them to shame.”
The JUI-F chief said there could
be no retreat at this point. “The war will continue. We cannot retreat. All
political parties are in touch with us,” he said, adding that the next steps
would be taken only after deliberations between all opposition forces.
During his daily speech, Rehman
reiterated his criticism of the incumbent government’s handling of Pakistan’s
economy. “They have made a mockery of it,” he said. “Wheat production has gone
down by 30 percent in the past year; Rice production has declined by 30-40
percent; we only achieved 8 percent of the expected 15 million bales of
cotton,” he said, stressing that these were our export crops and were being
ignored by the PTI government.
The JUIF chief also lamented the
slow pace of FATA’s merger into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. “This government
promised to give FATA Rs. 100 billion every year for 10 years, and not a single
paisa has been issued yet,” he said, noting that no province was willing to
divert from its share of the National Finance Commission award. He said that
the PTI had a government in all but Sindh so it was particularly confusing that
this had not happened already. “Why are they then not willing to give their
fair share?” he asked.
Earlier, Rehman also slammed the
Indian Supreme Court’s decision to allow Hindu groups to construct a temple at
the former site of the Babri Masjid. “The decision reflects a
narrow-mindedness,” said the JUIF chief, adding that New Delhi had failed to
protect the rights of minorities.
Separately, Awami National Party
leader Mian Iftikhar Hussain alleged to the participants of the Azadi March
that P.M. Khan had come into power through rigging. He said the opposition
parties were united in demanding Khan’s resignation and fresh elections
nationwide.
.
Rice
farmers to get P3 billion cash subsidy next month
Jess Diaz (The
Philippine Star) - November 11, 2019 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Thousands of rice farmers affected by low
palay prices will receive a total of P3 billion in cash subsidy before
Christmas next month, leaders of the House of Representatives said yesterday.
The P5,000 financial aid for each farmer will come from billions
in revenues from higher tariffs Republic Act 11203, or the Rice Tariffication
Law, has imposed on rice importation, Deputy Speaker Luis Raymund Villafuerte
of Camarines Sur said.
He said as of October, the government has collected more than P11
billion in rice importation taxes.
Some P10 billion of the collections was allocated to the rice
competitiveness enhancement fund (RCEF) set up under the law for specific
programs, while the excess may be used as additional aid to farmers, he
said.
Another deputy speaker, Mikee Romero of party-list group 1-Pacman,
said aside from cash subsidy, rice farmers “will also receive other forms of
assistance like free seeds and farm implements to reduce their production cost
and increase their yield.”
He recalled that agriculture officials led by Undersecretary Ariel
Cayanan told congressmen two months ago that the Department of Budget and
Management had released a total of P5 billion out of the RCEF.
Quoting these officials, he said P2 billion was given to the
Philippine Rice Research Institute and another P2 billion to the Philippine
Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization for the production or
procurement of seeds and farm machineries.
“The seeds and tools should be available by now, if not soon, so
farmers could use them for the next planting season,” he said.
He said the remaining P1 billion was released to government banks
for lending to farmers “so they would not go to loan sharks for production
money.”
Romero, an economist, pointed out that increased spending in the
agriculture sector would help the economy sustain its growth above six percent,
which could “even go up to 6.5 percent by this time next year.”
“Low inflation, strong consumer confidence, continued strong
remittances from overseas Filipino workers, especially from seafarers,
professionals and cruise ship personnel, and robust countryside growth boosted
by government spending are the key growth drivers,” he stressed.
Villafuerte also said Joint Resolution No. 19, which allows the
use of up to P10 billion for palay buying, would soon become law.
“This is a pre-Christmas gift of the Congress to rice farmers
now reeling from the steady softening of farmgate prices of palay
this harvest season,” Villafuerte, co-author of the resolution, said.
He said the House and the Senate have already approved their
respective versions of the measure, which will have the effect of a law once
President Duterte signs it.
The measure mandates the transfer to the National Food Authority
(NFA) from the Department of Social Welfare and Development of P7 billion in
rice subsidy for beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or
4Ps.
Additionally, some P2.9 billion in similar funds for soldiers,
policemen, jail guards and other uniformed personnel will be turned over to the
NFA by the concerned agencies.
The NFA will use the money to buy palay, which it will mill and
then distribute to 4Ps beneficiaries and uniformed personnel at 20 kilos each a
month.
Lawmakers hope the scheme would prop up palay prices, which
farmers claim have fallen to P8-P10 per kilo below their production cost of
P12.
Indonesia
needs more research to boost agricultural productivity
Eisya A. Eloksari
Mon, November 11, 2019 / 04:45 pm
Farmers harvest rice in Tegalgondo village, Malang,
East Java. Research, Technology and Higher Education Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said Indonesia needed
to increase agricultural research to improve rice productivity in the
country.(JP/Aman Rochman)
Indonesia has been known for
centuries as an agricultural hub with an abundant crop potential, but it must
improve its agricultural research to boost productivity and food security for
its large and growing population. According to a study conducted by the Center
for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS), rice consumption in Indonesia will
increase to 99.55 kg per capita by 2045 from 97.6 kg per capita in 2017. The
figure assumes that the population will grow to about 300 million in 2045.
However, challenges persist as Agriculture Ministry data shows that rice
productivity was only 51.92 percent, and Indonesia only ranked 65 out of 113 in
the overall Global Food Security Index (GSFI) last year. “The key to improving
our productivity is research and development,” Research, Technology and Higher
Education Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said during a keynote speech at the
Ind...
Vegan: Five
High-protein Food Items Easily Available In The Market
Health
Check out this list of high-protein vegan food items. Listed here
are some healthy, protein-rich food items to add in a vegan diet. Read for more
details.
Written By Nikhil
Pandey | Mumbai | Updated On: November 10, 2019 16:45 IST
Five vegan foods rich in protein
· Quinoa
Quinoa is easily available at the
brim of one's hand. There are different kinds of Quinoa available in the
market. A media report claims that having 100 gm of quinoa can provide
about 4 g of protein. Many health portals claim that quinoa has twice the
protein content of rice or barley. Quinoa also has an equal amount of calcium,
magnesium, and manganese, which helps in maintaining proper health.
· Nuts and Seeds
Nuts and seeds are often
recommended by the doctors as a nutritious mid-day snack. According to a
health portal, a moderate among of nut and seed can provide about 3 g of
protein. Nuts and seeds are also a great source to maintain an adequate amount
of energy throughout the day. Also Read | Vegan Diet: The Health Advantages Of Following A Plant-based Diet
· Oats
A report published by Harvard
University revealed that a person who has oats and other whole grains
every day is likely to live longer and be better protected from adverse
heart diseases than someone who doesn't. According to a research report, oats
are an excellent source of protein. The report also revealed that they can
provide every 10 g per 100 gm of protein in the human body.
· Brown rice
While vegans can have all types of
rice, many research reports suggest that having brown rice has its advantages.
According to a study, it has 4 g of protein per 100 g of rice. Brown rice
is also considered to be a great source of fibre and carbohydrates. Also Read | Vegan Diet: Top Protein Rich Vegan Foods To Include In Your Diet
· Vegetables
Many green leafy and exotic
vegetables are considered to be a great source of protein for vegans. Eaten
alone, these vegetables can also be a healthy snack option. Vegetables like
asparagus, avocado, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and sweetcorn are a major
source of protein.
Making rice
resistant to weeds
Plant biologists Ronald Pierik and Rashmi
Sasidharan are conducting research into rice in the Botanic
Gardens to study whether they can optimise the architecture of the plant in
order to compete against weeds by overshadowing them. “Did you know rice is
grown under water in rice paddies because most weeds won't survive
flooding? But more and more weeds are evolving resistance to flooding. Rice
plants are traditionally planted one-by-one, but that is extremely
time-consuming. Farmers would rather sow rice seeds, but that would not give
the plants a head start against weeds, and the crop would quickly become
overgrown”, explains photobiologist Ronald Pierik from Utrecht
University.
Together with the International Rice Research Institute in the
Philipines, the scientists at the Botanic Gardens are studying the ideal
growing conditions for rice by experimenting with light, water, density, and
different rice varieties. “For example, you can cross several strains of rice,
and combine it with a different water regime. By flooding the rice paddies
early, then draining them briefly before flooding them again, you might be able
to kill off the weeds.” At the moment, the scientists are studying the weeds’
tolerance to flooding, and they are ‘fiddling with the knobs’ to control the
plants’ reaction to shade.
Neighbours
Plants naturally try to catch the
optimal amount of sunlight, and use information about neighbouring plants to
control that process. One well-known system is the registration of the ratio of
red light to infra-red light. Pierik: “Plants use red light for photosynthesis,
and they reflect infra-red light. Before plants begin to overshadow one
another, they can observe their neighbours by registering the proportion of red
light to infra-red light. They then react by speeding up the growth of stems
and leaves.” The scientists are currently studying how this architecture in
rice is regulated at the molecular level.
Shade alarm
The model plant Arabidopsis uses a different shade alarm
system, however. “Arabidopsis grows like a rosette, without a vertical structure. These plants
have a very early shade alarm that reacts to touch instead of light: the leaves
adapt their direction of growth when the tips of the leaves of two plants
touch.” So the plant researchers are now examining which of the regulators used
by Arabidopsis can be implemented in rice
in order to activate an architecture to suppress weeds at an earlier phase of
growth.
The rice study is conducted by the Plant Ecophysiology research
group.
Agribusiness gets boost as government
secures US$183 million for machinery
Business News of Monday, 11 November 2019
Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Minister for Food and Agriculture
Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister for Food and Agriculture
has announced a big boost for agribusiness as his Ministry secures financial
support from India and Brazil through government to purchase machinery to
enhance agro-processing in the country.
The loan facilities, comprising US$150 million and US$33 million - coming from India and Brazil respectively, form part of government's agricultural transformational strategies to ensure value addition to farmer produce, increase storage span of farm produce and create jobs for citizens to earn foreign exchange.
According to the Minister, "This will help to manage food surpluses produced in the country, especially during high yielding seasons, for storage and export to promote food security".
Dr Akoto made this known during a three-day working visit to the Northern Regions, where he met stakeholders and engaged them to assess the activities and impact of the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme in the area.
Dr Akoto said last year, the country had a bumper harvest through PFJ, however, it was only able to export small quantities of the food surpluses, about 130,000 metric tons to neighboring countries, especially Nigeria.
He estimated that the exported food items could be quantified and valued to earn about US$ 100 million on the face of market pricing.
Dr Akoto indicated that the country was likely to generate about twice or three times more, food surpluses this year, and said measures such as the provision of agro-processing machinery including; tractors, rice milling machines, combined harvesters among others, could address increased productivity better.
He said the machines, which would be imported into the country early next year, would be given to farmers and farmer groups on subsidy of about 40 per cent of the cost of a machine purchased to enhance farmers yields and productivity.
He said government was expanding the construction of more buffer stock warehouses to help farmers store their produce and commended the Savannah Zone Agricultural Productivity Improvement Project (SAPIP) for providing resources to supplement government's budget for the PFJ such as the supply of seeds, fertilizers, among others to farmers in the northern region.
Hajia Musah Hawa, Acting Northern Regional Director of Agriculture, said the PFJ led to increasing farmer's food yielding and job creations in the region.
She said farmers were trained on good agricultural practices, supplied insecticides on fall armyworm, facilitated linkages between farmers, input dealers and other value chain actors among others.
Hajia Hawa said from 2017 to 2019 farmers were supported with subidised fertilizers, large quantities of seedlings including; maize, rice, soybeans, sorghum, vegetable seeds among others.
She said in 2019, the PFJ benefitted 133,571 males and 28,169 female farmers and also created employment for 161,494 people in the Northern Region.
Mr Mohammed Adam Nashiru, Chairman of the Northern Farmers Association, said farmers benefited from the PFJ in terms of subsidised fertilizers, seedlings, insecticides, among others and said it brought hope and improvement on their livelihoods in the region.
He called on citizens especially farmers to embrace the PFJ and support the Ministry to enjoy food sufficiency and security.
Mr Salifu Saeed, the Northern Regional Minister acknowledged that the region was peaceful and the impact of the PFJ initiatives in the socio-economic transformation attracted some investors into the area.
The Minister for Food and Agriculture and his entourage visited some of the PFJ initiatives in the Tamale Metropolis, Tolon District and Savelugu Municipality, including; the Tamale Implement Factory, a large scale rice production farmland at Golinga in Tolon among others.
The loan facilities, comprising US$150 million and US$33 million - coming from India and Brazil respectively, form part of government's agricultural transformational strategies to ensure value addition to farmer produce, increase storage span of farm produce and create jobs for citizens to earn foreign exchange.
According to the Minister, "This will help to manage food surpluses produced in the country, especially during high yielding seasons, for storage and export to promote food security".
Dr Akoto made this known during a three-day working visit to the Northern Regions, where he met stakeholders and engaged them to assess the activities and impact of the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme in the area.
Dr Akoto said last year, the country had a bumper harvest through PFJ, however, it was only able to export small quantities of the food surpluses, about 130,000 metric tons to neighboring countries, especially Nigeria.
He estimated that the exported food items could be quantified and valued to earn about US$ 100 million on the face of market pricing.
Dr Akoto indicated that the country was likely to generate about twice or three times more, food surpluses this year, and said measures such as the provision of agro-processing machinery including; tractors, rice milling machines, combined harvesters among others, could address increased productivity better.
He said the machines, which would be imported into the country early next year, would be given to farmers and farmer groups on subsidy of about 40 per cent of the cost of a machine purchased to enhance farmers yields and productivity.
He said government was expanding the construction of more buffer stock warehouses to help farmers store their produce and commended the Savannah Zone Agricultural Productivity Improvement Project (SAPIP) for providing resources to supplement government's budget for the PFJ such as the supply of seeds, fertilizers, among others to farmers in the northern region.
Hajia Musah Hawa, Acting Northern Regional Director of Agriculture, said the PFJ led to increasing farmer's food yielding and job creations in the region.
She said farmers were trained on good agricultural practices, supplied insecticides on fall armyworm, facilitated linkages between farmers, input dealers and other value chain actors among others.
Hajia Hawa said from 2017 to 2019 farmers were supported with subidised fertilizers, large quantities of seedlings including; maize, rice, soybeans, sorghum, vegetable seeds among others.
She said in 2019, the PFJ benefitted 133,571 males and 28,169 female farmers and also created employment for 161,494 people in the Northern Region.
Mr Mohammed Adam Nashiru, Chairman of the Northern Farmers Association, said farmers benefited from the PFJ in terms of subsidised fertilizers, seedlings, insecticides, among others and said it brought hope and improvement on their livelihoods in the region.
He called on citizens especially farmers to embrace the PFJ and support the Ministry to enjoy food sufficiency and security.
Mr Salifu Saeed, the Northern Regional Minister acknowledged that the region was peaceful and the impact of the PFJ initiatives in the socio-economic transformation attracted some investors into the area.
The Minister for Food and Agriculture and his entourage visited some of the PFJ initiatives in the Tamale Metropolis, Tolon District and Savelugu Municipality, including; the Tamale Implement Factory, a large scale rice production farmland at Golinga in Tolon among others.
Pak-Iran
Parliamentary Friendship Group expresses desire to promote trade relations
By TNS
World
November 11, 2019 12:45 pm
Islamabad, Nov 11 (TNS):
Pakistan-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group has urged the need for improving
bilateral trade relations and impediments to this end may be removed with
mutual consensus.
The desire was expressed at a
delegation level talks in Tehran on Saturday between members of the two countries.
The Iranian Group was led by
Ahmad Amirabadi as well as Trade Minister of Iran Reza Rehmani while Pakistan
Group was headed by Syed Naveed Qamar.
They were of the view that being
neighboring countries, both countries have larger opportunities for trade and
commerce which would benefit two countries and Pakistani can export rice,
fruits, vegetables and meat to Iran.
Talking on the occasion,
Chairman, Parliamentary Committee on Kashmir Syed Fakhar Imam apprised Iranian
side regarding ongoing situation in occupied Kashmir especially after 5th
August.
He expressed great gratitude to
Iranian side for standing and supporting principles of justice in case of
Kashmiris
Philippines
beats China as world’s biggest rice importer
Louise
Maureen Simeon (The Philippine Star) - November 11, 2019 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has topped China in terms of
buying rice in the global market, making it the world’s biggest rice importer
for 2019.
The Philippines is set to reach its record-high rice imports at
three million metric tons (MT) this year, beating China’s requirements after
Manila opened the floodgates to rice importation.
This year, China is importing 2.5 million MT, lower from the
earlier projection of 3.15 million MT amid abundant domestic supply.
In the latest report of the United States Department of
Agriculture-Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA-FAS), the Philippines has
emerged as the top global importer of rice. Last month, the Philippines and
China just nearly tied at 3.1 million MT.
Rice imports of the country have nearly quadrupled, from just
800,000 MT three years ago to three million MT anticipated for 2019,
representing seven percent of total global rice imports.
In comparison, China’s share of global rice imports has almost
reduced by half, to just five to six percent.
This is despite China’s population now at 1.4 billion compared
with the 110 million population of the Philippines.
This year’s importation for the Philippines is 58 percent higher
than the 1.9 million MT imports in 2018.
In March 2019, the Philippines implemented the Rice Tariffication
Act, which led to a considerable increase in imports and, consequently, decline
in domestic prices.
Rice is a staple food in the country and the law is intended, in
part, to spur imports in order to quell domestic unrest caused by inflation.
While this helped lower inflation, USDA said the adjustment to rice
liberalization remains a challenge for the Philippines.
Next year, however, the Philippines will tone down its rice importation
amid excessive supply coupled with improvements in local production. But this
will still remain above the five-year average.
By 2020, the country is seen importing some 2.5 million MT of
rice, exactly the same volume as China this year.
“Decreased imports from original projection reflect the
preliminary investigation into import safeguards,” USDA said.
Other large importers next year are Nigeria at 1.8 million MT,
Cote d’Ivoire at 1.5 million MT, Indonesia at 1.4 million MT, Senegal at 1.2
million MT, and Cuba at 600,000 MT.
Production of milled rice this year is the same with the 12
million MT from last year. Rice consumption has been raised to 14.2 million MT
from 14.1 million MT in 2018.
USDA said there is a slight decrease in area planted, as rice
areas in 2019 will be at 4.7 million hectares, 0.8 percent lower than the 4.74
million hectares last year.
Yield, on the other hand, is expected to improve to 4.05 MT per
hectare per harvest, from the earlier 3.93 MT.
With the continued importation, the country’s rice inventory has
maintained its upward trend as it inched up 14 percent in September, the
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
Latest data from the PSA showed that total rice inventory as of
September stood at 1.84 million MT, 13.7 percent higher than last year’s volume
stock of 1.16 million MT.
Based on the average daily consumption of Filipinos of 32,000 MT,
the current inventory is sufficient for 58 days.
PH poised to become world’s top rice
importer
0
SHARES
November 11, 2019, 10:23 AM
By Madelaine Miraflor
If the forecast of the US
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is right, the Philippines is poised to become
the world’s largest rice importer this year, beating China, the world’s most
populous country with a population of around 1.4 billion.
In the latest report of USDA, it
looked like the Philippines, home to 105 million people, is on track to import
3 million metric tons (MT) this year, while China is expected to import only
2.5 million MT.
This, as the world’s second
largest economy continues to boost its local supply.
“The Philippines’ rice imports
have nearly quadrupled, from 800,000 metric tons in 2016 to 3.1 million
anticipated for 2019, representing 7 percent of total global rice imports. In
comparison, China’s share of global rice imports has almost reduced by half, to
just over 7 percent,” USDA said in a previous report.
“While China rice imports
continue to shrink, Philippine purchases provide much appreciated reprieve from
nearby exporters in Southeast Asia,” it added.
In the report, USDA pointed out
that the Rice Tariffication Act, passed in March, indeed “led to a considerable
increase in imports and, consequently, decline in domestic prices”.
“While this helped lower
inflation, the Philippines adjustment to rice liberalization remains a
challenge,” the state-run agency said.
Right now, the Philippine
government wants to control the importation of rice by restricting the issuance
of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPS-IC) to traders.
In order to import rice, the Rice
Tariffication Act, RA 11203, only requires local traders to obtain an SPS-IC
from the Department of Agriculture (DA). An SPS certifies that rice imports
that will enter the country are free from pests and diseases.
“We will try to lessen the
importation and limit it to 1 million metric tons because that’s what we need.
We will help the rice farmers,” Senator Cynthia Villar, author of RA 11203,
said earlier.
While the Federation of Free
Farmers (FFF) welcomed this, it noted that Villar’s suggestion runs counter
both to the spirit and letter of the Rice Liberalization Law that she herself
sponsored.
Raul Montemayor, FFF National
Manager, noted that RA 11203 was designed to remove all forms of quantitative
limits on rice imports and replace these restrictions with tariffs.
“Imposing a limit of one million
tons is equivalent to reintroducing a quantitative restriction, which RA 11203
specifically prohibits. The only way you can change that is to repeal or amend the
law, which Senator Villar has stubbornly opposed,” Montemayor said
Weighting reasons, gains of border
closure
By Chijioke
Nelson, Asst. Editor, Finance/Economy
11 November 2019
| 4:17 am
Closure of border at SEME post.
PHOTO: AYODELE ADENIRAN
No
nation across the world has left its borders open for inflow of goods and
services. Even in the so-called free economy, mostly practiced in theories and
textbooks, there is always a record of inflow and outflow. This means that the
goods and services must follow the proper channel within the bounds of a
sovereignty.
Financial
experts have also agreed that properly checked borders have not ensured
whatever enters the territory are taxed, thereby boosting the income of the
country, but mostly essential in ensuring the safety of lives and property. It
is worth noting that safety of lives and investments are prerequisites to
investment decisions.
In
recent years, Nigeria has recorded a cocktail of such crisis, which has been
blamed on cross-border activities. But it is also understandable that lapses,
which still remain, has been tolerated due to low productive capacity to firmly
effect import substitution policy.
An
economist and financial market analyst with FSDH Merchant Bank Limited, Ayodele
Akinwunmi, agreed that the border has to be regulated so that some sanity can
come into the free movement of goods and persons because of the adverse
economic and security implications on the economy.
“Besides,
there is a subsisting policy concerning the importation of items that can be
produced locally, which majority of them are smuggled through the border. No
sovereign state will allow free movement of goods and persons that can cause
havoc to its economy.
“Whatever
diplomatic agreements were signed, they are within a set of guidelines that
should be mutually beneficial to all the states within the economic regions.
Any deviation would not only be tantamount to breach, but would create
diplomatic friction and distortion of economic cooperation,” he said.
While
issues of timing and short term effects have been raised by some, Emma Wagbo,
an economist pointed out that country specifics are acceptable in policy
decisions, especially when time lags create an opportunity to evade well
thought-out plans.
“Irrespective
of the immediate pains as reflected in the form of escalating food prices,
Nigeria has recorded some gains in the process. Nigeria should have built
structures within the economy that will stimulate local production and
manufacturing of goods at competitive costs, but until we get there, let us
start with what is on ground now. I think it is the only way to deal with
policy riggers here,” he said.
The
closure of Nigeria’s land borders, which came without warning on
August 21, has opened up neighboring countries exploitation of liberalism
to the detriment of the economy. Now they are angry with Nigeria, yet there own
borders remain tight.
According
to a BBC report, the action of the government is affecting trade across the
sub-region. The report further disclosed that that the bustling borders have
come to a standstill, with goods rotting and queues of lorries waiting at
checkpoints in the hope the crossings will reopen, adding that Nigeria’s
neighbours are angry, saying the smuggling of rice mainly prompted the action .
Smuggling
in numbers
Nigeria, with a population estimated at about 196 million, has a huge demand for rices. So, it’s mainly rice, among other commodities, that are more smuggled. The notorious route for such illegality is Cotonou, Benin’s commercial hub, targeting Nigeria’s economic capital, Lagos.
Nigeria, with a population estimated at about 196 million, has a huge demand for rices. So, it’s mainly rice, among other commodities, that are more smuggled. The notorious route for such illegality is Cotonou, Benin’s commercial hub, targeting Nigeria’s economic capital, Lagos.
The
World Bank report showed that Benin’s economy is heavily reliant on the
informal transit trade with Nigeria, which accounts for about 20% of its GDP
and national income. About 80 per cent of Benin’s imports are not for their
consumptions, but onward movement to Nigeria, with the majority finding their
way in the country illegally. While bans have stopped the illegal trade over
the years, it was time to experiment with total closure of the land borders.
This
same border is also a major corridor for second-hand cars to Nigeria, where
there is a ban on importing cars that are more than 15 years old. A report
claimed that Luxembourg-based shipping company, BIM e-solutions, Sid that an
average of 10,000 cars arrive at the Cotonou port from Europe monthly.
But
sources from the Nigeria Customs Service, agreed that many of these cars are
smuggled across the border to Nigeria. This year, former Managing Director of
the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Maikanti Baru, said petrol
smugglers were taking about 10 million litres out of the country each day. It’s
indeed, high time drastic measures were introduced.
CBN
interventions
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) since 2015, has raised its bar in the pursuit of import substitution policy, particularly targeting food production and other commodities that can be produced locally. While the country, since 2013, has been allowing rice importation through the ports, it is with a 70 per cent tax. The huge tax was to discourage its import and attract investment in its production locally, as well as protect the fledgling local farmers.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) since 2015, has raised its bar in the pursuit of import substitution policy, particularly targeting food production and other commodities that can be produced locally. While the country, since 2013, has been allowing rice importation through the ports, it is with a 70 per cent tax. The huge tax was to discourage its import and attract investment in its production locally, as well as protect the fledgling local farmers.
Clearly,
the monetary policy transmission mechanism in Nigeria is inhibited due to
numerous factors, especially the menace of smugglers. For example, despite
efforts by the apex bank through its development finance activities to raise
domestic production, especially in rice production, the menace of smuggling has
continued to affect local production.
A
Nigerian maritime site- Ships and Ports, noted that in 2014, Benin lowered its
tariffs on rice imports from 35 per cent to seven per cent, while Cameroon
erased it completely. These were to counter Nigeria’s 70 per cent tax and flood
the market with rice at cheaper rate.
But CBN
Governor, Godwin Emefiele, stated that since the border closure, Nigerian rice,
as well as poultry farmers have been benefitting, as they have been able to
market their accumulated produce, which sales were hampered by illegal
importation and smuggling.
The CBN
Governor said the development had negatively affected Nigeria’s economy, adding
that the government was determined to keep the borders closed until all
engagements in connection with the issues were concluded with the neighbouring
countries to have them halt the use of their ports as lunch-pads for smuggling
items into Nigeria.
“Between
2015 and now, we have seen an astronomical rise in the number of companies,
corporates and individuals that are setting up mills, integrated mills and even
small mills in the various areas.
“The
Central Bank and agriculture ministry have been at the centre of not just
encouraging the production of rice in Nigeria, but also funding these farmers
to buy seedlings, fertilizers or some of the herbicides that they need for their
rice production.
“We have
embarked on programmes, warning those who involved in the business of smuggling
or dumping of rice in the country to desist or we will close their account in
the banking industry. And that is coming very effectively.
“The
Chairman of the Rice Processors Association and owner of Umza Rice in Kano
State, called me and said that all the rice millers and processors are carrying
in their warehouses nothing less than 25,000 metric tons of milled rice.
“Secondly,
we also have members of the Poultry Association of Nigeria who also complained
that they have thousands of crates of eggs that they could not sell, even some
processed chickens that they could not sell, due to smuggling and dumping of
poultry products into Nigeria.
“A week
after the borders were closed, the same rice millers association called to tell
us that all the rice that they had in their warehouses have all been sold.
Indeed, a lot of people have been depositing money in their accounts and they
have even been telling them to ‘please hold on don’t even pay money yet until
we finish processing your rice.’
“The
Poultry Associations have also come to say that they have sold all their eggs,
they have sold all their processed chickens and that demand is rising.
“So,
when you ask, what is the benefit of the border closure on the economy of
Nigeria, the outcome on the two products- poultry and rice, is the answer. The
benefit is that it has helped to create jobs for our people, it has helped to
bring our integrated rice milling that we have in the country back into
business again and they are making money.
“Our
rural communities are bubbling because there are activities, as rice farmers
are able to sell their paddy. The poultry business is also doing well, and also
maize farmers who produce maize from which feeds are produced are also doing
business. These are the benefits,” he said.
The
Director of Corporate Communications Department, CBN, Isaac Okorafor,
reiterating the importance of producing goods locally, said that jobs will be
created and the value of the Naira will appreciate, while the domestic economy
will become vibrant.
He said
explained that these importers should come and establish in the country, as the
nation cannot continue to consume other countries’ goods, noting that no
country has ever developed that way.
“We have
to emulate the Chinese economy. When China began manufacturing, people referred
to their products as inferior. Today, China is leading in the manufacturing of
most products in the world.
Nigeria
can become another China. What our people are doing in Aba, in Abia State is an
encouraging example. CBN has directed commercial banks to give loans to medium
and small scale industries to encourage local production,” he said.
Already,
the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd.),
has said that tax revenue profile had gone up, as cargoes destined for Benin
now arrive at the Nigerian ports.
Ali was
quoted as saying that “one day in September, a record N9.2 billion was
collected, which had never happened before. After the closure of the border and
since then, we have maintained an average of about N4.7 billion to N5.8 billion
on a daily basis, which is far more than we used to collect.”
Border
closures in retrospect
United States President, Donald Trump, during his campaign, said he was going to pay attention to the country’s borders and inflow of goods and services. He favored investments and productions in the country, otherwise everything would be subject to negotiations. Today, he has built walls against Mexico to check movement in persons. He is also going tough with China and its products.
United States President, Donald Trump, during his campaign, said he was going to pay attention to the country’s borders and inflow of goods and services. He favored investments and productions in the country, otherwise everything would be subject to negotiations. Today, he has built walls against Mexico to check movement in persons. He is also going tough with China and its products.
Reports
also show that the former Gold Coast, currently Ghana, once placed embargo on
Nigerian immigrants and sent some that are already in the country away. Years
later, the administration of Alhaji Shehu Shagari; of blessed memory, Nigeria
retaliated, which saw the forming of the popular cliche “Ghana-Must-Go.”
President
Olusegun Obasanjo, also ordered the closure of this same Benin land borders, as
the country’s citizen, Ahmadu Tidjani, carried out a criminal exploit in
Nigeria. It was only when the country’s authorities arrested and handed him
over to the Nigeria that the border was reopened.
Why has
the country failed to stop its territory from being a lunch-pad for smugglers
against Nigeria?
Already,
the Federal Government has said that the nation’s land borders would remain
shut until the country’s neighbours agree to implement mutual anti-smuggling
policies. By January 2020, it would be seen whether the countries have agreed
to the terms of the border reopening.
Ghana now imports flowers from SA –
Osafo Maafo laments high importation rate
Date: Nov 11 , 2019 , 06:36
BY: graphic.com.gh
Category:
Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo, has raised concerns about the
high levels of importation of goods into the country.
In 2018, a total of USD1.35 billion
was spent on the importation of rice into Ghana.
Currently, flowers are being
imported into the country thrice a week, a situation the Senior Minister
described as absurd and unacceptable.
Addressing a gathering on behalf of
President Nana Akufo-Addo at the opening of the National Festival of Arts and
Culture in Koforidua, Mr. Osafo Maafo called on Ghanaians to support government
to end the trend.
“When I was the Minister of
Finance, Ghana spent USD300 million on rice and we were complaining, the late
Major Courage Quashigah was the Minister of Agriculture and he promised to
reduce it to zero after 4 years but it was never achieved. Indeed, after 4
years, our rice import bill went from USD300 million to USD700 million”.
“Last year, 2018, Ghana spent
USD1.35 billion on the importation of rice, can you imagine– with the type of
land we have, even in the forest areas the lowlands can grow rice to feed ourselves.
As you go up to the north and fly over to Tamale you will see greenery
flatlands that can produce rice for West Africa and we spent USD1.35 billion of
our scarce foreign exchange resources to import rice”.
“I have not added the importation
of chicken and even fruits and flowers, Ghana is now airlifting flowers from
South Africa to Kotoka about 3 times a week. Is it right, can we continue this
way? Certainly not, because we have all the gifts of riches and we need the
leadership that will take us from this dependency that, Nana Addo Dankwa
Akufo-Addo is providing and we should have all hands on deck to go on the Ghana
Beyond Aid mindset”.
DPM Jurin holds
talks with rice traders from United States
By NNT
November 11, 2019
DPM Jurin holds talks with US rice traders.
UNITED STATES – Deputy Prime Minister/Commerce Minister Jurin
Laksanawisit has held talks with major Thai rice traders from the United States
on the rice quality standards and plans to increase the volume of the premium
export rice.
The commerce minister and
executive officials of the Ministry of Commerce discussed market obstacles to
the planned increase in the rice export volume. Mr Jurin said some 500,000 tons
of Thai rice is exported to the United States per a year. Notably, the volume
of Home Mali rice exported to the U.S. market has increased 4.92% over the last
five years.
Trade fairs have been held by
rice importers and leading U.S. supermarkets to promote Hom Mali rice from
Thailand. The Thai rice has been publicized by culinary institutes and Thai
restaurants and has had access to consumer groups in the United States. The
publicity for the Thai rice has been carried out on social media.
’’The Thai government has
addressed all levels of traders, particularly those who have imported rice and
food from Thailand for a long time. The Ministry of Commerce remains prepared
to work closely with every rice trader and hopes to welcome them. We will focus
on the marketing and proactive publicity to promote the consumption of premium
quality rice from Thailand,’’ Mr Jurin said.
Bumper rice output to reduce imports
MONDAY,
NOVEMBER 11, 2019 10:02
A woman threshes
rice on a rock during harvesting time at Mwea Irrigation scheme in Kirinyaga
county.
A woman threshes
rice on a rock during harvesting time at Mwea Irrigation scheme in Kirinyaga
county.
Kenya will this year cut rice
imports by 36 percent following above average production in major irrigation
schemes.Water and Irrigation Principal Secretary Joseph Irungu said the country
anticipates production of 240,000 tonnes of rice, which is almost double the
output in the previous year.
Kenya mainly relies on imports to
bridge the local deficit, bringing in up to 250,000 tonnes annually to meet the
demand.
“We are expecting a good crop
this year and this will play a major role in cutting down on imports, hence
benefiting our farmers,” said Mr Irungu.
National Irrigation Board (NIB)
general manager Gitonga Mugambi said the production has resulted from good crop
husbandry and expansion of the crop to regions.
PH is world’s
biggest rice importer for 2019
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 04:06 AM November 12,
2019
The
Philippines was on its way to become the world’s biggest importer of rice this
year following the government’s decision to allow the unimpeded importation of
the staple as a way to bring down prices, international data showed.
A report by
the United States’ Department of Agriculture-Foreign Agricultural Services
(USDA-FAS) has projected the country’s rice imports to reach a record three
million metric tons (MT) by year-end—the highest in the world and the highest
for the country.
This tops
the current biggest importer of rice, China. The Asian nation, with a
population of 1.4 billion, is expected to import 2.5 million MT of rice this
year.
Last month,
the two countries were tied at the top spot with a projection of 3.1 million MT
of rice imports.
Based on
USDA-FAS’ estimates, the country’s imports would increase by 58 percent to
three million MT from 1.9 million MT last year, and by 275 percent against the
2017 record.
The spike in
the country’s imports was due to the enactment of the rice tariffication law in
March, which opened the country’s doors to unlimited rice imports. With the new
policy, traders are now allowed to import rice regardless of the volume so long
as they would be able to secure the necessary permits and pay a tariff of 35
percent.
The volume
of rice imports since March has yet to slow down despite data from the
Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showing that the country only needed to
import about 1.9 million MT of rice to fill local demand.
Economic
managers said the policy shift would bring down the prices of rice in the
market. As of October, PSA data showed that the average retail price for
regular milled and well-milled rice had already gone down to P37.22 and P41.89
a kilo, respectively. While these were lower by 14.3 percent and 18.6 percent
from rates in the same period last year, these fell short of the National Economic
and Development Authority’s projection that the cost of rice would go down to
as low as P25 a kilo—lower by P2 against the NFA rice in the market.
The average
farm gate price of palay, meanwhile, has plummeted to an eight-year low for
being unable to compete with more affordable imported rice.
As of
October, the Bureau of Customs said some 1.9 million MT of rice already entered
the country, bringing the country’s national inventory to 2.28 million MT
during that month. This was higher by 43.4 percent than the previous year’s
record of 1.59 million MT, and higher from the previous month’s level.
Based on the
country’s daily average rice requirement of 32,000 MT, the latest inventory is
sufficient for 71 days.
Nonetheless,
the USDA-FAS is expecting the country’s rice imports to slow down next year
amid excessive supply and improved local production.
Protecting
farmers urgent with PH as biggest rice importer – Pangilinan
By: Krissy Aguilar - Reporter / @KAguilarINQ
INQUIRER.net / 05:45 PM November 11, 2019
MANILA,
Philippines — Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan wants measures put in place to
protect farmers as doing so would ensure food security, especially now that the
Philippines has reportedly surpassed China as the biggest rice importer in the
world.
“We should
all be deeply worried by the news that the Philippines has surpassed China as
the world’s biggest importer of rice,” Pangilinan said in a statement issued on
Monday.
“This means
that our country has become perilously dependent on other nations for our
everyday food — for out everyday rice,” he added, partly in Filipino.
According to
Pangilinan, the Philippines is set to reach a record-high 3 million metric tons
of rice imports this year, while China is only importing 2.5 million metric
tons.
“Urgent
action is demanded. Provide cash assistance to help our farmers through these
lean times. Raise the tariff for rice imports,” Pangilinan said.
“Immediate
and proper use of RCEF [Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund] for
mechanization and increased productivity. Correctly implement the Sagip Saka
Act to increase the incomes of our farmers ASAP,” he added. “Let’s not wait for
our number of farmers to decrease and let ourselves eventually depend on other
countries for our food. Let us protect our farmers now to protect our food
security.”
PH’s rice stocks surge by 43% in
October
November 11, 2019, 10:00 PM
By Madelaine B. Miraflor
The Philippines’ rice inventory
surged by 43 percent in October, with higher stocks at both households and
commercial warehouses.
A data from the Philippine
Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that as of October 1, total rice stocks of
the country stood at 2.27 million metric tons (MT).
This was higher by 43.4 percent
than the previous year’s record of 1.58 million MT and by 23.7 percent than the
preceding month’s inventory level of 1.84 million MT.
Rice stocks in all sectors grew
compared with their levels in the previous year, PSA said.
To be specific, Stocks in the
households and commercial warehouses increased by 22.5 percent and 38.2
percent, respectively.
Continuous upsurge was also
recorded in National Food Authority (NFA) depositories at 207.3 percent.
Of this month’s rice stocks inventory, 46.2 percent were in the households, 36.5 percent were in commercial warehouses, and 17.3 percent in NFA depositories.
Of this month’s rice stocks inventory, 46.2 percent were in the households, 36.5 percent were in commercial warehouses, and 17.3 percent in NFA depositories.
The latest PSA report came as the
US Department of Agriculture (USDA) reiterated its earlier forecast that the
Philippines may end up becoming the world’s largest rice importer this year,
beating China, the world’s most populous country with a population of around
1.4 billion.
In the latest report, it looked
like the Philippines, home to 105 million people, is on track to import 3
million metric tons (MT) this year, while China is expected to import only 2.5
million MT.
This, as the world’s second largest economy continuous to boost its local rice production.
This, as the world’s second largest economy continuous to boost its local rice production.
“The Philippines rice imports
have nearly quadrupled, from 800,000 metric tons in 2016 to 3.1 million
anticipated for 2019, representing 7 percent of total global rice imports. In
comparison, China’s share of global rice imports has almost reduced by half, to
just over 7 percent,” USDA said in a previous report.
“While China rice imports continue to shrink, Philippine purchases provide much appreciated reprieve from nearby exporters in Southeast Asia,” it added.
“While China rice imports continue to shrink, Philippine purchases provide much appreciated reprieve from nearby exporters in Southeast Asia,” it added.
In that report, USDA pointed out
that the Rice Tariffication Act, passed in March, indeed “led to a considerable
increase in imports and, consequently, decline in domestic prices”.
“While this helped lower
inflation, the Philippines adjustment to rice liberalization remains a
challenge,” the state-run agency said.
Right now, the Philippine
government wants to control the importation of rice by restricting the issuance
of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPS-IC) to traders.
In order to import rice, Rice
Tariffication Act or RA 11203 only requires local traders to obtain an SPS-IC
from the Department of Agriculture (DA). An SPS certifies that rice imports
that will enter the country are free from pests and diseases.
“We will try to lessen the
importation and limit it to 1 million metric tons because that’s what we need.
We will help the rice farmers,” Senator Cynthia Villar, the author of RA 11203,
said earlier.
While Federation of Free Farmers
(FFF) welcomed this, it noted that Villar’s suggestion runs counter both to the
spirit and letter of the Rice Liberalization Law that she herself sponsored.
Raul Montemayor, FFF National
Manager, noted that RA 11203 was designed to remove all forms of quantitative
limits on rice imports and replace these restrictions with tariffs.
“Imposing a limit of one million
tons is equivalent to reintroducing a quantitative restriction, which RA 11203
specifically prohibits. The only way you can change that is to repeal or amend
the law, which Senator Villar has stubbornly opposed,” Montemayor said.
Palace
‘concerned’ PH is world’s top rice importer
By: Nestor Corrales - Reporter / @NCorralesINQ
INQUIRER.net / 06:24 PM November 12, 2019
This photo, taken on July 05, 2007, show
workers unloading sacks of rice from the Vietnam cargo ship in the port of
Tabaco, Albay. The National Food Authority (NFA) was then importing 10,800
metric tons of rice from Vietnam due to a supply shortage. (File photo by Edwin
Bacasmas / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines
— Malacañang is “concerned” that the Philippines has become the world’s biggest
importer of rice this 2019.
But
presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the government was on top of the
situation.
“We are
concerned precisely that’s why [Agriculture] Secretary [William] Dar is there,”
Panelo said in a Palace briefing. “Dar is doing his own ways to solve whatever
problems confronting the farmers.”
President
Rodrigo Duterte appointed Dar last August to head the Department of Agriculture
to Emmanuel Piñol.
Dar is a
former director-general of the International Crops Research Institute for the
Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and was acting agriculture secretary during the
administration of President Joseph Ejercito Estrada.
“Secretary
Dar has been appointed there precisely because he used to head that department
and he was successful during his stint. So, he would be knowledgeable on how to
curb whatever problems that are existing today,” Panelo said.
The
country’s rice imports have been projected to reach a record 3 million metric
tons (MT) by year-end, according to a report by the United States Department of
Agriculture-Foreign Agricultural Services (USDA-FAS)
“Secretary
Dar has been placed there precisely to undertake measures, to solve the
problems hounding the industry,” Panelo said.
He said the
government recognized that the county had as rice sufficiency problems but said
Dar was “on top of that.”
“I’m sure
Secretary Dar knows the problem and he will introduce measures to solve the
same,” he said. “We expect Secretary Dar to implement measures that will make
our rice produce increase.”
Ghana now imports flowers from South Africa - Senior Minister
laments
Source: Ghana| Myjoyonline.com | Jessie Ola-Morris | Intern
Date: 11-11-2019 Time: 10:11:05:am
Senior minister, Yaw Osafo Marfo
Senior
Minister Yaw Osafo Marfo is worried about the alarming rate of the country’s
importation of goods. He said the country currently importing flowers thrice in a week
from South Africa is an absurd situation which is unacceptable.
Speaking
at a gathering on behalf of President Akufo-Addo at the opening of the National
Festival of Arts and Culture in Koforidua, the former Finance Minister called
on Ghanaians to support the Akufo-Addo government to end the trend.
In
2018, Ghana spent $1.35 billion to import rice.
According
to him, “When I was the Minister of Finance, Ghana spent ¢300 million on rice
and we were complaining.
“The
late Major Courage Quashigah was the Minister of Agriculture and he promised to
reduce it to zero after 4 years but it was never achieved. Indeed, after
four years, our rice import bill went from $300 million to $700 million”.
Mr
Osafo Marfo bemoaned such a development saying it is not right and the country
cannot continue.”
“….with
the type of land we have, even in the forest areas the lowlands can grow
rice to feed ourselves. As you go up to the north and fly over to Tamale you
will see greenery flatlands that can produce rice for West Africa and we spent
$1.35 billion of our scarce foreign exchange resources to import rice”.
“I
have not added the importation of chicken and even fruits and flowers, Ghana is
now airlifting flowers from South Africa to Kotoka about 3 times a week. Is it
right, can we continue this way? Certainly not, because we have all the
gifts of riches and we need the leadership that will take us from this
dependency that, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is providing and we should have
all hands on deck to go on the Ghana Beyond Aid mindset”.
Ghana imports mostly industrial supplies, foodstuffs, capital
and consumer goods. Its main imports partners are China, United
States, Belgium, United Kingdom and France.
Imports
averaged $951.45 million from 2004 until 2019, reaching an all-time high of
$1707 million in October of 2013 and a record low of $65.23 million in October
of 2004.
Although the
country engages in export activities, imports into the country supersede
exports.
The senior minister said if the country will experience the
development it seeks to achieve, then Ghanaians should help move
the economy from an import-dependent one to an export-driven one.
Mr
Osafo Marfo urged Ghanaians to help move from an import-dependent one to
export-driven so the citizens can feed themselves and not depend on others.
“Let
us at least feed ourselves, let’s export enough, earn enough to put our roads
right. Everybody is complaining about bad roads network and it is a fact but
how do you repair your roads, should we be going out asking for loans to do all
our roads or we should be earning revenue from our resources to repair our
roads”.
“The second is the alternative, we
must out of our own resources earn enough to put our roads right, fix our road
network, to create employment for ourselves and even our culture when properly
mounted we can earn enough to fix our roads,” he added.
Senate objects to
‘disastrous’ proposal to ease sugar imports
Published Nov 11, 2019 7:13:44 PM
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 11) — The Senate is asking the executive department to withhold
its plan to ease taxes on sugar imports as this would adversely impact around
five million people.
“The deregulated entry of subsidized sugar into the Philippine
market will be disastrous to our sugar industry … particularly to 84,000
farmers — mostly small farmers and agrarian reform beneficiaries,” senators
said in Senate Resolution 213 adopted Monday.
Senators also said the plan contradicts President Rodrigo
Duterte’s aim to achieve food security and will “severely affect” the
agriculture sector.
They added that the proposal is “untimely” as the Sugar Industry
Development Act, which seeks to promote competitiveness in the sugar industry,
has only been in effect for four years and projects under it “are not yet fully
realized.”
The lawmakers also noted that liberalizing sugar imports would
not affect the competitiveness of food with sugar, as the Sugar Regulatory
Administration (SRA) already allows food exporters to import sugar without
taxes as long as the end-product is exported and not sold locally.
The SRA allowed in August the importation of 250,000
metric tons of sugar to balance demand and curb inflation.
Economic managers have long been pushing to further ease sugar imports to
lower prices and force the local industry to compete globally.
This proposal follows the liberalization of rice imports, which
brought down the retail price of rice, but also hit rice farmers as the price
of palay (unhusked rice) also plummeted.
CNN Philippines Correspondent Joyce Ilas contributed to this
report.
Researchers use
drones to pilot a new tool to fight malaria
1d
ago | Source: reuters.com
Scientists seeking a breakthrough
in the fight against malaria have used drones to spray rice fields in Zanzibar
- not with traditional pesticides but with a thin, non-toxic film.
The fields are typical breeding
grounds for the anopheles mosquito - the type that transmits malaria, which the
United Nations says kills a young child every minute and causes 75 percent of
all under five deaths.
Ninety percent of all cases occur
in Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the World Health Organization.
The researchers, led by Bart
Knols from Radboud University in The Netherlands, plan to sample the larvae and
the mosquitoes in the fields before, during and after spraying it with the
silicone-based liquid, Aquatain AMF, to test its impact.
Malawi has used drones to map
mosquito breeding sites but the researchers in Zanzibar say preventing pupae
and larvae from attaching themselves to the surface of the water takes the
malaria fight to the next level.
“By controlling them right at the
source we hope to have an impact ultimately on the transmission of
malaria,” Knols said.
He and fellow researchers chose
Tanzania’s Zanzibar archipelago for the pilot partly due to its progressive
laws on the use of drones for research.
“It is very difficult to just
walk through the paddies and apply the chemicals, so you want to have something
that can just spray it on the water surface. It spreads, does the job and
that’s it,” said Wolfgang Richard Mukabana from the University of Nairobi, one
of the researchers.
After the trial in Zanzibar, they
aim to publish their findings in peer-reviewed journals, they said, and hope to
expand the approach across the continent.
The liquid is made by Australian
company Aquatain Products Pty Ltd, which says it is highly permeable to gases
so does not prevent the water from being oxygenated.
Millers delay
procurement plan
Uncertainty
looms over kharif paddy procurement in Kalahandi district with custom millers
yet to sign agreement and deposit security.
Published: 11th November 2019 09:54
AM | Last Updated: 11th November 2019 09:54
BHAWANIPATNA: Uncertainty looms over kharif
paddy procurement in Kalahandi district with custom millers yet to sign
agreement and deposit security. In the last rabi season, purchase of paddy was
delayed by a month as millers expressed reluctance to sign agreement over their
demands like enhancement of transportation charges, storage commission and
gunny bag depreciation charges.
The
district administration had planned to start kharif paddy procurement on
November 1 to check distress sale. As many as 72 rice millers were selected to
participate in the procurement process. However, the millers are yet to sign
the agreement for their participation.The Civil Supplies department had issued
letters to the rice millers to sign the agreement and deposit security a
fortnight back. However, there has been no response from the millers so far.The Agriculture department has assessed paddy production in the district at 81 lakh quintal in the current kharif season on the basis of which marketable paddy surplus will be procured. As many as 72,843 farmers in the district have registered their names online within the deadline of September 22.
In the first phase, the State Government has fixed the procurement target at 26 lakh quintal paddy. The target will be enhanced in the subsequent phases. Paddy will be procured through 74 Primary Agriculture Cooperative societies (PACS) and 17 women SHGs at 178 mandis.
Local farmers expressed concern over the delay by custom millers. “The hold-up will lead to distress sale by small and marginal farmers,” they said.
Stay up to date on all the latest Odisha news with The New Indian
Express App. Download now
(Get the news that matters from New Indian Express on WhatsApp.
Click this link and hit 'Click to Subscribe'.
Follow the instructions after that.)
TAGS
Rice inventory up more than 43% at start of October amid
harvest season
November 11, 2019 | 10:14 pm 
PHILIPPINE
STAR/MICHAELVARCAS
PHILIPPINE
STAR/MICHAELVARCAS
THE national rice inventory was
estimated at 2.279 million metric tons (MMT) as of October 1, up 43.4% from a
year earlier, and up 23.7% month-on-month, the Philippine Statistics Authority
(PSA) said.
The estimate was contained in the
PSA’s Rice and Corn Stocks Inventory report. Rice inventory levels are
sufficient for about 71 days’ consumption based on a daily average assumption
of 32,000 MT.
Some 46.12% of the rice inventory
was held by households, 36.5% by commercial warehouses, and 17.3% by the
National Food Authority (NFA). The PSA gave no breakdown of domestically grown
against imported rice.
All categories reported increases
compared with a year earlier. Household inventory increased 22.5%, commercial
warehouses rose 38.2%, and NFA stocks was up 207.3%.
On a month-on-month basis, rice
stocks held by households increased 56.4%, those in commercial warehouses rose
increased 9.6%, while NFA inventory was down 3.6%.
The high inventory levels reflect
fresh rice from the harvest, which ran from September to October, as well as
increased import volumes.
Corn inventory was 1.095 million
MT, up 93.3% year-on-year and up 42.6% from a month earlier.
Corn held in commercial
warehouses accounted for 72.1% of the total, while households held 27.9% and
the NFA zero.
Compared with a year earlier,
warehouses and households increased their holdings. Household inventory rose
101.5%, while commercial warehouse inventory increased 90.4%.
Month-on-month, household
inventory increased 43%, while holdings of commercial warehouses rose 42.4%.
— Vincent Mariel P. Galang
https://www.bworldonline.com/rice-inventory-up-more-than-43-at-start-of-october-amid-harvest-season/
Thailand asks farmers not
to grow off-season rice on drought worries
NOVEMBER 11, 2019 /
FILE PHOTO: A woman shows collected
rice seeds during the annual royal ploughing ceremony in central Bangkok,
Thailand, May 9, 2019. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
BANGKOK (Reuters) - The Thai
government has asked farmers in 22 provinces to not grow off-season rice, as
the country braced for a dry spell amid low water levels in main reservoirs.
Thailand, the world’s second-largest
rice exporter after India, will not have enough water to grow the crop in some
960,000 hectares of rice fields around the Chao Phraya River basin in the
coming months, authorities said on Monday.
Water in the country’s four main
reservoirs covering the 22 provinces currently stood at 5.4 billion cubic
meter, a level lower than 12 billion a year earlier, said Thaweesak
Thanadachophol, deputy director-general of the Royal Irrigation Department.
“That’s enough for consumption but
not for off-reason rice growing,” Thaweesak said.
“So we’ve asked farmers not to grow
rice.”
Off-season rice growing usually
starts in November and harvest begins in February. Thailand entered a dry
season on Nov. 1, which is expected to last through to April 30 next year.
Last month, the cabinet approved a
series of drought management measures, including drilling groundwater wells and
making artificial rain.
Rerporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat;
Writing by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Rashmi Aich
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters
Trust Principles.
Rice Prices
as on : 12-11-2019 02:51:48 PM
Arrivals in tonnes;prices in
Rs/quintal in domestic market.
|
Arrivals
|
Price
|
|||||
|
Current
|
%
change |
Season
cumulative |
Modal
|
Prev.
Modal |
Prev.Yr
%change |
|
|
Rice
|
||||||
|
Bangalore(Kar)
|
2854.00
|
43.13
|
93138.00
|
4650
|
4650
|
8.14
|
|
Manjeri(Ker)
|
290.00
|
NC
|
10440.00
|
3500
|
3500
|
NC
|
|
Baxirhat(WB)
|
230.00
|
2.22
|
2348.00
|
2750
|
2750
|
-5.17
|
|
Sindhanur(Kar)
|
100.00
|
163.16
|
294.00
|
1700
|
2000
|
19.30
|
|
Thodupuzha(Ker)
|
70.00
|
NC
|
2450.00
|
2900
|
2900
|
-7.94
|
|
Pandua(WB)
|
44.00
|
4.76
|
1852.00
|
3100
|
3100
|
3.33
|
|
Honnali(Kar)
|
39.00
|
-23.53
|
683.00
|
1856
|
1856
|
4.56
|
|
Lakhimpur(UP)
|
38.00
|
-5
|
1845.00
|
2370
|
2400
|
2.60
|
|
Chitwadagaon(UP)
|
25.00
|
400
|
249.00
|
2430
|
2100
|
15.71
|
|
Panchpedwa(UP)
|
25.00
|
78.57
|
383.90
|
1990
|
1975
|
-10.36
|
|
Toofanganj(WB)
|
22.50
|
-2.17
|
260.90
|
2750
|
2750
|
1.85
|
|
Manvi(Kar)
|
20.00
|
-33.33
|
412.00
|
1850
|
1850
|
-
|
|
Choubepur(UP)
|
19.80
|
14.12
|
1526.80
|
2635
|
2560
|
12.13
|
|
Purulia(WB)
|
18.00
|
12.5
|
242.00
|
2630
|
2620
|
0.38
|
|
Ghatal(WB)
|
16.00
|
6.67
|
392.50
|
2650
|
2550
|
6.00
|
|
Fatehabad(UP)
|
15.00
|
200
|
382.90
|
2350
|
2320
|
4.44
|
|
Hailakandi(ASM)
|
6.00
|
-14.29
|
128.00
|
2450
|
2450
|
2.08
|
|
Ahirora(UP)
|
5.50
|
NC
|
124.60
|
2300
|
2300
|
NC
|
|
Ruperdeeha(UP)
|
5.00
|
NC
|
375.00
|
2250
|
2250
|
40.63
|
|
Dibrugarh(ASM)
|
4.40
|
-26.67
|
371.60
|
3100
|
3100
|
6.16
|
|
Kasganj(UP)
|
4.00
|
NC
|
210.00
|
2600
|
2560
|
3.59
|
|
Nandyal(AP)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
40.00
|
3900
|
3700
|
-
|
|
Jambusar(Kaavi)(Guj)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
95.00
|
3000
|
3200
|
-
|
|
Aroor(Ker)
|
1.00
|
NC
|
17.00
|
10000
|
10000
|
9.89
|
November 12, 2019
Ghana on course to achieving
self-sufficiency in rice production soon – Agric Ministry
Chief Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Robert
Patrick Ankobeah
Ghana is on course to achieving
self-sufficiency in rice production soon, Chief Director of the Ministry of
Food and Agriculture Robert Patrick Ankobeah has said. He says government is prioritizing providing support to rice farmers and other agricultural producers because “if there is any sector where Ghana can easily achieve self-sufficiency, it is in the agricultural sector.”
“Ghana rice is just amazing. Ghana has great potential and the vision of the president for Ghana beyond aid is attainable. We are targeting self-sufficiency in rice by 2020.
“From the way things are going, we could even achieve it earlier,” Mr Ankobeah said. He was speaking at the 2019 Ghana Rice Festival at the Efua Sutherlands Park in Accra.
The festival organized by the Ghana Rice Inter-Professional Body (GRIB) and the John A. Kufuor Foundation had the objective of celebrating Ghana’s burgeoning local rice industry.
It was used to showcase the various high quality, produced-in-Ghana rice brands. The occasion was also used to encourage Ghanaians to consume more Ghana rice brands.
MOFA under the Planting for Food and Jobs Programme announced in 2017 it is working to ensure the nation increases local rice production within 3 years and achieve 100% self-sufficiency by 2023.
Chief Executive Officer of the John A. Kufuor Foundation Prof. Baffour Agyeman – Duah told the ceremony that vision is on course.
“We are all looking forward to 2023 when Ghana can start exporting rice. Ghana rice is more nutritious than a lot of the rice we import... We hope that in the near future, the government will make sure that Ghana rice is what feeds all Ghanaians.”
“We believe that very soon, with the right support and direction, Ghana will no longer import rice. All of us should cooperate. It is important for government to give attention to the needs of rice farmers which they are doing now but should do more,” he said.
“The vision is simple. Ghana has good land and good water bodies. If we decide to produce rice, we can be a major exporter of rice. It doesn’t make sense to continue importing rice into the country and spending hugely.
“So, the former president J. A Kufuor is urging us all to support government to help make the country self-sufficient in food production,” Prof. Agyeman – Duah added.
President of the GRIB Nana Adjei Ayeh expressed gratitude to government and other agencies for their support to the local rice sector.
“Government wants us to help ensure that Ghana gets a formidable advocacy platform in the rice sector. It is great for the sector… Our Ghana rice is the best…,” he said.
Lack
of water in Sado river threatens Alentejo rice production
By
Natasha Donn
11th November 2019
Lack of water in the Sado river
is threatening the production of rice in the Alentejo – one of Portugal’s
oldest rice-producing areas.
Farmers are caught between a rock
and a hard place.
They aren’t receiving the amount
of water they need – and to make use of water diverted from the Alqueva dam
will cost them ‘too much’: rice cannot be ‘cost effective’ if it sells for more
than 60 cents a kilo.
The quandary was aired by
national media throughout the weekend.
This latest ‘crisis’ in rice
production comes because two local dams – Vale de Gaio and Pego e Alter are
critically low. The former is running at just over 18% capacity, the latter at
less than 11%.
The ‘solution’ offered growers is
to pay for ‘discharges’ of water into Vale de Gaio from Alqueva. There is even
the plan to create a direct link between Pego do Altar and Alqueva.
But the problem is the cost of
each cubic metre.
Say reports, charges are 12-13
cents more than growers currently pay for water from the local dams, and
cumulatively, this would make all their efforts in producing rice pointless as
it would need to be sold at a price that consumers further down the line are
unlikely to accept.
Stresses Joaquim Manuel Lopes of
the association of Setúbal district growers, “the State should be distributing
water liberally and equally to all farmers for the same price, whether they are
in Viana do Castelo or the Algarve”.
Water supply specialists see the
situation differently, suggesting some areas (particularly Alcácer do Sal) may
have to change ‘crops’ and start growing foodstuffs that can survive on limited
water.
As all the articles agree, this
situation isn’t new, and it is unlikely to improve long-term.
Other rivers too are suffering
from lack of water – particularly the Tejo which gets its supplies ‘rationed’
by Spain which controls discharges.
Nélson Carriço, lecturer in
hydraulics and water resources at Setúbal polytechnic, says Spain is actually
breaking the terms of the Albufeira Convention which establishes rules for the
management of the Iberian Peninsula’s international river basins.
“We are a downstream country”, he
told reporters. “That is, the water comes from Spain – and Spain controls the
flow that comes into Portugal.
“The Albufeira Convention
provides for minimum flows, but often in summer these minimum flows are not
checked. In other words there is a clear violation of the agreements.
“The Portuguese Government can
always intervene with the Spanish Government, draw its attention to the
situation, but what has happened repeatedly in the Tejo is the violation of the
[minimum] flow rates”.
Minister for the environment and
energy transition João Pedro Matos Fernandes has been pressured over this issue
for months. Last weekend he pledged to renegotiate with Spain over minimum
flows into the Tejo, while the government’s plan is also to construct a new dam
on the river.
Too much sugar doesn't put the brakes on turbocharged crops
IMAGE: CENTRE
RESEARCHERS DR. CLEMENCE HENRY AT THE LAB WITH COLLEAGUES DR. JULIUS SAGUN AND
FIONA KOLLER. view more
CREDIT: CHARLES TAMBIAH/ COE FOR
TRANSLATIONAL PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Plants make sugars to form leaves
to grow and produce grains and fruits through the process of photosynthesis,
but sugar accumulation can also slow down photosynthesis. Researching how
sugars in plants control photosynthesis is therefore an important part of finding
new ways of improving crop production.
Recent research into highly
productive turbocharged crops such as maize and sorghum, show the secret to
their productivity could lie in their sugar sensing responses which regulate
photosynthesis inside their leaves.
"By comparing rice and
millet we found that crops that use the C4 photosynthesis path, such as maize,
sorghum and millet, regulate photosynthesis using different sugar signal
mechanisms than C3 crops, such as wheat and rice. This may be part of the reason
why they are more productive," said lead researcher Dr Clemence Henry from
the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis (CoETP).
"Plants can detect how much
sugar is being produced and used through a complex set of sugar sensing mechanisms.
These mechanisms can shut photosynthesis down if sugar accumulation is too
high. However, to our surprise, we found out that unlike previously shown in
some C3 plants, C4 plants are not so sensitive to high levels of sugars, which
shows us that the feedback mechanism is not as simple as we previously
thought" Dr Henry says.
"We are trying to understand
how photosynthesis is regulated in C4 plants, which are some of the most
important cereals in global food production. The regulation mechanisms have been
well studied in C3 plants, but until now, we didn't know what happens in C4
crops and how this is related to their ability to produce more sugars,"
says Dr Oula Ghannoum, CoETP Chief investigator at Western Sydney University.
"One of the most exciting outcomes
of this research is that if we understand how sugar signalling works in C4
crops, in the future when we transfer turbocharged photosynthesis mechanisms to
crops like wheat and rice we will ensure we improve their yield," says Dr
Ghannoum.
Improving photosynthesis, the
process by which plants convert sunlight, water and CO2 into organic matter, is
recognised as one of the best ways to increase crop production.
"The tricky part is to
translate the results found at the molecular level to the crop level. For
improved photosynthesis to give more yield we need to "take the brakes
off" the crop. This is an essential piece of the puzzle to achieve
improved yield through increased photosynthesis," says CoETP Director
Professor Robert Furbank, one of the authors of this study.
During the study, published
recently in the Journal of Experimental Botany, the
scientists used light intensity as a means to increase sugar production and
identify the genes responsible for photosynthesis regulation. This is one of
the few studies that are focusing on the source of sugar production where
photosynthesis happens, rather than in the sinks where sugars are used by the
plant. This is one of the few studies that are focusing on the source (leaves)
where sugar production and photosynthesis take place, rather than in the sinks
(grains, fruits) where sugars are used.
"We still have a lot of
unanswered questions about how these sugar sensors work. Our next steps are to
manipulate these sensors, which will help us to gather essential information we
need to transfer them to C3 crops in the future," Dr Ghannoum says.
###
This research has been funded by
the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis, which aims to
improve photosynthesis to increase crop production and is a collaboration with
Rothamsted Research in the UK.
Experts to tackle
PH Rice Tariffication Law policy implications
November 12, 2019, 1:41 pm
(photo taken from SEARCA FB profile)
LOS BAŇOS, Laguna - The Philippine government-hosted Southeast Asian Regional
Center for Graduate Study and Research and Agriculture (SEARCA) will hold a
session on the regional implications of the Philippine Rice Tariffication Law
(RTL) during the Inaugural Rice Research Symposium on Wednesday (Nov. 13) at
the Makati Shangri-La Hotel.
The research symposium is part of
the 11th World Rice Conference organized by The Rice Trader (TRT).
Republic Act 11203 or the RTL has
recently been passed in the Philippines with the purpose of lifting existing
quantitative import restrictions on rice.
With the current influx of imported
rice and the consequent plunge in domestic farm gate prices, the RTL has
amassed mixed reactions from various stakeholders of the local rice industry,
raising the question as to whether it is indeed beneficial for the Philippine
rice industry.
Meanwhile, the current push for the
establishment of an Asean common market has steered regional strategies toward
promoting and strengthening intra-Asean trade and market integration.
Whether the new law will help the
Philippines reap the gains from international trade and make Filipino farmers
more competitive in the local and international markets is the question the
session aims to answer.
The SEARCA session will assess the
policy implications on regional trade, rice reserves, food security,
agriculture and rural development, and rice farmers' income and competitiveness
in relation to the implementation of the RTL.
Session technical coordinator, Dr.
Roehlano M. Briones, Senior Research Fellow of the Philippine Institute for
Development Studies (PIDS), will be joined in by representatives from relevant
sectors who will provide a multi-stakeholder perspective on the issue.
The panelists are Dr. Ramon L. Clarete
of the UP School of Economics (UPSE); Jerry E. Pacturan of the International
Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Asia Pacific Division; Cresente C.
Paez of the Asian Farmers Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA);
Jansinee Kankaew of the Asean Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR)
Secretariat; and Jose Ma. Luis P. Montesclaros of Nanyang Technological
University (NTU) Singapore. (PR)
Golden rice, long
an anti-GMO target, may finally get a chance to help children
Plant scientists Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyer, the inventors of
golden rice, at the time of the first field trials in 2004 at Louisiana State
University in Baton Rouge. (Golden Rice Humanitarian Board)
By
November 12, 2019 at
3:46 a.m. GMT+5
Ed Regis
is a science writer and the author, most recently, of “Golden Rice: The Imperiled
Birth of a GMO Superfood.”
By the
end of this week, Bangladesh’s agriculture minister is expected to
announce the approval of “golden rice" for sale and use, making the
country the world’s first to embrace a food that could save hundreds of
thousands of children in developing nations from blindness and death. Golden
rice has faced a years-long battle to overcome misguided hostility from critics
of genetically modified foods and from overcautious bureaucrats. Its
introduction in Bangladesh could be a monumental breakthrough for its
acceptance worldwide.
For more
than two decades, researchers have worked to develop a rice that contained
higher levels of beta carotene, which the human body converts into vitamin A.
The goal was to reduce the incidence of vitamin A deficiency — a health problem
that is virtually unknown in rich Western countries but is a leading cause of
childhood blindness and death in the developing world where rice is a staple,
particularly in Africa and Southeast Asia. According to
the World Health Organization, “An estimated 250,000 to 500,000 vitamin
A-deficient children become blind every year, half of them dying within 12
months of losing their sight.” Also according to WHO, millions of pregnant
women worldwide are at risk of night blindness and other health
problems from vitamin A deficiency, which can harm fetal development, too.
AD
Golden
rice’s efficacy as a source of vitamin A has been shown in experiments going back to 2009 with human
volunteers. But despite its promise, the rice has been attacked by critics of
genetically modified foods ever since it was announced in
the pages of the journal Science in 2000. Indian anti-GMO crusader Vandana
Shiva called golden rice “a hoax.” As I found in
researching a book on golden rice and the struggles to get it to those who need
it, Greenpeace has variously derided the potentially lifesaving food as “Fools
Gold,” “All glitter, no gold,” “More hype than substance,” “Propaganda for the
genetic engineering industry” and a “Golden Illusion.”
Defenders
of golden rice, including the more than 100 Nobel laureates who in 2016 signed a letter urging Greenpeace to stop
bashing GMOs, and in particular golden rice, tend to blame activist opposition
for preventing the approval and release of this superfood. But that is only one
cause. The greatest impediment to the release and use of golden rice has been
the regulatory apparatus of the health departments and agriculture ministries
in the countries where the research was being done as well as in the nations where
the biofortified rice was most needed.
In
short, the very government agencies that were supposed to protect human lives
and health have instead been inadvertently responsible for years of mass
blindness and death.
AD
The main
source of the problem is the 2003 so-called Cartagena Protocol, a United Nations-sponsored
resolution on “biosafety” governing the handling, transport and use of GMOs. A
key component of the protocol was its embrace of a precautionary
principle stating that “lack of scientific certainty due
to insufficient relevant scientific information and knowledge regarding the
extent of the potential adverse effects” of a GMO on the environment or human
health “shall not prevent” governments from taking action against the
importation of the GMO in question.
That
sounds like a simple “better safe than sorry” proposition, but in practice it
became a bureaucratic doctrine of “guilty until proven innocent.” The worst of
it was that the statement allowed the imposition of restrictions on a given GMO
in the absence of any actual proof that it would cause harm, or even sufficient
reason to believe that it would.
Governments
responded by being not only cautious, but also zealously overcautious, when it
came to GMOs. What this meant in real-world GMO science is illustrated by the
set of rules created by the European Parliament in 2003, based on a directive regarding “the deliberate release into
the environment of genetically modified organisms.”
AD
The
landmark legislation was legally binding on all member states of the European
Union, and it governed virtually all aspects of GMO research, development and
field testing. It provided, for example, that anyone wishing to conduct a field
trial of a given GMO had to compile a technical dossier that furnished a virtually
complete set of data about the plant at the molecular level, how it had been
modified, with what genetic sequences and their origin — all of it in minute
detail.
Ingo
Potrykus, the co-inventor of golden rice, with Peter Beyer, has estimated that
adherence to government regulations on GMOs resulting from the Cartagena
Protocol and the precautionary principle caused a delay of up to 10 years in
the development of the final product. During that decade, countless children in
developing countries continued to go blind and die, and the health of pregnant
women was also harmed. It was a potent illustration of the way erring on the
side of caution can sometimes have fatal consequences.
If
Bangladesh does indeed approve golden
rice for release, and if the rice is consumed by vitamin A-deficient children
and ends up saving their sight and lives, then many regulatory authorities —
and GMO critics — will have a lot of explaining to do.
Golden Rice undergoing trials in Isabela, Nueva Ecija
November 11, 2019 | 10:12 pm
IRRI
GOLDEN RICE, developed by
biotechnologists to address Vitamin A deficiency, is still in the process of
completing field trials before it applies for permission to be commercially
propagated, officials said, amid the risk that it could get caught up in a
broader debate about the safety of genetically-modified foods.
The Department of Agriculture’s
Biotechnology Program Office (BPO) said the typical testing regime will take
two years.
“For rice, kailangan i-validate mo
yan sa iba’t-ibang locations, iba’t-ibang season. Yung
ang tinitignan natin para makita natin yung stability nung variety
(We need to validate the variety’s performance in various locations and
seasons, to determine its stability),” BPO Director Dionisio G. Alvindia told
reporters on Monday, without discussing when the field trials are expected to
end.
Trials are being performed in
Isabela and Nueva Ecija provinces.
“Usually ang testing nyan
sa rice, a minimum of four trials… dalawang dry
season, dalawang wet season, bale two years
(The usual testing program for rice is a minimum of four trials, two in the wet
season and two in the dry, or about two years),” he added.
The trials are being performed by
the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) in partnership with the DA.
According to the International
Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, which helped develop Golden Rice, the
variety is designed to address the “serious public health problem affecting
millions of children and pregnant women globally,” and cited positive results
from food safety evaluations conducted by regulators in Australia, New Zealand,
Canada and the US.
The Stop Golden Rice Network
Philippines (SGRNP), a group of 30 organizations and individuals, cited the
risks from the lack of a long-term understanding of how the variety performs.
“We are alarmed that Golden Rice
will be made available to children, pregnant women and other vulnerable sectors
without being subjected to any long-term and credible studies to assure us of
its safety,” Melvin Palmero a member of the SGRNP from SALINLAHI Alliance for
Children’s Concerns said.
It cited a study from India
indicating that Golden Rice’s beta-carotene, which is converted to Vitamin A by
the body, degrades rapidly after harvesting, processing and cooking.
“The Indian government research
shows that 84% of the beta-carotene can be lost from Golden Rice after six
months, unless it has been vacuum-packed and refrigerated. High temperature and
humidity greatly contributes to the beta-carotene degradation, and cooking the
rice will cause the further loss of 25% of the beta-carotene,” it said.
He said degraded beta-carotene is
a cancer risk.
Mr. Alvindia said that these
claims are not true and assured that Golden Rice is safe for humans.
“Ito namang mga technology na
ito, hindi naman basta ire-release sa public without
verifying… Yung claim nila ay hindi totoo. Yung stability, pine-perfect yan
ng PhilRice (This technology will not be released to the public
without safeguards. Their claims are not true. The stability is being perfected
by PhilRice)” he said. — Vincent Mariel P. Galang
Growers urge government to
plan paddy straw management
By ZAHID BAIG on November 12, 2019
Growers have urged the government
to come up with a comprehensive plan for disposal of paddy straw rather than
just banning the burning of rice stubbles under section 144 in the bid to
tackle the menace of environment pollution, especially smog.
They termed such steps as
cosmetics unless the farmers are provided with incentives to obtain specific
machinery which could help in management of paddy straw.
Problem with farmers is that
managing the rice stubble is not an easy task, especially the harvested crop
through the regular combine harvesters. Already decimated due to the higher
production costs and the less return of investment, farmers cannot afford
residue management and go for burning instead.
Modern machinery like rotavators
and disc harrows are available in the market but they are very expensive for
small-to-medium farmers and cannot mix the rice stubble in the soil until it is
decomposed after watering and using fertilizer which not only increases the
production cost of the next crop but also delays sowing of the next crop,
resulting in low yields and poor quality, observed Aamir Hayat Bhandara, a
progressive farmer and environmentalist while talking to Business
Recorder here on Monday.
Aamir lamented that the
government slept for nine months and woke up just before October and imposed
section 144 on stubble burning and brick kilns. This is a fact that brick kilns
(which are among the major contributors of pollution) have always been given
relaxation till November mid. Due to this; it always looks like farmers are
being made the victims by the government.
He said imposing section 144 is
not the solution to tackle issues like smog or air pollution. It is rightly
viewed as a threat but the government should work on future policies after
taking farmers on board.
At the moment the government
should offer incentives and subsidies to farmers for stubble collection to
maintain their production cost of the next crop, provide machinery and latest
harvester like Kubota at the village level introducing rental models, identify
the industry like bio-fuels, paper, packaging and energy using crop residue
