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Thailand ends costly rice subsidy scheme Kharif sowing starts, rice sown in 2.38 lakh hectare TABLE-India Grain Prices - Delhi - Jun 13 1,800 rice warehouses to be checked Thai junta promises interim government by September Rice inspection teams to be set up for warehouse visits in late June Monsoon rains weak after late arrival Rice import ban angers Ivory Coast PASSCO may face loss of millions in rice tender CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures Rice Leadership Class Continues in Arkansas and Mississippi Investment in Rice Milling Key to Boosting Export, Report Says Plateau to export rice by 2015 -agric commissioner RiceBran Technologies to Present at the 25th Annual Institutional Investor Conference of the Wall Street Analyst Forum Rice stockpile to be audited
News Detail… Thailand ends costly rice subsidy scheme Thailand's military junta on Friday ended the country's costly rice subsidy scheme and will help the farmers through education as well as cutting production costs.BANGKOK: Thailand's military junta on Friday ended the country's costly rice subsidy scheme and will help the farmers through education as well as cutting production costs. Army chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha, Chairman of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), said whether there would be one in the future was a different matter.Prayuth said that at the meeting on the direction of the 2015 national budget, which was televised for transparency purposes."If there will be such a scheme in the future, it needs to be proven that the farmers will get 100 per cent of the sale and the policy is transparency."The government will provide support for basic production factors such as the establishment of seed and fertiliser banks, and the promotion of organic fertilisers and farm cooperatives," he said.
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The scheme is popular and a recent survey showed that more than half of Thais supported it with some changes.However, it faced funding problems as well as corruption.Under the scheme, the government pays a guaranteed price that was well above market prices.This cost the country an estimated 500 billion baht, according to the Finance Ministry.Internationally, the country lost market share in rice sales because it lost its export competitiveness.More than 800,000 farmers faced months of delay in payment as the government of former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra was unable to find the funds to pay the farmers.They only get paid when the military staged a military coup on May 22 and announced that paying the farmers was among the priorities of the junta.
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File photo illustration: A Thai farmer works in rice fields in Pathum Thani province. (AFP)
Kharif sowing starts, rice sown in 2.38 lakh hectare PTI New Delhi, June 13: Sowing of kharif (summer) crops has commenced in most parts of the country and farmers have sown rice in 2.38 lakh hectare so far, according to the Agriculture Ministry.Sowing of kharif crops begins with the onset of southwest monsoon in June, while the harvesting starts from October.The government said in an official statement that the preliminary reports on sowing of kharif crops have been received from states.As on Friday, it is reported that rice - the main kharif crop - has been sown/transplanted in 2.38 lakh hectare; pulses in 2.42 lakh hectare and oilseeds in 0.78 lakh hectare. The planting of commercial crops sugarcane and cotton is in progress. Sugarcane has been planted in 43.52 lakh hectare, while cotton is in 17.34 lakh hectare so far, the statement said. The ministry, however, did not give the comparable figures on sowing.Amid chances of subnormal monsoon this year, as predicted by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the ministry has advised state governments to be ready with contingency plans to minimise impact of erratic rains.It is also working on certain relief measures such as providing subsidy to buy seeds for re-sowing and diesel for irrigation to protect the standing crops
(This article was published on June 13, 2014)
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TABLE-India Grain Prices-Delhi- June 13 Fri Jun 13, 2014 2:50pm IST Rates by Asian News International, New Delhi Tel: 011 2619 1464 Indicative Previous Grains opening close (in rupees per 100 kg unless stated) ---------------------------------------------------------Wheat Desi 2,000-2,600 2,000-2,600. Wheat Dara 1,650-1,750 1,650-1,750. Atta Chakki (per 10 Kg) 220-250 220-250. Roller Mill (per bag) 1,650-1,750 1,650-1,750. Maida (per bag) 1,750-1,950 1,750-1,950. Sooji (per bag) 1,900-2,200 1,900-2,200. Rice Basmati(Common) 8,100-9,200 8,000-9,000. Rice Permal 1,750-2,350 1,750-2,350. Rice Sela 1,550-1,750 1,550-1,750. I.R.-8 1,900-2,200 1,850-2,150. Gram 3,200-3,600 3,200-3,600. Peas Green 3,100-3,200 3,100-3,200. Peas White 3,200-3,400 3,100-3,300. Bajra 1,500-1,700 1,500-1,700. Jowar white 1,500-1,600 1,500-1,600. Maize 1,550-1,650 1,600-1,700. Barley 1,350-1,650 1,350-1,650. Source: Delhi grain market traders.
1,800 rice warehouses to be checked Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation June 14, 2014 1:00 am Team to check on size, quality of stock to allay rumours of 2.9m tonnes missing The military government set up a 100-strong taskforce yesterday to inspect more than 1,800 warehouses nationwide to ensure transparency about the size and quality of the state rice stock.Interior Ministry deputy permanent secretary Panadda Diskul, who is acting PM's Office permanent secretary, announced the setting up of the taskforce after chairing a meeting of the subcommittee overseeing inspections.The inspection team will consist of representatives from the PM's Office, the Army, police, Interior, Commerce and Agricul-ture ministries, and the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
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The move comes in the wake of uncertainty over government stockpile levels after two years of the controversial rice-pledging project by the ousted Yingluck Shinawatra government. The Finance Ministry's auditing committee has reported that about 2.9 million tonnes of rice is missing, creating a huge loss for the country. But the Commerce Ministry insists no rice is missing and that there had been a misunderstanding during the delivery of rice from mills to warehouses. The Commerce Ministry said there was about 13 million tonnes of rice stockpiled, with 4 million tonnes awaiting shipment to private rice traders under government-togovernment contracts. There is a rumour that some rice stocks have deteriorated in quality so the junta government needs to manage stockpiles efficiently.The taskforce is scheduled to start its work this month, with no advance information to be given to local officers. To ensure efficiency in the investigation, the PM's Office and the Commerce Ministry will train the taskforce members. Panadda said the government was confident of obtaining a more accurate stockpile figure because many agencies had joined the investigation to ensure transparency.The Commerce Ministry has ordered the suspension of government-to-government rice shipments during the investigation.Panadda said the investigation report would be submitted to the committee on rice policy chaired by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha. If there are signs of corruption, the wrongdoers need to face legal action, she said. Prayuth said yesterday that the NCPO would not continue with the controversial rice-pledging scheme, and whether it is continued in the future remains to be seen. For now, he said, the NCPO would focus on helping farmers cut costs and increase production. Separately, NACC member Prasart Pongsivapai said the commission had not yet considered the request filed by Yingluck's lawyer asking the NACC to investigate another eight witnesses from her side in the case of negligence related to the rice-pledging scheme that she is facing. He said he was not sure if the request would be on the NACC meeting agenda next week.
Thai junta promises interim government by September IANS
Bangkok, June 13 (IANS) Thailand's military junta leader Prayuth Chan-ocha on Friday said an interim government will be formed in September at the latest.While addressing a budget meeting, the chief of the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) said that a government will be set up by August, or September at the very latest, Xinhua reported.A temporary constitution will be drafted within three months, Prayuth said, adding it will take at least one year before a new general election can be held.At the meeting regarding the 2015 national budget, the NCPO chief indicated the rice-pledging scheme, the flagship "populist policy" of the ousted Yingluck government, will not be continued.He promised to focus on issues such as reducing farmers' costs, establishing seed and fertilizer banks, and promoting farm cooperatives.A similar rice subsidy programme could be revived in the future only if it is designed to benefit only rice growers, Prayuth said.The Yingluck government started
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buying rice from farmers at above-market prices in 2011 to shore up rural incomes, fulfilling a campaign pledge by the Pheu Thai Party, which won a parliamentary majority that year. Critics have accused the scheme of breeding corruption and incurring great losses.The junta started to repay farmers indebted under the scheme soon after the May 22 coup, and by late June, more than 800,000 farmers are expected to receive some 92 billion baht (around $2.88 billion).
Rice inspection teams to be set up for warehouse visits in late June BANGKOK, 13 June 2014 (NNT) – Deputy Permanent Secretary for Interior ML Panadda Diskul has revealed that up to 100 teams will be formed for the nationwide inspection of rice stocks which is expected to begin late this month. In his capacity as acting Permanent Secretary for the Prime Minister’s Office, ML Pannada today chaired the first meeting of the rice inspection subcommittee, which was previously established by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO). During the meeting, the subcommittee assigned responsibilities to each unit, with a view to examining both the quantity and quality of pledged rice kept at 1,800 government warehouses across the country. ML Panadda stated that a total of 100 teams, led by the inspectors-general from all ministries, would be sent out to check on the grains’ condition. Members of each team will include civil servants from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Interior as well as military officers. At present, ML Panadda said the panel was awaiting the final inventory of rice stocks from the Commerce Ministry. The inventory is expected to be completed in late June, after which the inspection process will commence immediately. In the meantime, all provinces have been ordered to monitor rice warehouses in their areas in a bid to prevent unauthorized relocation of the grains.
Monsoon rains weak after late arrival BY RATNAJYOTI DUTTA NEW DELHI Thu Jun 12, 2014 3:46pm IST
(Reuters) - Monsoon rains were 48 percent below average levels in the week to June 11, data from the weather office showed on Thursday, reflecting the late onset of the annual rains over the southern Kerala coast.During the initial days of the June-September wet season, summer crops such as rice, corn, soybean and cotton are not greatly affected by the quantity of rains.
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The distribution of rainfall in mid-July, after the monsoon covers the entire Indian landmass, is more important for their growth.India's farm sector accounts for 14 percent of its nearly $2 trillion economy. Poor rains this year could hit the summer crops, raising food prices and pressuring economic growth that has nearly halved to below 5 percent in the past two years."We expect the weak phase to continue until the middle of next week," said a weather official who did not want to be named. Monsoons this year started on a weak note, arriving over India's southern coast about five days behind the usual date of June 1. India's weather office forecast below average rainfall in 2014, with a one in three chance of drought as a weather pattern often associated with drought in South Asia could emerge in the second half of the season. El Nino, a weather phenomenon marked by warming of the temperature of the sea surface in the Pacific Ocean, could cause droughts in the Asia Pacific, including India."There could be a weak to moderate El Nino during the last week of July to early August, through it is still in a neutral condition," said L.S. Rathore, the head of the India Meteorological Department (IMD).IMD estimates that there is a 33 percent chance that the monsoon will be "deficient," defined as delivering rainfall of less than 90 percent of the long-period average (LPA).The weather office defines average, or normal, rainfall as between 96 percent and 104 percent of a 50-year average of 89 cm for the entire season. Half of India's farmland lacks access to irrigation, making many farmers particularly dependent on monsoon rains. The nation plans to expand irrigation coverage by at least a tenth by 2017 to cut its dependence on the seasonal rains.Rains in the coming two to three days are likely to be concentrated in India's western coastal regions where farmers favour cultivation of coffee and rubber, the weather official said. (Editing by Douglas Busvine and Muralikumar Anantharaman) Image: Rickshaw riders make their way through a flooded road after a heavy rain shower in Agartala, capital of Tripura June 11, 2014. CREDIT: REUTERS/JAYANTA DEY
Rice import ban angers Ivory Coast The Bureau for Internal Affairs (BIA), an anti-corruption organization, says there is an ongoing trade conflict between Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.According to the Bureau, the conflict arose as a result of the ban on inland rice importation by Ghana’s Trade Ministry since last year.In line with this, the Ivorian government has placed a ban on the importation of cashew from Ghana by road.Ghana’s Trade Ministry on October 14, 2013 ban the inland importation of rice.The policy, according to the Trade Ministry, was ―intended to provide a framework of
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administrative procedures through which the numerous unfair trade practices including evasion of import duties and other taxes, under-invoicing, infringement of trademarks and smuggling shall be controlled. ‖The ban was subsequently lifted by the Trade Ministry in January.However, BIA claims it is still subtly being applied by Ghana.Cynthia Essandoh, BIA Coordinator, in a statement, said that it appears Ghana’s Ministry of Trade did not carry out proper consultation with its stakeholders before placing a ban on inland rice importation.Essandoh said BIA’s investigation revealed that the inland ban of cashew importation and the initial restriction of cargo trucks by Ivory Coast authorities from entering their country from Ghana were fuelled by Ghana’s Trade Ministry’s implicit ban on inland rice importation. She advocated the total abolition of the ban by the Trade Ministry to enhance relations between the two countries.Essandoh said the bureau fears the possibility of other neighbouring French-speaking countries adopting Ivory Coast’s stance, which could worsen the plight of traders in the country.She said the action of the Trade Ministry was denting the image of the Ghana government and therefore called on the Ministry to revise the policy.Essandoh said, ―If measures are not taken quickly to reve rse it, it would collapse the business of traders.‖She called on President John Mahama, who is also the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to intervene in the matter to defuse tension between the two countries.
PASSCO may face loss of millions in rice tender LAHORE: The Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (Passco) intends to re-invite tenders for sale of 2.01 million kg of rice as bidders have offered a maximum price of Rs45 per kg in tenders opened earlier this week. LAHORE: The Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (Passco) intends to re-invite tenders for sale of 2.01 million kg of rice as bidders have offered a maximum price of Rs45 per kg in tenders opened earlier this week.Passco's General Manager Field Brigadier (Retired) Rashid Mehmood told Our Sources that they had opened the tenders, but the maximum price quoted was Rs45 per kg. "It is a very low price and the management is thinking about floating tenders again to fetch higher prices," he said.Passco had bought 4 million kg of rice from the open market in 2008-09 on the directive of the federal government in a bid to keep paddy prices at the level set by the government and protect farmers from loss, an official aware of the developments said but requested anonymity.Of the total quantity, Passco sold about 2 million kg at Rs75 per kg in the open market in the 2009-10 season by inviting tenders. The remaining stock
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was kept at Hadi Rice Mills in Daska.Later, the mill owners claimed dues of Rs2.3 million pertaining to husking of paddy, but the corporation refused to pay, the official said. This prompted the mill owners to refuse lifting of the commodity before clearance of dues. In April this year, the federal government appointed a new managing director of Passco, Captain (Retired) Tariq Masood. He immediately engaged into negotiations with the mill owners and with the help of police forcefully took possession of the commodity and stored it in the corporation's storage at Manga Mandi in the last week of April."This rice has been kept in storage for a long time and has lost its quality and nutritional value; it will attract lower prices in the open market," the official remarked. "Rice that is one or two years' old is considered more healthy and rich in nutrition, but after three years the commodity loses its quality."Passco purchased the commodity at Rs75 per kg and now it fetches a maximum of about Rs45 per kg. At this price, it would face a loss of millions of rupees, he said.Passco had fumigated the stock in the storage, but the commodity was losing its quality day by day, he added.Passco, which was established in 1973 and commenced operations in May 1974, is a public limited company and is run by a board of directors. It is working under the mission statement, "under the direction of government of Pakistan, (it) plays a key role in provision of food security at the national level."Its functions include procurement of wheat and other agriculture commodities, if required, and ensuring payment to farmers of support prices of wheat, paddy, gram, potato, onion and other specified agriculture commodities.It also keeps wheat in storages, supply it to provinces and regions facing shortage as well as to armed forces throughout the year and maintain strategic reserves. End.
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures CME Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures for June 13
Month
Price
Net Change
July 2014
$14.510
+ $0.090
September 2014
$14.170
+ $0.035
November 2014
$14.350
+ $0.025
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January 2015
$14.495
+ $0.040
March 2015
$14.650
+ $0.040
May 2015
$14.650
+ $0.040
July 2015
$14.650
+ $0.040
Rice Leadership Class Continues in Arkansas and Mississippi LITTLE ROCK, AR - After leaving the great mid-west area of the country, the
2014/16 Rice Leadership Development Class traveled to Arkansas to study the state's rice farming practices and processing industries. The itinerary included meetings at transport company Bruce Oakley, Inc, Isbell Farms, and with executives at Producers Rice Mill and Riceland Foods.The group also discussed conservation practices with Ducks Unlimited President and rice farmer George Dunklin, and toured the.Arkansas Rice Research and Extension Center to learn about the latest developments in rice research. From Arkansas, the class traveled to Mississippi to tour Farmers Grain Terminal, Inc. in Greenville, a regional grain marketing company serving over 2,900 producers/owners in the Mississippi delta, southeast Arkansas, and northeast Louisiana. "As a California producer, and for my first time visiting Arkansas, the session was quite the learning experience," said class member Jon Munger. "I was excited to be able to visit Zero Grade Farms in Humnoke and view firsthand the differences in farming practices compared to California. Visiting with Producers Rice Mill and Riceland Foods also gave me a great perspective of the size and importance of the rice production in Arkansas. The personal development we completed has provided great tips that will be useful now and in the future." The Rice Leadership Development Program is sponsored by John Deere Company, RiceTec Inc. and American Commodity Company through The Rice Foundation and is managed by the USA Rice Federation.
Contact: Chuck Wilson, (870) 673-7541
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Investment in Rice Milling Key to Boosting Export, Report Says By KYAW HSU MON / THE IRRAWADDY| Friday, June 13, 2014 |
RANGOON — A new World Bank report said Burma can greatly increase its agricultural exports if it can improve the quality of rice through investments in rice mills, while it should also reduce transport costs and formulate policies to support rice export and agricultural production.Burma’s reformist government aims to improve agricultural productivity and rice exports, and it has set a goal of exporting 4 million metric tons of rice by 2020. The report, titled ―Capitalizing on Rice Export Opportunities‖, said that since reforms began in 2011 rice exports have significantly increased, but in the past two years export volumes levelled off at about 1.3 million tons annually.It said much of the rice produced in Burma is of low quality and unfit for export to high-value markets such as the European Union, where Burmese products are exempt from import tariffs under the Generalized Scheme of Preferences, which grants least developed countries preferential market access.―The current rice export strategy favors the production of low quality rice, which is largely sold to Africa and China. Consequently, farmers have earned minimal profits and agribusinesses have skipped necessary investments,‖ a World Bank press release said. ―The situation is worsening as the global demand for low quality broken rice is shrinking. ‖Burma’s agriculture sector is the country’s largest employer and 70 percent of all Burmese live in rural areas, but under the previous military regime the sector saw little improvement in agricultural productivity, while rice exports fell sharply compared to the 1960s.Paddy yields in Burma are among the lowest in Southeast Asia at 2.5 metric tons per hectare and most rice mills used outdated machinery that produces rice with a high percentage of broken grains, making it unsuitable for foreign export markets, according to the World Bank.―The milling sector operates with obsolete processing units that causes about 15-20 percent losses in quality and quantity during the milling,‖ it said, adding that the government should take measures to attract foreign investment to the rice milling sector so that it can upgrade its machinery and produce better quality rice for export. The report said the government should also take steps to make commercial loans more easily available to rice millers, who need capital to buy up paddy stocks for milling.―A more efficient milling sector would give strong incentives to kick-start farm productivity growth as illustrated by the recent experience in Cambodia, but investments in public goods will be the key to maintain that growth over the long run,‖ the report.Other short term measures include establishing a predictable trade policy and lowering port charges and reducing export procedure costs. ―Yangon Port, the main export gate, is small, outdated and with limited capacity during monsoons.
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The export procedure costs are some of the highest in the region,‖ the report added.To improve long-term rice production the World Bank said Burma’s government should take steps such as improving water management, engaging farmers into decision-making, providing land tenure security and making investments in rural roads that connect farms to markets.Soe Tun, general secretary of the Myanmar Rice Exporters Association, shared the conclusion of the World Bank report and he told The Irrawaddy in a recent interview that total rice exports in 2013-2014 had in fact dipped to 1.2 million tons, down from 1.47 million tons the year before.
According to the association, about 60 percent of exported rice goes to China and another large share is sent to South Africa, while small quantities of high-quality rice were shipped to the EU and Japan, with the latter receiving about 5,000 tons of Burmese rice last year.Upgrading the country’s rice mills, Soe Tun said, would be a key step towards boosting exports. ―Our rice milling industry is quite old; more than 90 percent of total rice mills in Burma are of low quality… That’s why we can export very little high-quality rice to Japan last year,‖ he said.Agriculture and rice milling have so far failed to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) required for improving rice production and processing.―There is very little FDI in this agriculture sector. The investment rate in this sector is not increasing,‖ Soe Tun said. ―We need support from the government, and should work together with others in the private sector, government and other INGOs and local NGOs to improve the sector.‖―We need to upgrade our cultivation system as well as the milling system. [And] we’re facing a lack of infrastructure to export rice, for example, logistics fees are quite high, 25 percent of total [production costs are spent on logistics,‖ said Soe Tun.―Now, the transport costs of from Yangon to Muse [a Burma-China border crossing] is more than the transport cost from Yangon to Africa.‖
Image: A farmer plants rice seedlings in a paddy field on the outskirts of Rangoon. (Photo: Reuters)
Plateau to export rice by 2015 -agric commissioner June 12, 2014 | Filed under: Markets | Author: Editor
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The Plateau Commissioner for Agriculture, Steve Bako said on Thursday that the state was set to export rice by 2015.Speaking in Jos, Bako said that the state had put necessary machinery to achieve the target.He said that Plateau had enough wetland for rice production, spread across its three senatorial zones.The commissioner cited Kanam, Mikang, Langtang North and Langtang South, Shendam and Quan Pan as some of the lowland areas.He said that Nigeria had no business importing rice to feed its people owing to the vast potentials it had in rice production. The commissioner said the country must put up the right structure to not only produce rice for domestic consumption but also for export.He said that the state government would use its Agricultural Services Training Centres (ASTC) to drive the rice value chain.Bako also said the government would provide the infrastructure and the right atmosphere to drive the sector, which is 90 per cent private sector-driven.The commissioner said that the government had provided needed mechanised components to assist farmers meet the demands of mechanised agriculture for export. ―The mechanised aspect is complete in Plateau, we have machinery for ploughing, ridging and weed control, and we can do all these in a mechanised way.―In the area of rice production, we have combined harvesters and nine tractors in each of the three senatorial zones for hire by large scale farmers for a token, ― he said.The commissioner said that the ASTC, which was a partnership with the Israeli government, was equipped with the needed manpower and spare parts with which to service its machinery.According to him, the ASTC has 100 tractors for hire in each of the three senatorial zones and offers fertiliser to farmers at subsidised rate. ―Mechanised farming is cheaper as we buy a bag of fertiliser for N5, 400 and sell to farmers at N4, 000.―Besides, our extension services driven by the Plateau Agriculture Development Programme also reach out to small farmers with needed information for better yields,― Bako said.He therefore called on large scale farmers to take advantage of the services provided by ASTC to boost their production capacity.
RiceBran Technologies to Present at the 25th Annual Institutional Investor Conference of the Wall Street Analyst Forum SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., June 12, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- RiceBran Technologies (NASDAQ: RIBT and RIBTW), a global leader in the production and marketing of value added products derived from rice bran, announced today that it will be a featured presenter at the 25(th) Annual Institutional Investor Conference of The Wall Street Analyst Forum on Thursday, June 19, 2014 at The University Club in New York City.
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RiceBran Technologies' presentation will be delivered by W. John Short, CEO and President. The presentation is scheduled to begin at 10:35 a.m. ET on the 9(th) floor of The University Club located at 1 West 54(th) Street, New York, NY 10019 (54(th) Street and 5(th) Avenue). For more information or to register, please visit the conference website at http://www.analyst-conference.com/. About RiceBran Technologies RiceBran Technologies is a human food ingredient and animal nutrition company focused on the procurement, bio-refining and marketing of numerous products derived from rice bran. Rice Bran Technologies has proprietary and patented intellectual property that allows us to convert rice bran, one of the world's most underutilized food sources, into a number of highly nutritious human food ingredient and animal nutrition products. Our target markets are human food ingredients and animal nutrition manufacturers and retailers, as well as natural food, functional food and nutraceutical supplement manufacturers and retailers, both domestically and internationally. More information can be found in our filings with the SEC and by visiting our website at www.ricebrantech.com About The Wall Street Analyst Forum The Wall Street Analyst Forum has conducted 80+ multiday/multitrack analyst conferences in which over 2,500 different NYSE/NASDAQ/AMEX/OTC companies have presented and over 2,000 different institutions have attended in Boston, New York and London since 1989. Public companies ranging from General Electric, Microsoft Corp., Mattel Inc., Pfizer Inc., Kinross Gold to Genzyme have presented. Institutions ranging from Fidelity Management, Wellington Management, MFS Investment Management, Pioneer Investment Management, Putnam Management have attended. Investor Contact: Ascendant Partners, LLC Fred Sommer +1-732-410-9810 fred@ascendantpartnersllc.com SOURCE RiceBran Technologies /Web site: http://www.analyst-conference.com/ Web site: http://www.ricebrantech.com
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Rice stockpile to be audited Published: 13 Jun 2014 at 17.52 | Viewed: 5,827 | Comments: 15 Online news: News Writer: Patsara Jikkham
More than 100 teams will inspect rice stocks to ascertain the quality and quantity of the remaining grain pledged to the previous government at 1,800 warehouses nationwide, PM's office permanent secretary ML Panadda Diskul said on Friday. ML Panadda, chairman of the sub-committee inspecting the remaining government’s rice stock, said the inspection panels would compare the amount and quality of the rice against the figures given by the Commerce Ministry.The teams would comprise representatives from the army, interior and commerce ministries, PM's office and the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC). The inspection will start immediately after the sub-committee will receive rice stock data from Commerce Ministry within this month so in the meantime potential inspectors would be trained of what they have to look for. The training would require at least two days and will be conducted in all regions across the country.ML Panadda said the inspection would be done as fast as possible but it would depend on the amount of remaining stocks reported by the Commerce Ministry. However, there must be verification of the amount held in stock from other agencies, such as the national police and the Office of the auditor-general.A woman cleans a rice warehouse in Suphanburi in February 2014. (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha). Inspections would be without prior warning at over 1,800 warehouses in all parts of the country.―The inspection aims to establish the most correct figure of the stock, not just surface checking. The sub-committee has already sought cooperation from provinces not to allow movement of the stockpile,‖ he said. The unconfirmed amount of grain in the government stockpile is a core issue in the NACC deciding that former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra was guilty of dereliction of duty as chair of the National Rice Policy Committee and had failed to deal with corruption and heavy losses in the rice-pledging scheme.It was alleged there were 2.97 million tonnes of rice missing from the government stockpile.The issue is still subject to argument between a sub-committee on closing the account of the rice pledging scheme, chaired by then deputy permanent secretary of finance Supa Piyajitti, the Public Warehouse Organisation (PWO), and the Marketing Organisation for Farmers (MOF).The state-run organisations argued there is no missing rice.During the Yingluck administration farmers pledged a total of 44.52 million tonnes of unmilled rice to the government. Commerce Ministry. An estimated 5 million tonnes of rice were said to remain in warehouses.
File Photo:A woman cleans a rice warehouse in Suphanburi in February 2014. (Photo by Thiti Wannamontha)
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