1st August, 2014
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Rice inspection is nearly completed Indian rice revival to heal ravaged land Sowing picks up as monsoon revives in July An area of 70.6 million hectares was sown under different crops till 1 Aug, up from 53.3 million hectares a week before Nikita Mehta Kharif sowing gathers pace as monsoon deficit shrinks Source: Iran Raises Import Duty on Indian Rice FG, DANGOTE SIGN MOU ON $1BN RICE PROJECT Rice Prices Fortified U.S.-Grown Rice Included in Food Assistance Programs China talks over new rice deal
News Detail… Rice inspection is nearly completed Friday, 01 August 2014 By NNT 31 July 2014 - The Prime Minister‘s Office stated the inspection of rice stockpiles nationwide is nearly completed. According to an online message of Permanent Secretary of the Prime Minister‘s Office M.L. Panadda Dissakul, the inspection process is almost done and officials involved are compiling the result to be forwarded to the Rice Policy Committee. He stated the report would focus on the rice quality and the actual quantity of rice in the warehouses.Meanwhile, the inspection team in Phichit has reported that they found 47,000 tons of rice were missing from silos of KTB Agro Company in Bang Moonnak District. The officials from the Public Warehouse Organization have already filed a lawsuit against the company for breaching of contract.
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Indian rice revival to heal ravaged land India exported $3 billion worth of shrimp last year. The nation's seafood industry is booming, but it's also damaging the environment. Farmers in one community are turning to an age-old practice to save their land. At first glance, the town of Neendakara in the south Indian state of Kerala looks like any other coastal village. The single road leading into the hamlet is surrounded by serene ponds. Coconut palms line the water's edge and birds' calls fill the morning air. But disguised behind this rustic charm is a harsh reality.Construction laborer Indira Ramanan points to a hut covered in plastic sheets that are held in place with thick ropes. That used to be her house, but the family had to move out when the brick walls started to crumble and the ceiling nearly collapsed."This house was completely destroyed and now we're building a new one," she says, standing outside a partially complete two-room building. "We can't finish the construction because there is no money." Booming industry, crumbling lives Most of the houses here have suffered the same fate. Ramanan's neighbor Saboo says you just have to taste the powder from the crumbling plaster to find out what's behind the problem. The dust falling from the walls has an unmistakable salty taste.
Prawn farming is now big business in the Indian state of Kerala The source is right next door. Salty rectangular ponds extend as far as the eye can see, each about half a meter deep and brimming with tiny shrimp larvae.These ponds are part of Kerala's explosion in shrimp production over the past decade. Local catch contributed to the more than $3 billion (2.2 billion euros) worth of shrimp that India exported last year.The seafood boom has created millions of jobs and made some businessmen very rich. But it is also causing widespread environmental damage - turning soil too salty for farming and contaminating
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groundwater. Salt from the perennial ponds has permeated deep into the soil, and locals say it's now seeping into buildings, damaging brickwork and wrecking homes. Shrimp and rice side-by-side Local residents think they may have a solution: reviving an ancient farming practice that was used over 50 years ago. Back then, farmers would grow shrimp and rice on the same land - planting rice in the rainy season, and converting the field into a shrimp pond for the rest of the year."It's a good model of an integrated farming system, which has proved to be very paying here," said V. reekumaran, director of the government-run Vytilla Rice Research Station nearby. The practice was called pokkali, named after a special variety of salt-tolerant rice.To cultivate rice, the paddy needs to stay submerged in freshwater for two to three months after the planting season. A portion of that rainwater percolates down into the soil, flushing out some of the salt and recharging the water table. There are also other benefits of growing rice, adds Sreekumaran. "It's actually a reservoir of good water that replenishes the drinking water sources of the entire area," he said. The rice solution? However, hardly anyone plants rice these days because it doesn't make nearly as much money as shrimp. Up until the 1960s, there used to be 40,000 acres of combined rice and shrimp fields. Now there are only 4,000 acres left, according to Sreekumaran.With sea levels rising, saltwater intrusion is expected to increase further in low-lying coastal areas. Farmers need to adopt practices that can keep salinity in check, says local activist Francis Kalathunkal, who's been lobbying for government support to revive rice farming.After more than two years of campaigning by the local residents, last the government year ordered shrimp businesses to plant rice in the rainy season. It was a big victory for Kalathunkal, though it didn't last long.
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Locals are hoping rice paddies will clean up their soil and water supply Battle for rice The farmers got about 30 tons of rice from the 120 acres that they planted - less than one fourth of the yield from conventional rice fields 50 kilometers away. That only strengthened the opposition to rice."They could preserve pokkali as part of history perhaps," shrimp businessman Nickson Edwin said as he inspected his ponds. "But otherwise it doesn't make sense to grow rice here. It's just not profitable."The seafood industry has created thousands of jobs here, and these businessmen are a wealthy and politically connected group. This year they didn't hand over the fields to the rice farmers, despite protests from local residents. 'The soil is healing' But Kalathunkal is not deterred. "If we consider the larger interests of society, will we only allow those entities that produce profit to flourish and the rest has to flounder," he said."We will hold protests, go to the court, and do everything we can to get action. This is the people's fight."Indira Ramanan from the village of Neendakara says she is already seeing some benefits from rice that was planted in a field next to her house. Soil that was too salty is gradually healing, she says."Nothing used to grow here for 25 years, but after just one year of growing pokkali, tomatoes and flowers are taking root," Ramanan said, pointing to the small plants with white and yellow flowers in her backyard."We won't agree to just shrimp farming anymore - it has to be both rice and shrimp." D W REC OMMEN D
Sowing picks up as monsoon revives in July An area of 70.6 million hectares was sown under different crops till 1 Aug, up from 53.3 million hectares a week before Nikita Mehta Cropwise, area sown under coarse cereals shows a decline of 26%, while the decline is 7% for rice, 15.5% for pulses, 20.7% for oilseeds and 3.4% for cotton. Photo: Mint New Delhi: India‘s July rain deficit narrowed to 10% of the long-term average for the month, marking a recovery from the driest June in five years, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said, as kharif crop sowing picked up in tandem. An area of 70.6 million hectares was sown under different crops till 1 August, up from 53.3 million hectare a week before. Sowing so far is 14% less than last year‘s figure—an area of 81.9 million hectares was sown by this time last year—but only marginally lower than the 73.4 million hectares sown in 2012. The June rain deficit was 43% of the long-term average for the month. However, even though the monsoon rains gathered pace after mid-June, over half the country has recorded deficient rainfall this season. ―After the poor rainfall in June, we were
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anticipating poor sowing. Over the past few weeks many of the drier states received good rainfall, so there is substantial improvement in sowing of kharif seeds across the country by end of July,‖ said N. Chattopadhyay, deputy director general, agricultural meteorology division, at IMD in Pune. The shrinking of the rainfall deficit in July comes at a time when policymakers have been concerned about the impact of a below-average monsoon on foodgrain production and inflation. The June-September monsoon accounts for more than 70% of the annual rainfall in India and irrigates crops grown on half the country‘s farmlands. Retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index, slowed to a record in June and Wholesale Price Index (WPI) decelerated to a four-month low the same month, but there have been worries that sub-par rainfall could cause prices to rise again and deter the central bank from lowering interest rates to boost economic growth that slumped to sub-5% levels for two consecutive years. Although the monsoon has shown signs of picking up, it does not necessarily mean a boost to agricultural production, one economist warned. ―The overall amount of rainfall is not as important as when it comes and how distributed it is,‖ said Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Care Ratings. ―The delay in monsoon in certain parts of the country has already affected many crops. Agriculture ministry data shows that area under cultivation of major crops like rice and pulses is much lower as compared to last year. This shortfall will exert pressure on food inflation in the coming months.‖ Cropwise, the area sown under coarse cereals showed a decline of 26%, while the decline is 7% for rice, 15.5% for pulses, 20.7% for oilseeds and 3.4% for cotton. The delayed and weak rainfall led experts at the agricultural division of IMD and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute to advise farmers to grow short-duration crops and practise intercropping rather than grow single crops. ―While these crops are not the high-yielding variety, they are the better option right now,‖ said Chattopadhyay. Rainfall picked up from 11 July, he said, ahead of the 15 July benchmark for monsoon rainfall. ―Contingency crops, medium duration crops and intercropping have led to improvement in sowing.‖ ―Of course, there are some areas in Rayalaseema, Karnataka and Rajasthan, where farmers could not sow due to very poor rainfall. There the damage has been done,‖ Chattopadhyay said, adding that sugarcane farms are doing well while cotton farmers have been told to grow medium duration desi cotton rather than BT cotton. Monsoon will be normal over most parts of the country for the next 10-15 days, according to the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology. It said the rains will move toward central India in the first week of August but with weaker amplitude. While central, east, northeast and north India have shown recovery this month with showers shrinking the rainfall deficit, north-west India still has a 34% deficit. Even after the improvement, the monsoon rainfall at the end of July was more deficient—at 22% of the average—than in the last five years. In 2009 and 2012, two of the driest years recently, the monsoon deficit at the end of July was 19% of the average. ―There
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has been improvement in rainfall in July. We expect rainfall in August to be 96% of the long period average as we had forecast before. Normal rainfall is expected in August,‖ said Sivanand Pai, head of the long-range forecasting division at IMD, Pune. Meanwhile, El Niño has shown signs of weakening, said the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, which has scaled down its ‗El Niño Alert‘ to ‗El Niño Watch‘ due to a cooling of some parts of the Pacific Ocean. El Niño is an abnormal weather phenomenon caused by thof the Pacific Ocean temperatures, which can lead to sub-par rainfall or even drought in Asia. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said that while subsurface temperatures increased from January to March, these have weakened since April, implying that the El Niño is not likely to be strong. IMD said that there is now a 50% chance of El Niño developing during the monsoon, but NOAA maintains that the chance of El Niño developing is about 70% during the corresponding Northern Hemisphere summer. Sayantan Bera and Remya Nair contributed to this story. Image :Cropwise, area sown under coarse cereals shows a decline of 26%, while the decline is 7% for rice, 15.5% for pulses, 20.7% for oilseeds and 3.4% for cotton. Photo: Mint
Kharif sowing gathers pace as monsoon deficit shrinks Acreage in cotton, soyabean improves BANGALORE/NEW DELHI, AUGUST 1: With the monsoon deficit shrinking to 22 per cent, kharif sowing in all crops has picked up. This has helped to make up the acreage in key crops such as cotton, soyabean and rice. However, the overall kharif acreage is still lower than during the corresponding period a year ago.The total acreage under kharif crops is up 31 per cent to 700.6 lakh hectares (lh) as on August 1 against last week‘s 533.2 lh, according to the Agriculture Ministry data. Pace of sowing The increase in pace of sowings has reduced the deficit in cotton acreage to some 3.4 per cent from the previous week‘s 27.4 per cent. For soyabean, the acreage deficit stands reduced to 18.8 per cent (29.3 per cent) and for rice the shortfall stands at 6.9
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per cent (12.8 per cent). However, the acreage deficit remains high for pulses at 19 per cent (39.3 per cent) and coarse cereals at 25.8 per cent (43.4 per cent). The deficit in total seasonal rainfall has come down to 22 per cent for the first half of the four-month monsoon season. Normal precipitation The weighted rainfall across the country stood at 353.2 mm during the June 1-July 31 period against the normal 452.4 mm. Precipitation has been normal in 17 of the 36 meteorological sub-divisions, with 19 of them witnessing deficient rainfall. Though farmers have largely caught up with acreages despite delayed monsoon, follow-up showers in the remaining monsoon period holds the key for a good harvest, experts said. ―The yields will be good this year only if it rains in September and October as cotton requires rains during the flowering and fruiting stages,‖ said KR Kranthi, Director at the Central Institute for Cotton Research in Nagpur. Cotton has been planted on about 104.84 lh so far, against last year‘s 108.54 lh. More cotton acreage The cotton trade is expecting an increase of 5-10 per cent in acreages this year as oilseed growers are expected to switch to the fibre crop on better returns last year.―Planting of soyabean is almost complete. There could be some late stage planting in parts of Maharashtra and Rajasthan. Overall, we expect the acreage to be lower by around five per cent this year,‖ said Rajesh Agarwal, spokesperson for the Soyabean Processors Association of India.So far, soyabean has been planted on over 95.39 lh against 117.33 lh last year. (This article was published on August 1, 2014)
Source: Iran Raises Import Duty on Indian Rice August 01, 2014 - 17:27
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran has decided to impose higher tariffs on rice shipments imported from India, Indian local sources announced.Based on reports, the duty on Iran‘s rice imports from India, mainly of the basmati variety, jumped from 22% to 40% in July.Tehran‘s decision has seemingly stirred unease among New Delhi officials, who fear the move could have a great impact on India‘s basmati rice exports.Iran is an important destination for India‘s rice and constitutes about 30% of the Asian country‘s total basmati rice exports, Indian sources say.
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India is at the same time a big customer of Iran‘s crude oil. In 2012, as Western sanctions disrupted dollar payments to Iran, New Delhi started settling part of its oil debt to Iran in rupees and Iran was using those to buy goods from India. That trade in rupees gave India an edge over other rice suppliers such as Pakistan and Brazil who do not have such huge debts with Tehran and quickly the south Asian country established a near-monopoly in exports.Now following a rise in import duty on India‘s basmati rice, a senior official at the All India Rice Exporters Association (AIREA) said he believed the move is part of Iran‘s attempts to gradually scale down imports and become self-sufficient in rice production. But it would be a major blow to Indian basmati rice exports to Iran, he added.
FG, DANGOTE SIGN MOU ON $1BN RICE PROJECT AUGUST 1, 2014 BY OKECHUKWU NNODIM, ABUJA
Dangote Industries Limited on Friday announced a $1bn (N165bn) investment for commercial rice farming and modern integrated rice mills to be run by the firm in Nigeria.The President and Chairman, Dangote Group, Mr. Aliko Dangote, announced his firm‘s investment plan at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Abuja.Dangote, who led a delegation from his firm to the ministry, later proceeded to the Presidential Villa for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government.He told ministry officials and journalists that the move to invest in rice production was aimed at developing Nigeria‘s economy through agriculture. He said the investment would further boosts the Federal Government‘s drive to attain food sufficiency in Nigeria, adding that in the next fours years Nigeria will become an exporter of rice.Dangote said once his rice industry starts producing the staple food, the price of the locally produced rice ―will be definitely cheaper than the imported ones and this will create room for a lot of investments in the sector.‖He said, ―With rice as a major staple, we have placed total sufficiency in rice production as a major priority for our country and key value chain for our economy.―Today‘s signing ceremony marks a revolutionary tipping point by the Dangote Group to make Nigeria a net exporter of rice within the next few years as well as boosting inclusive wealth creation and employment generation.
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‖The Group‘s boss stated that his firm had acquired farmlands in Edo, Jigawa, Kebbi, Kwara and Niger states totalling 150,000 hectares to be used for the commercial production of rice paddy.He noted that his industry will establish two state of the art large scale rice mills each with a capacity to mill 120,000 metric tons of rice paddy, bringing total capacity to 240.000MT, with plans to double the figure in two years.―With this installed capacity, the project will become the largest integrated rice mill in Africa,‖ Dangote said.In his remarks, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, stated that the Dangote farms and mills were expected to significantly boost small-holder rice production in the regions through a nucleus and outgrower farming model. This, he said, would directly transform livelihoods in rural Nigeria as the sites selected were rice-growing communities that will be supported by Dangote‘s provision of agro-inputs, training and marketing linkages to improve community-farming.He said employment opportunities for at least 8,000 Nigerians will be created by the massive investment.Akinwumi said, ―This investment by Dangote Industries is transformational for Nigeria and the rest of Africa. Nigeria has no business importing rice. Our goal is to become self-sufficient in rice and become a global powerhouse in food and agriculture markets.―Through this billion dollar commitment, Aliko Dangote, Africa‘s leading businessman, has clearly attested to the policies and approach that the Federal Government has undertaken to transform the nation‘s agricultural sector.‖The minister assured the delegation that the Federal Government would stop the smuggling of foreign rice into Nigeria from neighbouring countries.According to him, his ministry would ensure that no individual sabotages the drive to make Nigeria an exporter of rice.―We will end smuggling because we cannot mortgage our future and I want to assure you that government is looking at this issue critically,‖ Adesina said.
Rice Prices as on : 31-07-2014 08:10:24 PM Arrivals in tonnes;prices in Rs/quintal in domestic market. Arrivals Current
Price
% Season Prev. Prev.Yr Modal change cumulative Modal %change Rice
Junagarh(Ori)
626.60 922.35
Alipurduar(WB)
600.00 58.29
Kalahandi(Dharamagarh)(Ori)
3381.86
2200
2200
4.76
1.69
11489.80
3250
3250
10.17
14.16
109.35
2100
2200
-
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Khatra(WB)
39.00
5.41
5027.00
2500
2550
6.38
Jamshedpur(Jha)
25.00
NC
3609.00
2820
2830
0.71
Bampada(Ori)
20.00
NC
385.00
2400
2500
9.09
Sandila(UP)
9.00
-10
2111.70
2000
2000
4.17
Kalyanpur(Tri)
7.00
250
40.50
2500
2600
-
Lakhimpur(UP)
6.40
-5.88
478.40
2170
2120
11.28
Fortified U.S.-Grown Rice Included in Food Assistance Programs WASHINGTON, DC -- Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) published final commodity requirements for milled rice intended for use in international food aid programs that included several recommendations from the USA Rice Federation, such as rinse-resistant technologies or a "rice-premix" that are "sourced from U.S. companies." Food aid formulations and ways to enhance the nutritional value or micronutrient availability of food aid products is a top priority for USDA. USA Rice's Food Aid Subcommittee submitted comments supporting the inclusion of rinse-resistant coated rice grains and all nutritionally similar technologies that are readily available in the domestic market. Several other rice industry companies and groups also submitted comments. Nutritionally dense foods are vital for recipients of food aid and thus a very important criterion for donors. Fortified rice has been available in the U.S. for decades and now with the USDA commodity requirements changes, it can be included in international food assistance programs. "Since October 2013, more than 75,000 MT of rice has been programmed in Title II, PL 480, Food for Education or Food for Peace programs," said Jamie Warshaw, chairman of USA Rice's Food Aid Subcommittee. "USA Rice looks forward to continuing to be able to provide a nutritious and desirable food product to consumers throughout the world." Contact: Sarah Moran, (703) 236-1457
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China talks over new rice deal Other countries set to agree G-to-G contracts Published: 31 Jul 2014 at 07.19 .Newspaper section: Business Writer: Phusadee Arunmas & Wichit Chantanusornsiri
Thailand is in talks with China to sell 1 million tonnes of rice through a government-to-government (G-to-G) deal and vows to secure more sales through similar contracts with buyers including Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and countries in Africa and the Middle East. Commerce permanent secretary Chutima Bunyapraphasara said the Commerce Ministry is also poised to sell state rice stocks via a general auction in early August.She said the new rice deal with China had nothing to do with a deal for 1 million tonnes agreed by the previous government with the Chinese government. Under the previous deal, Thailand has delivered only 100,000 tonnes, with 900,000 tonnes yet to follow.The new deal with China will include all types of Thai rice that will be newly harvested, she said.―With the new harvest about to be supplied to the market, we are now closely working with the private sector to beef up state rice sales and exports,‖ said Ms Chutima.―We have set a target of shipping 3-4 million tonnes of state rice stocks and project the country‘s overall rice exports will exceed 8 million tonnes this year including those handled by exporters.‖However, Ms Chutima insists the government‘s rice sales will be handled over a suitable period. She said rice sales would be delayed during a period of massive new supplies to curb any impact on market prices. The military regime this month declared it would restart sales of state rice stocks in August, vowing to move an average of 500,000 tonnes a month and dispose of the existing 18-million-tonne surplus within three years.This will be done mainly through four channels: general auctions, G-to-G deals, direct sales and the Agricultural Futures Exchange of Thailand.The regime is also committed to revising sales conditions to make them flexible and based on the quality of grain while avoiding selling state stocks on a whole-warehouse basis.In the event of a dispute or questions about the quality of rice sold, buyers would be allowed to negotiate with authorities.The previous government‘s rice-pledging scheme, which pledged prices at 40-50% above market prices, suffered many setbacks. The scheme is estimated to have cost the country 500 billion baht, while many officials are suspected of being involved in corruption. Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra already faces a criminal charge on abuse of authority for her failure to stop the scheme despite heavy losses and corruption.The National Anti-Corruption Commission charged her and sent the case to the Office of the Attorney-General to indict her in the Supreme Court‘s Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions.Meanwhile, finance permanent secretary Rungson Sriworasat has suggested using 100,000 tonnes of rotten rice in state stockpiles as a raw material in the production of ethanol.Mr Rungson, who is also a board member of PTT Plc, said he had already discussed the idea with executives of the national oil and gas conglomerate, and they agreed it was viable. ###
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