September 23 ,2015 All About Rice News
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Vol 5,Issue XIV
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Untimely rain: Paddy, Basmati farmers likely to suffer in Punjab Asia scientists take big leap toward 'rice of the future' El Niño not considered in rice estimate: BPS head Tanzania: TMEA Vows to Support Tanzania in Marketing Rice India doubles consumption of branded rice in four years: Rabobank Sample Article: China: A Growing Appetite for U.S. Rice? Selling Rice Amidst Chaos in Iraq USA Rice Awarded Funding to Bring Chinese Officials to the U.S. RCPP EQIP Sign-up Period Closing Soon in Arkansas and Mississippi CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures Rice is nice as a commodities bet as prices soar Local rice farmers hope to see Cuban embargo lifted No more plain grain Tri-Valley Cuisine Scene: Dublin's Kabul Kabob skewers the competition Guyana says Venezuela deploys troops to disputed border Largest genetic rice database now available free online Indians develop a taste for branded rice during the last decade Research group launches world's largest online rice database Purple Bran Rice Defies Convention FCI fixes higher rice procurement target despite fears of crop loss Bottom-30% inflation should get more focus’ Amazon Cloud, Analytics Help Researchers Fight Famine APEDA COMMODITY NEWS Scientists have developed rice with high folate stability The U.S. Tries to Break Into the Chinese Rice Market Edo Can Feed Nigeria With Rice – Oshiomhole Asia scientists take big leap toward 'rice of the future' Rice Is Commodity Winner as Weather Cuts Crop in Southern U.S.
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Untimely rain: Paddy, Basmati farmers likely to suffer in Punjab Experts fear poor quality and increased moisture content in grain.
Rain will increase moisture in both Paddy and Basmati and winds may smash standing crop which will further affect quality, said Balwinder Singh Chhina, district chief agriculture officer. (Source: PTI/file) While the 30mm of rain Tuesday may have come as huge relief to residents of Amritsar, it has begun to worry agricultural experts and farmers. The agriculturists believe that the untimely rain, just ahead of official paddy procurement, is likely to lower the quality of grain and increase moisture content in standing paddy plants thus leading to low prices.It will only add to the financial problems of farmers in the paddy belt of Majha and Doaba, where the superfine Basmati rice variety is already being auctioned at all-time low prices. Around 1.80 lakh hectares is under Paddy and Basmati in Amritsar; 1.36 lakh hectares is under Basmati and 44,000 hectares is under paddy.
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The Basmati crop has almost matured and is reaching grain markets. Besides, official procurement of paddy will begin from October 1 in Punjab. ―Rain on Tuesday was not good for paddy and Basmati as both crops are almost ready for harvest. Tuesday’s rain has postponed harvesting of both crop by at least a week. Then again, there is forecast of rain and winds in the comings days. Rain will increase moisture in both Paddy and Basmati and winds may smash standing crop which will further affect quality. It may develop unwanted black element in the grains and can also break them,‖ said Balwinder Singh Chhina, district chief agriculture officer. ―Those who used more than the recommended amount of fertilisers will be the worst affected as grains in their fields will be of bigger size at this point of time as crop gets mature before harvesting season due to overfeeding. Heavy plants will surrender to winds more easily than those that are still developing,‖ Chhina added.Basmati is sold in the open market whereas paddy is procured by the government at MSP. It, however, doesn’t mean that the damage by the rains would not affect paddy farmers. During the wheat procurement season this year, the Centre had imposed value cuts on procurement of wheat to compensate the damage by untimely rain. The rain also dented wheat production, which directly affects farmer profits. It may be a repeat for farmers in the paddy season.―We are surprised. Basmati is superfine variety of rice and it is being auctioned at Rs 1,200. Besides being inferior to Basmati, MASP of paddy crop is Rs 1,450. How can you sell superfine quality at lower price than its inferior variety,‖ said an official of Agriculture department.
Asia scientists take big leap toward 'rice of the future' Nyshka Chandran | Scientists have made major strides towards creating new breeds of rice that could be more sustainable, as well as more resilient to environmental stresses.The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and BGI (formerly known as the Beijing Genomics Institute) have identified the exact genetic makeup of more than 3,000 different families of rice for the first time in what is being heralded as a major advancement in rice science. Now, rice breeders can use these varieties as building blocks, using the sequence data to identify genes that represent favorable traits that can be transferred to other varieties, Marco van den Berg, chief technology officer at IRRI, told CNBC. By identifying the DNA of these rice varieties, researchers hope to improve the overall quality of rice cultivation while also reducing the crop's environmental footprint. Traits targeted for improvement include higher nutritional quality and greater tolerance of pests, diseases, floods and drought, as well as reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Daily Global
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All About Rice News "This dataset provides access to millions of genetic markers that can be used to design sustainable crops for the future - ones that are high-yielding while at the same time requiring less water, fertilizer, and pesticides," said Rod Wing, director of the Arizona Genomics Institute at the University of Arizona and IRRI scientist.Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, and Global Rice Science Partnership, the international research project produced a massive data set of 120 terabytes that will be hosted on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud.Accessing the data is free and AWS hopes it will help global researchers accelerate the breeding process.
"We do this to help build communities and tools around data sets that drive new businesses, accelerate research, and improve lives," explained Peter Moore, AWS' Asia Pacific managing director for the APAC global public sector.It's also the first time this many varieties of a major food crop were sequenced and made publicly available, noted van den Berg.As an agricultural practice, crop breeding and modification have significantly evolved in recent years after gaining prominence in the 1960s, according to the United Nations.The main purpose is to develop more productive crops amid growing environmental threats.Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted global rice production would fall in 2015-2016 for the first time in five years due to consumption outpacing supply as major producing countries deal with flooding, drought and extreme heat.
"Combined carry in stocks held by top exporters - India, Pakistan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam - are the smallest in four years, contributing to reduced global supplies."But scientists say breeding is also aimed at improving global food security. Rice is a staple food for more than half of humanity, the United Nations estimates, and improved crops could help meet rising food demand with the global population estimated to exceed 9.6 billion by 2050."Rice breeding has made sure that Asia's growing population has been fed despite doomsday predictions of massive famines in the 1960s," van den Berg said. Nyshka ChandranAssociate Producer, CNBC Asia-Pacific. http://www.cnbc.com/2015/09/22/scientists-put-dna-for-over-3000-rice-varieties-on-amazoncloud.html
El Ni単o not considered in rice estimate: BPS head The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Business | Wed, September 23 2015, 5:20 PM
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has acknowledged its national rice output estimate of 75.5 million tons this year did not factor in the potential impact of El Ni単o, hinting that the real production figure could be lower due to harvest failure.BPS head Suryamin said the estimate was Daily Global
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All About Rice News based on real production between January and April without taking into account potential crop failures resulting from the long drought in the harvest season between May and December.The data has previously been used by the Agriculture Ministry to boast of the country’s success in rice production.―The ministry has their own set of data. Our prediction is the basis of their data, but the El Niño impact needs to be included in it,‖ he told the press on Tuesday.The statistics agency issued its estimate of the year’s national rice output to be 75.5 millions tons in May. The figure was a 6.64 percent increase compared with last year. Suryamin added that the agency’s prediction from May to August was based on total cultivated lands from four months earlier, while the estimate from September to December was a prediction based solely on last year’s production pattern. ―But the prediction for May to August needs to be recalculated to include the El Niño impact. For the government’s policy, there is additional information to be considered such as harvest failure,‖ Suryamin added.On some occasions, Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman has downplayed the potential impact of El Niño, saying that the prolonged drought would only affect rice production between September and October. Citing his ministry’s survey, Amran said, the drought only affected between 25,000 and 30,000 hectares of rice fields, contrary to widely published estimates that the drought had damaged over 14 million hectares.He has repeatedly used BPS estimate to assure the public about the potential for rice self sufficiency in the country, claiming that there is no need to import rice.Unlike Amran, Vice President Jusuf Kalla was among those skeptical about the BPS estimate. Kalla had urged the statistics agency to evaluate its data, claiming the estimate was too high. ―It would be dangerous to use the estimate as the basis for future calculations,‖ he said.The vice president also mentioned the possibility of rice imports, as the government would not risk people’s welfare over ―predictions that could be inaccurate‖.On Tuesday, Amran admitted the ministry’s data collection still had room for improvement. ―To improve the accuracy of data and the people’s confidence in rice production and consumption, I would like to ask all people to fix it together,‖ Amran said in a statement read out by the ministry’s director general for food crops Hasil Sembiring.Hasil said the ministry experienced difficulties in detecting the amount of rice circulating in the market, despite completing a farming land audit in 2011.According to him, the Agriculture Ministry and BPS had allocatedRp 49 billion (US$3.36 million) this year to improve their data quality.Senior economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF) Bustanul Arifin said that despite the brouhaha on the accuracy of the data, the government still had to provide sufficient stocks of rice. ―If they don’t anticipate the stock well, there will be a massive price hike in November and December. The current rice stocks [of 1.7 million] aren’t enough, we need 2.7 million, not to mention the government target to provide subsidized rice,‖ Bustanul said.He said that if it came to the point that the government needed to import rice to meet its subsidized rice target, it must have made a big mistake. ―It means we have made a wrong estimate, planned wrongly and downplayed the impact of El Niño,‖ he said, adding that he was also working with the BPS to improve their methodology.The State Logistics Agency (Bulog) said that by December, the agency’s stock for subsidized rice Daily Global
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All About Rice News would reach 62,000 tons from the 1.5 to 2 million tons needed to meet next year’s demand, while its current total remaining stocks stood at 1.7 million tons. (fsu) ___________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 orsubscription@thejakartapost.com - See more at: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/09/23/el-ni-o-not-considered-rice-estimate-bpshead.html#sthash.KEHShRzy.dpuf
Tanzania: TMEA Vows to Support Tanzania in Marketing Rice Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA) has pledged to support Tanzania to capitalise on its comparative advantage on rice production by increasing sales of the commodity in the regional markets.The TMEA Country Director, Dr Josephat Kweka, said in Dar es Salaam at the high level policy dialogue for rice value chain stakeholders in the EAC Common Market that although Tanzania leads in rice production it was still not able to take advantage of the readily available markets in neighboring countries.It is estimated that 18 per cent of farming households grow rice and the economic activity in the rice sector contributes to 2.66 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). The country currently produces about 1.40 million tonnes of rice; grown mainly by small scale farmers.The theme of the conference was the National and Regional Policy Measures for Development of Rice Value Chain in the Context of Opportunities in the EAC Common Market. Dr Kweka said TMEA was ready to partner with other stakeholders in implementing recommendations arising from the meeting. "This country is not short of policies and strategies, what is needed are actions and we are ready to partner in this important endeavor," he said. The conference was organized by TMEA and Tanzania Private Sector Foundation (TPSF) and attended by members of the private and public sector from within EA countries. He said TMEA was in the middle of programming its five -year second phase of operation that will start in January 2017 which will focus on promoting cross border trade under a new principle called "Good Neighbor Policy". "In that policy we will be supporting partner states in East Africa and other partners especially the private sector to leverage opportunities arising from cross border trade," he said.He said those opportunities cannot be limited to East Africa as the region needed to trade with other countries such as Ethiopia, Southern Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and others."In that sense cross border trade becomes broader and not limited to geographical configuration," he said. He said TMEA was grateful and happy with the partnership with the private sector apex body in Tanzania in advocating better and improved business environment that promotes regional trade in East Africa.
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India doubles consumption of branded rice in four years: Rabobank India and Thailand are the top rice exporters at present, with each country accounting for 25% of global exports of the commodity.PUNE: India's rice exports are likely to fall sharply to about half within five years thanks to stagnant production, growing local consumption and declining ending stocks with the government, Dutch banking and financial services company Rabobank said in a report."India's rice production has remained stagnant over the last few years while domestic consumption continues to increase. Thus, without a boost in production, India's exports will be forced to contract from current 10 million tonnes to 5-6 million tonnes by 2020," said Shiva Mudgil, senior analyst, food and agribusiness research and advisory at Rabobank. India and Thailand are the top rice exporters at present, with each country accounting for 25% of global exports of the commodity.India's production of milled rice in 2014, at 10.25 million tonnes, was 21% of the global production. Of this, 10% went to exports. The country exports half of the basmati rice it produces and commands 75% share in global basmati rice exports.Rice exports account for a fifth of India's total food and agriculture exports, attracting $4.8 billion inflows at the last count.India's nine leading rice companies have together seen average compound annual growth rate of 22.5% in the past four years, with the government's policies such as removal of minimum export price creating a favourable climate for exports.
Private equity firms could be looking at increasing their exposure to India's branded rice segment. Increasing the lure for PE firms is a forecast that the branded segment is likely to be more profitable for rice companies.According to the report, branded rice can seek about 33% premium above loose rice at the retail level, while a modern retailer can earn a margin of 20% compared with 12% for loose rice.Between 2008 and 2013, the Indian rice industry saw investment from some global players. McCormik invested in Kohinoor Foods through the joint venture route in 2011. Ebro Foods, a leading pasta manufacturer, bought out the operations of Olam India in 2013. Industry executives said the next round of investment in rice companies can start soon."Some private equity investors had contacted us in the past, but we were not keen at that time. However, we may be open to such investment in future," said Hiten Bhimani, director of Shree Gajanan Industries.An industry executive, who did not wish to be identified, said, "Companies like Haryana-based Best Foods, which has been exploring various investment options, could be one of a bunch of interesting companies likely to be picked up by the investors."A large number of traders and millers have been launching their own rice brands as increasing purchasing power of consumers fuels offtake of better quality rice in convenient packs from stores.Last year, the Adani group joined this club by launching 'Fortune Basmati' rice.According to the Rabobank report, though the share of branded rice in the overall domestic rice market is small in terms of volume, in terms of value it is expected to increase by $1.1 billion to reach $3.5 billion by 2017.Consumption of branded rice is growing in both southern and northern India. Daily Global
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However, the grains being sold in the south are smaller in size and are mainly nonbasmati.Rabobank's Mudgil said that with more rice companies investing in creating a brand, rice is no longer seen as just another commodity.To ensure brand loyalty, regional players are trying to emulate the strategy adopted by bigger companies. Like their larger counterparts, they are now launching rice in 1 kg, 5 kg and 10 kg packs.According to Rajesh Shah, one of the biggest distributors of Kohinoor Basmati rice, brand awareness has increased more at the wholesale level than retail level. "About 20 years ago, we used to get rice from different states in gunny bags, with just the weight mentioned on it without any brand name. Now all the rice in bulk comes as branded."Shree Gajanan Industries of Nizamabad had registered its brand and launched consumer packs of 1kg and 2 kg in 2000. "However, being ahead of time, we could not get much response. Now, with rise of modern retail, more than 50% of rice sale in south India consists of the local brands, mostly in 25-kg packs, which take care of a month's requirement of a south Indian family," said its director, Bhimani.In the past four years, the CAGR of leading rice companies in India has ranged between 20% and 30% due to exports, growth of branded segment and modern retail. The Times of IndiaThe Economic Time
Sample Article: China: A Growing Appetite for U.S. Rice? September 23, 2015 | 01:45 GMT A customer checks rice at a farmers' market in Hubei Province, China. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)
Summary China and the United States are expected to sign an agreement to open up the Chinese rice market to U.S. producers, who have lobbied for the deal for more than a decade. China's agricultural policies are gradually changing, but the country's policy of self-sufficiency for rice will likely remain. The policy limits the percentage of total rice consumption that China can legally import, but given how much rice China consumes, it is still a lucrative market for global exporters. However, because of incompatible quality control regulations, up until now U.S. exporters have not been able to tap into the Chinese rice market. Even so, in anticipation of an eventual deal, many U.S. producers have been making the necessary adjustments to bring their crops in line with Chinese standards.International rice prices are low despite imbalances in supply and demand, though U.S. export prices are currently much higher than those of its competitors. Thus, when the export protocol is signed, U.S. exporters can at best expect to fill niche demand for high-quality rice in China. But regardless of price fluctuations, the long-term potential of U.S. rice exports to China is uncertain because of China's evolving regulatory environment. Analysis There has been much scrutiny of Chinese President Xi Jinping's controversial first official visit to the United States. But agricultural trade policies have been eclipsed by more exciting topics Daily Global
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All About Rice News such as cyber security and the potential implementation of sanctions. However, a deal that has long been advocated by U.S. rice producers and that would allow U.S. rice to enter the Chinese market is set to be signed during the visit. Nevertheless, the market for rice will not be opened up as much as the soybean market was in the 1990s, and Beijing will maintain self-sufficiency policies for rice because of its centrality in the Chinese diet.For the past 15 years, U.S. rice producers have wanted to enter China, but China has required certain phytosanitary — or pest control — measures at several points along the supply chain, which the United States has been hesitant to agree to. With the implementation of the long awaited agreement on this protocol, in theory, U.S. rice could be exported to China in as little as a month's time. Gauging Demand Over the past decade, U.S. meat and dairy producers shifted their practices to meet the growing Chinese demand created by the expansion of the middle class. Rice producers now hope to do the same. And despite the slowing Chinese economy, rice is a staple of the Chinese diet and the market for it is expected to remain strong. In fact, consumption will likely continue to rise as long as the population does. Because of food security concerns, Beijing requires rigorous pest control measures along the entire rice supply chain in order to protect domestic crops, and some U.S. farmers, have already begun making adjustments to meet Chinese requirements in anticipation of the greement. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of rice. And Chinese rice imports — sourced primarily from Vietnam, Thailand and Pakistan — increased substantially in 2012 and have remained high since, making China one of the world's largest importers of rice as well. Beijing's food security policies keep the domestic price of rice inflated, meaning that imports are economically competitive but are highly regulated. The international food price index recently hit the lowest level in six years, and low cereal prices are a large part of that decline.
Despite this, rice consumption has outpaced milled rice production since the 2013-2014 market year, and prices have stayed low because of factors such as currency depreciation in Thailand and Vietnam, which has lowered minimum export prices to stimulate demand. Self-sufficiency policies in Indonesia and the Philippines have reduced import demand, also contributing to low prices. While we may see some price shifts because of the El Nino weather pattern in coming months, U.S. rice trades at roughly a $200 premium over its Southeast Asian competitors. The United States, the world's fifth largest rice exporter, sells rice to regional trade partners Mexico and Canada, to countries in South and Central America, to the Caribbean and to the Middle East. Japan is the only East Asian country among the top destinations for U.S. rice, though it is because of a previous trade agreement, and only a limited amount reaches the Japanese market. Most is used for foreign aid or as animal feed.Both price and taste preference could hamper the United States' push to enter the Chinese market, even once the agreement is signed. But concerns Daily Global
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over the quality in domestic rice production and reports of heavy metal contamination in Chinese rice will certainly help boost the desirability and perceived quality of imports. As part of their campaign to export, the U.S. Rice Producers' Association conducted surveys of Chinese consumers, which indicate that there may be a market for U.S. rice in China after all: the highend market. This niche market would still represent a potential export increase of roughly 200,000 metric tons and would certainly be a boost to the industry, worth upward of $100 million based on current prices of U.S. rice.Long term, the U.S. rice industry will likely experience additional regulatory hurdles as China's food security strategy matures. And whether because of some infestation or disease (China still has a ban on beef imports from the U.S. because of a mad cow case in 2003) or because of contamination from genetically modified strains (corn imports were turned back in 2014 because of alleged contamination), China could still suddenly revoke the privilege to import. In 2006, a genetically modified strain of rice was detected in the U.S. export supply, causing temporary restrictions to be put in place for other export destinations. Considering the resource scarcity much of the world will face in the coming years and decades, genetic engineering is poised to be a growing part of agricultural strategy, and so contamination will only become more Daily Global
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All About Rice News likely. Even though there is already domestic development of genetically modified strains of rice, Beijing is likely to be extremely cautious about accepting foreign genetically modified crops, especially for staples like rice. Furthermore, as Beijing seeks to build up its own agricultural biotech sector as part of its food security strategy, we could see regulations shift accordingly.
Selling Rice Amidst Chaos in Iraq The road ahead? BAGHDAD, IRAQ -- Iraq's public tendering system is a mess. The Iraqi Grain Board (IGB) has extended, or "renewed," tenders on several occasions, most recently with the current tender initially set to close on September 9, but now extended until September 29. The IGB's contracts committee has not met as scheduled, leading to the current delay. Adding to the turmoil are unrealistic offers of U.S. origin rice from Indian companies. There were four offers of U.S. rice in the current tender, three of which were from India-based companies that are reportedly not among the first tier of Indian exporters. One of the companies has a history of providing basmati rice to Iraq under public tenders; the other two are either small time exporters or serve as an export front for a miller (typically Indian millers register more than a few companies as exporters and use them specifically where government contracts are involved). Finally, we learned earlier today that a new Trade Minister has reportedly been named. To say the least, a difficult market to navigate, but navigate it USA Rice will."USA Rice remains engaged with the Trade Ministry through several channels, including the U.S. Embassy here, to ensure U.S. origin rice gets fair consideration under the public tendering system," said USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward. "If indeed a new minister has been named, we will redouble our efforts to develop meaningful relationships with the Minister as well as members of the Grain Board, which is also likely to see some changes in personnel. Obviously, we can't control the outcome of this or future tenders, but we will make every effort to keep the spotlight on U.S. rice as a viable option for purchase by Iraq." Contact: Jim Guinn (703) 236-1474
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USA Rice Awarded Funding to Bring Chinese Officials to the U.S. Working out next steps ARLINGTON, VA -- USA Rice was notified today that our Emerging Markets Program (EMP) proposal budgeted at $61,000 to bring Chinese officials to the U.S. has been approved for funding in FY 2015. The purpose of the visit, scheduled to take place soon after a phytosanitary protocol has been reached with the Chinese, is for the officials to survey a number of rice mills interested in exporting rice to China. This market survey is required by the protocol and envisioned as the last step before rice can be legally imported by buyers in China. As USA Rice reported last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has said the phytosanitary agreement is still in an administrative review process in China. "We are hopeful that an agreement will be reached soon," said USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward. "This has not been an easy negotiation for APHIS because many of the Chinese demands are considered less than reasonable since they are not based on plant health issues. However, China is an important export market and we believe our patience during this process will pay off eventually." Contact: Jim Guinn (703) 236-1474
RCPP EQIP Sign-up Period Closing Soon in Arkansas and Mississippi WASHINGTON, D.C. -- There are less than four weeks left until the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) sign-up period closes in both Arkansas and Mississippi on Friday, October 16. This special EQIP sign-up is being held as part of the National Rice Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Project, led by the USA Rice - Ducks Unlimited (DU) Stewardship Partnership. RCPP is funded through the 2014 Farm Bill and administered by the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The USA Rice-DU project matches private and federal funding to help pay for conservation work completed through NRCS's EQIP and Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).
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USA Rice and DU were awarded $10 million in Federal funding with $6.8 million contributed by nearly 40 partner organizations and businesses earlier this year. Ben Mosely, USA Rice's vice president of government affairs, said "this EQIP sign-up is focused on rice acres and farmers who regularly plant rice crops. Ranking of applications addresses three priority concerns - water quantity, water quality, and waterfowl habitat." Mosely continued, "applications that address all three concerns will be ranked as a high priority for funding. Within the concern of water quantity, Irrigation Water Management (EQIP Practice 449) is a focal point." Mosely is encouraging Arkansas and Mississippi rice farmers to get their applications in to their local NRCS offices as soon as possible to ensure they are considered for funding. A flyer outlining the project's acceptable practices and a brief summary can be found here. Contact: Peter Bachmann (703) 236-1475
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures CME Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures for September 23 Month
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Price
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Net Change
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November 2015
$12.910
+ $0.165
January 2016
$13.190
+ $0.160
March 2016
$13.405
+ $0.160
May 2016
$13.590
+ $0.155
July 2016
$13.710
+ $0.120
September 2016
$12.845
UNCH
November 2016
$12.845
UNCH
Rice is nice as a commodities bet as prices soar
Rice is a good investment, according to a US analyst. iStock by Megan Durisin If you're a commodity investor, rice should be a staple in your diet.While adverse summer weather conditions in the US have failed to give much of a boost to either corn or soybean prices, one crop is surging: rice. Rough rice traded in Chicago is up 22 per cent in the third quarter, the best performer among commodities futures tracked by Bloomberg.Domestic output is estimated to fall 14 per cent in the crop year that began August 1 to 18.95 billion pounds, the US Department of Agriculture said. The harvest in Arkansas, the largest growing state, is showing "dismal" yields, according to a USDA report last week. Texas had a record wet month in May and other southern growing states saw above-average temperatures in July. Daily Global
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All About Rice News "With the reduced supply, the market is rallying back to where farmers can sell," said Dennis Delaughter, a Texas-based market analyst at VantageRM.Rough-rice futures for November delivery closed 0.5 per cent lower at $US12.75 per hundredweight on Tuesday at the Chicago Board of Trade. (A hundredweight is equal to 45 kilograms.) Still, futures touched $US13.08 on September 14, the highest in more than a year. While the US isn't particularly big in terms of output – China produces about 20 times as much – it's forecast to be the fifth-largest shipper in the 2015-16 season, according to a USDA report. Total US rice export commitments for the current crop year are 42 per cent higher than a year earlier, USDA data show.Outside the US, the supply situation has worsened. Global inventories will fall for a third straight year, the USDA estimates. Production in Thailand, the largest exporter, may fall to the lowest in 19 years because of dry weather. Other Asian nations are monitoring the potential affect of the strongest El Nino in two decades.For all that, the price rally has yet to go global. The world market remains fragmented, with many large countries controlling consumer prices. The benchmark Asian price is at a seven-year low, according to data from the Thai Rice Exporters Association. http://www.afr.com/markets/commodities/agriculture/rice-is-nice-as-a-commodities-bet-as-prices-soar-20150923gjt98u?utm_source=USA+Rice+Daily%2C+September+23%2C+2015&utm_campaign=Friday%2C+December+13 %2C+2013&utm_medium=email#ixzz3mb6h5zSW
Local rice farmers hope to see Cuban embargo lifted Posted: Sep 23, 2015 3:40 AM PSTUpdated: Sep 23, 2015 7:16 AM PST By Erika Ferrando
Since the 1960s, Louisiana rice farmers haven't been able to trade with Cuba because of an embargo, but the U.S.'s relationship with Cuba is now changing. Both countries recently opened embassies for the first time in more than 50 years. Still, the embargo stands. Rice farmers say ending the embargo would be huge for local rice industry."Cuba has a great potential for the Louisiana rice industry. We're positioned very close to the Cuban market and we have people down there who love rice; they're huge rice eaters," said Randy Jemison, director of Louisiana field services for USA Rice. If we could get the sanctions lifted, it would open up a huge market, which would greatly benefit the Louisiana rice industry." Louisiana is one of the major rice growing states in the country. Southwest Louisiana is involved in every aspect of the industry, from production, to processing, to exporting rice from the Port of Lake Charles to around the world. Therrance Chretien, automated terminals manager with the Port of Lake Charles, said the port exports 250,000 tons of rice per year, and has a major trading opportunity if the embargo is lifted."From what I was told, in years past, we used to export up to 200,000 tons of rice to Cuba before the embargo, so that would be very important to the port if Cuba would open back up," said Chretien.The Obama administration and Cuban officials are pushing for the ban to be lifted, but it would ultimately be up to Congress to make the decision. (Source: KPLC)
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All About Rice News http://www.kplctv.com/story/30092523/local-rice-farmers-hope-to-see-cuban-embargolifted?utm_source=USA+Rice+Daily%2C+September+23%2C+2015&utm_campaign=Friday%2C+Dece mber+13%2C+2013&utm_medium=email
No more plain grain Sherry Lucas, The Clarion-Ledger5:38 p.m. CDT September 22, 2015
(Photo: Joe Ellis/the Clarion-Ledger) 50CONNECT 1TWEETLINKEDINCOMMENTEMAILMORE CLEVELAND — Rice was the blank canvas for creativity at the recent 25th anniversary National Rice Month Luncheon at Delta State University, where old friends like red beans and new pals like dried apricots and grapes rode the little grain to goodness.An estimated 1,000 or more people streamed into Walter Sillers Coliseum to taste dish after dish where rice ruled in hundreds of colorful combinations that tugged on nostalgia or tagged innovative twists. When you’re staring at that kind of assortment — rice from start to finish, appetizer to dessert and every course in-between — what fluffs up first in your head: versatility.What fluffs up next: value. Tuck some of these figures into your back pocket, right next to your grocery list. Mississippi’s rice acreage is 182,200, and the value of rice production in the state is $164.5 million. Its estimated economic impact is $289.7 million in Mississippi. Those are big numbers, and the state’s stake in that food (as well as some new twists I tried) will put it back at the top of my todo dinner list — as a point of pride and promise of flavor.Rice’s versatility was in top form, too, Daily Global
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All About Rice News upstairs at the coliseum, where the Mississippi Delta Think Rice Cook-Off was revived just for the silver anniversary luncheon. As a judge tasting the 10 dishes entered, I filled up on enough rice I had to bypass most of the luncheon’s chow-down, where more than 300 rice dishes provided by restaurants and volunteers were spread for the sampling.A mini-muffin-sized appetizer, Spicy Rice Bites, took the overall grand prize as well as first place in appetizers, as praise about its cuteness and portability (great for tailgating) factored into the mix. In it, a spiced rice mixture with a hint of melted cheese nestles into a neat little crust basket for baking and handy transport. Congratulations to Laverne Woodruff for the win. Other top finishers included Ron Respess (first place side dish for Don’s Rice), Jane Dunlap (first place main dish for Sausage and Apricot Casserole) and Tracie Allen (first place dessert for Tropical Dessert Arancini, a coconutty fried rice ball with caramel sauce).I also favored a side dish entry, High Society Rice, aptly named for the way it’d seem right at home on the plate at a ladies lunch. It finished third in the side dish lineup; thanks to Betsy Padgett for her bright spot, that, with minutely chopped raw vegetables and thinly sliced water chestnuts, also delivered some welcome crunch.Rice was the first thing I learned to cook, growing up. That’d be my assignment in dinner prep, and often the only topping I liked on hot cooked rice was a small pat of butter. Unless there was a steak nearby and some of its juices wandered over. Or, when those electric green frozen peas were cooked for dinner; I often stirred those together for a tasty, polkdot punch on my plate.
Now, pilaf and paella, risotto and jambalaya and more muscle into the rice corner, and I like to give each an occasional whirl when I’m feeling fancy. Brown rice is my frequent go-to. And thanks to the luncheon, rice looks more like a playground than ever before. But there’s nothing wrong with back to basics.Chef Dave Crews confessed a preference for the simple version, ―just served plain. I just love a basic pilaf, or a boiled white rice. That’s what I grew up on.―But it’s neat to see different takes and different concepts. Some of those, I never would have thought to do.‖It’s fun to see what folks can come up with, said Lee Ann Fleming of Cruger, such as the rice-based banana split dessert with cherries on top. Fleming recalled her own shrimp and rice salad that had won this cook-off, decades back.―They were really thinking outside the Uncle Ben’s Box,‖ said Woodson Ridge Farms’ Elizabeth Heiskell of Oxford, also a caterer. Such innovative forays are just what’s needed to make sure rice continues to fortify the Mississippi Delta.Alyssa Robert, who works on the quality team at Uncle Ben’s in Greenville, was excited to see the creativity and love people put into the dishes, and treated rice in the Delta. Spicy Rice Bites rated tops for her: ―It not only had rice as the star, and it had the flavors in it. It was spicy ... and it was all around just a good finger food.‖―It’s been our pleasure to host it for 25 years,‖ said Delta State University President Bill LaForge, just finishing up a plate at the luncheon. ―Rice is so important to the Delta, and Cleveland and the Bolivar County area. It is one of those commodities that is an economic staple for us ... so we all celebrate rice all the time, not just our Daily Global
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All About Rice News producers but our manufacturers, those who are in warehousing, those who in shipping, every aspect of the rice industry.―So today, we’re seeing the end product. We’re seeing it put into dishes that are just incredibleHis daughter, Caroline Solano, visiting from Washington, D.C., was charmed by the variety. Interest was deep-grained, from treats with Cocoa Krispies to ―a little fancier‖ rice dish with olives and feta cheese, a rice salad with grapes and pineapple and ―the casseroles did not disappoint. A favorite? Political instincts kicked in and LeForge grinned. ―The one with rice in it.‖ To contact Sherry Lucas email slucas@gannett.com or call (601) 961-7283. Follow @SherryLucas1 on Twitter. Spicy Rice Bites 1 bag Uncle Ben’s Boil-in-Bag Rice 1 tablespoon Barilla basil pesto 1 teaspoon DeLallo Hot & Spicy Pepper Pesto 1/2 cup diced Velveeta cheese (pea-sized) 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 can seamless Crescent Roll dough Olive oil cooking spray Preheat oven to 385 degrees. Prepare rice as directed on the box, using stove-top method. Mix next four ingredients in a 2-quart bowl. After rice is cooked, drain and set aside to cool. On a slightly floured surface, roll dough as thin as possible without tearing. Cut dough with a 21/2-inch round biscuit cutter. Mix rice and the basil pesto, pepper pesto and cheese mixture. Lightly spray a 24-hole mini-muffin pan with olive oil cooking spray. Place cut dough over each hole and fill with a tablespoon of the rice mixture — 1 tablespoon per hole — then bake 10 minutes. Serve warm. Source: Laverne Woodruff, Think Rice Cook-Off http://www.clarionledger.com/story/life/2015/09/22/plaingrain/72610934/?utm_campaign=Friday%2C+December+13%2C+2013&utm_medium=email&utm_sour ce=USA+Rice+Daily%2C+September+23%2C+2015#
Tri-Valley Cuisine Scene: Dublin's Kabul Kabob skewers the competition By Peggy Spear Correspondent POSTED: 09/22/2015 01:53:29 PM PDT0 COMMENTS| UPDATED: A DAY AGO
DUBLIN -- At 22, Asia Baharistani seems too young to run a bustling restaurant, but don't let her age fool you.Whether it's waiting tables, designing menus, balancing account books, designing a new website or painting the restaurant walls, this young dynamo is making sure that Dublin's Kabul Kabob and Grill is a success.And it's working. The year-old Afghan restaurant, located in an unassuming strip mall on San Ramon Road, is a popular spot for lunch and dinner in the Tri-Valley
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All About Rice News area. Baharistani, however, says the real heart of the restaurant is her father, Immam, whom she calls "the kabob king. ""Even before we owned a restaurant, he was known for his kabobs," Baharistani says. "Every holiday, every festival, even just for family dinners, he would make kabobs. Somewhere along the way they became famous."So famous, in fact, that every Friday night the Baharistani family prepares 70 to 80 "to-go" boxes for mosques at the Muslim Community Center of the East Bay in Pleasanton and the Muslim Community Association in San Ramon.This week, the elder Baharistani planned to prepare the meals for about 3,500 people celebrating the holiday of Eid at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton -- all the while continuing to cook Kabul's famous kabobs as well. Of course, running Kabul is a family affair, as his daughter will tell you. "It's just what we do," says Baharistani, who is also juggling her second year of pre-dental school classes at Diablo Valley College. Immam Baharistani emigrated to the United States 25 years ago, and settled in the Lodi area with his family -- his wife and ultimately six children. There he worked in restaurants, starting as a busboy and dishwasher and rising up the ranks. He eventually moved the family to Dublin and commuted to work for 13 years at a Fremont Afghan restaurant, where he was a chef. Asia's (pronounced As-see-ah) older brother, Yousaf, had been working at a Sri Lankan restaurant at the site of the current Kabul, and when that restaurant closed in 2014, Yousaf leased the space for his father. "He'd been talking about opening a restaurant of his own for years, so now it was time," Baharistani says. As expected, Kabul quickly became known for its kabobs and other Afghan cuisine, appetizers such as Aush, homemade noodle soup with beef sauce, Bolan Kechaloo, turnovers with spicy potatoes, onions, herbs and served with yogurt and honey, or one of the favorites, Mantu, a homemade pastry shell filled with onion and beef, served on yogurt topped with carrots, yellow split peas and beef sauce. But it's the kabobs -- tender charbroiled chunks of chicken, lamb and/or beef seasoned perfectly and skewered over basmati rice -- that are the stars of the restaurant, reflecting Immam Baharistani's lifelong love of the dish. His daughter, however, has another favorite, the Quabili Pallow, delicately prepared pieces of lamb or beef served with brown basmati rice with caramelized carrot strips and raisins. "As a child, I never liked lamb, which was a rare trait in an Afghan family," she says. "Then one day my father tricked me. He made me eat something he says was a beef kabob, and I loved it. About 20 minutes later, he fessed up, saying, 'You know you just ate lamb.' From that day forward, I couldn't get enough lamb." The restaurant also features vegetarian entrees like Aushak, an Afghan ravioli filled with leeks, scallions and served on yogurt with garlic and mint with yellow split peas and carrot sauce; and Banjan, roasted eggplant with garlic yogurt, dry mint and served with basmati rice.
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All About Rice News All of the cooking is prepared halal style, which means cooking without the use of haram, or impermissible, ingredients according to Muslim dietary guidelines. That means abstaining from alcohol, pork or ingredients that contain their by-products. The cooking isn't the only traditional aspect of the restaurant, as it has quickly become a neighborhood hub, with many repeat customers of all ethnicities. "It's been great to meet so many new people, and to have developed relationships with repeat customers," Baharistani says. "It has helped me become more social, getting out of my bubble of just family. "As the oldest daughter in my family, I was always the go-to person, the one to get things done. Helping run this restaurant is just an extension of that," says the 2012 Dublin High School graduate. "It's hard to manage everything, especially with school, but I love it. We're doing a good job, and I want to keep that going." Cuisine Scene takes an insider's look at Tri-Valley restaurants and the people behind them. To comment, or suggest a restaurant, email Editor Simar Khanna atskhanna@bayareanewsgroup.com. If you go Where: Kabul Kabob and Grill, 8939 San Ramon Road in DublinInfo: 925-9975626,www.kabulkabobgrill.com Loss Angles Mercury News
Guyana says Venezuela deploys troops to disputed border By BERT WILKINSON
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View photo FILE - In this July 17, 2015 file photo, Guyana's President David Granger poses for a photo in Brasilia, ‌
GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — Guyana President David Granger said Tuesday that Venezuela has deployed troops to a contested border region in what he called a "dangerous" escalation of a long-running dispute between the South American nations. The government of President Nicolas Maduro made "extraordinary military deployments" along what Guyana considers its western border, Granger told reporters.He called the development a "hostile and aggressive" step in a border dispute that dates to the 19th century but has grown more heated over the past year following a major offshore oil discovery in waters claimed by both nations. "We feel that Venezuela is treading a dangerous course at this point in time rather than seeking a peaceful resolution of the matter," Granger said. "Venezuela seems to be pursuing a very offensive and aggressive course."The Maduro government did not respond to requests for Daily Global
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All About Rice News comment on any deployment. But the defense minister, Gen. Vladimir Padrino, said during a public event that troops were conducting exercises in the eastern portion of the country, which could account for the forces noted by Granger.An official on state TV said exercises also are planned for the western portion of the country. Venezuela has recently sent troops to its border with Colombia as part of what Maduro says is a crackdown on smuggling and other crimes. Venezuela has long claimed a jungle area known as the Essequibo that comprises about 40 percent of Guyana's territory.Venezuela extended its maritime claims, issuing a map that would have rendered Guyana landlocked, after a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp. announced it made a significant oil discovery about 120 miles (193 kilometers) off Guyana, which awarded the drilling concession. Since then, the two sides have engaged in repeated rhetorical exchanges and scaled back commerce, with Guyana phasing out oil purchases from its larger neighbor and Venezuela switching to other countries for rice supplies.Guyana has asked the U.N. to mediate the border dispute and Granger is expected to raise the issue at the upcoming General Assembly meeting. http://news.yahoo.com/guyana-says-venezuela-deploys-troops-disputed-border-164032919.html
Largest genetic rice database now available free online 23 Sep 2015 WRITER: AFP
MANILA - The world's biggest genetic rice database is now available free online, a move scientists hope will contribute to a "green revolution", a leading rice research group said Wednesday.Information on the genetic sequence of 3,024 rice varieties can now be accessed through the Amazon Web Services system, a cloud computing platform, the International Rice Research Institute said.Information on the genetic sequence of 3,024 rice varieties can now be accessed through the Amazon Web Services system, a cloud computing platform, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said.The head of IRRI's genetic resources centre, Rory Hamilton, said the database would make it faster and easier to develop new rice varieties in the face of climate change and a growing world population.These new varieties could be higher-yielding,more nutritious and more resistant to pests, disease, drought or floods."What used to be a 20 year task... we can do in two or three years," Hamilton told AFP. He stressed that with about half the world's population dependent on rice, it was crucial to develop varieties for another "green revolution."The first "green revolution" -- the development of higher-yielding crop varieties particularly wheat and rice -- took place between the 1960s1990s and has been credited with preventing massive food shortages.The genetic sequencing and initial analysis for the new database was funded by grants from the and the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology.Hamilton said that this was likely the biggest genetic database of any crop ever placed online. Daily Global
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All About Rice News Get full Bangkok Post
Farmers again 'urged' not to grow off-season rice Prayut offers payouts if govt advice fails 23 Sep 2015 NEWSPAPER SECTION: NEWS | WRITER: PATSARA JIKKHAM & PRANGTHONG JITCHAROENKUL
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on Tuesday again asked farmers not to grow off-season rice because of water shortages.The request follows low water levels in several reservoirs nationwide. Gen Prayut said he was not banning farmers from planting off-season rice. Instead, he was urging them to cultivate alternative crops which use less water.The government will provide farmers with markets for their crops.On the other hand, if rice growers faced losses as a result of the government's advice, it is willing to compensate them, the premier said.Gen Prayut said he has also instructed the Interior, Agriculture and Cooperatives ministries and other state officials to oversee water management in several provinces along the Mae Klong and Chao Phraya river basins in preparation for drought. About 10.7 million rai of the Chao Phraya river basin is likely to be at risk of drought again after the end of the rainy season at the end of October as water levels in major dams remain low, government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said.As a result, the cabinet Tuesday approved several measures to deal with drought which could affect 476,000 households.The measures include projects to increase water sources, especially from groundwater, extend farmers' debt repayments, create jobs for farmers who cannot grow crops due to drought and encourage farmers to switch to planting low water-consuming crops and raising livestock instead.According to Maj Gen Sansern, the weather forecast suggests there will be more rainfall in the North and the Northeast over the next few weeks. The cabinet did not decide yesterday whether or not to ban farmers from planting a second rice crop.However, Thai Farmers Association chairman Wichian Puanglamjiak called for an interest-free debt moratorium of five to 10 years if the government bans the planting of a second rice crop for the third consecutive year. Mr Wichian yesterday said if the government asks farmers not to plant second-crop rice this year, citing drought, it would be bad news for growers.Without rice crops, farmers have no way to earn a living as switching to alternative crops -- as suggested by the government -- would not work due to declining prices, added Mr Wichian. Nattawut Jamchaeng, director of the Bhumibol dam in Tak province, said the water level in the dam has increased after three consecutive days of rainfall.Mr Nattawut said around 34-35 million cubic metres of water flows into the dam each day as a result of rainfall in Chiang Mai and Lamphun provinces.Currently, usable water volume in Bhumibol dam is around 782 million cubic metres or 8.1% of the dam's full capacity. Only 1.5-3 million cu/m is discharged from the dam every day. "If there is no rainfall over the next few months, the water level in the dam may not reach 2 billion cu/m, which will directly affect farmers during the dry season next year."Therefore, it is necessary for the government to ask farmers to suspend their off-season rice cultivation," Mr Nattawut said. Get full Bangkok Post
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Indians develop a taste for branded rice during the last decade By Jayashree Bhosale, ET Bureau | 23 Sep, 2015, 03.30PM IST
Like their larger counterparts, they are now launching consumer packs of 1 kg, 5 kg and 10 kg, which helped in the penetratation of rice brands. PUNE: The 4,000-year old rice eating way of Indians has now acquired a flavour. Indians have increasingly developed a taste for branded rice during the last decade. The country , which accounts for one fifth of the global rice production and one fourth of the global rice exports, doubled its branded rice consumption in the last four years attracting attention of global strategic and private equity investors.Branded rice consumption is growing in both south as well as north India. "More rice companies are now investing into creating a brand, leading to a shift away from commodity ," said Shiva Mudgil, senior analyst, Food and Agribusiness Research and Advisory, Rabobank. The regional players too are trying to emulate the strategy adopted by big companies to increase their brand loyalties. Like their larger counterparts, they are now launching consumer packs of 1 kg, 5 kg and 10 kg, which helped in the penetratation of rice brands.The brand awareness has increased more at wholesale levels than retail level. "Twenty years ago, we used to get rice from different states in gunny bags with just the weight mentioned on it.Now everything comes branded," said Rajesh Shah, one of the biggest distributors of Kohinoor Basmati rice in India.Shree Gajanan Industries from Nizamabad had registered their brand and launched consumer packs of 1kg and 2 kg size in year 2000. "However, the response was very poor as we were quite ahead of the times. Now, with the rise of modern retail, local brands account for more than 50% of the rice sales in south India, mostly in 25 kg packs, which take care of a month's requirement in an average south Indian household," said Hiten Bhimani, director, Shree Gajanan Industries.The CAGR of leading Indian rice companies has ranged between 20%-30% during the last four years thanks to exports, growth of branded segment and modern retail. In 2014, India shared the top position in global rice exports along with Thailand. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/indians-develop-a-taste-for-branded-riceduring-the-last-decade/articleshow/49074281.cms
Research group launches world's largest online rice database AFP | Sep 23, 2015, 08.38 PM IST
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All About Rice News The database would make it faster and easier to develop new rice varieties in the face of climate change and a growing world population.
MANILA: The world's biggest genetic rice database online is now available free, a move scientists hope will contribute to a "green revolution", a leading rice research group said Wednesday. Information on the genetic sequence of 3,024 rice varieties can now be accessed through the Amazon Web Services system, a cloud computing platform, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) said. The head of IRRI's genetic resources centre, Rory Hamilton, said the database would make it faster and easier to develop new rice varieties in the face of climate change and a growing world population. These new varieties could be higher-yielding,more nutritious and more resistant to pests, disease, drought or floods. "What used to be a 20 year task... we can do in two or three years," Hamilton told AFP. He stressed that with about half the world's population dependent on rice, it was crucial to develop varieties for another "green revolution. " The first "green revolution" -- the development of higher-yielding crop varieties particularly wheat and rice -- took place between the 1960s- 1990s and has been credited with preventing massive food shortages. The genetic sequencing and initial analysis for the new database was funded by grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology. Hamilton said that this was likely the biggest genetic database of any crop ever placed online. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Research-group-launches-worlds-largest-online-ricedatabase/articleshow/49078930.cms
Purple Bran Rice Defies Convention By Staff Editor Sep 23, 2015 - 1:38:50 PM
If I presented you with a bowl of steaming purple rice, would you eat it? Most of us are accustomed to white or brown rice as a staple in our diet. But according to plant breeder Anna McClung, we are missing out. ―It’s all about what we’re used to,‖ says McClung. ―If what we’ve known is white, uniform rice, that’s what we will want.‖McClung knows her rice. She’s director of the Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center in Stuttgart, Arkansas, whose mission is to maintain and improve national Daily Global
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All About Rice News rice varieties. The Research Center curates a rice bank of over 18,0000 varieties of this globally important crop. McClung and her colleagues are caretakers of the rice collection, and explorers of natural genetic diversity. They identify useful traits like disease resistance, high yields, and pest resistance. They mix and match up rice varieties using traditional plant breeding to maximize these characteristics. Just as heirloom tomatoes pass through generations of farmers, rice varieties are carefully preserved or crossed with other varieties to capture favorable genes. Rice comes in a brilliant array of colors: red, brown, and yes, purple. The common white rice ubiquitous in stores and restaurants has been stripped of its bran layer. Bran is the hard outer layer of rice. Removing the bran means losing the rice’s color, nutrients, fiber, and protein. What remains is mostly starch, which quickly breaks down into sugar in the gut. ―There’s been a shift in the U.S. away from white rice because of health concerns,‖ says McClung. ―We’re looking at rice varieties that can deliver nutrition.‖ This is a challenge for rice breeders, especially if these healthier rice varieties aren’t quite as tasty as conventional rices, or take longer to cook. The quest for a perfect balance of health and taste led McClung to purple rice. Specifically a variety dubbed ―IAC 600‖ gifted from a Brazilian collaborator. This rice originated in China, where purple rice has been venerated for centuries as a healthful variety, brought out for special occasions and for the sick. Like many highly pigmented foods (think blueberries and grapes), purple rice is rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants are chemicals that fight off the free radicals that damage cells and can lead to cancer and other health problems. Purple rice is chock full of antioxidants, comparable to broccoli and other highly acclaimed disease-fighting foods. The rice also happens to be delicious. ―Not only is IAC 600 a deep, gorgeous purple, it’s some of the best tasting rice I’ve ever had,‖ says McClung, ―Its aromatic like basmati rice, and has a nutty flavor.‖ One of the biggest impediments to getting purple rice to commercial markets is that it’s incredibly high maintenance. It has to be isolated from other rice at every step of production— planting, harvesting, processing, packaging. If mixed with other varieties, the rice’s identity is compromised. Producers don’t necessarily want to take on the risk and hassle of keeping the rice isolated. And as rice is a globally traded commodity, the established rice stakeholders aren’t interested in promoting unique rice varieties. McClung is hoping that purple rice will infiltrate the market on a small scale. It’s rich color, aromatic nutty flavor, and high levels of antioxidants make this rice special. Small farmers are already experimenting with it. Encouraging chefs to add purple rice to menus will also help promote its value to timid shoppers.Exploring historical and interesting types of rice can expand our palates and improve our health, says McClung, ―We’re trying to open the door to new varieties.‖ Daily Global
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All About Rice News http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Food_and_Nutrition_690/Purple-Bran-Rice-DefiesConvention.shtml
FCI fixes higher rice procurement target despite fears of crop loss Observers say the paddy output in the ongoing kharif marketing season (October to September) might be five per cent less than last season Komal Amit Gera | Chandigarh September 23, 2015 Last Updated at 22:31 IST
FCI proposes storage space expansion with private participationSeeds of discontent in govt over paddy support priceIn Bengal, a rice economy rots away on food habits, subsidyBasmati rice acreage to go up despite lower realisation last yearRevival of the monsoon might not be much help to paddy because it might not meet the crop’s water requirements.According to experts, paddy output in the ongoing kharif marketing season (October to September) might be five per cent less than last season, but Food Corporation of India (FCI) has fixed a procurement target of 30 million tonnes (mt) for this kharif season, from last season’s 28 mt. According to scientists at the Centre for Rice Research, Cuttack, the cyclical storm in eastern India could boost production, though the overall situation remains precarious. The irrigated regions of Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh could be the only bright spots; the other states could not achieve 100 per cent sowing target, owing to deficient rain in the early months of monsoon. According to the first advance production estimates of major Kharif crops, during 2015-16 kharif rice production was pegged at 90.61 mt - 0.98 mt more than its five-year average production.A senior FCI official said fear of low procurements is exaggerated as the irrigated states contribute close to 14 mt. ―The drought-like situation in Chhattisgarh and Odisha can make a dent in the target but we will try to make up for the loss by ramping up procurement in states like Assam and Madhya Pradesh.‖―With a closing stock of around 10 mt of rice and an annual requirement of 30 mt for the public distribution system, we already have buffer stock,‖ he added. Daily Global
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All About Rice News Despite the impetus given to diversification of agriculture from water-guzzling paddy to maize and vegetables, there has not been much variation in the area under paddy in Punjab. The state is projected to send 8.2 million tonnes of rice to the national kitty, followed by an estimated 3.6 million tonnes by Chhattisgarh. http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/fci-fixes-higher-rice-procurement-target-despite-fearsof-crop-loss-115092300723_1.html
Bottom-30% inflation should get more focus’ by Cai Ordinario - September 23, 2015
In Photo: Dennis S. Mapa (from left), dean of the University of the Philippines School of Statistics; Roehlano M. Briones, Philippine Institute for Development Studies senior research fellow; Rafaelita M. Aldaba, Department of Trade and Industry director; and V. Bruce J. Tolentino, International Rice Research Institute deputy director general, speak at the ―Towards Zero Poverty: Pursuing Inclusive Development and Shared Prosperity‖ forum held at a hotel in Mandaluyong City on Wednesday. The open forum tackled food security and ways to promote productivity across all sectors toward poverty eradication. Daily Global
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REDUCING the cost of food is one of the key measures that will allow the Philippines to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, the primary target under Goal 1 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).This is because the poorest Filipinos are very sensitive to food prices, University of the Philippines School of Statistics Dean Dennis Mapa said in a forum on Wednesday.Mapa said this can be explained by the difference in the inflation felt by all households and the inflation experienced by the bottom-30 percent, or the poorest Filipinos. ―Price increases affect the poor households the most. Dr. [Cielito]Habito mentioned that inflation rate has been low now; that’s good news. But, actually, if you really want to look at the welfare of the poor, you have to look at the other inflation rate,‖ Mapa added.The other inflation rate that Mapa referred to is the Consumer Price Index for Bottom 30% Income Households released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) every quarter.In the first six months, Mapa said, inflation experienced by the poor averaged around 2.5 percent to 2.6 percent. The PSA data showed that it was at 3.1 percent in the first quarter and 2.1 percent in the second quarter. The inflation experienced by all households, the PSA data showed, only averaged 2 percent in the first six months of the year.Inflation felt by the poorest is usually higher compared to all households. In 2008, at the height of the rice-price crisis, inflation experienced by the poorest was at 19.3 percent, almost double that of all households. Mapa explained that the weight of food in the basket of goods used for the computation of the inflation experienced by the poorest 30 percent is 70 percent, as against 39 percent for all the households. ―So the poor households are very sensitive to this movement in the price of goods, in particular rice, because the weight of the rice in the food basket is 23 percent, almost one-fourth, compare this with 9 percent in all households,‖ Mapa explained. To reduce food prices, particularly rice costs, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Senior Research fellow Roehlano Briones urged the country to remove the quantitative restriction (QR) on rice. When the QR is removed, Briones said the country can replace this with a tariff of 35 percent, consistent with the Asean Free Trade Area agreement on the Common Effective Preferential Daily Global
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Tariff.Briones also said when this happens, the government must also restructure the National Food Authority (NFA) into a food-security agency that monitors the country’s food stocks. He said the task of regulator must be removed from the NFA. A PIDS study, with Briones as the lead author, stated that if the QR is removed, rice prices would decline to around P19.8 per kilogram from P33.08/kg.Under a free-trade scenario, total rice imports could have reached 4.2 million tons.This will bring down retail prices to P19.8 per kilo and wholesale prices to P17.66 per kilo.―Although the QR affords some protection for our farmers, the cost, the overall cost on the economy has been so high, especially among the poor because that has led to a double-digit inflation for rice, when overall inflation was only 2 percent to 5 percent. So it was very antipoor,‖ Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan earlier said. Image Credits: Stephanie Tumampos
http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/bottom-30-inflation-should-get-more-focus/
Amazon Cloud, Analytics Help Researchers Fight Famine Researchers in the US and China explore rice genomes with AWS analytics tools to develop drought and disease resistant crops. In a gamble against time, Amazon Web Services is making the genome of 3,024 varieties of rice publicly available in the cloud so that researchers can use the data to come up with the strains most likely to prove resistant to heat, drought, and disease.Rice makes up 20% of the calories consumed in the world, but yields are going down in many of the rice-growing regions of the world, wherever temperatures are above average during the crop's growing season. Researcher Jan Leach says warmer temperatures also make the diseases that impact rice more virulent, at the same time the plants' inherent resistance to disease appears to be compromised. If warmer temperatures are here to stay, then the nature of the world's rice crop must evolve quickly to meet changing conditions and avoid widespread hunger, she said in an interview. "You get more diseases at high temperatures and the plant's inherent resistance is not as effective," she said from her office at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., where she Daily Global
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is a distinguished professor in plant research.A coalition of researchers, including the International Rice Research Institutebased in the Philippines and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Shenzhen, is behind an effort to keep the world's rice fields productive. Out of 100,000 varieties of rice, they selected the 3,024 with distinctive characteristics believed to be tied to the crop's future. Researchers in China then unraveled the genome of each variety, a monumental effort that captured 30 million variations in the varieties' nucleotides. That amounts to 120 TBs of data, now stored for free on AWS Simple Storage Service and available to researchers around the world. "It's a huge amount of data. It's not like you're going to download it. You can't just email it around," said Leach.But with the data available, research that's been extremely difficult to do in the past may become possible. By comparing the genomes looking for common characteristics among the different varieties, researchers can narrow the gene sequences they need to examine to pursue certain crop qualities. http://www.informationweek.com/cloud/software-as-a-service/amazon-cloud-analytics-help-researchers-fight-famine/d/did/1322299
APEDA COMMODITY NEWS International Benchmark Price Price on: 23-09-2015
Product
Benchmark Indicators Name
Price
1
Chinese first grade granules, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)
2100
2
Chinese Grade A dehydrated flakes, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)
2000
3
Chinese powdered, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)
1800
1
Chinese sliced, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)
4600
2
Chinese whole, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)
5100
3
Indian Cochin, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)
3000
Garlic
Ginger
Guar Gum Powder
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1
Indian 100 mesh 3500 cps, FOB Kandla (USD/t)
4180
2
Indian 200 mesh 3500 cps basis, FOB Kandla (USD/t)
1600
3
Indian 200 mesh 5000 cps, FOB Kandla (USD/t)
2700
Source:agra-net
For more info
Market Watch Commodity-wise, Market-wise Daily Price on 23-09-2015 Domestic Prices Product
Unit Price : Rs per Qty
Market Center
Variety
Min Price
Max Price
1
Sangli (Maharashtra)
Other
1500
1625
2
Koraput (Orissa)
Other
1325
1340
3
Hunsur (Karnataka)
Local
800
1000
1
Vyra (Gujarat)
Other
1250
1465
2
Koraput (Orissa)
Other
1350
1420
3
Rudrapur (Uttrakhand)
Other
1050
1300
1
Manjeri (Kerala)
Other
2000
2400
2
Panipat (Haryana)
Other
2000
3000
3
Mechua (West Bengal)
Other
1800
2200
1
Koraput (Orissa)
Other
1300
1360
2
Shillong (Meghalaya)
Other
1400
1800
3
Mumbai (Maharashtra)
Other
400
800
Maize
Paddy(Dhan)
Mousambi
Cabbage
Source:agmarknet.nic.in
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Egg
Rs per 100 No Price on 23-09-2015 Product
Market Center
Price
1
Ahmedabad
316
2
Chittoor
303
3
Hyderabad
295
Source: e2necc.com
Other International Prices
Unit Price : US$ per package Price on 22-09-2015
Product
Market Center
Origin
Variety
Low
Potatoes
High Package: 50 lb sacks
1
Atlanta
Idaho
Russet
15.50
16
2
Baltimore
Oregon
Russet
14
15
3
New York
Idaho
Russet
14
14
Cucumbers
Package: cartons film wrapped
1
Atlanta
Canada
Long Seedless
9
10
2
Baltimore
Canada
Long Seedless
8
9
3
New York
Honduras
Long Seedless
7
8
Grapefruit
Package: 7/10 bushel cartons
1
Atlanta
California
Red
23.50
25.50
2
Chicago
California
Red
21
22
3
New York
California
Red
24
28
Source:USDA
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Scientists have developed rice with high folate stability By University of Ghent September 23, 2015 | 12:40 pm EDT Researchers from Ghent University succeeded in stabilizing folates in biofortified rice, which can offer a solution to serious health problems caused by folate deficiency in developing countries. Essential nutrient The human body is unable to make vitamin B9, better known as folate. Adults need approximately 400 microgram of folates per day to remain healthy, a number which is increased to 600 microgram for pregnant women. Folates are abundant in green leafy vegetables (folium is Latin for leaf), such as spinach and legumes (e.g. beans). Most staple crops, such as rice and other cereals, contain very low amounts of this vitamin.Inadequate folate intake can have severe effects on human health. In addition to certain forms of anemia, folate deficiency in pregnant women can result in an impaired development of the neural tube (the precursor of the spinal cord) of the embryo. These developmental problems often result in spina bifida: the so-called ―cleft spine‖. Folate deficiency is also associated with Alzheimer disease, cardio-vascular diseases and the development of a range of cancers. Due to the marginal levels of folate in rice, consumed by about half the world population as sole energy source, folate deficiency is highly prevalent in developing countries. Several studies show that in certain regions of e.g. China and India the occurrence of neural tube defects is at least 10-fold higher than in Western countries. Unstable molecules Vitamins are unstable molecules, that degrade easily upon contact with oxygen, light, humidity, increased temperatures and changes in acidity. For this reason, it is important to consume food products, such as vegetables and fruit, as fresh as possible. A lot of vitamins get lost, not only during food processing and preparation, but also during storage. Evidently, these problems occur in harvest products that are stored for a longer period, such as rice grains. These stability problems become more severe in developing countries where the storage in high temperature and high humidity is inevitable. In 2007, a research team from Ghent University (Belgium), coordinated by prof. Dominique Van Der Straeten, reported the development of a first generation of rice lines with 100-fold higher folate levels as compared to normal rice. This result was achieved through metabolic engineering, the modulation of the biosynthesis pathway of a plant compound. Their new study shows that about half of the folate content in these rice lines degrades after half a year. Daily Global
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All About Rice News Assemblage lines To tackle this problem, researchers from this lab developed a new rice prototype, in which the folate content remains stable upon long term storage. Again, metabolic engineering was applied. Folate is produced in a plant cell by specific enzymes (molecular machines) that add consecutive changes to a certain start product until a folate molecule is formed. This process is comparable to a car assembly line. By stimulating the production of two enzymes in the folate biosynthesis, researchers created the first generation of rice lines containing high folate levels. Two strategies Now, they were able to stabilize this high folate content in a new rice prototype. They applied two strategies. A first strategy comprised the binding of folates with a folate binding protein. This protein is unknown in plants, but well studied in mammals. It occurs in e.g. milk and protects folate from degradation. This is also the way intact folates are passed on from the mother to her infant, to support its development. By expressing a synthetic gene, based on a folate binding protein from bovine milk, in the rice grain, the same principle is applied and folate content remains stable upon long term storage.A second strategy consisted of the stimulation of the last step in folate production. This step extends the tail of the folate molecule. This promotes cellular retention and binding to folate dependent proteins. Besides enhancing folate stability, the new gene combinations also resulted in folate levels that are up to 150 fold those found in normal rice. Since all genes which were used in this study, were placed next to each other on a single piece of DNA, this piece of genetic material can easily be transferred to edible rice varieties. Moreover, it is fairly easy to make combinations with other interesting traits, such as the enhancement of other vitamins or certain minerals, such as iron. This technology can also be used in other crops, both cereals (e.g. wheat, sorghum) and non-cereals (e.g. potato, banana). Collaboration This investigation is the result of a close collaboration between the labs of prof. Dominique Van Der Straeten (development and characterization of the new rice prototypes), prof. Willy Lambert and prof. Christophe Stove (development of analytical methods to measure folates) and dr. Hans De Steur and prof. Xavier Gellynck (study of the socio-economic impact of folate rice). These results were published yesterday in the renowned journal Nature Biotechnology (Blancquaert et al., 2015). Pioneers The stability issue is often underestimated or even neglected in biofortification programs. It is obvious that not only high, but also stable vitamin levels are important to tackle vitamin deficiencies. Not only does this study describe the effect of long term storage on the folate levels in the first rice prototypes, it also provides an elegant solution to the stability problem. This solution can be applied, in a customized form, to other crops and vitamins and opens the door for awareness and consideration of vitamin stability in future biofortification studies. Daily Global
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You can find the academic article here. http://www.agprofessional.com/news/scientists-have-developed-rice-high-folate-stability
The U.S. Tries to Break Into the Chinese Rice Market Media Center, Image SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 | 18:23 GMT
Over the past decade, U.S. meat and dairy producers have shifted their practices to meet the growing Chinese demand created by an expanding middle class. Rice producers now hope to do the same. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of rice. And Chinese rice imports — sourced primarily from Vietnam, Thailand and Pakistan — increased substantially in 2012 and have remained high since, making China one of the world's largest importers of rice as well. Beijing's food security policies keep the domestic price of rice inflated, meaning that imports are economically competitive but highly regulated. The international food price index recently hit the lowest level in six years, and low cereal prices are a large part of that decline. Despite this, rice consumption has outpaced milled rice production since the 2013-2014 market year, and prices have stayed low because of factors such as currency depreciation in Thailand and Vietnam, which has lowered minimum export prices to stimulate demand. Self-sufficiency policies in Indonesia and the Philippines have reduced import demand, also contributing to low prices.For the past 15 years, U.S. rice producers have wanted to enter China, but China has required certain phytosanitary — or pest control — measures at several points along the supply chain, which the United States has been hesitant to agree to. With the implementation of the long awaited agreement on this protocol, in theory, U.S. rice could be exported to China in as little as a month's time. https://www.stratfor.com/image/us-tries-break-chinese-rice-market
Edo Can Feed Nigeria With Rice – Oshiomhole Posted by admin on Sep 23rd, 2015 and filed under Niger Delta. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
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Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, said the state could feed Nigeria with rice if waiver on the commodity was removed.He stated this at the backdrop of last Thursday’s decision of the National Economic Council to promote local production of food crops in states with comparative advantage on them.The governor, who spoke with State House correspondents recently in Abuja, decried the waiver granted rice importers by the previous administration, saying that it led to dumping of various goods in the country.He said that the incentive also drove local producers of food items, including rice, out of business. He stated that big rice millers in the state were already waiting to see if the implementation of the policy before they would return to the farms.―Edo could do a lot if the Federal Government has coherent agricultural policies that do not provide the window for waivers, and expired rice and cheap rice to be dumped on Nigeria,’’ he said.According to the governor, Edo has huge potential for massive rice production but such might not happen until the right policies are made.He said that Leventis Group, which had a large rice farm in Agenebode, had promised that with the new administration in the country, and controversies over duty waivers removed, it was willing to resume production.He also said that Dangote Group had acquired about 50,000 hectares of land for rice farming in the state and was enthusiastic to go into massive rice farming with the right policies in place. He said his administration had waived land charges as incentives for big investors in agriculture and urged those interested in investing in the state to embrace the gesture.On fresh forensic audit being carried out on Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Oshimhole explained that it was being done because the one carried out by the past administration was incomprehensive.He said that the firm which carried out the first audit was not given free hand to conduct the exercise, adding that the new audit approved by the economic council would also look into the700 million dollars Sovereign Wealth Fund.He said that the fund which had 1 billion dollars was left with only 300 million dollars at the expiration of the past administration.The governor said the truth about disappearances of money from NNPC, its subsidiaries and other Federal Government accounts would be made public after the fresh audit ordered by the council. http://www.thetidenewsonline.com/2015/09/23/edo-can-feed-nigeria-with-rice-oshiomhole/
Asia scientists take big leap toward 'rice of the future' Nyshka Chandran | @NyshkaC Tuesday, 22 Sep 2015 | 10:14 PM ETCNBC.com Scientists have made major strides towards creating new breeds of rice that could be more sustainable, as well as more resilient to environmental stresses.The International Rice Research Daily Global
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All About Rice News Institute (IRRI), the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and BGI (formerly known as the Beijing Genomics Institute) have identified the exact genetic makeup of more than 3,000 different families of rice for the first time in what is being heralded as a major advancement in rice science.Now, rice breeders can use these varieties as building blocks, using the sequence data to identify genes that represent favorable traits that can be transferred to other varieties, Marco van den Berg, chief technology officer at IRRI, told CNBC. By identifying the DNA of these rice varieties, researchers hope to improve the overall quality of rice cultivation while also reducing the crop's environmental footprint. Traits targeted for improvement include higher nutritional quality and greater tolerance of pests, diseases, floods and drought, as well as reduced greenhouse gas emissions."This dataset provides access to millions of genetic markers that can be used to design sustainable crops for the future - ones that are high-yielding while at the same time requiring less water, fertilizer, and pesticides," said Rod Wing, director of the Arizona Genomics Institute at the University of Arizona and IRRI scientist.Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, and Global Rice Science Partnership, the international research project produced a massive data set of 120 terabytes that will be hosted on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud.Accessing the data is free and AWS hopes it will help global researchers accelerate the breeding process. "We do this to help build communities and tools around data sets that drive new businesses, accelerate research, and improve lives," explained Peter Moore, AWS' Asia Pacific managing director for the APAC global public sector.It's also the first time this many varieties of a major food crop were sequenced and made publicly available, noted van den Berg.As an agricultural practice, crop breeding and modification have significantly evolved in recent years after gaining prominence in the 1960s, according to the United Nations.The main purpose is to develop more productive crops amid growing environmental threats. Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted global rice production would fall in 2015-2016 for the first time in five years due to consumption outpacing supply as major producing countries deal with flooding, drought and extreme heat."Combined carry in stocks held by top exporters - India, Pakistan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam - are the smallest in four years, contributing to reduced global supplies."But scientists say breeding is also aimed at improving global food security. Rice is a staple food for more than half of humanity, the United Nations estimates, and improved crops could help meet rising food demand with the global population estimated to exceed 9.6 billion by 2050."Rice breeding has made sure that Asia's growing population has been fed despite doomsday predictions of massive famines in the 1960s," van den Berg said. Nyshka ChandranAssociate Producer, CNBC Asia-Pacific http://www.cnbc.com/2015/09/22/scientists-put-dna-for-over-3000-rice-varieties-on-amazon-cloud.html
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Rice Is Commodity Winner as Weather Cuts Crop in Southern U.S. SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 09:56 AM
(Bloomberg) -- If you’re a commodity investor, rice should be a staple in your diet. While adverse summer weather conditions in the U.S. have failed to give much of a boost to either corn or soybean prices, one crop is surging: rice. Rough rice traded in Chicago is up 22 percent in the third quarter, the best performer among commodities futures tracked by Bloomberg.Domestic output is estimated to fall 14 percent in the crop year that began Aug. 1 to 18.95 billion pounds, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Sept. 11. The harvest in Arkansas, the largest growing state, is showing ―dismal‖ yields, according to a USDA report last week. Texas had a record wet month in May and other southern growing states saw above-average temperatures in July.―With the reduced supply, the market is rallying back to where farmers can sell,‖ Dennis Delaughter, market analyst at VantageRM in Austin, Texas, said in a telephone interview. Rough-rice futures for November delivery closed 0.5 percent lower at $12.75 per hundredweight Tuesday on the Chicago Board of Trade. (A hundredweight is equal to 100 pounds, or 45 kilograms.) Still, futures touched $13.08 on Sept. 14, the highest in more than a year.While the U.S. isn’t particularly big in terms of output -- China produces about 20 times as much -- it’s forecast to be the fifth-largest shipper in the 2015-16 season, according to a USDA report. Total U.S. rice export commitments for the current crop year are up 42 percent higher than the pace a year earlier, USDA data show.Outside the U.S., the supply situation has worsened. Global inventories will fall for a third straight year, the USDA estimates. Production in Thailand, the largest exporter, may fall to the lowest in 19 years because of dry weather. Other Asian nations are monitoring the potential impact of the strongest El Nino in two decades. For all that, the price rally has yet to go global. The world market remains fragmented, with many large countries controlling consumer prices. The benchmark Asian price is at a seven-year low, according to data from the Thai Rice Exporters Association.To contact the reporter on this story: Megan Durisin in Chicago at mdurisin1@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Simon Casey at scasey4@bloomberg.net Robin Saponar http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ufZvuSavRCkJ:www.agweb.com/article/rice-iscommodity-winner-as-weather-cuts-crop-in-southern-us/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pk
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