Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter February 3,2016 Vol 6 Issue I
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
Today Rice News Headlines...
Editorial Board Chief Editor
The Pakistan-Kuwait relations Rice export trade facing crisis, needs government attention: Reap PH rice self-sufficiency a failure – Binay camp Thailand inks $120 mln rice MOUs with Iran Rice Prices Lab cooks up drought-resistant rice 1,600 C‘GARH RICE MILLERS GIVE UP LPG SUBSIDY Rice Research Institute Recruitment 2016 China Ships First Rice to Korea Northeast Louisianans Gearing Up for 2016 Rice Crop WTF Happened to Golden Rice? Group Petitions EFCC Over N117 Billion Rice Importation Waivers Fraud Nigeria: Customs Intercepts Two Trucks, Six Cars Loaded With Smuggled Rice Fortified rice raises risk of hookworm infections APEDA Rice Commodity News Group Petitions EFCC Over N117 Billion Rice Importation Waivers Fraud Arkansas Farm Bureau Daily Commodity Report
Hamlik
Managing Editor
Abdul Sattar Shah Rahmat Ullah Rozeen Shaukat
English Editor
Maryam Editor Legal Advisor Advocate Zaheer Minhas
Editorial Associates
Admiral (R) Hamid Khalid Javed Islam Agha Ch.Hamid Malhi Dr.Akhtar Hussain Dr.Fayyaz Ahmad Siddiqui Dr.Abdul Rasheed (UAF) Islam Akhtar Khan
Editorial Advisory Board
News Detail...
The Pakistan-Kuwait relations The Pakistan-Kuwait relations are brotherly, based on shared history, traditions and common culture. Both countries have always enjoyed their bilateral, friendly, trade and cultural ties with enormous respect of their commonality and cultural traditions. The bilateral relations exist both at the official-government level and at the peoples‘ level. Time has proved that both countries have stood for each other in their most difficult and testing times. Pakistan was among the first countries that sent troops to Kuwait during the Iraqi invasion in 1990. Nine Pakistani soldiers were martyred during mine clearing operations.Kuwait also responded well to its friendly country and has been the first among countries that have ever extended generous help to Pakistan in difficult times.
Dr.Malik Mohammad Hashim
Assistant Professor, Gomal University DIK
Dr.Hasina Gul
Assistant Director, Agriculture KPK
Dr.Hidayat Ullah
Assistant Professor, University of Swabi
Dr.Abdul Basir
Assistant Professor, University of Swabi
Zahid Mehmood PSO,NIFA Peshawar
Falak Naz Shah
Head Food Science & Technology ART, Peshawar
2|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter The Kuwait government donated generously to Pakistan during the deadly earthquake in 2005 and at the time of devastating floods in 2010. Kuwait has contributed almost $25 million to floods-affected people in Pakistan.Almost 150,000 Pakistani expatriates in all fields are currently working and living in Kuwait. They remit around $750 million a year to Pakistan. This is one of the important foreign exchange sources for balancing the external accounts of the country. In addition to this, there are regular visits of Pakistani naval ships to Kuwait. Pakistan has also trained a number of naval officers of Kuwait in Pakistan. Both countries are part of a joint ministerial commission (JMC) – an active body extending its role towards further strengthening and extending their bilateral relations in all fields. HH the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited Pakistan in 2006. HH the Crown Price of Kuwait Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited Pakistan in 2013 and the Speaker of the National Assembly of Kuwait Marzouq Al-Ghanem and the Air Force Chief also visited in 2015.Although bilateral Pakistan-Kuwait political relations historically remain very strong, however their bilateral economic cooperation has not progressed much. There are several reasons which characterize the certain geopolitical, strategic and security obstacles. Bilateral trade volume between both countries almost touches $2.5 billion a year, though it is far from satisfactory relative to their size and composition of their domestic production and external trade volumes. Pakistan is largely importing crude oil from Kuwait and Kuwait mainly imports, fruits, vegetables, rice and cotton products.Successive Pakistani ambassadors have tried their best to further strengthen bilateral relations. The current Pakistani ambassador to Kuwait Mohammed Salam Khan, contrary to his predecessors, plays a very active and commendable role towards enhancing and strengthening bilateral trade and cultural relations. He has taken a number of initiatives during his short stay as ambassador of Pakistan in Kuwait. With his efforts, last year‘s Expo Karachi and investment conference saw the participation of a large number of Kuwaiti businessman and other trading groups.He has taken a number of initiatives such as organizing a mango festival/exhibition. A large number of trade groups from Pakistan such as rice exporters, and chambers of commerce of Karachi and Sialkot, have also been invited to exchange their business interests with Kuwaiti counterparts. A wonderful gathering on the anniversary of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of the country, was organized at the Kuwait Teachers‘ Association. On the anniversary of the Peshwar tragedy, a dignified meeting was organized at the embassy premises.The outgoing ambassador is largely supportive of cultural and other activities and plays an active role to represent his community. Recently, the embassy and the Kuwait National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters organized a wonderful musical event in which a very popular singer from Pakistan, Fariha Pervaiz, performed with her beautiful voice and mesmerizing performance, which captivated her audience. 3|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Hardly any ambassador in the recent past in my memory of 35 years in Kuwait has played such an active role towards strengthening these cultural and trade ties in a very short span of time. The ambassadors are usually posted for fixed tenures of three or four years, extendable at the discretion of appointing authorities based on their performance. It is hearting for the Pakistani community to know that the ambassador is reaching his superannuation, which means his retirement. By Javaid Ahmad local@kuwaittimes.net
http://news.kuwaittimes.net/website/the-pakistan-kuwait-relations/
Rice export trade facing crisis, needs government attention: Reap February 03, 2016
Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) said Tuesday that the second largest foreign exchange earner commodity's export trade is facing severe crisis and needs government's attention to avert them. Reap representatives Chaudhry M Shafique, Chairman and Noman Ahmed Shaikh, senior vice chairman Reap, Abdul Rahim Janoo, Chief Patron of Reap and Rafique Suleman Chairman, FPCCI Rice Exports Committee 2016, called for subsidised rice seed, fertilisers, water, electricity/diesel, etc, for the farmers to reduce the cost of production. They said that rice export trade is fetching US $2.5 billion foreign exchange annually for the country. However, during last two years, rice export trade is facing crisis owing to lower commodity prices in the world market. "We are afraid that this year will also be very challenging for rice export trade, if the government will not take appropriate steps to resolve the rice exporters' problems," they added. They said Reap is planning to organise its 8th Export Trophy Awards in Karachi/Lahore/Islamabad and requested the Prime Minister of Pakistan to spare time to preside over the function. "We are confident that the PM's presence will boost the morale of rice exporters. We also intend to discuss certain proposals for the betterment of our trade with the PM," they added. Moreover, Reap would like to establish a latest 'Rice Zone' and a formal request has been sent to the federal government for a suitable piece of land along with the gas & electricity connections on subsidised rates. "We are also mulling over taking the land of TCP godowns located at Pipri and becoming shabby due to non-utilisation," they said. The government should allot TCP godowns to Reap on market rates, so that rice export trade could get full benefit of the proposed Rice Zone. This will also help achieve our vision of crossing $4 billion in rice exports during this business-friendly 4|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter government's tenure, they maintained. In order to promote Pakistani rice, Reap is also intending to arrange a "Grand Biryani Festival," in which all Karachi-based Consul Generals, Deputy High Commissioners, Honorary Consuls, Commercial Counsellors, heads of various government and non-government organisations will be invited. Over 7-8 different dishes of Pakistani rice will be presented to them. "We believe that the Biryani Festival will be instrumental in uplifting the image of Pakistan and Pakistani rice," he added. Reap always raised its voice for all stakeholders of rice and particularly for the rice growers. Input cost of rice cultivation is very high as compared to our competitors, as the Indian agriculture industry is heavily subsidised by their government. The government has also been requested to provide rice farmers with subsidised seed, fertilisers, water, electricity/diesel, etc, so that the cost of production could be decreased and rice exporters able to compete in international markets. The Reap representatives hoped that the government will consider these suggestions on high priority in the larger interest of the country and make Pakistan a real 'Asian Tiger'. RECORDER REPORT
PH rice self-sufficiency a failure – Binay camp February 3, 2016 9:51 pm
Contrary to claims of Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, the Philippines‘ rice self sufficiency program is a dismal failure, not a success, the camp of Vice President Jejomar Binay said on Wednesday.―Secretary Alcala claims the Philippines has been 96 percent rice self-sufficient starting in 2010. What he fails to mention is that the Philippines imported 1.787 MMT [million metric tons] of rice last year, the largest in the last five years. In 2014, we also imported 1.7 MMT,‖ Joey Salgado, media affairs chief of the Office of the Vice President (OVP, said.―Where is the self-sufficiency Secretary Alcala is bragging about? It appears that the good secretary is oblivious to the truth,‖ he added. In 2011, Alcala bragged that from being the top importer, the Philippines will be a top exporter in four years.Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, however, showed that the country‘s total palay (unhusked rice) production for 2015 only reached around 18.86 MMT, 1.22 MMT short of the national target of 20.08 MMT and 0.6 percent lower than the 2014 output of 18.97 MMT.―The sad truth is that while more than 40 percent of Filipinos are in agriculture, the sector has barely grown in the past six years. From 2011 to 2015, the agricultural sector only grew by 1.6 percent,‖ Salgado said.Because the Philippines remains to be an agricultural country, according to him, the sector should have a large contribution to the economy.Instead, he noted, the poorest Filipinos belong to this sector.
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter ―Secretary Alcala‘s thinking that our farmers who are starving and wallowing in poverty are ‗sexy‘ is just another example of the insensitivity of this administration, not unlike their presidential candidate saying that the worsening traffic in Metro Manila was ‗a sign of progress,‘‖ he said, referring to Manuel Roxas 2nd.The Vice President has been advocating removal
Thailand inks $120 mln rice MOUs with Iran BANGKOK, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Thailand, one of the world's top rice exporters, has signed agreements to sell 300,000 tonnes of rice to Iran worth 4.3 billion baht ($120 million), the Thai commerce ministry said on Wednesday. Commerce Minister Apiradee Tantraporn said four memoranda of understanding (MOUs) were signed in a deal that would see white and jasmine rice exported to Iran.The agreements were signed between three Thai and four Iranian private firms, she said.A Thai trade delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak is in Iran this week to seek trade opportunities following the lifting of sanctions against Tehran. The Thai Rice Exporters' Association said last week that Thailand would negotiate the rice sale during the visit.Most of the rice is 100 percent B grade white rice, according to the ministry.The grain is quoted at $350 per tonne (1,000 kgs) but could be around $425 per tonne with sea freight charges included, said Phaiboon Kuonsongtum, a rice trader in the delegation."It's a good sign that the Thai government acted quickly and sent a trade delegation to Iran, as Iran was a big market for Thai rice," said Phaiboon, adding that Iran used to import up to 800,000 tonnes of Thai rice per year before sanctions were imposed.Chutima Bunyapraphasara, the Thai commerce ministry's permanent secretary, said Thailand had asked Iran's health ministry to send officials to inspect the quality of the grain.After the inspection, Iran will issue a document allowing the import of Thai rice, she said. Chutima said shipment of the grain would start in six to eight months. ($1 = 35.8300 baht) (Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Dale Hudson) ((Patpicha.Tanakasempipat@thomsonreuters.com; +6626489213; Reuters Messaging: patpicha.tanakasempipat.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: THAILAND RICE/
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter https://www.zawya.com/story/Thailand_inks_120_mln_rice_MOUs_with_Iran-TR20160203nL3N15I3Q3X2/
Rice Prices as on : 03-02-2016 02:37:00 PM Arrivals Current
Price
% Season Prev. Prev.Yr Modal change cumulative Modal %change Rice
Gadarpur(Utr)
629.00
-27.7
52228.00
2096
2095
23.22
Shahjahanpur(UP)
373.60
43.2
37072.50
2160
2150
7.46
Manjeri(Ker)
290.00
NC
4640.00
3000
3000
-9.09
Gorakhpur(UP)
260.00
18.18
2362.00
2120
2090
9.84
Pilibhit(UP)
260.00
4.84
14758.00
2195
2190
-6.20
Ballia(UP)
210.00
NC
4400.00
1950
1960
-1.27
Basti(UP)
139.00
-9.45
2513.50
2070
2065
2.73
Srirampur(ASM)
130.00 -27.78
3705.00
2950
2950
-
Mathabhanga(WB)
120.00
9.09
1870.00
1950
1950
-
Gondal(UP)
105.00 -93.54
7747.60
2025
2025
-2.17
Bareilly(UP)
100.00 -15.61
5300.50
2100
2110
NC
Lucknow(UP)
100.00 -13.79
2004.00
2110
2100
-2.76
Aligarh(UP)
80.00
6.67
1120.00
2150
2170
16.22
Ghaziabad(UP)
80.00
33.33
1180.00
2070
2075
-2.36
Saharanpur(UP)
80.00
-2.44
2783.00
2040
2030
-3.77
7|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Thodupuzha(Ker)
70.00
NC
980.00
2600
2600
6.12
Barasat(WB)
70.00
16.67
1090.00
2200
2200
-
Lanka(ASM)
65.00
8.33
1310.00
1725
1725
-
Beldanga(WB)
65.00
-3.7
655.50
2275
2300
-12.50
Gajol(WB)
65.00
-3.7
799.00
2800
2800
-8.20
Gazipur(UP)
58.00
16
745.50
1900
1900
3.26
Egra/contai(WB)
54.30
-2.34
352.90
1800
1800
-14.29
Gauripur(ASM)
50.00
42.86
1528.50
4500
4500
-
Nadia(WB)
50.00
NC
800.00
3200
3200
3.23
Samsi(WB)
50.00
NC
14210.00
2800
2000
-
Jorhat(ASM)
40.00
11.11
500.00
2800
2800
-
Dhekiajuli(ASM)
30.00
NC
442.50
2100
1900
12.30
Purulia(WB)
30.00
25
1050.00
2200
2200
-8.33
Udala(Ori)
27.00
NC
543.00
2700
2700
-
Mirzapur(UP)
26.00
-3.7
677.50
1920
1915
2.67
Kolhapur(Laxmipuri)(Mah)
25.00
-3.85
551.00
3000
3000
-
Banda(UP)
25.00
31.58
196.50
2165
2175
-
Balrampur(UP)
25.00 -26.47
781.00
2125
2125
1.43
Jalpaiguri Sadar(WB)
25.00
8.7
460.00
2700
2700
-4.26
Kasganj(UP)
24.00 -80.95
350.00
1850
1830
-8.64
Sirsa(UP)
24.00
4.35
168.00
2025
2020
-
Lohardaga(Jha)
22.50 -13.46
318.00
1900
1965
9.20
8|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Dibrugarh(ASM)
20.00
25
461.80
2400
2550
-
Yusufpur(UP)
20.00
33.33
322.00
1870
1850
0.54
Haldibari(WB)
20.00
-20
386.50
2350
2350
-11.32
Lakhimpur(UP)
15.00
NC
280.50
2100
2080
-
Medinipur(West)(WB)
15.00
15.38
290.00
2400
2400
-4.00
Falakata(WB)
14.70
-
210.50
1950
-
-
Atarra(UP)
12.00
-
12.00
2000
-
-
Jajpur(Ori)
10.00 -80.77
144.00
2200
2250
-
Raibareilly(UP)
9.50
46.15
146.00
2030
2030
0.25
Deogarh(Ori)
9.00
NC
241.50
2500
2500
NC
Muradabad(UP)
9.00
-10
269.50
2240
2240
13.42
North Lakhimpur(ASM)
8.80 -53.44
687.30
1900
1900
-
Bhivandi(Mah)
8.00
NC
120.00
3250
3550
91.18
Bolangir(Ori)
6.50
-7.14
86.00
2200
2300
-8.33
Chengannur(Ker)
6.00 -14.29
295.00
2500
2450
-13.79
Tusura(Ori)
5.50
-8.33
87.50
2200
2300
-15.38
Silapathar(ASM)
5.40
-1.82
430.70
3000
3000
NC
Buland Shahr(UP)
5.00 -28.57
207.00
2040
2055
0.25
Aroor(Ker)
3.00
NC
94.00
6800
6900
-26.88
Alibagh(Mah)
3.00
NC
54.00
3750
3750
134.38
Murud(Mah)
3.00
NC
40.00
2750
2750
71.88
Jeypore(Ori)
3.00 -31.82
117.80
325
325
-
9|www.ricepluss.com , www.riceplusmagazine.blosgspot.com
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Melaghar(Tri)
3.00
NC
65.30
2350
2350
-
Tanakpur(Utr)
3.00 -81.25
99.10
2010
2100
-4.29
Islampur(WB)
3.00
-6.25
147.20
2150
2150
-
Perinthalmanna(Ker)
2.90
NC
22.00
2600
2600
-
Siyana(UP)
2.50
25
41.50
2045
2050
0.25
Bonai(Bonai)(Ori)
2.00
100
18.60
2000
2000
-16.67
Karsiyang(Matigara)(WB)
2.00
11.11
29.40
2600
2600
-
Jeypore(Kotpad)(Ori)
1.40 -58.82
111.10
3250
3250
NC
Shillong(Meh)
1.20
50
25.30
3500
3500
NC
Sardhana(UP)
1.20
20
39.50
2060
2080
0.49
Mangaon(Mah)
1.00
NC
19.00
2800
2800
-
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/article8188122.ece
Lab cooks up drought-resistant rice Source: Xinhua | February 3, 2016, Wednesday |
New research could help save lives in drought-hit parts of the world.Scientists in China and the US have engineered rice and the plant Arabidopsis to produce high levels of a protein known as PYL9 that can dramatically increase drought tolerance.Under severe drought conditions, the transgenic plants triggered the death of their old leaves — a process known as senescence — to conserve resources for seeds and buds, a survival strategy some plant scientists refer to as ―die and let live,‖ they said.The study, published in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, offers insights into the drought survival mechanisms of plants and presents a possible means of protecting crops from severe drought stress. ―This study shows that controlled senescence is good for plants under drought conditions,‖ said researcher Yang Zhao of the Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology. ―If old leaves die, then the buds and small leaves might gain life,‖ said Zhao, who is also a research assistant at Purdue University in the US.Plants‘ drought responses are controlled by a hormone known as abscisic acid (ABA), which regulates growth and development, and directs plants‘ reaction to stress.Zhao and his fellow researchers found that altering Arabidopsis and rice to overexpress PYL9 made them highly sensitive to ABA, enabling them to better withstand 10 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter severe drought stress and causing older leaves to yellow sooner compared with the plants‘ wild counterparts. They found PYL9 transgenic rice had a 50 percent survival rate after a two-week drought compared with 10 percent survival in wild rice.Zhao, however, did not test the yield and quality of the transgenic plants.―We still can‘t really solve the problem of drought,‖ he said. ―But we can make it better. In extreme drought conditions, even a bad yield would be better than nothing in terms of preserving human life.‖ The transgenes did not affect plant growth and development under normal conditions, which suggests that they could be used to improve crop drought tolerance.―This study not only illuminates the function of PYL9 in stress-induced leaf senescence but also demonstrates a great potential for using PYL9 to improve plant drought resistance,‖ said Jian-Kang Zhu, a professor of plant biology at Purdue University and the study‘s principal investigator.Unexpectedly, when transgenic plants were treated with ABA under normal conditions, the old leaves started to wilt, even though the plants received enough water.This suggests that the plants had blocked their old leaves‘ access to water, preferentially driving water to developing tissues instead. http://www.shanghaidaily.com/national/Lab-cooks-up-droughtresistant-rice/shdaily.shtml
1,600 C’GARH RICE MILLERS GIVE UP LPG SUBSIDY Wednesday, 03 February 2016 | Staff Reporter | Raipur | in Raipur
The owners of 1,600 rice mills in Chhattisgarh have given up the cooking gas subsidy on an appeal made by Chief Minister Raman Singh, it was informed in the annual State-level conference of rice millers here.Chief Minister Raman Singh on Tuesday said that the Public Distribution System (PDS) had brought glory to Chhattisgarh. The Chief Minister was addressing the annual State-level conference of rice millers.The Supreme Court asked all the other States to emulate this PDS system. The rice millers had contributed a lot in the success of the PDS. The millers should provide quality rice at all times and share the social responsibility. Substandard quality of food material will never be accepted, he said. The Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection Minister Punnulal Mohle presided over the function.Chief Minister Raman Singh who was the chief guest said that rice mill industry is of crucial importance for providing employment to youth in comparison to other industries. There are more employment opportunities in the industry with less investment.About 400 youth are employed in a rice mill. There is a rapid expansion of rice mills industry after the formation of Chhattisgarh. There is high quality after the growth of rice mills. There were 700 rice mills at the time of formation of Chhattisgarh and now 1, 600 rice mills are in operation.The scenario of agriculture progress can be witnessed in rice mills. Agriculture is the backbone of the State‘s 11 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter economy. The prosperity of the State is dependent on the prosperity of farmer. The State bagged ‗Krishi Karman‘ award due to the hard working farmers who produce record rice. The State had bagged ‗krishi Karman‘ award this year for record pulses‘ production, he said. The Chief Minister assured the rice millers that their grievances will be dealt with sympathetically. Mohle said to avoid broken rice problem top quality rice mills should be established in the State.He said 59 lakh metric tonnes of paddy had been produced this year in the State. Chhattisgarh Rice Millers‘ Association President Yogesh Agrawal while welcoming the gathering gave a list of grievances and demands to the CM. http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/1600-cgarh-rice-millers-give-up-lpg-subsidy.html
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
Rice Research Institute Recruitment 2016 For Various Posts @ www.crri.nic.in Feb 3, 2016 Rice Research Institute Recruitment 2016 : Rice Research Institute has released the notification for different posts. It is a good news who want to get into Rice Research Institute. It has invited applications from all the interested and eligible candidates. All the aspirants who want to apply for these posts can check the detailed notification. for more details like educational qualification, age limit, pay scale, application fees check the details down. Now the link is available on their official website. Candidates can apply through the official website or simply click the link provided below. Rice Research Institute Recruitment 2016 For Various Posts @ www.crri.nic.in : Also Read: REC Power Distribution Corporation Recruitment 2016 @ www.recpdcl.in Recruitment Details : Educational Qualification : Candidate should have passed 10th / SSC from Recognizes university or equivalent for technician post.Candidates should have Bachelor‘s degree or diploma from a recognized university for technical assistant post in different fields.Selection Process : Candidates are selected on the basis of written test.The question paper contains general knowledge, science, social, maths each 25 marks. The test will be for 90 min. Age Limit : The candidates should be in between 18-30 years. Age relaxations will be given to SC/ ST/ PWD / Ex-servicemen as per govt rules. No age relaxations will be given to regular employes of ICAR Also Read: Cochin Shipyard Recruitment 2016 For 276 Supervisory Posts @www.cohinshipyard.com 13 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
Pay Scale : Technician Will get pay of Rs.52,00-20,200/and grade pay of 2000/Technician Assistant Will get pay of Rs.52,00-20,200/and grade pay of 2800/-
Important dates : Last date to submit application is 15th february 2016 ( With in 30days from the notification released the applications should be submitted) Application Fees : The candidates should pay fees of Rs.200/- As crossed demand draft on any scheduled bank (non refundable). No fees for SC/ ST/ PWD/ Ex-servicemen/ women candidates. For more details like exam date keep visiting our website. We will soon update the details. For more recruitments view galaxy reporters, education block‘.
China Ships First Rice to Korea By Jim Guinn
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA -- News in South Korea today is that 30 tons of rice was loaded in containers at Gunsan port on January 29 headed to China, where the rice will be sold in Lotte Mart stores in Shanghai. Another 70 tons will follow in February with a total of 2,000 MT expected to be exported to China this year.The notice that a phytosanitary protocol agreement had been reached was announced in South Korea on November 10, 2015 (with the announcement of an export quarantine plan being completed on January 7, 2016) after reportedly negotiating on China market access for Korean rice since 2009. USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward said, "Given the growing interest in China for high quality, safe rice, and the new arrangement with South Korea, we expect a similar political decision will be forthcoming from China that will allow access for U.S. rice. USA Rice 14 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter has been working with APHIS on U.S. market access to China since negotiations began in 2006, and we expect to be the next country to gain market access there."
Northeast Louisianans Gearing Up for 2016 Rice Crop By Peter Bachmann RAYVILLE, LA - Yesterday morning the Rayville Civic Center was standing room only as more than 50 rice growers crowded the hall for the Northeast Louisiana Rice Forum.Attendees heard from a star-studded line up of speakers from the Louisiana State University AgCenter with updates on rice varieties, diseases, fertility,insects, weeds, and the new Price Loss Coverage program. Speakers included: Dr. Tara Smith of Winnsboro; Dr. Steve Linscombe of Crowley; Dr. Don Groth of Crowley; Dr. Dustin Harrell of Crowley; Dr. Sebe Brown of Winnsboro; Eric Webster of Baton Rouge; and Dr. Kurt Guidry of Baton Rouge. USA Rice staff rounded out the presentations with Farm Bill program updates and a legislative and regulatory report from Washington, D.C. Jason Waller, a Louisiana rice farmer and outgoing president of the Louisiana Rice Growers Association, said, "We're happy USA Rice has been able to partner with us and participate at our meetings and field days over the years. It's important for us to be able to have our state and region's voices carried to Washington; we've seen results that actually make sense for us on the ground level as growers."Waller concluded, "The number one issue we want prioritized by the industry is increased exports for rice. That's really what's going to keep us in business and keep us planting rice year after year." Following the presentations and a hearty lunch, the Northeast Louisiana Rice Growers Association met and elected Jim Lingo and Scott Franklin as their new president and vice president, respectively. USA Rice looks forward to working closely with the Association and its new leadership.
WTF Happened to Golden Rice? —By Tom Philpott | Wed Feb. 3, 2016 6:00 AM EST
Golden rice packs a beta-carotene punch, but can it deliver in the field? International Rice Research Institute
Like the hover boards of the Back to the Future franchise, golden rice is an old idea that looms just
beyond
the
grasp
of
reality. "This
Rice
Could
Save
a
Million
Kids
a
Year," announced aTime magazine cover back in 2000. Orange in color, the rice is genetically 15 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
modified to contain a jolt of beta-carotene, the stuff that gives carrots their hue and that our bodies transform into vitamin A. Diets deficient in that key micronutrient are the leading cause of blindness of children in the global south, where rice tends to be a staple grain. A decade and a half since the Time article, golden rice has yet to be planted commercially—but it continues generating bumper crops of hype. "Is Golden Rice the Future of Food?" the great hipster-foodie journal Lucky
Peach wondered last
fall,
adding that
"it
might
save
millions
from
malnutrition."Golden rice has yet to be planted commercially—but it continues generating bumper crops of hype. If golden rice is such a panacea, why does it flourish only in headlines, far from the farm fields where it's intended to grow? The short answer is that the plant breeders have yet to concoct varieties of it that work as well in the field as existing rice strains. This is made all the more challenging in the face of debates over genetically modified crops and eternal disputes about how they should be regulated. After seed developers first create a genetically modified strain with the desired trait—in this case, rice with beta-carotene—they start crossing it into varieties that have been shown to perform well in the field. The task is tricky: When you tweak one thing in a genome, such as giving rice the ability to generate beta-carotene, you risk changing other things, like its speed of growth. The Washington University anthropologist and longtime golden rice observer Glenn 16 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Stone describes this process as "bringing a superfood down to earth," and it gets little attention in most media accounts. The most serious effort to commercialize golden rice is centered at the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the globe's most prestigious incubator of highyielding rice varieties. Launched with grants from the Rockefeller and Ford foundations in 1960, the IRRI spearheaded the Asian part of what became known as the Green Revolution—the effort to bring US-style industrial agriculture to the developing world. (My review of Nick Cullather's excellent Green Revolution history, The Hungry World, is here.) Today, the IRRI coordinates the Golden Rice Network and has been working to develop a viable strain since 2006. And so far, it's having trouble. On its website, the IRRI reports that in the latest field trials, golden rice varieties "showed that beta carotene was produced at consistently high levels in the grain, and that grain quality was comparable to the conventional variety." However, the website continues, "yields of candidate lines were not consistent across locations and seasons." Translation: The golden rice varieties exhibited what's known in agronomy circles as a "yield drag"—they didn't produce as much rice as the non-GM varieties they'd need to compete with in farm fields. So the IRRI researchers are going back to the drawing board. Via email, I asked the IRRI how that effort is going. "So far, both agronomic and laboratory data look very promising," a spokeswoman replied. But she declined to give a time frame for when the IRRI thinks it will have a variety that's ready for prime time. Washington University's Stone says he visited the IRRI's campus in the Philippines in the summer of 2015 and heard from researchers that such a breakthrough is "at least several more years" off. The IRRI spokeswoman also declined to comment on Stone's time frame report. That's not a very inspiring assessment, given that researchers first successfully inserted the betacarotene trait in the rice genome in 2000, and that the technology has been lavished with research support ever since—including from the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (Grand Challenges in Global Health Initiative), USAID, the Syngenta Foundation, and others, according to the Golden Rice Humanitarian Board. Of course, among people who think biotechnology has a crucial role to play in solving developing-world malnutrition, the IRRI's agronomic struggles are compounded by anti-GMO zealotry as well as what it sees as overregulation of GMOs in the global south. David Zilberman, 17 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter an agricultural economist at the University of California-Berkeley, points out that most developing-world nations, including the Philippines, have adopted the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, which stipulates a precautionary approach to introducing new GMO products, including restrictions on how trials are conducted. The Cartagena regime stands in sharp contrast to the much more laissez-faire one that holds sway in the United States, Zilberman says. If the developing world embraced US-style regulation and treated vitamin A deficiency as a medical emergency solvable by golden rice, "it would have become available in 2000," Zilberman says. Based on that premise, he and German agricultural economist Justus Wesseler co-authored a 2014 paper claiming that golden rice has "been available since early 2000" and opposition to it has resulted in "about 1.4 million life years lost over the past decade in India" alone. Such claims abound in pro-GM circles. At a speech at the University of Texas last year, the Nobel laureate British biochemist Sir Richard Roberts accused golden rice opponents of have having committed a "crime against humanity." According to some researchers, opposition to golden rice has resulted in "about 1.4 million life years lost over the past decade in India" alone.
To be sure, opposition to golden rice has occasionally gone overboard. In 2013, activists destroyed one of the IRRI's golden rice field trials in the Philippines, for example. "Anti-GMO activism has set back our work, in that we not only concentrate with our research, but we have to also spend time and resources to counter their propaganda," the IRRI spokesperson told me. But the group makes clear that regulation and activism are only two of the challenges facing golden rice—getting it to perform well remains a major task. Even if and when the IRRI does come up with a high-yielding golden rice variety that passes regulatory muster, it remains unclear whether it can actually make a dent in vitamin A deficiency. As the Washington University's Stone notes, vitamin A deficiency often affects people whose diets are also deficient in other vital nutrients. Vitamin A is fat soluble, meaning it can't be taken up by the body unless it's accompanied by sufficient dietary fat, which isn't delivered in significant quantities by rice, golden or otherwise. According to Stone, only one feeding study (PDF) has ever showed a powerful uptake of vitamin A by subjects eating golden rice. The paper was much cited by golden rice proponents, but Stone says it had a major flaw: The subjects were "well-nourished individuals" who already took in 18 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter sufficient fat in their diets. The study "demonstrated only that Golden Rice worked in children who did not need it," hewrites. (The study has since been retracted on claims that the author failed to obtain proper consent from the parents of the participants). Meanwhile, as the IRRI scrambles to perfect golden rice, the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency is declining in the Philippines—according to the IRRI itself— from 40 percent of children aged six months to five years in 2003, to 15.2 percent in 2008. "The exact reasons for these improvements have not been determined, but they may be the results of proven approaches to preventing vitamin A deficiency, such as vitamin A supplementation, dietary diversification, food fortification and promotion of optimal breastfeeding," the group noted. That drop is part of a long-term trend that involves all of Southeast Asia. According to a 2015 Lancet study funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, vitamin A deficiency plagued 39 percent of children in the region in 1991 but only 6 percent in 2013—without the help of golden rice. But VAD, as the deficiency's known, remains a huge scourge on the Indian subcontinent and in Africa, the study found, affecting more than 40 percent of children in both regions. Whether golden rice will ever help mitigate that ongoing tragedy won't likely be known for some time. But the technology's hardly the slam-dunk panacea its advocates insist it is. http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2016/02/golden-rice-still-showing-promise-still-not-fieldready
Group Petitions EFCC Over N117 Billion Rice Importation Waivers Fraud A coalition, Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to urgently set in motion its investigative team to unravel the alleged abuse and massive fraud in the N117 billion rice import quota scheme. BY SAHARA REPORTERS, NEW YORKFEB 03, 2016
A coalition, Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to urgently set in motion its investigative team to unravel
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter the alleged abuse and massive fraud in the N117 billion rice import quota scheme.
Rice Unloaded At The Nigerian DocksNaija 24 In a petition to the anti-graft agency, signed by the coalition's chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, CSNAC urged the chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Mangu, to look into the report of an online newspaper, Premium Times, on the massive fraud.According to the report, a total of 26 companies were involved in the deal, two of which are allegedly owned by a former Attorney General of the Federation and a former Governor of Kebbi State respectively."Due to the huge amount spent on rice importation by the Federal Government, the Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2014 came up with a new rice policy to fast-track national self-sufficiency in rice production. "The policy specified that owners of existing rice mills and new investors with verifiable backward integration in the rice value chain will be allowed to import rice at 10 per cent duty and 20 per cent levy (30 per cent); while merchants who have nothing to contribute to local production in the form of rice farms or mills will be charged 10 per cent duty and 60 per cent levy (70 per cent). "Technically, it was a waiver aimed at building local capacity in rice production. Subsequently, an inter-ministerial committee which was headed by Mr. Akinwunmi Adeshina, current President of the African Development Bank (ADB), was set up to work out the national rice supply gap and allocate import licenses with appropriate quotas in order to bridge the gap and at the same time, advancing the objectives of the national rice policy. "On paper, this committee was to determine beneficiaries and allocate quotas based on four key criteria that assess investment of individual companies into local rice production," the report read in part. The report also stated that the 26 companies that benefitted from the rice import quota scheme including, Milan, Bua, AA Ibrahim, Stine Rice Mills, JMK Foods, and Labana Rice Mill among others.The newspaper report stated that Mikap Rice is owned by a former Attorney General of 20 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter the Federation, Michael Aondoakaa, while Ebony Agro is owned by Charles Ugwu, a former minister of commerce and industry. Ashi Foods is owned by the immediate past governor of Benue State Gabriel Suswam. Milan Group is a business interest that also owns Intercontinental Hotels while Bua is owned by billionaire Ishaku Rabiu. Honeywell is owned by Oba Otudeko while Elephant Group is owned by Tunji Owoye. Labana Rice is owned by former Kebbi State governor Adamu Aliero while Keresuk is owned by one Rotimi Williams. The report further stated that Umza International Farms Limited has a rice mill in Kano with a capacity of 30,000 MT. Aside from this mill, Umza has no other investment in local rice production. However, the company was given import allocations in two categories; 36,000 MT under existing miller allocation and also received 49,207 MT under investor allocation."Stallion got a total allocation of 89,989 MT; that was 59,989 MT under investor allocation and 30,000 MT under existing miller allocation. It has two mills – one in Kano and another in Markurdi. Mikap Rice, owned by Michael Aondoakaa, has a very small scale mill of between 15,000 to 20,000 MT. The mill itself is government-funded. Mr Aondoakaa got 82,897 MT of import quota." "Many of the beneficiaries were found to have no investment in the rice value chain. They include Wacot, Honeywell, Elephant Group, AA Ibrahim, Milan, among others. Kersuk Farms has no mill. Stine Rice has a mill but it is not in working condition.―Bua has only brown rice mill. It does not have parboiling capacity; the mill is defunct. However Bua received a total import allocation of 109,448 MT. Many of the quota beneficiaries sold their allocations to importers.―Mikap sold its quota to Elephant Group. Stine Rice sold its quota to a company called PJS. Elephant Group in May 2015 also received through the Jama‘tul Nasril Islam (JNI) waiver to import 100,000 MT of rice. ―There are also discrepancies in milling capacities and the local rice production capacity. Under former Minister Akinwunmi Adeshina, the ministry of agriculture claimed Nigeria was producing 2.2 million MT of paddy. However, all the rice mills in Nigeria have a combined annual capacity to mill only 600,000 MT of paddy. The remaining 1.6million MT remains unaccounted for. Yet, allocations of rice import quota were based on these phony capacities of rice millers and investors, many of whom at the end sold off their quotas to the detriment of the rice subsidy goals. "Besides the discrepancies in the rice milling capacities, Cotonou, Benin Republic have become a safe haven for smuggling of rice through the land borders into Nigeria thereby sabotaging the Nigerian economy through evasion of taxes, levies and import duties. The report revealed that sometime in April-May 2014, 11 ships sailed into Nigeria‘s territorial waters from Thailand and they refused to berth at the Apapa ports in order to avoid paying tariffs to the Nigerian government. The ships were expected to pay a total of 11.5billion naira in tariffs to the Nigerian government. "The Senate on July 30, 2015 announced members of its ad hoc committee on waivers, concessions and grants to look into the abuse of the waivers on rice importation in order to aid the recovery of government revenue. However, it does not seem like this committee will be able to carry out its duty efficiently and without prejudice as its chairman is former Kebbi State 21 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Governor, Senator Adamu Aliero who is also the chairman of Labana, one of the rice subsidy beneficiaries," the report read in part. CSNAC, in its petition, noted that: "From the foregoing, just like the fuel subsidy scam, this is another case of economic sabotage by a cabal of some sort who will stop at nothing to ensure that they continue to make profit, at the expense of the suffering Nigerian citizens and the economy of the country as a whole. "This laudable policy introduced by the former administration would have revolutionised the Nigerian economy in terms of putting Agriculture and rice production on the map again, had it not been hijacked by this cabal. "CSNAC is therefore by this petition, calling on the commission to exercise its full powers in conducting a thorough investigation into the abuse of the rice importation waiver, as well as prosecute the perpetrators and those who have corruptly benefitted from the scheme. ―They should be made to refund benefits derived from the fraudulently obtained waivers. This will go a long way in charting a new course for the efficient and effective implementation to the rice policy, thereby boosting rice production in the country, improving the livelihood of small scale farmers in Nigeria as well as revamping the near comatose state of Agriculture in Nigeria," the petition read in part. http://saharareporters.com/2016/02/03/group-petitions-efcc-over-n117-%E2%80%8Ebillion-riceimportation-waivers-fraud
Nigeria: Customs Intercepts Two Trucks, Six Cars Loaded With Smuggled Rice By Dele Ogunyemi
Ibadan — The Nigeria Customs Service, Oyo/Osun Area Command, in the early hours of last Monday intercepted two trucks and six Tokunbo cars laden with an estimated 1,165 bags of smuggled rice along Saki-Oyo road axis.The Customs Area Controller for the command, Mr. Tolutope Ogunkua, while briefing journalists on the interception, said the interception was made possible through intelligence utilization. He said one suspect was arrested alongside the trucks.The suspect is currently helping the command in the ongoing investigations, he explained. Mr. Ogunkua, who has just assumed duty as the Customs Oyo/Osun Area Command's controller, told newsmen that the estimated Duty Paid Value for the 1,165 bags of smuggled rice in the trucks and cars was N10,547, 000.Some of the fairly used vehicles used for the imported rice were three Volkswagen Golf cars, two Mazda buses and one green coloured Mazda 323 car, one of which Mr. Ogunkua said was specifically arrested for duty evasion. http://allafrica.com/stories/201602041033.html 22 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
Fortified rice raises risk of hookworm infections James Morgan/Panos Eating fortified rice increases the risk of hookworm infections, a study in Cambodian schoolchildren shows, suggesting that the rice‘s added nutrients inadvertently help parasites grow.The study‘s authors warn that the overall health benefits of fortified rice should be weighed against possible health risks.
The researchers analysed faecal samples from about 2,000 children at 16 primary schools that participate in a UN World Food Programme initiative that provides daily meals to schoolchildren. The schools were randomly split into four groups: children in one group ate plain, ‗placebo‘ rice, while the other groups received three different types of rice fortified with micronutrients including iron, zinc, folate and different vitamins. “There is absolutely an important role to play for fortified rice, but it should be tailormade to the local situation.” Frank Wieringa, French Research Institute for Development After three and seven months, the researchers measured levels of intestinal parasite infections. ―Micronutrient-fortified rice significantly increased risk of new hookworm infection,‖ the team writes in a paper published in PLOS One last month (6 January).Therefore, ―the merits of micronutrient repletion should be weighed carefully against its possible risks‖, they say.―There is absolutely an important role to play for fortified rice, but it should be tailor-made to the local situation,‖ says Frank Wieringa, a coauthor of the study working at the French Research Institute for Development and based in Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital. 23 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
―For example, in Cambodia, where we do not have a lot of iron deficiency, one would wonder whether you should have to add iron at all to the rice,‖ Wieringa says. In contrast, it makes sense to fortify rice with zinc, as zinc deficiency levels are high in Cambodia, he says. Pattanee Winichagoon, a nutrition researcher at Mahidol University in Thailand, says more research is needed to verify the study‘s findings, as parasite infections are more or less common depending on the season. But, she says, the study shows that the current approach — giving children a higher dose of micronutrients when gut infections are common — ―may not hold‖. The paper rightly emphasises the need for improved hygiene and sanitation ―for nutritional intervention to be effective and produce desirable nutritional and health benefits‖, she adds. Children in the study received drugs to treat some worm infections, but not against hookworms, Wieringa explains. Deworming every six months would help ensure that fortified rice — a ―fairly safe and low-tech solution‖ to some health problems — does not inadvertently boost hookworm infections, he says.Wieringa says that the logistics of distributing fortified rice can be complex in rural Asia compared with other parts of the world. In Costa Rica, for example, it is easy to provide fortified rice on a comprehensive scale because the country imports all its rice, he explains. But in Asia, that is ―more difficult‖ because every small village grows its own. References Brechje de Gier and others Micronutrient-fortified rice can increase hookworm infection risk: a cluster randomized trial (PLOS One, 6 January 2016)
http://www.scidev.net/global/health/news/fortified-rice-risk-hookworm-infections.html
APEDA Rice Commodity News International Benchmark Price Price on: 03-02-2016
Product
Benchmark Indicators Name
Price
1
Turkish No. 2 whole pitted, CIF UK (USD/t)
4875
2
Turkish No. 4 whole pitted, CIF UK (USD/t)
4375
3
Turkish size 8, CIF UK (USD/t)
3625
Apricots
24 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Raisins 1
Californian Thompson seedless raisins, CIF UK (USD/t)
2340
2
South African Thompson seedless raisins, CIF UK (USD/t)
2164
1
Australian 5 Crown, CIF UK (USD/t)
2774
2
South African Orange River, CIF UK (USD/t)
2617
3
Turkish No 9 standard, FOB Izmir (USD/t)
1925
Sultanas
Source:agra-net
For more info
Market Watch Commodity-wise, Market-wise Daily Price on 02-02-2016 Domestic Prices Product
Unit Price : Rs per Qty
Market Center
Variety
Min Price
Max Price
1
Amreli (Gujarat)
Other
1150
2500
2
Theni (Tamil Nadu)
Other
1380
1440
3
Solapur (Maharashtra)
Other
1671
2325
1
Dahod (Gujarat)
Yellow
1510
1565
2
Sangli (Maharashtra)
Other
1490
1550
3
Nawarangpur (Orissa)
Local
1325
1521
1
Manjeri (Kerala)
Other
3300
3500
2
Batala (Punjab)
Other
2400
2800
3
Taura (Haryana )
Other
2800
3000
Jowar(Sorgham)
Maize
Mousambi
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Brinjal 1
Aroor (Kerala)
Other
2400
2600
2
Nagpur (Maharashtra)
Other
400
600
3
Bolangir (Orissa)
Other
1900
2000
Source:agmarknet.nic.in
For more info
Egg
Rs per 100 No Price on 03-02-2016 Product
Market Center
Price
1
Ahmedabad
405
2
Chittoor
403
3
Hyderabad
375
Source: e2necc.com
Other International Prices
Unit Price : US$ per package Price on 03-02-2016
Product
Market Center
Origin
Variety
Low
Onions Dry
High Package: 40 lb cartons
1
Atlanta
Peru
Yellow
23
24.50
2
Chicago
California
Yellow
22
22
3
Detroit
Peru
Yellow
23
25.50
Cucumbers
Package: cartons film wrapped
1
Atlanta
Mexico
Long Seedless
12
14.50
2
Dallas
California
Long Seedless
15.50
16.50
3
Detroit
Canada
Long Seedless
9
10
Grapes
Package: 18 lb containers bagged
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter 1
Atlanta
Peru
Red Globe
26
29.50
2
Chicago
Peru
Red Globe
23
25
3
Miami
Chile
Red Globe
27
28
Source:USDA
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open-Feb 03 Nagpur, Feb 3 Gram and tuar prices firmed up again in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and Marketing Committee (APMC) here on increased demand from local millers amid tight supply fromproducing regions. Notable rise in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and reported demand from South-based millers also helped to push up prices, according to sources. FOODGRAINS & PULSES GRAM * Gram varieties ruled steady in open market here but demand was poor. TUAR * Tuar gavarani declined marginally in open market in absence of buyers amid increased supply from producing belts. * Moong Chamki reported higher in open market on renewed demand from local traders amid tight supply from regions. * In Akola, Tuar New - 8,000-8,200, Tuar dal New - 12,500-13,700, Udid 12,600-13,600, Udid Mogar (clean) - 14,900-16,700, Moong 8,400-8,600, Moong Mogar (clean) 9,400-9,700, Gram - 4,100-4,200, Gram Super best bold - 5,300-5,700 for 100 kg. * Wheat, rice and other commodities moved in a narrow range in scattered deals, settled at last levels. Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg FOODGRAINS Gram Auction Gram Pink Auction Tuar Auction Moong Auction Udid Auction
Available prices Previous close 3,600-4,150 3,300-4,000 n.a. 2,100-2,600 6,200-8,300 6,200-8,200 n.a. 6,400-6,600 n.a. 4,300-4,500
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Masoor Auction n.a. 2,600-2,800 Gram Super Best Bold 5,800-6,000 5,800-6,000 Gram Super Best n.a. n.a. Gram Medium Best 5,400-5,600 5,400-5,600 Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a Gram Mill Quality 4,400-4,500 4,400-4,500 Desi gram Raw 4,450-4,550 4,450-4,550 Gram Filter new 4,500-4,900 4,500-4,900 Gram Kabuli 6,000-8,000 6,000-8,000 Gram Pink 6,500-7,300 6,500-7,300 Tuar Fataka Best-New 12,800-14,000 12,800-14,000 Tuar Fataka Medium-New 12,200-12,600 12,200-12,600 Tuar Dal Best Phod-New 12,000-12,250 12,000-12,250 Tuar Dal Medium phod-New 11,500-11,800 11,500-11,800 Tuar Gavarani New 8,050-8,450 8,100-8,500 Tuar Karnataka 8,600-9,000 8,600-9,000 Tuar Black 13,000-13,300 13,000-13,300 Masoor dal best 6,400-6,600 6,400-6,600 Masoor dal medium 6,000-6,200 6,000-6,200 Masoor n.a. n.a. Moong Mogar bold (New) 9,600-10,000 9,600-10,000 Moong Mogar Med 9,000-9,300 9,000-9,300 Moong dal Chilka 8,400-9,100 8,400-9,100 Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a. Moong Chamki best 8,600-8,800 8,500-8,700 Udid Mogar best (100 INR/KG) (New) 16,000-17,000 16,000-17,000 Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 13,400-14,500 13,400-14,500 Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 9,600-9,900 9,600-9,900 Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 5,550-5,900 5,550-5,900 Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 4,400-4,600 4,400-4,600 Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 3,250-3,400 3,250-3,400 Watana White (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,200 3,000-3,200 Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 3,100-3,600 3,100-3,600 Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 1,700-1,800 1,700-1,800 Wheat Mill quality (100 INR/KG) 1,675-1,760 1,675-1,760 Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,650-1,850 1,650-1,850 Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,500 2,100-2,500 Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 1,950-2,250 1,950-2,250 Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a. MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 3,600-3,900 3,600-3,900 MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,200 3,000-3,200 Rice BPT best New(100 INR/KG) 2,600-2,850 2,600-2,850 Rice BPT medium (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,250 2,000-2,250 Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG) 1,800-2,000 1,800-2,000 Rice Swarna best (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,300 2,100-2,300 28 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Rice Swarna medium (100 INR/KG) 1,800-2,000 1,800-2,000 Rice HMT best New (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,450 3,000-3,450 Rice HMT medium (100 INR/KG) 2,400-2,800 2,400-2,800 Rice Shriram best New(100 INR/KG) 4,100-4,500 4,100-4,500 Rice Shriram med New(100 INR/KG) 3,700-4,100 3,700-4,100 Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 9,800-11,700 9,800-11,700 Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 7,800-8,000 7,800-8,000 Rice Chinnor best New(100 INR/KG) 4,700-4,850 4,700-4,850 Rice Chinnor med. New (100 INR/KG) 4,200-4,400 4,200-4,400 Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 1,800-2,100 1,800-2,100 Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 1,700-1,800 1,700-1,800 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 36.2 degree Celsius (93.5 degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp. 16.2 degree Celsius (61.1 degree Fahrenheit) Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a. Rainfall : n.a. FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperature would be around and 34 and 17 degree Celsius respectively. Note: n.a.--not available (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but included in market prices.) http://in.reuters.com/article/nagpur-foodgrain-idINL3N15I36U
Group Petitions EFCC Over N117 Billion Rice Importation Waivers Fraud A coalition, Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to urgently set in motion its investigative team to unravel the alleged abuse and massive fraud in the N117 billion rice import quota scheme. BY SAHARA REPORTERS, NEW YORKFEB 03, 2016
A coalition, Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to urgently set in motion its investigative team to unravel the alleged abuse and massive fraud in the N117 billion rice import quota scheme. Rice Unloaded At The Nigerian DocksNaija 24
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Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
In a petition to the anti-graft agency, signed by the coalition's chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, CSNAC urged the chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Mangu, to look into the report of an online newspaper, Premium Times, on the massive fraud. According to the report, a total of 26 companies were involved in the deal, two of which are allegedly owned by a former Attorney General of the Federation and a former Governor of Kebbi State respectively. "Due to the huge amount spent on rice importation by the Federal Government, the Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2014 came up with a new rice policy to fast-track national selfsufficiency in rice production. "The policy specified that owners of existing rice mills and new investors with verifiable backward integration in the rice value chain will be allowed to import rice at 10 per cent duty and 20 per cent levy (30 per cent); while merchants who have nothing to contribute to local production in the form of rice farms or mills will be charged 10 per cent duty and 60 per cent levy (70 per cent). "Technically, it was a waiver aimed at building local capacity in rice production. Subsequently, an inter-ministerial committee which was headed by Mr. Akinwunmi Adeshina, current President of the African Development Bank (ADB), was set up to work out the national rice supply gap and allocate import licenses with appropriate quotas in order to bridge the gap and at the same time, advancing the objectives of the national rice policy. "On paper, this committee was to determine beneficiaries and allocate quotas based on four key criteria that assess investment of individual companies into local rice production," the report read in part.The report also stated that the 26 companies that benefitted from the rice import quota scheme including, Milan, Bua, AA Ibrahim, Stine Rice Mills, JMK Foods, and Labana Rice Mill among others.The newspaper report stated that Mikap Rice is owned by a former Attorney General of the Federation, Michael Aondoakaa, while Ebony Agro is owned by Charles Ugwu, a former minister of commerce and industry. Ashi Foods is owned by the immediate past governor of Benue State Gabriel Suswam. Milan Group is a business interest that also owns Intercontinental Hotels while Bua is owned by billionaire Ishaku Rabiu. Honeywell is owned by 30 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter Oba Otudeko while Elephant Group is owned by Tunji Owoye. Labana Rice is owned by former Kebbi State governor Adamu Aliero while Keresuk is owned by one Rotimi Williams. The report further stated that Umza International Farms Limited has a rice mill in Kano with a capacity of 30,000 MT. Aside from this mill, Umza has no other investment in local rice production. However, the company was given import allocations in two categories; 36,000 MT under existing miller allocation and also received 49,207 MT under investor allocation. "Stallion got a total allocation of 89,989 MT; that was 59,989 MT under investor allocation and 30,000 MT under existing miller allocation. It has two mills – one in Kano and another in Markurdi. Mikap Rice, owned by Michael Aondoakaa, has a very small scale mill of between 15,000 to 20,000 MT. The mill itself is government-funded. Mr Aondoakaa got 82,897 MT of import quota." "Many of the beneficiaries were found to have no investment in the rice value chain. They include Wacot, Honeywell, Elephant Group, AA Ibrahim, Milan, among others. Kersuk Farms has no mill. Stine Rice has a mill but it is not in working condition. ―Bua has only brown rice mill. It does not have parboiling capacity; the mill is defunct. However Bua received a total import allocation of 109,448 MT. Many of the quota beneficiaries sold their allocations to importers. ―Mikap sold its quota to Elephant Group. Stine Rice sold its quota to a company called PJS. Elephant Group in May 2015 also received through the Jama‘tul Nasril Islam (JNI) waiver to import 100,000 MT of rice. ―There are also discrepancies in milling capacities and the local rice production capacity. Under former Minister Akinwunmi Adeshina, the ministry of agriculture claimed Nigeria was producing 2.2 million MT of paddy. However, all the rice mills in Nigeria have a combined annual capacity to mill only 600,000 MT of paddy. The remaining 1.6million MT remains unaccounted for. Yet, allocations of rice import quota were based on these phony capacities of rice millers and investors, many of whom at the end sold off their quotas to the detriment of the rice subsidy goals. "Besides the discrepancies in the rice milling capacities, Cotonou, Benin Republic have become a safe haven for smuggling of rice through the land borders into Nigeria thereby sabotaging the Nigerian economy through evasion of taxes, levies and import duties. The report revealed that sometime in April-May 2014, 11 ships sailed into Nigeria‘s territorial waters from Thailand and they refused to berth at the Apapa ports in order to avoid paying tariffs to the Nigerian government. The ships were expected to pay a total of 11.5billion naira in tariffs to the Nigerian government. "The Senate on July 30, 2015 announced members of its ad hoc committee on waivers, concessions and grants to look into the abuse of the waivers on rice importation in order to aid the recovery of government revenue. However, it does not seem like this committee will be able to carry out its duty efficiently and without prejudice as its chairman is former Kebbi State Governor, Senator Adamu Aliero who is also the chairman of Labana, one of the rice subsidy beneficiaries," the report read in part. CSNAC, in its petition, noted that: "From the foregoing, just like the fuel subsidy scam, this is another case of economic sabotage by a cabal of some sort who will stop at nothing to ensure that they continue to make profit, at the expense of the suffering Nigerian citizens and the economy of the country as a whole. 31 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter "This laudable policy introduced by the former administration would have revolutionised the Nigerian economy in terms of putting Agriculture and rice production on the map again, had it not been hijacked by this cabal. "CSNAC is therefore by this petition, calling on the commission to exercise its full powers in conducting a thorough investigation into the abuse of the rice importation waiver, as well as prosecute the perpetrators and those who have corruptly benefitted from the scheme. ―They should be made to refund benefits derived from the fraudulently obtained waivers. This will go a long way in charting a new course for the efficient and effective implementation to the rice policy, thereby boosting rice production in the country, improving the livelihood of small scale farmers in Nigeria as well as revamping the near comatose state of Agriculture in Nigeria," the petition read in part. http://saharareporters.com/2016/02/03/group-petitions-efcc-over-n117-%E2%80%8Ebillionrice-importation-waivers-fraud
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