10th June, 2014
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TOP Contents - Tailored for YOU Latest News Headlines… U.S. EPA Grants Extension on Waters of the U.S. Regulation Rice Leadership Class Goes Behind the Scenes at Chicago Board of Trade, John Deere Leadership class aat the John Deere HQ USA Rice to Congress: Don't Break Promise to Farmers by Amending Farm Bill CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures IRRI introduces water saving technique in producing rice Taiwan sends 500 tons rice aid to needy Pakistanis Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- June 10 Indonesia Could Double Rice Imports as Election, El Nino Loom Agri Buzz : China Accounts for 41.75% of Vietnam's Rice Export In First Four Months Of 2014 PPP urges govt to fix support price for rice and cotton Rice stocks rise; corn stocks drop
News Detail… U.S. EPA Grants Extension on Waters of the U.S. Regulation Put more time on the clock WASHINGTON, DC - The USA Rice Federation has learned today that the organization's request for an extension to the comment period for the controversial Waters of the United States rulemaking will be granted."USA Rice signed on to a letter with several other ag groups asking for the extension to give the industry sufficient time to fully analyze the connectivity study that is important and linked to the rule," said Reece L (title). In announcing the extension, U.S. EPA is acknowledging the relevance of the connectivity study and the request from a wide array of groups concerned about the potential negative impact of the new interpretation to the Clean Water Act."We appreciate the extension and will use the time to get deep into the connectivity study and get appropriate comments and questions to the agency," said Langley. "Granting the extension was the right thing to do and we will make the most of it." Contact: Steve Hensley (703) 236-1445
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Rice Leadership Class Goes Behind the Scenes at Chicago Board of Trade, John Deere Leadership class aat the John Deere HQ Up Close at John Deere
MOLINE, IL -- The 2014/16 Rice Leadership Development Program class began the week in Chicago at the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), where the class met with Fred Seamon, Senior Director, Commodity Research & Product Development. Seamon provided an overview on using the CBOT as a tool to reduce risk. "CBOT really opened my eyes to what is happening after the rice leaves my farm," said Derek Haigwood, a producer from Newport, Arkansas and class member. "I think we tend to concentrate so much on producing a safe and abundant crop and water and environmental stewardship, that we forget there are market forces beyond our immediate view, beyond our country even that can help a farmer who is paying attention, or hurt a farmer who doesn't know what to consider. We've all added some new tools to our toolbox thanks to this program." The class also visited the world headquarters here of program sponsor John Deere where they met with company executives and toured the combine factory. This is the second of four week-long sessions in the two-year leadership program. It includes personal development workshops on presentation skills, media training and business etiquette. The class will now travel to Arkansas and Mississippi to study those state's rice farming practices and processing industries. The seven class members are rice producers Haigwood; Jeremy Jones, England, AR; Jon Munger, Yuba City, CA; Will Reneau, Beaumont, TX; and Clay Schaefer, Hunter, AR; and rice Industry representatives Jonathan Hobbs, Jefferson, LA with Russell Marine Group, and A.J. Sabine, Baton Rouge, LA with Louisiana Farm Bureau.The Rice Leadership Development Program is sponsored by John Deere Company, RiceTec Inc. and American Commodity Company through The Rice Foundation and is managed by the USA Rice Federation.
Contact: Chuck Wilson, (870) 673-7541
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USA Rice to Congress: Don't Break Promise to Farmers by Amending Farm Bill Farmers at a 2014 Farm Bill Briefing They're counting on what they have been promised
WASHINGTON, DC - The USA Rice Federation joined 32 other national and regional agriculture groups urging House members not to use the Agriculture Appropriations bill to amend the 2014 Farm Bill. The House is considering.Fiscal Year 2015 Ag Appropriations this week, and the groups are opposing any amendments that would weaken or change provisions in the Farm bill or cause more uncertainty for farmers."Significant uncertainty remains due to the substantial reforms and budget reductions made by the Farm Bill," the groups say in the letter. "Congress must respect the importance of these decisions and allow the reforms included in the 2014 Farm Bill to achieve their full effect." "We are strongly urging all House members to honor the commitment made to farmers in the 2014 Farm Bill," said Reece Langley, USA Rice's vice president for government affairs. "Our producers are already dealing with enough uncertainty without Congress using the annual funding bill to rehash issues that were settled in the Farm Bill. Our focus now is on working with USDA to ensure fair and efficient implementation and we urge Congress to make that its focus as well." Contact Lydia Holmes (703) 236-1450
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice Futures for June 10
Month
Price
Net Change
July 2014
$14.035
- $0.110
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September 2014
$13.760
- $0.190
November 2014
$13.940
- $0.160
January 2015
$14.100
- $0.150
March 2015
$14.625
- $0.145
May 2015
$14.625
- $0.145
July 2015
$14.625
- $0.145
IRRI introduces water saving technique in producing rice Monday, 09 June 2014 04:15 AWD is easy to learn and makes use of inexpensive tools to gauge water level to know whether it is time to flood or drain the field. (Image source: IRRI)
The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) has developed an irrigation technique called alternate wetting and drying (AWD) that can cut down water use in producing rice by 25 per cent
The technique is currently being introduced to farmers across Asia. IRRI said that it typically takes 2,000 litres of water to produce a kilogramme of paddy (unmilled rice) and AWD can save up to 500 litres of water per kilogramme of rice.Recently, water supply to about 27,000 rice farmers in Central Luzon in the Philippines was cut off due in part to decreasing water levels at Angat Dam, bringing attention to the need for everyone to save water for growing rice, IRRI said.Reiner Wassmann, head of IRRI‟s climate change research, noted, “El Niño conditions are predicted to progress over the coming months.
Although it is difficult to project the exact rainfall amounts, rainy seasons in El Niño years typically have shorter periods of rain and less rainfall amounts.“Water shortage at the Angat-Maasim River Irrigation System (AMRIS), of which Angat Dam is the main water source, is anticipated, as water available for irrigation has gradually decreased over recent years and the Philippines has been experiencing a really dry season this
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year.”Departing from the conventional way of growing rice that uses continuous flooding, AWD makes use of the cycle of draining and reflooding of rice paddies, keeping an optimum water level at any particular time.
IRRI said that the AWD technology is applicable to larger irrigation schemes like the AMRIS, but it is also just as useful for rice farmers who rely on pump irrigation. AWD use means greater farming incentives as lower water consumption translates right away into savings on fuel cost and higher net income for farmers, it added.In Vietnam, farmers have reportedly credited AWD for yield increases. Decreased water use also reduced the occurrence of „lodging‟ (when rice plants keel over due to heavy rain) and helped the plant grow better tillers („branches‟ that eventually carry grain) and stronger roots.
The resulting improved field conditions helps reduce labor cost at harvest, as mechanical harvesting becomes feasible.AWD also helps reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, specifically methane, by up to 50 per cent. Methane emissions are caused by flooding of rice fields. Research by scientists from IRRI and its partners have helped AWD evolve into one of the most mature GHG mitigation methods in the agriculture sector, the international organisation said. AWD could, thus, become a key component for GHG mitigation in many Asian countries.
Taiwan sends 500 tons rice aid to needy Pakistanis Muzaffar Ali
Tuesday, June 10, 2014 - Lahore—A group of philanthropists hailing from Taiwan will distribute about 500 ton rice among the needy and destitute people of Pakistan and this charity campaign will start from June 12 in Lahore and later extend to other parts of the country. This was disclosed by Prof Dr Ghulam Qadir Fayyaz, General Secretary Cleft Lip and Palate Association of Pakistan (CLAPP) while addressing a press conference held here on Monday at Lahore Press Club. Dr Ghulam said the Executive Director of Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation (NCF) Rebecca Wang was leading the delegation, while the other members were among Lee Shang Lin, Huang Pei Li and Liang Yung Kuang. President Al Mustafa Welfare Society (Trust) Mian Khalid Habib Elahi was also present on the occasion.
Prof Fayyaz said that delegation has reached with an aid of 500 ton rice from Taiwan and it would be distributed during the next three months with the help of Al Mustafa Welfare Society (Trust), which already has a countrywide network. He further said that a ceremony for the distribution of rice would be held at Shahdara, Lahore on Thursday and later it would also distribute in other parts of the country include 15 districts of the Punjab province, 25 districts in Sindh province and then in Muzaffarabad Azad Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
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and Balochistan. “The rice aid had already reached in Karachi and Al Mustafa Welfare Society was making 10 Kg bags for each family and this was the fourth time when Taiwan was sending the rice aid in Pakistan, in 2011 we had received 100 ton rice for the flood victim, in 2012 we received 400 tons rice and last year we received 500 ton rice from the brother country,� he added. The market prices of the rice aid was estimated Rs 30 million, while Al Mustafa Welfare Society had spent Rs 5 million for packing, transportation and distribution purposes.Prof Fayyaz said that during current year CLAPP would conduct 300 surgeries for the children who were suffering cleft lip and palate problems. CLAPP would organize free camps in backward and for flung areas for this purposes.
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- June 10 Tue Jun 10, 2014 2:17pm IST Nagpur, June 10 (Reuters) - Gram prices in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and Marketing Committee (APMC) reported down on lack of demand from local millers amid increased supply from producing regions. Easy condition in Madhya Pradesh gram prices and reports about monsoon rains in Madhya Pradesh in two days also pushed down prices, according to sources. *
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FOODGRAINS & PULSES GRAM * Gram Kabuli and gram pink reported a sharp fall in open market on poor demand from local traders amid increased overseas supply. TUAR * Tuar varieties ruled steady in open market here matching the demand and supply position. * Wheat and rice varieties reported sharp fall in open market here on poor buying support from local traders amid increased supply from producing regions. Release of stock from stockists also pulled down prices. * In Akola, Tuar - 4,100-4,300, Tuar dal - 6,000-6,200, Udid at 6,500-6,800, Udid Mogar (clean) - 7,600-8,100, Moong - 7,400-7,800, Moong Mogar (clean) 8,800-9,500, Gram - 2,100-2,200, Gram Super best bold - 3,100-3,400 for 100 kg. * Other commodities remained steady in open market in thin trading activity, according
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to sources. Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg FOODGRAINS Available prices Previous close Gram Auction 2,100-2,475 2,180-2,500 Gram Pink Auction n.a. 2,100-2,600 Tuar Auction n.a. 3,850-4,270 Moong Auction n.a. 5,200-5,500 Udid Auction n.a. 4,300-4,500 Masoor Auction n.a. 2,600-2,800 Gram Super Best Bold 3,700-3,800 3,700-3,800 Gram Super Best n.a. Gram Medium Best 3,300-3,500 3,300-3,500 Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a. Gram Mill Quality 3,100-3,200 3,100-3,200 Desi gram Raw 2,250-2,350 2,250-2,350 Gram Filter new 2,900-3,100 2,900-3,100 Gram Kabuli 8,200-10,200 8,500-10,500 Gram Pink 7,300-7,900 7,700-8,100 Tuar Fataka Best 6,300-6,500 6,300-6,500 Tuar Fataka Medium 6,100-6,200 6,100-6,200 Tuar Dal Best Phod 5,600-5,800 5,600-5,800 Tuar Dal Medium phod 5,200-5,500 5,200-5,500 Tuar Gavarani 4,300-4,400 4,300-4,400 Tuar Karnataka 4,150-4,250 4,150-4,250 Tuar Black 7,600-7,900 7,600-7,900 Masoor dal best 6,000-6,200 6,000-6,200 Masoor dal medium 5,800-6,000 5,800-6,000 Masoor n.a. n.a. Moong Mogar bold 9,400-10,000 9,400-10,000 Moong Mogar Medium best 8,800-9,200 8,800-9,200 Moong dal super best 8,100-8,500 8,400-9,000 Moong dal Chilka 8,200-8,800 8,200-8,800 Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a. Moong Chamki best 7,800-9,000 7,800-9,000 Udid Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG) 8,200-8,500 8,200-8,500 Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 6,800-7,600 6,800-7,600 Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 5,700-6,000 5,700-6,000 Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 3,900-4,900 3,900-4,900
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Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 3,000-3,100 3,000-3,100 Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 3,350-3,450 3,350-3,450 Watana White (100 INR/KG) 3,600-3,700 3,600-3,700 Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 4,900-5,400 4,900-5,400 Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 1,200-1,500 1,400-1,700 Wheat Mill quality(100 INR/KG) 1,450-1,550 1,700-1,750 Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,200-1,400 1,400-1,600 Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 1,900-2,200 2,100-2,450 Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,800 1,850-2,000 Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a. MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 2,500-3,200 2,800-3,500 MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,400 2,200-2,700 Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG) 1,100-1,300 1,100-1,400 Wheat Best (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,800 1,700-2,000 Rice BPT (100 INR/KG) 2,800-3,200 3,600-4,000 Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,800 1,900-2,100 Rice Swarna old (100 INR/KG) 2,600-2,800 3,000-3,200 Rice HMT (100 INR/KG) 3,600-3,800 3,800-4,100 Rice HMT Shriram (100 INR/KG) 4,200-5,000 4,600-5,400 Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 10,400-13,900 10,400-13,900 Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 7,300-10,000 7,300-10,500 Rice Chinnor (100 INR/KG) 4,500-5,200 4,800-5,500 Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 1,300-1,500 1,300-1,500 Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,700 1,600-1,700 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 46.2 degree Celsius (115.2 degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp. 31.3 degree Celsius (88.3 degree Fahrenheit) Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a. Rainfall : 0.0 mm FORECAST: Partly cloudy sky. Rains or thunder-showers likely towards evening or night. Maximum and Minimum temperature likely to be around 46 and 31 degree Celsius respectively. Note: n.a.--not available (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but included in market prices.)
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Indonesia Could Double Rice Imports as Election, El Nino Loom By Michael Taylor on 11:03 pm Jun 10, 2014 Category Business, Commodities, Economy Tags: Indonesia rice production
Indonesia is encouraging its 240 million population to diversify from their heavy rice diet as the country is vulnerable to food crises. (AFP Photo/Romeo Gacad) Jakarta. Indonesia could more than double its rice imports this year to keep domestic food prices stable as an election looms and with a possible El Nino weather pattern on the horizon, industry officials and analysts said.The outgoing administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono could set aside its key selfsufficiency targets, importing as much as 1.5 million metric tons of rice to guard against spikes in food prices that could risk social unrest, they said.Bigger purchases by the world‟s fifth largest buyer of the grain would be good news for growers that typically supply the country such as Thailand and Vietnam Bangkok wants to offload grain from a controversial stockpiling scheme at the heart of its recent political turmoil, while Hanoi is looking to follow up on its successful bid to supply 800,000 metric tons of rice to the Philippines.“It is likely that Indonesia will indeed import,” said David Dawe, senior economist at the UN‟s Food and Agriculture Organisation in Bangkok. “My understanding is that there has been a bit of a shortfall in production, or not as much of an increase as they were anticipating.”Dry weather late last year and flooding in early 2014 hurt harvests on parts of the main rice-growing island of Java.And forecasts that El Nino is likely to develop around mid-year could keep local prices strong. The weather phenomenon usually brings dry conditions to Southeast Asia. “They definitely don‟t want prices going up during the election,” said Dawe, who met with Indonesian officials in Jakarta last week. He estimated total imports at 1.1 million metric in 2014.With campaigning underway ahead of the presidential election on July 9 and a new government to be inaugurated in October, Yudhoyono will have one eye on his legacy and will not want to risk unrest over food prices, analysts said. Jasmine, Basmati
Although the private sector is allowed to import small amounts of specialist rice such as jasmine and basmati, Indonesia‟s powerful food procurement body Bulog is the dominant rice buyer, tasked with maintaining annual stocks of 1.5 to 2 million metric tons.The main rice harvest in the nation of 240 million is usually in June or August, with Bulog typically deciding whether to import from June onwards.Bulog is yet to
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ship in any rice this year, CEO Sutarto Alimoeso told Reuters, adding that while it currently had no plans to import, the government was analysing the situation. He said that stocks stood at 1.93 million metric tons. The agency said it did not import rice at all last year, but some industry sources estimate the nation shipped in up to 700,000 metric tons. Government data is often disputed by market participants in Indonesia.The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts Indonesia will import 1.5 million metric tons of rice this year, while an official at the International Rice research Institute (IRRI) put the figure at 500,000 metric.Rice stockpiles in India, Vietnam and Thailand are big enough to meet the needs of Asian importers until early 2015, according to the IRRI.Indonesiaâ€&#x;s government has cut its estimates for unmilled rice output to 73 million metric tons this year, compared to 71.29 million in 2013, but industry sources said this was still an ambitious prediction. The nation was self-sufficient in rice in the early 1980s, but output gradually declined as farmland was used for housing as the population boomed.Yudhoyono introduced a number of tough 2014 self-sufficiency targets in 2009 after food prices spiked, but government efforts have been hit by a series of corruption scandals, while expansion plans have often been blocked by red-tape. Additional reporting by Yayat Supriatna in Jakarta and Erik Dela Cruz in Manila
Agri Buzz : China Accounts for 41.75% of Vietnam's Rice Export In First Four Months Of 2014 Capital Market/ 10:13 , Jun 10, 2014
China remained Vietnam's largest rice importer in the first four months of 2014, accounting for 41.75 percent of Vietnam's rice export.According to the MARD's latest report, during the January-April period, China imported some 913,957 tons of Vietnamese rice, worth $392.46 million, up 2.39 percent in volume and 4.94 percent in value year on year.China to maintain high grain output in 2014-2023. China to continue grain imports In the period, Vietnam's average rice exportprice enjoyed a year-on-year increase of 4.4 percent to hit $456.19 per ton, said the MARD.In May, Vietnam sold 591,000 tons of rice worth $259 million to overseas markets.During the first five months, the country earned $1.19 billion from exporting 2.65 million tons of rice, down 7.3 percent in value and 10.2 percent in volume year on year, said the report.The decrease of Vietnamese rice exports during the period resulted from remarkable decline in demand of several Vietnamese rice markets including Malaysia, Ivory Coast and Singapore, assessed Vietnam Industry and Trade Information Center (VITIC) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade
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PPP urges govt to fix support price for rice and cotton Staff Report June 10, 2014
LAHORE: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Punjab President Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo has demanded the government to fix support price at Rs 5,000 per 40 kilogrammes (kg) for cottonseed and Rs 3,000 for Basmati rice In a statement on Monday, Wattoo said that rice export contributed about $2 billion per annum to foreign exchange reserves and yet indifference of the finances minister was both laughable and mind-blowing.Due to discriminatory treatment with paddy growers and exporters, he said, Indians and Thai exporters were capturing the international market of rice despite the fact that Pakistan produced the finest quality of rice. He urged the government to fix the support price of Irri rice at Rs 1,500 per 40 kg and Rs 3,000 of Basmati rice per 40 kg an incentive. Wattoo also demanded that the support price of cottonseed (Phutti) should be fixed at Rs 5,000 per 40 kg. In the absence of increase in support price of cottonseed, growers would shift to other crops for yielding better dividends of their blood and toil.The PPP leader added that incentives to cotton growers were of profound importance because the agro-based industry would get the raw material at competitive rates locally, enabling the industry to earn competitive edge over the competitors in the international market.He pointed out that textile sector was very important for the country‟s economy because of its more than 50 percent contributions to the GDP, adding that about 60% of country‟s export consisted of textile products. Wattoo reiterated that the PPP Punjab fully supported the demands of Kissan Ittehad and would stand by them for the acceptance of their legitimate demands.
Rice stocks rise; corn stocks drop
THE COUNTRY‟S rice stocks at the start of May climbed by 15.5% and were adequate for more than two months.Corn stocks, on the other hand, dropped from the previous month but were still higher than numbers recorded in May 2013.According to the latest corn and rice report on the Philippine Statistics Authority -Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (PSA-BAS) Web site, the total national rice supply as of May 1 stood at 2.52 million metric tons -- more than the 2.18 million MT recorded in April.This was lower by 3.6% than the 2.91 million MT in stock the same month last year.Some 52.6% was kept in households; 28.9%, in commercial warehouses; and 18.5%, in National Food Authority (NFA) depositories. Total reserves, the PSA-BAS noted, were adequate for 74 days, with household stocks sufficient for 39 days; commercial stocks, for 21 days; and NFA reserves, for 14 days.Stocks in commercial warehouses leapt by 53% from the previous month while those in households grew by 11.6%, with both increases dampened by a 10.1% drop in NFA reserves, of which 88.1% was imported.Household stocks grew year-on-year by 10.3%, while
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commercial and NFA stocks fell by 9.1% and 23.8%, respectively.Corn inventory, meanwhile, stood at 268,000 MT, 27.3% less than the 368,700 MT in April despite being 16.2% more than the 230,800 MT reported in May 2013.Some 64.9% of total corn stock was in commercial warehouses; 32.6%, in households; and 2.5%, in NFA depositories. May levels of the grain dropped across all sectors versus the month before, with a 46.6% reported drop in household stocks, a 10.6% fall in commercial warehouse stocks, and NFA reserves plummeting by 35.5%.Stocks year-on-year, however, grew in households by 73.1%, and those of the NFA jumped by 174.99% to 6,600 MT from 2,400 MT, though commercial warehouse stocks slipped by 2.2%.Sought for comment, NFA Public Affairs Director Rex C. Estoperez said in a telephone interview that out of the 800,000 MT import buffer stock prepared last February for the “lean months,” 380,000 MT have already arrived.“Based on our bidding last February, one of the terms is that there should be a delivery for each of the four months,” he noted, referring to expected 200,000-MT-per-month Vietnamese rice deliveries from May to August.Mr. Estoperez noted that the outlook for the remaining months of the year was still for consideration by government, given the looming threat of a prolonged dry spell.“We haven‟t considered yet the effect of El Niño. It will depend again on interagency committee assessment as to whether there will be imports of additional rice or not,” he said.Assistant Secretary for Field Operations and designated National Coordinator for Corn Program Edilberto M. de Luna, meanwhile, remained positive on the crop‟s for the remainder of the year as extreme conditions would affect the crop for the first quarter of 2015.Mr. de Luna added that government‟s other options would be to recommend that farmers switch to drought-tolerant crops and early planting.“Depending on the stage of crop development, the heat could even be beneficial for corn,” he added, noting that water was “critical” in the plant‟s flowering stage. -- A.J.M. Santos
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