22nd april ,2017 daily globa regional & local rice e newsletter by riceplus magazine

Daily Global Rice

E-Newsletter

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April 22,2017 Vol 8 Issue IV

Today Rice News Headlines...  Pakistan embassy clarifies rice-import deadline extension  Basmati sowing likely to go up 25% in FY18 on high demand, normal monsoon  End the NFA monopoly!  Salt-tolerant rice variety will get farmers tilling  USA Rice Releases Survey on New Programming at 2017 Outlook Conference  Return We Will to Old Brazil  AG’s Chambers to move for SOCU to be party in rice miller’s lawsuit against GRDB  DA launches high-yield rice program  Rice prices unlikely to spike, central bank says  Piñol distances self from rice importation row  Duterte tells NFA to buy local rice before importing  Rice prices to rise if imports stopped: ex-economic managers  China, Africa major rice buyers  Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- April 21, 2017

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News Detail...

Pakistan embassy clarifies rice-import deadline extension ON APRIL 22, 2017

Regarding the editorial, ―The NFA mess,‖ that appeared in the Manila Times on April 20, 2017: In the editorial it was mentioned, ―It also turns out Aquino had extended the deadline for rice imports from Pakistan and India, apparently at the instance of the Pakistani Ambassador.‖ At another place, it is mentioned, ―It‘s puzzling why Aquino can be so pliant to a request from a foreign envoy yet recalcitrant to his own Council.‖ The above puts the Ambassador of Pakistan in a negative perspective and gives the impression that he has some personal connection with the Administrator of NFA. We wish to clarify that the request for extension of the deadline was made on the insistence of exporters of rice from Pakistan as well as importers in the Philippines. Since it takes a longer duration for a container to reach the Philippines from Pakistan, our exporters were unable to meet the deadline of February 28, 2017.Hence, the extension up to March 31, 2017 was requested. We also wish to clarify that the Ambassador of Pakistan never requested for the extension of the deadline in respect of India. It may also be noted that the NFA Council had itself allowed the extension to all countries, including Pakistan.

You must be aware that the NFA quota, or minimum excess volume (MAV) scheme, is actually governed by a memorandum of agreement signed between the government of Pakistan and the government of the Philippines in January 2014. Under the MOA, the Philippines had agreed to provide Pakistan with a country-specific quota in return for Pakistan‘s support for the Philippines‘ request for a waiver on special treatment on rice. Similar agreements were signed with other rice-exporting countries, such as China, India, etc.

Hence, in importing rice from Pakistan, the Philippines is, in fact, fulfilling its international obligations and no special favor is being done to Pakistan. The correspondence made with the NFA in this regard was to ensure the implementation of the above MOA. It may also be mentioned that the agreement was signed in January 2014, actual implementation took place in July 2015. As a result; out of the total quota of 190,000 metric tons Pakistan could utilize only 50,000 metric tons.

We hope that the above clarifies the matter and would help remove the misconception, if any, caused by the editorial. We further hope that the above will be given due consideration in your future editorials.

Sadia Altaf Qazi Counsellor Embassy of Pakistan

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6th Floor Alexander House 132 Amorsolo St. Legaspi Village, Makati parepmanila@mofa.gov.pk http://www.manilatimes.net/pakistan-embassy-clarifies-rice-import-deadline-extension/323429/

Basmati sowing likely to go up 25% in FY18 on high demand, normal monsoon April 21, 2017 16:30 IST

The industry expects Iran to purchase at least 1 million tonnes this financial year

Sowing area under basmati paddy is likely to increase by 25 per cent in 2017 on the back of favourable climatic conditions and forecast of normal rainfall this monsoon season.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday forecasted normal rainfall this monsoon at 96 per cent of long period average (LPA) with 5 per cent of plus and minus error.

Late beginning of rainfall coupled with dry spells in some parts of major growing regions resulted into less acreage under basmati paddy last year.

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Rating agency Icra estimates the area under basmati paddy at 1.6 million hectares for the financial year 2016-17, around 20 per cent decline from the level of 2.1 million hectares in the previous year. ―This year, the area under basmati paddy, however, is estimated to rise at least to the level of 2015-16. There are two major factors which would help farmers to bring in the additional area under basmati this year - favourable monsoon and sharp increase in realisation from basmati rice this year,‖ said Gurnam Arora, joint managing director, Kohinoor Foods, producer of Kohinoor brand basmati rice.

"We are confident that basmati rice production and export would also proportionately go up."

Following a sharp decline in acreage, India‘s basmati rice output is estimated to have declined by over 18 per cent to 8 million tonnes for 2016-17 compared to 9.8 million tonnes in the previous year.

Basmati rice constitutes a small portion of the total rice produced in India. The second advanced estimate of the Ministry of Agriculture estimates India‘s total rice output to hit the new record at 108.86 million tonnes for the year 2016-17 compared to the final output of 104.41 million tonnes for 2015-16.

While Kharif season contributes nearly 88 per cent of India‘s overall output, rabi season shares the rest.

Basmati rice has witnessed growing demand from the domestic market for past few years. The international demand, though has remained weak for the last two years, it is expected to witness some uptick from this year onwards on Iran, the largest importer, coming back on procurement from India again.

Basmati rice exports to Iran have started since January–March quarter. The industry expects Iran to purchase at least 1 million tonnes this financial year. ―The Chinese government has identified 14 Indian firms to export basmati rice to that country.

Despite the taste being different for consumers, there has been a growing appetite for Indian basmati rice in China. We expect direct export to China to begin very shortly. Currently, India exports a small quantity of basmati rice to China indirectly through Hong Kong,‖ said Rajan Sundareshan, executive director of All India Rice Exporters‘ Association.

This year, prices of basmati rice have jumped by 50 per cent on the shortage of supply resulting into a proportionate jump in farmers‘ income. So, farmers would be encouraged to bring in more area to fetch better realisation this year.

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The basmati rice industry has witnessed moderation over the last few years on the back of subdued international demand, partly attributable to the delay in resumption of imports by Iran.

However, FY17 has seen some stabilisation in demand. ―The industry performance in the current financial year has been encouraging as the growth is supported by an increase in volumetric sales, even while prices have remained under pressure.

Going forward, FY18 is expected to witness better revenue growth supported by an increase in average realisations, as paddy prices firm up during the current procurement season,‖ said Deepak Jotwani, assistant vice-president, Icra.

"Moreover, resumption of imports by Iran will also be crucial for driving industry growth in the next financial year."

After declining considerably during the procurement season in FY16, Basmati paddy prices have firmed up by 20-25 per cent across various varieties, primarily due to relatively lower production, in the recent procurement season (October–December 2016). This is likely to push up basmati rice prices in the next financial year.

Overall, the export volume in FY17 is estimated to be around 4 million tonnes (almost similar to the volumes in FY16). However, muted average realisations are expected to keep the value of these exports under Rs 21,000 crore, against Rs 22,718 crore in FY16 http://www.rediff.com/business/report/basmati-sowing-likely-to-go-up-25-in-fy18-on-highdemand/20170421.htm

End the NFA monopoly!

By: Mahar Mangahas - @inquirerdotnet

Philippine Daily Inquirer / 12:30 AM April 22, 2017 The recent controversy about rice importation is not about how much should be imported — in fact, there is no impending rice shortage—but about who should have control over whatever may be imported.

No impending crisis. In ―The global market post – 2008 rice crisis era,‖ Rice Today, April-June 2017, Samarendu Mohanty writes: ―The 2007-08 rice price spike seems like a distant dream now considering the calmness in the rice market in the past few years despite El Niño and other weather-related scares. Rice prices in the international market have been very stable after a steep decline in 2013. The record production in 2016-17 … has kept the prices stable.‖ The world rice

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inventory is 20 percent of total demand, which is a healthy 5 percent above what it was in the rice price crisis in 2007.

Dr. Mohanty heads the Social Science Division of the International Rice Research Institute (Irri). He recently reported that Philippine rice stocks are sufficient for 46 days and, moreover, that annual rice consumption per Filipino has fallen by about 20 kilos in the past 10 years. Per capita consumption was below 100 kilograms in the 1960s-1990s, and then rose to over 140 kg by 2007, but is close to 120 kg now.

The government‘s Rice and Corn Situation and Outlook expects production in the second quarter of 2017 to be 7.7 percent above that of the first quarter, which in turn was 15.2 percent above that of the first quarter in 2016. Meanwhile, the average Philippine retail price of regular milled rice was 37.08 per kilo in the second week of April 2017, or only 1.0 percent over that at the same time last year. ―Rice from abroad is cheaper than domestically produced rice.‖ This is bluntly stated by economists Roehlano M. Briones, Ivory Myka Galang, and Lovely Ann Tolin, of the Philippine Institute of Development Studies, in ―Quantitative restrictions on rice imports: issues and alternatives,‖ PIDS Policy Notes, March 2017.

The production cost per kg of palay (rough rice) is only P6.53 in Vietnam, versus P12.41 in the Philippines. The root cause is inadequate geography—the lack of wide, flat irrigated plains— coupled with a fast-growing population. In short, it does not make economic sense for the Philippines to aim for food security based on domestic production.

However, since time immemorial, the National Food Authority has had the sole legal authority to import rice. Unfortunately, you or I or any ordinary person may not simply place an order for rice from abroad. Its legal monopoly gives the NFA the leverage to exact huge favors/rents/bribes from those to whom it gives—more accurately, sells—licenses to import. This leverage is what the quarreling is actually about.

The simplest, and best, solution is to allow anyone to freely import (as well as export, when called for) rice of any amount, at his own expense and risk. This is the stance of the community of professional Filipino economists, including the Foundation for Economic Freedom.

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This column is somewhat ex cathedra since I‘ve been a rice economist. I apprenticed at Irri, did my master‘s on the response of rice farmers to price, and my doctorate on the diffusion of new rice varieties in Central Luzon. I handled agricultural economics at the UP School of Economics, until Arsenio Balisacan took over. I worked with Rafael Salas, when he was Ferdinand Marcos‘ ―rice czar,‖ and also with the Rice and Corn Administration.

I once estimated that the annual retail price of a ganta of rice in Manila in 1956-67 fell by only 1.54 centavos for every extra 100,000 tons of imports, compared to 9.73 centavos for the same amount of production. The reason the price-impact of imports was so small? The market knew that rice was imported only during election years. See ―The effect of importation on the price of rice,‖ Philippine Review of Business and Economics, December 1968.

Contact mahar.mangahas@sws.org.ph

https://opinion.inquirer.net/103381/end-nfa-monopoly

Salt-tolerant rice variety will get farmers tilling TNN | Updated: Apr 22, 2017, 06.05 AM IST

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PANAJI: Goan farmers looking for the best salt-tolerant rice variety can now choose either Goa Dhan I or Goa Dhan II, developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Old Goa complex, as both are higher yielding and promise other advantages.

Goa's hardy white or red kernel rice, korgutt, has many variations and farmers have been growing the salt-resistant variety in khazan areas since time immemorial. After few years of research, ICAR-CCARI (Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute) scientists have narrowed the variations to just two best selections - Goa Dhan I of white kernel and Goa Dhan II of red kernel.

"Goa Dhan I and Goa Dhan II are best varieties of korgutt in terms of salinity tolerance, coarse and bold grain, higher yield and suitability for raw rice and paraboiling as well," said Manohara K K, scientist in genetics and plant breeding, ICAR, Old Goa. Three years ago, korgutt, Goa's traditional rice variety had been accorded due recognition as a unique germplasm by National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi, for its tolerance to salinity stress at seedling stage.

The state has an assortment of local rice varieties, but seeds of some of them are not available.

With NBPGR granting korgutt a national identity (number INGR14055) for record purposes, its conservation for future use is assured.

Now, with the official release of two best varieties, this is the first such release of rice variety in the state by ICAR, Goa. "We have developed the two varieties from variations available within native korgutt. During process of development, scientists have involved farmers for making the selections more effective and this helped to bring out the best varieties," Manohara explained.

Lodging or falling of the crop during later stages is a farmers nightmare. These two varieties will have less of a problem and help prevent losses due to rotting of the crop in water. "Lodging will be reduced now compared to original korgutt," he added.

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The scientists monitored all requisite parameters during research for the farmers benefit. "Compared to the traditional local korgutt variety that yields 1.2 to 1.5 tonnes per hectare, these two can produce 2.3 to 2.7 tones per ha," ICAR director Eknath Chakukar said.

The pure varieties grown by ICAR scientists are close to the harvesting stage and about 100 kg of breeder seed of each will be given to state agriculture department for multiplication. Further, the multiplication process to cover more farmers will be carried out by ICAR in association with the agriculture department and progressive farmers.

Agricultural activities have dwindled due to rise in labour costs and preference for other occupations, but mechanization of farming operations and attractive subsidies hold promise for revial of paddy cultivation, sources said. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/salt-tolerant-rice-variety-will-get-farmerstilling/articleshow/58306654.cms

USA Rice Releases Survey on New Programming at 2017 Outlook Conference April 21, 2017

By Deborah Willenborg

ARLINGTON, VA -- Already the premier rice event in North America, the USA Rice Outlook Conference is working on expanding offerings for attendees in 2017. USA Rice is exploring adding programming that would provide participants Continuing Education Units (CEUs). A just-released survey to members, including past and prospective attendees, will help gauge interest in specific topics.

"This year's conference is in San Antonio and there is so much room available to us at the refurbished convention center we thought this would be a great opportunity to turn large meeting rooms into classrooms, bring in qualified presenters, and offer programming that helps our members improve their bottom lines," said Michael Klein, vice president of marketing,

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communications, and domestic promotion for USA Rice. "The first question is, 'would you take advantage of CEUs?' Then we describe a bunch of possible courses and ask survey respondents to share ideas we may have missed."

Klein said everything from crop consulting and nutrient management to understanding the futures market and keeping your office organized is on the table."There's no limit to the topics we could offer attendees," he said. "But it would be very helpful if members would take about 10 minutes to fill out the survey to help us prioritize the options."Klein added that there's a section where survey respondents can recommend a person or company to be a presenter at the conference. The survey can be found here and will be kept open until the end of the month.

The 2017 USA Rice Outlook Conference will be held December 10-12 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Texas.

Shop the rice aisle in Brazil with Steve Linscombe Return We Will to Old Brazil

By Lydia Holmes

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL -- Earlier this month at the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food (CCCF 11) session, USA Rice staff had the opportunity to peruse markets in the Barra da Tijuca neighborhood here to see what they are stocking and what consumers are buying.

Rice is truly a staple of the Brazilian diet. Unlike shoppers in the United States who might buy a two-pound bag of rice every few trips to the supermarket, Brazilians stock up with four and five

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two-pound bags at a time to fill their weekly needs. Consumers here are very discerning when it comes to quality: they look for rice that is consistent, cooks well, and is well-suited to the specific dishes they prepare.

Click on the image to shop the rice aisle at two Brazilian grocery stores, one large and one small, and see what brands we found. (While one brand was a well-known U.S. one, none of the rice we encountered was U.S. origin.

AG’s Chambers to move for SOCU to be party in rice miller’s lawsuit against GRDB

By STAFF WRITER April 21, 2017

The Attorney General‘s Chambers will be moving to have the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) joined as a party in the $99.6 lawsuit brought against the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) by Essequibo rice miller Arnold Sankar for alleged breach of a paddy supply deal and related costs.The move comes after Justice Diana Insanally yesterday granted the request of Sankar‘s attorneys to strike out an affidavit in answer filed by SOCU, which is not a party to the case.

Sankar‘s attorney Anil Nandlall has since questioned the reason for SOCU‘s involvement in the matter, while arguing that it has no locus standai or standing as a party to the proceedings. https://www.stabroeknews.com/2017/news/stories/04/21/ags-chambers-move-socu-party-rice-millerslawsuit-grdb/

DA launches high-yield rice program

BY BEN KRITZ, TMT ON APRIL 21, 2017AGRIBUSINESS

IN an effort to stop rice importation and stabilize the country‘s food supply in the face of lower global rice trade volumes, the government has launched the ―Masaganang Ani 200‖ program, which aims to boost Philippine farms‘ rice yield to 200 cavans per hectare.At a hybrid rice festival in Nueva Ecija, Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol sad that the Masaganang Ani 200 program should enable the Philippines to stop rice importation, which is an economically and politically destabilizing food strategy. ―The truth is we can‘t just depend on other countries. We don‘t know when the next typhoon will come or when the next El Niño will hit us. The reality is we‘re subject to climate change. So when they say ‗Let‘s just import,‘ I tell them, ‗Don‘t you know the volume of rice traded in the market is just at 36 million tons and 34 million of that is committed already?‘‖ Piñol

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said.According to the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), in 2014 the volume of traded rice reached 42 million MT, indicating a serious decline in the past three years in the amount of rice available for import purchases. ―Masaganang Ani 200 is our best option. Next year, we‘ll have one million hectares for hybrid rice to achieve sufficiency. We only have hybrid on less than 10 percent of our four million hectares (of) rice land. We‘ll present this program to the Cabinet on April 19,‖ said Piñol.Without the program, the agriculture chief explained, the country runs the risk of a food shortage when ―the name of the game will be the highest bidder (when rice volume slims) like in 2008 when price shot up to $1,200 per ton,‖ he said. ―What if El Niño hits Vietnam, India, China? We won‘t be able to compete with China. So we must improve farmers‘ productivity. We don‘t need to expand our area. We just need to improve technology. If we raise productivity by two tons per hectare, that will be two million tons from one million hectares, and we won‘t need to import,‖ said Piñol.

Piñol said hybrid rice can double farmers‘ harvest from the present national average yield of 4.15 MT per hectare. This average already improved from 3.9 MT per hectare due to productivity growth from use of hybrid rice, he said.

High hybrid yields reported At the harvest festival in Talavera, Nueva Ecija before the Holy Week holiday, hybrid rice grower Edgardo Marcelo reported a yield from the just completed dry season harvest of 266 cavans at 59.3 kilos per cavan from his 1.3-hectare land, using SL Agritech‘s SL-8H hybrid variety.This translated to 242 cavans on a per hectare 50-kilo basis, and generated P216,000 in net income for a four-month cropping period with production costs of about P50,000 at a palay selling price of P20 per kilo.In 2016, Marcelo‘s harvest was even higher at 308 cavans from his 1.3 hectares.

Another local farmer, Ricardo P. Buenaventura, claimed during the same festival to have harvested at least 200 cavans since he started growing hybrid rice SL-8H. Buenaventura attributed his cooperative‘s growth to the cultivation of the hybrid rice, which he convinced his neighbors to plant in order to recover from a bank debt in mid1990s.Buenaventura is chairman of the Nagkakaisang Magsasaka Agricultural Primary Multi Purpose Cooperative (NMAP-MPC), which was founded by 16 farmers in 1989.

NMAP-MPC‘s rice processing complex in Brgy. Tabacao, Talavera was the site of the harvest festival on April 5.

NMAP-MPC is now a fully integrated cooperative with nearly P600 million in assets. It engages not only in growing rice, but in drying, milling, storage-warehousing, and marketing.

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DA to facilitate services Piñol told the harvest festival audience that the DA would organize service providers that will allow farmers the use of equipment such as tractors, transplanters, and combine harvesters.President Rodrigo Duterte, who delivered the keynote address at the festival, reiterated his promise to give farmers free irrigation. Piñol, meanwhile, committed the DA to the construction of shallow tube wells.The agriculture secretary also said the agency would soon develop a lending facility to provide farmers P50,000 each in collateral-free credit that could be obtained in three days. http://www.manilatimes.net/da-launches-high-yield-rice-program/323275/

Rice prices unlikely to spike, central bank says ABS-CBN News

Posted at Apr 21 2017 04:42 PM MANILA – Rice prices are unlikely to rise significantly as the country has enough supply of the staple grain until June, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said Friday.The Philippines has 70 days worth of inventory, more than the 45-day requirement.

Domestic rice output in the first quarter grew 12.8 percent to 4.44 million metric tons, compared to the same period last year, Guinigundo said. ―Isolated‖ cases of rat infestation and heavy rains, however, could result in ―frictional‖ price increases, Guinigundo told ANC‘s ―Market Edge with Cathy Yang.‖If supply becomes insufficient, Guinigundo said the government could ―look into the possibility‖ of using the 250,000 metric-ton import allocation for government-to-government deals.

Piñol distances self from rice importation row Rose Carmelle Lacuata, ABS-CBN News Apr 10 2017 07:50 PM

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol. Manny Palmero, ABS-CBN News

MANILA - Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol on Monday reiterated that he has nothing to do with the removal of undersecretary Halmen Valdez from her position for allegedly going against the order of the National Food Authority (NFA) administrator.In an interview on DZMM Teleradyo, Piñol said he only answered questions from reporters after President Rodrigo Duterte failed to name the official he sacked for overruling NFA Administrator Jason Aquino's decision to suspend rice importation as it is still harvest season in the Philippines.

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He also said that Duterte told him about firing Valdez beforehand, but this does not mean that he has a hand in what happened."The decision to fire or not to fire is with the President," Piñol said.Piñol, likewise, denied that he is conniving with Aquino to create an "artificial shortage" to justify rice importation.

"Ayoko nga mag-import tapos magke-create ako ng artificial shortage? Eh sinasabi ko nga na may surplus, na masagana 'yung ani kaya 'wag na muna mag-import. Wala akong kinalaman sa pagkatanggal sa kanya," he said.

According to Piñol, he is not quarreling with any other Cabinet officials."No, I have the highest respect for Jun Evasco. The differences in our position does not mean that I am quarreling with anybody. Hindi ako nakikipag-away. I don't see any reason why I should be quarreling with anybody. Hindi ko style ang mag-away ng tao," he said. "'Yung aking posisyon, posisyon ng magsasaka. People should understand that," Piñol added.Piñol earlier said he is against any form of rice importation, whether government to government or importation through the private sector.

"The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries has publicly declared that it is against the immediate lifting of the Quantitative Restriction (QR) on imported rice on the ground that the Filipino rice farmers are not yet ready to compete with their counterparts in the region because of low productivity and high production cost," he wrote.

Duterte on Thursday ordered a temporary halt in rice importation from Vietnam as local farmers posted a high yield of the staple this harvest season.

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At a harvest festival in Nueva Ecija on Wednesday, Duterte fired Undersecretary Maia Chiara Halmen Reina Valdez for defying NFA Administrator Jason Aquino's decision to suspend rice importation given the local harvest season.

Valdez, on the other hand, alleged that the President may have received false information about her, saying this also maligned her ―tatay (father) in the government," Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr.

Duterte tells NFA to buy local rice before importing Enrico Dela Cruz, Reuters Apr 10 2017 08:03 PM

MANILA - President Duterte ordered the National Food Authority (NFA) to purchase rice from local farmers to boost stockpiles, saying that importing at the moment was not a good move.Duterte issued the directive just hours after the NFA said it needed to buy 490,800 tonnes of rice to boost its stockpiles that have fallen below the required level ahead of the JulySeptember lean harvest season.

The NFA sought approval from the NFA Council for the immediate importation of 250,000 tonnes of rice under a government-to-government arrangement. "Buy first from the local producers... then if there is a shortfall, (the NFA) might decide to import," Duterte said in a media briefing in Davao City, before leaving for a week-long trip to the Middle East.Major suppliers of rice - Vietnam and Thailand - are on the lookout for fresh demand from the Philippines, one of the world's biggest buyers. However, the NFA Council, which is composed of the country's economic managers, is yet to approve any purchase.

"At present, the NFA needs an additional 490,800 metric tonnes, or 9.8 million bags, of rice to meet the mandated volumes for food security," NFA Administrator Jason Aquino said in a statement.The NFA, the government's food security watchdog, is required to maintain a rice stockpile good to last for 15 days at any given time and for 30 days at the onset of the lean months. As of February, the stockpiles were sufficient for only 14 days.Duterte agrees with his Agriculture Sec. Manny Piñol, who insisted there is no urgent need to import rice because of an anticipated bumper harvest locally.

"It is harvest time now. The harvest is good. (The yield) per hectare is three times the original output," Duterte said.

Piñol added that he expects the local rice harvest in the first quarter to be 210,000 tonnes more compared with a year-old period."Any imports at this time will result in the collapse of the buying price of (local) paddy rice to the disadvantage of the farmers," Piñol said.However, Aquino wants the rice imports to arrive as early as this month to allow the agency enough time to prepare for any calamities, and also assured Piñol that no imports would be released into the market to compete with commercial stocks.

Rice prices to rise if imports stopped: ex-economic managers ABS-CBN News Posted at Apr 12 2017 09:24 AM | Updated as of Apr 12 2017 09:51 AM

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MANILA – Rice prices could go up if government bans imports of the staple grain, a trade advocacy group composed of former economic managers said.The Foundation for Economic Freedom also urged President Rodrigo Duterte to liberalize the rice trade by removing the ―monopoly‖ of the National Food Authority on imports.The group pushed for tariffs on rice imports so that revenues could be used to help farmers shift to higher-value crops.―Stopping all rice importation as Agriculture Secretary (Emmanuel) Pinol wants is a dangerous policy that could lead to significant shortages and increased rice prices,‖ the FEF said in a statement late Tuesday.

Pinol said there was no immediate need to import rice due to projections of a good harvest.Duterte last week fired deputy cabinet secretary Maia Valdez following alleged disagreements with NFA administrator Jason Aquino on the country‘s rice importation policy.On Monday, Duterte ordered the NFA to buy rice from local farmers first before importing.

Allowing only the NFA to import rice is the ―wrong policy‖ since this would slow the process and provide opportunities for corruption because of the lack of competitive bidding, the FEF said.―Decisions to import are best left to the private sector since it is in the interest of the private sector to import at the lowest possible price and in an amount that will not lead to an oversupply,‖ the group said.

The NFA, the government's food security watchdog, is required to maintain a rice stockpile good to last for 15 days at any given time and for 30 days at the onset of the lean months. As of February, the stockpiles were sufficient for only 14 days.The agency said on Monday that it needed to buy 490,800 tons of rice to boost its stockpiles that have fallen below the required level ahead of the July to September lean harvest season.

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17 http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/10/17/piol-distances-self-from-rice-importation-row

China, Africa major rice buyers Submitted by Eleven on Fri, 04/21/2017 - 14:12 Writer: Nilar

A rice warehouse at the Bayintnaung wholesale centre. (Photo-Kyi Naing) The country exports rice mainly to China and various African countries, according to the Myanmar Rice Federation.Ye Min Aung, general secretary of the federation, said: ―Chinese and African markets are major. We also export to the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. We can‘t rely on one or two markets.

But 50 per cent of the exported rice goes to China.‖The country‘s rice is being exported to 54 countries with Australia, Colombia, Guinea, Israel, the US and Vietnam among 22 new markets. Broken rice is exported to 33 countries, including Afghanistan, Botswana, Canada, Germany, Greece and Malaysia.

More than 900,000 tonnes of rice and broken rice were exported between April and the end of December last year, reported the Ministry of Commerce. About 60,000 tonnes of rice were exported to various African nations each month.Rice exports to China decreased due to November clashes between the military and ethnic armed groups in Muse. Therefore, the government planned to export rice to other foreign markets by sea.

http://www.elevenmyanmar.com/business/8920

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Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- April 21, 2017 Nagpur, April 21 (Reuters) – Gram and tuar prices shot up in Nagpur Agriculture Produce andMarketing Committee (APMC) auction on good demand from local millers amid tight supply fromproducing regions. Healthy rise in Madhya Pradesh pulses and repeated enquiries from South-basedmillers also jacked up prices.

About 1,200 bags of gram and 2,900 bags of tuar were available for auctions, according to sources.

FOODGRAINS & PULSES GRAM * Desi gram raw recovered strongly here on good seasonal demand from local traders amid tight supply from producing regions.

TUAR * Tuar varieties ruled steady here in open market but demand was poor. * Lakhodi dal moved down in open market on poor demand from local traders amid good supply from producing regions. * In Akola, Tuar New – 4,350-4,450, Tuar dal (clean) – 6,800-6,900, Udid Mogar (clean) – 9,500-11,200, Moong Mogar (clean) 7,100-7,400, Gram – 6,100-6,300, Gram Super best bold – 8,200-8,600 for 100 kg. * Wheat, rice and other commodities moved in a narrow range in scattered deals and settled at last levels in thin trading activity.

Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg FOODGRAINS Available prices Previous close Gram Auction 5,350-5,790 5,350-5,700 Gram Pink Auction n.a.

2,100-2,600 Tuar Auction 3,850-5,050 3,500-4,000 Moong Auction n.a.

4,000-4,400 Udid Auction n.a.

4,300-4,500 Masoor Auction n.a.

2,600-2,800 Wheat Mill quality Auction 1,500-1,590 1,500-1,610 Gram Super Best Bold 8,700-9,000 8,700-9,000 Gram Super Best n.a. n.a.

Gram Medium Best 7,800-8,000 7,800-8,000 Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a Gram Mill Quality 5,800-6,000 5,800-6,000 Desi gram Raw 6,350-6,550 6,250-6,450 Gram Yellow 8,200-8,400 8,200-8,400 Gram Kabuli 12,400-13,500 12,400-13,500

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Tuar Fataka Best-New 7,000-7,200 7,000-7,200 Tuar Fataka Medium-New 6,600-6,800 6,600-6,800 Tuar Dal Best Phod-New 6,000-6,300 6,000-6,300 Tuar Dal Medium phod-New 5,600-5,900 5,600-5,900 Tuar Gavarani New 3,900-4,200 3,900-4,200 Tuar Karnataka 4,250-4,450 4,250-4,450 Masoor dal best 5,800-6,000 5,800-6,000 Masoor dal medium 5,600-5,700 5,600-5,700 Masoor n.a. n.a.

Moong Mogar bold (New) 7,200-7,500 7,200-7,500 Moong Mogar Medium 6,800-7,000 6,800-7,000 Moong dal Chilka 6,000-7,000 6,000-7,000 Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a.

Moong Chamki best 6,900-7,500 6,900-7,500 Udid Mogar best (100 INR/KG) (New) 9,900-11,500 9,900-11,500 Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 8,000-9,000 8,000-9,000 Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 6,100-6,600 6,100-6,600 Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 5,700-6,200 5,700-6,200 Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 3,500-3,700 3,600-3,800 Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 3,100-3,350 3,100-3,350 Watana White (100 INR/KG) 3,300-3,500 3,300-3,500 Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 3,900-4,400 3,900-4,400 Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,100 2,000-2,100 Wheat Mill quality (100 INR/KG) 1,800-1,900 1,800-1,900 Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,300 2,100-2,300 Wheat Lokwan new (100 INR/KG) 1,900-2,100 1,900-2,100 Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,200 2,100-2,200 Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,100 2,000-2,100 Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a.

MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 3,400-4,000 3,400-4,000 MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 2,600-2,800 2,600-2,800 Rice BPT new (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,400 3,000-3,400 Rice BPT best (100 INR/KG) 3,500-4,000 3,500-4,000 Rice BPT medium (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,200 3,000-3,200 Rice Luchai (100 INR/KG) 2,500-2,800 2,500-2,800 Rice Swarna new (100 INR/KG) 2,300-2,500 2,300-2,500 Rice Swarna best (100 INR/KG) 2,600-2,800 2,600-2,800 Rice Swarna medium (100 INR/KG) 2,400-2,500 2,400-2,500 Rice HMT New (100 INR/KG) 3,600-4,000 3,600-4,000 Rice HMT best (100 INR/KG) 4,000-4,500 4,000-4,500 Rice HMT medium (100 INR/KG) 3,800-3,900 3,800-3,900 Rice Shriram New(100 INR/KG) 4,600-4,800 4,600-4,800 Rice Shriram best 100 INR/KG) 6,500-7,000 6,500-6,800 Rice Shriram med (100 INR/KG) 6,000-6,400 6,000-6,400 Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 10,000-14,000 10,000-14,000 Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 5,500-7,000 5,500-7,000

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Rice Chinnor New(100 INR/KG) 4,600-4,800 4,600-4,800 Rice Chinnor best 100 INR/KG) 5,800-6,200 5,800-6,200 Rice Chinnor medium (100 INR/KG) 5,500-5,700 5,500-5,700 Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 1,900-2,200 1,900-2,200 Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 1,800-1,900 1,800-1,900 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 45.0 degree Celsius, minimum temp. 27.4 degree Celsius Rainfall : Nil FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperature would be around and 45 and 27 degreeCelsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, butincluded in market prices) http://in.reuters.com/article/nagpur-foodgrain-idINL3N1HT3J2

Farm income schemes mulled 21 Apr 2017 at 04:00 NEWSPAPER SECTION: BUSINESS | WRITER: WICHIT CHANTANUSORNSIRI A farmer in Nakhon Ratchasima dries paddy rice to reduce moisture. The government has ruled out a new rice-pledging programme. PRASIT TANGPRASERT The Finance Ministry is considering several measures, including a farm income guarantee scheme, as a means of providing income to farmers in a sustainable way, though it has ruled out a rice-pledging scheme.The Fiscal Policy Office and the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives have been tasked with jointly considering the appropriate measures to help farmers.

The ideas are expected to be proposed to the Finance Ministry next week for consideration, said finance permanent secretary Somchai Sujjapongse.

The plan to seek measures to increase farmer income was initiated by Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong.Mr Somchai said a rice-pledging scheme was not included, as such programmes always have issues with management and fraud. He said that when the pledging price exceeds the pledging price, the government is forced to foot the bill as farmers baulk at redeeming the pledged farm products.The farm income guarantee scheme is one of several measures under consideration, Mr Somchai said, adding that all the measures have pros and cons, but the government must try to close the loopholes on fraud and implement those that make budgetary sense.

The paddy-mortgage scheme was one popular plan employed by past governments to help farmers when rice prices tumbled. Governments that adopted the paddy-subsidy scheme always limited volume and set reasonable pledging prices to encourage farmers to redeem.The Yingluck

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Shinawatra government's rice-pledging scheme, however, set the pledging price at 40-50% above the market price without restrictions on volume, resulting in a hefty loss of more than 500 billion baht.

A farm income guarantee scheme was initiated by the Abhisit Vejjajiva government. That scheme paid farmers the difference between benchmark prices and market prices, setting a cap of 25 tonnes per farmer household. Under this arrangement, if the benchmark price falls below the guaranteed price, the government pays farmers the difference, with prices being updated every two weeks.

To keep from repeating the massive losses incurred by the Yingluck government, the current government last year adopted a storage pledging scheme for 2 million tonnes of hom mali and glutinous rice at 13,000 baht a tonne, aimed at encouraging farmers to store rice in their own barns to delay releasing new supply to the market to shore up weak prices.

The pledging price of 13,000 baht a tonne was set based on 90% of the market price at that time, plus 2,000 baht for harvesting and improvement costs, along with another 1,500 baht for storage costs. Farmers who have no barns to store their paddy did not receive the 1,500-baht storage cost payment.Mr Somchai said programmes to help sustain farmer income, including crop insurance, must be done continuously. http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1235710/farm-income-schemes-mulled

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Modern irrigation technology can aid rice harvest, experts say Friday, Apr 21, 2017 at 2:46 PMUpdated Apr 21, 2017 at 3:23 PM

By Special to The Commercial The key to success is often rooted in a solid plan and experts with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture are encouraging Arkansas rice producers to start that plan with the technology known as Multiple Inlet Rice Irrigation, or MIRI. Chris Henry, an irrigation engineer and assistant professor with the Division of Agriculture, said MIRI technology has been around since the 1990s, and has many benefits. ―MIRI reduces the cold water effect on the first levee, reduces total water use by 25 percent, allows for the implementation of alternating wetting and drying, and a faster flood time than the traditional cascade system,‖ he said. ―Being able to quickly flood up a field is beneficial for being able to get the flood established for water management as well as weed control and ensuring fertilizer efficiency.‖ Henry said both the Division of Agriculture and Delta Plastics have programs designed to promote the implementation of MIRI, as well as support growers throughout the process.

MIRI is a required component of a Natural Resource Conservation Service, Irrigation Water Management plan, which frequently provides financial assistance to growers, including those participating in alternating wetting and drying or carbon credit programs.

MIRI has also been shown to increase yields by five to 10 bushels per acre over cascade fields. ―All in all, there‘s more than $100 an acre available through incentive programs, yield advantages and pumping cost savings,‖ Henry said.

Blue gates — the 2.5-inch gates used in poly-pipe to control water flow — are an essential element to the MIRI system that are sometimes ignored during the installation process. Properly set levee gates are also key to optimum performance of a MIRI system.

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―Two-and-a-half inch blue gates and a plan are required to use MIRI successfully,‖ Henry said. ―The blue gates allow for a wide range of flow and for the irrigator to adjust and balance the flow to each levee, so that the field floods up evenly.

Pine Bluff Rising board member Ryan Watley discusses the formation of a construction and trade alliance ―Leave the ‗piranha puncher‘ in the truck when you are in a flooded rice field,‖ he said, referring to the commonly-used hand tool used for punching small holes in poly-pipe. ―It may be chewing through your profit. If holes are punched without any way to adjust them, then some levees will cascade over the other.‖ Effective implementation of MIRI should only have water going over levee gates when more than an inch of rainfall has occurred, and levee gates should be set higher than they would be for cascade irrigation, because they are essentially overflow devices when MIRI is used. Some MIRI irrigators no longer put in levee gates, instead using a simple overflow, further reducing cost and labor. When properly executed, MIRI eliminates the in-season chore of wading through rice fields to adjust levee spills.

A mobile app developed by the Division of Agriculture in 2015, Rice Irrigation, helps takes the guesswork out of MIRI implementation. Levee files can quickly be created from aerial maps, uploaded from survey programs, or uploaded from the tractor GPS monitor to provide an effective MIRI plan on even the most complicated contour levee fields.

Pipe requirements and blue gate settings are provided and can be shared easily with other mobile devices. Flow rate for the field is also needed, but portable flow meters are available for checkout from your local Cooperative Extension Service office, Conservation District offices, NRCS offices, and even some irrigation dealers.

Funding to develop the mobile app was provided by the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board. Assistance using the app is available through your local Cooperative Extension Service office. Search for ―Rice Irrigation‖ in the Apple App Store or in the Google play store on android devices.To learn more about modern rice irrigation, contact a local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.edu.The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs to all eligible persons without discrimination http://www.pbcommercial.com/news/20170421/modern-irrigation-technology-can-aid-riceharvest-experts-say

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