28th september ,2017 daily global regional & local rice e newsletter

Daily Global Rice

E-Newsletter

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September 28,2017 Vol 8 Issue VIII

Rice News Headlines...                                

Thailand: Cabinet approves rice support package Jump in Rice Imports Signals from sowing MIS for paddy/rice sector from next Maha season Rice researchers discover herbicide resistance in popular variety 80 Pct Self-Sufficiency Level For Rice Good Enough Till 2020 - Ahmad Shabery Rice basmati strengthens on rising demand Rice worth US$ 223.937 million exported in two-months Louisiana Farmer Garners National Recognition for Conservation and Stewardship Rice Growers Eager to Enter Chinese Market EU to lift import curbs on rice from Fukushima, more deals likely National Rice Month Scholarship contest deadline Oct. 31 Lost continent of Zealandia: Scientists return from expedition to sunken land Mid-South weed scientists compare notes on dicamba, new rice herbicides Golden rice – a miracle tarnished by irresponsible activism Scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice LCCI hails Bosan for ban on tomato import from India Rice worth US$ 223.937 million exported in two-months In the Philippines, a Chinese hybrid rice program highlights the 'win-win' policy Rice worth US$ 223.937mn exported in two months Call for adoption of modern agri tech Malaysia’s rice production self-sufficiency level at 72% Mid-South weed scientists compare notes on dicamba, new rice herbicides Punjab mandi board reluctant on market fee hike; key meeting on Oct 11 Former Thai PM Yingluck sentenced to five years over rice scheme Rice And The Private Sector: Asia’s Food-Energy-Water Nexus – Analysis Fatima Fertilizer orgranises Dhaan Seminar in Gujranwala Rice Seed Market: Business Opportunities, Current Trends, Market Forecast & Global Industry Analysis by 2022 United States Rice Starch Market Research, Key Players, Growth Opportunities, Outlook LBP to lend at 6% per annum for rice production Corruption eating away relief for the public Chinese scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice

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News Detail...

Thailand: Cabinet approves rice support package VNA WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2017 - 16:34:00 PRINT

A rice farmer in Thailand (Photo: EPA) Bangkok (VNA) – The cabinet of Thailand has approved a package worth 87.2 billion THB (2.6 billion USD) to support rice farmers and stabilise prices ahead of the 2017-2018 harvest, which starts in November.The programme of the Thai Government, which will officially take effect on November 1, is hoped to assist 3.7 million farmers.

The package includes a loan of 33.5 billion THB from the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives for farmers to delay rice selling time.

Another loan worth 53.7 billion THB was allocated for farmers to store rice. Accordingly, the programmes are designed to stockpile 12.5 million tonnes of rice.

The Thai Government will also provide loans for farmers to bolster agricultural cooperation and raise rice value. The programme, worth of 12.5 billion THB, will be launched from October this year until end of September, 2018.-VNA https://en.vietnamplus.vn/thailand-cabinet-approves-rice-support-package/118604.vnp

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Jump in Rice Imports

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Jump in Rice Imports

More than 1 million tons of rice worth $963 million were imported into Iran during the five months to August 22, registering a 79% and 102.5% growth in weight and value respectively compared with the corresponding period of last year.With more than 696,000 tons, India was the main exporter followed by Pakistan, the UAE, Thailand, Turkey and Iraq, ISNA reported.Imports are taking place while every year and during the rice harvest season, the government bans rice imports in support of local farmers and domestic production. ―The ongoing seasonal ban on rice imports will be in effect until Nov. 21,‖ Deputy Agriculture Minister Yazdan Seif recently said, noting that the ban went into effect in August.

Traders who have already registered orders can import their cargos after the deadline. During the ban period, no imports will take place, Mehr News Agency quoted Seif as saying.

Abbas Keshavarz, also a deputy agriculture minister, said nearly 2.3 million tons of rice have been produced in the country in the current Iranian year (started March 21).

Iranians consume 3 million tons of rice a year. The two northern provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran are home to a majority of Iran‘s paddy fields https://financialtribune.com/articles/economy-domestic-economy/73203/jump-in-rice-imports

Signals from sowing Initial kharif estimates suggest farmers are responding to market signals, not MSPs Hopes that India‘s agricultural output for FY18 will match last year‘s record performance are now waning. The agriculture ministry‘s first advance estimates released this week project a 134.6 million tonne foodgrain harvest for the ongoing kharif season which translates into a 2.8 per cent decline over last year‘s output. More importantly, while the estimates indicate higher

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output of paddy, sugarcane and cotton, they point to a decline in coarse cereals (down 3 per cent), pulses such as tur (down 9 per cent) and oilseeds (down 11 per cent).

It is early days for a prognosis about agricultural prospects for the whole of FY18 as the first advance estimates are based mainly on cropping area rather than crop yields. The winter rabi crop, which chips in with half of the foodgrain output and a third of the oilseed harvest, also makes a material contribution to annual output. From the initial signs though, it appears unlikely that we will manage an encore of the 4.9 per cent jump in agriculture GVA (gross value added) which boosted GDP growth in FY17.

On paper, this year‘s south-west monsoon is ‗normal‘ by IMD standards with the quantum of rainfall until end-September just 5 per cent below the long-period average. But the distribution has proved erratic, with deficient rains in some parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, and deluge in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan skewing prospects. In making their sowing decisions this year, farmers seem to have relied more on signals from market prices than the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs).

Rattled by the collapse in the market prices of pulses and oilseeds which triggered widespread farmer agitations a few months ago, the Centre had quietly announced hefty hikes of 7-10 per cent in the kharif MSP for crops such as coarse cereals, pulses and soyabean in June. Despite this, these estimates point to a material decline in the area sown for coarse cereals such as jowar, bajra and ragi, and pulses such as tur and soyabean. Area sown has registered a sharp increase both for sugarcane and cotton, which have offered remunerative prices this past year.

From a macroeconomic perspective, the long-term shift in cropping patterns away from essential staples which are in short supply — such as coarse cereals and pulses — towards water-intensive crops such as sugarcane and cotton isn‘t a healthy trend. But then, after being forced to grapple with low output in bad monsoon years and distress sales in good monsoon ones, one cannot blame farmers for seeking to maximise income prospects.

The situation suggests that MSP-based interventions in India‘s agri-markets are no longer working as they should. The Centre needs to consider new mechanisms such as those suggested by the NITI Aayog‘s recent action agenda to broadcast the right production signals to India‘s agri sector http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/editorial/initial-kharif-estimates-farmersindia/article9874420.eceCONTACT US

MIS for paddy/rice sector from next Maha season Published inPolitical & Current Affairs

It has been decided to have an on-line Database System for Paddy/Rice stocks which could then easily be accessed to any official/or member of the public at any time. Every year, the government makes an effort to stabilize the price of paddy/rice. But owing to non-availability of

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comprehensive information success is limited. Establishing a computerized digital MIS system for Paddy/Rice Sector will strengthen that effort and decision makers, relying on this MIS, will be able to take informed decisions as to the quantity of Paddy and Rice available in the country and the actual need to supplement by way of imports. The project will be implemented under the cooperation of several government and private institutes, led by the National Planning Department, with the guidance of the Central Programme Management Unit of the Ministry of National Policies and Economic Affairs.

This will be including the data of extent of paddy: - cultivable, actually cultivated in any season harvested stocks available, stock purchased by Paddy Marketing Board, pledged loans granted by Banks, import and export figures etc. The database is expected to be uploaded at the district level preferably just after the harvesting of each season initially by the Officials of Consumer Affairs Authority and Officials of the Paddy Marketing Board attached to each district. Updating of the MIS will be started with the next harvesting of Maha season (2017/18).

The information related to the extent planned to be cultivated, actual extent cultivated, paddy production in any given season, is uploaded to the MIS with the assistance of the Department of Agriculture and the District Administration, in each season. The data provide by the Sri Lanka Customs on the value and quantity of import and export of rice are uploaded to the system monthly. The state and private banks agreed to provide holistic details of pledged loans taken by millers in each season. The pledged loan details could be used to do certain verifications for the existing stocks with millers, stocks with traders. The online database for Paddy/ Rice has now been developed with the technical assistance of the Faculty of Computing and Technology, University of Kelaniya

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Rice researchers discover herbicide resistance in popular variety

Kent McKenzie, director and plant breeder, California Rice Experiment Station, says researchers discovered a single recessive gene in a common rice variety that makes it resistant to the herbicide Oxyfluorfen, providing hope that one day weed control in rice systems may be easier.

Any possible new rice variety is years away, but researchers are hopeful based on what they've seen in the greenhouse and test plots Todd Fitchette 2 | Sep 27, 2017 A discovery by researchers at the Rice Experiment Station in Biggs, Calif. offers hope that a possible new rice variety may someday give growers better control of weeds in the aquatic system.

Kent McKenzie, director and plant breeder with the Rice Experiment Station (RES), says the idea came about in the greenhouse when studies of the popular M206 variety showed signs of

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resistance to Oxyfluorfen, an herbicide with other agricultural applications, but one not labeled for use in rice.

Weed control in California rice is a challenge for growers.―It‘s huge and it‘s expensive,‖ McKenzie says.Earlier this year, a granular mixture of benzobicyclon and halosulfuron, the active ingredient components of a Gowan Company product called Butte, was registered for use in California rice. What excited growers at the time is Butte provides a new mode of action (Butte is an HPPD-inhibitor) previously not offered in California rice systems.

According to McKenzie, researchers studying Oxyfluorfen (a PPO-inhibitor) in the greenhouse discovered M206 rice plants – a common variety among California growers – were not damaged by the herbicide. Additional tests and conventional breeding procedures from early populations of resistant rice found nine plants that did not die when exposed to Oxyfluorfen. ―So at that point we got a little excited and thought maybe we have something that is resistant to this herbicide,‖ he said.

From there McKenzie said researchers began looking at different kinds of weeds common to California rice systems that could be controlled by Oxyfluorfen and if it can work in the field. ―The advantage of this is we found it in M206 which is our most widely-grown variety,‖ he said. ―From the plant breeding end this is very desirable because we shouldn‘t have to fix a lot of things.‖ Also desirable, and unlike other technologies that allow herbicides to be applied over the top of resistant crops, is this process does not involve genetic engineering. ―This isn‘t going to fly in rice,‖ he said. ―The technology is there but the markets haven‘t accepted it.‖

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Instead, genetic studies show that the trait causing the herbicide resistance is inherited as a single recessive gene through common, long-standing breeding practices.

Though not a variety at this point, McKenzie says the Oxyfluorfen-resistant rice has been given the name ―ROXY,‖ and is now patent-pending. Discussions are also under way to find a company willing to serve as the registrant for a product that could be labeled for California rice.

The search for a new mode of action to control rice weeds is critical as these weeds are developing resistance to currently labeled herbicides. ―It looks promising,‖ McKenzie says. ―We still don‘t know how long it will be before we have this, but people keep asking me and I just tell them ‗I‘ll have the variety by the time you have the label‘.‖ http://www.westernfarmpress.com/rice/rice-researchers-discover-herbicide-resistance-popular-variety

80 Pct Self-Sufficiency Level For Rice Good Enough Till 2020 - Ahmad Shabery 27/09/2017 SERDANG, Sept 27 (Bernama) -- Rice production in the country reaching 80 per cent selfsufficiency level will be good enough for the people until 2020, said Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek.

He said this was the latest estimate on the self-sufficiency level needed for rice production after taking into consideration that about 20 per cent of the people would not opt for locally produced rice even though the target earlier was 100 per cent by 2020.The current level was 72 per cent, he said, adding that the 80 per cent level could be attained with greater efficiency and less wastage along the supply chain.

"If farmers can improve their yields from five tonnes to six tonnes and wastage is reduced after the harvesting process, certainly rice production will increase," he said.

Ahmad Shabery told this to reporters after checking on final preparations for the the nationallevel Farmers, Breeders and Fishermen's Festival 2017 at the Malaysian Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS) here today..... http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v8/newsindex.php?id=1395052

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Rice basmati strengthens on rising demand 27 SEPTEMBER 2017 Last Updated at 2:45 PM

New Delhi, Sep 27 Rice basmati prices strengthened by Rs 50 per quintal at the wholesale grains market today on the back of rising demand from stockists and rice mills.

However, bajra and maize weakened on subdued demand from consuming industries.

Traders said, besides rising demand from stockists and rice mills, paucity of stocks on fall supplies from producing belts, mainly kept rice basmati prices higher.

In the national capital, rice basmati Pusa-1121 variety edged up to Rs 5,800-5,850 from previous level of Rs 5,750- 5,800 per quintal.

On the other hand, bajra and maize shed Rs 10 each to Rs 1,170-1,175 and Rs 1,270-1,275 per quintal, respectively.

Following are today's quotations (in Rs per quintal): Wheat MP (desi) Rs 2,100-2,350, Wheat dara (for mills) Rs 1,760-1,765, Chakki atta (delivery) Rs 1,765-1,770, Atta Rajdhani (10 kg) Rs 260-300, Shakti Bhog (10 kg) Rs 255-290, Roller flour mill Rs 950-960 (50 kg), Maida Rs 990-1,000 (50 kg)and Sooji Rs 1,030-1,040 (50 kg).

Basmati rice (Lal Quila) Rs 10,700, Shri Lal Mahal Rs 11,300, Super Basmati Rice Rs 9,800, Basmati common new Rs 7,000-7,100, Rice Pusa (1121) Rs 5,800-5,850, Permal raw Rs 2,2002,225, Permal wand Rs 2,250-2,275, Sela Rs 2,300-2,400 and Rice IR-8 Rs 1,850-1,875, Bajra Rs 1,170-1,175, Jowar yellow Rs 1,400-1,450, white Rs 2,800-2,900, Maize Rs 1,270-1,275, Barley Rs 1,430-1,440 https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/rice-basmati-strengthens-on-rising-demand/1155490

Rice worth US$ 223.937 million exported in two-months 27 September,2017 09:45 am Rice exports from the country grew by 40.36 percent during July and August this year.

ISLAMABAD (APP) - Rice worth US$ 223.937 million has been exported during the first two months of current financial year. During the period from July-August, 2017 rice exports from the country grew by 40.36 percent as compared the exports of the same period of last year, according the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.

In last two months around 428,993 metric tons of rice worth US$ 223.937 million exported as compared the exports of 380,861 metric tons valuing US$ 159.543 million, it added.

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Meanwhile, the exports of basmati rice grew by 10.35 percent and about 59,433 metric tons of basmati rice worth US$ 62.741 million exported as compared the exports of 59,192 metric tons valuing US$ 56.857 million of same period last year.

The exports of rice other then basmati also witnessed an increase of 58.98 percent, around 369.580 metric tons of rice costing US$ 161.198 million exported as compared to the exports of 251,669 metric tons worth US$ 102.888 million of last year.

On month on month basis, rice exports from the country grew by 53 percent in August, 2017 as compared the same month of last year, the data reveled.

About 227,998 metric tons of rice worth US$ 116.041 million exported in August as compared the exports of 146,769 metric tons valuing US$ 75.569 million of same period last year.

Meanwhile, basmati rice worth US$ 86.290 million exported in last month, which grew by 2.15 percent as compared the same months of last year.

Exports of basmati rice was recorded at 28,482 metric tons in month of August as compared the exports 30,446 metric tons of same period last year.During the period from July-August 2017, food group exports from the country increased by 30.6 percent as compared the exports of the same period of last year.Country earned US$ 512.321 million by exporting different food commodities during first two-months of current financial year as compared the earnings of the corresponding period of last year http://dunyanews.tv/en/Business/407166-Rice-worth-US$-223.937-million-exported-in-two-months

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Louisiana Farmer Garners National Recognition for Conservation and Stewardship USA Rice Daily, Wednesday, September 27, 2017 This is the Final Week to nominate a person or entity for the first ever USA Rice Sustainability Award. The nomination form can be found here, and more information about the award can be found here.

Commitment to stewardship

By Lexi Clark

KAPLAN, LA -- Coinciding with September National Rice Month, Louisiana rice farmer Christian Richard is being recognized by Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture as their Farmer Spotlight Honoree for his commitment to conservation and stewardship. He was nominated for the honor for his leadership and advocacy for sustainability in rice production.Richard is a sixth-generation rice farmer with a desire to leave the land better than it was before. As he says, "U.S. farmers should not be afraid to tell their story of how we are being productive while conserving natural resources and maintaining the safest food supply in the world."

Through his involvement in the Louisiana Master Farmer Program, Richard developed a resource management system plan. Though he has been working to address resource concerns on his farm for many years, he didn't have a way to quantify those environmental outcomes and realized that documenting his sustainability improvements could facilitate greater trust with the supply chain and provide consumers with more specific information about environmental performance.

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"Use of tools, such as the Field to Market FieldprintÂŽ Platform, to document the field-level metric performance is necessary to meet consumer demands," Richard said. "Farmers can be more pro-active in providing feedback to our customers and stakeholders."

Field to Market's FieldprintÂŽ Platform is an online tool that helps farmers better understand and communicate how management decisions affect overall sustainability performance and operational efficiency.

Richard is a participant in the Rice Stewardship Partnership FieldprintÂŽ Project sponsored by USA Rice and Ducks Unlimited with a goal of conserving three of the nation's important natural resources: water, wetland wildlife, and working ricelands. The effort combines public and private resources to enhance riceland across the country to improve crop production while providing valuable habitat for waterfowl.

Through his participation in multiple USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) programs, Richard has integrated beneficial conservation practices throughout his farm, including precision leveling and no-till planting.

"We're so proud of Christian as he truly exemplifies the ongoing commitment today's U.S. rice farmers have to not only preserve the environment but to enhance and protect it," said USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward. The Richard family (photo by Allen Breaux Studio)

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Rice Growers Eager to Enter Chinese Market SEPTEMBER 26, 2017 AGRI-BUSINESS, TRADE

As National Rice Month comes to an end, many California growers are eagerly waiting for the Chinese market to officially open. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue recently set an aggressive timeline, projecting the first shipments would begin before the end of the year.The initial agreement was established in July after more than 10 years of negotiation to allow American rice into China for the first time. ―It‘s a great opportunity for rice in California and we look forward to building that market, probably over that same period, about 10 years,‖ said President and CEO of the California Rice Commission Tim Johnson.Progress in getting rice shipments into China is slow going as Chinese officials inspect potential U.S. facilities as part of the agreed upon phytosanitary protocol. Johnson explained the industry is excited at the potential the Chinese market provides, but ―we also have a firm grasp of the realities of opening a new market, it takes time.‖ Once shipments arrive in the Chinese market the demand will be substantial. Over the past 10 years, China has been increasing their rice imports. Since 2013 China has been the largest importer of rice, taking in close to five million tons last year. ―This is the first new commercial market that we have seen in the last decade for our rice and that‘s very positive,‖ said Johnson. http://agnetwest.com/rice-growers-eager-enter-chinese-market/

EU to lift import curbs on rice from Fukushima, more deals likely THE ASAHI SHIMBUN September 27, 2017 at 15:45 JST A farmer plants rice seedlings in Minami-Soma, Fukushima Prefecture, in May. (Asahi Shimbun

The European Commission is set to relax import restrictions on rice from Fukushima Prefecture that were imposed after the 2011 nuclear disaster, sources said.The import curbs could be eased as early as this year and prompt other countries, including major markets like China, to follow suit, the sources added.In addition to rice from Fukushima Prefecture, the EU is expected to remove restrictions on some seafood products from Iwate, Miyagi and other prefectures.

All restrictions on products from Akita Prefecture will likely also be lifted, thereby abolishing all curbs on rice grown in Japan.

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The United States on Sept. 22 decided to allow imports of milk and dairy products from Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, Tochigi and Gunma prefectures without inspection certificates stating they are free of radioactive materials.

The EU move follows a general agreement on an economic partnership in July, during which EU officials informed Japan of plans to relax import restrictions on agricultural products. The two sides have been discussing the issue since then.

(This article was written by Naoki Tsuzaka in Brussels and Tetsushi Yamamura in Tokyo.) http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201709270035.html

National Rice Month Scholarship contest deadline Oct. 31 Deborah Willenborg | Sep 26, 2017 The annual National Rice Month Scholarship contest received a major update last year, and while the focus is the same — creating awareness for U.S.-grown rice — the methods moved into the 21st Century.

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―The contest went to an all video format last year and competition was fierce,‖ said Betsy Ward, USA Rice president and CEO. ―The creativity and quality of the student videos telling the story of U.S. rice was astounding, and I know the judges struggled to choose a winner out of the field of 18 entrants.‖ Scholarship contest entrants are encouraged to use video and photography to tell the story of U.S. grown rice. Creative students can also use PowerPoint, Prezi, or any visual presentation tool, so long as the total run time of the piece does not exceed three minutes.

High school graduating students from rice-growing states — Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas — are eligible for the three scholarship prizes, sponsored by Dow AgroSciences, totaling $8,500.

The grand-prize winner will receive a $4,000 scholarship and a trip with a chaperone this December to the awards ceremony at the 2017 USA Rice Outlook Conference in San Antonio, Texas. The second-place winner will receive $3,000 scholarship, and third-place $1,500.

Contest entries will be judged on creativity, quality, popularity, and effectiveness in promoting U.S.-grown rice, NRM, and the importance of rice in the student's state. Total run time of the

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video should not exceed three minutes. Sample topics include: rice production, nutrition, sustainability, and marketing/promotion.

Entries are due Oct. 31.

For more information and to submit an entry, visit the NRM scholarship page (http://www.thinkrice.com/scholarship/). http://www.deltafarmpress.com/rice/mid-south-weed-scientists-compare-notes-dicamba-new-riceherbicides

Lost continent of Zealandia: Scientists return from expedition to sunken land Did scientists find Zealandia beneath the waves? Their two-month expedition was a success.

PUBLIC RELEASE: 26-SEP-2017 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION WHERE WERE THE SCIENTISTS HEADING? A MAP SHOWS THE ONCE-LOST CONTINENT OF ZEALANDIA. view more CREDIT: IODP After a nine-week voyage to study the lost, submerged continent of Zealandia in the South Pacific, a team of 32 scientists from 12 countries has arrived in Hobart, Tasmania, aboard the research vessel JOIDES Resolution.Researchers affiliated with the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) mounted the expedition to explore Zealandia. IODP is a collaboration of scientists from 23 countries; the organization coordinates voyages to study the history of the Earth recorded in sediments and rocks beneath the seafloor."Zealandia, a sunken continent long lost beneath the oceans, is giving up its 60 million-year-old secrets through scientific ocean drilling," said Jamie Allan, program director in the U.S. National Science Foundation's Division of Ocean Sciences, which supports IODP.

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"This expedition offered insights into Earth's history, ranging from mountain-building in New Zealand to the shifting movements of Earth's tectonic plates to changes in ocean circulation and global climate," Allan said.

Earlier this year, Zealandia was confirmed as Earth's seventh continent, but little is known about it because it's submerged more than a kilometer (two-thirds of a mile) under the sea. Until now, the region has been sparsely surveyed and sampled.Expedition scientists drilled deep into the seabed at six sites in water depths of more than 1,250 meters (4,101 feet). They collected 2,500 meters (8,202 feet) of sediment cores from layers that record how the geography, volcanism and climate of Zealandia have changed over the last 70 million years.

According to expedition co-chief scientist Gerald Dickens of Rice University in the U.S., significant new fossil discoveries were made. They prove that Zealandia was not always as deep beneath the waves as it is today.

"More than 8,000 specimens were studied, and several hundred fossil species were identified," said Dickens."The discovery of microscopic shells of organisms that lived in warm shallow seas, and of spores and pollen from land plants, reveal that the geography and climate of Zealandia were dramatically different in the past."The new discoveries show that the formation 40 to 50 million years ago of the "Pacific Ring of Fire," an active seafloor zone along the perimeter of the Pacific Ocean, caused dramatic changes in ocean depth and volcanic activity and buckled the seabed of Zealandia, according to Dickens.Expedition co-chief scientist Rupert Sutherland of Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand said researchers had believed that Zealandia was submerged when it separated from Australia and Antarctica about 80 million years ago.

"That is still probably accurate, but it is now clear that dramatic later events shaped the continent we explored on this voyage," Sutherland said."Big geographic changes across northern Zealandia, which is about the same size as India, have implications for understanding questions such as how plants and animals dispersed and evolved in the South Pacific.

"The discovery of past land and shallow seas now provides an explanation. There were pathways for animals and plants to move along."Studies of the sediment cores obtained during the expedition will focus on understanding how Earth's tectonic plates move and how the global climate system works. Records of Zealandia's history, expedition scientists said, will provide a sensitive test for computer models used to predict future changes in climate. ### https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-09/nsf-lco092617.php

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Mid-South weed scientists compare notes on dicamba, new rice herbicides

Academic weed scientists from Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana discuss research findings from the current year.

Ford Baldwin | Sep 27, 2017 From the time I began my career at the University of Arkansas, there has been a fall meeting called DWWIGT or Delta Weed Workers Informal Get-together. The academic weed scientists from Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana would gather to informally discuss research findings from the current year.In the earlier years it was mostly a discussion about new herbicide candidates. Since there aren‘t many of those any more, the discussion is now more on current topics. No ―outsiders‖ are allowed, so when I retired in 2002 they kicked me out! However, when things started heating up last year, the young folks decided maybe it wouldn‘t be so bad to have a mentor, so I was invited back and attended the past two. I have had a ball.

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The main thing I can say is these young weed scientists are so much sharper and better trained than my generation — there is no comparison. Much of the discussion is over my head and the only thing I can ever offer is a little experience.

This year‘s meeting was just held and, of course, the hot topic was dicamba. After all of the discussion, it was obvious that scientists from each state agreed that volatility was playing a significant role in the damages to soybean and other vegetation observed in 2017.

Most agreed that the newer dicamba formulations may be less volatile than the older formulations, but volatility remains a significant issue with them.

It was obvious that I am not the only scientist who believes volatiles moving in inversions played a significant role in the landscape effect observed in the Delta this year.It was also interesting to listen to members from each state discuss their number of ―official‖ complaints and how the different regulatory agencies determined what constituted a complaint. Several commented that if their states used the same method as the Arkansas Plant Board, their numbers would be much higher and closer to the Arkansas numbers.

New rice herbicides There was a nice discussion on new rice herbicides at the meeting. There is a lot of excitement on all of the new things coming. The group was unanimous in their feeling that Provisia rice is going to provide much-needed help controlling weedy rice and grass weeds.

There was concern expressed over crop injury in certain situations and how it may relate to rates and environmental conditions.The current variety lags behind in yield potential, but the group felt it could still contribute in severe weed situations. Better varieties will hopefully be coming.Many in the group felt the new herbicide Loyant is the best-looking rice herbicide to come along perhaps since propanil. It has outstanding activity on aquatics, broadleaves, sedges and barnyardgrass. There was much discussion on what rates would control what weeds.

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I am excited about the herbicide but also concerned about potential off-target issues with soybeans. It would seem that herbicide could potentially be more injurious to soybeans than any current rice herbicides. An intense training program had better be in order before launch.

I am concerned that no aerial off-target research has been allowed to this point. Unless our applicators are well-trained on the product, I am afraid there could be a bunch of first-year surprises — which is the last thing we need. http://www.deltafarmpress.com/rice/mid-south-weed-scientists-compare-notes-dicamba-new-riceherbicides

Golden rice – a miracle tarnished by irresponsible activism

BY DR. HENRY MILLER, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR — 09/26/17 03:00 PM EDT 216 THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY CONTRIBUTORS ARE THEIR OWN AND NOT THE VIEW OF THE HILL

―Their eyes tell their sad stories as ghostly white irises give way to vacant stares. We can look at them but they can‘t look back at us. They‘ve gone blind because of malnutrition.,‖ V. Ravichandran, a farmer in Tamil Nadu, India, describing children suffering from vitamin A deficiency

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This is a dual tragedy — first, because more than two-thirds of the children referred to in Ravichandran‘s commentary will be dead within a year — blindness from vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is an early sign of life-threatening debilitation — and second, because VAD could be prevented with an accessible, modern agricultural technology.

The most elegant and practical approach to preventing VAD is a group of genetically engineered rice varieties known as Golden Rice because of its color, which is imparted by the presence of beta-carotene, the precursor of vitamin A. Rice is a food staple for hundreds of millions, especially in Asia. Although it is an excellent source of calories, it lacks certain micronutrients necessary for a complete diet. In developing countries, 200 — 300 million children of preschool age are at risk of vitamin A deficiency, which increases their susceptibility to infections such as measles and diarrheal diseases. Every year, about half a million children become blind as a result of VAD and 70 percent of them die within a year of losing their sight.

In the 1980s and 1990s, German scientists Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyer developed the ―Golden Rice‖ varieties that are biofortified, or enriched, by the introduction of genes that enable the edible endosperm of rice to produce beta-carotene, the precursor of vitamin A. Rice plants produce beta carotene in the leaves but not in the grains, so Potrykus and Beyer inserted two genes – one from a bacterium, the other from corn — that causes beta-carotene to be synthesized in the edible part of the plant as well.

Given its ability to prevent the scourge of VAD, Golden Rice could make contributions to human health on a par with the Salk polio vaccine but irrational, self-interested, relentless opposition to the testing and widespread availability of Golden Rice has been high on the agenda of activists like Greenpeace, which makes millions per year behemoth with offices in more than 40 countries, whose PR machine is focused on denying millions of children in the poorest nations the essential food nutrients they need to stave off blindness and death.

They have intimidated government officials by fomenting grassroots opposition to regulatory approvals of Golden Rice and other genetically engineered crop varieties; and too often, regulators have dragged their feet or capitulated.

Greenpeace has fiercely opposed genetic engineering applied to agriculture from the early days of molecular genetic engineering — recombinant DNA technology, or ―gene-splicing,‖ to produce so-called GMOs. In 1995, the organization announced that it had ―intercepted a package containing rice seed genetically manipulated to produce a toxic insecticide, as it was being exported . . . [and] swapped the genetically manipulated seed with normal rice.‖ [I. Meister, ―Uncontrolled Trade in Genetically Manipulated Products,‖ press release, April 7, 1995].

The rice seeds stolen by Greenpeace had been genetically improved for insect resistance and were en route to the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. The modified seeds were to be tested to confirm that they would grow and produce high yields of rice with far lower applications of chemical pesticides.

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Greenpeace has ignored the scientific consensus about the safety of genetically engineered crops, the result of hundreds of risk-assessment experiments and extensive real-world experience. In the United States alone, more than 90 percent of all corn, soy and sugar beets are genetically engineered, and in two decades of consumption of trillions of servings of food from genetically engineered plants around the world, not a single health or environmental problem has been documented.

Greenpeace has variously alleged that the levels of beta-carotene in Golden Rice are too low to be effective or so high that they would be toxic. But feeding trials have shown the rice to be highly effective in preventing VAD, and toxicity is virtually impossible because conversion of beta-carotene to vitamin A ceases when vitamin A levels in the blood rise above normal.

With no rational basis for its antagonism, the organization has been forced to adopt a ―fake news‖ strategy of trying to scare off the developing nations that are considering adopting the lifesaving products.

In a 2012 screed, Greenpeace claimed, ―If introduced on a large scale, golden rice can exacerbate malnutrition and ultimately undermine food security.‖ Psychiatrists call this projection: The real threat to the poor and vulnerable is not genetic engineering; it‘s Greenpeace and its ilk. In 2014, economists Justus Wesseler and David Zilberman calculated the impact of the delays in the regulatory approval of Golden Rice.

They found that the absence of Golden Rice in the prior decade caused the loss of at least 1,424,680 life-years in India alone. If Greenpeace‘s actions were perpetrated by government officials, they would be called crimes against humanity.

Henry I. Miller, a physician and molecular biologist, is the Robert Wesson Fellow in Scientific Philosophy and Public Policy at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution; he was the founding director of the FDA’s Office of Biotechnology. http://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/352498-golden-rice-a-miracle-tarnished-by-irresponsibleactivismChinese scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice

Scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice Source:Global Times Published: 2017/9/27 21:28:40 A prominent Chinese rice expert recently announced that he and his research team have made a breakthrough in removing cadmium from rice, which could make the grain safer and cleaner.

Rice contamination of this kind could lead to kidney failure or bone cancer, according to the website of agriculture authority in Huaihua, Central China's Hunan Province. The website added that the problem of rice contaminated by cadmium is obvious in Hunan.

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Professor Yuan Longping, who is known as China's "father of the hybrid rice," described this new development at a new rice exhibition in Hunan, Hunan Daily reported on Monday. "We've seen a breakthrough in rice seed breeding, in removing genes containing or absorbing cadmium in the parent seeds. And, if they are clean, then the rice seed is clean," said Yuan. Media have been reporting, since back in 2013, that the soil in many of China's key rice-producing regions contains high levels of cadmium, lead, arsenic and other harmful heavy metals.

The latest figures from the Environmental Protection and Land and Resources ministries show about 16 percent of China's land is polluted by cadmium, arsenic, lead, mercury and other heavy metals. With the improvement in the standard of living, we need to place emphasis on the quality, and not just the quantity, of rice, as opposed to the past century, when the focus was merely on quantity to meet basic food demands, Yuan said in a recent documentary, Huihuang Zhongguo or "Brilliant China."Yuan's new achievement in cadmium removal will most likely help reverse the domestic problem of crops containing heavy metals, said the Hunan Daily report. Newspaper headline: Scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1068509.shtml

LCCI hails Bosan for ban on tomato import from India 26.09.2017 | UkrAgroConsult Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry (LCCI) on Monday appreciated the announcement of Federal Minister for National Food Security & Research Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan not to import tomatoes from India and termed it a step in right direction.LCCI President Abdul Basit stated here that Sikandar Hayat Bosan deserved appreciation as this step would encourage the local farmer to grow more, besides saving huge foreign exchange. He added the country had all resources to feed the population therefore local grower should be facilitated to the maximum and their issues should be resolved on priority.

Abdul Basit urged the government to add to the cropped area to avoid any crisis-like situation, asserting, "We cannot afford to stay where we are today in terms of cropped areas and per hectare yield because we are already running well short of per capita food availability."

Though Pakistan's almost 43 percent labour force was dependent upon agriculture, he added, the yield gap in the four major crops of Pakistan was three times from the best producers in the world such as China and Egypt.They said that low yield has contributed to the poverty in rural areas besides forcing country to import agriculture produces to feed its population.

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He cited that fact should be an eye-opener that China produced two times more cotton and wheat per hectare and Egypt produced around three times more rice and sugarcane per hectare as compared to Pakistan.LCCI President said, "Factors which are recommended to improve the yield are through large scale introduction of hybrid seeds and mechanized farming, high efficiently irrigation systems such as drip irrigation and reduction in wastage of crop through introduction of privately owned storage facilities and cold storage facilities."

Abdul Basit said that 21st century belonged to biotechnology and Pakistan had tremendous potential to emerge as Biotechnology leader but to achieve the goal private sector, scientists, researchers and government would have to work hand in hand.He was of the view said that Pakistan's agriculture sector was losing heavily due to insufficient utilization of biotechnology as the magic progress of agriculture sector was only due to Genetically Modified crops.

They said that agriculture sector in Pakistan has a huge potential.It continued to be the single largest and dominant driving force for growth as well as the main source of livelihood for 66 percent of Pakistan's population, but it had always faced two major problems: first, productions per acre were lower than many countries and secondly, around 40 percent of production was wasted in the form of post-harvest losses due to insufficient utilization of biotechnology, he maintained.Abdul Basit said that Pakistan was a sleeping technology giant, the day it got up, Pakistan would be another China. http://www.blackseagrain.net/novosti/lcci-hails-bosan-for-ban-on-tomato-import-from-india

In the Philippines, a Chinese hybrid rice program highlights the 'winwin' policy 26.09.2017 | UkrAgroConsult Three hours from traffic-choked Manila is the Science City of MuĂąoz in the province of Nueva Ecija, a land of lush greenery and known as the center of agricultural research and innovation in the Philippines.

The Rise of Chinese Aid series As China continues to grow as a global power, so too does its footprint on the development sector. Its rise comes at a moment when the status quo is shifting in the aid industry. Traditional standard bearers such as the U.S. and EU may still drive the majority of funds and set the agenda, but protectionist policies and changing domestic priorities are setting in motion significant changes.

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In this special series, Devex examines China's expanding role in aid and development across the globe. From tensions in Ghana to projects in Pakistan, from climate financing to donor partnerships, from individual philanthropy to state-financed investment, this series traces the past, present and future of Chinese aid and development.

Join the conversation on our Facebook discussion forum.

Among the city‘s structures is the Philippine-Sino Center for Agricultural Training (PhilSCAT), launched in 2003 and a result of technical cooperation between China and the Philippines. The program‘s aim is to explore the potential of Chinese hybrid rice varieties in the country, as well as introduce China‘s modernized farming technologies to local farmers. The center is a 10hectare property composed of buildings that serve as a workshop, lodging for Chinese experts and office space for PhilSCAT staff members. Part of the property is an experimental land area for hybrid seed varieties.

While other Chinese aid-funded projects here have come under fire for alleged corruption, PhilSCAT‘s work has avoided such accusations. The center is a rare development program between China and the Philippines. In its office lobby is a wall-to-ceiling painting showing two white birds and a shower of rice grains on Philippine farmers. On the adjacent wall hangs a plaque that says, in Filipino, that the artwork serves as a symbol of friendship between the two nations.

PhilSCAT through the decade The need to rapidly grow more food in the Philippines is dire. With more than 100 million people to feed, the country ranks 13th in the world in terms of population. Prime agricultural land is increasingly being converted to highways, residential areas and commercial centers. In order to address this, the government placed a two-year moratorium on the conversion of 4.7 million hectares agricultural land in 2016. The Department of Agriculture, meanwhile, is eyeing 1 million hectares for hybrid rice production by 2018.

The government believes hybridization is a key element in reaching the Philippines‘ rice selfsufficiency goals. Many agronomists and industry players believe hybrid rice varieties produce higher yields than inbred ones, whose yield performance, they said, had plateaued over the years.

Some hybrid varieties produce twice as much rice per hectare, making them an attractive option for a heavy rice-consuming country such as the Philippines. The country‘s population growth and dwindling space for agriculture due to industrialization have created an imbalance between rice demand and supply and PhilSCAT fits perfectly into the country‘s push for seed hybridization.

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The PhilSCAT center was built with a $5 million grant from China‘s Ministry of Agriculture, and an estimated $2.9 million of counterpart funding from the Philippine government. It is one of the few known Chinese-aid funded projects in the Philippines that come in grant form and whose establishment is far from the showy economic and infrastructure projects China is often known for in countries where it has an aid presence. The project has been renewed twice and is set to continue into its third phase after China‘s Ministry of Commerce approved a new $10 million grant to expand its operations. ―We will build a laboratory to develop super hybrid rice, which we will test for quality, resistance to pests and diseases, and yield,‖ said Dr. Carlos Abon, Jr., head of technology and product development at the center.There are also plans to ―recreate‖ PhilSCAT or set up a satellite branch in Davao Oriental in the island of Mindanao.

Photo by: Jenny Ravelo / Devex In over a decade of operations, PhilSCAT has made a number of breakthroughs. The center was able to identify Chinese hybrid rice lines that can be adapted in the Philippines and were eventually certified by the country‘s National Seed Industry Council as seed varieties. It was also able to produce hybrid seed varieties using local seeds.

The center distributed farm machinery from China to cooperatives in the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Isabela, all in grant form. Its staff members conduct regular technological training and demonstrations for farmers, sometimes in collaboration with experts from the the Central Luzon State University and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), a government research and development entity that creates high-yielding rice varieties, but at a lower cost. Over the years, hundreds of farmers have received training on everything from hybrid rice seed production to modernized ways of rice farming, including the repair and maintenance of farm machinery that was provided by the Philippines‘ Department of Agriculture. Mechanized agriculture is a priority of the President Rodrigo Duterte‘s administration.

Due to its modest budget and set mandate, PhilSCAT‘s contributions to the Philippines‘ goal of rice self-sufficiency has been limited. The center has developed a number of hybrid rice varieties that have received approval from the NSIC, but because of its mandate as a research facility, it has a smaller land area for production.

PhilSCAT has turned to the private sector for assistance in expanding production. For its Mestizo 38 hybrid rice variety, for example, PhilSCAT entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with two seed entities, Prasad Seeds Philippines Inc. and the Davao Oriental Seed Producers Cooperative, to produce and commercialize the said variety.

Private sector involvement in hybrid rice production is common in the Philippines, and is often welcomed by the government given the private sector‘s resources and capacities to produce at a much larger scale. Private sector companies are seen by the government as partners in the push

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for rice self-sufficiency. Industry watchdogs, however, warn of downsides to over-reliance on the private sector. It allows for wider corporate control over the food system. ―Seeds are a political commodity. If you own them, you‘re very powerful,‖ Jean Lugasip, program manager for Visayas and Mindanao at NGO Rice Watch and Action Network (R1), told Devex. R1 advocates more government support for grassroots-led innovation on the research and development of high-yielding, high-quality rice seed varieties.

China‘s tied agricultural aidJoin the conversation on our Facebook discussion forum.

The transfer of Chinese technology in agriculture is not new. In Africa, training centers have been operational for decades. Since the turn of the century, China has regularly launched or incorporated hybrid rice programs in technical cooperation.

This technology transfer, however, has been criticized by civil society organizations and perceived as openings for Chinese business interests, even though China has often labeled such programs as assistance for countries trying to reach rice self-sufficiency.

Genetic Resources Action International, a small international nonprofit that analyzes trends in food systems, captured the business aspect of China‘s hybridization promotion in an article published in 2010. ―It is often not realized that China‘s international hybrid rice activities are almost always led by private Chinese seed companies, and mostly often by one company — LPHT,‖ according to the article. ―Over the years, with the support and blessing of the government, this state-owned company has grown into a major multinational corporation, with 26 subsidiaries, and a listing on the Shenzhen stock exchange, with a large stake now owned by the world‘s fourth-largest seed company, Vilmorin Limagrain of France.‖ The article identifies the different Asian countries — such as Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Myanmar — that import most of the seeds for their hybrid rice programs from China.PhilSCAT‘s case is no different. The parental lines the center has been using to develop hybrid rice varieties come from China‘s Yuan Longping High-Tech Agriculture Co. Ltd. As hybrid seeds lose their vigor when replanted — they won‘t be able to produce the same number of yields — PhilSCAT will require imports of the Chinese hybrid rice lines to continue producing the same hybrid rice varieties. Not only will this create reliance on imports, it is also in contrast to the government‘s goal of rice self-sufficiency, one that is not measured by the ability to meet the country‘s rice demands alone.―Self-sufficiency is about ensuring food being served is safe and that farmers are earning enough for producing them,‖ R1‘s Lugasip said.

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Patricia Bernal, information officer for knowledge management at PhilSCAT said, however, that not all of their varieties were produced using Chinese hybrid rice lines. Mestizo 38, she noted, is produced using local hybrid parental rice lines — and that is done with help from modern technologies and knowledge shared by Chinese experts.―We were able to see and develop local hybrid rice varieties for our own purposes,‖ she said.

Of the 79 hybrid rice varieties currently available in the Philippines and approved by the NSIC, however, it is unclear how many were developed using local versus imported hybrid parental rice lines. Breeders of these varieties — public or private — often don‘t disclose parental lines to the public, said Joanne Caguiat, senior science research specialist and head of the three-line hybrid rice breeding project at PhilRice.

PhilRice and the International Rice Research Institute continue to develop the genetic diversity of local hybrid parental lines. Most of the seven hybrid rice varieties PhilRice was able to develop from 2011 onwards were mostly produced using local hybrid parental lines, said Caguiat. ―The Philippines can produce and develop its own hybrids using local parental lines,‖ Caguiat told Devex. ―It‘s just that China‘s seed lines can produce higher yields. In addition, China has a long and vast research and experience when it comes to hybrid rice production compared with the Philippines.

Locally bred hybrid rice varieties produce 6 tons per hectare on average while those from China can produce as much as 14 tons per hectare, she said. Bernal stressed that under the terms of their agreement with seed companies, hybrid rice varieties developed by the center will need to be sold at a low price given that the variety is cultivated by a public entity.

This means the Indian company, Prasad Seeds, and the Davao Oriental Seed Producers Cooperative will have exclusive rights to market Mestizo 38, but they will have to do so at a rate of 3,800 Philippine pesos ($75) for 18 kilograms of hybrid seeds — good for one hectare. By comparison, private companies usually sell hybrid varieties at PhP4,800 to PhP5,000 (roughly $100) for the same amount of seeds, Bernal said.

This is clearly not the case for other of their cultivated hybrid rice varieties.During PhilSCAT‘s first five years, staff members and experts tested more than 50 Chinese hybrid rice lines on different farms across the country. The goal was to find varieties that could adapt well to local conditions. At the end of this period, scientists were able to select three Chinese hybrid rice lines that would become Mestizo 12, Mestizo 13 and Mestizo 14 rice varieties in the Philippines.

But for all its efforts, PhilSCAT did not get to keep any of the three hybrid rice varieties. Yuan Longping High-Tech, which supplied the Chinese hybrid rice seeds PhilsCAT tested, sold them to the private sector, said PhilSCAT‘s Abon. Mestizo 12 was procured by vegetable seed

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producer Allied Botanical Corp. Mestizo 13 was sold to Pioneer, a U.S.-owned hybrid rice seed company.

Abon said he doesn‘t know what happened to Mestizo 14 or what the terms for selling the two other hybrid rice varieties. He said PhilSCAT didn‘t get any royalties from both sales. ―I don‘t know why. They said there was no Memorandum of Agreement [barring Longping from selling the varieties],‖ he told Devex in Filipino.

Bernal agreed.―We can‘t run after it since there weren‘t any signed MOAs,‖ she told Devex. She did say the negotiations were under the guidance and supervision of PhilSCAT‘s Chinese codirector, Cheng Liangji.Mestizo 14, it turns out, is also now with Longping-Allied Hybrid Research and Development Inc., a merger between Yuan Longping High-Tech and Allied Botanical. It has exclusive distribution rights for Mestizo 14 in the Philippines.

Bernal said Yuan Longping High-Tech has also ventured into seed production in the Philippines as they now know the areas and networks where PhilSCAT conducted technology demonstrations and adaptability trials for hybrid seed varieties.

Different project, same rhetoric Activities at PhilSCAT underscore a familiar perception often associated with Chinese assistance: mixing aid with commercial interests.China is known to use development assistance for diplomacy, as well as business. It is not uncommon for Chinese-funded projects to be contracted to Chinese companies or state-owned enterprises. Materials used for infrastructure projects come from China, and the government often insists on hiring its own experts on any of these projects and programs.

In PhilSCAT‘s case, materials for the buildings in the 10-hectare property came from China, as did the hybrid seed varieties they tested, the machinery they use for farming, and the experts who conduct hybrid testing and machinery training.

Dennis Trinidad, professor of international relations at De La Salle University in Manila, explains the logic behind China‘s strategy: ―The main concern [of China] is to simply look for opportunities for its state-owned enterprises.

So, if there‘s a state-owned enterprise that would want to get the contract, the Chinese government is willing to finance. And this is because the nature of the project is tied. It‘s always tied. And the projects are always awarded to a Chinese company,‖ he told Devex. ―It‘s primarily business. Chinese state-owned enterprises get contracts because of Chinese assistance, so imagine, that‘s a huge [sum of] money.‖ Trinidad said it is ―always beneficial‖ for the Philippines to have a wide variety of financing sources given its immense development needs. But given the corruption often linked to Chinese

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aid programs, he emphasized the importance due diligence in recipients‘ contracts and engagements with the nontraditional donor. ―It‘s up to the recipient country. [If they don‘t provide due diligence], then, basically, China will just implement. Then after implementing, they will run. After they get the money, they will run,‖ he said.

The Philippines‘ due diligence practices will be tested as several Chinese-funded projects are set to be implemented in the country in the next few years. President Duterte secured a multibillion aid package and several investment projects during his visit to Beijing in 2016. Some of these ventures are in the area of agriculture — hybrid rice production even — but many of them are huge infrastructure projects worth billions of dollars.

PhilSCAT‘s case, however, exemplifies China‘s win-win approach to development.―The assistance provided was tied to Chinese agricultural equipment. It was also an opportunity to promote Chinese technology in agriculture,‖ Trinidad said.

He noted that very few donor countries under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Development Assistance Committee provide technical assistance on agriculture because many of them have little or no experience in rice cultivation. China has a vast resources in this area.―It's a win win for the Philippines obviously because there is a need to increase our agricultural productivity and self-sufficiency,‖ he added.

PhilSCAT‘s Abon agrees. The center comes with strings attached, such as its right to sell the hybrid rice varieties Mestizo 12, 13 and 14, whose profits could have been in the range of millions of dollars. But he insists that the Philippines has benefited massively, though not always in monetary terms. Chinese assistance was key in training researchers and farmers on modernized hybrid rice production and farming technologies. ―When it comes to rice, they are helpful,‖ he said. But of course some of their deals, he noted, ―involve large sums of money.‖ The grassroots organizations Devex reached out to — those working with and for the benefit of farmers — remain wary.

Cris Panerio, national coordinator for Magsasaka at Siyentipiko para sa Pag-unlad ng Agrikultura, a farmer-led network composed of people‘s organizations, NGOs and scientists ―working towards the sustainable use and management of biodiversity through farmers‘ control of genetic and biological resources, agricultural production and associated knowledge,‖ admit they are not familiar with PhilSCAT and its work, but they are against the generally aggressive push for hybridization in the country.

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―The common argument with hybrids is that they produce higher yields and are necessary for rice self-sufficiency,‖ he said. ―But hunger in rural areas is not a function of production, but a function of distribution.‖ The approach to the Philippines‘ agricultural problem should be holistic and not entirely just about technologies. Until then, the impact of such development projects will remain minimal, Paneiro said. But with the Philippine government‘s continued push for hybridization and mechanized farming, programs such as China‘s agricultural assistance is likely to continue and expand. http://www.blackseagrain.net/novosti/in-the-philippines-a-chinese-hybrid-rice-program-highlights-thewin-win-policy

Rice worth US$ 223.937mn exported in two months IM AD U D D I N

S EP 2 6 T H, 2 0 1 7 1 5 :1 7

ISLAMABAD: Rice worth US$ 223.937 million has been exported during the first two months

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of current financial year.

During the period from July-August, 2017 rice exports from the country grew by 40.36 percent as compared to the exports of the same period of last year, according the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. In last two months around 428,993 metric tons of rice worth US$ 223.937 million was exported as compared to the exports of 380,861 metric tons valuing US$ 159.543 million, it added. Meanwhile, the exports of basmati rice grew by 10.35 percent and about 59,433 metric tons of basmati rice worth US$ 62.741 million was exported as compared to the exports of 59,192 metric tons valuing US$ 56.857 million of same period last year.

The exports of rice other than basmati also witnessed an increase of 58.98 percent, around 369.580 metric tons of rice costing US$ 161.198 million was exported as compared to the exports of 251,669 metric tons worth US$ 102.888 million of last year. On month on month basis, rice exports from the country grew by 53 percent in August, 2017 as compared to the same month of last year, the data reveled. About 227,998 metric tons of rice worth US$ 116.041 million exported in August as compared to the exports of 146,769 metric tons valuing US$ 75.569 million of same period last year.

Meanwhile, basmati rice worth US$ 86.290 million was exported last month, which grew by 2.15 percent as compared to the same month of last year. Exports of basmati rice was recorded at 28,482 metric tons in the month of August as compared to the exports 30,446 metric tons of same period last year.

During the period from July-August 2017, food group exports of the country increased by 30.6 percent as compared to the exports of the same period of last year. Country earned US$ 512.321 million by exporting different food commodities during first two-months of current financial year as compared to the earnings of the corresponding period of last year http://www.brecorder.com/2017/09/26/371564/rice-worth-us-223-937mn-exported-in-two-month/

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Call for adoption of modern agri tech LAHORE (Staff Reporter): The government should make the regulatory system simple and easier so that farmers may get access to the modern agriculture technology. Although the government has taken various steps on technology adoption, but still efforts are required to change the traditional outdated techniques in the field of agriculture.

Dr Siang Hee TAN, a leading agricultural scientist and executive director of CropLife Asia, expressed these views in an interaction with media persons on Tuesday. Dr Hee is currently visiting Pakistan on an invitation from CropLife Pakistan Association and is scheduled to meet key policy-makers, regulators, government officials, industry and the scientific community. ―We praise the government of Pakistan‘s vision and policy-position on technology adoption, especially relating to biotechnology. The establishment of more than 30 biotechnology research institutions is a testament to the government‘s commitment towards promoting biotech crop solutions,‖ he said.

Dr Hee was of the view that Pakistan‘s growing population, climate change, scarcity of water and changing lifestyles continue to pose challenges to the food security. In order to address this emergent challenge, he stressed the need to promote sustainable means to grow food and embrace technological innovations that enabled the same.

Based in Singapore, CropLife Asia is operating in 91 countries with generous support from prestigious global enterprises like; Bayer, Monsanto, Dupont, Syngenta, etc. This global federation nurtures technological solutions to enrich the plant-science industry in pursuit of sustainability in agriculture, while it advocates international developments for crop-protection, seeds and agricultural biotechnology.

While sharing his assessment of the present regulatory environment in Pakistan, Dr Hee emphasized the importance of an independent, science-based, transparent and predictable

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regulatory regime that would enable farmers to fully reap its benefits. He also urged regulators to develop better synergies with their international counterparts and benefit from knowledgesharing through data-transportability arrangements. ―The best-practices being adopted across the Asia region include allocation of adequate resources for staffing and capacity-building of regulatory bodies along with the deployment of modern agriculture technologies and progressive-farming methods. Rules and processes are being made more conducive to agricultural growth, through close consultation with the experts of this sector,‖ he said http://nation.com.pk/business/27-Sep-2017/newsbrief

Malaysia‘s rice production self-sufficiency level at 72% 26 Sep 2017 9:10PM

Malaysia's rice production has seen an increase from 1.9 million tonnes in 1990 to 3.5 million tonnes last year. – EPA pic, September 26, 2017.RICE production in the country has hit 72% of the nation's self-sufficiency level, compared with the target of 80%.Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the 80% target sufficed as 20% of consumers did

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not opt for locally produced rice.―It is normal for 10% to 15% of consumers in countries where rice is the staple to not opt for locally produced rice. Depending on their taste, they might prefer Siamese rice, fragrant rice and others.

"If the self-sufficiency level is at 100%, where are we going to send the excess stock? ―If we want to export to other countries, is our rice competitive enough to compete in the international market?‖ he said after opening the National Padi Conference 2017 in Kuala Lumpur today.

He said productivity in rice production must increase to meet the 80% target, noting that production had increased from 1.9 million tonnes in 1990 to 3.5 million tonnes last year.He said Malaysia should also focus on products based on high-quality rice, like beauty creams, which had a huge export potential.

On a separate matter, Shabery said the ministry was assessing the losses suffered by padi farmers in Kedah due to the latest round of flooding in the state."About 700ha of padi fields were affected. We will find a way to help the affected farmers based on the existing formula.‖ – Bernama, September 26, 2017 http://www.themalaysianinsight.com/s/16144/

Mid-South weed scientists compare notes on dicamba, new rice herbicides Academic weed scientists from Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana discuss research findings from the current year.

Ford Baldwin | Sep 27, 2017 From the time I began my career at the University of Arkansas, there has been a fall meeting called DWWIGT or Delta Weed Workers Informal Gettogether. The academic weed scientists from Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana would gather to informally discuss research findings from the current year.

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In the earlier years it was mostly a discussion about new herbicide candidates. Since there aren‘t many of those any more, the discussion is now more on current topics. No ―outsiders‖ are allowed, so when I retired in 2002 they kicked me out! However, when things started heating up last year, the young folks decided maybe it wouldn‘t be so bad to have a mentor, so I was invited back and attended the past two. I have had a ball.

The main thing I can say is these young weed scientists are so much sharper and better trained than my generation — there is no comparison. Much of the discussion is over my head and the only thing I can ever offer is a little experience.

This year‘s meeting was just held and, of course, the hot topic was dicamba. After all of the discussion, it was obvious that scientists from each state agreed that volatility was playing a significant role in the damages to soybean and other vegetation observed in 2017.

Most agreed that the newer dicamba formulations may be less volatile than the older formulations, but volatility remains a significant issue with them.

It was obvious that I am not the only scientist who believes volatiles moving in inversions played a significant role in the landscape effect observed in the Delta this year.

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It was also interesting to listen to members from each state discuss their number of ―official‖ complaints and how the different regulatory agencies determined what constituted a complaint.

Several commented that if their states used the same method as the Arkansas Plant Board, their numbers would be much higher and closer to the Arkansas numbers.

New rice herbicides There was a nice discussion on new rice herbicides at the meeting. There is a lot of excitement on all of the new things coming. The group was unanimous in their feeling that Provisia rice is going to provide much-needed help controlling weedy rice and grass weeds.

There was concern expressed over crop injury in certain situations and how it may relate to rates and environmental conditions.

The current variety lags behind in yield potential, but the group felt it could still contribute in severe weed situations. Better varieties will hopefully be coming.

Many in the group felt the new herbicide Loyant is the best-looking rice herbicide to come along perhaps since propanil. It has outstanding activity on aquatics, broadleaves, sedges and barnyardgrass. There was much discussion on what rates would control what weeds.

I am excited about the herbicide but also concerned about potential off-target issues with soybeans. It would seem that herbicide could potentially be more injurious to soybeans than any current rice herbicides. An intense training program had better be in order before launch.

I am concerned that no aerial off-target research has been allowed to this point. Unless our applicators are well-trained on the product, I am afraid there could be a bunch of first-year surprises — which is the last thing we need. http://www.deltafarmpress.com/rice/mid-south-weed-scientists-compare-notes-dicamba-new-riceherbicides

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Punjab mandi board reluctant on market fee hike; key meeting on Oct 11

The funds collected as fees go to the Punjab Rural Development Board for infrastructure, including link roads, which, the government argues, is for the benefit of the farmers.

PUNJAB Updated: Sep 27, 2017 19:50 IST

Gurpreet Singh Nibber Hindusta Times, Chandigarh

Punjab mandi chairman Lal Singh The Punjab government move to increase the market and rural development fees on farm produce sale from the current 2% to 3% — to mop up an additional Rs 900 crore a year — has received cold response from the Punjab State Agricultural Marketing Board, or mandi board.The August 24 decision of the state cabinet awaits clearance from the mandi board, whose directors will discuss the matter on October 11. There is opposition to the move from state farmers, and the mandi board is at the

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centre of it, because it manages procurement of grains and other produce through a network of 1,700 mandis.

The corresponding levy is lower in states such as Rajasthan (1.6%) , Uttar Pradesh (2.4%), and Madhya Pradesh (0.2%).

One of the options on the mandi board‘s mind is to hike the fee only for the dominant crops, wheat and paddy. ―We will implement the government‘s decision, but we will see that farmers‘ interests are not harmed,‖ said the board‘s chairman, former Congress minister Lal Singh. ―In the board meeting of October 11, we will decide whether to implement the hike on all crops or just wheat and paddy.‖ Balbir Singh Rajewal, president of a faction of the Bhartiya Kisan Union, said the enhancement is unjustified because, ―though the fees are levied on the purchaser of the farmers‘ produce, the burden actually falls on the farmers‖. He added, ―This will lead to increase in the costs and dissuades traders from buying from the state,‖ he said.

The funds collected as fees go to the Punjab Rural Development Board for infrastructure, including link roads, which, the government argues, is for the benefit of the farmers.

However, with the cotton crop ready, farmers in south-west Punjab prefer to take it to mandis of Sri Ganganagar (Rajasthan) and Dabwali (Haryana), where the levies are lower. Next, basmati growers are worried and already demanding a rollback as the crop is set to arrive in mandis by the end of October.

The Punjab Basmati Rice Millers‘ Association has said that said big mills set up under the ‗mega project‘ category have been exempted from the market fee, so the business will shift to those. In 2013, the government had abolished both the fees on purchase of basmati, but it was levied again in 2015.

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Wheat and paddy produce are bought mostly by state agencies and the Food Corporation of India (FCI) on behalf of the Centre, while other crops are primarily procured by traders. ―I was made to walk long distances even with my ailing leg, as they moved with me from one location to another for the four days. ―They blew cigarette smoke into my face, choking me in the process, while I had to beg them for water. ―I was fed stale rice meal, which upset my stomach and upon my throwing-up, they threatened that I‘d have to eat my vomit to survive if my children didn‘t meet their N1.5 million ransom demand,‖ she recounted.

According to her, ―when they got N1 million of their N1.5 million demand from my family, they told me it was time to go. They set me on a path and directed that I should keep walking, that my children would pick me on the road. ―After I‘ve trekked for about a kilometre, I saw someone to whom I cried for help. With the phone they gave me, I was able to contact my children.‖ She was found in Awo community, a distance of not less than 50 kilometres from where she was abducted. http://www.tribuneonlineng.com/i-fed-stale-rice-i-begged-water-drink/

Former Thai PM Yingluck sentenced to five years over rice scheme

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Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra arrives at the Constitutional Court in Bangkok on November 4, 2016.

Bangkok, Thailand (CNN)Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who fled the country last month, has been found guilty of dereliction of duty over a controversial rice subsidy scheme.

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She has been sentenced to five years in prison in absentia.Yingluck failed to appear on August 25 as hundreds of her supporters waited outside Thailand's Supreme Court for the scheduled verdict.

At the time, a highly-placed source in Yingluck's Pheu Thai party said she had fled Thailand just before the hearing and was "safe and sound" in Dubai. A warrant was issued for her arrest.

Yingluck Shinawatra's supporters wait outside the Supreme Court for a verdict in her two-year trial, Wednesday, September 27.

Controversial scheme Yingluck had faced up to 10 years in prison for her role in the rice-buying scheme, introduced in 2011, which pledged to pay farmers well above the market rate for their crops.

Critics say the program wasted large amounts of public funds trying to please rural voters, hurting exports and leaving the government with huge stockpiles of rice it couldn't sell.

Yingluck said the subsidy scheme was "beneficial for the farmers and the country" and claims it lost billions of dollars were wrong and motivated by political bias against her.

The verdict was delivered in absentia, after Yingluck fled the country before an earlier court date.

Core support She has maintained a core group of followers since being ousted by a military coup in 2014.

Some were outside the court Wednesday, waiting to hear the verdict, though there were far fewer than the crowds seen spilling over the pavement onto the streets in August.

Then, large numbers of police had prepared for potential protests, depending on the outcome of the two-year trial.

2016: Former Thai PM tells CNN, 'I've never thought of fleeing' 01:51 Yingluck was barred from leaving Thailand without court approval in 2015, when the trial started. When she fled, the court confiscated her bail of 30 million baht ($900,000).

On Tuesday, the Thai junta's leader, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, told reporters that he knew where Yingluck was, and would reveal her whereabouts after September 27, the day of the verdict.

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When she was inaugurated in 2011, Yingluck became Thailand's first female prime minister and its youngest in over 60 years.

She followed her brother Thaksin Shinawatra to the role.

Anti-government protesters, drawn mainly from Bangkok's middle class, royalist establishment, allege that Yingluck was her brother's puppet, who was installed to carry on his work.

Thaksin was overthrown as Prime Minister in a military coup in 2006. He lives in Dubai and London in self-imposed exile to avoid corruption charges.

After the 2014 coup, Yingluck was impeached by Thailand's military-appointed National Legislative Assembly. The ruling barred her from political office for five years.

At the time, Yingluck said she had behaved with integrity and honesty during her time as prime minister.

Amid the outcry over the rice subsidy scandal, Yingluck was investigated by Thailand's National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) for the rice subsidy issue and put on trial. The trial lasted two years. http://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/27/asia/thailand-yingluck-shinawatra-verdict/index.html

Rice And The Private Sector: Asia’s Food-Energy-Water Nexus – Analysis September 28, 2017 RSIS 0 Comment Agriculture, ASEAN, Climate, Diet, Sustainability

By RSIS With global food demand and energy needs increasing amid a potential shortfall in water, the interdependencies between these resources – defined as the water-food-energy nexus – have become the resource scarcity challenge of the 21st century. The pressures are especially acute as Asian the countries rapidly develop. The private sector needs to step in.

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By Stella Liu*

As Asia develops, global food and energy needs are projected to rise dramatically in the upcoming decades. While these two sectors have normally dealt with their challenges in their individual silos, the shared requirement of water, an increasingly scarce resource, to support their growth has inextricably linked them together.

The food sector requires water for agriculture and fossil fuel production, a dominant part of the global energy mix, is highly water-intensive. According to the United Nations, the world is anticipated to face a 40% shortfall in water by 2030. As water becomes more scarce, any action in one sector will have an impact in one or both of the sectors.

Rapid Urbanisation‘s Impact on Water Asia‘s needs for energy, food and water are especially acute as the region rapidly urbanises.

Current energy consumption trends suggest that projected energy demand and supply in Asia can almost double by 2030. To feed the projected additional one billion more people in Asia, food production must make gains in productivity.

For water, an MIT research on economic and population growth and climate change for the next 35 years projected that more than one billion people in Asia may become water-stressed compared to today.

Efficiency gains in the ‗food‘ link of the nexus can influence the outcome of this challenge.

Currently, 90% of the world‘s total production and consumption of rice is located in Asia.

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Developing more water and energy efficient agri-technologies for rice is a key entry point to address the nexus challenge.

Advances in biotechnology and water-conservation agricultural techniques are promising because they use considerably less energy and water resources required by traditional agriculture.

However, public sector investment and research in the agricultural sector have been waning in the past few decades and prioritised below development. As the food-energy-water nexus becomes the forefront of the resource scarcity debate, the agriculture sector can no longer be ignored.

Water for Agriculture Rice is the world‘s largest irrigated cereal, covering 29% of the total irrigated crop area and almost half of the irrigated cereals area. Research into making rice production more waterefficient yet productive has yielded promising results. IRRI, the International Rice Research Institute, has conducted research into applying precision agriculture with rice paddies.

Precision agriculture is the optimal and precise application of inputs into the fields based on data or best practices. One example is the Alternative Wetting and Drying (AWD) method; Irrigation water is applied a few days after the disappearance of water so the field gets routinely flooded and non-flooded rather than continuously flooded.

The University of California Davis this year analysed 56 studies on AWD. It discovered that overall, the farms who implemented AWD experienced a small yield reduction of 5.4% with a water usage reduction of 23.4%. The findings highlighted the potential of AWD to reduce water inputs with rice without jeopardising yields.

Energy for Agriculture The energy needs for food production are expected to rise to meet growing food demand in Asia.

As agriculture becomes more productive and industrialised, the input needs for fossil fuels increase along the value chain: Developing countries use less than half of the energy input for agriculture compared to industrialised countries. To meet growing food demand around the world, agriculture needs to become more ‗energy-smart‘ in developing countries, while still making significant gains in productivity.

Impact assessment studies on biotechnology crops by Brookes and Barfoot demonstrate the potential for these technologies to increase productivity while using minimal energy. Its tracking of different biotech crops from 1996-2014 found that the adoption of biotechnology allowed

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farmers to increase their yields while using no-till and/or reduced till farming and less herbicides and insecticides use.

As tractor fuel usage for tilling is reduced, soil quality is enhanced and more carbon remains in the soil. Based on savings arising from the rapid adoption of reduced tillage and no tillage biotechnology crop farming systems in North and South America, an extra 6707 million kg of soil carbon is estimated to have been saved in 2012. This is equivalent to taking 10.9 million cars off the road for one year.

Way Forward for Asia In ASEAN, there have been diminished investments in public sector agricultural research and development over the years as development in other areas took priority. There has been, however, recognition that technological change can no longer be advanced by the public sector alone. Currently half of the agricultural R&D comes from the government in ASEAN and for some countries like Malaysia and Myanmar it‘s all of it.

Figures from the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Asia Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI) demonstrate that agricultural R&D spending has been either stagnating or dropping from 1996 to 2008. Incentivising private sector investment can fill that gap.

Given the scale and urgency of these challenges, a mix of traditional and innovative private sector incentives is needed. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) 2013 Report on food security provided a few traditional recommendations. Intellectual property rights, trade and foreign investment liberalisation, advance purchase rewards and rewards are a few mechanisms that the public sector can use.

G20 Recommendation For a more innovative approach, the G20 summit in 2010 launched the idea of ―pull mechanisms.‖ Rather than ―push‖ mechanisms that strengthen the supply of research, this type strengthens demand by fostering markets for innovations to ―pull‖ or draw private investors.

Since then, AgResults, a US$110 million multilateral initiative, has launched a few pilots and initial results are promising. For instance, in Kenya, post-harvest grain losses in the developing world led to lowered food insecurity rates for smallholder farmers.

AgResults addressed this by creating a competition to provide economic incentives for companies to design and sell on-farm storage devices for smallholder farmers. Companies that sold the greatest amount of storage capacity received the largest proportion of the prize. In the first year, the companies sold 113,000 on-farm storage devices.

The competition encouraged companies to compete and create a new market that did not exist before and provided smallholders with a wider range of options. The key to address the nexus

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challenge in Asia is to focus on future innovative ―pull mechanisms‖ and traditional private sector incentives on more energy and water efficient agri-technologies for rice. *Stella Liu is a visiting US Fulbright Research Fellow at the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies (NTS Centre), S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore. http://www.eurasiareview.com/28092017-rice-and-the-private-sector-asias-food-energy-water-nexusanalysis/

Fatima Fertilizer orgranises Dhaan Seminar in Gujranwala Gujranwala : Recently, Fatima Fertilizer in association with Government of Punjab and Rice Research Institute Kala Shah Kaku orgranised ‗Dhaan Seminar‘ in Gujranwala.

The seminar brought together more than 3000 farmers. Chief guests included Secretary Agriculture, DG Agriculture, DG Agriculture Extension, DG Agriculture Research, President Kissan Ittehad, MNA Zafarwall, Hafizabad and Gujranwala.

The seminar focused on latest rice production technology, pect control and balanced use of Sarsabz Nitrate Fertilizers.

Secretary agriculture in his speech to farmers asked them to start incorporating latest technology as that was the only way their prosperity could be guaranteed. For this purpose, the government of Punjab is setting up 72 Hi-Tech Mechanization Service Centers in partnership with Fatima Fertilizers all over Punjab.

Latest agriculuture farm machinery and services will be rented out to farmers through these centers. At the end of the program, Fatima Fertilizer distributed 4 Umra tickets, 1 tractor, 2 motorcycles and other such high value gifts among farmers through lucky draws.** https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/233017-Fatima-Fertilizer-orgranises-Dhaan-Seminar-in-Gujranwala

Rice Seed Market: Business Opportunities, Current Trends, Market Forecast & Global Industry Analysis by 2022

By Rashmi Saraf September 27, 2017

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Rice Seed Rice Seed Market Report provides an analytical assessment of the prime challenges faced by this Market currently and in the coming years, which helps Market participants in understanding the problems they may face while operating in this Market over a longer period of time. In this report, the Global Rice Seed Industry value in 2017 and expected value by the end of 2022 along growth between 2017 and 2022 is mentioned. Various Global Rice Seed industry leading players are studied with respect to their company profile, product portfolio, capacity, price, cost and revenue.

Get a Sample of Rice Seed Market report from – https://www.marketreportsworld.com/enquiry/request-sample/10569987

The Key Players that are included in the Global Rice Seed Market report are DuPont Pioneer Bayer Nuziveedu Seeds Kaveri Mahyco RiceTec Krishidhan Rasi Seeds

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JK seeds Syngenta

Have any Query Regarding the Global Rice Seed Market Report? Contact usat: https://www.marketreportsworld.com/enquiry/pre-order-enquiry/10569987 Various policies and news are also included in the Global Rice Seed Market report. This includes labour cost, depreciation cost, raw material cost and other costs. The production process is analysed with respect to various aspects like, manufacturing plant distribution, capacity, commercial production, R&D status, raw material source and technology source. By Product Analysis the Global Rice Seed Industry is Segmented into Glass Fibre, Carbon Fibre and by End Users/Applications Analysis the Global Rice Seed Market is segmented into: Consumer Goods and Others.

Price of Report (single User Licence): $ 3500 Get Discount on Rice Seed Market Report at: https://www.marketreportsworld.com/Discount/10569987 Further in the Global Rice Seed Industry research report, following points Production, Sales and Revenue, Supply and Consumption and other analysis are included along with in-depth study of each point. Production of the Global Rice Seed is analysed with respect to different regions, types and applications. Here, price analysis of various Global Rice Seed Industry key players is also covered. Both, sales and revenue are studied for the different regions of the global Rice Seed Market. Another major aspect, price, which plays important part in the revenue generation, is also assessed in this section for the various regions. In continuation with sales, this section studies supply and consumption for the Global Rice Seed Industry. This part also sheds light on the gap between supply and consumption. Apart from the aforementioned information, trade and distribution analysis for the Global Rice Seed Market, contact information of major manufacturers, suppliers and key consumers is also given. In continuation with this data sale price is for various types, applications and region is also included. Additionally, type wise and application wise consumption figures are also given.

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Regions covered in the Global Rice Seed Market report include: North America, Japan, Europe, India, China and Southeast Asia. http://newshawktime.com/rice-seed-market-business-opportunities-current-trends-market-forecast-globalindustry-analysis-by-2022/

United States Rice Starch Market Research, Key Players, Growth Opportunities, Outlook SEPTEMBER 27, 2017 BY AMIT PAWAR Forecasts Report by 2017-2022 United States Rice Starch Market Report provides detailed market segment level data on the international market. The report addresses forecast and growth patterns by company, regions and type or application from 2017 to 2022.

The United States Rice Starch market report introduce incorporates analysis of definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure. Besides this, the United States Rice Starch industry report also consists of development trends, competitive landscape analysis, and key regions development status.

The report starts with a basic United States Rice Starch market overview. It also acts as a vital tool to industries active across the value chain and for new entrants by enabling them to take advantage of the opportunities and develop business strategies. Key Players: BENEO, Ingredion, AGRANA, Bangkok starch, Thai Flour, WFM Wholesome Foods and Many Others‌.

Get Sample PDF @ http://www.360marketupdates.com/enquiry/request-sample/10514984 United States Rice Starch market report helps the companies to better understand the market trends and to grasp opportunities and articulate critical business strategies. Also includes company profiles of market key players contact information, gross capacity, product details of each firm, price, and cost are covered. United States Rice Starch Market by Product Type: Cosmetic Grade, Food Grade, Pharmaceutical Grade Major Applications of United States Rice Starch Market: Baked Goods & Bakery Fillings, Confectionery Coatings & Liquorice, Dairy Desserts & Yoghurt, Dairy Fruit Preparations, Body Powder, Dry Shampoo, Other.

This section of the United States Rice Starch market research report includes analysis of major raw materials suppliers, manufacturing equipment suppliers, major players of the United States Rice Starch industry, key consumers, and supply chain relationship. The contact information is also provided along with this analysis. Several important areas are covered in this report. Some key points among them: – United States Rice Starch Market Competition by Manufacturers

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United States Rice Starch Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2011-2016) United States Rice Starch Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Regions (2011-2016) United States Rice Starch Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type United States Rice Starch Market Analysis by Application United States Rice Starch Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis United States Rice Starch, Distributors/Traders Market Effect Factors Analysis United States Rice Starch Market Forecast (2016-2022).

Along with this, analysis of depreciation cost, manufacturing cost structure, manufacturing process is also carried out. Price, cost, and gross analysis of the United States Rice Starch market is also included in this section.

For Any Query on United States Rice Starch market, Speak to Expert@ http://www.360marketupdates.com/enquiry/pre-order-enquiry/10514984 The United States Rice Starch market research report shed light on Foremost Regions: The West, Southwest, The Middle Atlantic, New England, The South, The Midwest. The United States Rice Starch industry research report is a valuable source of guidance and direction. It is helpful for established businesses, new entrants in the market as well as individuals interested in the market.

The United States Rice Starch market report provides important statistics on the existing state of the said market http://www.satprnews.com/2017/09/27/united-states-rice-starch-market-research-key-playersgrowth-opportunities-outlook-and-forecasts-report-by-2017-2022/

LBP to lend at 6% per annum for rice production September 27, 2017, 10:01 PM

By Zac B. Sarian

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The Land Bank of the Philippines will soon extend loans for rice production at the hitherto unheard of interest rate of 6% per annum. This is under what it calls its ―corporative‖ rice production program which will be initially implemented in Bansud, Oriental Mindoro.A

memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed on Sept. 25 between Land Bank and the Agri-Tech Integrated Services Co. (ATISCO), formalizing the two agencies‘ cooperation in implementing a land consolidation scheme that will allow the mechanized production of rice under professional management.The MOU was signed by Land Bank president Alex Buenaventura and ATISCO chairman Feliciano L. Torres. ATISCO is a member of the Yazaki Torres Manufacturing Inc. group located at the export processing zone in Calamba City.

LAND BANK RICE PRODUCTION FINANCING AT 6% PER ANNUM – Under the ―corporative‖ rice production program of Land Bank, Agri-Tech Integrated Services Company (ATISCO) will be able to avail itself of Land Bank loan with a low interest of 6 percent per annum. Under the ―corporative‖ program, lands owned by small farm owners will be consolidated to make it possible to mechanize rice production under professional management. Hybrid varieties will be used but some high-yielding inbred varieties developed by PhilRice will also planted to observe their performance.

In the last two years, ATISCO has established a successful track record of providing services to rice farmers in Mindoro under a scheme where the farmer can engage ATISCO in land preparation for a fee, mechanical rice transplanting, harvesting by machine and then buying he palay at a rate better than the prevailing market price. In their experience in the last four cropping seasons, the farmers were able to increase their net income per hectare to P27,000 compared to their previous net income of P18,000 per hectare by engaging the services of ATISCO.Under the MOU between Land Bank and ATISCO, their collaboration will eventually involve the planting of rice on 500 hectares in Bansud.

No, the 500 hectares which belong to small landowners each owning a few hectares will not necessarily be contiguous. They could be clusters of at least 20 hectares, 50 hectares or bigger. This

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will make it possible to mechanize rice production, according to Dante Delima, chief operating officer of ATISCO.ATISCO will execute a management contract with the landowners so that the company will take full control of operating the consolidated farm lands. The agreement would be for five years, renewable for another five years. Through the financing of Land Bank, ATISCO will take care of every expense in producing rice on the 500 hectares, including seeds, fertilizers and other inputs.The landowner will not do anything, except perhaps monitor the developments in the consolidated lands.

The landowner is assured of P5 per kilo of fresh palay produced at an average of 4.5 tons per hectare.

This means that he will get P22,500 per hectare per cropping.

If the yield is lower than 4.5 tons, ATISCO will still give the landowner P22,500 per hectare. If the yield is higher, say 6 tons per hectare, the landowner will then get P30,000 per hectare.Based on their experience, Delima said they have already figured out that they could produce polished rice at P27 per kilo. And they can sell the rice at P36 per kilo for a margin of P9 per kilo. The rice produced will be absorbed by the canteen of Yazaki Torres which has more than 13,000 employees. In case, the production exceeds the requirements of Yazaki Torres, they are targeting the locators at the nearby Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) as their market.

ATISCO could also derive additional income from its rice milling operations. The rice bran could be sold as ingredient for livestock feed. The rice hull could be turned into carbonized rice hull. And the rice straw could be baled for feeding to cattle and other farm animals.Delima is also looking at planting mungo after harvest of rice. The company will take care of all the expenses. But the landowners who would like to do the harvesting will get half of the harvest as their share. ATISCO is not only interested in the seeds. Mungo, being a legume, can enrich the fertilizty of the farm.

Delima does not expect the project to take off immediately. Land Bank will still have a lot to in social preparation in the targeted communities. They have already started to conduct consultations to explain the scheme so that the farmers will understand what the project is all about. Of course, the local government officials are also involved in the social preparation of the project.In the meantime, while waiting for the actual start of the consolidation project, ATISCO will already put in place its machinery in the target areas. The farmers may then engage the services of ATISCO in land preparation, planting and harvesting of their rice crops. That will assure them of the capability of ATISCO in doing what it promises it can do.Now, you might say.

Why can‘t the small farmers enjoy the 6% annual interest that Land Bank is giving ATISCO? That is because the funds are coursed through the cooperatives which have to charge service fees and other charges. In the case of ATISCO, the bank is directly transacting business with a rice producer. Besides, LBP president Alex Vergara is not totally happy about many cooperatives that have reneged on their mandate to serve their members. In fact, he said, a total of P1.6 billion lent to cooperatives was written off from the accounts of mismanaged co-ops https://newsbits.mb.com.ph/2017/09/27/lbp-to-lend-at-6-per-annum-for-rice-production/

Corruption eating away relief for the public 12:00 AM, September 28, 2017 / LAST MODIFIED: 01:21 PM, September 28, 2017 Coarse varieties of rice were on sale for Tk 50-54 per kg in the capital's retail markets last week—Tk 10 higher than the price only a month ago.

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Eresh Omar Jamal A report titled ―World Food Security and Nutrition Situation-2017‖, brought out jointly by a number of UN organisations, estimates that some 25 million Bangladeshis, mostly women and children, suffer from malnutrition. This is not to say that the overall food and nutrition situation here has not improved over the years.

In fact, it is quite the contrary, as evident from the fact that Bangladesh has witnessed stunted growth among children (aged under 5) go down from 45 percent to 36.1 percent between 2005 and 2016. Despite the progress, natural calamities like floods and landslides are having a disastrous effect on the nutrition situation, which is likely to be more severe this time around, considering the extent of damage caused by floods this year.

According to the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), coarse varieties of rice were on sale for Tk 50-54 per kg in the capital's retail markets last week—Tk 10 higher than the price only a month ago.

With rice prices soaring across the country in recent months, following widespread fears of rice shortages fuelled largely by the fact that massive amounts of agricultural losses were endured, the government has rightly started to intervene in the market recently by selling the staple at a subsidised price under a nationwide Open Market Sale (OMS) programme. Although, only after wrongly delaying from intervening.

Food Ministry sources, meanwhile, said that the intervention was not possible earlier because of the shortage of rice in public granaries, while also blaming a section of rice millers for deliberately hoarding rice and hiking prices. The Anti-Corruption Commission too has ―received the allegation‖ that traders were hoarding rice in cahoots with ―some government officials‖, which it has said it will ―inquire into‖.

Consequently, their attempts to defraud the public also allegedly included dissemination of a confusing letter that said that India had stopped exporting rice to Bangladesh, which was later cleared to have been fake by the government. When seen from a broader perspective, this allegation is much more serious than it initially seems. At a time when the nation had barely recovered from one massive disaster (floods) and was struggling to deal with another crisis (the Rohingya influx), that special-interest groups will attempt to destabilise the rice market— endangering the national interest—for a quick buck should not be taken lightly.

Thus, the government should carefully investigate the matter and transparently deal with its findings. However, what none of this can excuse is the government's own failure to pre-empt a situation in which it would significantly have to intervene in the market in order to stabilise the price of a commodity as essential as rice.

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One further indicator of this is the shelving of the government's rice distribution programme to the ultra-poor which it had drummed up for quite some time. The government suddenly postponed the plan as it would require 4.5 lakh tonnes of food-grains, while to operate the OMS programme beyond the district-level for a month, it would also need 50,000 to 100,000 tonnes of rice; whereas, the public food stock had 3.45 lakh tonnes of rice only and 1.21 lakh tonnes were still in the import pipeline, information from food ministry officials revealed.

This and other similar failures have prompted even rice traders to allege that ―the food ministry didn't pay any attention to a fast depleting government food stock, and [had] responded late to the urgency of replenishing the rice reserve after the Haor deluge.‖ And to blame the government for ―the delay in reducing the high import duty on rice‖ and for refusing ―to give better price for homegrown rice‖, only to procure the staple later ―from abroad at much higher prices‖ (Govt wasn't alert to depleting stock, September 20, The Daily Star).

One leading private rice importer said that had the government reduced duty on rice imports ―right after the flash flood-induced crop loss, a situation like this would not have arisen in the first place.‖ And so, this is the crux of the current crisis. While it is understandable that the government has had to deal with a number of crises all at the same time, what is inexcusable is the food ministry's failure to perform its primary and specific duty. This too demands a proper investigation as much as the circulation of the fake letter does.

And, finally, there is the matter of what has been happening since then which, bar none, deserves the greatest and most urgent attention; particularly given that it is still rectifiable. And, that is, corruption in the OMS programme, including in its sale and distribution.

One incident of this was recorded in Rajshahi's Durgapur upazila on September 20, where three dealers were alleged to have falsely shown on paper the sale of rice at the subsidised OMS rate. ―Taking advantage of lax monitoring by food officials,‖ the dealers were alleged to have sold three tonnes of rice—the total allocation of OMS for the day—on the black market (one can only assume at a higher price for personal profit) in complete disregard for the plight of ordinary citizens and the intent of the initiative (Dealers go rogue with OMS rice, September 22, The Daily Star).

One of the monitoring officials had even admitted signing the document confirming the sale, under pressure from someone named Rustom, who also happens to have the ―blessings of local leaders of the ruling party‖. No doubt, there are many more cases of similar corrupt practices happening regularly that are going completely unreported.

Given the settings, while it is perhaps illogical to ask the government to address each and every case of such corruption individually, what it can do is take exemplary measures against the corrupt in cases that are brought to its notice—particularly when its own party men are involved—to show that no one should feel emboldened enough to chance their luck. Also, assigning responsible and non-partisan monitoring officials at the points of sale is as paramount as properly informing the public about where and how they can easily obtain OMS rice—that has been dismally lacking so far.

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It has been a difficult year for the government with so much going on, but an even tougher one for those who have lost everything and now have nothing going for them. In some of the cases, the government did well and meant well, but in others, it made a hash of things. In some of the instances it was a handful of individuals at fault, but in others, the government's lack of action that allowed it.

Right now, those who have nothing going for them cannot afford to have the government make a hash of things any longer, nor its lack of action to alleviate their sufferings. http://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/the-overton-window/corruption-eating-away-relief-the-public1468633 http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/liquor/northeast-indias-ethnic-alcoholicbeverages-can-be-robust-industry-researchers/articleshow/60852672.cms

Chinese scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice Source:Global Times Published: 2017/9/27 21:28:40 Scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated riceA prominent Chinese rice expert recently announced that he and his research team have made a breakthrough in removing cadmium from rice, which could make the grain safer and cleaner.Rice contamination of this kind could lead to kidney failure or bone cancer, according to the website of agriculture authority in Huaihua, Central China's Hunan Province. The website added that the problem of rice contaminated by cadmium is obvious in Hunan. Professor Yuan Longping, who is known as China's "father of the hybrid rice," described this new development at a new rice exhibition in Hunan, Hunan Daily reported on Monday.

We've seen a breakthrough in rice seed breeding, in removing genes containing or absorbing cadmium in the parent seeds. And, if they are clean, then the rice seed is clean," said Yuan. edia have been reporting, since back in 2013, that the soil in many of China's key rice-producing regions contains high levels of cadmium, lead, arsenic and other harmful heavy metals.

The latest figures from the Environmental Protection and Land and Resources ministries show about 16 percent of China's land is polluted by cadmium, arsenic, lead, mercury and other heavy metals. With the improvement in the standard of living, we need to place emphasis on the quality, and not just the quantity, of rice, as opposed to the past century, when the focus was merely on quantity to meet basic food demands, Yuan said in a recent documentary, Huihuang Zhongguo or "Brilliant China."Yuan's new achievement in cadmium removal will most likely help reverse the domestic problem of crops containing heavy metals, said the Hunan Daily report. Newspaper headline: Scientists spot genetic way to clean up contaminated rice

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http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1068509.shtml

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