24th July, 2014 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine1

Daily Rice E-Newsletter by Rice Plus Magazine www.ricepluss.
com
News and R&D Section mujajhid.riceplus@gmail.com Cell # 92 321 369 2874

24
th
July , 2014

TOP Contents - Tailored for YOU
Latest News Headlines

Nigeria Will Produce Additional 22m Tonnes Of Food
By 2015
Mechanised transplanter to boost pokkali farming
Word of the Week: Poison Rice
Thailands Rice Scheme Post-Mortem
500,000-tonne hike in Philippine rice imports set
Thai rice growers may receive pensions
Commerce to propose resuming rice sale next month
Rice Farmer Association to ask government to set
medium rice price higher
Odisha govt to provide 6.23 lakh PLO families 25 kgs
of rice at Rs/kg from next month
UPDATE 2-Indian monsoon revival keeps rain above
average
Five percent of rice missing from government stockpiles
Kenya's decision of increasing import duty affects rice industry

Daily Rice E-Newsletter by Rice Plus Magazine www.ricepluss.com

News Detail
Nigeria Will Produce Additional 22m Tonnes Of Food By 2015
Ruth Tene Natsa
Jul 24, 2014 |
The struggle to eliminate poverty and hunger through the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) is
positively gaining ground as farmers on various platforms continue to applaud the efforts of President Jonathan
who has assured Nigerians that Nigeria will surpass its food production demand for the year 2014.Agriculture in
Nigeria used to be the mainstay of the economy until oil was discovered and the sector became neglected to the
detriment of the whole nation. Sadly , this state of affairs led to increased poverty, unemployment and famine as
the farming population dwindled.The implementation of the agriculture transformation agenda marked a turning
point as it promised to not only restore the glory of Nigeria through farming but ensure food on the tables of all
Nigerians with enough left over for export.
This was confirmed by the minister of agriculture and rural development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, who said
Nigeria would surpass its target to produce 22 million tonnes of additional food by 2015.desina made this
known on Friday during a media chat on `Self-sufficiency in Rice, in Abuja. According to Akinwumi: When
we started in 2011, our aim was to produce additional 20 million tonnes of food to the existing production, but
as at the end of 2013, 17 million tonnes of additional food had been produced since 2011 and by 2015, 22
million tones of additional food would be produced, he said.Adesina said Nigeria was now the reference point
for agriculture on the continent as the country was rapidly closing food importation gap. He observed that the
impact of the agriculture transformation agenda was noticeable as food import had dropped by N2.5 billion in
the last three years.
According to him, when ATA started in 2011, the land area for rice production was increased by 1.9 million
hectares saying rice varieties known as faro 44 and 52 which was as good as the imported rice had been
introduced to about six million local farmers.Adesina said these varieties could give farmers five to six tonnes
per hectare as to one to two tonnes per hectares hitherto produced by the local grain.He said the intervention of
the President Goodluck Jonathans administration had seen the production of paddy rice grow from four to nine
million tonnes in the last three years. Within the same period, integrated rice mills had also grown from one to
18 in the country with lots of small- scale millers also processing the commodity.He said the ongoing
revolution in the rice sub-sector was adding a lot to the domestic economy of rice producing states which had
increased from10 at the start of the programme, to 22 states today.
The minister noted that a total of N750 billion had been added to the economy of the states, and thousands of
jobs had been created as youths no longer seek cheap temporal jobs during dry season.Adesina described rice
importation as `prodigal economy saying that Nigeria had no business importing rice when rice could be grown
in all parts of the country.He blamed the situation on oil discovery, but acknowledged that the situation was
changing as rice produced in Kebbi was being processed in Lagos, boosting economic relations between the


states and creating wealth and jobs locally.According to him, Nigerian rice was all over the markets and that
Nigerians were consuming it without knowing as they expect the grains to be short, have stones and smell burnt.
He alleged that some companies package Nigerian rice in foreign bags to make them look imported. Adesina
said the ministry was working in collaboration with the federal ministry of finance to set up paddy rice bulky
collection centres where there would be guaranteed price for the commodity.He said that rice importers must
produce or process rice locally before they would be allowed to import to meet the total demand of the
country.On the menace of rice smuggling in to the country, Adesina stressed the need to protect local farmers
by effectively manning the boarders, adding that government was determined to cub the activities of
saboteurs.He attributed the successes recorded in the sub-sector to the support of President Goodluck Jonathan,
and the collaborative efforts of state governments especially their contributions to the Growth Enhancement
Support (GES) Scheme.
He adviced unemployed youths to go into agriculture as people do not eat gas or drink oil but eat food to stay
alive, urging them to form clusters as that would enable them have access to funds set aside by government to
support youths in agriculture.The minister expressed concern on the effects of climate change to agriculture
produce saying that government was interested in proper insurance for farmers.He said the Nigerian
Agricultural Insurance Cooperation (NAIC) had been repositioned to meet the demands of farmers saying,
Government was also putting an insurance programme in place called Farming with Peace which targets
about 10 million farmers.Adesina described agriculture practiced with hoe and cutlass as `punishment, saying
that government was setting up 250 agricultural equipment hiring centres across the country to enable farmers
practice mechanised farming.

Mechanised transplanter to boost pokkali farming
By Express News Service
Published: 24th July 2014 07:46 AM
Last Updated: 24th July 2014 07:46 AM
KOCHI: Cultivation through the mechanised transplanter is becoming a reality in pokkali paddy fields, owing
to the efforts of Kerala Agricultural University (KAU).As trained hands are required Agricultural Research
Station (ARS), Mannuthy, and Rice Research Station (RRS), Vyttila are envisaging a Pokkali Green Army on


the lines of Food Security Army (FSA) concept to ensure sustenance of mechanised agriculture in pokkali
lands.
So far, people had doubts whether mechanised agricultural operations would be possible in marshy pokkali
fields. KAU Vice-Chancellor Dr P Rajendran said, mechanisation is a powerful tool to revive pokkali farming.

The joint efforts launched in 2013 by RRS and ARS have yielded fruits. A combined harvester for Pokkali
fields has also been developed at our Agricultural Engineering College at Tavanur. It is being fine-tuned after
on-field trials.The search for a Pokklai rice transplanter ended with the ARS suggesting walk behind
mechanical transplanter and its successful operation in 25 cents in the pokkali fields under RRS Vyttila last
year. Its head Dr V Sreekumar said, since crop performance was encouraging, mechanized transplanting was
extended to two acres using seedlings raised in pro-trays this year, he said.Dr U Jaikumaran, Head, ARS,
Mannuthy said that transplanting operation using walk behind transplanter was completed in two acres within
five hours. Theres scope for large-scale mechanized transplanting in pokkali fields. The channels and bunds in
pokkali fields will have to be designed so as to facilitate easy movement of machinery. The ARS, which pilots
and propagates FSA concept and aims at establishing Agro Service Centres in all districts with state funding,
has been promoting mechanization of all farming operations.
RRS, Vyttila, has been providing scientific backup for sustaining Pokkali system through exclusive
technologies and a series of high-yielding varieties. It played a key role in obtaining GI tag for Pokkali rice and
has been providing experimental facility for developing ideal machinery for this unique system.Pokkali is a


method of rearing rice and prawns alternately in the fields spread out in Ernakulam, Thrissur and Alappuzha
districts.The over 25,000 hectares of fields have now dwindled to 10,000 hectares. Of this, paddy cultivation is
now being restricted to a mere 1,000 hectares because of the labour shortage and non-availability of suitable
machinery.

Word of the Week: Poison Rice
(d dm): poison rice
Rice that has been treated with toxic chemicals to increase its marketability. Old rice ( chn m) that has
been stored for over a year is polished, treated with chemicals, and coated with paraffin, giving the grains a
translucent appearance. The treated rice can cause negative health effects.Poison rice became an online
watchword in May 2013 with a scare over rice that had been tainted with the toxic heavy metal cadmium (
g).It isnt convenient to write down all the ingredients, explains the imperial official. Cadmium billows out
of the bag of rice he guards.Food safety scandals repeatedly pop up in China, creating a general unease about
products like cooking oil, infant formula, and fast food. A list of 50 Toxic Foods You Need to Know from
2008 covers an unnerving range of products.See also ditch oil and poison milk powder.
The Word of the Weekcomes from China Digital Spaces Grass-Mud Horse Lexicon, a glossary of terms created
by Chinese netizens and frequently encountered in online political discussions. These are the words of Chinas
online resistance discourse, used to mock and subvert the official language around censorship and political
correctness.
July 23, 2014 8:40 AM
Posted By: Anne Henochowicz
Categories: CDT Highlights, Economy, Grass-Mud Horse Discourse, Politics, Society, Translation

Thailands Rice Scheme Post-Mortem
The nation remains as divided as ever over the fallout from the Shinawatras controversial rice
subsidies.
By Steve Finch
July 24, 2014
In the village of Nong Som, 15 kilometers east of Thailands old capital Ayutthaya, feelings over the military coup two
months on remain mixed.Although the junta recently paid rice farmers following delays of seven months that pushed


many into financial trouble, the ouster of Yingluck Shinawatras government means sky-high paddy prices of 15,000 baht
(US$472.36) per ton are no longer assured.
Im going to be poor, said Samrong Hamontri, a 67-year-old rice farmer and Yingluck supporter.Investigators
looking into the controversial rice-pledging scheme said on Thursday there were grounds to pursue a
dereliction-of-duty case against Yingluck as the former premier and her ever-popular brother Thaksin
Shinawatra appeared further from power than ever.By September, the National Anti-Corruption Commission
(NACC) is expected to complete a probe into a second case involving alleged corruption by Yingluck and
former senior officials at the Commerce Ministry. The attorney-general would then be expected to process the
two cases within a month before they could be passed to the Supreme Court. Following Thursdays unanimous
7-0 vote by NACC commissioners to further proceedings in the first of the two cases, the situation facing
Yingluck looks ominous.
[The former prime minister] continued the rice-pledging scheme and incurred more losses for the state, even
though [she] had the authority to stop or end it, said the head of the investigation, Vicha
Mahakun, announcingthe decision.After the junta gave permission for her to leave the country last week,
Yingluck flew out of Bangkok at about midnight on Wednesday in a trip scheduled to take in Thaksins 65th
birthday party in Paris on Saturday. Many Thais say they expect Yingluck may follow her brother into
permanent exile despite recent assurances.Similarities between their two cases are striking as the new military
regime continues to purge the Shinawatras influence. Both were elected democratically and then ousted by
military coups. Graft probes led by the NACC then followed. The key difference is that Yingluck may have fled
earlier than her older brother on what are more serious, criminal charges: Thaksin was handed two years in
prison after he was ousted in 2006 a sentence he has sidestepped overseas while his sister faces up to 10
years behind bars if she decides to return.
Justice Under Scrutiny
As ever during Thailands recent decade-long cycle of political retribution, cutting through the propaganda that
surrounds the cases remains near impossible. Yingluck and her lawyers have complained in recent weeks that
the investigation was rushed and that it denied testimony from eight key defense witnesses.In my view, the
first issue is whether the judicial system follows the universal standards of the rule of law, Yingluck said on
Friday in response to the NACCs indictment during her first press conference since the military takeover.The
NACC is a body designed for the sole purpose of persecuting the Shinawatras, argues their supporters.
Opponents of Thaksin and Yingluck counter that the commission is the only state organ in Thailand that has
held them to account following years of rampant corruption.
A look at the resume of Vicha the NACC commissioner who led the investigation against Yingluck places
him firmly in the camp considered against the Shinawatras. A law graduate of the Royalist Chulalongkorn
University in Bangkok, Vicha also studied at the National Defense College of Thailand and later served as vice-
chairman of the committee that drafted the countrys new constitution a year after the 2006 coup that ejected


Thaksin. In the days leading up to the indictment against Yingluck on Thursday, Vicha repeatedly declined to
discuss the case with The Diplomat due to its politically sensitive nature, according to another NACC official
who declined to be named.Critics of the recent mountain of judicial proceedings against Yingluck 32 cases so
far also point to the seemingly coordinated manner in which the NACC in particular has lined up
investigations targeting her.
Fridays indictment was based on evidence supplied by the opposition Democrat Party, another bone of
contention.The justice system is now so politicized that the former Yingluck government can state a credible
case that all of this is unfair, said Pavin Chachavalpongpun, an associate professor at the Center of Southeast
Asian Studies, Kyoto University, who recently had his passport revoked by the junta after he declined to return
to Thailand for questioning.
A Case to Answer
Taken on its own merits, however, the case against Yinglucks handling of the paddy pledging-scheme appears
almost as substantial as the mountains of unsold rice that resulted from her governments flawed policy.An
allegedly fraudulent government-to-government contract for five million tons of rice signed with China in 2012
represents the closest thing to a smoking gun, according to Democrat-supplied evidence to the NACC.The
Guangzhou-based company executing the deal, GSSG Import and Export Corporation, was represented by
Rathanit Sojirakul, an aide to Pheu Thai MP Rapeephan Phongruangrong, the wife of pro-Shinawatra Red
Shirt leader Arisman Phongruangrong. China later pulled out on account of the corruption probe that followed,
and the NACC has since tried but failed to contact GSSG to confirm the deal ever existed, The
Diplomatunderstands.
Normally, if its a government-to-government deal the money must come from China as a letter of credit, but
there was no letter of credit just a check cashed in Thailand, said Warong Dechgitvigrom, the Democrat Party
MP who compiled evidence against the rice scheme.A whistleblower in the Ministry of Commerce sent over
details of the GSSG deal proving it was fake, he added.At best, the GSSG case points to a desperate attempt
by the then ruling Pheu Thai government to fabricate evidence that it was selling rice from stockpiles that grew
to record proportions as its pledging scheme unraveled, at worst it points to mass corruption, said Warong.
Copies of signed checks also supplied to the NACC showed GSSG paid 300 baht per sack of rice rather than the
market price of at least 1,500 baht suggesting profits of about 20 billion baht ($629.4 million) could have been
made from the phantom deal.
Democrat Party evidence attempting to link Yingluck to deals it says are fraudulent are based on a video
submitted to the NACC in which she claims to have overseen every government-to-government agreement
under her rice-pledging scheme as the executive.With its majority in the lower house of parliament, Pheu Thai
batted away attempts to censure the government last November as opposition MPs led by Warong regularly
showed evidence purportedly exposing corruption associated with the rice scheme. In March, an investigative
committee set up by the Commerce Ministry itself quashed allegations over the GSSG deal after finding that the


parties signing on behalf of GSSG were authorized to do so.Pheu Thai failed to take any responsibility for the
rice scheme, and when they are finally investigated they complain they are being victimized, Warong said after
Thursdays verdict by the NACC.
At the time they told us nothing. They just kept saying: we want to help the farmers, we want to help the
farmers.This remains the Shinawatras strongest defense of their flagship policy. In a five-page response to
questions on the scheme, the exiled former head of Pheu Thai Charupong Ruangsuwan stood by what he said
was a policy that gave justice to poor farmers.Jakrapob Penkair, a former aide to Thaksin and a spokesman
for Charupongs anti-junta exile group the Organization of Free Thais for Human Rights and Democracy, added
in a condensed statement: The allegations of corruption are never substantiated, highly politicized and
misleading. [The] justice system in Thailand is very much in question, so the case such as this one cant be
proven adequately in any courtroom at the moment.
A Simple Plan
When Pheu Thai conceived the rice-pledging scheme that propelled then unknown Yingluck to become
Thailands first female prime minister in July 2011, it amounted to a simple equation to win the votes of
farmers, who make up 40 percent of the population.The then-Democrat government faced protests when they
offered subsidies amounting to 11,000 baht per ton of paddy, farmers rallied for 14,000 baht and Pheu Thai
promised 15,000 baht. The idea was that the bulk of revenues would be passed on to the people that grew rice in
Thailand then the worlds largest exporter while the government stockpiled in a bid to push up prices,
releasing rice onto supply-starved markets when the price was right.
But the gamble began to backfire before Yinglucks government had even started to play its hand, partly
through bad luck and the rest through poor design, said Darren Cooper, a senior economist at the London-based
International Grains Council. A month before, India lifted restrictions on exports of its basmati rice, which
partly filled the supply shortage on global markets created by Thailands new policy. Prices rose, but not
enough and suddenly Thailand was priced out of the global market as rice exports plummeted by 45.8 percent in
the first half of 2012. For the first time in more than 20 years, Thailand accounted for less than 20 percent of the
worlds total rice exports.I think the surprising thing for everyone was that the intervention price for paddy was
set so high in relation to milled rice export values prevailing at the time, Cooper said by email.
This spelt future trouble since the government needed to be able to sell stockpiled rice on at a profit in the
future and this wasnt going to be possible.As Thailand was left unable to sell its overpriced rice, Yinglucks
government scrambled to find warehouse space as reports began to circulate that stocks were starting to go bad.
Meanwhile, many millers, exporters and other middlemen who were used to making a living from the industry
supply chain suddenly found themselves unable to play by the new rules. In response, some became motivated
to undermine the system so they could keep doing business.They [Pheu Thai] wanted to manage and control
how to sell the rice and to export but they didnt have any experience, thats why it went bankrupt, said Prasit
Namkheng who runs a government-approved rice quality-control company in Nong Som, Ayutthaya province.


Unknown Losses
The true cost of Yinglucks rice-pledging
scheme remains unknown, in both political and
financial terms. In early July, the
junta dispatched 100 inspection teams to assess
stock levels and rice quality in 1,800
warehouses across Thailand, a process which is
due to end next week.About five percent of an
estimated stockpile of 18 million tons has been
found to be missing so far, either eaten by
animals or stolen, said Theeraseth Patvarapong,
a Ministry of Interior official responsible for
gathering data as part of the inspection process.
How much will be deemed unfit for sale is still not known, he noted. Losses from these stockpiles will be added
to more than $9.2 billion in paper losses, according to an evaluation by the NACC in May. The junta has said it
will restart rice exports next month in a bid to recoup some of these financial costs.We will never let this
happen again, said Theeraseth.In rural communities like Nong Som in Ayutthaya province, farmers expressed
little concern over the wider impacts of the scheme, however. They recalled the high prices they received before
the military coup, and most said they will continue to support Yingluck and Thaksin at the ballot box if given
the chance.Their rice policy was very good, said Nam Somsak, 57, whose family has farmed paddy fields for
generations in Nong Som. I trusted them, he added.
Steve Finch is a freelance journalist based in Bangkok. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, Foreign
Policy, TIME, The Independent, Toronto Star and Bangkok Post among others.
500,000-tonne hike in Philippine rice imports set
Ro n n e l W. Do mi n g o
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Publ i cat i on Dat e : 24 - 07- 2014
The Philippines' National Food Authority is preparing for a second rice importation tender this year, this time
for 500,000 tonnes. The NFA Council, the agencys highest-level decision-making body, has yet to provide
details on the new tender, which would add to the 800,000 tonnes that were bought from Vietnam last April.
Council chair Secretary Francis Pangilinan, who is also presidential assistant on food security and agricultural
modernisation, earlier announced that the NFA had decided on a repeat order of 200,000 tons from the


Vietnamese suppliers.Pangilinan later told reporters that the NFA was also considering an additional order for
yet another 200,000 tonnesbringing the new import volume to 400,000 tons.
But following the NFA Council meeting held on Tuesday, he announced that the volume had been increased to
500,000 tonnes.According to Pangilinans office, the council was convened for a strategic planning to lay down
policy reforms in the NFA.Further, the former senator said the NFA also decided on immediately increasing the
release of rice stock to 10,000 tonnes daily from 6,000 tonnes previously amid efforts to temper the overall
increase rise in prices of the staple grain.To make the NFA rice accessible to the consumers, the NFA will also
[put up selling outlets in] government agencies and corporations, Pangilinan said.
According to NFA monitoring, well-milled rice sold by private-sector suppliers is fetching as high as 45 pesos
(about US$1) a kilo, particularly in the cities of Pasig and Marikina as well as adjacent towns of Rizal
province.In these areas alone, the NFA said it has increased the number of accredited outlets to 173, which all
together account for an average of 3,500 bags of NFA rice daily.While the NFA has turned around from
limiting rice importation amid government efforts to attain self-sufficiency in rice production, the Department
of Agriculture is aiming for rice harvests to reach a total of some 59.7 million tonnes in the three years to 2016.

This means that at close to 20 million tons yearly, the domestic rice output would top the all-time high of 18.44
million tonnes set in 2013.According to Agriculture Assistant Secretary Edilberto de Luna, who is director of
the governments national rice program, the target harvest for 2014 is pegged at 19.07 million tonnes.The DAs
target for 2015 is for 4.92 million hectares and for 2016, 20.52 million tonnes.

Thai rice growers may receive pensions
Thursday, 24 July 2014By MCOT
BANGKOK, July 23 -- Thailand's Rice Department is gathering opinions
on how to improve its rice and rice grower development fund bill that
includes a plan to offer pensions to the farmers themselves.Director-
General Chanpittaya Chimpalee said most rice growers had low incomes
and high costs and could not make ends meet, so pensions are planned
with the bill.He said bill would have rice growers who are members of the
rice and rice grower development fund contribute 3 per cent of their
incomes to the fund and the government will also contribute to it.After the
retirement age of 60 or 65 years, each member would receive the monthly pension of about Bt4,000 that will be
enough for their life after retirement.Wichien Puanglamjiek, president of Thai Rice Farmers Association, said


that rice growers should enjoy welfare like that offered to people in other professions and it was good time to
realize the law to offer sustainable help to rice growers.
Somsak Kangtheerawat, senior executive vice president of the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives, said a survey on farmers nationwide in June found that Thai farmers were very happy as their
average happiness score stood at 3.10 out of total four. The happiest were fruit growers, followed by sugarcane
growers and meat chicken farmers.The survey also showed that rice growers were very happy after receiving
money for their pledged rice. Their average happiness score stood at 3.35 out of total four and the score made a
new high.
Commerce to propose resuming rice sale next month
Date : 24 2557

BANGKOK, 24 July 2014, (NNT) - The Commerce Ministry yesterday said it propose that the Rice Policy Committee
allow the Ministry to resume its plan to sell about 500,000 tons of stockpiled rice monthly through all available channels,
beginning next month. The Ministry is considering selling the grain through general auctions, Government-to-
Government deals, and auctions through the Agricultural Futures Exchange of Thailand.

According to the Ministry, third party inspectors from government agencies such as the Finance Ministry and the Prime
Ministers Office will be needed in order to ensure transparency in all transactions. In addition, the Ministry, in its quest to
reclaim the nation's export market share, will enlist the help of Thai Rice Exporters Association. It would also lend a
helping hand to the private sector in selling the grains in particular markets. Meanwhile, rice prices have gained a bit of
momentum as the global rice production declined due to drought. The price of 5% rice was quoted at 427 dollars a ton
FOB, on July 16th, a fair jump from the 410 dollars a ton quoted a week earlier.

Rice Farmer Association to ask government to set medium rice price higher

Date : 24 2557
BANGKOK, 24 July 2014, (NNT) -The Thai Rice Farmers Association has proposed that the administration increase the
medium price of rice from 7,000 baht to between 10,000 to 12,000 baht a ton. According to President of the Association,
Wichien Puanglamjiak, his association has recently made the request, saying that the new price should apply to grains
with 15% moisture content, produced by farmers with farmland of no more than 30 rais.Farmers nowadays can barely


make a living, as they can only sell their rice at 7,000 baht a ton, whereas the production cost is 6,000 baht, said the
Association President.
Odisha govt to provide 6.23 lakh PLO families 25 kgs of rice at Rs/kg from
next month
Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government would provide 25 kg of rice at Rs 1/kg to nearly 6.23 lakh poor and left
out families in 19 districts of the state. The beneficiaries would be provided the cheap rice every month from
next month (August) to March 2015 under the public distribution system (PDS). This was informed by the food
and supplies minister Sanjay Kumar Dasburma in the Assembly on Wednesday.The minister further informed
that the 19 districts where the PLO familes would be getting 25 kgs
of Rs1/kg rice for the rest part of the current financial year are
Kalahandi, Malkangiri, Koraput, Kandhamal, Mayurbhanj,
Nabarangpur, Nuapada, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Dhenkanal,
Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Sambalpur, Bolangir, Boudh, Deogarh,
Sonepur and Sundergarh.It can be recalled that the Central
government had identified the families, who have not figured in the
existing BPL list, under the PLO category in 19 poor districts of
the state government, Dasburma reminded.

UPDATE 2-Indian monsoon revival keeps rain above average
Thu Jul 24, 2014 6:17pm IST
* Rains 24 pct above average in past week
* No dry spell seen until month's end-official
* Summer crop sowing to get boost on late rains (Recast with farm minister's quote)
By Ratnajyoti Dutta
NEW DELHI, July 24 (Reuters) - India's parched rice, soybean, cotton growing areas will receive more rainfall
next week as the monsoon is expected to continue its wet revival phase.Rains in the northwest India grain bowl
as well as in soybean belts of western-central parts are expected speed up summer planting activities.India's
farm sector accounts for around 14 percent of the economy but two-thirds of the country's 1.2 billion people
depend on farming for their livelihood, and more than half of its arable land needs monsoon rains
The monsoon has improved but still needs to be watched how the rainfall shapes up during August," Farm
Minister Radha Mohan Singh told Reuters.A month and half-long weak phase in the monsoon pushed rainfall a
quarter below the average so far for the season that started in June. But a revival after mid-July pushed the rain
level to above average last week. Rainfall was 24 percent above average in the week ended July 23, the first
week of surplus for this year's monsoon season.Poor rain levels since the start of the June-September season


raised concerns that India would face its first drought in five years, with coverage for most of the main summer
crops slipping below the halfway mark.A weak monsoon cuts exports, stokes food inflation and can hit demand
for products ranging from cars to consumer goods."No dry phase in the monsoon is expected until the month's
end," said a weather official who did not wish to be identified.A poor monsoon could raise imports of cooking
oil to India, the world's leading buyer of vegetable oils. The country could also cede its position as top rice
exporter to Thailand.
Five percent of rice missing from government stockpiles
Date : 24 2557
BANGKOK, 24 July 2014 (NNT) - M.L. Panadda Diskul, the Permanent-Secretary of the PMs Office, posted on his
Facebook account about the latest updates on the inspection of pledged rice that has been left in several warehouses
nationwide. M.L. Panadda cited reports by the PMs Office inspectors-general and officials from relevant ministries, as
saying that more than five percent of the rice has gone missing from stocks in many provinces. So far, the rice inspection
team is still unable to find a legitimate reason for the disappearance of the rice. Provinces that have a large amount of rice
missing include Chachoengsao, Nakhon Sawan, Nakhon Ratchasima, and Phetchabun. M.L. Panadda is currently
chairman of the sub-committee inspecting the remaining government's rice stocks

Kenya's decision of increasing import duty affects rice industry
Rice industry has suffered huge losses in the wake of doubling of import duty on all varieties of rice by Kenya.
A rice exporter told Business Recorderthat purchasing power of Kenya's rice importers had been reduced to half
following doubling of import duty on rice by Kenya, thereby badly affecting small and medium enterprises
involved in the business of exporting rice to Kenya. "Kenya has now fixed the import duty at 35 per cent or US
$200, whichever is higher, on all varieties of rice," he said, adding that export of only long grain white rice
(non-Basmati) to Kenya is around 0.4 million tons every year, with a revenue of $180million and, as such
exporters, will have to pay a tax of $80m annually to Kenya
He said: "Although Pakistan has been importing a substantial quantity of tea from Kenya, our country has not
increased the import duty on the Kenyan tea merely because Kenya is a regular importer of rice from Pakistan."
Besides, all the landlocked countries neighbouring Kenya were also facilitated by Kenya for transit goods, he
added. Meanwhile, rice exporters have urged the Kenyan government to reconsider its decision of increasing
import duty on all varieties of rice, or else it would badly affect the rice business of both the countries. They
also demanded of the Commerce Minister to take up the matter with his Kenyan counterpart so that small and
medium enterprises of both Kenya and Pakistan could carry on their business smoothly. Commenting on the
situation, industrial sources said: "The demand of Pakistan's rice in Kenya is very high because of its quality but
this import duty can reduce its export considerably."

24th July, 2014 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine1

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24th July, 2014 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine1

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Daily Rice E-Newsletter by Rice Plus Magazine www.ricepluss.

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