26th November, 2014 Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine
www.ricepluss.com
Vol 4,Issue XI
Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter
26th November, 2014
Todays News Headlines
Vietnam Exports Rice Worth US$2.5 Billion

B50bn govt bond issue to help pay rice debt
Reversal of levy rice procurement policy irks AP millers
Finance Ministry issues bonds to restructure rice mortgage
scheme debts
Thailand to lose share of China market under AFTA, survey
suggests
Bangladesh farmers turn back the clock to combat climate
stresses
Philippines keen to import rice from Bangladesh
USA Rice Weights in on Trade Barriers
Agricultural Prices Received for the Month of November
CCC Announces Prevailing World Market Prices
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures
Holiday Rice My Recipes
Worlds Best Rice' Title Could Boost Cambodian Rice
Exports
CIDRAP: Ebola overview
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at Arkansas Rice Depot
Consumer Reports Issues New Consumption Guidelines
Based On Analysis of Arsenic Levels in Rice Products &
Other Grains
French ambassador assures REF of assistance
Zinc enriched paddy harvest in Sylhet
Reversal of levy rice procurement policy irks AP millers
Filipino Farmers Protest Government Research on
Genetically Modified Rice
SunRice closes Coleambally mill
Arkansas County Extension Service hosts farm bill
workshop
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News Detail.
Vietnam Exports Rice Worth
US$2.5 Billion
HANOI, Nov 26 (Bernama) -- Vietnam
exported 5.55 million tonnes of rice worth
US$2.56 billion in the first 11 months of
2014, according to the Vietnam Food
Association (VFA).According to Vietnam
News Agency (VNA) news website ndh.vn
quoted the VFA as saying that in the first 20
days of November, the nation shipped
190,000 tonnes of rice, and from the first
day of this year until Nov 20, it exported
5.55 million tonnes of rice worth US$2.56
billion.
The average export price in the first 20 days
of this month stood at US$474.5 per tonne,
which was lower than the US$486.6 per
tonne price in the same period last
October.At the domestic rice market, the
VFA reported that rice prices dropped
sharply from November 14 to 20, by 300
VND to 450 VND per kilo to 8,450 VND
per kilo for rice with five-per cent broken
grains, 8,100 VND for rice with 15-per cent
broken grains, and 7,700 VND for rice with
25-per cent broken grains.This year,
Vietnam expects to export 6.5 to seven
million tonnes of rice, worth about US$3
billion, revealed the VFA.
Traditional export markets for Vietnamese
rice include Singapore, mainland China,
Hong Kong and Cote d'Ivoire, as well as
Algeria and Indonesia.The VFA has also
predicted 2015 to be a tough year for
Vietnam's rice exporters in the face of fierce

competition from their Thai rivals because
Thailand has concentrated on recovering
traditional rice markets in Africa and
expanding its markets in Asia, especially the
Philippines,
Indonesia
and
China.
Source with thanks: BERNAMA
B50bn govt bond issue to help

pay rice debt
Published: 26 Nov 2014
Online news: General
Writer: Online Reporters
A
50-billionbaht government
bond issue was
floated through
the Bank for
Agriculture and
Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) on
Wednesday to help cover the losses occurred
from the the rice price schemes of previous
governments.
Officials
inspect
rice
stockpiled in a warehouse in Pathum Thani
in July 2014. (Bangkok Post file photo)
Deputy finance permanent secretary
Pongpanu Svetarundra, said it was the
policy of the current government to urgently
solve the debt problem incurred by the rice
pledging scheme of the previous
government, so the Finance Ministry, the
Budget Bureau and the BAAC had agreed
on a bond issue.
The BAAC is the issuer, with the capital
amount plus the interest to be fully
Contact us for Advertisement & Specs: mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com +92 321 369 2847

guaranteed by the government.The first
tranche of 42 billion baht will have a
maturity period of three years and 10
months, at interest of 2.75% per annum. The
second tranche of eight billion baht, offering
3.01% interest, will be over seven years. The
bonds are offered only to financial
institutions.Accordng to Mr Pongpanu said
the bond offer was warmly received by the
new non-bank segment, particularly asset
management
firms.Kritsda
Udyanin,
director-general of the Public Debt
Management Office, said it is the largest
single bond issue ever by a state-owned
enterprise.
scheme. She chaired the National Rice

Policy Committee (NRPC) when she was
prime minister.The National Legislative
Assembly is set to consider the proposed
impeachment of Ms Yingluck in connection
with the controversial rice pledging scheme
at a meeting on Friday.
The proportion of non-bank firm buying into

the BAAC bonds had increased from 8.714.2% of total subscribers to 27.3%, which
indicated the confidence in the bonds, he
said.Liabilities incurred from the subsidy
schemes for farm products by previous
governments amount to 780 billion baht, the
lion's share stemming from the rice
subsidy.Of the total of 780 billion baht, 580
billion resulted from the costly rice-pledging
scheme sponsored by the Yingluck
Shinawatra government and the rest from
preceding governments.
CH RS. SARMA
The Pheu Thai government's rice subsidy,

which offered a pledging price 40-50%
above market prices, has cost 878 billion
baht since it was unveiled in the 2011-12
main crop, with 580 billion of debt
outstanding.The
rice-pledging
scheme
suffered a monumental setback when it
failed to boost market prices as the
government had promised it would.The rice
scheme is also subject to a corruption
investigation.
The National Anti-Corruption Commission
ruled that Ms Yingluck was guilty of
negligence in office for failing to stop the
corruption and losses in the rice pledging
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v7/wn/news
world.php?id=1088676
Reversal of levy rice

procurement policy irks AP
millers
KAKINADA, NOVEMBER 25:

The kharif paddy crop is being harvested in
the two Godavari districts in Andhra
Pradesh, which contribute the bulk of levy
rice to the FCI, and the arrivals in the market
will usually gather momentum from the first
week of December and touch the peak by
mid-January. However, this crop year a
shadow has fallen across the scene as the
Union Government has reversed the
procurement policy.
Hitherto, till October this year, the FCI was
procuring levy in the ratio of 75:25, with the
millers milling and giving 75 per cent of the
paddy they have bought from the farmers to
the FCI as levy and selling the rest in the
open market, either in the domestic market
or for export purposes to other countries.
However, the ratio has now been reversed
and the FCI will now take only 25 per cent
as levy and the millers have to sell the rest in
the open market in accordance with the new
policy. The millers are not ready for the
sudden policy reversal and have appealed to
the State Government and the Union

Government to change the ratio to at least
50:50.
Explaining the position of the millers, East

Godavari Rice
Millers Association
President A Ramakrishna Reddy said, We
are not questioning the policy of the Union
Government but the decision has been taken
without taking into account certain market
realities. The millers in the two Godavari
districts have always bought paddy from the
farmers at the MSP or even at a slightly
higher price. It was possible because of the
assured 75 per cent levy given to the FCI.
Millers could buy paddy briskly from
farmers but it would not be possible now, as
the levy is only 25. It is not easy for the
millers to find a ready market for the rest of
75 per cent and most of the millers do not
have the holding capacity. Even a big miller
will be put to great hardship, he said.
He said it should also be borne in mind that

some of the varieties grown in the Godavari
districts such as Swarna are not consumed
locally but given to the FCI as levy or sold
in other States or countries. Therefore, it
was not easy for the millers to find market
for these varieties in a hurry.
AP Rice Millers Association President G
Venkateswara Rao said the Government
should offer some relief to the millers at
least in the implementation of the new
policy and the millers should be allowed to
sell to the FCI the fixed levy quota
immediately and then buy the rest from the
farmers at the MSP. Otherwise, the stocks
would be stuck with the farmers.
(This article was published on November
25, 2014)
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industryand-economy/agri-biz/reversal-of-levy-riceprocurement-policy-irks-apmillers/article6633439.ece
Finance Ministry issues bonds

to restructure rice mortgage
scheme debts
Date : 26 2557
BANGKOK, 26 November 2014 (NNT)
The Finance Ministry has issued bonds
worth 50 billion baht, the biggest-ever bond
issuance in history, in its latest move to
restructure the debts incurred from the ricemortgage scheme from the previous
administration.
The bonds, which are issued by Bank of

Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives
(BAAC), are divided into two categories.
The first category, which is worth 42 billion
baht offers an interest rate of 2.75 percent
per year. The latter, which is worth eight
billion baht, offers an interest rate of 3
percent per year.
The Finance Ministry will underwrite both
the capital and the interest. The government
will undertake the responsibility to repay the
debts along with the interest. According to
the Finance Ministry, non-bank operators,
particularly securities companies managing
mutual funds have expressed interest in the
bond investment. Aside from BAAC, the
bonds are available in Krung Thai Bank,
CIMB Thai Bank, Standard Chartered
Thailand, and the Hong Kong and Shanghai
Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) in
Bangkok.
Source with thanks:
http://thainews.prd.go.th/centerweb/newsen/NewsDetail?N
T01_NewsID=WNECO5711260010008
Thailand to lose share of China

market under AFTA, survey
suggests

Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation November 26, 2014 1:00 am
Thailand could lose Bt118 billion worth of
export opportunities under the Asean-China
Free Trade Agreement over the next five
years (2015-2019) because of tougher
competition
from
Cambodia,
Laos,
Myanmar and Vietnam, according to a study
by the University of the Thai Chamber of
Commerce (UTCC).The study found that
Thailand would lose market share and trade
opportunities in rice, aquaculture products,
paper, wood and products, electronics and
electrical appliances, textiles, clothing,
footwear, and jewellery. Products that will
enjoy higher export growth are tapioca,
fruits, and processed food.
"Overall trade from Asean to China will
increase over the next five years, as well as
exports from Thailand to China. However,
Thailand's share of the China market will
increase by only 0.02 percentage point, from
1.95 per cent to 1.97 per cent [by 2019],
while Asean's will rise by 1 percentage
point, from 10 to 11," said Aat Pisanwanich,
director of the UTCC's International Trade
Studies Centre.According to the study, of
China's trading market value of US$250
billion (Bt8.2 trillion) this year, Asean has a
share of about 10 per cent. The value of the
total China market is expected to increase
significantly by 2019, of which Asean's
share will be 11 per cent.
Indonesia,
Singapore
and
Vietnam.
However, between 2015 to 2019, Malaysia's
share of Asean's total export to China will
drop from 31.2 per cent to 26.3 per cent,
Thailand's from 20.2 per cent to 18.2 per
cent, Indonesia's from 15.5 per cent to 14.9
per cent, Singapore's from 15 per cent to
14.4 per cent. Vietnam's share, however,
will grow from 6.8 per cent to 10.1 per cent,
while Myanmar's will increase from 0.9 to
4.6 per cent, Laos' from 0.4 to 1.3 per cent,
and Cambodia's from 0.1 to 0.2 per cent.
The Philippines and Brunei will remain
unchanged at 9.8 and 0.1 per cent
respectively.
Aat said Thailand would face lose a lot of
China's rice market because of tougher
competition from Vietnam, Cambodia and
Myanmar. Thailand's share of China's rice
market will drop from 45.4 per cent this year
to 27.4 per cent in 2019. For aquaculture
products, its market share will drop from
32.4 per cent this year to 24.3 per cent.Its
share of China's import market for electrical
appliances and electronics will drop from
18.3 per cent to 12 per cent.
Aat suggested that Thai enterprises carefully
study Chinese consumers' behaviour and
demand in each city, establish Thai
distribution centres in each major city, focus
on quality products, and target export
promotions directly at Chinese consumers.
Source with thanks:

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Thailand-to-loseshare-of-China-market-under-AFTA--30248542.html
Asean is expected to face higher trade

deficits with China as the value of its
imports from that country grows faster that
that of exports. It is projected that Asean
could face an annual trade deficit as high as
$30 billion within five years.
Bangladesh farmers turn

back the clock to combat
climate stresses
Currently, Malaysia is the largest exporter to

China in Asean, followed by Thailand,
BY SYFUL ISLAM
Wed Nov 26, 2014 7:52am EST

DHAKA, Bangladesh, Nov 26 (Thomson
Reuters Foundation) - I ndigenous varie
ties of rice are making a comeback in
Bangladesh as farmers abandon highyielding hybrid rice in favour of more
resilient varieties that can cope with more
extreme climate conditions, researchers
say.About 20 percent of the rice fields
planted in the low-lying South Asian nation
now contain indigenous varieties that can
stand up to drought, flooding or other
stresses, said Jiban Krishna, director general
of the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute.At
its peak, high yielding varieties of rice are
accounted for 90 percent of total rice grown
in Bangladesh.
"In places where newly invented varieties
fail to cope with stresses, farmers cultivate
local varieties," Krishna told the Thomson
Reuters
Foundation
in
an
interview.Bangladesh's government first
introduced high-yielding rice in the 1960s,
in an effort to promote food security and
meet rising demand, Krishna said. Over
time, most farmers adopted the new
varieties, which brought in higher
incomes.But in recent years, as climate
change has brought more irregular rainfall including worsening floods and droughts farmers have had more difficulty producing
consistent crops of high-yielding varieties.
That has led to a growing share of farmers
returning to more resilient varieties capable
of coping with the extreme conditions, or
planting both old and new varieties side by

side.The switch back to traditional varieties
has happened with the help of nongovernmental organisations that have
reintroduced the varieties in an effort to
protect "heritage" species and help farmers
cope with adverse weather conditions ,
Krishna said.In C'Nababaganj district, for
instance, the Bangladesh Resource Centre
for Indigenous Knowledge has helped
farmers return to planting varieties that had
almost vanished.
'Saika' rice, for instance, ripens in just 60
days - well short of the 90 to 110 days
needed by hybrid varieties used in the area and 'Sashi Mohon' needs hugely less water,
said Pavel Partha, coordinator of the centre's
food security programme.
CHANGE IN GOVERNMENT POLICY
The government previously never promoted
such varieties, considering them too lowyielding, he said. But in the face of growing
climate impacts, it is now actively
encouraging their cultivation as part of
efforts to help farmers adapt to climate
change, Partha said.Farmers say returning to
the old varieties has been a big help in
ensuring they get a harvest each
season."Cultivation in this area is facing
immense trouble due to low and irregular
rainfall. Even cultivation of rain-fed Aman
(rice) is now totally dependent on irrigation
which raises production costs," said Hasan
Ali, a farmer in Barandra village.

"In this situation we have brought in these
indigenous aromatic varieties which are
tolerant to many stresses," he said.Another
farmer, Anisur Rahman, said cultivation of
the old varieties is expanding in part because
they need almost no chemical fertiliser or
pesticides - which makes them cheaper and
easier to grow - and because their yields are
good in tough conditions.Abdus Sattar Hiru,
a farmer in Traltalia village in Tangail
district agreed that the 'Afsara' traditional
rice he is now cultivating has brought in
consistently good crops.
"The variety (grows over a) short duration
and can be cultivated once the rainy season
is over and water starts receding. In that
period, modern or high yielding varieties
can't be cultivated but this local variety can,"
he said.Returning to 'Afsara' rice has also
allowed him to bring back into production
land previously left barren because highyielding rice varieties did not grow there, he
said.
(Reporting By Syful
by Laurie Goering)
Islam;
editing
Philippines keen to import

rice from Bangladesh
Governor of the Southeast Asian countrys
central bank Amando M Tetangco expressed
Manilas interest during a meeting with
Bangladesh Bank Governor Atiur Rahman
on Tuesday.He said at the meeting, held at
his official residence, Bangladesh is
producing more rice than its demand. We
need to import huge quantity of rice. We
want to import it from Bangladesh.The

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor
also expressed his countrys interest in
importing potato from Bangladesh and to
promote trade with Dhaka.
Rahman said Bangladesh had attainted selfsufficiency in rice production and the
government had already decided to export
the staple to Sri Lanka.He said initiatives
could be taken now to export rice to the
Philippines as well and the two governments
could
begin
discussion
on
the
mater.Bangladesh Ambassador to Manila
John Gomes, who was present at the
meeting, said a high-level trade delegation
from Bangladesh would visit the Philippines
next month and may discuss on export of
rice and potato then.The process to export
rice to Sri Lanka has already started
following a government decision.The
government approved a proposal on Oct 27
to export 50,000 tonnes of rice to the South
Asian nation at $450 a tonne.
USDA Ag Attache: "India

Monsoon 2014 Wrap up
report"
www.fas.usda.gov/data/india-monsoon-2014wrap-report
USA Rice Weights in on Trade

Barriers
What's going on over there?
What's going on over there?
ARLINGTON, VA - Last month, USA Rice

made a submission to the United States
Trade Representatives (USTR) for the 2015
National Trade Estimates (NTE) Report on
Foreign Trade Barriers. Each year,
interested parties submit comments to USTR
on any issues they have had exporting goods

domestic support programs in Thailand and
Vietnam.
and services so that they may be further
examined.
I
n the past few years, USTR's NTE Reports
have focused on sanitary and phytosanitary
(SPS) issues, as well as standards-related
measures.For the 2015 report, USA Rice
focused its comments on import policies in
the EU, Japan, and Taiwan, as well as
"Vietnam and Thailand are net exporters of

rice, but the other areas we commented on
are importers," said Betsy Ward, president
and CEO of USA Rice. "We're estimating
the trade barriers in these regions could be
costing the U.S. rice industry as much as
$150 million annually, so we'd very much
like to see our concerns addressed."
Contact: Kristen Dayton (703) 236-1464
Agricultural Prices Received for the Month of November

October 2014
Preliminary November
2014
Long Grain Rice
12.90
13.50
Long Grain Marketing
13,468
N/A
Medium and Short Grain

California Price
21.30
20.80

Mid-South Price
15.30
14.80

Marketing
2,870
N/A
CCC Announces Prevailing World Market Prices

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation
today announced the following prevailing world market prices of milled and rough rice, adjusted
for U.S. milling yields and location, and the resulting marketing loan-gain (MLG) and loan
deficiency payment (LDP) rates applicable to the 2014 crop, which became effective today at
7:00 a.m., Eastern Time (ET). Rough rice prices decreased $0.14 per cwt for long grain and
$0.15 per cwt for medium/short grain.

MLG/LDP
Rate
World Price
Milled
Value
($/cwt)
Rough
($/cwt)
Rough
($/cwt)
Long-Grain
17.12
10.86
0.00
Medium-/ShortGrain
16.56
11.15
0.00
Brokens
10.33
----
----
This week's prevailing world market prices and MLG/LDP rates are based on the following U.S.
milling yields and the corresponding loan rates:
U.S. Milling Yields
Whole/Broken
(lbs/cwt)
Loan Rate
($/cwt)
Long-Grain
55.83/12.59
6.50
Medium-/Short-Grain
62.39/7.92
6.50
The next program announcement is scheduled for December 3rd.
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures

CME Group (Prelim): Closing Rough Rice Futures for November 26
Month
Price
Net Change
January 2015
$12.280
- .090

March 2015
$12.545
- .100
May 2015
$12.785
- .100
July 2015
$12.985
- .105
September 2015
$12.235
- .010
November 2015
$12.135
- .010
January 2016
$12.135
- .010
Source with thanks :US Rice Federation
Holiday Rice My Recipes
Worlds Best Rice' Title Could
1 1/4 cups uncooked long-grain rice

Click to see savings
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 cup chopped celery
4 green onions, sliced
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can beef broth
1 (4-ounce) can sliced mushrooms,
undrained
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon Beau Monde seasoning
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
Boost Cambodian Rice Exports
Stir together first 4 ingredients in a 13- x 9inch baking dish. Stir in broth and remaining
ingredients.
Bake, covered, at 350 for 50 minutes,
stirring occasionally
RELATED ARTICLES
Robert Carmichael
November 25, 2014 12:43 PM
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA
For the third year in a row, Cambodias
premier rice has been voted the worlds best
at the World Rice Conference.The award,
which it shares this year with Thailand,
comes at a time when Cambodia is looking
at rice exports as a way to increase incomes
for its many impoverished subsistence
farmers.Although Cambodia is a minnow in
the world rice stakes, producing just 1
percent of global output in 2012, the award
for its fragrant romduol varietal should help
promote exports.
The rice industry, though small-scale and
inefficient, remains key to the economy.

Most Cambodians survive in part by
growing rice on small plots. Inefficiencies
mean large amounts of unmilled rice -known as paddy -- go to neighboring
Thailand and Vietnam where they fetch a
higher price.Sok Puthyvuth, the president of
the Cambodia Rice Federation, which
represents all players in the industry, said,
We need better seeds, we need a better
collection process, we need better storage,
we need better logistics, and also our exports
need to brand Cambodian rice to be one of
the top brands in the world.
Higher target
The target is 1 million tons of milled rice
exported by 2015. So far this year Cambodia
has exported about 400,000 tons -- mostly to
the European Union.Deputy Prime Minister
Keat Chhon said a central tenet -- to boost
farmers' incomes -- remains key to
government efforts to improve the
industry.I want to emphasize that the
purpose of the rice policy is to reduce
poverty, to ensure people in rural areas earn
more, and to reduce the development gap
between rural and urban areas, Chhon
said.To help develop the industry, China is
loaning $300 million
to
improve
warehousing.
Premium branding
Yet longstanding problems remain, said
exporter David Van, including the high cost
of electricity and a lack of quality
seedlings.Van also wants better branding for
the award-winning rice, which currently is
marketed as Cambodian Jasmine Rice. He
said that name is too close to Thailands
fragrant variety.You need to differentiate
your product from your competitor next
door, otherwise you will keep on being
compared automatically to what the nextdoor competitor is offering," Van said.

"If you are talking about jasmine rice, we
have a variety that has won consecutively
the worlds best rice, which is the romduol.
So maybe it is high time that we really
develop a branding based on the
romduol variety," he said.Challenges
remain: Thailands rice stockpile has driven
down prices, making it harder to compete;
meantime countries like Myanmar also want
to increase exports.
But even if Cambodia doesnt reach the
million-ton target next year, its awardwinning rice should appear on more plates
around the world, lifting incomes for
millers, exporters and its millions of
impoverished farmers.
CIDRAP: Ebola overview

November 25,2014
Via CIDRAP, Lisa Schnirring writes: Mali

Ebola transmission chain snares two
more. That's worth reading in itself, but
Schnirring goes on to report several other
important developments, including this one:
In other news, the Ebola epidemic has boosted
food prices in the three hardest-hit countries.
especially in rural areas, according to a report
yesterday from the United Nations Development
Program (UNDP). Ayodele Odusola, chief
economist in the UNDP's African bureau, said in
a statement, "Border closures, movement
restrictions and a slowdown in farming activity
are shaking food markets badly." Farmers have
been unable to make a living and families are
seeing fluctuating prices at the markets, with
those in rural and remote areas seeing the
biggest drop in their purchasing power, he said.

Since the outbreak began in March, purchasing
power has dropped 20% in Sierra Leone and
more than 25% in Liberia, according to the
report. Guinea was able to stabilize a surge in
rice prices through imports. Coordinated action
is needed to stabilize prices and ensure that
people can buy and sell food, the UNDP said. It
called for a four-part strategy that includes
keeping borders open, providing safety nets such
as farming subsidies and cash payments,
stepping up support to help farmers prepare for
the next planting season in February and March,
and using fiscal policies to boost currencies and
keep prices down.
Happy Thanksgiving from all

of us at Arkansas Rice Depot
2014 has been a year of many challenges in
our efforts to feed the hungry. As we have
shared those struggles with you, our friends
and supporters, you have been quick to
respond. You have given of your time,
repackaging and sorting food; of your
finances, writing checks and collecting
funds; and of your resources, sharing your
talent with us and spreading the word. So
this Thanksgiving, we want to say we are
thankful for you.
Thank you for giving, for sharing our
message and the need in order that families,
seniors and children all across our state
might have something to eatnot just at
Thanksgiving but throughout the year.
"Thanks be to God for his indescribable
gift!" - II Corinthians 9:15
Consumer Reports Issues New

Consumption Guidelines
Based On Analysis of Arsenic
Levels in Rice Products &
Other Grains
Written by IVN
Category: Health News
Published: 24 November 2014
Washington, DC - Consumer Reports (CR)
is issuing new consumption guidelines for
consumers based on its latest analysis of
data from the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) and its own testing
for arsenic levels, particularly inorganic
arsenic (IA), a carcinogen, in rice and other
grains and has developed a point system to
help adults and children reduce their
exposure to arsenic without eliminating
rice. CR also says children should rarely eat
hot rice cereal or rice pasta and those under
the age of 5 should not replace milk with
rice drinks based on elevated arsenic levels.
The
latest
analysis
and
updated
recommendations from Consumer Reports
come nearly two years after the organization
released its original report on arsenic in rice
in 2012. These latest tests found that the IA
content of rices varies greatly depending on
the type and where it was grown. CR has
identified better choices with much lower
levels of inorganic arsenic, including white
basmati rice from India, Pakistan or
California and U.S. sushi rice. CR tests also
found lower arsenic options for other grains
such as amaranth, millet, and quinoa.The
full report, Arsenic in Your Rice: The
Latest,
is
available
online
at ConsumerReports.org and in the January
2015 issue of Consumer Reports, which hits
newsstands next week.

We are very pleased to learn that there are
lower arsenic choices when it comes to rice
and alternative grains. This is great news
for consumers who can now use our
information to make better decisions for
themselves and their families and reinforces
our advice to vary your grains, said Dr.
Urvashi Rangan, Director of Consumer
Safety and Sustainability at Consumer
Reports. In the meantime, we continue to
call on the FDA to set standards for arsenic
in rice-based foods and are particularly
concerned about the effects on children.
Consumer
Reports
Recommendations
Findings
&
Consumer Reports tested 128 samples of

basmati, jasmine, and sushi rice for arsenic
and combined the results with findings from
its 2012 tests and data from the FDAs
analysis of arsenic in rice for a total of 697
samples and determined that the inorganic
arsenic content of rice varies greatly
depending on the type of rice and where it
was grown. CR also looked at IA levels in
114 samples of nonrice grains and analyzed
FDA data on the IA content of 656
processed rice-containing products.
Below are some important findings based on
CRs new analysis:
White basmati rice from California,

India, and Pakistan, and sushi rice
from the U.S., on average has half
of the IA amount of most other
types of rice. Brown rice has 80
percent more IA on average than
white rice of the same type; brown
basmati from California, India, or
Pakistan is the best choice because it
has about a third less IA than other
brown rices.
All types of rice (except sushi and

quick-cooking) with
a label
indicating that its from the U.S.,
Arkansas, Louisiana, or Texas had
the highest levels of IA in Consumer
Reports tests. White rices from
California have 38 percent less IA
than white rice from other parts of
the country.
Organic rice takes up arsenic the

same way conventional does, so
dont rely on organic to have less
arsenic.
Gluten-free
grains,
including
amaranth,
quinoa,
buckwheat,
millet, and polenta (or grits) had
much lower average levels of IA.
Bulgur, barley, and farro, which
contain gluten, also have very little
arsenic.
Consumer
Reports
recommends that consumers vary
the type of grains they eat.
Consumer Reports is the worlds largest

independent
product-testing
organization. Using its more than 50
labs, auto test center, and survey
research center, the nonprofit rates
thousands of products and services
annually. Founded in 1936, Consumer
Reports has over 8 million subscribers
to its magazine, website and other
publications. Its advocacy division,
Consumers Union, works for health
reform, food and product safety,
financial reform, and other consumer
issues in Washington, D.C., the states,
and in the marketplace.
http://www.imperialvalleynews.com/index.php/news/health-news/249consumer-reports-issues-new-consumption-guidelines-based-on-analysis-ofarsenic-levels-in-rice-products-other-grains.html

French ambassador assures
REF of assistance
Farmers harvesting new variety of paddy at

Dakshin Surma upazila under Sylhet district.
Photo: Star
November 26, 2014

KAMOKE
France Ambassador in Pakistan Mrs Martin

Dorance said that her country enjoyed
historic and cordial relations with Pakistan
and both countries were successfully doing
business in many fields. The ambassador
emphasized that there vast scope for
Pakistani rice in EU market and joint
venture in rice field would be beneficial for
businessmen of both the countries. France
Ambassador in Pakistan Mrs Martin
Dorance expressed the views while talking
to a delegation of Rice Exporter Forum
(REF). She said that the REF would be
facilitated to explore the markets of France
and other EU member countries.
Mrs Dorance assured REF Vice Chairman
Mian Mohsin Aziz that joint meetings of the
forum with French businessmen would be
organised to find ways for enhancing rice
exports.Rice exporters including Mian
Waqar Aziz, Mian Amir Aziz, Mian Usman
Aziz, Mian Iqbal Aziz and Senator Pir
Nazim Hussain Shah were also present on
the occasion. Speaking on the occasion,
Mohsin Aziz urged the Ambassador to woo
French businessmen and experts to help
REF in improving quality of rice and
provide state of the art lab facilities.
Zinc enriched paddy

harvest in Sylhet
Iqbal Siddiquee, Sylhet
Zinc enriched paddy farming has generated

much hype among farmers of Dakshin
Surma upazila under Sylhet, since the new
variety gave them a good yield this
year.According to Chunu Miah, he
harvested about 17 mounds of paddy on a
bigha of land this year. Chunu cultivated the
variety for the first time on an experimental
basis. The variety BRI-62, was released by
the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
(BRRI) in 2013.
The crops were harvested at Noikhai village
on Wednesday. About a hundred farmers of
neighbouring villages attended the event as
officials from the DAE spoke about the
farming and preservation of the new variety
seeds and the procedure to gain the highest
yield.District Agriculture Training Officer
Abu Naser said, BRRI scientists stated the
BRI-62 paddy can be harvested within 100
to 105 days, after which the land can be used
again during the winter for another crop.
Had the farmers maintained their timetables

accordingly, they would have had a better
yield.
Moglabazar union parishad chairman
Mahmudul Haque chaired the event, while
interested farmers shared their experiences
with the new variety.BRRI invented this
breed, the world's first zinc enriched rice
variety capable of fighting diarrhoea,
pneumonia-induced child deaths and stunted
growth as zinc plays an important role in
preventing intestinal diseases, said Sylhet
region's additional director of the
Department of Agriculture, Kazi Nurul
Islam.Each kilogram of this rice will contain
19 milligrams of zinc and a protein
percentage of 9 which will ensure nutrition
and help prevent diseases.
Reversal of levy rice

procurement policy irks AP
millers
CH RS. SARMA
KAKINADA, NOVEMBER 25:
The kharif paddy crop is being harvested in
the two Godavari districts in Andhra
Pradesh, which contribute the bulk of levy
rice to the FCI, and the arrivals in the market
will usually gather momentum from the first
week of December and touch the peak by
mid-January. However, this crop year a
shadow has fallen across the scene as the
Union Government has reversed the
procurement policy.
Hitherto, till October this year, the FCI was

procuring levy in the ratio of 75:25, with the
millers milling and giving 75 per cent of the
paddy they have bought from the farmers to
the FCI as levy and selling the rest in the
open market, either in the domestic market
or for export purposes to other countries.
However, the ratio has now been reversed
and the FCI will now take only 25 per cent
as levy and the millers have to sell the rest in
the open market in accordance with the new
policy. The millers are not ready for the
sudden policy reversal and have appealed to
the State Government and the Union
Government to change the ratio to at least
50:50.
Explaining the position of the millers, East
Godavari Rice
Millers Association
President A Ramakrishna Reddy said, We
are not questioning the policy of the Union
Government but the decision has been taken
without taking into account certain market
realities. The millers in the two Godavari
districts have always bought paddy from the
farmers at the MSP or even at a slightly
higher price. It was possible because of the
assured 75 per cent levy given to the FCI.
Millers could buy paddy briskly from
farmers but it would not be possible now, as
the levy is only 25. It is not easy for the
millers to find a ready market for the rest of
75 per cent and most of the millers do not
have the holding capacity. Even a big miller
will be put to great hardship, he said.
He said it should also be borne in mind that
some of the varieties grown in the Godavari
districts such as Swarna are not consumed
locally but given to the FCI as levy or sold
in other States or countries. Therefore, it
was not easy for the millers to find market
for these varieties in a hurry.AP Rice
Millers
Association
President
G
Venkateswara Rao said the Government
should offer some relief to the millers at

least in the implementation of the new
policy and the millers should be allowed to
sell to the FCI the fixed levy quota
immediately and then buy the rest from the
farmers at the MSP. Otherwise, the stocks
would be stuck with the farmers.
(This article was published on November
25, 2014)
Filipino Farmers Protest

Government Research on
Genetically Modified Rice
By Diana Mendoza
Filipino rice farmers claim that national
heritage sites like the 2,000-year-old
Ifugao Rice Terraces are threatened by
the looming presence of genetically
modified crops. Credit: Courtesy Diana
Mendoza
MANILA, Nov 26 2014 (IPS) - Jon
Sarmiento, a farmer in the Cavite province
in southern Manila, plants a variety of fruits
and vegetables, but his main crop, rice, is
under threat. He claims that approval by the
Philippine government of the genetically
modified golden rice that is fortified with
beta-carotene, which the body converts into
vitamin A, could ruin his livelihood.
Sarmiento, who is also the sustainable
agriculture
programme
officer
of
PAKISAMA, a national movement of
farmers
organisations,
told
IPS,
Genetically modified rice will not address
the lack of vitamin A, as there are already
many other sources of this nutrient. It will
worsen hunger.
It will also kill diversification and
contaminate other crops.Sarmiento aired
his sentiments during a protest activity last
week in front of the Bureau of Plant Industry
(BPI), an office under the Department of
Agriculture, during which farmers unfurled

a huge canvas depicting a three-dimensional
illustration of the Banaue Rice Terraces in
Ifugao province in the northern part of the
Philippines.We challenge the government to
walk the talk and Be RICEponsible." -- Jon
Sarmiento, a farmer in the Cavite province in
southern Manila
Considered by Filipinos as the eighth
wonder of the world, the 2,000-year-old
Ifugao Rice Terraces represent the countrys
rich rice heritage, which some say will be at
stake once the golden rice is approved.The
protesting farmers also delivered to the BPI,
which is responsible for the development of
plant industries and crop production and
protection, an extraordinary opposition
petition against any extension, renewal or
issuance of a new bio-safety permit for
further field testing, feeding trials or
commercialisation of golden rice.We
challenge the government to walk the talk
and Be RICEponsible, Sarmiento said,
echoing the theme of a national advocacy
campaign aimed at cultivating rice selfsufficiency in the Philippines.Currently, this
Southeast Asian nation of 100 million
people is the eighth largest rice producer in
the world, accounting for 2.8 percent of
global rice production, according to the
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the
United Nations (FAO).
But it was also the worlds largest rice

importer in 2010, largely because the
Philippines area of harvested rice is very

small compared with other major riceproducing countries in Asia. In addition to
lacking sufficient land resources to produce
its total rice requirement, the Philippines is
devastated by at least 20 typhoons every
year that destroy crops, the FAO
said.However, insufficient output is not the
only thing driving research and development
on rice.
A far greater concern for scientists and
policy-makers is turning the staple food into
a greater source of nutrition for the
population.
The
government
and
independent
research
institutes
are
particularly concerned about nutrition
deficiencies that cause malnutrition,
especially
among
poorer
communities.According to the Philippinesbased International Rice Research Institute
(IRRI), Vitamin A deficiency remains a
public health problem in the country,
affecting more than 1.7 million children
under the age of five and 500,000 pregnant
and nursing women.The vast majority of
those affected live in remote areas, cut off
from access to government nutrition
programmes. The IRRI estimates that
guaranteeing these isolated communities
sufficient doses of vitamin A could reduce
child mortality here by 23-34 percent.
Such thinking has provided the impetus for
continued research and development on
genetically modified rice, despite numerous
protests including a highly publicised
incident in August last year in which
hundreds of activists entered a government
test field and uprooted saplings of the
controversial golden rice crop.While
scientists forge ahead with their tests,
protests appear to be heating up, spurred on
by a growing global movement against
GMOs.
Last weeks public action which received
support from Greenpeace Southeast Asia
and included farmers groups, organic
traders and consumers, mothers and

environmentalists
denounced
the
governments continuing research on golden
rice and field testing, as well as the
distribution and cropping of geneticallymodified corn and eggplant.Monica Geaga,
another protesting farmer who is from the
group SARILAYA, an organisation of
female organic farmers from the riceproducing provinces in the main island of
Luzon, said women suffer multiple burdens
when crops are subjected to genetic
modification.
It is a form of harassment and violence
against women who are not just farmers but
are also consumers and mothers who
manage households and the health and
nutrition of their families, she told
IPS.Geaga said she believes that if plants are
altered from their natural state, they release
toxins that are harmful to human
health.Protestors urged the government to
shield the countrys rice varieties from
contamination by genetically modified
organisms (GMOs) and instead channel the
money for rice research into protecting the
countrys biodiversity and rich cultural
heritage
while
ensuring
ecological
agricultural balance.
Though there is a dearth of hard data on how
much the Philippine government has spent
on GMO research, the Biotechnology
Coalition of the Philippines estimates that
the government and its multinational partner
companies have spent an estimated 2.6
million dollars developing GM corn
alone.Furthermore, activists and scientists
say GMOs violate the National Organic
Law that supports the propagation of rice
varieties that already possess multi-nutrients
such as carbohydrates, minerals, fibre, and
potassium, according to the Philippines
National Nutrition Council (NNC).
The NNC also said other rice varieties
traditionally produced in the Philippines

such as brown, red, and purple rice contain
these nutrients.Danilo Ocampo, ecological
agriculture campaigner for Greenpeace
Philippines, said the flawed regulatory
system in the BPI, the sole government
agency in charge of GMO approvals, has
led to approvals of all GMO applications
without regard to their long-term impact on
the environment and human health.The
problem with the current regulatory system
is that there is no administrative remedy
available to farmers once contamination
happens. It is also frustrating that consumers
and the larger populace are not given the
chance to participate in GM regulation,
said Ocampo
.It is high time that we exercise our right to
participate and be part of a regulatory
system that affects our food, our health and
our future, he asserted.Greenpeace
explained in statements released to the
media that aside from the lack of scientific
consensus on the safety of GMOs on human
health and the environment, they also
threaten
the
countrys
rich
biodiversity.Greenpeace Philippines said
genetically modified crops such as corn or
rice contain built-in pesticides that can be
toxic, and their ability to cross-breed and
cross-pollinate other natural crops can
happen in an open environment, which
cannot be contained.
Last week saw farmer activists in other
cities in the Philippines stage protest actions
that called on the government to protect the
countrys diverse varieties of rice and crops
and stop GMO research and field-testing.In
Davao City south of Manila, stakeholders
held the 11th National Organic Agriculture
Congress. In Cebu City, also south of
Manila, farmers protested the contamination
of corn, their second staple food, and
gathered petitions supporting the call against
the commercial approval of golden rice.
Edited by Kanya DAlmeida
SunRice closes Coleambally

mill
SHRINKING water
allocations
and
competition from other summer crops have
forced SunRice to put its Coleambally rice
mill back into mothballs for the harvest in
2015 - just two years after re-opening the
site.
Farmer-owned SunRice has confirmed
operations at Coleambally Mill will be
placed in care and maintenance from
February 27 in response to "changing
business needs".The decision follows close
on the heels of SunRice taking over the
fledgling Burdekin region specialist rice
processing assets of the Blue Ribbon Rice
Group in North Queensland.Chief executive
officer Rob Gordon said a review of
SunRice's operational footprint took into
account the smaller rice crop to be processed
in NSW following this year's autumn
harvest, and an even smaller crop expected
next year.Southern NSW growers grew
about 800,000 tonnes of rice last summer.
SunRice chairman Gerry Lawson recently

confirmed ricegrowers were likely to
produce less than 700,000t in the coming
year unless water allocations and seasonal
conditions favoured a late lift in yield
potential.Nine permanent Coleambally staff
will be offered jobs in SunRice's Leeton
mills. One contracted employee will
continue in their role until the site moves to

its care and maintenance phase.When a big
upswing in rice production prompted the
company to re-open its Deniliquin and
Coleambally operations in 2012, SunRice
estimated it needed about 34 staff at
Coleambally to handle the big post-drought
harvest.
Mr Gordon said the site had played an
important role in supporting the larger mills
in
Deniliquin
and
Leeton.However,
changing circumstances in the industry had
forced the company to change its operations
and make its decision public at the earliest
possible time to ensure a seamless transition.
Arkansas County Extension

Service hosts farm bill
workshop
Several speakers presented information to
the attendees and answered questions about
the new farm bill.
Submitted
PhotoOver
250
farmers,
landowners and interested individuals
attended a farm bill workshop at the Rice
Research and Extension Center.
By Dawn Teer
teer@stuttgartdailyleader.com
Posted Nov. 25, 2014 @ 6:01 pm
STUTTGART According to Arkansas
County
Extension
Agent
Grant
Beckwith, over 250 farmers, landowners
and other interested parties attended the
farm bill workshop held Wednesday at the
Rice Research and Extension Center
auditorium.
the new farm bill. Danny Hoots, Arkansas

County FSA executive director, gave an
overview of the Agricultural Risk Coverage
(ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC),
along with yield updates and base
reallocations. Tony Franco, Farm Programs
Division chief of the Arkansas State FSA
office, discussed PLC and ARC on the
county level. Dr Bobby Coats discussed the
farm bill decision making process, and Dr.
Brad Watkins discussed the web-based farm
bill decision aid
Beckwith invited producers with questions
about the 2014 Farm Bill to also contact
Bobby Coats at (501) 671-2195; Brad
Watkins,
professor
of
agricultural
economics, University of Arkansas System
Division of Agriculture, at (870) 673-2661;
Archie Flanders, assistant professor of
agricultural economics, University of
Arkansas System Division of Agriculture,
Keiser, at (870) 526-2199 Ext. 108; or Scott
Stiles, instructor of agricultural economics,
University of Arkansas System Division of
Agriculture, Jonesboro, at (870) 972-2481
For more information on the 2014 Farm Bill,
visit www.uaex.edu/farm-ranch/economicsmarketing/farm-bill/.
The Arkansas Cooperative Extension
Service offers its programs to all eligible
persons regardless of race, color, sex, gender
identity, sexual orientation, national origin,
religion, age, disability, marital or veteran
status, genetic information or any other
legally protected status, and is an
Affirmative
Action/Equal
Opportunity
Employer
Several speakers presented information to

the attendees and answered questions about

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