27th May,2021 Daily Global Regional Local Rice E-Newsletter.pdf

Daily Global, Regional & Local Rice E-Newsletter
1 | w w w . r i c e p l u s s . c o m , w w w . r i c e p l u s m a g a z i n e . b l o s g s p o t . c o m
May 27 ,2021 Vol 5 Issue 13
www.riceplusmagazine.blogspot.com
mujahid.riceplus@gmail.com 92 321 3692874

Editorial Board
Chief Editor
 Hamlik
Managing Editor
 Abdul Sattar Shah
 Rahmat Ullah
 Rozeen Shaukat
English Editor
 Maryam Editor
 Legal Advisor
 Advocate Zaheer Minhas
Editorial Associates
 Admiral (R) Hamid Khalid
 Javed Islam Agha
 Zahid Baig(Business Recorder)
 Dr.Akhtar Hussain
 Dr.Fayyaz Ahmad Siddiqui
 Dr.Abdul Rasheed (UAF)
 Islam Akhtar Khan
Editorial Advisory Board
 Dr.Malik Mohammad Hashim
Assistant Professor, Gomal
University DIK
 Dr.Hasina Gul
Assistant Director, Agriculture KPK
 Dr.Hidayat Ullah
Assistant Professor, University
of Swabi
 Dr.Abdul Basir
Assistant Professor, University of
Swabi
 Zahid Mehmood
PSO,NIFA Peshawar
 Falak Naz Shah
Head Food Science & Technology
ART, Peshawar
Rice News Headlines…
 Seminar on food security sees participation of 14 countries
 Understanding Pakistan’s fertilizer offtake
 Uganda: Butaleja Farmers Appeal to Govt Over Low Prices for
Rice
 Mahmood Moulvi appointed special assistant to PM
 11 rice millers blacklisted
 A sharp-tipped robot finger to identify buried objects
 China Mourns Scientist Who Curbed Famine
 Kenya: Mombasa Politician, Two Traders Guilty in Sh13million
Tax Evasion Case
 LT Foods Q4 net profit rises 2% to Rs 60 cr; stock falls 10%
 USA Rice Booth at SIAL Gives Rice Trades a Taste Test
 To be sourced from tariff on rice imports: House panels OK
additional aid for farmers
 China’s top hybrid rice scientist Yuan Longping passes away
 Butaleja farmers appeal to govt over low prices for rice
 Just rice
 Heavy flooding impacts local crops
 Food from fallows: capitalizing on idle land for better food
security in South Asia
 Bill seeking to distribute surplus rice tariff as cash aid to
farmers OK’d
 Uganda: Butaleja Farmers Appeal to Govt Over Low Prices for
Rice
 Basmati rice being reduced to a generic variety from an
exclusive one’
 ASIA RICE-INDIA RATES GAIN, BANGLADESH ASSESSES
CYCLONE AFTERMATH

Seminar on food security sees participation of 14 countries
Xinhua
27th May 2021, 02:05 GMT+10
CHANGSHA, May 26 (Xinhua) -- A seminar on food security for developing countries was held
in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, on Wednesday.
Hosted by the Ministry of Commerce, the seminar is aimed at strengthening exchanges between
China and other developing countries in agricultural cooperation and food security and
deepening cooperation in the agricultural field.
A total of 95 participants from 14 countries, including Kenya, Egypt, Cambodia, Nigeria, Egypt
and Pakistan, will take part in the online seminar over the next 14 days.
A retrospective video was played at the opening ceremony of the seminar in memory of Yuan
Longping, the "father of hybrid rice," with all the participants observing a moment of silence.
"I would pay our condolences on the sad demise of the 'father of hybrid rice,' the great Prof.
Yuan Longping, who fetch out the poor world from the poverty level of hunger by developing
hybrid rice being used by many countries of the world," said Syed Sultan Ali, a participant from
Rice Research Institute in Kala Shah Kaku, Pakistan.
"We as a researcher in hybrid rice will always keep following his footprints for the development
of hybrid rice to feed our local population," he added.
According to Liu Famou of Longping High-tech, China has trained more than 14,000 hybrid rice
technicians for dozens of developing countries since the 1980s.
https://www.bignewsnetwork.com/news/269644919/seminar-on-food-security-sees-
participation-of-14-countries
Understanding Pakistan‘s fertilizer offtake
BR Research 27 May 2021
It is widely understood that fertilizer offtake in Pakistan‘s farming sector is highly skewed
towards excessive urea application. Afterall, Pakistan‘s majority small-hold and subsistence
growers can ill-afford other high value fertilizers such as DAP and nitro phosphates. The
common mantra among country‘s progressive farmers is that optimal ratio – and not maximum
application – is the key to unlocking target crop yields.

But what is the extent of urea over-use? The go to reference for most academic analysis of
fertilizer consumption are the annual fertilizer consumption figures published in Pakistan
Statistical Yearbook by PBS and in the Annual Economic Survey. Based on the official statistics,
up to 90 percent of annual fertilizer offtake is consumed by four major crops – wheat, cotton,
sugarcane, and rice – of which, 50 percent is by wheat alone.
Because wheat is by far the largest crop - commanding 9 million hectares out of 22.5 million
hectares total cropped area – that argument has long been considered intuitive. Moreover,
because fertilizer offtake – based on monthly figures published by National Fertilizer
Development Corporation (NFDC) – reveal equal distribution between kharif and rabi season – it
is further assumed that wheat accounts for over 95 percent of fertilizer offtake during rabi.
The above relationship leads many in the environmentalist community to draw conclusions
regarding a ―excessive fertilizer (urea) consumption and cash crop cultivation nexus‖, which
cannot be easily dispelled considering the four cash crops continue to account for 70 percent of
total farm area cropped. But would cultivating a diverse blend of more high value crops lead to
lower fertilizer utilization?

But first, a short comment on national fertilizer consumption figures. The annual figures
published by PBS and others are based on a 2005 Fertilizer Use Survey by NDFC which assumes
50 percent fertilizer application for wheat, 25 percent for cotton, 8 percent for sugarcane, and 6
percent for rice, and remainder 11 percent for other crops.
That assumption is highly suspect. Based on the survey, consumption of fertilizer for cotton
increased by 17 percent between FY10 and FY19, never mind that the area under cotton
cultivation has declined by over 1 million hectares during the same period. Could it be that
cotton growers are applying incremental units of fertilizer, only to get poorer yield year after
year? Similarly, while Pakistan‘s maize output has doubled over the last decade, fertilizer offtake
for maize remains negligible. Does increased maize production require no additional fertilizer
application?
Data from Punjab government‘s agriculture department would disagree. While it is impossible to
determine crop-wise fertilizer consumption given absence of periodic/annual consumption
studies, indicative/recommended fertilizer application levels (by Punjab government) can help
glean some insight.
Absolute conclusions do not change much when recommended fertilizer levels from Punjab are
incorporated. Afterall, wheat would remain the largest consumer of fertilizer – at 42 percent –
due to the sheer expanse of its cultivation. But is it also most fertilizer intensive?
Turns out, major crops such as wheat, seed cotton, and rice would hardly fall among top 10
consumers of fertilizer if recommended levels of fertilizer per hectare were applied. (fertilizer-
intensiveness is defined as volume of fertilizer applied per unit area). In the case of both urea,
and DAP, the most fertilizer-intensive crops would actually be vegetables such as potato, tenda,
bitter gourd, and tomatoes, along with sugarcane and maize featuring among the top 10.

How can the two sets of information be reconciled then? It is safe to conclude that the 2005
NDFC survey can now be discarded and not be made part of venerable official publications such
as Economic Survey, seeing how it is based on outdated data and does not take into account
changing farmer preferences for crops, or higher application of fertilizer is increasingly more
popular crops such as sugarcane and corn.
Meanwhile, rice stands out as a notable exception as a low fertilizer intensive crop, based on
both old and more recent data. Low fertilizer consumption of rice even in the 2005 survey attests
to this fact, as does the lower recommended level of urea and DAP application per unit area in
Punjab government‘s latest statistics.
Wheat, however, remains the only constant. As the crop responsible for 90 percent of rabi season
crop area, it continues to be responsible for excessive urea application during the season which is
estimated at 53 percent higher than recommended!
Of course, the data must be treated carefully. Afterall, data concerning volume of fertilizer
applied per unit area represent recommended levels, and not actual. Thus, the difference between
recommended and actual fertilizer application during any given season is based on both
normative and reported inputs. Moreover, if recommended fertilizer application level for every
crop varies from region to region, the extrapolation of Punjab‘s data to rest of the country may be
substantially faulty. Nevertheless, it does raise questions whether encouraging cultivation of high
value crops to reduce dependence on fertilizer intensive wheat and cotton can truly lead to lower
fertilizer consumption.
https://www.brecorder.com/news/40095460/understanding-pakistans-fertilizer-offtake
Uganda: Butaleja Farmers Appeal to Govt Over Low
Prices for Rice
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26 MAY 2021
The Monitor
(Kampala)

By Yahudu Kitunzi
Rice production remains the most popular economic activity in Butaleja District, eastern Uganda.
The district is also home to Doho Rice Scheme, one of the biggest growing schemes of the cereal
in the country.
Despite this, many rice farmers have remained poor and struggle to meet basic economic needs,
including paying school fees for their children.
This is partly due to low prices the rice fetches.
Local leaders say poor yields and poor harvest handling of Kaiso rice, which is the only variety
grown in the district, gives room for importation of rice from other countries, including
Tanzania.
Most farmers dry their rice on bare ground, which affects its quality.
The farm gate price for a kilogramme of Kaiso rice is Shs1,800 and the retail price is Shs2,500.
Shrewd traders from Kenya and other parts of Uganda usually buy unprocessed rice from the
district, refine it and then resell at Shs6,000 per kg.
Ms Madina Namudira, a rice farmer, says they are exploited by middlemen because sometimes
they cannot even store their produce for the prices to stabilise because of pressing needs.
"We are being cheated. We know it but we have no option. They sometimes pay us as low as
Shs1,500 per kilogramme," she says.
Ms Sarah Lugose, another farmer, says the current market prices are demotivating.
"The low price has demotivated us to continue growing rice and yet it's the only source of
income. We appeal to the government to get good market for our rice," Ms Lugose says.
Mr Peter Haduhulu, a rice trader, says they do not have capital to add value to their rice and also
to improve post-harvest handling such as advanced methods of drying it.
"We also don't have financial support to brand our rice in order to fetch good prices," Mr
Haduhulu says.
Mr Muhammad Wandera, a resident of Nampologoma Trading Centre, blamed the low prices on
failure to get market outside their district.
"Our leaders are not helping us to attract the market and grade the rice," Mr Wandera says.
The district chairperson, Mr Micheal Higenyi Bory, says rice, which is imported from Tanzania,
is graded, packaged and branded.
"Here we don't do any of that. Some farmers dry their rice on the bare ground, which
compromises the quality of rice," Mr Higenyi says.

The district environmental officer, Mr Tom Wandera, reveals that whereas Butaleja remains the
top rice producer in the country with about 150,000 tonnes per year, there is little profit for the
farmers.
"Most households have remained in perpetual poverty due low prices associated with various
reasons, which include poor post-harvest handling where farmers thresh rice by using heavy
sticks instead of a thresher," he says.
Mr Wandera explains that poor threshing leaves most of the rice particles broken. "The drying
method by our farmers doesn't conform to the three hours per day recommended standard;
instead farmers expose rice to all day sunshine, which affects the final product," he adds.
He says poor storage also accounts for poor quality as most milling places do not have
recommended stores and capacity to handle large volumes of rice.
"Ninety percent of Butaleja rice is milled by one stage mill fabricated locally; this affects output
and quality as farmers record a high percentage of broken rice, which fetches low prices," he
says.
Mr Wandera also blames poor prices on the lack of aggregation centres.
"Each farmer sells their own rice at their own time and quantity and this affects their bargaining
power," he says.
Mr James Wire, an agribusiness consultant, says rice prices have remained low but the
government has also done little to help.
"We have shouted ourselves hoarse about the need to have better quality rice on the market but
the farming community and government doesn't give a hoot," Mr Wire says. Mr Wire also
reveals that whereas government set up mills in the district that grade rice nearly 10 years ago,
many farmers shunned them, claiming the machines reduces the quantity of the cereal.
https://allafrica.com/stories/202105270133.html
Mahmood Moulvi appointed special assistant to PM
Recorder Report
27 May 2021
KARACHI: Leading businessman and former chairman Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan
(REAP) Mahmood Moulvi has been appointed as Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM)
on Maritime Affairs, said a notification.

Mahmood Moulvi was earlier serving as Advisor of Maritime Affairs. He was also appointed as
Senior Vice President of the executive committee of the western Sindh region of Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf.
He has thanked Prime Minister Imran Kham and Federal Minister Ali Zaidi for honoring him
with the designation of Special Assistant.
Meanwhile, Abdul Qayum Paracha, Chairman REAP has expressed his heartiest congratulations
to Mahmood Moulvi, former chairman REAP, for being appointed as Special Assistant to Prime
Minister for Maritime Affairs.
He said that Mahmood Moulvi has a vast experience in shipping and maritime field. During his
tenure as Chairman REAP, he steered REAP in a very positive direction and is pioneer to many
projects that were fulfilled and continued later for the betterment of exporters. His dedication and
commitment to trade and industry is remarkable.
https://www.brecorder.com/news/40095590/mahmood-moulvi-appointed-special-assistant-to-pm
11 rice millers blacklisted
Thursday, 27 May 2021 | Staff Reporter | RAIPUR
The Raipur administration has blacklisted 11 rice millers for not doing custom milling of
government paddy, the government said on Wednesday.Raipur Collector Dr S. Bharathi Dasan
has blacklisted Satyanarayana Nathulal Mill (Neora), Munka Rice Mill (Tilda-Neora), Panjwani
Foods (Tulsi-Neora), Sanjay Grain Products Pvt Ltd (Sakri), Dashmesh Industries (Kewaradih),
NBA Foods (Khaulidabri), Balaji Rice Mills (Pipraud), Mahak Rice Industry (Kurra), Hariom
Industries (Nawagaon-Koilari), Nirmala Rice Pvt Ltd (Satpara) and Gurunanak Rice Industries
(Budera). Earlier, the District Food Controller had issued a show cause notice to the millers who
had not lifted the paddy and did not do custom milling work of the government paddy.
https://www.dailypioneer.com/2021/state-editions/11-rice-millers-blacklisted.html
A sharp-tipped robot finger to identify buried objects
Slender robotic finger senses buried items.
BYAMIT MALEWAR
MAY 26, 2021

TECHNOLOGYROBOTICS
MIT researchers developed a ―Digger Finger‖ robot that digs through granular material, like sand
and gravel, and senses the shapes of buried objects. Credits:Image courtesy of the researchers
Research in robotic manipulation has focused on rigid objects more than deformable objects and
granular media. One reason is due to the difficulty of modeling the complex dynamics of the
latter two. Another reason is that the perceptual understanding of the latter two via tactile-based
hardware devices and algorithms is poor compared to vision-based methods.
While dealing with physical interactions, the tactile sensation can be more critical than visual
information. Due to these compounding limitations, robotic manipulation of deformable objects
and granular media remains poorly explored.
With this motivation, MIT scientists have designed a sharp-tipped robot finger equipped with
tactile sensing to meet the challenge of identifying buried objects.
They dubbed this robot- finger as Digger Finger, that can dig through granular media such
as sand and rice. During experiments, it could successfully sense the shapes of submerged items
it encountered.

Scientists noted, “the robot might one day perform various subterranean duties, such as finding
buried cables or disarming buried bombs.”
Previously, researchers have used technologies that sense the subterranean from above, such as
Ground Penetrating Radar or ultrasonic vibrations. But these techniques provide only a hazy
view of submerged objects. They might struggle to differentiate rock from bone, for example.
Edward Adelson, the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Vision Science in CSAIL and the
Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, said, “So, the idea is to make a finger that has a
good sense of touch and can distinguish between the various things its feeling. That would be
helpful if you’re trying to find and disable buried bombs, for example.”
A closeup photograph of the new robot and a diagram of its parts.
Credits:Image courtesy of the researchers
For the Digger Finger, the analysts thinned down their GelSight sensor in two main ways. In the
first place, they changed the shape to be a slender cylinder with a beveled tip. Then, they dumped
two-thirds of the LED lights, utilizing a combination of blue LEDs and colored fluorescent
paint.

The eventual outcome highlighted a gadget whose material detecting layer was around 2 square
centimeters, as the tip of a finger.
Scientists later focused on motion with sorted size, mounting the finger on a robot arm and
digging through fine-grained sand and coarse-grained rice. Granular media can jam the finger
when numerous particles become locked in place. Thus, scientists added vibration to the Digger
Finger‘s capabilities and put it through a battery of tests. Rapid vibrations helped ―fluidize‖ the
media, clearing jams and allowing for deeper burrowing — through this fluidizing effect was
harder to achieve in the sand than in rice.
Radha Patel, a postdoc in MIT‘s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
(CSAIL), said, “We wanted to see how mechanical vibrations aid in digging deeper and getting
through jams. We ran the vibrating motor at different operating voltages, which changes the
amplitude and frequency of the vibrations.”
“Operators will have to adjust the Digger Finger’s motion pattern for different settings
“depending on the type of media and the size and shape of the grains.”
Adelson says the Digger Finger is part of a program extending the domains in which robotic
touch can be used. Humans use their fingers amidst complex environments, whether fishing for a
key in a pants pocket or feeling for a tumor during surgery.
“As we get better at an artificial touch, we want to be able to use it in situations when all kinds
of distracting information surround us. We want to be able to distinguish between the stuff that’s
important and the stuff that’s not.”
Journal Reference:
1. Radhen Patel et al. Digger Finger: GelSight Tactile Sensor for Object Identification Inside
Granular Media. arXiv: 2102.10230v1
https://www.techexplorist.com/sharp-tipped-robot-finger-identify-buried-objects/39226/
China Mourns Scientist Who Curbed Famine
Yuan Longping, who developed hybrid rice in the 1970s, won global recognition and became a
national icon.
By James Palmer, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy.

People pay respect to agronomist Yuan Longping near a super hybrid rice experimental field in
Sanya, Hainan province, China, on May 26. SUN QING/VCG VIA GETTY IMAGES
MAY 26, 2021, 5:30 PM
Welcome to Foreign Policy‘s China Brief.
The highlights this week: China mourns the death of the agricultural scientist Yuan Longping,
the debate over the origins of the coronavirus yields no new evidence, and official comments
suggest a cryptocurrency crackdown looms.
If you would like to receive China Brief in your inbox every Wednesday, please sign
up here.
National Icon Yuan Longping Dies at 90
The Chinese scientist Yuan Longping, whose development of hybrid rice in the 1970s helped
bring an end to famine for millions of people throughout Asia and Africa, died Saturday at the
age of 90. In most of the world, his death was remarked in passing. In China, where Yuan was a
national icon, it dominated the news.
Yuan‘s early years were marked by war and hunger, as a child during the Japanese invasion and
as a young man during the Great Leap Forward (1959-1961), when somewhere between 20
million and 45 million Chinese starved to death. As an agricultural scientist, Yuan crossbred a
rice species to produce 20 to 30 percent greater yields than previous strains. His work was part of
the Green Revolution that transformed global food supplies and staved off warnings of
overpopulation and mass famine in the 1960s and 1970s.
Numerous factors make Yuan a particularly beloved figure in China. He was the first modern
scientist working in the country to make a breakthrough with global recognition—without
clashing with the politics of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), when he did his most
significant work. Agricultural science was to some degree politically shielded from assaults on
universities and scientific institutions. (Yuan‘s initial genetic research was conducted in secrecy
since Mendelian theory was politically anathema.)
Yuan was a personally modest man with a deep commitment to young scientists. He resisted
being turned into a propaganda figure as best he could. His death sparked widespread mourning,
especially in his home city of Changsha, Hunan province. It also prompted the authorities
to arrest several people for posting insulting comments about him online.
China owes much to Yuan, whose work helped bring the country out of the persistent food
insecurity that reached its nadir in the 19th and 20th centuries, thanks to overpopulation, political

collapse, and ecological disaster. Malnutrition remained the norm in many parts of China
throughout the 1970s, and food rationing only officially ended in 1993. Even today, the first
central government document issued every year still concerns China‘s food supply.
What We’re Following
Coronavirus origin debate. Proponents of the coronavirus lab leak theory have seized on a U.S.
intelligence report that three employees at the Wuhan Institute of Virology sought ―hospital
care‖ in November 2019. There‘s just one problem: Hospitals are the primary point of care in
Chinese cities, and it is often necessary to get sick notes for paid time off, even for minor
illnesses. Three people going to the doctor during China‘s annual cold and flu season doesn‘t
prove anything.
The actual evidence for the origins of the coronavirus has not significantly changed since April
2020. A lab leak remains theoretically possible, but there is no evidence of it. The botched World
Health Organization investigation only managed to raise more doubts among scientists about the
official Chinese account. But Chinese obfuscation doesn‘t mean Beijing is hiding evidence: The
political system obfuscates everything, particularly when dealing with foreigners.
Calls for an independent, open investigation on the origins of the pandemic are fantasies. Even if
the Wuhan authorities had a smoking gun, Beijing would stonewall any outside investigators—
out of instinct and because of the official lies by local and likely national authorities about the
extent and virulence of the initial outbreak. Former Trump administration officials have mounted
a campaign to talk up supposed evidence without context.
Read Yangyang Cheng, who has significant knowledge of Chinese science and politics, on the
topic.
Endless Frontier Act curtailed. The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee has limited the scope
of the Endless Frontier Act, which aims to counter the rise of China‘s technological power, as
discussed last week. The committee cut the original $100 billion budget for a new technology
directorate to less than $40 billion, with just $10 billion earmarked for research and
development. The move prompted fierce complaint from the bill‘s supporters.
The ChinaTalk podcast has a good discussion of how logrolling and lack of ambition neutered
the legislation.
Europe freezes China deal. A major trade deal reached between the European Union and China
in January—to much criticism from human rights advocates and the U.S. government—has been
frozen by the EU parliament in a landslide vote. China shot itself in the foot by imposing
sanctions on EU think tanks and researchers in March in response to sanctions over its
ongoing human rights abuses in Xinjiang. Despite German leaders pushing the deal, the EU

parliament has halted ratification until the sanctions are lifted, a politically tricky move for
Beijing.
Meanwhile, Lithuania is the latest country to describe the state atrocities in Xinjiang as
genocide, withdrawing from the Chinese-led 17+1 bloc in Eastern Europe and banning Chinese
5G products from its network at the same time. The move prompted a state media outburst.
Eastern European skepticism about China has grown since the bloc was launched nine years ago,
although Beijing still has strong allies in authoritarian leaders such as Hungary‘s Viktor Orban.
Tech and Business
Crypto crackdown. Comments from Chinese Vice Premier Liu He that further restricting
bitcoin mining was ―necessary‖ sparked another sudden crash in the volatile cryptocurrency
market, knocking bitcoin prices down from $42,000 to $32,000. A significant amount of
Bitcoin remains controlled by Chinese traders, mostly because of its value for money laundering
in a country with extremely tight currency laws. The cost of moving money illegally
significantly increased after anti-corruption purges in 2013.
Inner Mongolia is a very popular region for bitcoin miners due to cheap electricity and cold
temperatures, which help prevent overheating on the enormous computer rigs necessary for
mining. The authorities there have discussed a specific provincial crackdown, which could limit
mining even more than the national plan.
Another Hollywood apology. Actor and wrestler John Cena was forced into apologizing for
violating Chinese political norms this week. In an interview, Cena described Taiwan as ―the first
country that can watch‖ his latest movie, Fast & Furious 9, inadvertently ignoring Beijing‘s
insistence that Taiwan should never be referred to as a country. After angry nationalists attacked
Cena on social media, he made an awkward apology in Mandarin—the latest instance of a
celebrity appeasing Chinese censors for the sake of the market.
With new attention from the U.S. public on the relationship between film studios and Beijing,
however, that era may be changing.
Social media difficulties. The proliferation of social media accounts for official departments of
all kinds—down to local police stations and traffic departments—is causing concern among the
top levels of government, according to a report from the China Media Project. Officials use these
accounts in part to curry favor with the leadership by posting ultranationalist memes, some of
which have been picked up by foreign media—overshadowing official party messaging. More
mundanely, poor response times are common. Finally, top officials may worry about the data
such accounts provide foreign researchers, even as access to China becomes more difficult.

What We’re Reading
We Tibetans, by Rinchen Lhamo
This 1926 memoir, the first English-language book by a Tibetan about their homeland, is a
fascinating—if somewhat rose-tinted—portrayal of Tibet decades before the Chinese invasion.
Rinchen Lhamo was the wife of Louis Magrath King, a British diplomat who was kicked out of
his job for marrying a woman of color. She dictated the book to him in Chinese, their shared
language, before she died tragically young in 1929.
Lhamo has a sharp eye for the prejudices of foreigners writing about Tibet, as well as for the
idiosyncrasies of Western life. ―I got used to shaking people by the hand, to the evening gown,
which makes a human being look like a stork, and after a toss or two, to high-heeled shoes,‖ she
writes. To Lhamo, Tibet is not a ―land of ice and snow‖ but one bathed in sunshine, even in the
winter.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/05/26/china-mourns-scientist-yuan-longping-green-revolution-
hybrid-rice/
Kenya: Mombasa Politician, Two Traders Guilty in
Sh13million Tax Evasion Case
27 MAY 2021
By Brian Ocharo
Mombasa politician Maur Abdallah Bwanamaka and two businessmen have been found guilty of
evading Sh13 million tax by under-declaring rice imported from Zanzibar.
Also found guilty of the offence committed in 2019 are Captain Shipping Agency director Ali
Mohamed and vessel master Abdalla Hussein Mer.
Chief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti said the evidence against the three was overwhelming.
She added that the men made a false report to facilitate the release of the cargo without paying
custom duty.
"The accused are convicted in their individual capacity and as directors of Captain Shipping
Agency," the court said.
The magistrate added that she could not understand how agencies charged with inspecting
vessels cleared the goods without noticing the thousands bags of rice hidden in MV Al Fazal.The
anomaly was discovered during the unloading of the goods at Mombasa Old Port after they had
been cleared by the inspection team.

Evidence against the accused
"The multi-agency team on board the ship was either careless, too busy to conduct proper
inspection or there was collusion," the magistrate said.
The court added that the evidence against the accused was very glaring and that it appears the
multi-agency team limited its inspection to what was on the surface of the ship.
The magistrate at the same time cancelled Sh100,000 bond terms on the accused and directed
that they remain detained at Port police station awaiting sentencing on June 7.
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Following their conviction, the court is expected to order the forfeiture and destruction of the
goods.
The more than 15,000 bags of rice and 16 tonnes of scrap metal are being held at Old Port where
MV Al Fazal docked in November 2019.
The case also involved a visit to the site the vessel and its contents are being held by the Kenya
Revenue Authority (KRA).
The vessel was seized while the rice was being offloaded.
According to KRA, MV Al Fazal was impounded when the importing company - Federal
Commercial Investment Ltd - attempted to discharge the cargo without paying Sh13 million in
taxes.
Under-declaring cargo
The taxman accused the importer of deliberately under-declaring the cargo.
Mr Bwanamaka and Mr Mohamed, who were to receive the rice, were charged with making a
false report.
The charge sheet stated that the consignee and agent unlawfully made the report by declaring
that the vessel had 1,000 bags of rice instead of 15,045.
KRA says the accused also declared 10 tonnes of scrap metal instead of the 16 tonnes on the
ship.
The cargo on the ship was valued at more than Sh22.5 million.
Mr Mer was also charged with conveying imported goods that were under-declared.
KRA accuses the group of engaging in falsifying manifests at Old Port customs border station in
Mombasa.
bocharo@ke.nationmedia.com
Read the original article on Nation.

LT Foods Q4 net profit rises 2% to Rs 60 cr; stock falls 10%
Press Trust of India | New Delhi | Last Updated at May 26 2021 15:22 IST
LT Foods | Basmati
Leading basmati rice firm LT Foods Ltd on Wednesday reported a 2.38 per cent increase in
consolidated net profit to Rs 59.73 crore for the fourth quarter of 2020-21.
The company had posted a net profit of Rs 58.34 crore in the same quarter previous fiscal, it said
in a regulatory filing.
Net income declined on a consolidated basis to Rs 1,146.52 crore in the fourth quarter from Rs
1,218.12 crore in the year-ago period.
Expenses were lower at Rs 1,058.12 crore as against 1,132.89 crore a year ago.
For the full 2020-21, the company reported a 45 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs
289.07 crore, compared to Rs 199.30 crore in the preceding fiscal.
Net income rose to Rs 4,686.16 crore in 2020-21 from Rs 4,172.97 crore in the previous
financial year.
"LT Foods has responded to these unprecedented times with agility...Despite the challenges, we
achieved a healthy all-around performance, LT Foods Managing Director and CEO Ashwani
Arora said.
"We are optimistic on the outlook of the overall business as we progress on our journey of
creating strong, progressive, sustainable, profitable and growing consumer business across all
geographies," he said in a separate statement.
The Board has appointed Ashok Kumar Arora as new managing director of the company with
immediate effect till 2026, subject to shareholders' approval, the filing said.
The firm has five processing facilities in India, two packaging units and one ready-to-heat
facility in the US and one processing facility in Rotterdam.

Besides India, the key markets for LT Foods' brands are the US, UK, Europe, Middle East and
the Far East.
In the rice category, the company's brands include DAAWAT, Royal, Heritage, Gold Seal Indus
Valley, 817 Elephant, Devaaya and Rozana.
The organic food product range includes rice, soy, pulses, oilseeds, cereal grains, spices and nuts.
The company is also into rice-based convenience products that include saute sauces, rice-based
premium snacks and staples.
At 1520 hours on Wednesday, the company's scrip on NSE was trading 10% lower at Rs 78.60.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard
staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/basmati-rice-firm-lt-foods-q4-net-profit-
up-2-38-to-rs-59-73-crore-121052600672_1.html+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=pk

USA Rice Booth at SIAL Gives Rice Trades a Taste Test
By Jim Guinn
SHANGHAI, CHINA – Last week, USA Rice exhibited at the in-person 2021 SIAL China trade
show that included 4,500 exhibitors and more than 123,000 visitors. USA Rice has had a
presence at this show for the past four years but this year, the USA Rice booth got an upgrade
with shelves showcasing U.S. rice retail packages and a U.S. rice exporter online showroom that
was accessible via touch screen.
Robert Forden gives U.S. ricethe thumbs up
Eight types of U.S. rice were displayed and cooked for taste-testing, including long grain, long
grain parboiled, Jasmine, Southern medium grain, Koshihikari, Calihikari, Calmochi, and
Calrose.

The most asked question by traders visiting the booth was about the U.S.-China relationship and
its influence on imports and price. Fifty qualified contacts from the trading, distribution, and
retail channels were added to the USA Rice database and will receive additional information
about U.S.-grown rice.
Sungiven Foods, the company that imported the first shipment of U.S. rice to China, also
exhibited at SIAL China. ―We plan to continue to sell U.S. rice," said Sungiven Foods Sales
Manager Junjie Wu. "We are prepared to invest in the long-term to sell U.S. rice knowing it
takes time for consumers to accept a new item.‖
U.S. Embassy United States' Chargé d'affaires Robert W. Forden stopped by the USA Rice
booth, commending the U.S. rice industry‘s sustainability messaging and efforts at delivering a
premium quality product to consumers in China.
Later this year, USA Rice will be exhibiting at the Food Hotel China show in Shanghai,
continuing to raise awareness here for U.S. rice.
USA Rice Daily
To be sourced from tariff on rice imports: House panels OK
additional aid for farmers
By Billy Begas
Members of the House Committees on Agriculture and Food and on Appropriations on
Wednesday approved the proposal to give as cash assistance to small farmers the unallocated
collection from the tariff imposed on imported rice.
Agriculture committee chairperson and Quezon Rep. Mark Enverga said that the committee
members also agreed to widen the number of farmers that will benefit from the proposed Rice
Farmers Financial Assistance.
Instead of limiting the beneficiaries to farmers owning one hectare or less, Enverga said those
who will qualify will be farmers farming two hectares or less.
The measure will cover 1,534,941 out of some 1,954,433 registered rice farmers in the country.
There are 1,141,661 farmers farming one hectare or less.
Under the Rice Tariffication law (Republic Act 11203) P10 billion from the collected tariff on
imported rice will be earmarked to the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF).

The bill seeks to allocate the excess collection to the cash assistance.
The RCEF is earmarked for rice farm machinery and equipment (P5 billion), rice seeds (P3
billion), credit assistance (P1 billion) and rice extension services such as training (P1 billion).
In 2019, the tariff collection from rice importation reached P12.135 billion while in 2020 it
reached P16.269 billion.
https://politics.com.ph/to-be-sourced-from-tariff-on-rice-imports-house-panels-ok-additional-aid-
for-farmers/+
China’s top hybrid rice scientist Yuan Longping passes away
Yuan Longping won the World Food Prize in 2004 for his contribution to food security.
Who was Yuan Longping? All you need to know.
ROOPASHREE SHARMA
Created On: May 26, 2021 12:15 ISTModified On: May 26, 2021 12:15 IST
Yuan Longping, Source: Xinhua
Yuan Longping, a Chinese agriculture scientist, passed away on May 22, 2021, due to organ
failure at a hospital in Changsha at 90. Longping was highly accredited as the ‗Father of Hybrid
Rice‘ that he had developed in 1970s to save millions of people after a disastrous famine in
China.
Qu Dongyu, Director-General, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) condoled the
death of Longping. He had worked as an International Chief Consultant to FAO in 1991.
Who was Yuan Longping?
•Yuan Longping, born in Beijing in 1931, was a Chinese agriculture scientist who was highly
accredited as the ‗Father of Hybrid Rice‘.
•Yuan Longping had developed the world‘s first high-yield hybrid rice in 1973 that was named
‗Nan-you No. 2‘. This hybrid rice strain yielded 20 per cent more rice per acre compared to non-
hybrid varieties.
•Yuan Longping won the World Food Prize in 2004 for his contribution to food security, which
is equivalent to the Nobel Prize in the field of agriculture.
•Later, in 2019, Longping received the Medal of the Republic, China‘s highest honour.

Yuan Longping's discovery of hybrid rice’: Background
•The Great Chinese Famine from 1959 to 1961 killed around 45 million people. Longping began
his research in 1964 to develop a hybrid breed of rice. He devised a theory that a male-sterile
grain can be cross-bred with other crops to boost yields.
•In the same year, he published data about unique genetic tools requisite to develop the world‘s
first hybrid rice strain. He was successful at developing the world‘s first hybrid rice strain in
1973.
•Longping's discovery led to mass cultivation in China registering an increase in rice yields
exceeding 900 kg per mu (13,500kg per hectare) in 2011 compared to 300 kg per mu (4,500kg
per hectare) in the 1970s.
Yuan’s Hybrid Rice: Impact
•The China National Hybrid Rice Research and Development Centre stated that approximately 8
million hectares of hybrid rice have been planted overseas.
•The International Rice Research Institute based in the Philippines in 1979 established its hybrid
rice programme. In the same year, China exported hybrid rice to the US for the first time.

•The first large-scale commercial production with over 10,000 hectares of hybrid rice began in
1992 in Vietnam that expanded to other Asian countries.
•In 1996, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) joined forces with the Chinese
Hybrid Rice Research and Development Centers, the International Rice Research Institute, and
other national research centres to launch the International Task Force on Hybrid Rice. This task
force was funded by the Asian Development Bank from 1998 to 2006.
https://www.jagranjosh.com/current-affairs/chinas-top-hybrid-rice-scientist-yuan-longping-
passes-away-1622011505-1
Butaleja farmers appeal to govt over low prices for rice
WEDNESDAY MAY 26 2021
A man stands near rice gardens in Doho Rice Scheme, Mazimasa Sub-county in Butaleja
District. PHOTO/Yahudu Kitunzi
Summary
The district is also home to Doho Rice Scheme, one of the biggest in the country.

By Yahudu Kitunzi
in the country.
Tanzania.

―We are being cheated. We know it but we have no option. They sometimes pay us as low as
Shs1,500 per kilogramme,‖ she says.
―The low price has demotivated us to continue growing rice and yet it‘s the only source of
income. We appeal to the government to get good market for our rice,‖ Ms Lugose says.
―We also don‘t have financial support to brand our rice in order to fetch good prices,‖ Mr
Haduhulu says.
―Our leaders are not helping us to attract the market and grade the rice,‖ Mr Wandera says.
―Here we don‘t do any of that. Some farmers dry their rice on the bare ground, which
compromises the quality of rice,‖ Mr Higenyi says.
farmers.

―Most households have remained in perpetual poverty due low prices associated with various
reasons, which include poor post-harvest handling where farmers thresh rice by using heavy
sticks instead of a thresher,‖ he says.
Mr Wandera explains that poor threshing leaves most of the rice particles broken. ―The drying
method by our farmers doesn‘t conform to the three hours per day recommended standard;
instead farmers expose rice to all day sunshine, which affects the final product,‖ he adds.
―Ninety percent of Butaleja rice is milled by one stage mill fabricated locally; this affects output
and quality as farmers record a high percentage of broken rice, which fetches low prices,‖ he
says.
Mr Wandera also blames poor prices on the lack of aggregation centres.
―Each farmer sells their own rice at their own time and quantity and this affects their bargaining
power,‖ he says.
government has also done little to help.
―We have shouted ourselves hoarse about the need to have better quality rice on the market but
the farming community and government doesn‘t give a hoot,‖ Mr Wire says. Mr Wire also
reveals that whereas government set up mills in the district that grade rice nearly 10 years ago,
many farmers shunned them, claiming the machines reduces the quantity of the cereal.

―Now they are the same that are complaining of low prices yet if we had kicked off Brand
Butaleja while associating it with clean rice, today we would be selling with ease at premium
rates. A lot of the Pakistan rice that retails at more than Shs5, 000 has never fallen in price
despite the flooded market,‖ he says.
However, Mr David Mulabi, the former contestant for Bunyole East parliamentary seat, blames
high poverty levels on the lowest returns on their investment in rice.
―The trader who moves from one place to another without any other input gets Shs2,000 per kilo
as profit. So poor returns in the sector mean high poverty levels,‖ Mr Mulabi says.
Rice in Butaleja
Rice growing gained prominence in the 1970s following the establishment of the Doho Rice
scheme by the government. Doho rice scheme has more than 2,500 acres of land and more than
9,000 farmers involved. Other schemes and swamps where rice is grown include Lwoba
irrigation scheme, Nakwasi swamp, Hijjinji swamp, Wampala swamp, Namatala swamp,
Mpologoma, Nkawiga, Nahinghande, Doho-Hibira.
https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/butaleja-farmers-appeal-to-govt-over-low-
prices-for-rice-3414978
Just rice
Social media went into a frenzy on the news that PM Imran Khan during his recent visit to Saudi
bagged or according to a more satirical lot ―begged‖ 19000 rice bags from the Saudi Royal
family. Reportedly these bagged or ―begged‖ bags were distributed in Punjab and KPK.

Pakistan has always remained the receiver of largess from Saudi Arabia, most notably on
proverbial oil on deferred payments. Saudi, besides hosting the largest Pakistani working class
has also been swift to come to Pakistan‘s support during our difficult times. This time, the reason
for ridicule has been pittance that too in the shape of rice which Pakistan produces in excess.
https://nation.com.pk/27-May-2021/just-rice
Heavy flooding impacts local crops
By Andrea Robinson
Published: May. 27, 2021 at 6:37 AM GMT+5|Updated: 12 hours ago
Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - Southwest Louisiana crops have been impacted by the recreant heavy rainfall
and flooding.
Many crop fields in Calcasieu were submerged in the flood. Though all plants need water to grow, experts
said crops in this region do better when it‘s hot and dry.
This spring started out less than ideal for farmers. After the ice storm, they began to plant, but were faced
with some cool and wet days delaying the progress of crops like rice and soybeans.
LSU AgCenter County Agent Jimmy Meaux said many young soybean crops may not survive.
―They may not get as big or have as many on a pod, so it will affect us some in that way if we don‘t plant
it earlier,‖ Meaux said.
He says there is still time to replant before soybean‘s October harvest. Though for other crops, it may be
too late to replant and will experience delays.―The heavy rain I guess that we did experience last week did
hurt some of our or delay some of our crops again,‖ Meaux said. ―Rice is probably the biggest agronomic
crop we have here in Calcasieu Parish, and a lot of it got under water, so we had to wait until the water
receded to kind of see what shape we‘re in. It looks like it‘s going to survive okay.‖
Meaux said this is just another stress for farmers who were already tasked with rebuilding after the
hurricanes, like working on their grain bins.
―A lot of them haven‘t rebuilt those yet, so they are still trying to get those done in time for harvest this
year.‖
https://www.kplctv.com/2021/05/27/local-crops-flooded-after-storm/

Food from fallows: capitalizing on idle land for better
food security in South Asia
Format
News and Press Release
Source
 IFAD
Posted
27 May 2021
Originally published
27 May 2021
Origin
View original
Every year after the rice harvest in South Asia, a vast area of over 15 million hectares lies idle
(fallow) until the next rice planting season several months later. The region's food needs are
fast accelerating along with burgeoning populations, so scientists in countries like
Bangladesh, India and Nepal think the fallow land could, and should, be used for additional
crops that increase farmer incomes and food security.
IFAD turned to ICARDA of the CGIAR network to carry this out. With four decades of
agricultural research-for-development (R4D) experience in the region, we have built strong,
trusted networks with countries and farming communities so that the science can be we
thoroughly field-tested before we ask farmers to adopt it.
In 2016 IFAD launched the Enhancing food and nutritional security, and improved
livelihoods through intensification of rice-fallow system with pulse crops in South Asia
(Bangladesh, India and Nepal project, to research and implement the growing of winter and
summer pulse crops between the standard rice crops. The project was implemented by
ICARDA through its South Asia & China Regional Program (SACRP) in New Delhi, India
for a period of four years (2016-17 to 2019-20) in partnership with a number of national
institutions.

ICARDA R4D for better farmer incomes
At the ICARDA Research Platform in India, the genetic materials of lentils, grasspea and
chickpea were introduced from Morocco and Lebanon through ICARDA's International
nursery network. The materials then went through improved breeding and yield trials to test
their productivity and suitability to the South Asia environment at an ICARDA field test site.
Once the evaluations proved successful and the national programs released the new crop
varieties, farmers associations comprising of 10-15 farmers were formed at village level to
participate in Village Seed Hubs (VSH) to train farmers on quality seed production. Seventy-
six VSH were established during the four years period across the three countries, producing
over 117 tons of certified seeds.
The next step was to distribute the improved pulse varieties of lentil, grass pea, chickpea,
mungbean and blackgram and their recommended production technologies through cluster
demonstrations. A total of 23,845 smallholder farmers were directly involved in this stage of
the program receiving quality seeds and inputs, far exceeding the projected attendance of
15,000 farmers. It is estimated that an additional 150,000 farmers indirectly benefitted
through farmer-to-farmer seeds and knowledge sharing. While IFAD targeted farmers under
the Tejaswini MP Project were beneficiaries of project outputs.
During supervisory field visits to Tikamgarh district in India, IFAD representatives were
delighted to meet nearly 600 farmers in the area to whom ICARDA had provided not just
improved lentil seeds but also participatory training platforms and field visits at which they
learn and share about the new technologies and associated agricultural approaches. They
reported yield nearly five times higher than previously, while reducing water consumption,
and a shorter growing period. The new variety of lentil are larger than those grown previously
so farmers achieve higher prices at market.
During the last four years, the project partner and ICARDA organized events attracted a total
of 12,513 farmers who up-graded their knowledge and skills on improved pulse production
technologies. The farmer field days showed immense response and attracted a huge number of
enthusiastic farmers keen to grow new pulse varieties in fallow lands. Simultaneously, 7,355
women were also trained on value addition, processing and packaging, most of them are
associated with Self-Help Groups (SHG).
Scaling up for wider benefits
The project has proved immensely successful. Not only did farmer collaborator numbers far
outstrip expectation, but so did the yields when the new approach was correctly executed.
Ensuring availability of all required technological and policy options and a viable input
supply chain, a conservative estimate of rice-fallow lands Bangladesh could produce 219,000
tons of bonus pulses where previously nothing was grown, Nepal an additional 100,000 tons
of pulses, and India could gain an extra production of 1.05 million tons of pulses.
In short, the region can significantly reduce imports from external markets and support the
national economy, while the increased availability of pulses in daily diets would be highly

beneficial to the local communities. As well as this, the extra income has gone towards other
essential requirements such as buying medicines, cloths, schooling, and better housing.
Farmers doing it for themselves
The program was implemented with long-term continuation of the activities in mind. Inputs,
technology, and knowledge sharing are key to this long-term sustainability, acting as a bridge
between the farmers and the technology out-scaling where farmers will continue to have
access to the solutions to their problems. Most importantly, farmers are now aware that a
bonus crop as well as rice is possible.
Fallow land is a clear profit-making resource of millions of hectares lying unused for farmers
worldwide. Traditional agriculture, in the face of intensifying climate change, is at best
allowing farmers in vulnerable regions to scrape by, while at worst, it is failing and putting
unsustainable pressure on whole regions. With little concerted global action on climate and
population issues that have been predicted for decades, agriculture must urgently turn to
sustainable and effective approaches that ICARDA, and its umbrella organization CGIAR
advocate. Why? Because they work.
This article was written by Dr Ashutosh Sarker, Head of ICARDA-Food Legume Research
Platform, Coordinator and Food Legume Breeder, South Asia and China Regional Program. It
was originally published by ICARDA.
https://reliefweb.int/report/world/food-fallows-capitalizing-idle-land-better-food-security-south-
asia
Bill seeking to distribute surplus rice tariff as cash aid
to farmers OK’d
By
Panay News
Thursday, May 27, 2021
MANILA – The House of Representatives Committees on Agriculture and Food and
Appropriations on Wednesday approved with amendments a proposed measure seeking to
distribute as cash assistance the rice tariff collections in excess of P10 billion until 2024.
During the joint meeting of the House panels, House Agriculture Committee chairman Rep.
Mark Enverga proposed to amend the title of House Bill No. 8964.
―We hope we could amend the title… replacing the word ‗farmers owning‘ to ‗farmers farming‘
two hectares or less until 2024,‖ Enverga said.

HB 8964 is originally intended to distribute the amount in excess of the annual P10-billion Rice
Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) derived from tariffs collected on rice imports as
cash aid to rice farmers ―owning one hectare or less of land.‖
Under the Rice Tariffication Law, signed in February 2019, the government should earmark P10
billion annually for the RCEF for six years.
The RCEF is earmarked as P5 billion for rice farm machinery and equipment; P3 billion for rice
seeds; P1 billion for expanded credit assistance; and P1 billion for rice extension services such as
training for farmers.
The bill‘s amendment was in response to concerns raised by several lawmakers to allow as many
rice farmers to benefit from the cash subsidy as possible.
During the joint meeting, Agriculture undersecretary Ariel Cayanan said if the cash aid will
cover only those tilling one hectare or less of land, it will benefit 1,141,661 rice farmers while
expanding the hectarage further to two hectares or less will benefit 1,534,941 out of the about
1,954,433 rice farmers registered.
Bacolod City lone district Rep. Greg Gasataya, vice chairman of the House Appropriations
panel, moved to approve House Bill No. 8964 as amended.
It was seconded and approved by both the House committees on Agriculture and Food and
Appropriations.
Once enacted into law, the first wave of cash aid using RCEF surplus would be included in the
proposed 2022 national budget. The same will be provided for in the succeeding years until
2024.(GMA News)
https://www.panaynews.net/bill-seeking-to-distribute-surplus-rice-tariff-as-cash-aid-to-farmers
Uganda: Butaleja Farmers Appeal to Govt Over Low Prices
for Rice
26 MAY 2021
The Monitor
(Kampala)

By Yahudu Kitunzi
in the country.
Tanzania.
"We are being cheated. We know it but we have no option. They sometimes pay us as low as
Shs1,500 per kilogramme," she says.
"The low price has demotivated us to continue growing rice and yet it's the only source of
income. We appeal to the government to get good market for our rice," Ms Lugose says.
"We also don't have financial support to brand our rice in order to fetch good prices," Mr
Haduhulu says.
"Our leaders are not helping us to attract the market and grade the rice," Mr Wandera says.
"Here we don't do any of that. Some farmers dry their rice on the bare ground, which
compromises the quality of rice," Mr Higenyi says.

farmers."Most households have remained in perpetual poverty due low prices associated with
various reasons, which include poor post-harvest handling where farmers thresh rice by using
heavy sticks instead of a thresher," he says.
Mr Wandera explains that poor threshing leaves most of the rice particles broken. "The drying
method by our farmers doesn't conform to the three hours per day recommended standard;
instead farmers expose rice to all day sunshine, which affects the final product," he adds.
"Ninety percent of Butaleja rice is milled by one stage mill fabricated locally; this affects output
and quality as farmers record a high percentage of broken rice, which fetches low prices," he
says.Mr Wandera also blames poor prices on the lack of aggregation centres."Each farmer sells
their own rice at their own time and quantity and this affects their bargaining power," he says.
government has also done little to help."We have shouted ourselves hoarse about the need to
have better quality rice on the market but the farming community and government doesn't give a
hoot," Mr Wire says. Mr Wire also reveals that whereas government set up mills in the district
that grade rice nearly 10 years ago, many farmers shunned them, claiming the machines reduces
the quantity of the cereal.
"Now they are the same that are complaining of low prices yet if we had kicked off Brand
Butaleja while associating it with clean rice, today we would be selling with ease at premium
rates. A lot of the Pakistan rice that retails at more than Shs5, 000 has never fallen in price
despite the flooded market," he says.
However, Mr David Mulabi, the former contestant for Bunyole East parliamentary seat, blames
high poverty levels on the lowest returns on their investment in rice.
"The trader who moves from one place to another without any other input gets Shs2,000 per kilo
as profit. So poor returns in the sector mean high poverty levels," Mr Mulabi says.
Rice in Butaleja
Rice growing gained prominence in the 1970s following the establishment of the Doho Rice
scheme by the government. Doho rice scheme has more than 2,500 acres of land and more than
9,000 farmers involved. Other schemes and swamps where rice is grown include Lwoba
irrigation scheme, Nakwasi swamp, Hijjinji swamp, Wampala swamp, Namatala swamp,
Mpologoma, Nkawiga, Nahinghande, Doho-Hibira.

Basmati rice being reduced to a generic variety from an
exclusive one‘
By
Ankita Dixit
27/05/2021
The Punjab Rice Exporters‘ Association has demanded that Basmati varieties not grown and not
having commercial value be discarded or denotified by the Centre but it may not be as easy as
the association has made out.
The Centre has notified 34 varieties of the long grain aromatic rice. The Punjab Rice Exporters
Association says this causes confusion among farmers and millers.

In particular, the association director Ashok Sethi, who sought the review of the list of Basmati
seed varieties, said that the Centre could discuss the issue with exporters, agricultural scientists
and expert besides the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority
(Apeda).
Vijay Setia, former president of All India Rice Exporters Association, said that farmers grow the
rice variety from their commercial point of view, while exporters also approach it from their
commercial point of view.
―There are some farmers who grow Basmati in small quantities for their own home use. Such
growers should have the freedom to cultivate the variety they want,‖ said Setia, also the
executive director of Chaman Lal Setia Exports, that sells basmati under Maharani brand.
GI tag
But trade analysts see a more serious issue evolving out of this, particularly on the heels of a
2018 ruling of the Chennai-based Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) on Geographical
Indications for Basmati.
Rejecting a plea from Madhya Kshetra Basmati Growers Association Samiti (MKBGAS) in a
ruling made on March 15, 2018, the IPAB said it recognised traditional variety of Basmati as
Geographical Indications within the growing area.
The MKBGAS represented Basmati rice growers from Madhya Pradesh and was seeking that the
GI tag extended to them too.
According to S Chandrasekharan, author of ―Basmati Rice: The Natural History and
Geographical Indication‖, in the case of Basmati rice‘s reputation, a 360 degree view is essential
and thus the fragrant variety had a collective, social and expressive reputation.
In his book, the author wonders if the new Basmati varieties have been released with the ―status
quo or changed quality‖. ―If Basmati rice today has more than 29 varieties, it contains and refers
29 varying qualities,‖ he says.
Newer varieties
Over the last 35 years, new varieties of Basmati have evolved and they could have changed the
consumer‘s perception on quality. ―The consumer perception on quality has shifted from
traditional Basmati to the evolved Basmati varieties,‖ argues Chandrasekharan.

Pointing out that the price of Basmati rice has increased from $800 a tonne in 1991 to only $860
now, he says this is because the focus has shifted from traditional to evolved Basmati varieties to
meet the demand by ramping up yield.
―Otherwise, there is no reason why there should be only $1.25 a tonne per year improvement in
its prices till now,‖ Chandasekharan says.
One of the crucial aspects on which India got the Basmati patent of US firm RiceTec cancelled
was the photoperiod sensitivity (PS), which is development responses of plants to relative
lengths of light and dark periods.Normally, traditional Basmati is sown in June and harvested in
November with its growth based on climate and weather pattern.But the new varieties of the
fragrant rice are of 100-150 days duration that reduces the PS. ―This is one way in which India
could lose its exclusivity or even GI tag,‖ fears Chandrasekharan.
Stating that evolved varieties cannot be defined as Basmati under the definition of the 2008 Seed
Act, Chandasekaran says that this was one of the reason why IPAB did not extend the GI tag for
Basmati rice grown in Madhya Pradesh.
Basmati rice quality has a historical reputation but today it was moving on to gaining ―generic
reputation‖ than one with a GI tag. This could result in countries such as the US, Thailand and
others countering that Indian Basmati does not have such a reputation.―The Basmati rice could
become a generic variety than an exclusive GI tagged one,‖ warns the author.
But Vijay Setia disagrees with such arguments. He says that the new varieties carry the traits of
the traditional varieties. ―These varieties are examined for their traits and properties before they
are approved as Basmati rice,‖ he contends.Improved varieties are being developed to improve
farmers income and there is nothing to worry over the evolving of new varieties, he adds.
But Chandrasekharan says that in the past decade, an unknown process had been initiated to
naturalise evolved Basmati rice varieties. ―If corrective measures are not undertaken in the form
of protective discrimination in Basmati rice, its protection will become meaningless,‖ he argues.
For India, Basmati rice is crucial as about 4.5 lakh tonnes are exported annually fetching about
₹ 30,000 crore in precious foreign exchange.
Source link
https://postintrend.com/economy/basmati-rice-being-reduced-to-a-generic-variety-from-an-
exclusive-one/

ASIA RICE-INDIA RATES GAIN, BANGLADESH
ASSESSES CYCLONE AFTERMATH
5/27/2021
* Thai prices gain to $457-$485 per tonne
* Vietnamese rates unchanged, supplies low
* Vietnam seeing uptick in demand from China, Philippines- trader
By Arundhati Sarkar
May 27 (Reuters) - India's rice prices extended gains on Thursday, helped by a stronger rupee,
while both the top exporter and neighboring Bangladesh assessed damage to port operations and
crops in the aftermath of cyclone Yaas.
Prices for India's 5% broken parboiled variety <RI-INBKN5-P1> rose between $382 and $388
per tonne from last week's $379-$385 range. The rupee hit a two-month peak.
"Demand is stable. Rice transportation and loading operations at a few ports were disrupted
earlier this week due to the cyclone," said an exporter based at Kakinada in the southern state of
Andhra Pradesh.
Hundreds of thousands of villagers along the low-lying coast of eastern India and Bangladesh
were marooned by floodwaters on Thursday in the aftermath of a powerful cyclone that has
killed at least five people, officials in both countries said.
Officials in Bangladesh said they feared standing crops could be damaged as large tracts of
fertile land in the densely-populated country flooded with high tide salt-water.
"We are collecting reports from cyclone-affected districts. Fortunately, harvesting of the summer
rice crop is almost complete. Still it could leave a trail of destruction," said Mizanur Rahman
Khan, a senior official in the Bangladesh agriculture ministry.
In Thailand, prices for 5% broken rice <RI-THBKN5-P1> rose to $457-$485 per tonne from
$454-$475 a week ago driven by higher container freight charges, while overseas demand
remained subdued.
However, some traders said an expected arrival of more supply could help ease prices.

Vietnamese 5% broken rice <RI-VNBKN5-P1> stayed unchanged for the third week at $490-
$495 a tonne.
"Supplies are low, while some exporters are hesitant to sign new contracts due to the problems of
container scarcity, especially for shipments to Europe and the Middle East," a trader based in Ho
Chi Minh City said.
Vietnam was, however, seeing an uptick in demand especially from China and the Philippines,
which recently cut its import tariff on rice, a trader said. (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav in
Mumbai, Ruma Paul in Dhaka, Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Patpicha Tanakasempipat in Bangkok;
Editing by Arpan Varghese and Shailesh Kuber)
https://www.agriculture.com/markets/newswire/asia-rice-india-rates-gain-bangladesh-assesses-
cyclone-aftermath

27th May,2021 Daily Global Regional Local Rice E-Newsletter.pdf

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