News Headlines

Crew makes 1,126-pound bowl of Hawaii rice dish

Hooda blames Centre for poor pricing of rice
Rice millers not to cooperate with govt.
Market enhancement policy backfires on Vietnam
rice exporters
First step made for a legal China rice trade
Mekong Delta Meets 64.2 Pct Of Annual Rice
Export Target
Govt refuses rice price guarantee, but will help cut
farmers' costs
MOC expedites setting guidelines on rice price
controls for Thai agriculturists
2014 rice crop almost normal
Indias rare call for rice imports
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- Sep 30
Govt refuses rice price guarantee, but will help cut
farmers' costs
Rice farmers fail in plea for price subsidy
Rice farmers must help themselves
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29
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September, 2014
News Detail.

Crew makes 1,126-pound bowl
of Hawaii rice dish
The Associated Press
POSTED: 09/29/2014 02:55:18 PM EDT0
COMMENTS| UPDATED: ABOUT 17 HOURS AGO
HONOLULU (AP) A group is claiming a
world record for a popular Hawaii dish, after
putting together a massive bowl of rice,
hamburger, eggs and gravy.Chef Hideaki
Miyoshi of Tokkuri Tei restaurant and
volunteers at Sunday's Fifth Annual Rice
Festival assembled a bowl of loco moco that
weighed 1,126 pounds.Loco moco was
invented in the late 1940s in Hilo. There are
varieties, but the basic dish consists of hot
white rice, a hamburger patty, an over-easy
fried egg and brown gravy.Guinness World
Records said the dish would have to weigh at
least 1,100 pounds for consideration.
Miyoshi and his crew used more than 600
pounds of rice, 200 pounds of ground beef,
300 scrambled eggs and 200 pounds of gravy.
They used donated rice and borrowed kitchen
space at Ward Centers.The festival holds the
Guinness World Record for making a 286-
pound Spam musubi in 2011, the Honolulu
Star-Advertiser reported
(http://bit.ly/1uwSc9Z ).The big loco moco
took 3 hours to prepare and then was
donated to charity to feed the homeless,
organizer Lincoln Jacobe said.Some loco-
moco purists were critical of the use of
scrambled eggs instead of over-easy eggs."If
you order at a restaurant, they ask you how
you want your egg," Cesar Panocillo said. "So
I guess it's a preference. Some people might
like it scrambled.
"The event also featured a Spam-musubi
eating contest. Randy Javelosa beat four-time
champion Ron Lee by eating seven of the
canned meat, dried seaweed and rice snack in
two minutes."I just tried to scarf it down and
keep it down," said Javelosa, whose prize was
a year's worth of free rice."I'll be back next
year," Lee vowed.
Hooda blames Centre for poor
pricing of rice
Vishal Joshi, Hindustan Times Taraori
(Karnal), September 29, 2014
In an effort to woo the rural voters ahead
of the assembly elections, chief minister
Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Monday
threatened to launch a massive agitation
against the Centre on poor pricing of Pusa-
1509 variety of rice. Addressing a political
rally in support of the Congress candidates
from Nilokheri assembly constituency Gian
Chand Sahota, Hooda said he was upset
over the poor prices being offered to the
farming community for various crops,
including Pusa 1509. In a scathing attack at
the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA
government at the Centre, Hooda called the
union government as insensitive to poor,
farmers and middle-class people. Last year,
farmers were paid more than Rs. 3,400 per
quintal for Pusa 1509 but owing to poor
policies of the Centre, the price came down
between `2,200 and Rs. 2,400 per quintal,
claimed Hooda.
Mere man mein itna dard aur gussa hai ke
main chahta hoon ke yahi par dharna pe bait
jaayun. Par ek mukhya mantri hone ki vajah
se main aisa nahin karunga. Par ek
chetawani deta hoon Centre ki sarkar ko,
agar 1509 (basmati rice variety) ke daam
kisanao ko theek nahin diye to ek bahut bada
agitation shuru karunga, he said while
appealing to the gathering to support him
when he starts an agitation. Taraori is a hub
of basmati rice production in India and has
several milling units. Sizeable portion of
basmati rice exported to various countries is
produced at Taraori and adjoining
areas. Meanwhile, calling for Sahotas
victory, Hooda said the BJP and Indian
National Lok Dal (INLD) were known for
their anti-people policies whereas the
Congress had always worked for the poor
and marginal sections of society.
The BJP won the parliamentary elections
due to hype but its real face of being a party
of rich has started emerging. There has been
a steep increase in rail fare, while prices of
diesel, sugar, vegetable, etc., have
skyrocketed after the NDA assumed power.
Sahota is a down to earth man and he will
work for the progress of this area, said
Hooda. He asked voters not to be
disillusioned by claims made by INLD
leader Om Prakash Chautala that he would
take oath as chief minister from Tihar jail,
where he is serving a jail term in connection
with the JBT teachers recruitment
scandal. After conviction, he cannot even
contest election; then how could he think of
becoming a CM? The INLD is desperate for
power and thus its jailed leaders are making
false claims, said Hooda.
CM making an issue out of nothing
Belying chief minister Bhupinder Singh
Hoodas claim, those associated with rice
industry say governments have no role in
controlling the prices of basmati varieties.
Industry sources claim that Hooda was
trying to make an issue out of
nothing.Basmati falls in free trade category
and its prices are not fixed either by the
Centre or the state government. Prices of
basmati are determined on the demand and
supply in the open market and the Congress
leadership is trying to confuse people to gain
political mileage out of it, said a source in
the rice industry.Rice millers said the state
government could have asked its own
commercial entities like Hafed to buy Pusa-
1509 variety of basmati to create an
impression in the market that there were
serious buyers and it may boost prices.
But the election code of conduct would not
permit any such announcement and the
Congress leadership in Haryana is making
unfounded claims, they added.An
arrangement for purchase of a portion of the
produce by Hafed, a commercial venture,
could have brought some relief to farmers.
But it is wrong to call it a flop crop or the
one that fetches poor prices to farmers. Pusa
1509 produces nearly 24 quintal of rice from
1 acre and farmers are getting up to `75,000
for their yield. The variety introduced in
Haryana last year has already been sown on
nearly 25% area and it expected to increase
manifold in the next paddy sowing season,
says a leading rice exporter.

Sahota HSTSB member or not?
According to the nomination papers filed
Gian Chand Sahota, the Congress nominee
from Nilokheri (SC) assembly segment, he
is an ex-member of Haryana School
Teachers Selection Board
(HSTSB). However, the official website of
the board that recently appointed over
10,000 lecturers, shows Sahota still as its
member. At the election rally, Sahota said
he was completely committed to Hooda and
his policies. I have been working silently
for the development of Nilokheri for the last
four years. I am here to dedicate myself to
the welfare for all sections of society, said
Sahota, who was handpicked by Hooda
government to as a member of the HSTSB
in February 2012.

HSSC member at election rally
Presence of a member of Haryana Staff
Selection Commission, Lalit Kumar Butana
at the election rally on Monday raised
several eyebrows.Butana remained seated at
the dais shared by Hooda and Congress
candidate Sahota at the election rally.
Considered a close aide of Hooda, Butana
hails from a family of Congressmen and he
was also handpicked by the Hooda
government for the Haryana Staff Selection
Commission. Butanas father late Chanda
Singh was first elected in 1968 as an
Independent legislator from the Ror-
dominated Nilokheri segment in the district
and was re-elected in 1982. Singh then
joined the Congress and became transport
minister in the-then Bhajan Lal government.

Rice millers not to cooperate
with govt.
Over 1,400 rice mill owners in the State
have decided not to cooperate with the
government in pooling custom milling rice
(levy rice) for 201415 until their dues are
cleared for 201314.They alleged that the
Department of Food, Civil Supplies and
Consumer Affairs was taking a unilateral
decision with regard to levy rice without
listening to the grievances of rice
millers.Executive president, Karnataka State
Rice Millers Association, N.R.
Vishwaradhya told presspersons here on
Monday that rice millers had to get Rs. 44
crore from the government for rice supplied
during 201314. Of the Rs. 62 crore due,
only Rs. 18 crore had been released.
Far from the truth
The government withheld the payment by
accusing the millers of supplying poor
quality rice, which is far from the truth. The
government has distributed the rice, he
said.Mr. Vishwaradhya alleged that the
government policy on levy rice was aimed at
helping rice millers outside the State.
Market enhancement policy
backfires on Vietnam rice
exporters

TUOI TRE NEWS
UPDATED : 09/27/2014 21:02 GMT + 7
A government decree hoped to better
manage the rice export sector in Vietnam
has had adverse effects after more than
three years of implementation, industry
insiders have complained.

Many rice exporters have lamented that they
are not qualified to export their abundant
stocks due to what they blasted as the strict
and unreasonable regulations of Decree
No.109, which took effect on January 1,
2011.The policy, issued in a bid to prevent
incapable firms from joining the rice export
market, stipulates that a rice business must
have a warehouse capable of stocking at
least 5,000 tons or rice, and a rice husking
plant with a 10-ton per hour capacity, to be
eligible to export their products.
The decree has stripped many rice firms of
their right to export their high-quality
products, and eliminated many of their
business opportunities, Vo Minh Khai,
director of Vien Phu JSC, a rice exporter
based in the southernmost province of Ca
Mau, said.Vien Phu Co won a contract to
export 14 tons of high-quality rice to Russia
in August, but was unable to carry out the
order as it was not able to obtain an export
license.The companys warehouse is only
capable of stocking 2,000 tons of rice, and
the capacity of its husking plant is only 2.5
tons per hour, far below the standards set by
Decree No.109, according to the
director.Its not necessary to pump money
into setting up a larger warehouse, as the
whole supply of organic rice in Asia is less
than 5,000 tons, Khai said.

While there were 284 rice exporters in
Vietnam in 2010, the number dropped to
around 100 shortly after the decree took
effect.The unqualified rice exporters thus
had to switch to selling their products across
the border, or authorizing their exports to
eligible firms, at fees ranging from $0.5 to
$5 a ton, according to Dr. Vo Hung Dung,
director of the Vietnam Chamber of
Commerce and Industry branch in the
Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.Qualified
exporters are not interested in small orders
of a few hundred tons, while those willing to
take such contracts are not eligible to get a
license, Dung said.

The unqualified firms have no choice but to
reject such high-value contracts.The expert
also said the requirements on rice
warehouses and husking plants could be
wasteful.A number of larger warehouses
and husking plants have been built to meet
the decree requirements. But these facilities
will not be able to operate at full capacity if
the rice export market suffers a slowdown,
he warned.
First step made for a legal
China rice trade
By Zaw Htike | Monday, 29 September
2014
Legal rice exports to China took a step
closer to becoming reality last week, as
Chinese and Myanmar officials inked an
agreement as part of a move to ensure
rice quality.
Two years ago China was a smallscale
buyer of Myanmar rice, but it has
transformed to become Myanmars largest
rice export market, as border trade rose from
a negligible amount in 2010-11 to 752,000
tonnes in 201213.China became a net
importer of rice only in 2011, and has been
offering prices well above the world average
in recent months. Yet Myanmar needs to
improve its rice quality to meet challenges
from countries like Vietnam and Cambodia,
according to a World Bank report on the rice
market from earlier this year.Myanmar has
also been disadvantaged through not having
the formal agreements necessary to legally
export rice to China.
However, negotiations between the
Myanmar Ministry of Agriculture and
Irrigation and Chinese officials from the
General Administration of Quality
Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine
(AQSIQ), and supported by the Myanmar
Rice Federation, are under way.A
memorandum of understanding on
agricultural standards was signed by AQSIQ
and ASEAN members during the ASEAN
Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and
Forestry in Nay Pyi Taw on September 25.
Traders say it gives them hope the other
agreements needed to begin legal exports to
China can be signed.Weve just signed the
firststep MoU on quality, but the markets
not officially opened, said U Soe Tun, joint
secretary of the Myanmar Rice Federation.
We cant get much out of just this
agreement, as we need to sign other
government-to-government
agreements.Traders say a sanitary and
phytosanitary (SPS) agreement on health
standards need to signed, as well as further
negotiations over quotas and taxes, before
exports can formally begin. Legal shipments
will then likely leave Yangon port by ocean-
going vessel, through the Straits of Malacca
to the Chinese ports.
However, without the benefit of legal trade,
rice exports are confined to informal,
overland routes.The trade to China went
from being nearly non-existent two years to
presently comprising over 50 percent of total
exports. With the major reorientation in
export market, the trade routes have also
shifted.Rice from the major growing areas in
Ayeyarwady Region are usually shipped to
Yangon by small boat or road, and then on
to Mandalay. Sometimes Ayeyarwady rice,
as well as rice from Sagaing or Bago, is
shipped directly to Mandalay by barge on
the Ayeyarwaddy river.From Mandalay, rice
travels overland to the Muse border crossing
in northern Shan State the main point of
entry for Myanmar rice to China.One rice
trader said it costs about K80,000 per tonne
to ship rice from Yangon to Muse using a
combination of truck and river traffic. The
cost is about double that of shipping from
Yangon port to Myanmars traditional
markets in Africa.Large-scale rice trader and
MRF joint secretary U Lu Maw Myint
Maung said the cost could drop significantly
if the China trade becomes legalised and
traders were instead able to ship by water.
With ocean shipping to China now
impossible due to the legal situation of rice,
the overland route predominates. The Muse
commodity exchange centre is full of
brokers who have connections to Chinese
buyers, who then purchase the rice, often for
use as an ingredient in food like noodles or
snacks.U Myo Thura Aye, a former joint
secretary of the MRF, said Muse brokers are
used to doing business with the Chinese, and
are an integral part of this new trade.They
have had relations for many years so
finding buyers for them is not very
difficult, he said.Usually about 30 or 40
rice brokers enter from the Chinese city of
Ruili when the border gates open at 8am
Myanmar time. Brokers and buyers then
meet to discuss the price and terms of
contracts, before returning to Ruili.
Myanmar traders are usually required to get
the rice across the border by using trucks
with Chinese licences that are owned by
Myanmar traders, often with shipments of
up to 20 tonnes a truck. From Ruili, the rice
is sold in other areas in China.U Min Thein
said many Myanmar traders have bank
accounts in Ruili to make payments
easier.If you have a Myanmar national
registration card, you can open a bank
account in Ruili, he said.Yunnan Province
is the main area in China that buys Myanmar
rice, partly due to its proximity to Shan
State, but there are another three or four
provinces that have active demand. Much of
it gets used to make food, with prices well
above international rates.Highquality Thai
100pc B Grade fetched about US$450 to
$460 a tonne on international markets last
week, according to the industry website
www.oryza.com
Myanmar traders say Chinese demand has
been much stronger since June, when a flare
up of tension in the South China Sea made it
politically difficult to purchase rice from
Vietnam, traditionally its largest source of the
staple.Yet because Myanmars trade is illegal
from Chinas point of view, it is subject to
various confiscations at the border, which
traders say have recently limited the amount
that has flowed across the border.U Min Thein
said that while usually border crackdowns
simply see some goods confiscated, there have
recently been cases of businesspeople being
arrested.
One Chinese man was arrested [on
September 18] and has not been released yet.
Since then, only three or four Chinese traders
a day are coming to Muse for rice trading, he
said. However, he said the market may soon
return to normal.Yet Myanmar is not being
singled out by the Chinese policy, said U Soe
Tun.Other countries that also illegally ship
goods to the Peoples Republic periodically
face repercussions, so it is difficult for the
Myanmar Rice Federation to ask for special
treatment, he said.Although a memorandum of
understanding has now been signed, an actual
SPS agreement must be inked, as well as
regulations governing quotas, said U Lu Maw
Myint Maung.The quotas allow a fixed
quantity of imports to proceed without tariffs,
he said.Were hoping Myanmar will get a
quota of a million tonnes of rice a year, he
said.
Mekong Delta Meets 64.2 Pct
Of Annual Rice Export Target
HANOI, Sept 26 (Bernama) -- Over four
million tonnes of rice were exported from
the Mekong Delta by Sept 20, representing
64.2 percent of the region's annual rice
export target, reports Vietnam News Agency
(VNA).Rice exports generated US$1.84
billion in revenue for regional localities, the
Steering Committee for the Southwestern
region said.Between now and the end of the
year, localities plan to export an additional
2.3 million tonnes of rice, bringing the
annual total to 6.3 million tonnes.
Nguyen Phong Quang, deputy head of the
committee's standing board, said the region's
trade sector implemented a number of
measures to help businesses survey markets
and promote their products in Asia, the
European Union and North America.He
attributed the outcome to the procurement of
modern processing lines that improved
output and quality, as well as the bumper
harvest of 20.6 million tonnes of paddy
during the winter-spring and summer-
autumn crops this year.
-- BERNAMA
Govt refuses rice price
guarantee, but will help cut
farmers' costs
Petchanet Pratruangkrai
The Nation
BANGKOK: -- The government has come out
with some measures to ensure decent incomes
for farmers, insisting that it will not subsidise
prices but will only help reduce production
costs for the new rice crop.

Meanwhile, farmers have called for the
government to guarantee they can get
Bt10,000 per tonne of white paddy rice,
saying otherwise they will continue to face
low incomes or even losses.At a meeting of
five rice farmers' associations and the
Commerce Ministry, Jintana
Chaiyawonnagal, director-general of the
Internal Trade Department, said the
government would not set up a subsidy
project or purchase rice from farmers as in
the past."Rice farmers sought an income
guarantee at Bt10,000 per tonne of paddy, so
that they will get about Bt4,000 in profit.
However, the government will find some
measures to help farmers to get that profit by
supporting their production costs, and
encouraging traders to purchase rice at a
higher price," she said.
Currently, the price of white paddy is quoted
at Bt7,800-Bt8,500 per tonne. Farmers claim
that their production costs are about Bt6,000
a tonne.The main rice harvest season is
expected to run from late next month to
February.Measures to help farmers will
include soft loans for traders and millers for
purchasing rice for about Bt100-Bt200 per
tonne higher than market and stocking rice
for longer periods. So far, about 133 rice
millers have expressed interest in joining the
project, which is expected to absorb about
3.7 million tonnes of paddy from the market
in the main harvest season.As well, the Bank
for Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives will provide Bt20 billion in
soft loans to encourage farmers to construct
their own rice barns so they do not need to
accelerate sales during the harvest season.
Prasith Boonchuey, president of the Thai
Rice Farmers Association, said farmers
wanted the government to guarantee their
incomes at Bt10,000 a tonne because when
they sell their rice, millers deduct humidity
costs, and the farmers end up with only
Bt7,000 per tonne.As long-term measures,
the government is considering plans to
enhance yield per rai, encouraging farmers
to grow other economic crops in areas that
are not suitable for rice, and to improve the
quality of rice grains.Meanwhile,
Chanudpakorn Vongseenin, president of the
Public Warehouses Organisation, has
resigned, citing health problems. The
ministry will need to find a new president
for this agency soon.
MOC expedites setting
guidelines on rice price
controls for Thai agriculturists
BANGKOK, 26 September 2014 (NNT) - The
MOC is to expedite the setting of guidelines on
rice price controls for Thai agriculturists.The
Department of Internal Trade's (DIT) Deputy-
General, Jintana Chaiyawonnagal, has
announced after discussions with agricultural
representatives that all suggestions will be
presented to the Minister of Commerce, General
Chatchai Sarikulya.
Even though the rice price has been adjusted to a
point higher than in the past, the main problem
remaining is the high production cost. For long-
term assistance, the MOC will support
agriculturists by reducing the cost of production
instead of paying compensation in cash. As for
the rice produced this season, the deputy-general
also mentioned that the DIT will have the mills
join a project to reduce up to 3.7 million tons of
surplus unmilled rice from November to
January. Furthermore, an unmilled rice market
will be arranged for agriculturists to sell their
product directly to the mill.



2014 rice crop almost normal
11:14 pm, September 27, 2014
Jiji PressJapans 2014 rice crop situation
has so far been almost normal compared
with an average year, according to the
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Ministry.The nationwide rice crop index as
of Sept. 15 stood at 101, against 100 for an
average year.Rice crop has been poor in
western and southern Japan because of a
serious lack of sunlight there, while the
situation has been good in eastern and
northern Japan, it said Friday
Indias rare call for rice imports
By Than Naing Soe | Monday, 29 September 2014
India is calling for bidders from Myanmar
in a rice tender for the northeastern corner
of the country, the first such large request
in years, according to rice dealers.
India has long been one of the worlds largest
rice exporters and a frequent competitor with
Myanmar in third-country markets, but a
September 19 Reuters report said a plan to
broaden a railway in the northeast requires
temporary rice imports.Myanmar traders say
they are keen to begin exports to India, which
has seldom required rice imports, as it may
lead to chances for future trade.Its a good
opportunity for Myanmar, said U Chan Thar
Oo, vice president of the Muse Rice
Wholesale Centre.
The Myanmar rice market currently depends
on China but the more markets we have, the
better.While Indian officials had initially
targeted finishing the first tender by
September 23, the process was delayed due to
technical reasons, according to Indian
newspaper Business Standard.Myanmar rice
traders said the countrys exporters should
take advantage of its position between the
worlds two most populous nations.Although
the tender is not too big, it may begin long-
term relationships, said U Aung Than Htun,
president of the Mandalay Rice Association.
Nagpur Foodgrain Prices
Open- Sep 30
Tue Sep 30, 2014 1:43pm IST
Nagpur, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Gram prices in
Nagpur Agriculture Produce and Marketing
Committee (APMC) firmed up again on
increased demand from local millers amid weak
supply from producing regions. Fresh rise on
NCDEX, upward trend in Madhya Pradesh
soyabean prices and reported demand from
South-based millers also jacked up prices,
according to sources.

* * * *

FOODGRAINS & PULSES
GRAM
* Gram varieties ruled steady here on subdued
demand from local traders amid ample
stock in ready position.

TUAR
* Tuar gavarani declined further in open
market on poor buying support from local
traders. Reports about good overseas arrival
also pushed down prices.

* Moong varieties reported down in open
market on lack of demand from
local traders amid good arrival from
producing belts.

* In Akola, Tuar - 4,800-4,900, Tuar dal -
7,000-7,200, Udid at 7,000-7,200,
Udid Mogar (clean) - 8,000-8,300, Moong -
6,900-7,300, Moong Mogar
(clean) 8,300-9,000, Gram - 2,500-2,700,
Gram Super best bold - 3,700-4,000
for 100 kg.

* Wheat, rice and other commodities remained
steady in open market
in thin trading activity, according to sources.

Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market
prices in rupees for 100 kg

FOODGRAINS Available prices
Previous close
Gram Auction 2,150-2,830
2,120-2,800
Gram Pink Auction n.a. 2,100-
2,600
Tuar Auction n.a. 3,930-
4,950
Moong Auction n.a.
5,200-5,500
Udid Auction n.a. 4,300-
4,500
Masoor Auction n.a. 2,600-
2,800
Gram Super Best Bold 3,800-4,200
3,800-4,200
Gram Super Best n.a.
Gram Medium Best 3,550-3,700
3,550-3,700
Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a.
Gram Mill Quality 3,400-3,450
3,400-3,450
Desi gram Raw 2,800-2,875
2,800-2,875
Gram Filter new 3,200-3,600
3,200-3,600
Gram Kabuli 8,400-9,700
8,400-9,700
Gram Pink 7,200-7,400 7,200-
7,400
Tuar Fataka Best 7,250-7,450
7,250-7,450
Tuar Fataka Medium 7,100-7,200
7,100-7,200
Tuar Dal Best Phod 6,600-6,800
6,600-6,800
Tuar Dal Medium phod 6,300-6,500
6,300-6,500
Tuar Gavarani 4,850-4,900
4,900-4,950
Tuar Karnataka 5,300-5,400
5,300-5,400
Tuar Black 8,200-8,500
8,200-8,500
Masoor dal best 6,700-6,800
6,700-6,800
Masoor dal medium 6,500-6,600
6,500-6,600
Masoor n.a. n.a.
Moong Mogar bold 9,000-9,800
9,200-9,800
Moong Mogar Medium best 8,200-8,600
8,500-8,800
Moong dal super best 7,800-8,200
7,800-8,200
Moong dal Chilka 7,500-7,700
7,700-7,900
Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a.
Moong Chamki best 7,500-8,800
7,500-8,800
Udid Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG)
8,200-8,600 8,200-8,600
Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 7,100-
7,800 7,100-7,800
Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 6,700-
7,000 6,700-7,100
Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 4,000-5,000
4,000-5,000
Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 2,800-3,100
2,800-3,100
Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 3,250-3,450
3,250-3,450
Watana White (100 INR/KG) 3,250-
3,350 3,250-3,350
Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 4,400-
5,200 4,400-5,200
Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 1,200-1,500
1,200-1,500
Wheat Mill quality(100 INR/KG) 1,700-
1,800 1,700-1,800
Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,300-1,500
1,300-1,500
Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 2,100-
2,450 2,100-2,450
Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG)
1,850-2,000 1,850-2,000
Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a.
n.a.
MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 2,800-
3,200 2,800-3,200
MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 1,950-
2,350 1,950-2,350
Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG) 1,200-1,300
1,200-1,300
Wheat Best (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,800
1,500-1,800
Rice BPT (100 INR/KG) 3,200-
3,800 3,200-3,800
Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG) 1,800-2,000
1,800-2,000
Rice Swarna old (100 INR/KG) 2,350-
2,650 2,350-2,650
Rice HMT (100 INR/KG) 4,000-
4,400 4,000-4,400
Rice HMT Shriram (100 INR/KG) 5,200-
6,000 5,200-6,000
Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 10,500-
13,500 10,500-13,500
Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG)
7,300-10,000 7,300-10,000
Rice Chinnor (100 INR/KG) 5,200-5,800
5,200-5,800
Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 1,400-
1,600 1,400-1,600
Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 1,700-1,800
1,700-1,800

WEATHER (NAGPUR)
Maximum temp. 35.5 degree Celsius (95.9
degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp.
21.3 degree Celsius (70.3 degree Fahrenheit)
Humidity: Highest - 96 per cent, lowest - 53 per
cent.
Rainfall : nil
FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and
Minimum temperature likely to be around 35
and 21 degree
Celsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available

(For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant
delivery prices, but included in market prices.)


Govt refuses rice price
guarantee, but will help cut
farmers' costs


Petchanet Pratruangkrai

The Nation September 27, 2014 1:00 am

The government has come out with some
measures to ensure decent incomes for farmers,
insisting that it will not subsidise prices but will
only help reduce production costs for the new
rice crop.Meanwhile, farmers have called for the
government to guarantee they can get Bt10,000
per tonne of white paddy rice, saying otherwise
they will continue to face low incomes or even
losses.At a meeting of five rice farmers'
associations and the Commerce Ministry,
Jintana Chaiyawonnagal, director-general of the
Internal Trade Department, said the government
would not set up a subsidy project or purchase
rice from farmers as in the past.

"Rice farmers sought an income guarantee at
Bt10,000 per tonne of paddy, so that they will
get about Bt4,000 in profit. However, the
government will find some measures to help
farmers to get that profit by supporting their
production costs, and encouraging traders to
purchase rice at a higher price," she
said.Currently, the price of white paddy is
quoted at Bt7,800-Bt8,500 per tonne. Farmers
claim that their production costs are about
Bt6,000 a tonne.The main rice harvest season is
expected to run from late next month to
February.Measures to help farmers will include
soft loans for traders and millers for purchasing
rice for about Bt100-Bt200 per tonne higher than
market and stocking rice for longer periods. So
far, about 133 rice millers have expressed
interest in joining the project, which is expected
to absorb about 3.7 million tonnes of paddy from
the market in the main harvest season.As well,
the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives will provide Bt20 billion in soft
loans to encourage farmers to construct their
own rice barns so they do not need to accelerate
sales during the harvest season.

Prasith Boonchuey, president of the Thai Rice
Farmers Association, said farmers wanted the
government to guarantee their incomes at
Bt10,000 a tonne because when they sell their
rice, millers deduct humidity costs, and the
farmers end up with only Bt7,000 per tonne.As
long-term measures, the government is
considering plans to enhance yield per rai,
encouraging farmers to grow other economic
crops in areas that are not suitable for rice, and
to improve the quality of rice grains.Meanwhile,
Chanudpakorn Vongseenin, president of the
Public Warehouses Organisation, has resigned,
citing health problems. The ministry will need to
find a new president for this agency soon.
Rice farmers fail in plea for
price subsidy
Sept. 27--The government has brushed aside
calls by rice farmers to help buy their paddy
from the upcoming main season at the prices
they desire, insisting aid will focus mainly on a
production cost subsidy.Jintana
Chaiyawonnagal, director-general of the Internal
Trade Department, yesterday said after meeting
five rice-related associations that there would be
no compensation to shore up paddy
prices.Authorities would rather study other
means of assistance, possibly a subsidy of the
interest rate on loans extended to farmers, she
said.The junta earlier approved a 20-billion-baht
plan for the Bank for Agriculture and
Agricultural Cooperatives to extend soft loans to
farmers to help delay selling their paddy amid
massive supply. This is expected to help cut
supply by 3-4 million tonnes.
The government has also offered millers who
agree to maintain their stocks during the main
season a credit line at only 3% interest.There are
133 millers in 26 provinces participating. This is
expected to help cut supply by 3.7 million
tonnes.For farmers reluctant to sell their grains
to millers, authorities have held more than 200
markets nationwide, allowing them to get a
fairer price.The Commerce Ministry estimates
supply from the main crop between November
and February will stay at 21 million tonnes of
paddy.
Farmers' representatives yesterday proposed the
government help buy paddy with 15% moisture
at 10,000 baht a tonne, Pathum Thani fragrant
paddy at 11,000 baht, Hom Mali fragrant paddy
at 16,000 baht and glutinous paddy at 11,000 to
13,000 baht.Rawee Rungruang, chairman of the
Thai Farmers Network, said the government
should at least subsidise production costs.Prasit
Boonchey, president of the Thai Farmers
Association, said farmers feared the new harvest
would put more pressure on prices, further
reducing the income of farmers who now fetch
relatively low paddy prices averaging 6,500 to
7,200 baht a tonne.
Rice farmers must help
themselves

Published: 29 Sep 2014
Newspaper section: News
Writer: Veera Prateepchaikul
Rice farmers recently asked for help from
the government after a similar call from
rubber growers in 16 southern provinces
demanding intervention to arrest the
seemingly unstoppable fall in rubber
prices. A rice farmer in Kalasin works on his
ricefield. The military regime has tried to
avoid populism as farmers petition for state
subsidies to combat falling prices.The
rubber price has declined by more than 60%
since it peaked in February, 2011. Last
Friday, the Hat Yai and Surat Thani rubber
markets quoted its price 45-46 baht per
kilogramme.
The good old days, just a few years back
when rubber skyrocketed to more than 120
baht a kilogramme, boosting the economy in
southern Thailand and encouraging many
farmers to buy new pickup trucks on hire
purchase are gone.Perhaps it is never to
return, as China, the biggest consumer of
rubber, will be harvesting its own rubber
from plantations in Laos and Cambodia and
will depend less upon Thailand.Worst hit are
the newcomers who, when the price peaked,
joined the rubber bandwagon out of greed or
for fear that they would miss the boat. They
are now holding their heads in their hands.
It takes about six years to cultivate rubber
trees for harvesting and by that time, no
one can surely have any idea what the price
will be.Even worse for many of these
newcomers who grew rubber trees on
encroached forest reserves, they may have
their plantations seized by the National
Council for Peace and Order (NCPO).The
military regime has formed a package of aid
measures, including a 5-billion-baht subsidy
to buy rubber from farmers, 15 billion baht
for the rubber processing industry to
increase rubber consumption, and 10 billion
baht in a revolving fund to provide credit to
farmers and the rubber processing business.
In the meantime, the government has put off
the sale of the 210,000 tonnes of rubber in
its stockpile as demanded by farmers.Still,
the NCPO and the government remain
uncertain whether the package will divert
southern farmers' plan to descend on
Bangkok on Oct 8. Prime Minister Prayut
Chan-o-cha appealed to farmers not to come
to Bangkok, citing the many inconveniences
they will face. He also assigned one of his
deputies, Gen Chatchai Sarikalya, to meet
their representatives and hear their
grievances.
It remains to be seen whether the protest has
been nipped in the bud. But if the farmers do
go to Bangkok, they will form the first
protest to be handled by the NCPO and the
government, challenging martial law.Rice
farmers, meanwhile, have demanded the
government guarantees 10,000 baht per
tonne of paddy against market price of
8,000-9,000 baht. The government,
however, does not want to repeat the
previous governments' populist policies by
guaranteeing a rice price or through a
pledging scheme, but prefers to help the
farmers reduce their production costs by
about 500 baht per rai.Fertiliser and
pesticide traders' associations have been
asked by the NCPO to provide more
discounts to farmers, and landlords have
been told to cut rental fees for farmland.
The price of rice seeds for cultivation too
will be lowered. Also, cheap loans will be
made available to farmers by the Bank for
Agriculture and Agricultural
Cooperatives.Regrettably, the government
and the NCPO still attach importance to the
use of chemical fertiliser and pesticides
instead of promoting more use of organic
fertilisers and herbs. There are several
success stories of farmers who do not rely
on chemicals and yet earn more income
from their crops. Their local wisdom and
expertise should be promoted as a model for
the other farmers to follow suit.
Take as an example the case of Chaiyaporn
Promphan, a rice farmer in Bang Plama
district of Suphan Buri. Here is a comment
by him which is worthy of consideration by
the NCPO."Who says that rice farming
makes farmers poor? That is not true. The
most important thing is, use your head. Do
not act like a manager when farming that
is to use a mobile phone to order others to
do and to buy everything. That way you end
up being poor and lose your farmland."I
make about one million baht a year from
rice farming.
I keep the receipts to prove to the others that
I am not exaggerating. A farmer like me can
dictate my own salary at 60,000 baht a
month for myself and another 60,000 baht
for my wife. My three children have all
graduated with master's degrees. Other
farmers have to sell their land to send their
children to universities. But I keep buying
more farmland."The secret is that Mr
Chaiyaporn never uses chemical fertilisers
or pesticides and does not hire workers. He
and his wife work the land, about 100 rai,
themselves, using manure and herbs to ward
off pests. They also improvise in making
their own farming equipment.Cutting
production costs alone is not enough to
make farmers earn more take-home pay.
Their productivity too must increase.It is
indeed a shame that although Thailand ranks
as the world's No.1 rice exporter (and
momentarily lost the ranking to India and
Vietnam) it ranks No.7 among Asean
countries in terms of rice productivity.
Vietnam's rice paddies are the most
efficient. Thailand's rice productivity stands
at 448 kg/rai compared to Vietnam's
862.4kg/rai, Indonesia's 779.2kg/rai and
Laos' 588.8kg/rai.According to the Centre
for International Trade Studies of the Thai
Chamber of Commerce, Thai farmers make
the lowest net income among rice producing
countries in Asean with an average of
1,555.97 baht per rai take-home income,
compared to Vietnam's 3,180 baht per rai
and Myanmar's 3,484.1 baht per rai.
Irrigation is another factor which gives
Vietnam higher rice productivity than
Thailand, as 50% of its farmland, mostly in
the Mekong River Delta in the South and the
Red river basin in the North, is irrigated.For
Thailand, only 32% of rice farms in the
central region are irrigated, while most
farmland in the North and Northeast are
rain-fed.The government must play a role in
improving the infrastructure to improve rice
productivity and in helping to reduce
production costs. But farmers, too, must
help themselves too by reducing costs and
learning from experts such as Mr
Chaiyaporn.
Veera Prateepchaikul is a former editor,
Bangkok Post.

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