11th may,2015 daily global rice e newsletter by riceplus magazine

Daily

Global

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

Rice E-Newsletter May 11 , 2015 V o l u m e 5, Issue I

Doane College professor part of $5 million effort to improve rice crops POSTED: MONDAY, MAY 11, 2015 1:00 AM

By Kate Howard / World-Herald staff writer A Doane College biology professor and her students are taking part in a $5.5 million research project to improve rice crops.In the four-year project, led by Cornell University and funded by a National www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine Science Foundation grant, Erin Doyle and undergraduate Doane biology students will contribute to the investigation of genome editing.In addition to the specific research done by Doyle and her students, she also will develop undergraduate education opportunities by incorporating aspects of this research into projects for other classes, according to a Doane press release.Researchers from Colorado State University and the University of Minnesota also will participate in the study.

Three new student trustees appointed to college board Gov. Pete Ricketts named three students to the Nebraska State College System board of trustees.

The students, who will serve during the 2015-16 academic year, are Mikayla Gallagher of Spearfish, South Dakota, who will represent Chadron State College; Millie Anderson of Elmwood, Nebraska, who will represent Peru State College; and Matthew Mullins of Falls City, Nebraska, who will represent Wayne State College.

Metro earns designation for manufacturing teaching Metropolitan Community College has become an M-List institution.

The Manufacturing Institute confers the M-List designation to high schools, community colleges and universities that are teaching industry standards to manufacturing students.

Students enrolled in the certified production technician and certified logistics technician courses will now be eligible to receive certification from the Manufacturing Skill Standards Council, as well as receive college credits, according to Metro.

UNO student wins entrepreneurial award The University of Nebraska named a graduating senior at the University of Nebraska at Omaha as its 2015 winner in student entrepreneurship.

Rachel Ostrander, who received a bachelor‟s degree in IT innovation, won the Peter Kiewit Student Entrepreneurial Award for her work in creating an agricultural software company. Ostrander is founder, CEO and programmer of MooManager, which provides ranch management software to cattle ranchers.

The Peter Kiewit award recognizes NU students who have directed their energies, ideas and talents toward community and business improvements with the creative and innovative use of information technology. The award is accompanied by a $2,500 prize.

Peru State names VP for academic affairs Peru State College has named a new vice president for academic affairs: Tim Borchers, a native of Sidney, Nebraska.

He most recently was dean of the College of Arts, Media and Communication at Minnesota State University in Moorhead.

Contact the writer: 402-444-3185, kate.howard@owh.com http://www.omaha.com/news/education/doane-college-professor-part-of-million-effort-to-improverice/article_ee270101-f53b-5552-8971-4fdb3467409b.html

FG Unveils Quota for 2015 Rice Import Allocation 11 May 2015 Minister

of

Agriculture

and

Rural

Development,

Dr.

Akinwumi

Adesina

By Crusoe Osagie
 The controversy that has trailed the rice import allocations for 2014 notwithstanding, the federal government at the weekend went ahead to review downwards, its import target for the www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine commodity to 1.3 million metric tonnes (MT). According to a letter signed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, addressed to the Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a domestic supply gap of 1.3 million MT was determined for the 2015, down from 1.5 million in 2014.Meanwhile, one million MT of this quota has been set aside asallocations to existing rice millers, importers and new investors with approved Domestic Rice Production Plans (DRPP), at a preferential levy of 20 per cent and duty of 10 per cent.

This year‟s supply gap was fixed at 200,000 MT lower than that of 2014, as rice importers with no DRPP will probably account for the remaining 300,000 MT at the higher levy of 60 per cent and duty of 10 per cent.In 2014, rice importers and new investors were required to post a Domestic Rice Production Performance Bond from a qualifying bank to clearly demonstrate their commitment to domestic investment plans in rice production and processing.

Under this year‟s import quota, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has identified 22 companies that will receive quota allocations for 2015 out of the number that was approved last year.In the letter titled “Approved List of Companies Allocated Rice Import quota for April 2015- March 2016 period”, it was explicitly made clear that certain criteria informed the trimming down of the number of companies from last year‟s figure.The letter to the Coordinating Minister of the Economy read in part: “In line with the federal government‟s policy (“the Policy”) to ensure self-sufficiency in rice by 2014, domestic rice production and milling operations continue to rise, which has resulted in a reduction in rice requirements of the country. ”As was the practice in 2014 and in line with the policy, the allocation of import quotas continues to be made along the explicit criteria set for encouraging domestic production and domestic milling of rice, to lead to self-sufficiency. These criteria are based on the extent of existing domestic milling capacity as well as along four specific items that assess each company‟s ongoing investment outlay into domestic rice production and milling.“These include the following: Domestic Rice Production Plan (DRPP): demonstrate evidence of current or planned investment in domestic rice production over a 3-year period, size of Investment, proof of land acquisition and establishment of rice fields and paddy production, Paddy purchase outlook from Paddy Aggregation Centres (PAC): Demonstrate a clear plan of purchase of paddy from PACs, should include location of PACs, volumes of paddy to be purchased among others.

Paddy purchase outlook from outgrower farmers and farmer cooperatives: should include location of farms, volumes of paddy to be purchased, among others.Ownership of Integrated Rice Milling Facility (with par boilers and dehuskers): size of planned installed capacity (score relative to the largest sized facility, evidence of acquisition of integrated rice milling equipment, amongst others.“In addition to existing millers and new investors, only the re-applying companies who submitted bonds in 2014 were allocated quotas in the current 2015-2016 round.

Companies that failed to present the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with a bond have not been given quotas for the full year April 2015 to March 2016.

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine Consequently, import quota allocations to 22 approved companies with a total allocation of 961,000 MT were issued.

Already, the Ministry has sent letters to all the 22 approved companies and copied Dr. OkonjoIweala as well as the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service.The letter extensively informed the companies of their approved quotas, which qualified for 10 per cent duty or 20 per cent levy as the case might be, the Comptroller General of Customs was mandated to facilitate enforcement of the approved allocations. Meanwhile, members of the Nigeria Rice Investors Group have since thrown their weight behind the Minister over the current furore on allocations of import quotas for rice importers.

The officials of the group indicated that they are working in tandem with the federal government in order to improve and boost domestic and local rice production in the country. It could be recalled that the House of Representatives had summoned the Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina to appear before its Ad hoc Committee over alleged evasion of payment of rice import duties and levies by importers and investors.

Similarly, the Chairman, Rice Processors Association of Nigeria, (RPAN), Muhammed Abubakar, said rice importers who were fighting hard to remain in business had severally attempted to frustrate Nigeria‟s fortune in rice production. He explained further: “Processing cost is high, there is no electricity and cost of transportation makes our production cost a little bit higher, however, the goods that you see in the market, especially the rice that you feel is cheaper than ours, I assure you they are smuggled rice bags that come through Cotonou, but if they bring the commodity through the proper channel and pay the normal duty, it cannot be cheaper than local production, maybe they will be at par.

“Without this minister, all these developments wouldn‟t have been possible, whatever we are able to achieve in Rice production in the country even in the next 50 years, Adesina initiated it and we will be grateful to him, the process put in place by the federal ministry of agriculture should be continued,” he said.

Tags: Business, Nigeria, Featured, ADESINA, RICE, Import Allocation

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/fg-unveils-quota-for-2015-rice-import-allocation/208995/

10% duty imposed on rice import to ensure fair price for Bangladeshi farmers Staff Correspondent, bdnews24.com Published: 2015-05-10 19:30:18.0 BdST Updated: 2015-05-10 20:40:48.0 BdSTThe

government has imposed 10 percent duty on import of rice to ensure that farmers in Bangladesh get fair price for the rice they cultivate.The duty is effective from Sunday, according to Finance Minister AMA Muhith.He told a pre-budget discussion of the chiefs of the parliamentary standingcommittees on Sunday that the decision aimed at ensuring fair price of rice during the current Boro season.On Saturday evening, Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury said in a BBC programme that the government had taken the decision to restrict rice import.

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She said Bangladesh was self-sufficient in rice cultivation, obviating the need to import.The government had not imported rice in the past three years but importers seized the opportunity in the absence of any duty on food imports.Farmers had been protesting against the imports, saying they were unable to recover cultivation costs because of imports from India at cheaper rates.It has been alleged that Bangladeshi farmers are not getting remunerative prices because of imports from India and boost in indigenous cultivation.

The agriculture minister said India dumped rice preserved in warehouses for over two years.“Many dishonest businessmen in Bangladesh took the chance to import rice,” she alleged.According to Bangladesh Bank‟s analysis of import data, Letters of Credit (LC) worth $ 476.4 million were opened in the first nine months (July-March) of the 2014-15 fiscal year.The amount was 66 percent higher than that of the same period last year.Importers had opened LC worth $ 430 million in that period. http://bdnews24.com/economy/2015/05/10/10-duty-imposed-on-rice-import-to-ensure-fair-price-forbangladeshi-farmers

Govt to reduce rice import in 2015

By Femi Adekoya on May 11, 2015 IN line with the report by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) that Nigeria‟s rice import will drop by 3.3 per cent to 2.9 million tonnes this year, the Federal Government has disclosed that its import target for the commodity will be 1.3 million metric tonnes(MT).According to a letter signed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi A. Adesina, addressed to the Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr.Ngozi OkonjoIweala, a domestic supply gap of 1.3 million MT was determined for the 2015, down from 1.5 million in 2014.Indeed, one million MT of this quota has been set aside as allocations to existing rice millers, importers and new investors with

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine approved Domestic Rice Production Plans (DRPP), at a preferential levy of 20% and duty of 10%.

This year‟s supply gap is 200,000 MT lower than 2014, as rice importers with no DRPP will account for the remaining 0.3 million MT at the higher levy of 60% and duty of 10%.In 2014, rice importers and new investors were required to post a Domestic Rice Production Performance Bond from a qualifying bank to clearly demonstrate their commitment to domestic investment plans in production and processing.Under this year‟s import quota, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has identified 22 companies that will receive quota allocations out of the number that was approved last year.In the letter titled “Approved List of Companies Allocated Rice Import quota for April 2015- March 2016 period”, it was explicitly made clear that certain criteria informed the trimming down of the number of companies from last year‟s figure to what obtains this year.The letter to the Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy reads in part: “In line with the Federal Government‟s policy (“the Policy”) to ensure self-sufficiency in rice by 2014, domestic rice production and milling operations continue to rise, which has resulted in a reduction in rice requirements of the country”.

As was the practice in 2014 and in line with the Policy, the allocation of import quotas continues to be made along the explicit criteria set for encouraging domestic production and domestic milling of rice, to lead to self-sufficiency.These criteria are based on the extent of existing domestic milling capacity as well as along four specific items that assess each company‟s ongoing investment outlay into domestic rice production and milling.“These include the following: Domestic Rice Production Plan (DRPP): demonstrate evidence of current or planned investment in domestic rice production over a three -year period, size of investment, proof of land acquisition and establishment of rice fields and paddy production, Paddy purchase outlook from Paddy Aggregation Centres (PAC): Demonstrate a clear plan of purchase of paddy from PACs, should include location of PACs, volumes of paddy to be purchased among others.Paddy purchase outlook from out grower farmers and farmer cooperatives: should include location of farms, volumes of paddy to be purchased, among others.

Ownership of Integrated Rice Milling Facility (with par boilers and dehuskers): size of planned installed capacity (score relative to the largest sized facility, evidence of acquisition of integrated rice milling equipment, e.t.c “In addition to existing millers and new investors, only the reapplying companies who submitted bonds in 2014 were allocated quotas in the current 20152016 round.

Companies that failed to present the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with a Bond have not been given quotas for the full year April 2015 to March 2016.Consequently, import quota allocations to 22 approved companies with a total allocation of 961,000 MT were issued.Already, the Ministry has sent letters to all the 22 approved companies and copied Dr. Okonjo-Iweala as well as the Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service.The letter extensively informed the companies of their approved quotas which qualified for 10% duty or 20% levy as the case might be the Comptroller General of Customs was mandated to facilitate enforcement of the approved allocations.

http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/2015/05/govt-to-reduce-rice-import-in-2015/

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WESTERN FOREST PRODUCTS ANNOUNCES ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 05/08/15 -Western Forest Products Inc. ("Western" or the "Company") (TSX: WEF) announced today its voting results in respect of the election of all director nominees at its Annual General and Special Meeting (the "Meeting") held today as follows: /EINPresswire.com/ --

Votes Nominee Votes For % For Withheld % Withheld ---------------------------------------------------------------------------James Arthurs 225,653,406 96.21% 8,883,201 3.79% Don Demens 229,450,296 97.83% 5,086,311 2.17% Lee Doney 169,363,036 72.21% 65,173,571 27.79% Daniel Nocente 172,868,817 73.71% 61,667,790 26.29% Barrie Shineton 229,748,784 97.96% 4,787,823 2.04% Michael T. Waites 229,652,804 97.92% 4,883,803 2.08%

The total number of shares represented by shareholders in person and by proxy at the meeting was 235,666,949, representing 59.65% of the Corporation's outstanding shares.

The Company has also filed a report of voting results on all resolutions voted on at the Meeting on www.sedar.com.

About Western Forest Products Inc. Western is an integrated Canadian forest products company and is the largest coastal British Columbia woodland operator and lumber producer. The Company has an annual available harvest of approximately 6.4 million cubic metres of timber, of which approximately 6.2 million cubic metres is from Crown lands. Western has a lumber capacity in excess of 1.1 billion board feet from seven sawmills and two remanufacturing plants. Principal activities conducted by the Company include timber harvesting, reforestation, sawmilling logs into lumber and wood chips, and value-added remanufacturing. Substantially all of Western's operations, employees and corporate facilities are located in the coastal region of British Columbia, while its products are sold in over 25 countries worldwide.

Contacts: Western Forest Products Inc. Stephen Williams

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Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Corporate Secretary (604) 648-4572

MALDIVES TRAVEL AWARDS HOSTED IN DUBAI CONCLUDES DUBAI, UAE, May 8, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ -- A Special Edition of Maldives Travel Awards 2015 was hosted abroad for the first time, at Dusit Thani Dubai, on 5th May 2015.

Maldives Travel Awards, marked as the premier recognition for travel businesses in Maldives, features a total of 33 categories, out of which winners were announced in ten selected categories, during the special event hosted in Dubai.

The special edition of the Travel Awards in Dubai was scheduled coinciding with the Arabian Travel Market 2015, in collaboration with Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Cooperation, MMPRC. Minister of Fisheries & Agriculture Dr.Mohamed Shainee was the chief guest of the Awards function. In addition, Deputy Speaker of the parliament Mr.Moosa Maniku, senior executives from MMPRC and representatives from the leading top travel brands were present to celebrate this occasion.

Launched in 2012, 2015 marks the 4th edition of the travel awards, and also marks a milestone, as the awards is hosted abroad for the first time. During the past four years, Maldives Travel Awards has grown successfully grown in popularity and in number of categories and nominations. This year, more than 110 nominees are competing in 33 categories, covering wide spectrum of the service sector. Guest houses, Hotels, Resorts, Airlines and service providers like dive schools are represented in the Travel Awards. In 2015, 10 new categories were introduced to complement with the changing landscape of the industry, and to accommodate the emerging service sectors, like guest houses and community tourism.

Speaking at the function, the President of MATATO Mr. Abdulla Ghiyas reiterated on the success of the awards and assured that MATATO will continue its efforts to collaborate with the key stakeholders of the industry to take Maldives travel awards progressively forward.

In addition, MATATO also presented awards of Special recognition, to ClubMed Finolhuvillas (Gasfinolhu) and Mr. Faisal Naseem, for outstanding achievement in design and innovation.

CLubMed Finolhu Villas was awarded for the innovative development of the island as the first fully solar powered resort in the Maldives, making this property 100 percent carbon neutral. MP Faisal Naseem was recognized for his continued service in the tourism sector, especially for outstanding achievements, in architecture and design.

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Winners of the remaining categories of Maldives Travel Awards will be announced in September 2015, at the grand Award Night to be hosted by COCO Boduhithi.

Winners- MATATO Maldives Travel Awards 2015 - Dubai Edition :

1 Leading International Airline Srilankan Airlines 2 Fly

Leading

3 Viewtual

Leading

4 Sun

9 Anantara

Human

Island

and

Leading

Conference

Eco

Hithi

International Hotels

Resort

-

Hotel

Hotel/Resort and Guest

Maldives

Resort

Airport/City Island

10 Leading Arena Beach Maldives Ibrahim Munaz MATATO +9603344929

Spa

Kuda

Meeting

Leading

-

Management and

Private Prive'

Leading

Dubai

Partner

Resource Resort

Leading

Leading

Carrier

Technology

Island

7 Sonevafushi 8 Hulhule'

Cost

Travel

Leading

5 Coco 6 Bandos

Low

Hotel Brand

Resorts

House

BioLife Solutions' (BLFS) CEO Michael Rice on Q1 2015 Results - Earnings Call Transcript May. 10, 2015 3:26 AM ET | About: BioLife Solutions, Inc. (BLFS)

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-

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine Operator Good day, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the BioLife Solutions Q1 2015 Earnings Conference Call. At this time all participants are in a listen-only mode. Later we will conduct a question-and-answer session and instructions will follow at that time. [Operator Instruction]. As a reminder this conference call is being recorded.I would now like to introduce your host for today‟s conference, BioLife Solutions' Chief Financial Officer, Daphne Taylor. Ms. Taylor you may begin.

Daphne Taylor - VP, Finance and Administration, CFO Thank you, operator and good afternoon everyone. Thank you for joining us this afternoon for the BioLife Solutions conference call and webcast. During this call we will discuss our financial results and operational highlights for the first quarter of 2015.Today we issued a press release and filed our Form 10-Q quarterly report containing detailed results for the quarter. This release is available on the Investor Relations page of our website at biolifesolutions.com as well as various financial websites.

As a reminder this call is being recorded and also broadcast live on our website. A replay of the webcast will be available through the same link for 90 days.Before we get started, let me remind you that during the course of this conference call, we will make projections and other forwardlooking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of the company.

These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations or detailed discussion of the risks and uncertainties that affect the company‟s business and that qualify to be forward-looking statements made on this call, I refer you to our periodic and other public filings with the SEC. Company projections and forward-looking statements are based on factors that are subject to change and therefore these statements speak only as of the date they are given. The company assumes no obligation to update any projections or forward-looking statements except as required by law.Now I would like to turn the call over to Mike Rice, President and CEO of BioLife.Thank you Daphne and thanks everyone for joining the call. Following our business update we'll be glad to take your questions.

I want to start off with a recap for the regenerative medicine market and our place in the supply chain as a critical tools provider and I‟ll share some data to help you understand why this is a very strategic market for BioLife. The regen medicine industry is comprised of clinical centers and private and public companies, commercializing cellular and gene therapies and engineered tissue products, intended to treat, and in some cases cure the leading causes of disability and death throughout the world.

Yesterday the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine or ARM as the entity is known published their quarterly data report for the first quarter of 2015. According to ARM there are 580 regenerative medicine companies worldwide and investor interest in this space is very strong. In the first quarter of 2015, ARM reports that total amount of funds raised by these companies was $2.7 billion, an increase of 135% from the same quarter last year.

A major focus of regenerative medicine clinical trials is the use of cellular immunotherapies, such as CAR-T cells and other types of T cells in various cancer indications. This is great news

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine for patients and also for BioLife, as many of our customers are in the cell immunotherapy space and they have raised significant amounts of cash to support the clinical trials or our products are used to preserve starting biologic material such as peripheral blood or bone marrow and also the manufactured cell products that are administered to patients.

GenSan joins 'half-rice' campaign By: Philippines News Agency May 10, 2015 10:26 AM

The online news portal of TV5

GENERAL SANTOS CITY - The city council here has launched a series of consultations for a proposed ordinance that seeks the inclusion of half-cup serving of rice or “half-rice” in the menus of food establishments within the city. Vice Mayor Shirlyn L. Bañas-Nograles said the council‟s committee on trade, commerce, and industry is currently studying the provisions of the measure that also aims to set the “half-rice” as the default serving in restaurants and other related establishments in the area.

She said the move is in line with the national government‟s “Be RICEponsible” campaign that calls for responsible rice consumption.“Our main goal is to help reduce rice wastage at the consumer level in the city,” said Nograles, author of the proposed ordinance.Under measure, all food service establishments in the city are required to include and display the half-cup rice serving in their regular menus, with the price set at exactly half of the regular one cup serving.

A half-cup rice serving refers to one-half cup of the regular serving of cooked rice or not more than 80 grams.It specifically covers businesses and institutions in the city that are engaged in the preparation of plated, packed, or combo meals for a fee.These include restaurants; school, office and hospital cafeterias; catering establishments; canteens, eateries, fast-food chains, and other similar establishments.“Food establishments are mandated to make the one-half cup of rice as the default serving for packed and combo meals as well as plated caterings,” it said.

Nograles said the proposed ordinance included penalties for establishments that would fail to implement its provisions.She said a fine of P1,000 was set for the first offense, P2,000 for the second offense, and P3,000 and cancellation of business permit for the third and succeeding offenses.In 2008, several fast food chains started offering “half-rice” serving in response to the national government‟s call then to conserve rice.Studies made by the Philippine Rice Research Institute showed that Filipinos waste an average of two tablespoons of cooked rice or 9 grams of

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine uncooked rice on a daily basis.The Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology also said each Filipino reportedly waste an average of 3.29 kilos of rice every year.Such wastage reaches around 296,869 metric tons worth around P8 billion. http://www.interaksyon.com/article/110275/gensan-joins-half-rice-campaign

Foreign Rice Importers: Game To Return Nigeria As Dumping Ground

By Fabian Odum on May 10, 2015 Adesina inspecting rice farm with Hajia Baladi, leader of women rice farmers at Bokolori dam farm project in Zamfara State in 2013 planting season In the rash of misinformation being peddled in the media, it has become necessary to separate the wheat from the chaff, as some entrenched interests seem bent on truncating the genuine strides made so far by the President Jonathan Administration to make the nation self-sufficient in rice production.The rice industry was characterised by opacity and confusion, and importers, particularly a few foreigners, dominated transactions.

It was this Administration of Goodluck Ebele Jonathan that initiated a rice revolution that ushered in massive production of rice within the country, with the ambitious plan of gradually phasing out importation by 2017 when Nigeria is expected to have become self-sufficient in rice production.It needs to be emphasised that, under President Jonathanâ€&#x;s watch, and with his active support, the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, designed the policy framework that gave local producers an opportunity to be competitive in the first instance. The idea of differential duty and levy, which was introduced, was meant to encourage investment in the Nigerian rice industry, to expand production, increasing milling capacity and creating employment along the rice value chain.

In a release by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the new rice policy driven by the Minister succeeded and galvanised $2.6 billion in investment commitments into commercial rice cultivation and establishment of integrated rice mills.It is surprising that the same Minister, who has worked so hard in ensuring that sanity is brought into the rice industry, would be maligned by some for sticking to his gun that those, who owe government should pay their duties and levies. The Minister never gave waivers.These Asian rice importers, who believe they are above the law in Nigeria, for decades, have frustrated every effort and policy to reverse the trend of

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine massive food imports by Nigeria, did not envisage that one day an astute and incorruptible technocrat with a passion for change like Dr. Adesina, would emerge.

Before the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA), Nigeria was enormously short-changed and there was no level playing field to encourage local production, to the extent the nation spent N356 billion annually on rice importation, thus bleeding the nation‟s economy.Under the ATA, the Federal Ministry Of Agriculture And Rural Development embarked on innovative interventions through the rice policy and set up its implementation plan.On May 26th, 2014, a new rice policy was approved by President Jonathan to encourage investments in local rice milling and production through the introduction of an import duty differential on rice (brown or polished) imported by investors in the rice sector compared to rice traders. The policy thrust was meant to turn importers into investors to commence local production and become part of the drivers of the local content in the rice industry.

This is to contribute in part to the expectation of increased rice paddy production, leading to the achievement of rice self-sufficiency.The policy has been very successful under the passionate drive of Dr. Adesina, who said that Nigeria must become self sufficient in rice production within four years.Dr. Adesina drove a massive innovation, which delivered free high-yielding rice varieties and subsidised fertilisers to six million rice farmers within three years.In the period 2012 to 2014 paddy rice production in the country grew from 4.5 million MT in 2012 to 7.89 million (metric tons) MT in 2013, and 10.7 million MT in 2014. Never has Nigeria seen such rapid growth of in paddy rice production. The capacity for integrated rice milling for the production of import-grade rice has also risen from 70,000MT in 2011 to over 800,000MT in 2014. The number of integrated rice mills increased from only one in 2011 to over 24 by 2014.

Nigeria‟s self-sufficiency in producing paddy rice rose from about 45 per cent in 2011 to 85 per cent by 2014.

Adesina‟s drive for rice self sufficiency is well on course. Nigeria‟s food import bill declined from N 3.1 trillion in 2011 to N635 billion by 2014 according to data from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics.To encourage greater domestic investments in rice, the rice policy was designed to encourage expanded cultivation of commercial rice farms and establishment of new integrated rice mills. To ensure this, existing rice millers and new investors in rice milling and paddy production with verified Domestic Rice Production Plans (DRPP) will enjoy an import duty of 10 per cent and levy 20 per cent, while pure traders will pay a higher import duty of 10 per cent and levy 60 per cent.The new rice policy also stated that importation of brown or polished rice should be limited to the national supply gap for import-grade rice. Rice import quotas at the preferential rate of 10 per cent duty and 20 per cent levy will be will be issued to existing and new rice millers/producers based on the national supply gap.

Working with rice experts from the Africa Rice Centre, USAID, and from FMARD‟s rice value chain, a methodology to determine the national supply gap and allocation of quotas to qualifying rice investors was developed.Criteria for quota allocation was based on weighted parameters of: existing milling capacity, a Domestic Rice Production Plan (DRPP) that assessed size of new investments in rice production and milling, purchase of paddy locally from farmers and from the Paddy Aggregation Centers (PACs), and size of new proposed mills. A report on the

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine methodology was presented to the Inter-Ministerial Committee through a memo sent out from the office of the Minister on October 4th, 2014.

Following feedback on the methodology from members of the Committee, a meeting was held on November 10th, 2014 with representatives of the Federal Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry, rice sector stakeholders, and rice experts to deliberate on the report. The supply gap of import-grade rice was determined to be 1.5 million MT for 2014. The meeting also agreed that 1.3 million MT should be allocated to existing rice millers and importers with approved Domestic Rice Production Plans (DRPP), at a preferential levy of 20 per cent and duty of 10 per cent, while 0.2million MT is allocated to other rice importers at the normal levy of 60 per cent and duty of 10 per cent.Subsequently, a letter was sent to existing rice millers and new investors, to submit a DRPP, and based on their submissions a total of 1.3 million MT of rice import quotas was issued to 25 qualifying millers at the preferential levy of 20 per cent and duty of 10 per cent. The remainder 0.2 million MT of rice imports will be at the higher levy of 60 per cent and duty of 10 per cent for other rice importers.

Based on methodology for allocating quotas and DRPPs submitted by existing rice millers and new investors, the Minister allocated quotas to an approved list of 25 qualifying rice investors (with DRPPs) on November 29th, 2014. A performance bond to be paid by importers with DRPPs was introduced to ensure compliance with milestones of their investment plans.It was clearly stated that any beneficiary, who has already imported rice above these approved quantities would have to pay to treasury the higher levy of 60 per cent and duty of 10 per cent for the excess amount.Without waiting for determination of supply gap by the inter-ministerial committees or issuance of quotas, two Asian companies, Popular Farms and Mills – owned by Stallion Group, and Olam, had each imported 390,145.53MT and 244,126.63MT respectively of polished rice as at December 3rd, 2014. These two companies together imported a total of 634,270.16MT of finished rice or 56 per cent of the total imported finished rice under the new policy as at December 3rd, 2014.

Their approved quotas for 2014, however were 89,939MT for Popular Farms and Mills and 133,963MT for Olam. By December 4, 2014, both companies had imported a total of 410,368.16 MT in excess of their approved quotas.The Minister of Agriculture blew the whistle that this was totally unacceptable. He wrote to the President that the Nigerian Customs must enforce the quota ceiling and ensure that any company, which imported above their allocated ceiling must pay the Treasury at the applicable higher tariff of 10 per cent duty and 60 per cent levy. Accordingly, Popular Farms and Mills owe the Treasury N19.379billion in unpaid levies, while Olam owes the Treasury N9.02billion.

The companies cannot claim ignorance. According to Nigerian Customs, the importers agreed with the Customs to pay any duty and levy differential if their eventual quota allocation turned out to be lower than what they have imported. Rather than pay the levies owed, the two companies wrote letters to the Minister asking for a revision of their rice import quotas. Olam asked for 400,000MT rice import quota, to cover the quantities of rice that they had gone ahead to import (or still desire to import) without any approved quotas or DRPP as required, but a mere agreement with Nigerian Customs that they would pay the duties due once the quota allocations

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine are out.Both companies pleaded with the Minister to no avail. He insisted everyone must follow the transparent and rigorous methodology on issuance of quotas.

He noted that the Nigerian Customs Service has permitted the importation of 852,400.89MT of polished by traders at the lower tariff of 10 per cent duty and 20 per cent levy over and beyond approved rice import quotas in total disregard to directives on the rice policy.The Minister raised the alarm that two companies had imported 410,368.16 MT above approved quotas and will crowd out local millers from the milled rice market, who will be unable to buy from local rice farmers. The indiscriminate importation of rice by these foreign companies will undo the rapid progress made in the last three years on Nigeria‟s drive to self-sufficiency in rice productionIn response to spurious allegations by a faceless group known as „Stakeholders in the Rice Industry‟ on the alleged indiscriminate granting of waivers and issuance of rice import quotas to investors who have no investments in the industry, either in form of paddy production or rice milling, and the loss of N40 billion in Government revenue, the Minister held a press conference on January 12th to address issues raised by the group.

At the press conference, the Minister described the transparent methodology with which the rice import quota allocation was done and revealed that foreign companies who had imported 410,368.16MT beyond their quotas were the ones owing government N36billion.The Minister made a strong statement on implementation of the rice policy that “Every Company must follow the rules and there are no sacred cows. The days are gone when they can bribe to get what they want. I will not allow them to scuttle our self-sufficiency drive in rice production. I cannot be bought or bribed. These two companies, Olam and Popular Farms and Mills, owe government and they must pay for the excess rice they imported above their allowed quota at preferential rate.”Several leading legitimate investors in the rice sector and farmers rose up in support of the Minister.

A former Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Aondoakaa, a rice processor, said “in all my several years in government, I have never seen a process so transparent and a Minister who fights always for public interest with such integrity and passion.”The claims of preferential waivers are simply not true. The Minister of Agriculture gave no waivers. Only the President can give waivers. The Nigerian Customs Tariffs Act makes it mandatory for Customs to collect all duties and levies due to government before imported goods can be released to importers. It is the duty of the Nigerian Customs and Excise to enforce the Act. Anyone who owes government duties and levies and rice should go and pay; there will be no sacred cows. http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/2015/05/foreign-rice-importers-game-to-return-nigeria-asdumping-ground/

U.S., JORDAN SIGN AGREEMENT TO PROMOTE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AND TRADE, SUPPORT HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE Release No. 0134.15 Contact: Office of Communications (202) 720-4623

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

U.S., Jordan Sign Agreement to Promote Agricultural Development and Trade, Support Humanitarian Assistance Amman, JORDAN, May 10, 2015 - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and Jordan Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad Fakhoury, today signed an agreement to support agricultural development and trade in Jordan."Jordan is one of our most effective, capable and steadfast partners not only in the Middle East, but around the world," Vilsack said. "USDA's food assistance will be used to relieve some of the economic burden that Jordan is facing as a result of the hundreds of thousands of Syrians who've been displaced because of the Syrian civil war.

"Through the Food for Progress Program, USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service will provide the government of Jordan with 100,000 metric tons of U.S. wheat, valued at approximately $25 million. The Jordanian government will use proceeds from the sale of the commodities to implement projects aimed at improving agricultural productivity and stimulating economic growth."The Obama administration remains committed to investing in the creation of economic stability and opportunity in the Middle East," Vilsack said. "As we have done in the past with Jordan and around the world, U.S. produced commodities will not only feed people but enhance agricultural productivity and trade."The Food for Progress Program is a cornerstone in USDA's efforts to support sustainable agricultural production in developing nations and promote agricultural trade. The program helps developing countries and emerging democracies modernize and strengthen their agricultural sectors.

USDA's food aid programs contribute to the goals of President Obama's global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future. In fiscal year 2014, nearly 223,337 individuals in the Feed the Future countries and regions received USDA's agricultural productivity or food security training.USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 6329992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).

HEAVY EQUIPMENT AND INDUSTRIAL MACHINERY GLOBAL REPORT 2015 - RELEASED BY THE BUSINESS RESEARCH COMPANY The Business Research Company’s Heavy Equipment and Industrial Machinery Global Report contains market size of heavy equipment and industrial machinery.CANARY WHARF, LONDON, ENGLAND, February 22, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Business Research Company‟s(TBRC) Heavy Equipment and Industrial Machinery Global Report contains market size of heavy equipment and industrial machinery, profiles of top companies including each company‟s overview, revenue, geographies in which the companies are operating, company sales and distribution structure, service offering, parts availability, rental and leasing options and financing facilities as well as company‟s latest distribution news (as available).

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine

The report covers construction, agricultural and forestry equipment. The market sizing information covers agriculture and construction equipment only as data for the forestry equipment market was not available. Construction equipment falls into four main categories: earthmoving, material handling, heavy construction vehicles, and other heavy construction equipment. Earthmoving machinery typically includes excavators, loaders, bulldozers, crawler dozers, scrappers, and shovels.

Scope • Market size historic and forecast, market shares and regional splits.• The report contains profiles of the top 15 construction equipment companies, and top 5 agricultural equipment companies and top 5 forestry equipment companies. Profiles contain business operations, distribution strategies, maintenance and service levels, prospects and latest distribution news (as available).

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The Business Research Company strictly follows a standardized research methodology to ensure high levels of data quality and these characteristics guarantee a unique report.

Key findings of the report include: "The global heavy equipment & industrial machinery market grew from $ 187 billion in 2010 to $ 271 billion in 2014, a CAGR of 9.7. Data covers construction and agricultural equipment.

Demand for both construction and agricultural equipment has been increasing due to a growth in global population..

Countries covered in the report include: North America, Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe Products mentioned include: Construction, agricultural and forestry equipment. Construction equipment includes earthmoving, material handling, heavy construction vehicles, and other heavy construction equipment. Earthmoving machinery typically includes excavators, loaders, bulldozers, crawler dozers, scrappers, and shovels.

Companies mentioned include: Caterpillar Komatsu Volvo Constructions Hitachi Sumitomo Heavy Industries Construction Crane Leibherr Group

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine Terex Zoomlion Sany Heavy Industry John Deere Doosan Industrial Vehicle Co., Ltd XCMG JCB Service CNH Global NV Atlas Copco Escorts Limited Price: $1000.00 (e.g. PDF) Single User (If applicable) $USD Visit TheBusinessResearchCompany.com or call +447443439350 for more information on this and many other titles. The Business Research Company is a market research and intelligence company which excels in company, market and consumer research. It has research professionals at its offices in the UK, India and the US as well a network of trained researchers globally. It has specialist consultants in a wide range of industries including manufacturing, healthcare, financial services and technology.

The Business Research Company's management have more than 20 years of varied business research experience. They have delivered hundreds of research projects to the senior management of some of the world's largest organizations.The Business Research Company's Consultants have masters qualifications from top institutes and include MBAs, MSCs, CFAs and CAs. The Business Research Company's Consultants gain training and qualifications from the Market Research Society and are trained in advanced research practices, techniques, and ethics.

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"GOOD THINGS COME IN LITTLE PACKAGES" -- LITTLE GOODIES SET TO BREAK GROUND ON NEW MMJ CULTIVATION SITE IN ARIZONA /EINPresswire.com/

-- PHOENIX, AZ -- (Marketwired) -- 05/08/15 -- Little Goodies (http://www.littlegoodiesinc.com), Arizona's soon to be premier source for ultra-premium, medical-grade cannabis flowers and edibles, is pleased to announce that they will be breaking ground on a state-of-the-art cultivation facility in 2015.Since it was legalized in Arizona in 2010, medical marijuana has helped thousands of patients suffering from debilitating diseases find comfort and solace through natural medicine. Concurrent and ongoing studies have shown that some of the most painful and wasting syndromes respond better to the main active chemicals in

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine cannabis, THC, CBD, and CBN, than they do to conventional prescription drugs.Some recent studies have even found cancer-fighting properties in CBD that are being further explored as prospective constituents for a potential future treatment. By and far, the medical community is in agreement that medical cannabis is an effective and safer treatment for pain management than conventional prescribed painkillers are.

CBD Content All cannabis contains these three common cannabinoids: THC, CBD and CBN. Each strain has a different ratio of them, and this ratio is what comprises the strain's "chem-type."While most current commercial strains of cannabis have a much higher proportion of THC (15%-25%), and very low proportion of CBD (usually less than 1%), high CBD strains contain an impressive 10%-20% CBD.Little Goodies will offer some whole flowers that contain high CBD amounts, in addition to value added products (edibles, oils, etc.) that also have a high CBD content.Little Goodies will be constructing a large-scale, state-of-the-art cultivation site that will provide Arizona medical marijuana patients with ultra-premium, connoisseur-grade flowers of unparalleled taste and aroma.

"The quality of flowers and the large scale at which we are about to produce is what is most unique about the current project, and will revolutionize the Arizona market," explained, Lee Komer, CEO of Little Goodies. "Our cannabis will be at an entirely different caliber. We will be bringing the first truly connoisseur-grade flowers to Arizona's patients. We will maintain our exclusive, top-shelf MMJ products by never cutting corners, and will always provide patients with quality over quantity."Little Goodies mission is about providing a high-quality experience for the Arizonan medical marijuana patient. The grower only uses organic methods and the best ingredients to create cannabis products that not only help to treat medical conditions and soothe symptoms, but to also please the senses.

You can learn more by visiting: http://littlegoodiesinc.com.

Farmers plant rice seedlings in a paddy field in the city of Narita in Chiba Prefecture at the end of April. | BLOOMBERG

Rice farmers scrap seedlings to sow directly in cost-cutting push JIJI MAY 10, 2015

A number of rice farmers have started sowing seed rice directly into paddy fields, breaking with the conventional method of growing seedlings and then transplanting them.Yamaha Motor Co. is promoting the use of unmanned helicopters for spraying seed rice, while Kubota Corp. has launched specialized machinery for sowing seed rice.Direct sowing of seed rice is emerging as a key method for raising the efficiency of farming chores and reducing rice production costs.The acreage of rice fields where the sowing method has been adopted is growing www.ricepluss.com R&D Section: Riceplus Magazine

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Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter by Riceplus Magazine rapidly, although the proportion to total national acreage is still small.The wider use follows the development of a technique for coating seed rice with calcium sulfate-containing iron powder and sowing the grains directly on paddy fields.

The method saves farmers the trouble of growing and planting seedlings.Due to the weight of the iron powder, the seed rice sinks into the soil of the paddy field instead of floating in water in the fields. The iron powder coating is thin enough to give the seed rice access to water and oxygen, and the rice sprouts by breaking through the coating.Yamaha Motor released the latest model of an industrial-use unmanned helicopter in 2013. The drone, with a price tag of ¥13 million, is used primarily to spray agricultural chemicals but has found additional applications in sowing seed rice, beginning with rice for feed and now including rice for human consumption as well.Instead of buying an unmanned helicopter, farmers can outsource the aerial spraying of seed rice to business operators.Yasuyoshi Kasama, a 36-year-old farmer in Otawara, Tochigi Prefecture, recently used an unmanned helicopter to spray seeds of Tochigi no Hoshi (Star of Tochigi) rice on a 2.2-hectare field.

“My parents are old, so we‟re short-staffed, but spraying the seed rice by helicopter can raise work efficiency and make up for the labor shortage,” Kasama said.The roots of seed rice sown by aerial spraying tend to be unstable, however. Strong winds can blow weakly rooted seedlings over, resulting in rice yields about 10 percent lower than from conventional planting.But spraying seed rice by helicopter on a one-hectare field takes only 10 to 15 minutes, compared with 90 minutes to two hours for planting by conventional machines.A spokesman for Yamaha Motor expressed hopes that the use of unmanned helicopters will help the entry of private businesses into agriculture and promote large-scale farming.“(Aerial spraying) can reduce production costs by 20 to 40 percent, depending on region,” the spokesman said.

The labor-saving results and stylish designs of the helicopters “will hopefully encourage young people to take up farming,” a sales representative of the company said.Kubota‟s specialized sowing machine is able to sow seed rice at equal intervals, just like conventional planting vehicles do, although it is no match for an unmanned helicopter in terms of work time.Rice plants from seeds transplanted by machine can withstand strong winds, while the drop in yields can be curbed, a Kubota spokesman said. The machine can also help to maintain the unspoiled Japanese landscapes of rice plants standing straight at even intervals.With rice imports expected to expand if the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal becomes reality, cutting production costs will be an urgent task for Japanese rice growers who wish to remain competitive. The direct sowing of seed rice is viewed as a promising means of achieving cost reductions http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/05/10/business/rice-farmers-scrap-seedlings-sow-directly-costcutting-push/#.VVE6C_lVikp

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