18th may,2015 daily global rice e newsletter by riceplus magazine

Daily Global Rice E-Newsletter Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter www.ricepluss.com www.riceplusmagazine.blogspot.com

May 18 ,2015 Vol 5,Issue V

Thailand to sell stockpiled rice BANGKOK, May 18, 2015:

Thailand‘s military government plans to sell two million tonnes of rice over the next two months from stockpiles built up under the previous administration‘s failed buying programme, the Commerce Ministry said today. Thailand was the world‘s top rice exporter for decades until its grain became uncompetitive under the buying scheme brought in from 2011 by ousted Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, which paid farmers above market rates for their crops.

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter ―The National Rice Committee will take two million tonnes of rice from the five million tonnes for auction in the next one to two months,‖ said Chutima Bunyapraphasara, permanent secretary at the ministry.The government has 16 million tonnes of rice in its stockpiles but 11 million tonnes of that is either spoiled or of a poor grade, she said.The Commerce ministry will determine which rice from the stockpiles can be consumed by humans or livestock. Rice that is not fit for consumption will be sold for industrial use, she said.Chutima said 3.3 million tonnes of rice had been sold in the first four months of this year. That includes 1.2 million tonnes worth 16.22 billion baht (RM1.72 billion) sold in two auctions in the first quarter.The government said on March 20 it would delay further auctions to avoid adding to the downward pressure on prices. http://www.therakyatpost.com/business/2015/05/18/thailand-to-sell-stockpiled-rice/

Update on U.S. and world rice market scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Friday Nathan Childs to provide latest analysis of rice market outlook May 18, 2015Farm Press Staff | Delta Farm Press

Dr. Nathan Childs needs no introduction to rice farmers. He‘s been a featured speaker at the USA Rice Outlook Conference almost since its inception in 1994 and has been providing detailed analysis of the rice markets to the rice industry for more than 23 years.

It‘s been a struggle, but most of the U.S. rice crop that was going to be planted in 2015 has gone in the ground. Now farmers can turn their attention toward what they may be able to get for their crop when harvest rolls around.To that end, Nathan Childs, senior economist with USDA‘s Economic Research Service, will provide an update on the U.S. and world rice markets during a University of Arkansas‘ Food and Agribusiness Webinar Series event at 1:30 p.m. Friday (May 22).Dr. Childs needs no introduction to rice farmers. He‘s been a featured speaker at the USA Rice Outlook Conference almost since its inception in 1994 and has been providing detailed analysis of the rice markets to the rice industry for more than 23 years.The Webinar, ―2015-16 U.S. and Global Rice Outlook with Nathan Childs, Agricultural Economist, USDA Economic Research Service,‖ will be hosted by Dr. Bobby Coats, professor, University of Arkansas http://deltafarmpress.com/rice/update-us-and-world-rice-market-scheduled-130-pm-friday

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter A hand to the plough

By AV Balasubramanian May 18 2015 Tags: THE SandHI SERIES, Indian Knowledge series

We need an alternative approach to farming that builds on indigenous knowledge and resources “Everything else can wait, but not agriculture” –Jawaharlal Nehru, 1947

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru made this famous remark in the context of the Bengal famine of 1942–43 and the acute food scarcity prevailing in the country in 1947. For Indians who grew up in the 1960s, a vivid image is one of perennial food shortages and a precarious political situation due to dependence on imports. The mood of the era was epitomised by a RK Laxman cartoon which showed a minister looking out of his window and remarking to his aide ‗...Good, good, the monsoons are on time. Once again this year, we can ask the Americans to mind their own business.‘ Thanks to the green revolution, that era is only a dim memory. While the green revolution led to an immediate increase in production and productivity of agriculture, it was achieved at a heavy cost to the environment and is not a sustainable long-term strategy. As noted agricultural scientist MS Swaminathan said, ―The green revolution of the 1960s provided a breathing spell for achieving an adjustment between population growth and food production.‖ However, it is a matter of concern that even today a large section of the scientific community tends to see the progress in the agriculture sector as a matter of more and more technological fixes, of the green revolution variety.

For several years now, agriculture in India is said to be in a state of crisis. This is tantamount to saying that India is in a crisis since about 70 per cent of our population is still in rural areas with agriculture as their main livelihood. This crisis manifests itself as increasing impoverishment of the farmers and lack of options for rural non-farming employment. There is an alarming degradation of the resource base of agriculture, especially of soil, increased pressure and demand on land from non-agricultural activities, erosion of biodiversity in terms of both species and varieties of cultivated crops and decline in cattle population. This has led to distress migration to the cities and caused scarcity of labour in rural areas for agricultural activities.India has one of the largest networks of organisations and infrastructure for agriculture anywhere in the world.

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Never-theless, traditional Indian agriculture has hardly any space in the research or extension and dissemination services of the central or state governments. The achievements of the modern chemical model of agriculture have been so dazzling that little attention has been paid to the relevance of indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices.India is richly endowed with plentiful natural resources and tremendous density and diversity of bio-resources. Its cultivable area of 160 million hectares is about 60 per cent of the total land area against the world average of 10 per cent. The average rainfall throughout India is 105 cm per year, higher than what other large areas of the world receive.

Almost all parts of the country have had a rich traditional knowledge of agriculture and sustainable utilisation of natural resources with a history of continuous land cultivation over long periods with little decline in soil fertility. This knowledge tradition is both oral as well as supported by rich textual resources. The unique feature of Indian knowledge in many areas is its social organisation into classical and folk traditions. Classical tradition connotes formally organised knowledge supported by a corpus of texts and manuscripts and a clear theoretical framework. Normally, there are formal procedures for training experts. In contrast, folk traditions do not necessarily have a textual basis.

The training of practitioners is informal and propagated through a guru-shishya parampara. In the case of agriculture, also, we see two such streams. The classical stream of knowledge is vrikshayurveda, literally meaning knowledge of the science of life of plants. There are a large number of scholarly texts of vrikshayurveda in various Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. In recent years, the Asian Agri-History Foundation has brought out excellent editions of many of these texts which include translations and commentaries. There is also a robust folk tradition of agriculture.

Aerial view of CIKS farm Today‘s scepticism of traditional knowledge is based on the view that such knowledge cannot be trusted since it has not been subject to testing and validation as per modern scientific norms.

In this connection, it is very interesting to see that a vast body of traditional knowledge of agriculture was indeed very recently put to scientific examination.The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) launched a nationwide mission mode project on collection, documentation and validation of

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter indigenous technical knowledge under the national agriculture technology project (NATP) in 2000. Information on indi-genous technical knowledge was collected from primary sources through voluntary disclosure and collection and compilation of the Indigenous Technical Knowledge (ITK) volume was made from available literature, books, journals and theses.

The compilation has five documents in seven volumes (published between 2002 and 2004). The first two documents consisting of four volumes listed 4,879 indigenous practices. The third and fourth documents describe efforts at validating and cross-validating these practices. Of the 4,879 practices documented, a set of 111 practices were selected and subjected to experimental testing in efforts that were conducted by ICAR institutes and state agricultural departments and universities. These pertain to various topics such as pest control, crop protection, farm implements and weather forecasting. The results of these validation experiments were published as separate volumes. These volumes do not contain an overall analysis of the results — hence our centre has compiled the results in a tabular format (Check chart).The chart shows that slightly more than 80 per cent of these practices were valid and about 6 per cent of the practices were partly valid.

About 9 per cent were concluded as being not valid. There were a few cases where scientists felt that experiments need repetition. In some cases, the results were not declared. In summary, there was overwhelming evidence in favour of the validity of these practices. However, it is strange that this entire exercise seems to have left no impression whatsoever on our body of scientists nor have the validated practices been disseminated through our extension services.In fact, the existence of this voluminous body of information is hardly known, much less publicised widely.

Information about the series could be procured only after filing a petition under the RTI Act! A whole range of solutions and technologies drawn from indigenous knowledge, however, are now available from various sources, including various volumes of vrikshayurveda and the journal published by the Asian Agri-History Foundation (http://asianagrihistory.org); various issues of the journal Honey Bee published from the Centre for Management of Agriculture in the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (http://www. sristi.org).A large number of efforts undertaken by non-government organisations across the country to document and field test these practices have also produced a significant body of credible experience and evidence.

This is a glimpse of the great richness and robustness of traditional agricultural knowledge systems. That they have survived down to this day despite total neglect by the official establishment or any kind of support from trained scholars or the scientific community is a testimony to their inherent strength and vitality.The three essential elements of the material resource base required for agriculture are — soil (fertility), water and sunshine, as well as seeds. The Indian subcontinent is a region of extremely high biodiversity of plants and in fact, two of the 12 global ―biodiversity hotspots‖ are situated in India. It has been estimated by the government‘s National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) that currently there are 75,000 to 100,000 landraces of paddy available in India. Similarly, there are about 2,700 varieties of commonly used vegetables that are being preserved in the Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR) at Varanasi. In addition, there are a significant number of varieties of paddy and vegetables still available with farmers which are not noted or captured by the formal systems.

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Along with this, there is also extensive literature and knowledge regarding the agronomic properties as well as the therapeutic and nutritional properties of paddy and vegetables. Such knowledge is rich, varied and nuanced. Let us, for now, illustrate this rich knowledge through indigenous paddy varieties.According to the late RH Richharia, who was one of our outstanding rice scientists, about 400,000 rice varieties existed in India during the Vedic period. He estimated that even today about 200,000 rice varieties exist in India — a truly phenomenal number. This means that if a person were to eat a new rice variety every day of the year he could live for over 500 years without reusing a variety!

In every nook and corner of India, farmers have nurtured and cultivated varieties suitable to those areas.These conservation practices are often interwoven and linked with cultural, social and religious practices in an organic way. For example, it was observed by Richharia that at the Puri temple in Orissa, Lord Jagannath is worshipped with food prepared from freshly harvested rice every day of the year. This means that there was an intimate knowledge of the varieties of the rice that could be grown and harvested through all the seasons and a ritual linkage with a temple which ensure that these varieties continue to be cultivated and propagated. Throughout India, many varieties of paddy (and for that matter other crops such as millets, fruits and vegetables), are utilised and linked with specific festivals and celebrations, which, but for these linkages would have been extinct.

There are two broad categories of reasons why such diversity is important — agronomical as well as nutritional/therapeutic. In different parts of India, paddy shows variation with respect to crop age (short, medium and long duration), resistance to pests and diseases, requirement of water, suitability to various seasons, capacity to grow in different attitudes (ranging from the Himalayan heights to lands below sea level) and in different kinds of soil (sandy, clayey and so on). This has ensured that a rice crop be harvested in almost every party of India through various times of the year.A few indigenous rice varieties with interesting agronomic properties from Tamil Nadu illustrate this: Sigappukuruvikar (pest-and disease-resistant), Koomvazhai (floodresistant), JilJilVaigunda (drought-resistant), Kullakar (provides excellent straw for thatched roofs), Panangattu Kudaivazhai (good fodder).

Kudaivazhai; Kullakar The value of indigenous varieties to act as insurance during times of distress and calamities was dramatically illustrated during the 2004 tsunami in Tamil Nadu, when thousands of hectares of land under paddy were under sea water for a brief period along the coast of Nagapattinam district.

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter This rendered the soil saline and no high-yielding or modern paddy varieties could be cultivated.

However, an excellent solution was provided by the use of an indigenous paddy variety called Kalarpalai (literally meaning a variety that grows in kalar – salty soil). This variety cannot only withstand soil salinity, it is also resistant to pests and diseases and provided an excellent solution to tsunami-affected farmers. During this period, it was found that even Kalanamak, an indigenous variety from northern India known to perform well in saline soil, could also be cultivated in these areas.

There are also references to the nutritional and therapeutic properties of indigenous varieties of paddy (and for that matter various other grains, vegetables, fruits and spices in the literature of ayurveda, siddha as well as the texts of pakashastra (traditional science of cooking). Knowledge and understanding of food and its properties has always formed an essential part of the traditional medical understanding, as the ancient Sanskrit saying illustrates:Amantramaksharamnasthi, nasthimoolamanoushadham/Ayogyapurusho-nasthi, yojakastathradu-rlabha (There is no letter that is without the power of mantra and there is no plant (root) without medicinal value).

India has over 4,000 ethnic communities with a deep knowledge and understanding of the properties of natural products, particularly plants with which they live in close communion.

The all-India coordinated research project on ethnobiology (AICRPE) produced a midterm report in 1994 which stated that the ethnic communities in India alone (who constitute only about 7 per cent of our population) had knowledge of around 9,500 species of plants used for varied purposes, the major ones being for medicine (7,500 species) and food (3,900 species).

Here are some examples of indigenous paddy varieties that have traditionally been accepted as containing varied nutritional and therapeutic properties. Modern laboratory studies carried out recently indicate that the traditional understanding may be consistent with these findings.There are varieties that are suited for making particular preparations such asSempalai (for puffed rice), Pitchavari (for puttu) and Samba Mosanam (for aval – pounded rice). The scented variety, Seeraga samba, as well as another variety, Kitchili samba, are preferred for biryani.

Mapillai samba; grains of Kalarpalai In terms of nutrients, Mappillai samba is considered an excellent source of strength and is found to be high in carbohydrates and crude fibre. Two traditional paddy varieties of Tamil Nadu, Neelam samba and Kuzhiadichan, are said to be galactogogues, that is, good for lactating mothers.

Laboratory studies show that Neelam samba is rich in calcium. Karunkuruvai is used in the

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter treatment of filariasis. It is actively in use by siddha physicians of Tamil Nadu and mentioned in ancient Tamil siddha medical texts.

Laboratory studies show that Karunkuruvai is rich in iron and has a low glycemic index. The glycemic index of Karunkuruvai, Kullakar, Kovuni, Mapillai Samba,Neelam samba and Kudaivazhai are low compared to market varieties such as white Ponni — which is consistent with the traditional view that these are good for diabetes.Mind you, this is just the tip of the iceberg, numerous other examples can be cited from all parts of India.In today‘s agriculture, there is very little presence or use of indigenous varieties of paddy.

Several of them have not even been characterised rigorously through modern scientific efforts.

They suffer a fate similar to the indigenous breeds of cattle which still continue to be described in official records as ―nondescript (ND).‖Today, in Europe or North America, traditional agriculture is referred to as chemical agriculture since it has been in vogue already for a few centuries. Much of what goes by the name of organic farming or ecological agriculture is an afterthought or a corrective because of centuries of chemical agriculture and consequent environmental damage.However, in India, sustainability and eco-friendliness are inherent to our knowledge systems.

The current policy on agriculture continues the green revolution strategy heavily dependent on external inputs ranging from seeds and including fertilisers, pesticides, and most importantly, knowledge of cultivation practices. This has led to declining yields and soil fertility and an increasing realisation of the limitation of chemical farming.We need an alternative approach that builds on indigenous knowledge, wisdom and resources. We have outlined and shown that there is a tremendous potential for this.Equally importantly, we are endowed with a tremendous resource base consisting of land, water, sunshine and biodiversity. This can provide a strong and unique starting point for alternative strategy for the development of Indian agriculture.

(AV Balasubramanian is with the Centre for Indian Knowledge Systems (www.ciks.org), Chennai, an institution working on sustainable agriculture building on traditional knowledge and practices ciksbalu@gmail.com) For Printed Version : 19know1, 19know2 http://www.mydigitalfc.com/indian-knowledge-series/hand-plough-378

Dr. Narendra Kulkarni, R & D Head of R J Bio-Tech Limited Received An Award From IIRC (Indian Institute Of Rice Research) May 18, 2015: R J Bio-Tech Ltd has informed BSE regarding a Press Release dated May 18, 2015 titled "Dr. Narendra Kulkarni, R & D Head of R J Bio-Tech Limited Received An Award From IIRC (Indian Institute Of Rice Research)". http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/announcements/others/dr-narendra-kulkarni-r-dhead-of-r-j-biotech-limited-received-an-award-from-iirc-indian-institute-of-rice-

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Revolutionary innovations by agricultural scientists can put a full stop on farmers' suicide cases in India Ajit Chak 18 May, 2015

Why farmers are committing suicide in India? Is it due to the failure of our agricultural scientists or due to the failure of our administrators. Is it agricultural scientists and not politicians who are leading to farmers' suicides?Of late - mainly in the last few years - rainfall patterns are changing all over India and have resulted in crop damages in many states and in essential areas like production of staple food items like pulses etc in the country.

In Focus While political parties are quick to take up the political challenge of the day and try and woo farmers to their side by launching attacks on the party in power, the real challenge for India is for its agriculture scientists who will now have to think in terms of seeking solutions to these problems.Only in the last fifty years India has emerged from a food shortage nation to a food surplus one.

This present generation has access to more food and more luxury than any other generation before them where lack of milk and even foodgrains like wheat was the norm rather than the exception.The present generation of Indians is also suffering from a food induced obesity epidemic. However this is no reason for complacency among the agricultural scientists of the nation.Agriculture research has now to focus on plants and species that are more resistant to weather changes and provide food accordingly. So far agriculture scientists have only given temporary results and major side effects.

The poisoning of the fields of Punjab is due to excessive Green Revolution induced chemical farming.The bringing of the Indira Gandhi canal to Rajasthan may have brought rice cultivation to the region but it has also brought malaria and rodents to the region as well. Japanese Encephalitis is a result of paddy cultivation with piggery in Gorakhpur and Deoria. Local fish species have been destroyed by Chinese imports.It is time that agriculture scientists apply the latest techniques to produce more food, without damage to the local environment and without stressing water resources.

The Red Indians used to drink from a cactus called prickly pear in the desert. Maybe ICAR and others need to look there for smart plants to produce food without mega dams and untimely

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter rainfall obstructing the process.Smart plants exist in concept. They are like the tomato that does not mould because it has a chicken gene in it. Or the rice that has a carrot gene in it. However India needs to rethink its agriculture and water use methods, otherwise if the country turns into a vast desert and faces a major ecological disaster it could be because of its agriculture scientist community, which has failed to come up with a novel solution like the prickly pear.Editorial NOTE: This article is categorized under Opinion Section. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of merinews.com. In case you have a opposing view, please click here to share the same in the comments section. http://www.merinews.com/article/revolutionary-innovations-by-agricultural-scientists-can-put-a-full-stopon-farmers-suicide-cases-in-india/15906512.shtml

4-H program deepens students' understanding of science Brian and Anna Prchal and Tyler Fromm are teenagers making and using biodiesel. They're also part of a possible solution for a growing need for employees in agriculture.

By Nancy Madsen, The Free Press Posted May 18, 2015 at 7:00 AM New Prague, Minn.

Brian and Anna Prchal and Tyler Fromm are teenagers making and using biodiesel. They're also part of a possible solution for a growing need for employees in agriculture.There are 25,700 new jobs for management and business in agriculture and 14,600 new jobs in agriculture and science engineering each year, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture analysis of job figures.

The gap between expected job openings and agriculture and related fields graduates is roughly 1,000 each year.For junior high and high school students, "4-H involvement could lead to college, university or even trade school and an ag-related job," said Josh Rice, who runs the science of agriculture programming at University of Minnesota Extension. "Agricultural awareness is a very important piece of this. There are ag jobs out there and it's not just production agriculture.

It can be marketing, processing, distribution and even social science."Minnesota is the first state to start a 4-H Science of Agriculture Challenge, which is a team competition showing science and engineering understanding, The Free Press (http://bit.ly/1FZEx0j ) reported. The teams have three or four members between grades six and 12 who share a common interest. A coach guides them through the scientific or engineering process. The teams also meet with a mentor from the industry, who gives guidance and an inside view of an agricultural career.Brian and Anna Prchal of Montgomery and their cousin Tyler Fromm of New Hope teamed up to work on biodiesel.

Jodi Prchal, Brian and Anna's mother and a fifth-grade teacher, is their coach.Brian created biodiesel from used fryer oil at a local restaurant. He describes the process in detail on how to transform that oil into fuel."You can burn straight filtered vegetable oil in a diesel engine, but it gums up the engine," Brian said.

After filtering it, the major step in the process was carefully combining the oil with methanol and potassium hydroxide, which separates the fatty acids from the glycerin, which settles to the

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter bottom. The fatty acids bond with methanol to transform the molecules into biodiesel. That is followed by "washing" the biodiesel with water to cause even more separation, leaving a transparent light orange liquid.Jodi Prchal says the critical moment came when they tried it in an engine. Brian had bought a single-cylinder, nine horsepower diesel engine and it ran smoothly on the biodiesel.Brian's goal, he said, is to be able to have a diesel truck and run it on his own biodiesel."I've always been really interested in renewable energy," he said.He made 1 liter of biodiesel for this project but wants a setup that will allow him to make 30 gallons at a time with less intervention."It would cost 70 cents a gallon if you do it right versus $4 per gallon of diesel, when diesel was high," Brian said. http://www.crookstontimes.com/article/20150515/NEWS/150519690/-1/news

Bühler rice contracts in Asia exceed $100 million 5/18/2015 - by World Grain Staff Share This: Search for similar articles by keyword: [Buhler]

BANGKOK, THAILAND — The Bühler Group, a leader in rice processing and optical sorting solutions, said on May 18 that it has secured contracts in Southeast Asia totaling more than $100 million in the last two years.The contracts have an emphasis on food safety, hygienic production, energy efficiency and sustainability.The company has been awarded major contracts by the largest rice processors and reprocessors across Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia and Myanmar including Merry Rice, Crystal Rice, Siam Parboiled, TPS Group, Capital Rice, La Suerte, Phung Hoang, Kilang Beras Pek Choo Keok Sdn. Bhd, Yoma Sun and Nine Seas.

The total investment in rice processing plants and related equipment for these projects alone is set to exceed $80 million.Working with rice processors and reprocessors in the region, Bühler said it offers and develops new market optimized rice processing solutions that add value for its customers through improved yield, performance and efficiency. It also looks to increase awareness of food-safe rice mills to ensure hygienic and safe food for consumers.Over the past two years, Bühler has experienced significant growth in the region, with particular success gained in Thailand.

This marked a record period, partly thanks to a smaller number of larger contracts, including the company‘s largest ever contract for rice processing for Merry Rice, globally valued at over $40 million. The contract, for 62 of Bühler‘s SORTEX S UltraVision machines, and 52 high-capacity UltraPoly polishers will result in the world‘s largest rice mill, capable of sorting over 10,000 tonnes of rice per day, Bühler said.Among contracts already confirmed are the first complete rice mill in Vietnam for Phung Hoang, capable of processing 400 tonnes a day; a complete paddy processing plant in Malaysia for Kilang Beras Pek Choo Keok Sdn. Bhd; and two complete paddy processing plants in Myanmar for Nine Seas and Yoma Sun. Crystal Rice in Cambodia has also started production and Siam Parboiled in Thailand is in the advanced stages of installation. ―Over the past two years we‘ve consciously changed the way we do business across Souteast Asia,‖ said Mark Ledson, managing director of Bühler Thailand. ―We‘ve dedicated time to listen to our customers‘ needs and demonstrate our ability to offer a truly complete engineered solution

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter that is supported by our commitment to Service Excellence.‖Significant product launches in 2014 have also helped grow Bühler‘s reach across Southeast Asia including the new SORTEX S UltraVision optical sorting machine – widely regarded as the most technologically advanced, intelligent optical sorter available for rice today.―The response to the SORTEX S UltraVision has been incredibly positive, many of our customers have confirmed the SORTEX S UltraVision as taking optical sorting to the next level and sets us apart from the competition as a global leader in this market,‖ Ledson said. ―We understand the enormous pressure rice millers are under to process rice in the most sustainable way, maximizing yield and improving quality and food safety standards. We believe high capacity processing is the future, if the industry is to match growing demand.‖In addition to the launch of the SORTEX S UltraVision optical sorting machine, Bühler teams across South East Asia have also been actively promoting food safety as a key concept. With both consumer and customer interest in food safety on the rise, particularly with budding exporters, Bühler said it is in a prime position to offer end-to-end solutions that guarantee hygienic performance and food safety, including process engineering solutions for rice, solutions for pre-cleaning, silos, drying, rice milling and automated bagging.

Moving forward, Bühler will continue to extend its reach and presence in the region by completing existing projects and securing new ones. It has developed a full-fledged factory in Vietnam and has built an accessory workshop in Indonesia. All this demonstrates Bühler‘s commitment to its customers across the region, the company said. It is also actively building its channels for single machine sales and is establishing country focused technology teams in most of the countries in Southeast Asia. Developing markets such as Cambodia and Myanmar will also present new opportunities to deliver smaller capacity rice mills, demonstrating Bühler‘s ability to cater to the complete spectrum of rice mills across the region.―In the past 24 months we have won large rice milling projects in Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam. Looking ahead to the next two years, we will be looking to drive our market share across regions in Southeast Asia and enhance our Sales & Service structure (including distribution channels) along with developing new mid-market rice processing solutions to give our customers value for money and continue to build the Bühler rice brand image,‖ said Rustom Mistry, director, head of Rice Processing in Asia. ―By developing and strengthening our technology expertise and service excellence in each country we are better prepared to serve our customers locally and further demonstrate our commitment to the local community and wider industry.‖ http://www.worldgrain.com/articles/news_home/Supplier_Update/2015/05/Buhler_rice_contracts_in_Asia.aspx?ID=%7BE 89D9240-0566-45C2-BD67-206E739F8DDB%7D&cck=1

Patiala: Rice millers resents Food Corporation of India decisions HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times, Patiala

| Updated: May 18, 2015 20:36 IST

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter The Federation of All India Rice Millers Association has taken strong exceptions to the disparities in implementing their (FCI's) own decisions, particularly with regard to the acceptance of rice from the millers at the FCI's depots on the basis of 100% weighment on weigh-bridges.Association president, Tarsem Saini, said that FCI through their instructions of year 2005, decided that rice consignments are to be accepted from rice millers on 100% weighment on weigh-bridges.However for the purpose of checking, whether the consignment was standard or not, bags not more than 10% of the consignments were to be checked.

Association's President further disclosed that Field Staff of the Food Corporation of India did not implement the above decision in totality & rather in the most of the states weight check memos were being issued on 10% weighment basis to exploit the millers, although higher weight emerged at the weigh-bridges at the time of 100% weighment.He said that on Feb 2015, a deputation of the Association met the Chairman-Cum-Managing Director of FCI at New Delhi with our long pending demands, so as to eliminate malpractices in the Field & the main threshold was given to implement the decision of FCI Headquarters, New Delhi of year 2005."Instead of resolving issue, the FCI's Headquarter, through a communication of May 14, 2015 reversed their own decision of year 2005 and decided that weight check memos of rice acceptance are to be issued to the millers on 10% weighment basis instead of100% weighment conducted at the weigh-bridge.

This will promote corruption," said Saini."Not to speak of above, the FCI has also not finalised the milling charges bills for the past 15 years as a result of which crores of rupees of the millers are lying with the FCI," he added. He said that due to large scale resentement against FCI, a meeting of rice millers of the entire state has been called in Bathinda to take stock of the situation so as to lodge the protest with Government.Association president has also appealed to the Punjab government to take up the above issues with the Centre on priority, apart from setting up of computerised labs, otherwise the millers shall have to re-think for the milling of paddy crop this Kharif season. http://www.hindustantimes.com/patiala/patiala-rice-millers-resents-food-corporation-of-indiadecisions/article1-1348474.aspx

APEDA INDIA NEWS International Benchmark Price Price on: 14-05-2015

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Benchmark Indicators Name

Price

1

Chinese first grade granules, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)

2100

2

Chinese Grade A dehydrated flakes, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)

2000

3

Chinese powdered, CFR NW Europe (USD/t)

1800

1

Chinese sliced, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)

4600

2

Chinese whole, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)

5100

3

Indian Cochin, CIF NW Europe (USD/t)

3000

Garlic

Ginger

Guar Gum Powder

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter 1

Indian 100 mesh 3500 cps, FOB Kandla (USD/t)

4880

2

Indian 200 mesh 3500 cps basis, FOB Kandla (USD/t)

2300

3

Indian 200 mesh 5000 cps, FOB Kandla (USD/t)

3400

Source:agra-net

For more info

Market Watch Commodity-wise, Market-wise Daily Price on 14-05-2015 Domestic Prices Product

Unit Price : Rs per Qty

Market Center

Variety

Min Price

Max Price

1

Bargarh (Orissa)

Other

2100

2300

2

Dhing (Assam)

Other

2200

2800

3

Aroor (Kerala)

Other

3100

3300

1

Amirgadh (Gujarat)

Other

1250

1830

2

Zira (Punjab )

Other

1450

1450

3

Gumla(Jharkhand)

Other

1100

2000

1

Solan (Himachal Pradesh)

Other

4000

4500

2

Sitapur(Uttar Pradesh)

Other

2300

2500

3

Haldwani(Uttrakhand)

Other

2500

4000

1

Kharupetia (Assam)

Other

1200

1500

2

Aroor (Kerala)

Other

2600

2800

3

Banki(Orissa)

Other

2000

2400

Rice

Wheat

Orange

Brinjal

Source:agra-net

For more info

Egg

Rs per 100 No Price on 14-05-2015 Product

Market Center

Price

1

Ahmedabad

280

2

Nagapur

260

3

Namakkal

311

Source: e2necc.com

Other International Prices

Unit Price : US$ per package Price on 14-05-2015

Product

Market Center

Origin

Variety

Low

Potatoes

High Package: 50 lb cartons

1

Atlanta

2

Baltimore

Colorado

Russet

23.50

23.50

Canada

Russet

20

3

21

Chicago

Idaho

Russet

13.50

16

1

Atlanta

Mexico

Long Seedless

29.25

29.25

2

Baltimore

Spain

Long Seedless

26

26

3

Chicago

Canada

Long Seedless

11

11

Cucumbers

Package: cartons film wrapped

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Grapefruit

Package: 7/10 bushel cartons

1

Atlanta

California

Red

19

21

2

Baltimore

California

Red

20

20

3

Dallas

Washington

Red

24

24

Source:USDA

WTO Rules Against COOL WTO: No flag waving

WASHINGTON, DC -- This morning, the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body made public its ruling on the United States' Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) regulation on certain muscle cuts of meat, citing that the regulation violates international trade rules and has caused harm to Canada and Mexico, which complained to the WTO.The ruling could result in retaliation against the United States through import tariffs if the labeling doesn't end. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX) is currently working on legislation in conjunction with Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA) which would repeal the COOL regulation for beef and pork exports and bring the U.S. back into WTO compliance.

Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman, Pat Roberts (R-KS) has indicated that the Committee will be considering all options but has not yet committed to using legislation repealing COOL as a solution. "The Senate Agriculture Committee will consider any option, including repeal regarding meat, that will allow the United States to be WTO-compliant and avoid retaliation from Canada and Mexico," Roberts said in a statement. "We'll do whatever it takes to protect the livelihood of American farmers, ranchers, and industries that will be targeted by retaliation.""Today's decision is the third by a WTO body that has gone against the United States," said USA Rice COO Bob Cummings. "It's time for the United States to bring COOL regulations into compliance with our WTO obligations, and we support efforts in Congress to achieve this common sense goal."Cummings continued, "Canada and Mexico are among the top five export markets for U.S. rice and we are very concerned about possible retaliation, perhaps by the end of this year, by these governments against exports of U.S. rice."

Contact: Peter Bachmann (703) 236-1475

USA Rice Welcomes Summer Intern On the job ARLINGTON, VA -- School may be out but the work has just begun for USA Rice's summer intern Whit Kendall who will be joining our government affairs staff through early August.Whit grew up on a farm in Bolton, Mississippi, and still helps out there, including assisting at his family's duck hunting camp each year. He is a student at Mississippi State University majoring in Agricultural Engineering

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Technology and Business. His primary interest is in row crops, specifically the retail side, but he also has experience managing livestock.

Whit is the only son of Libby and Ted Kendall.

Contact: Deborah Willenborg (703) 236-1444

Crop Progress: 2015 Crop 89 Percent Planted WASHINGTON, DC -- Eighty-nine percent of the nation's 2015 rice acreage is planted, according to today's U.S. Department of Agriculture's Crop Progress Report.

Rice Planted, Selected States Week Ending May 17, 2014

State

May 10, 2015

May 17, 2015

2010-2014 average

Percent Arkansas

87

86

89

85

California

70

75

90

62

Louisiana

98

93

98

98

Mississippi

80

82

93

81

Missouri

85

73

75

80

Texas

95

78

79

97

Six States

85

83

89

82

CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures CME Group (Preliminary): Closing Rough Rice Futures for May 18 Month

Price

Net Change

July 2015

$9.795

+ $0.220

September 2015

$10.060

+ $0.215

November 2015

$10.310

+ $0.215

January 2016

$10.560

+ $0.205

March 2016

$10.625

+ $0.205

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter May 2016

$10.625

+ $0.205

July 2016

$10.625

+ $0.205

Trade path still uphill battle DC Dialogue Senate garners the needed votes to proceed to debate for TPA fast track authority ahead of Memorial Day recess.

Published on: May 15, 2015 By failing to reauthorize Trade Promotion Authority, American producers are missing out on being able to sell to 96% of consumers who live outside of the United States. Nowhere is this more important than in the area of agriculture. Of the total 260 preferential trade agreements, the United States is only part to 20 of them. The hope is that agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership can be a huge market access win for U.S. agriculture.This was the message from Sen. John Thune, R.-S.D., as he stood with fellow Republican trade supporters, just hours before the Senate was able to overcome an earlier failed vote by garnering 65 votes (over the needed 60 threshold) to move forward on debating legislation that grants the president fast-track authority.

But the road ahead is no easy task.Thune and others had shared the hope was for the Senate to accomplish passage on the Senate floor ahead of Memorial Day recess. Senators are scheduled to be back in their districts from May 25 to May 29. And Thune said many had hoped ―to put this one up on the scoreboard before Memorial Day.‖Thune conceded it may be more difficult now to wrap up debate on the bill in just a week. He said it will depend entirely on the amendment process and how lengthy and exhaustive it becomes.Dave Salmonsen, American Farm Bureau Federation senior director of congressional relations, said usually numerous amendments are offered but eventually are withdrawn and not even put on the floor. He expressed optimism that if handled properly, the Senate could still advance the bill ahead of recessing.

The Senate was expected to be the easier of the two chambers to advance trade legislation. With every member representing varying constituencies, it tends to be the more balanced chamber.

Thune said the House will be the ―heavier lift‖ in finding the votes to pass TPA.Ben Mosely, USA Rice's vice president of government affairs, noted the fate of TPA legislation is far from over as he expects there will be vigorous debate and an open amendment process which began Thursday night. "Even if the Senate passes the TPA bill, the measure will need to pass the House where they may be as many as 20 votes short of passage."California Farm Bureau President Paul Wenger said U.S. ag exports are on pace to drop by $9 billion this year. ―If we do not meet the demand, someone else will. We need to step up and empower the president,‖ Wenger said. http://farmfutures.com/blogs-trade-path-still-uphill-battle-9802

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Boustany: Rice study proves need for strong trade agreements

by Ripon Advance News Service | Monday, May 18, 2015 @ 10:26am

Following the release of a study last week by the International Trade Commission (ITC) regarding the nation's rice production, U.S. Rep Charles Boustany (R-LA) discussed the need for strong trade agreements to support the industry. The study, ―Rice: Global Competitiveness of the U.S. Industry,‖ was requested by Boustany more than a year ago, along with then-House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI). The lawmakers asked the ITC to review and investigate the effects of fluctuations in the market resulting from government support programs in other rice-producing countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, India, China and Brazil. ―The United States rice industry depends on exports, which account for about half of the U.S. rice crop each year,‖ the report revealed. ―U.S. exports of medium grain refined rice are shipped mainly to Japan, but also to Taiwan and South Korea, where trade agreements give U.S. rice guaranteed minimum access.

Tariff elimination would have led to a significant increase in global rice trade, but only a small increase in production and consumption. However, of the policy changes considered, eliminating tariffs would have had the greatest impact on U.S. production and exports.‖ The export of U.S.produced rice is a major issue in the ongoing negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement with a dozen Asian nations. Boustany, co-chairman of the Friends of the TPP Caucus, has remained a strong advocate for Louisiana rice farmers, pushing for their ability to compete in the Asian marketplace on a level playing field. ―This ITC study clearly demonstrates that the U.S. rice industry is well-positioned to compete and grow with new export opportunities in Asia, particularly in Japan,‖ Boustany said. ―As negotiations on free trade agreements with Asia continue, this study should empower our negotiators to reach a deal that will support this important industry. I‘ll continue to push for low tariff barriers and a level playing field for Louisiana agriculture that will support growth and job creation at home.‖ Boustany‘s position is supported by several leaders within the rice export industry. ―The study shows precisely what we suspected all along,‖ Betsy Ward, president & CEO of the USA Rice Federation, said. ―The U.S. rice industry is playing by the rules, but is at a decided disadvantage from some of our trading partners who do not play by the rules.‖ http://riponadvance.com/stories/510545417-boustany-rice-study-proves-need-for-strong-tradeagreements#sthash.lMBlGBHw.dpuf

Indonesia signals it will import rice ahead of Hari Raya Aidilfitri merdeka.com reports: With demand due to increase drastically ahead of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Indonesia is taking steps to ensure there is enough rice stocks for the festive period

.

POSTED: 18 May 2015 19:48

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Indonesia's President Joko Widodo (C) helps farmers to plant rice in a paddy field at Ngara village, West Kalimantan. (Photo: AFP/Agus Suparto)

JAKARTA: Indonesia's Trade Ministry on Monday (May 18) signalled that it will approve rice imports ahead of the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebrations this year. This is because it expects the demand for rice to increase drastically before the fasting month as compared to normal months. Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel said the rice imports will be issued during discussions about the rice stock at the end of May. "We wait to discuss again in May," he said. "What is clear is that the government realises the need for a good harvest. We continue to monitor, and later will discuss during the meeting with the Vice-President and President."Mr Rachmat stressed the permission to import rice will be decided after taking into account the amount of harvest from the local farmers.

He said the demand for rice until the fasting month is still able to be met with the current rice reserve. ―The State Logistics Agency (Bulog) will continue to get rice from the current harvest yields. I‘ve been told by the Agriculture Minister that Central Java and East Java will harvest again. So, we've asked Bulog to take them,‖ said Mr Rachmat. However, he believes Bulog is still not able to ensure the stability of prices for essential goods, especially for rice in the market.

Bulog is only able to allocate and supply 1.2 million tonnes of rice to the market, or about 60 per cent of the ideal allocation to the market.―Bulog‘s rice allocation (to be supplied to the market) is about 2 million tonnes. Bulog‘s allocation at this moment is about 1.2 million tonnes,‖ said Mr Rachmat.

Read the original report at merdeka.com here.

BANGKOK, May 18, 2015:

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Thailand‘s military government plans to sell two million tonnes of rice over the next two months from stockpiles built up under the previous administration‘s failed buying programme, the Commerce Ministry said today.Thailand was the world‘s top rice exporter for decades until its grain became uncompetitive under the buying scheme brought in from 2011 by ousted Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, which paid farmers above market rates for their crops.―The National Rice Committee will take two million tonnes of rice from the five million tonnes for auction in the next one to two months,‖ said Chutima Bunyapraphasara, permanent secretary at the ministry.

The government has 16 million tonnes of rice in its stockpiles but 11 million tonnes of that is either spoiled or of a poor grade, she said.The Commerce ministry will determine which rice from the stockpiles can be consumed by humans or livestock. Rice that is not fit for consumption will be sold for industrial use, she said.Chutima said 3.3 million tonnes of rice had been sold in the first four months of this year. That includes 1.2 million tonnes worth 16.22 billion baht (RM1.72 billion) sold in two auctions in the first quarter.The government said on March 20 it would delay further auctions to avoid adding to the downward pressure on prices.

Govt to issue basic commodity regulation The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Business | Sat, May 16 2015, 2:55 PM Business News

Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel says the government will issue a presidential regulation on basic commodity prices to anticipate price hikes.―I am waiting for the issuance of the presidential regulation based on the Trade Law, so the government can set basic commodity prices in certain situations,‖ Rachmat said in Jakarta on Saturday.He referred to Law No. 7/2014 on trade.

However, he has not specified when the regulation will be issued.With the regulation, the ministry will be able to regulate the prices of key commodities such as rice, soya, corn and others.In February, the price of rice, Indonesia‘s staple food, rose by up to 30 percent in some areas.Factors such as a late harvest, uneven rice distribution and the existence of a so-called ―rice mafia‖ are speculated to be among the triggers of the price hike.

The director of the Institute for the Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), Enny Sri Hartati, warned that many other factors should be considered relating to the issuance of the presidential regulation, which she thought referred to New Order era regulations.Since the 1960s, the government has used a range of policies to stabilize the prices of crucial commodities.―The government should ensure that there is sufficient supply. The market is also waiting for the government to intervene in the market mechanism, such as by eradicating the cartels,‖ she said. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/05/16/govt-issue-basic-commodityregulation.html#sthash.J0VIglWb.dpuf

Govt to release 2m tonnes of rice The Nation May 18, 2015 4:48 pm

The Commerce Ministry plans to auction 2 million tonnes of rice from the 16-million tonne stockpiles within the next two months.Commerce Permanent Secretary Chutima

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Bunyapraphasara said that the release was approved today by the National Rice Policy Committee, which is chaired by Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha. She is convinced that the auction would not further pressure rice prices, as the second crop will be in the market this month. Paddy rice price is expected to remain at Bt8,200-Bt8,500 a tonne.She is confident that Thailand‘s rice exports this year would reach the 10 million-tonne target, following the 3.4 million-tonne shipments in the first five months. She said that over 10 million tonnes in the stockpiles have degraded. Surveyors will be invited to a discussion soon, to find ways that will minimise the government‘s losses. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Govt-to-release-2m-tonnes-of-rice-30260374.html

Trade flourishes at Muse checkpoint Chan Myae Thu Myanmar Eleven May 17, 2015 1:00 am

Export inspection gate at the Muse border checkpoint./EMG

Trade flow at the Muse border hub is thriving, with large exports of rice and corn to China, according to checkpoint officials.Between 140 and 180 rice trucks and between 120 and 170 corn trucks pass through the border gate at Muse every day.However, fruit exports are in decline as the season has ended."As the situation at Chinshwehal is uncertain, the trucks are using the Muse route for the time being. This year's exports are likely to exceed last year's sum," said a border official.Chinshwehal is a town on the China-Myanmar border that experienced 5.2

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Richter scale earthquake on Sunday.Export earnings totalled approximately US$178 million between April 1 and May 12, and import spending totalled over $186 million. During the same period last year, these figures were $113 million and $160 million, respectively.While Myanmar traders have obtained official licenses for exporting, Chinese traders are often arrested for not having licenses.

Odisha to procure 36 lakh tonnes of rice in 2015 IANS Bhubaneswar, | 16 May, 2015

With paddy procurement up by 21 percent during kharif 2014-15, Odisha has set a target of procuring 36 lakh tonnes of rice this year from the 30 lakh tonnes, an official said on Saturday.Paddy procurement during kharif 2014-15 grew by 21 percent over last year, with a total procurement of around 40 lakh tonnes."So far, the state government has procured 40 lakh tonnes of paddy that is equivalent to 27.16 lakh tonnes of rice. Since the procurement has grown up by 21 percent against last year, we have decided to procure paddy equivalent to 36 lakh tonnes of rice in this year," said food supply and consumer welfare secretary Madhusudan Padhi.

The paddy procurement includes for both kharif and rabi seasons.This was decided at the statelevel paddy procurement committee meeting held under the chairmanship of chief secretary G.C. Pati on Saturday.The procurement for rabi season was started on May 15 and will continue till June 30, said Padhi.He said district collectors have been asked to expedite the procurement process to achieve the target by June 30.The minimum support price for paddy (Rs.1,360 per quintal) will remain unchanged for this rabi season also.Padhi said the new farmers can also register their names to sell their paddy during the procurement process.Sources said 7,82,917 farmers for kharif and 1,55,493 farmers for rabi have been registered through online registration system. http://www.thestatesman.com/news/odisha/odisha-to-procure-36-lakh-tonnes-of-rice-in2015/63678.html#yCF3WgLZls1t84wC.99

Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- May 18 Nagpur, May 18 Gram and tuar prices reported higher in Nagpur Agriculture Produce

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter and Marketing Committee (APMC) here on good seasonal buying support from local millers amid weak supply from producing regions. Healthy hike on NCDEX in gram prices, fresh rise in Madhya Pradesh pulses and repeated enquiries from South-based millers also boosted prices, according to sources. *

*

*

*

FOODGRAINS & PULSES GRAM * Gram varieties showed weak tendency in open market here on lack of demand from local traders amid good supply from producing regions.

TUAR * Tuar varieties declined in open market here in absence of buyers amid ample stock in ready position. Reports about good overseas arrival also affected prices. * Masoor and moong varieties reported strong in open market on increased marriage season demand from local traders amid thin supply from producing belts. * In Akola, Tuar - 7,200-7,500, Tuar dal - 9,900-10,300, Udid at 9,100-9,600, Udid Mogar (clean) - 10,700-11,100, Moong - 9,000-9,200, Moong Mogar (clean) 10,700-11,100, Gram - 4,100-4,400, Gram Super best bold - 6,000-6,200 for 100 kg. * Wheat, rice and other commodities remained steady in open market in poor trading activity, according to sources.

Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg FOODGRAINS Available prices Previous close Gram Auction 3,500-4,490 3,500-4,410 Gram Pink Auction n.a.

2,100-2,600 Tuar Auction 5,700-7,400 5,630-7,320 Moong Auction n.a.

6,000-6,300 Udid Auction n.a.

4,300-4,500 Masoor Auction n.a.

2,600-2,800 Gram Super Best Bold 6,300-6,500 6,500-6,700 Gram Super Best n.a.

Gram Medium Best 6,000-6,200 6,300-6,400 Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a.

Gram Mill Quality 5,300-5,500 5,500-5,700 Desi gram Raw 4,500-4,650 4,600-4,750 Gram Filter new 6,000-6,100 6,100-6,200 Gram Kabuli 5,000-6,800 5,000-6,800 Gram Pink 6,300-6,500 6,300-6,500

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Tuar Fataka Best 10,500-10,800 10,600-10,900 Tuar Fataka Medium 10,000-10,300 10,100-10,400 Tuar Dal Best Phod 9,500-9,800 9,500-9,900 Tuar Dal Medium phod 9,000-9,350 9,000-9,400 Tuar Gavarani New 7,700-7,800 7,800-7,900 Tuar Karnataka 7,900-8,000 8,000-8,100 Tuar Black 10,700-11,000 10,700-11,000 Masoor dal best 8,100-8,300 7,900-8,100 Masoor dal medium 7,500-7,800 7,200-7,500 Masoor n.a. n.a.

Moong Mogar bold 11,000-11,500 11,000-11,400 Moong Mogar Medium best 10,200-10,600 10,200-10,500 Moong dal Chilka 9,200-9,750 9,200-9,700 Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a.

Moong Chamki best 9,600-9,900 9,500-9,800 Udid Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG) 11,200-11,600 11,200-11,600 Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 9,900-10,600 9,900-10,600 Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 8,500-8,900 8,500-8,900 Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 4,400-4,600 4,400-4,600 Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 3,200-3,350 3,200-3,350 Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 3,200-3,450 3,200-3,450 Watana White (100 INR/KG) 2,450-2,625 2,450-2,625 Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 3,700-4,800 3,600-4,800 Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,800 1,500-1,800 Wheat Mill quality(100 INR/KG) 1,950-2,050 1,950-2,050 Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,700 1,500-1,700 Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 2,250-2,550 2,250-2,550 Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,350 2,100-2,350 Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a.

MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 3,200-3,750 3,200-3,750 MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 2,700-3,000 2,700-3,000 Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG) 1,400-1,500 1,400-1,500 Wheat Best (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,200 2,000-2,200 Rice BPT New(100 INR/KG) 2,500-2,800 2,500-2,800 Rice BPT (100 INR/KG) 3,000-3,300 3,000-3,300 Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,800 1,600-1,800 Rice Swarna new (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,400 2,100-2,400 Rice Swarna old (100 INR/KG) 2,500-2,700 2,500-2,700 Rice HMT new(100 INR/KG) 3,300-3,700 3,300-3,700 Rice HMT (100 INR/KG) 4,000-4,400 4,000-4,400 Rice HMT Shriram New(100 INR/KG) 4,200-4,500 4,200-4,500 Rice HMT Shriram old (100 INR/KG) 4,600-5,200 4,600-5,200 Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 8,000-10,000 8,000-10,000 Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 6,000-7,500 6,000-7,500 Rice Chinnor new (100 INR/KG) 4,600-5,200 4,600-5,200

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Rice Chinnor (100 INR/KG) 5,600-6,000 5,600-6,000 Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 2,200-2,300 2,100-2,200 Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 2,400-2,550 2,300-2,450 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 42.1 degree Celsius (107.8 degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp.

26.2 degree Celsius (79.2 degree Fahrenheit) Humidity: Highest - n.a., lowest - n.a.

Rainfall : nil FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperature would be around and 43 and 27 degree Celsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but included in market prices.) http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/05/18/nagpur-foodgrain-idINL3N0Y93AO20150518

Saudi rice imports from India rise 58% to SR4.5bn in 2014 JEDDAH: ARAB NEWS Published — Sunday 17 May 2015 Last update 16 May 2015 9:34 pm

The value of Saudi rice imports to the Kingdom from India grew by 58 percent, reaching $1.19 billion (SR4.46 billion) by the end of 2014, compared to $752.67 million (SR2.82 billion) in 2013, according to Indian Consul General Bawa Syed Mubarak.Speaking to local media, the Indian diplomat said that Saudi rice imports from India dropped by 1 percent in 2013, due to the emergence of certain obstacles but jumped to record levels in the following year (2014)."At the global level, Indian rice exports fetched $7.78 billion (SR29.17 billion) in 2014, comprising a growth rate of more than 25 percent in one year, of which the Saudi share exceeded 15.35 percent," Mubarak said.

The diplomat stressed that the Saudi market is considered a key importer of Indian rice worldwide.

He noted that rice represented nearly 10 percent of the overall Indian exports to the Kingdom.The volume of trade exchange between the two countries reached more than $48.62 billion, where Indian exports to the Kingdom amounted to $12.21 billion by the end of 2014 in total, an increase of 12 percent, whereas Saudi exports to India reached $36.40 billion, an increase of 8 percent relative to previous years. http://www.arabnews.com/economy/news/747741

Yingluck to enter plea in rice case Tuesday 18 May 2015 at 17:53 1,636 viewed8 comments WRITER: ONLINE REPORTERS

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Daily Global Rice e-Newsletter Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra is expected to turn up at the Supreme Court on Tuesday when the trial over her rice scheme is set to start. (Photo by Chanat Katanyu)

Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra is expected enter a notguilty plea tomorrow at the Supreme Court, which is hearing the dereliction-of-duty case regarding her government‘s rice-pledging scheme.Surasak Trirattrakul, inquiry director of the Office of the Attorney General, said Monday that the high court's Criminal Division for Holders of Political Positions ordered Ms Yingluck to appear at 9.30am to hear the charges and enter her plea.

As she is expected to appear and plead not guilty, the court will then consider any temporaryrelease request and set another hearing to examine evidence and witnesses, he said.If Ms Yingluck fails to appear without a legitimate reason, she would face a possible arrest warrant, Mr Surasak said. Public prosecutors are readying more than 10 witnesses, he added.Thanarerk Nitisenee, president of the Supreme Court's political division, said Monday that the nine judges handling the case would be on their bench tomorrow to start the trial.The defendant had not filed a request for temporary release, but she might do that tomorrow, he said.Ms Yingluck could also seek the court's permission to postpone the trial, which the court would consider if backed by sound reasons, Mr Thanarerk said.

The former prime minister is charged with dereliction of duty and abuse of authority in failing to stop graft and losses in the rice scheme according to Section 157 of the Criminal Code and Section 123/1 of the 1999 Counter Corruption Act.The losses estimated at more than 500 billion baht were incurred when her government bought rice from farmers at above-market prices but failed to resell much of it.The National Anti-Corruption Commission accused Ms Yingluck of using the rice-pledging scheme to gain votes from farmers and win the national general election in 2011.Assistant police chief Prawut Thavornsiri said on Monday that a limited number of Ms Yingluck's supporters was expected to show up tomorrow and local police would be deployed to ensure order.Get full Bangkok Post printed newspaper experience on your digital devices with Bangkok Post e-newspaper. Try it out, it's totally free for 7 days.

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