1st november,2013 daily rice e newsletter(global news) by riceplus magazine

1st November , 2013

TOP Contents - Tailored for YOU Latest News Headlines…  Greenpeace Golden Rice stance baffling  Export buying likely in rice market in short term  Traders stage protest demo  Paddy procurement: Tewari slams state govt  Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- Nov 01  BoC holds rice with no import permits  LCRA staff recommends cutting off downstream rice farmers for third consecutive year  Guyana aims for record rice production in 2013  Rice Producers Continue Funding Research at LSU AgCenter

News Detail…

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Greenpeace Golden Rice stance baffling Posted Oct. 31st, 2013 by Patrick MooreNo Comments

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A research team at the International Rice Research Institute in Los Banos, Philippines, has been developing genetically-modified rice.

The grains on the right are infused with beta-carotene, a chemical substance responsible in producing Vitamin A, required for eyesight and a healthy immune system. | REUTERS/Erik De Castro photo

It was 43 years ago when I boarded an old fishing boat named the Phyllis Cormack in Vancouver on the first Greenpeace campaign to stop nuclear testing in Alaska. I never dreamed that 43 years later, Greenpeace would be arriving in Vancouver on a $32 million ship, and that this time I would be going down to protest against them. I’m still proud of the work Green-peace did during the 15 years I was in the leadership. I left because it had drifted from a humanitarian effort to save civilization from all-out nuclear war to an organization that sees humans as the enemies of the Earth. How else could it justify its opposition to Golden Rice? .Two humanitarian scientists, Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyer, used their knowledge of genetics to create Golden Rice, a variety of rice that contains beta carotene, the essential nutrient that we make into vitamin A. They were aware that two million people, mostly young children, die each year from vitamin A deficiency. Most of them live in urban slums in Asia and Africa and eat little more than a cup of rice each day. Conventional rice contains no beta carotene, resulting in 250 million preschool children who have chronic vitamin A deficiency.

Vitamin A is necessary for eyesight and the immune system. As many as 500,000 children go blind each year, half of whom die within a year of becoming blind, according to the World Health Organization.

Greenpeace has made a concerted effort to block Golden Rice’s introduction since it was announced in 2000.

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The organization has waged a campaign of misinformation, trashed the scientists who are working to bring Golden Rice to the people who need it and supported the violent destruction of Golden Rice field trials at the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines.

How does Greenpeace justify this heartless behavior?

It claims there may be “unforeseen” consequences for human health and the environment but are unable to specify a single health risk with Golden Rice. That’s because the only difference between white rice and Golden Rice is the beta carotene, an essential nutrient that is necessary for good health. As for environmental risks, Greenpeace says it is concerned that Golden Rice may cross with other rice plants. There is no imaginable way this could cause damage and could only make rice more nutritious. To suggest that the threat of rice interbreeding is more important than two million deaths every year is pathetic.Greenpeace also claims that Golden Rice will not solve the problem and that children should eat leafy vegetables and take vitamin A pills.

However, they suffer from malnutrition because they can’t afford pills and have no place to grow vegetables.

Golden Rice is like a vitamin pill in a grain of rice. As well, Greenpeace claims that Golden Rice may not be effective in delivering vitamin A to children, but it knows that Gwangwen Tang and her colleagues at Tufts University and the Zhejiang Academy of Medical Sciences in China have already proven that Golden Rice is effective.

After conducting nutritional trials with animals and then adults in the United States, the researchers fed 23 Chinese children one meal of Golden Rice and tested to see if they had absorbed the beta carotene. The results, which were published in 2012 in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, demonstrate conclusively that Golden Rice is effective. The real reason Greenpeace is opposed to Golden Rice is because it is genetically modified and it can’t seem to imagine that even one beneficial crop might result from this technique. It is willing to put its zero-tolerance ideology ahead of a critical humanitarian mission. We recently launched the Allow Golden Rice Now! campaign at www.allowgoldenricenow.org. We are not asking Greenpeace to give up its general dislike of genetically modified food. We are only demanding that it make an exception to its policy, on humanitarian grounds, for Golden Rice. Dr. Patrick Moore was a co-founder of Greenpeace and helped lead the organization for 15 years. He is now an independent ecologist and environmentalist working from Vancouver.

Export buying likely in rice market in short term KARNAL, OCT. 31:

Despite restricted trading, the rice market witnessed a steady trend with prices of aromatic and non-basmati rice ruling without much alteration on Thursday from previous levels.The market has seen some good buying over the last couple of weeks and prices of full grain aromatic and non-basmati rice are likely to rule around current levels over the next few days, said Tara Chand Sharma, proprietor of Tara Chand and Sons.Traders expect the

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market to witness some need-based buying over the next few days, he added.According to market sources, rice millers have signed some overseas contracts but they do not have enough stocks to execute their contracts currently.

In the physical market, New Pusa-1121 (steam) sold at Rs 8,100-8,200 , while new Pusa-1121 (sela) quoted at Rs 7,550 a quintal. Pusa-1509 (sela) quoted at Rs 6,050-6,250 . Pure Basmati (Raw) quoted at Rs 11,500 .

Duplicate basmati (steam) sold at Rs 6,700 .

For the brokens of Pusa-1121, Dubar quoted at Rs 3,900, Tibar sold at Rs 4,500 while Mongra was at Rs 3,500 .In the non-basmati section, Sharbati (Steam) sold at Rs 4,650-4,700 while Sharbati (Sela) quoted at Rs 4,600 .Permal (raw) sold at Rs 2,350-2,400 while Permal (sela) was at Rs 2,400 . PR-11 (sela) sold at Rs 2,900 while PR-11 (Raw) quoted at Rs 3,000-3,100 . PR14 (steam) sold at Rs 3,100 .

PADDY ARRIVALS About 50,000 bags of PR paddy arrived and quoted at Rs 1,400-30, around 25,000 bags of Pusa-1121 arrived and sold at Rs 3,800, 10,000 bags of Sugandha at Rs 2,700, while 5,000 bags of Sharbati arrived and sold at Rs 2,300. Around 12,000 bags of Duplicate Basmati arrived and went for Rs 3,700 , while 500 bags of Pure Basmati sold at Rs 4,720 a quintal.

(This article was published on October 31, 2013)

Keywords: Restricted trading, rice market, steady trend, aromatic rice, non-basmati rice

Traders stage protest demo November 01, 2013 STAFF REPORTER

LAHORE : A number of traders staged a protest demonstration on an application against Malik Azam Ayaz, the member of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan, outside the office of Capital City Police Officer here on Thursday. The traders said LCCI member Malik Azam Ayaz was innocent and had nothing to do with any illegal offense but unfortunately was being dragged in a fake inquiry.

They said he had some dispute with Malik Rahim over a business deal and Malik Rahim took his cheque and used it without his permission. Despite all that, they said Malik Rahim submitted an application before Civil

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Lines SP Maroof Safdar Wahla and got held a fake inquiry against him.Meanwhile, Malik Azam Ayaz talking to the reporters said he had some disputes with Malik Rahim as he illegally took his cheques and used them and when he filed a suit in a local court seeking directions of registration of FIR against Malik Rahim. But SP Maroof Wahla was backing him and he requested the CCPO to direct him to look into his matter. Accepting their plea, CCPO directed SP Maroof to hold a transparent inquiry of the matter and submit report.

Paddy procurement: Tewari slams state govt HT Correspondent , Hindustan Times Ludhiana, November 01, 2013 First Published: 23:00 IST(1/11/2013) | Last Updated: 23:00 IST(1/11/2013)

Union information and broadcasting minister Manish Tewari on Friday lashed out at the Punjab government for its 'failure' to smoothly procure paddy across the state.He said the state government could not escape its responsibility by simply passing on the blame to the Centre.The minister also spoke to Food Corporation of India chairman C Vishwanath on the phone, urging him to take a sympathetic view and relax norms in the farmers' interest.In an informal conversation with reporters after visiting some grain markets in the area, the Ludhiana MP said the attitude of the state government was "disgustingly disappointing".He said farmers told him that officials appeared to be in no mood to be considerate and supportive.

Nagpur Foodgrain Prices Open- Nov 01 Thu Nov 1, 2012 3:14pm IST

Nagpur, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Gram prices in Nagpur Agriculture Produce and Marketing Committee (APMC) showed weak tendency on lack of demand from local millers amid healthy supply from producing regions. High moisture content arrival and fresh fall in Madhya Pradesh gram prices also affected sentiment, according to sources. *

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FOODGRAINS & PULSES GRAM * Gram varieties ruled steady in open market but demand was poor.

TUAR * Tuar gavarani and tuar black firmed up in open market on increased festival season demand from local traders amid tight supply from producing regions.

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* Rice Swarna and rice Shriram showed weak tendency in open market in absence of buyers amid good supply from producing belts like Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh.

* In Akola, Tuar - 4,200-4,400, Tuar dal - 6,600-6,800, Udid at 5,000-5,400, Udid Mogar (clean) - 5,700-5,900, Moong - 5,100-5,500, Moong Mogar (clean) 6,900-7,200, Gram - 4,300-4,600, Gram Super best bold - 6,100-6,300 for 100 kg. * Wheat, other varieties of rice and other commodities prices remained steady in open market in thin trading activity, according to sources.

Nagpur foodgrains APMC auction/open-market prices in rupees for 100 kg FOODGRAINS Available prices Previous close Gram Auction 3,200-4,471 3,260-4,500 Gram Pink Auction n.a.

2,100-2,600 Tuar Auction n.a.

4,000-4,100 Moong Auction n.a.

3,800-4,000 Udid Auction n.a.

3,500-3,700 Masoor Auction n.a.

2,600-2,800 Gram Super Best Bold 6,200-6,400 6,200-6,400 Gram Super Best n.a.

Gram Medium Best 5,900-6,100 5,900-6,100 Gram Dal Medium n.a. n.a.

Gram Mill Quality 5,600-5,750 5,600-5,750 Deshi gram Raw 4,700-4,900 4,700-4,900 Gram Filter Yellow n.a. n.a.

Gram Kabuli 6,500-9,500 6,500-9,500 Gram Pink 7,400-7,200 7,400-7,200 Tuar Fataka Best 6,700-6,900 6,700-6,900 Tuar Fataka Medium 6,400-6,600 6,400-6,600 Tuar Dal Best Phod 5,800-6,000 5,800-6,000 Tuar Dal Medium phod 5,100-5,500 5,100-5,500 Tuar Gavarani 4,950-5,150 4,900-5,100 Tuar Karnataka 4,500-4,800 4,500-4,800 Tuar Black 7,100-7,400 7,000-7,300 Masoor dal best 4,300-4,400 4,400-4,500 Masoor dal medium 4,200-4,300 4,300-4,400 Masoor n.a. n.a.

Moong Mogar bold 7,300-7,400 7,300-7,400

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Moong Mogar Medium best 6,800-6,900 6,800-6,900 Moong Mogar Super fine n.a. n.a.

Moong dal Chilka 6,000-6,200 6,000-6,200 Moong Mill quality n.a. n.a.

Moong Chamki best 4,900-5,800 4,900-5,800 Udid Mogar Super best (100 INR/KG) 6,000-6,100 6,000-6,100 Udid Mogar Medium (100 INR/KG) 5,400-5,600 5,400-5,600 Udid Dal Black (100 INR/KG) 5,200-5,400 5,200-5,400 Batri dal (100 INR/KG) 3,250-3,650 3,250-3,650 Lakhodi dal (100 INR/kg) 2,650-2,750 2,650-2,750 Watana Dal (100 INR/KG) 2,950-3,000 2,950-3,000 Watana White (100 INR/KG) 2,850-2,950 2,850-2,950 Watana Green Best (100 INR/KG) 3,800-4,200 3,800-4,200 Wheat 308 (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,700 1,600-1,700 Wheat Mill quality (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,550 1,500-1,550 Wheat Filter (100 INR/KG) 1,700-1,900 1,700-1,900 Wheat Lokwan best (100 INR/KG) 1,800-2,050 1,800-2,050 Wheat Lokwan medium (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,900 1,600-1,900 Lokwan Hath Binar (100 INR/KG) n.a. n.a.

MP Sharbati Best (100 INR/KG) 2,300-2,800 2,300-2,800 MP Sharbati Medium (100 INR/KG) 2,100-2,500 2,100-2,500 Wheat 147 (100 INR/KG) 1,350-1,500 1,350-1,500 Wheat Best (100 INR/KG) 1,300-1,400 1,300-1,400 Rice BPT (100 INR/KG) 2,400-2,800 2,400-2,800 Rice Parmal (100 INR/KG) 1,900-2,000 1,900-2,000 Rice Swarna Best (100 INR/KG) 1,875-2,000 1,900-2,075 Rice Swarna Medium (100 INR/KG) 1,500-1,700 1,600-1,800 Rice HMT (100 INR/KG) 3,200-3,600 3,300-3,600 Rice HMT Shriram (100 INR/KG) 3,500-3,900 3,600-3,900 Rice Basmati best (100 INR/KG) 7,500-11,500 7,500-11,500 Rice Basmati Medium (100 INR/KG) 5,000-6,000 5,000-6,000 Rice Chinnor (100 INR/KG) 3,800-4,400 3,800-4,500 Rice Chinnor Medium (100 INR/KG) 3,500-4,000 3,500-4,000 Jowar Gavarani (100 INR/KG) 1,600-1,800 1,600-1,800 Jowar CH-5 (100 INR/KG) 2,000-2,100 2,000-2,100 WEATHER (NAGPUR) Maximum temp. 30.6 degree Celsius (87.1 degree Fahrenheit), minimum temp.

16.6 degree Celsius (58.5 degree Fahrenheit) Humidity: Highest - 95 per cent, lowest - 46 per cent.

Rainfall : 0.0 mm FORECAST: Mainly clear sky. Maximum and Minimum temperature likely to be around 31 and 17 degree

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Celsius respectively.

Note: n.a.--not available (For oils, transport costs are excluded from plant delivery prices, but included in market prices.)

BoC holds rice with no import permits

by Jenny F. Manongdo November 1, 2013

The Bureau of Customs (BoC) said Friday that it will temporarily hold rice shipments that have no import permits even as the agency is already waiting a government policy whether to allow foreign rice importation from countries whose quarantine restrictions (QR) have already expired.BoC Commissioner Rufino Biazon said the government is still studying the next steps to take with the expiration of the Quarantine Restriction on rice imports granted by the World Trade Organization to the Philippines.

The BOC chief said they will seek the legal opinion of the Department of Justice and the Department of Agriculture on the issue.While an official policy has yet to be made, Biazon said they will impound shipments without import permit.“Ang default position namin ngayon is rather make an error on the right side which means harangin ang mga shipment na walang import permit [Our default position now is to make an error on the right side which means we will block shipments with no import permits],” Biazon said in an interview.“Kasi we are also being threatened by a lawsuit by those importers na wala daw kaming basis to hold shipments dahil lifted na ang quantitative restrictions. On the other side, pag palabasin naman naming yan based on what we believe is the lifting of the restriction aakusahan naman kami ng ibang ahensya na nagpapalusot. I don’t think we can let that happen [Because we are also being threatened by a lawsuit by those importers saying we don't have basis to hold shipments since quarantine restrictions have already been lifted.

On the other side, when we'll claim that it is based on what we believe is the lifting of the restriction, other agencies will accused us of illogical reasoning.

I don’t think we can let that happen],” he added.Biazon was commenting on a letter sent by the Vietnam Food Association (VFA) last month that said the Philippines no longer has the right to impose restriction on rice with the expiration of the QR.Biazon said the lifting of QR would result in increased taxes that may reach up to 50 percent.As of press time, the BoC chief said more than 400 container vans of rice shipments are currently on hold

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LCRA staff recommends cutting off downstream rice farmers for third consecutive year

by Joe Lanane:November 1, 2013

Photo by Leslee Bassman Lake Travis is well below full capacity in this 2012 file photo. The Highland Lakes combine to hold approximately 36 percent of their maximum storage as of Nov. 1, 2013.The Highland Lakes' drought conditions continue to persist despite recent rains, and Lower Colorado River Authority staff is recommending downstream rice farmers be denied reservoir water for a historic third consecutive year.Lakes Travis and Buchanan are at 36 percent of their combined capacity, or approximately 719,000 acre-feet of water, as of Nov. 1. Unless the lakes' combined storage increases above 1.1 million acre-feet by March 1, agricultural operations along the lower basin of the Colorado River will be cut off from any Highland Lakes water if LCRA board members approve the recommendation.LCRA announced its recommendation for emergency drought response measures Nov. 1, acknowledging the significant difference in the 2014 drought trigger compared with past years—1.1 million acre-feet in 2014 compared to 850,000 acre-feet and 775,000 acre-feet in 2012 and 2013, respectively.Other proposed restrictions being requested by LCRA to the state include asking that firm water customers, mostly municipalities and industrial operations, be limited to watering outdoors a maximum of once per week. Many municipalities, including the city of Austin, already enforce such watering standards. If

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approved, the emergency measures would also ask the state to curtail requirements to send water down the Colorado River for environmental purposes.The LCRA board will discuss the recommendations Nov. 19 during the Water Operations Committee meeting, and a special called board meeting will take place later that day.

Public comments to the board may be submitted until noon Nov. 18 to comment@lcra.org.

The meetings begin at 10 a.m. at LCRA headquarters, 3700 Lake Austin Blvd.

Read the LCRA staff's full recommendation here.

Guyana aims for record rice production in 2013 Guyana had two successive years (2011 and 2012) of production of more than 400,000 tonnes of rice.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Thursday October 31, 2013, CMC – Guyana has produced in excess of 500,000 tonnes of rice so far this year and Agriculture Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy is predicting that total production could reach as high as 600,000 tonnes.“On Monday the 21st October, for the first time in our history, we reached a goal which many persons in this country said would be impossible, and those who believe it was possible thought that it would not happen till 2020. On the 21st October 2013, Guyana surpassed 500,000 tonnes of rice in our production,” Ramsammy said.“At the present time we are approaching 522,000 tonnes. I used that number because last year’s production was 422,000 tonnes, it was a record and for us to break that record, with more than 100,000 tonnes is an astounding story, one that all of Guyana should be very proud of,”he added.So far this year, Guyana’s rice production is 514,000 tonnes and Ramsammy said that there are still about six to seven per cent of the cultivated lands yet to be harvested. He expects the final figure to reach 600,000.

“Indeed I would say to everyone that should we be able to find the markets, not the market that would take our rice, because we have enough people who want our rice, but the markets that would pay us the price we want for our rice, then we can reach 600,000 tonnes within the next year or maximum two years,” he added.Ramsammy said the increase in rice production is as a result is not as a result of increased acreage, but as a result of higher yields.“We consistently now surpass five tonnes per hectares, that used to be another magical goal that we are now reaching routinely, and we believe that we can reach six tonnes per hectares.”He said the Ministry of Agriculture is working towards that, “because if we can do that, that is another 100,000 tonnes without adding more land, and that would mean that our cost of production would go right down and allow us to compete with other countries on the world market”.Guyana had two successive years (2011 and 2012) of production of more than 400,000 tonnes of rice.

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Rice Producers Continue Funding Research at LSU AgCenter Date Posted: November 1, 2013 Crowley, LA—The Louisiana Rice Research Board reviewed a number of proposals from LSU AgCenter scientists and agreed Oct. 29 to provide $1.29 million for next year’s projects to help Louisiana rice farmers.Research projects totaling $1.67 million had been requested by the LSU AgCenter, but the board decided to fund existing projects at 10 percent less than the 2013 total and to fund only two new projects.

This money came from funds generated by an annual checkoff program in existence for more than 40 years.Projects supported with this funding have resulted in the development of new varieties, improved production practices, pest management strategies, and marketing information.“The success of the Louisiana rice industry is directly related to the efforts of those scientists who have been supported with these checkoff funds by the stakeholders for many years,” said Rogers Leonard, associate vice chancellor and program leader for plant and soil sciences with the LSU AgCenter.

Recently, some of the statutes that dictate the conduct of the rice checkoff process have been ruled unconstitutional as the result of litigation by a small group of farmers.Under the long-standing process, farmers had been paying 5 cents for every 100 pounds of rice they sold to fund research, and 3 cents for promotion.Now the board is appealing to farmers to continue paying the assessments under a voluntary program.Board members said they are confident that most farmers will continue to pay the assessments that will be tax deductible.“I think the support is there in the countryside,” said board member Richard Fontenot, an Evangeline Parish farmer.“The conservative nature of this board may help keep this station operating,” Leonard said.“These funds are critically important to maintaining the intensive operations that are involved in rice research.”

Leonard also said Bill Richardson, LSU vice president for agriculture, has agreed to dedicate additional intellectual property funds to support Louisiana rice research, with the members of the Rice Research Board serving on an advisory committee to provide input on how the funds should be spent.These funds are generated from royalties on the sale of Clearfield rice, a technology developed by scientists at the Rice Research Station.

Board member Brian Wild, a farmer from Jefferson Davis Parish, said he appreciates the vital role the Rice Research Station and its dedicated personnel have played in the rice industry. “We know this isn’t just a job for you all.”

Steve Linscombe, director of the Rice Research Station, said he and other rice researchers are appreciative of the funds provided by the board.

The research supported by these funds will continue to pay dividends in the future.

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Among the major projects funded are variety development, genetic research into improving rice disease resistance, optimum fertilizer management, hybrid rice development, identification genetic markers to assist in variety development, development of herbicide-resistant rice, plant breeding to develop salt-tolerant rice lines, communications, rice grain quality enhancement, and work on pests, including weeds, insects and disease.The two new projects are a study of the effects of different water management systems on arsenic concentrations in rice, milling quality and crop yield, and work to improve calibration of aerial applications of fertilizer and rice seed.

For more information, call 337-788-8821.

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