Fused

The Guardian (August 8) has an extensive article on the free press and Monsanto. 
Besdies producing harmful chemicals, Monsanto is also producing censorship for all whom stand between itself and ever-increasing profits:

'Monsanto operated a “fusion center” to monitor and discredit journalists and activists, and targeted a reporter who wrote a critical book on the company, documents reveal. The agrochemical corporation also investigated the singer Neil Young and wrote an internal memo on his social media activity and music.
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A Bayer spokesman, Christopher Loder, declined to comment on specific documents or the fusion center, but said in a statement to the Guardian that the records show “that Monsanto’s activities were intended to ensure there was a fair, accurate and science-based dialogue about the company and its products in response to significant misinformation, including steps to respond to the publication of a book written by an individual who is a frequent critic of pesticides and GMOs”.
He said the documents were “cherry-picked by plaintiffs’ lawyers and their surrogates” and did not contradict existing science supporting the continued use of glyphosate, adding, “We take the safety of our products and our reputation very seriously and work to ensure that everyone … has accurate and balanced information.”
(A Reuters spokesperson said the agency “has covered Monsanto independently, fairly and robustly”, adding, “We stand by our reporting.”)
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David Levine, a University of California Hastings law professor, said he had not heard of any other private corporations running “fusion centers”, but said it did not surprise him that Monsanto was engaged in this kind of intensive digital monitoring.
The records showed Monsanto was also concerned about Ruskin’s Freedom of Information Act (Foia) requests targeting the company, writing documents on its relationships with researchers had the “potential to be extremely damaging” and could “impact the entire industry”.
In 2016, one Monsanto official expressed frustration of criticisms that the company paid academics to write favorable reports on their products: “The issue was NOT that we wanted to pay the experts but an acknowledgment that experts would need to be compensated for the time they invest in drafting responses for external engagement. No one works for free!”

A second article follows with more details. Casey Gilliam herself writes (August 9) on how Monsanto devised an internal campaign on her reporting on Monsanto:

'But when I recently received close to 50 pages of internal Monsanto communications about the company’s plans to target me and my reputation, I was shocked.
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I even inspired a Monsanto spreadsheet: as part of “Project Spruce”, the “Carey Gillam Book plan” lists more than 20 items, including discussion of how the company might get third parties to post book reviews about Whitewash.
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The code name “Project Spruce” is the internal company reference for Monsanto’s plans to defend its glyphosate and Roundup herbicide business from all perceived threats, including scientists and journalists.
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The company emails also briefly touch on pressure that Monsanto applied while I was at Reuters. The company was perfectly happy with stories that highlighted its new products, or the spread of adoption of its seed technology, or its latest expansion efforts. But if a story I wrote quoted a critic of the company or cited scientific research that Monsanto didn’t consider valid, Monsanto would repeatedly complain to editors, tying up editorial time and resources.
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I’m just one person, just one reporter working from a home office in the midwest, juggling three kids with irregular writing deadlines. So the knowledge that a multibillion-dollar corporation spent so much time and attention trying to figure out how to thwart me is terrifying.
Truth and transparency are precious commodities, the foundations for the knowledge we all need and deserve about the world we live in. Without truth we cannot know what risks we face, what protections we must make for our families and our futures.
When corporate power is so intensely brought to silence messengers, to manipulate the public record and public opinion, truth becomes stifled. And we should all be afraid'.

Clearly independent reporting is essential to our society. Greed skews this independence; the more at stake, the less it seems truth be told.

In the discussion on hybrid rice, the past has shown that there's very little resistence to the main line of inquiry as presented to us by World.corporation: it's a match made in heaven. 
However on the ground, there seems to be reluctance: at the very least consumers with choice shun the produce meaning lower prices for hybrid rice produce which make growing from hybrid rice seeds uneconomic. 
Let's hope this unveiling means better and fairer reporting in future.

Change

Reporting on rice: it's been quiet these last past few weeks. 

From Cambodia the only article stems from the Khmer Times (Jul. 19):

'Twelve agricultural communities in Preah Vihear province on Wednesday entered into contract farming schemes with major rice exporter Signatures of Asia.
The agricultural communities will sell a combined 2,000 tonnes of organic rice to Signatures of Asia at set prices, guaranteeing a certain level of income to the farmers'.

Thai rice news concerns rains, but ultimately is about prices for exports and exports themselves. The Bangkok Post (Jul. 25):

'Low rainfall, if it extends until August, will possibly lower rice exports to 8.5 million tonnes this year, the lowest volume in seven years, according to shippers.
Chookiat Ophaswongse, honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, said this is a tough year for the rice industry because of prolonged low rain levels in the Northeast and the stronger baht.
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He said milled Thai hom mali rice supply is expected to fall accordingly to only 2 million tonnes from 4 million, leading Thailand without premium rice for export.
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"The long drought is likely to drive the prices of Thai hom mali paddy to surge to 25,000 baht per tonne from 16,000 baht per tonne, with the prices of domestic milled hom mali rice rising to 36,000 baht per tonne from 25,000 baht per tonne," said Mr Chookiat.
He said if the rainfall comes earlier, Thailand still has a chance to export 1 million tonnes of hom mali rice, with its price increasing to perhaps US$1,500 per tonne from $1,100 last year.
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Mr Charoen said key threats to Thailand's rice exports include the comparatively strong baht and lower purchase demand from China, which holds hefty rice stocks.
Key rice-importing countries have also changed their rice purchase policies.
For instance, the Philippines has allowed its private sector to play a greater role in rice imports, making competition in the domestic market stiffer.
The drought will cut the country's overall rice production and may result in higher rice prices, he said'.

Headlines in Laotian Vientiane Times (Jul. 2) as Laos apparently exports first shipment of rice which is part of it's quote to China:

'Laos recently began shipping the first 1,100 tonnes of polished rice to China as part of a 50,000-tonne export quota agreement between the Lao government and China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO).
This first shipment is being transported in July and August with further amounts to follow to achieve the total target by 2021, according to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.
An agreement on the first shipment of export rice was signed last month between COFCO and Indochina Development Partner Co., Ltd. (IDP) at the COFCO office in China'.

Countered
Some economic data from Cambodia on other agricultural outputs. 
The Khmer Times (Jul. 18):

'Cambodia exported 104,261 tonnes of rubber in the first half of the year, an increase of 24 percent compared to the same period in 2018, official figures show'.

Cashews are presumed to be heading in the same direction. Once more, the 
Khmer Times (Aug. 13):

'Cambodia exported 167,285 tonnes of cashew nuts during the first seven months of the year, official figures show.
In its latest report, the Ministry of Agriculture said that cashew nut exports have increased significantly since the government pledged to reach one million tonnes in shipments in the next ten years.
However, the report did not show the year-on-year growth in exports'.

Pepper has other dynamics ongoing. The Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 6):

'Kampot pepper, one of the Kingdom’s top Geographical Indication (GI) products, is under pressure as over-cultivation drives farmers to give up production, said Kampot Pepper Promotion Association (KPPA) president Nguon Lay.
Lay said farmers’ production has continued to increase annually despite the volume of orders remaining the same, which has created an oversupply of the crop.
In 2017, annual exports were around 70 tonnes with production reaching 102 tonnes, he said, adding that farmers can only sell part of their total output.
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However, the Kampot pepper price remains stable, with black pepper selling for $15 per kg, red pepper $25 and white pepper $28, said Lay.
Hyn Piseth, deputy managing director at Confirel Co Ltd, a Kampot pepper exporter and producer, said counterfeits of the Kampot pepper brand are one of the main reasons buyers do not trust their products.
“Counterfeiting the Kampot pepper brand affects our pepper exports,” said Piseth'.

Finally, in Laos farmers are faced with increased problems in growing corn. Vientiane Times (Jul. 25):

'Xayaboury province is anticipating a 30 percent shortfall in sweetcorn supplies to domestic and overseas markets this year after the crop has been invaded by fall armyworms.
The current epidemic of this pest (Spodoptera frugiperda) across the province has resulted in big problems for farmers and authorities, who are trying to control the outbreak.
Director of Xayaboury’s Agriculture and Forestry Department, Mr Somvang Keovilaysak, said 30 percent of 35,000 hectares of maize crops had been destroyed by the caterpillars. 
According to the initial harvest plan drawn up by provincial authorities, the maize yield was set at 190,000 tonnes, but this now appears impossible to achieve and the figure is expected to be reduced by almost 25,000 tonnes.
Some farmers have lost a lot of money as a result of the devastating outbreak, the first such event recorded in the province.
A farmer in Saenphon village in Paklai district, where the outbreak was first detected on May 20, said he usually grows sweetcorn on two hectares but almost all of his crop was destroyed by the caterpillars and he had lost the money he invested.
Farmers in Xayaboury export 70 percent of their produce to China, Thailand and Vietnam while the rest is supplied to domestic markets.
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Last year, they sold their sweetcorn for more than 1,600 kip per kilo'.