Scheisse

It seems to be all unravelling for Bayer on it's purchase of Monsanto. The Guardian (Sep. 4) notes:

'Germany has said it will phase out the controversial weedkiller glyphosate because it wipes out insect populations crucial for ecosystems and pollination of food crops.

The chemical, also suspected by some experts to cause cancer in humans, is to be banned by the end of 2023 when the EU’s approval period for it expires, ministers said.

Biologists have sounded the alarm over plummeting insect populations that affect species diversity and damage ecosystems by disrupting natural food chains and plant pollination'.

An unusual source, (the Common Dreams, Aug. 28) looked at the internal communications of Monsanto, which (at least in the past) seemed to have been lacking:

'Leaked emails from scientists working with agrichemical giant Monsanto feature company leaders in 2013 wishing they could "beat the shit out of" advocacy group Moms Across America. 

Moms Across America wrote an open letter asking Monsanto to discontinue the use of the pesticide glyphosate—which some research has tied to cancers—and to stop producing genetically modified seeds that was seen by company executives as a public relations disaster.

"I have been arguing for a week to beat the shit out of them and I have clearly lost," Monsanto's Dr. Daniel Goldstein wrote to University of Georgia crop scientist Wayne Parrott and University of Illinois biochemist Bruce Chassy. "We don't want to be seen as beating up on mothers."

The emails were released as part of litigation relating to the cancer-causing effects of glysophate against Monsanto's now-parent company Bayer'. 

Sought
Quite some news to share on Cambodia's rice industry.
Starting with organic production of rice. The Khmer Times (Sep. 4) notes how important organic rice exports to the EU are, in which Cambodia is a big-time player:

'Cambodia was the fifth largest exporter of organic rice to the European Union last year, with local companies confident exports will continue to rise in the coming years.

Demand for organic rice in the EU and other key markets like the United States, Australia, and China is soaring as consumers become more environmentally and health-conscious, key insiders said.

According to figures from the EU shared with the Cambodia Rice Federation, Cambodia exported 8,467 tonnes of organic rice to the bloc last year, representing 3.9 percent of all EU organic rice imports.

The US was the largest exporter of organic rice to the EU, accounting for almost 70 percent of the market. It was followed by Pakistan and India, with 10 and 9 percent, respectively.

Thailand came in at number four with 4.9 percent of the market (10,522 tonnes in exports).

Local rice exporters told Khmer Times that the amount of Cambodian organic rice shipped to the bloc has increased this year.

About 90 percent of all Cambodian exports of organic rice to the EU last year belonged to Amru Rice Cambodia.

...

Chan Pich, general manager of Signature of Asia, who last year exported 1,500 tonnes of organic rice to the EU, said demand for organic rice in the European Union grows about 15 percent every year.

“Cambodia’s organic rice is sought after in the EU because it has good quality and real traceability,” Mr Pich said.

According to Mr Pich, a tonne of organic jasmine rice fetches $1,500 while organic long-grain white rice sells for about $950 per tonne'.

Organics are  less affected by the increased tariffs on rice to the EU it appears, which are still being contended. The Khmer Times (Aug. 23):

'The Cambodian Rice Federation (CRF) yesterday asked the European Union to save the livelihoods of half a million families by halting the process to withdraw the Everything-but-arms scheme'.

But a few days later the same source (Aug. 27) notes a different strategy in regards to the increased tariffs:

'The Cambodia Rice Federation plans to meet with the European Commission to discuss the tariffs imposed on Cambodian rice earlier this year, according to a representative of the association.

However, CRF has yet to receive any response from Brussels regarding the complaint, Mr Yeng told Khmer Times.

Mr Yeng said the strategy is now to negotiate with the EU and to show European legislators that exports of Cambodian rice do not threaten the livelihoods of European farmers.

“In April, CRF filed a complaint with the EU. Now, we continue this work, but we will change our approach. We will meet with the EU and explain the issue because we believe that the EU is missing vital information that has led them to take the wrong course of action,” Mr Yeng said.

“Our rice is different from rice grown by farmers in Italy and Spain. We believe the decision to impose tariffs was based on a misunderstanding of the situation,” Mr Yeng added'.

It's questionable how much China will manage to pick up of the slackening trade with EU. The Khmer Times (Sep. 10):

'The Cambodia Rice Federation is confident the Kingdom will reach its milled rice export quota in the Chinese market, with the association emboldened by last week’s visit of China’s largest food processor, COFCO.

The Kingdom was unable to meet the quota last year, shipping just 170,000 tonnes out of the 300,000 allowed.

This year, however, things will be different, argued Lun Yeng, CRF secretary-general. Mr Yeng said that a delegation from Chinese firm COFCO arrived in Cambodia last week to “understand the situation” of rice production in Cambodia.

...

In the first half of 2019, Cambodia’s milled rice exports rose by 3.7 percent to 281,538 tonnes. Shipments to China represented 42 percent of all exports, about 118,400 tonnes'.

The overall strategy for the Cambodian rice industry (read exports) as exemplified by the Khmer Times (Aug. 15):

'The new board of the Cambodia Rice Federation yesterday vowed to grow the country’s rice exports to one million tonnes a year by 2022.

During the first meeting of the association since new leadership was elected last week, board members pledged to turn Cambodian rice into a globally recognisable brand and make the industry more sustainable, fair and transparent.

Song Saran, who is now the association’s president, said the priority will be to achieve one million tonnes in rice exports a year within the next three years.

...

Chan Sokheang, CEO of Signatures of Asia and a CRF board member, said, “We will work together to achieve the one-million-tonne target. Everyone wants to see this done.

“We must work as one to build a strong rice industry in Cambodia,” Mr Sokheang added.

The country’s exports of milled rice rose 3.7 percent during the first seven months of the year to reach 308,013 tonnes. China continues to be the Kingdom’s biggest market, purchasing 123,361 tonnes from January to July, a 40 percent increase'.

Finally some rice side news. AKP (Sep. 4):

'Agreement has been reached to build rice warehouses and silos in three provinces, which will contribute essentially to enhancing capacity of rice processing for exports to international markets.

The agreement was signed lately by Rice-SDP (Climate Resilient Rice Commercialisation Sector Development Programme) of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Rural Development Bank (RDB), and rice millers.

Under the agreement, selected rice millers will build rice warehouses and silos in three provinces of Battambang, Kampong Thom, and Prey Veng using US$10 million loan from the Asia Development Bank (ADB) through RDB'.

Hoarding

The Bangkok Post (Aug. 27) has an article on the Siam sticky rice woes:

'In a move to tackle rising glutinous rice prices, the government has ordered millers, traders and exporters to report their stocks by on Tuesday.

The Commerce Ministry will also call a meeting with millers and packaged rice producers on Wednesday to produce packed glutinous rice at a special price.

Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit said he already ordered a nationwide inspection of glutinous rice to check hoarding and price gouging.

...

The domestic price of sticky rice rose sharply to 50 baht per kg from 35 baht last month.

The surge was attributed to the widespread drought and lower production over the last two years, as farmers shifted to grow more hom mali fragrant rice as the latter has a higher price.

...

"One of the urgent issues we are proposing the Commerce Ministry address is the smuggling of glutinous rice from neighbouring countries," said Mr Chookiat [Chookiat Ophaswonge, honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association].

"Some foreign buyers have complained that their DNA tests have found Thai glutinous rice shipments are mingled with Vietnamese grains."

The free-on-board prices of Vietnamese glutinous rice are now quoted at about US$600 a tonne, while those of Thai glutinous rice amounts to $1,500, which is higher than Thai hom mali rice which remains at $1,200 a tonne'.

Aside from this Thai news, the major news from the Kingdom of Wonder is how the new junta will seek to entice farmers with what looks like a pledging scheme albeit with a different name. The Bangkok Post (Aug. 17):

'Paddy prices may be guaranteed at 10,000 to 14,000 baht a tonne for rice farmers initially, according to the commerce minister.

Jurin Laksanawisit said on Saturday that a joint meeting of officials, operators and farmers had agreed to set the prices of five types of paddy.

The output for each farming household varies by paddy type but the acreage per household for all five categories must not exceed 40 rai.

...

At the same time, he said, authorities would take steps to reduce production costs such as those for fertilisers, insecticides and harvesting fees. Other measures include promoting large-scale farming and the use of high-quality seeds, as well as buying general insurance for crops.

"Market demand will dictate production. Organic or GAP [Good Agricultural Practice] rice farming and special breeds will be promoted. In the long term, growers will be trained to become smart farmers, with the help of research, development and innovation," said Mr Jurin.

...

Its strong points are that, unlike the rival Pheu Thai Party's rice-pledging programme, it does not distort market mechanisms and corruption is generally minimal because the money is deposited directly to farmers' bank accounts.

One of the disadvantages of the programme is the government gets nothing in return for using a large budget to cover price differences, compared to the pledging programme in which rice can be kept for sale at a later date.

Besides, officials have to deal with rampant false claims about the sizes of rice fields by farmers seeking to be paid more. It also puts pressure on prices to rise because millers and others who buy the grain know the government will pay the price differences'.

Expectations
A major move in the alternatives for rice, the Khmer Times (Aug. 28) reports on Thailand closing the border for corn:

'Thailand’s Ministry of Commerce last week announced a ban on field corn imports coming through Ban Khao Din, in the border with Cambodia.

Ban Khao Din is an international border gate in Thailand’s Sa Kaeo province, which borders Battambang province.

In a statement, the ministry said the import ban will protect Thai farmers from potentially contaminated Cambodian goods, adding that Thailand produces enough corn to satisfy local demand.

“Starting the end of this month, imports of field corn will no longer be allowed through the border crossing with Cambodia,” the ministry said'.

Minor crops and some little heard of. For instance pomelo's. The Khmer Times (Sep. 5):

'Receiving Geographical Indication (GI) status has done little to increase sales of Koh Trong Pomelo outside Kratie province, farmers said.

The pomelo grown in Kratie’s Koh Trong commune last year became the third Cambodian product to obtain GI status, following in the footsteps of Kampot pepper and Kampong Speu’s palm sugar.

The fruit, however, has not gained much in popularity outside the province since, according to the Koh Trong Pomelo Producer Association, who owns 1,200 of the 2,000 pomelo trees in Koh Trong'.

Other fruity news. The Khmer Times (Sep. 5)

'Longmate Agriculture, one of five local companies allowed to export bananas directly to China, said they are on track to meet its goal of shipping 22,000 tonnes of the fruit by the end of the year.

Speaking to Khmer Times on Monday, Hun Lak, Longmate Agriculture director, said they have exported the fruit every month since the first shipment in early May.

“Our goal was to ship 22,000 tonnes of fresh yellow bananas to China and we are on course to meet that target,” he said, adding that small changes in yield due to weather conditions might slightly alter the total amount of fruit shipped in 2019.

...

Cambodia is expected to ship 130,000 tonnes of bananas to the Chinese market this year, the minister noted'.

Then the Khmer Times (Sep. 11) reports on the possibilities of exporting mango with the answer being as above: China.

'Mango is likely to be the next product that Cambodia exports directly to China, according to an official of the Ministry of Agriculture.

...

Mr Monyvuth [Ke Monyvuth, director of the ministry’s crop protection and SPS department] said on Tuesday that a team from China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine will visit Cambodia next month to conduct inspections at registered farmers.

“We expect that fresh mangoes will be the next agricultural product that Cambodia exports to China and we are now working to provide technical assistance to farmers to prepare for the requirements of the Chinese market,” Mr Monyvuth said.

In July, the ministry made public a list of the agricultural goods that are being prioritised for export to China. The list contained six items – fresh mango, longan, pepper, dragon fruit, fragrant coconut, and bird nests'.

Secure
Finally, the Kathmandu Post has an interesting article (Sep. 10) on farmers use of hybrid seeds (in all assorted crops) which is increasing.

"It’s not just local varieties of cauliflower that have been replaced by hybrid varieties from other countries. Most vegetables that the villagers grow come from imported hybrid seeds. And this is not limited to Bardev—it is happening across the country.

Just three decades ago, a majority of Nepali farmers relied on local indigenous seeds. Even until the 90s, Nepal was a seed exporting country. Today, according to agriculture scientists, more than 90 percent of vegetable seeds employed in the country are imported. Nearly 30 percent of maize seeds are imported, and around 15 percent of rice seeds are from other countries. As the number of vegetables and grains grown from imported hybrid seeds increases every year, scientists warn that this reliance on imports for something as sensitive to food security as seeds could have devastating consequences for the country’s agriculture sector—and for the genetic diversity of indigenous plants. “A country can never be food secure if it isn't seed secure,” said Madan Rai, seed specialist and agronomist. “Seed security is when farmers in the country have access to quality seeds at the right time and at reasonable prices. It's important that we as a country are self-sufficient on seeds to truly become food secure.”

...

But there have been several incidents of massive crop failure in the past. In 2013, paddy planted in 16 VDCs in Bhaktapur, amounting to 20,000 tonnes and worth Rs 80 million, was destroyed by “neck blast” and “bacterial leaf blight” diseases. Investigations revealed that the farmers had used DY 69--a Chinese hybrid variety--registered and recommended by the Seed Quality Control Centre under the Ministry of Agriculture Development in 2010. Bhandari was assigned to investigate the case, and his findings revealed the extent to which lack of information could hurt farmers. “The hybrid seed the farmers had used was recommended for the Tarai and Inner Tarai region, not Bhaktapur,” says Bhandari.

...

Some agro-scientists the Post spoke to said that depending solely on hybrid seeds isn’t good for the soil.“Hybrid seeds require a lot more nutrients than open-pollinated ones. So farmers have to use a lot of fertilisers, which accelerates the depletion of soil quality,” said Ghimire. “This is one of the long term serious negative impacts of using hybrid seeds.”Increased use of hybrid seeds will thus drive demand for pesticides and chemical fertilisers, and Nepal, which doesn't manufacture such fertilisers, will end up relying more on imports.

...

After decades of singular focus on hybrid seeds to increase agricultural productivity, there's a growing demand for crops produced from local varieties. “It's a fact that crops from hybrid seeds don't taste or smell as good as local varieties. Hybrid rice will never match the taste and smell of Pokhreli Jetho Budo, and the demand for local products are seeing an increase,” said Bhandari. “People are willing to pay more for local crops. Once there's demand, there will be supply.”