Flaws

Let's start with the ongoing farce concerning the Thai junta doing it's best to protect farmers and consumers. One is inclined to say not.

Kicking off with the Nation (Aug. 21): 

'The calls for a ban on the use of paraquat and two other farm chemicals seen as dangerous are growing louder again, as a government-appointed panel is set to discuss the issue at its first meeting tomorrow.
Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha set up the panel in June to explore solutions to the problem of farm chemicals with high risks, after loud protests from environmentalists and activists who were frustrated that the Hazardous Substance Committee (HSC) had failed to ban paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos. Deputy Prime Minister Suwaphan Tanyuvardhana chairs the panel.
“The HSC formed its decision based on a flawed executive summary,” BioThai Foundation director Witoon Lianchamroon said yesterday, “We hope the new panel will act in the best interests of people. If its opinion is the same as the HSC, we will make our moves.”
...

Research then, likewise published by the Nation (Aug. 22):

'The contamination with agrichemicals in Nong Bua Lamphu [province] remains severe according to the latest analysis by Naresuan University researchers, which found very high concentration of four prominent herbicides in soil, water, vegetables, fish and even in local tap water samples.

...

Puangrat [Assoc Professor Puangrat Kajitvichyanukul, head of the Centre of Excellence on Environmental Research and Innovation at the university’s Faculty of Engineering] said these fresh findings provided further proof that prolonged, intensive use of herbicides, especially in sugar cane plantations, has caused very serious chemical contamination in the soil, water and food. This could eventually have an adverse effect on people’s health and highlights the urgent need for the agriculture sector to switch to organic farming, she said'.

The Bangkok Post (Aug. 29) reports on a possible shift in governments stance:

'Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Wiwat Salyakamthorn has thrown his support behind a total ban on three hazardous herbicides -- paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos.

...

The three pesticides are commonly used by farmers because they are inexpensive and produce quick results. However, they could have a severely adverse impact on the health of farmers and consumers as well as hurt the environment in the long run, experts have said'.

Oddly though imports have risen as the trade expects import bans'.

More research, The Nation (Sep. 10):

'The effects of widely used farm chemicals have led to at least 1,715 deaths over the past three years.

“The deaths of nearly 600 people each year are directly a result of the use of insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and pesticides,” National Health Security Office (NHSO) secretary-general Dr Sakchai Kanjana-wattana said recently, referring to statistics from the universal healthcare scheme. He said such figures were compiled with clear evidence.

...

Sakchai said the danger from farm chemicals could be more extensive in reality considering the statistics compiled by his agency only focused on the direct impact.

“It’s undeniable that these farm chemicals will likely have long-term impacts on people’s health via contaminated crops and the environment too,” he said'.

The Nation (Sep. 19):

'Traces of toxic chemicals have been found in the blood of five out of every 100 farmers in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Bua Yai district, if results from tests across 132 villages are used as an indicator'.

So begs the question why the wait? 

And where does Cambodia stand on this?

Dub
Just some marginal rice related news from Cambodia. 
The Phnom Penh Post (Sep. 10):

'Despite the Kingdom having a very young population, the economy, which depends in part on the agriculture sector, is facing a labour shortage.

Opportunities in neighbouring countries are attracting many who would have otherwise been hired in farming.

Seeking to overcome this challenge with technology, a Cambodian farmer invented a new type of rice planting mechanism dubbed “Eli”.

The tool recently won the celebrated Patents for Humanity award given out by the US government'.

The same marginal news rice-related also applies for Cambodia's neighbours.

The Thai National News Bureau (Sep. 3):

'...  a meeting of the National Rice Policy and Management Committee chaired by the Prime Minister, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, had approved an increase in the export quota for organic paddy and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) paddy to Europe, from 2,000 tons to 5,000 tons'.

The Bangkok Post (Sep. 11):

'The Commerce Ministry's Foreign Trade Department says it has completed its mission to clear off 16.91 million tonnes of state rice stocks accumulated from government-sponsored rice pledging schemes'.

Broke
With little to report on concerning rice, there's plenty concerning other crops.

Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 28) reports on cashew growing:

'The Kingdom’s cashew nut industry is still struggling to maintain a stable market as community representatives say relying on local brokers is hurting farmers.

Cashew Nut Association director in Kampong Thom province Chhiv Ngy said on Monday that the body is still searching for reliable buyers to ensure stable prices.

The price, he said, currently fluctuates from broker to broker and that many were buying at around $2.50 per kg.

“The current price doesn’t mean we are suffering a loss, but it we don’t make much when the price depends on local brokers. We don’t have money on hand to stock the cashew nuts,” he said'.

Phnom Penh Post (Sep. 3) follows this up with more:

'Cashew nut production in the Kingdom declined by more than 50 per cent in the three years leading up to last year, as farmers followed the market by switching to other crops, figures from the Ministry of Agriculture indicate.

Data from the general directorate of agriculture shows that Cambodia produced 295,791 tonnes of cashew nuts in 2014 with exports reaching 270,696 tonnes.

However, production and exports dropped year by year. Last year, production dropped to 142,773 tonnes with total exports standing at just 73,179 tonnes, a decline of 51.73 per cent and 72.96 per cent respectively compared to the previous three years.

...

Cashew Nut Association director in Kampong Thom province, Chhiv Ngy, said it is still searching for reliable buyers to bring price stability.

Ngy agreed that most farmers don’t understand new techniques that can help them ensure quality, which is also why they find it so hard to add value to their products.

“Some farmers harvest early, even if the fruit is not ready. Many don’t know about technical aspects and maintenance so it is hard to get a higher price."

“We prefer to push for contract farming, but until now no contract farming has been done through the association. Our products are only sold to brokers which don’t bring us a good price,” he said.

The Kingdom’s cashew nut industry is still struggling to maintain a stable foothold in the market as community representatives continue to claim that relying on local brokers is hurting farmers'.

Khmer Times (Sep. 10) reports on potential for durian:

'Local rice exporter Amru Rice is now studying the possibility of diversifying into durian production, and is considering agricultural areas in Mondulkiri to set up plantations.

The company, known for following organic agricultural principles, is now conducting studies to determine the profitability of the crop'.

Phnom Penh Post (Sep. 14) has a touristy feature on the fruits of Mondulkiri province.

More fruits. The Khmer Times (Sep. 4) on mango:

'Local firm Confirel plans to export 500 tonnes of keo romeat mango to the European Union towards the end of the year.

It will be the company’s first shipment to the EU, Cambodia’s second largest export market.

Hay Ly Eang, chairman of Confirel, said they have been working with an EU-based firm to proceed with the shipment, but said he could not disclose the name of the company.

“Keo romeat mangoes are very popular abroad,” Mr Ly Eang said, adding that the company buys mango at 3,000 riel a kilo on average'.

Abondon
Beyond fruits and nuts the Khmer Times (Aug. 28) look's at rubber:

'Despite production shortfalls in some neighbouring nations, Cambodia’s rubber output looks set to increase in 2018 due to favourable weather conditions, with the sector also benefitting from price stability.

Global rubber consumption is on the rise, the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) said in its latest report, which was released on Thursday. Global demand for natural rubber grew by 5.2 percent during the first seven months of the year, reaching 8.15 million tonnes'.

Phnom Penh Post (Sep. 17) notes continued investment interest in cassava:

'The Kingdom’s agriculture products have for many years relied on exports to neighbouring markets. And cassava is among the crops with the best-earning potential for the Kingdom.

Now, plans by Hong Kong-based Green Leader to invest $150 million on a cassava processing plant could boost the industry even further. The facility in Kratie province, which broke ground in April and is set to be operational by the end of the year plans to process some 600,000 tonnes of the crop annually'.

Not all crops come with happy ends. The Phnom Penh Post (Sep. 5):

'Despite huge amounts of potential and a well-rooted past, the Kingdom’s cotton cultivation industry seems to be hanging by a thread.

Though the country relies heavily on cotton fabric in its massive garment sector, insiders say Cambodian farmers have mostly abandoned the crop'.

Voiced
An interesting article from the Nation (Sep. 17) explains banana growing in the north of Thailand:

'Two years ago, Prasat Prueangwichahorn, a Thai driver in a Chinese banana plantation in Laos, saw a business opportunity when Laos ordered a ban on new banana plantations out of concerns for the environment and workers.

...

Over the past two years, Chinese investors appear to have invaded provinces in the North, such as Chiang Rai and Phayao, to grow Cavendish bananas after the practice was banned in Laos.

Locals and NGOs, however, have voiced concerns about Chinese-run plantations using pesticides excessively and giving rise to conflicts over water.

...

...

Another interesting finding is the higher incentive offered to workers. Chinese-owned plantations pay as much as Bt300 a day to labourers, but a major share of the work is taken over by migrant workers, affecting the bargaining power of local labourers'.

So it's no wonder that the Chinese (and Vietnamese) are looking beyond Laos  where banana growing has been banned and Thailand. The Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 22):

'Vietnamese conglomerate Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) recently announced a $42 million investment to expand its banana plantation in the Kingdom’s Ratanakkiri province, said a Vietnam news agency.

The move comes two weeks after Cambodia signed an agreement with China to begin exporting the fruit to the Asian economic powerhouse.

HAGL which operates in the property, mining, hydropower and commercial agriculture sectors, owns 1,000 hectares of banana plantations in northeast Cambodia through three subsidiaries – Hoang Anh Andong Meas, Hoang Anh Pomphat and Hoang Anh Daun Penh Agrico.

With the expansion, the company will add more than 5,000 hectares to its portfolio, and aims to export to China market, said a company statement'.

Khmer Times (Aug. 23) chimes in:

'Longmate Agricuture Co., Ltd. announced that it has invested $32 million to grow bananas in 1,000 hectares of land in Kampot’s Chhouk district.

Longmate, a joint-venture between Cambodian and Chinese investors, announced its decision to invest in the local banana sector earlier this month, but did not provide specific details then.

...

He [Li Xiaoquan, Longmate’s director] said the project has create well-paying jobs with good working conditions for 300 people, who won’t need to migrate to other countries to find employment'.

Lofty promises and prospects, let's hope all involved have learnt from especially the Lao experiences.  

Kraseth (Sep. 8) on storm damage in Oudomxay province (Lao PDR) on a banana plantation.

Wrath
Slightly retarded, there's this Bangkok Post editorial (Aug. 10) which nails Thai goverment agricultural policies:

'The government's decision to pay rice farmers to shift to corn farming raises more questions than it answers.

True, rice farmers need to rethink their old ways. Amid the global oversupply of rice grain, depressed prices, high investment costs, unpredictable weather and nature's wrath from climate change, rice farming has become a losing business.

But if not rice, then what? The military government announced in March that it would fork out 1.4 billion baht in state emergency funds to pay 47,000 rice farmers in 31 provinces to grow 700,000 rai of corn to supply the animal feed industry.

Instead of growing the second crop of rice, the farmers will each get 2,000 baht for growing one rai of corn, with a maximum subsidy for 15 rai. It is necessary to reduce rice-growing areas.

But why corn? Given the notoriety of corn plantations, the government's decision to subsidise corn farming smacks of agro-giant power over the country's agricultural policy. Corn plantations in the mountainous North are responsible for widespread destruction of the watershed forests of the Chao Phraya River, the artery of the country.

Corn plantations are also the major cause of toxic haze in the North. Besides, the heavy use of toxic herbicides and other farm chemicals in corn plantations has contaminated the soils and waterways so seriously that they have made underground water unsafe and undrinkable.

It's the country's tragedy that the government still allows the agro-industry to destroy precious tropical forest just to produce cheap animal feed for export money. And while the environmental ravages remain unaddressed, the government wants to spread the corn plantations' environmental disaster to other parts of the country.

And with support from our tax money too. What is it thinking? No one can deny rice plantations in Thailand are plagued with problems.

...

Sustainable farming has become the mantra of the government's policy book. But in practice, state authorities continue to work hand in glove with agro and farm chemical giants although they make people ill and destroy the environment.

According to BioThai, an advocacy group for small farmers' rights and green farming, it is common practice for agro and farm chemical giants to hire retired high-ranking agricultural officials with inside information and close connections with the bureaucrats in power. The proxies of agro and farm chemical industries are almost always included in the cabinets of all governments.

...

According to a study by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, the net income from corn farming for the feed industry is the lowest compared to other crops while net earnings from integrated farming are the highest.

Yet, the government uses our tax money to promote corn farming to help the animal feed industry. We all know why'.

Defies logic. 

Then a final word from what could be positive news. Mongabay (Sep. 20):

'Indonesian President Joko Widodo has signed a moratorium on new licenses for oil palm plantations'.

Note belatedly signed.

Crude

Concerning Cambodian rice news, what surprises most is the source, the Khmer Times. However the news it reveals is less prone to surprise. 

First of all the Khmer Times (Feb. 27) reports :

'The price of Cambodian rice abroad has been on the rise since the beginning of February due to higher demand in China and the European Union, a representative of a local rice export company told Khmer Times'.

Basically it's following overall price increases on the globe. 

Then the news that the Cambodian government wants to assure it's customers. The Khmer Times (Feb. 15): 

'The Ministry of Commerce launched a new agency whose aim is to inspect the production and supply chain of rice branded as ‘made in Cambodia’ to guarantee its origin and provide assurance to foreign buyers.
With Cambodian rice having won multiple international awards for its quality, the move seeks to prevent the sale of foreign rice falsely claiming to hail from the kingdom.
The initiative is precautionary as, according to a ministry official, very few cases of ‘fake’ Cambodian rice have been reported to date'.

Finally, more interesting, an article from the Khmer Times (Feb. 23) concerning contract farming:

'Contract farming schemes in the kingdom work best under the centralised and the multipartite models, a study released yesterday by The NGO Forum on Cambodia revealed.
...
The study looks at contract farming schemes implemented by a group of agribusiness companies, including Amru Rice, Angkor Kasekam Roongroung, Confirel, Golden Rice, Lors Thmey, Cedac, East-West Seed, Entree Baitang, Mong Reththy and Natural Garden.
Researchers interviewed 70 small landholder farmers engaged in six different contract farming programmes, including contracting farming through agricultural communities and semi-formal contract rice farming.
Findings showed that “Contract farming can benefit both small landholder farmers and agribusiness companies the most when programmes are properly designed for a long-term relationship.
”It also concluded that even poorer, marginal farmers can take advantage of contract farming opportunities and that governmental policies that impact access to seeds and land rights are not sufficient to meet the needs of both small landholder farmers and agribusiness companies.
The study recommends the donor community to do more to encourage long-term, mutually beneficial contract farming programmes and to promote other engagement modalities between small landholder farmer and agribusiness companies'.

Lightheaded

Looking over the border the Bangkok Post (Feb. 9) also reflects on the nation's rice market conditions:

'Paddy prices for hom mali fragrant jasmine rice have surged to a five-year high, boosted by rising global demand.
According to Commerce Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong, purchase demand has led to a surge in paddy prices, particularly for hom mali paddy, whose price stands at 17,000-18,000 baht a tonne, the highest in five years and up from 9,500-11,600 baht a year ago.
"The ministry is upbeat that paddy prices will rise further, especially for hom mali rice, which is in high demand among rice exporters because of limited supply and depleted state stocks," Mr Mr Sontirat said. "The prospects of Thai white rice are likewise positive, thanks to higher purchase demand from foreign buyers and depleted state stocks."
He said overall rice exports look promising after Thailand shipped 1.2 million tonnes of milled rice worth US$578 million or an average $474.91 a tonne in January. Shipment volume rose by 16.5% from 1.03 million tones in the same month in 2017. The Commerce Ministry forecasts rice exports to stay at 9.5 million tonnes of milled rice this year, easing from a record high of 11.6 million tonnes in 2017'. 

The rise though of the local currency vis-à-vis the dollar may make Thai rice less competitive.

The Nation (Feb. 21) shows a vdo of what should have been an auspicious occasion: 

Accompanying text:

'The rice saplings that were thrown to mark an auspicious start to the government’s Thai Niyom scheme – which aims to diagnose people’s problems at a local level – were supposed to land in a rice field.
Instead, they accidentally landed on Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha’s head, prompting a lighter atmosphere amid the stress that has been building up on the government around the scheme, which some see as a political move by Prayut ahead of the election'.

In reality it's actually seen as another sign that the junta's time may well be up ... 

Power

A chapter for snippets. 

Away from the rice, the Phnom Penh Post (Jan. 31) reports on promised developments for the cashew sector:

'Cambodia and Vietnam signed an agreement earlier this month to greatly expand Cambodia’s cashew exports by 2028, but the proposed export level would require several hundred thousand hectares of additional land and there is no concrete plan yet to meet the target.
Cambodia’s Ministry of Agriculture and the Vietnamese Cashew Association (Vinacas) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase Cambodia’s cashew exports to 1 million tonnes by 2028, up from the about 73,000 tonnes exported last year. Vinacas also gave the ministry a $66,000 grant to support the same target in December'.

Cassava is on the up. The Phnom Penh Post (Feb. 21): 

'The price of cassava jumped sharply this year as many farmers who were fed up with low profits for several years in a row changed crops, thus decreasing the market’s supply and raising the price.
Last year during cassava harvesting season – traditionally from December to April – the price for 1 kilogram of fresh cassava was about 108 riel, or $0.026, while this year it was up to 250 riel, according to Kim Hout, director of Battambang’s Provincial Commerce Department. The price of dried cassava was 715 riel per kilogram, up from 575 riel in 2017'.

The Bangkok Post (Feb. 25) on the kingdom's rubber throes: 

'Farmers have urged the government to help shore up the price of rubber by bartering with foreign countries for military equipment and vehicles'.

And an article by the Bangkok Post (Feb. 6) concerning how agricultural trade takes place in Thailand:

'Welcoming Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to her neighbourhood along the Chanthabun River yesterday, 58-year-old Siripataorn Thanaphurikiatkrai said she hopes the government will help lessen their dependence on merchants or middlemen who are predominantly foreigners, especially Chinese, and who usually have the power to set prices which sometimes are unfair to growers'. 

Blazed

Grain (Feb. 22) has an article on the golden rice developments which seem to be edging forward, a movement in which the hybrid rice industry draws hope that if regulated, then so will their products become acceptable.

'The recent release of Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) approval report of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) application for a Golden Rice ‘safety stamp’ and trade liability clearance have garnered negative reactions and widespread critique.
Testbiotech, a non-profit organization founded as an Institute for the Independent Impact Assessment of Biotechnology in 2008 in Munich, Germany concluded that the “application does not show substantial benefits. Furthermore, the risk assessment as performed by FZANZ is not sufficient to demonstrate safety of food derived from GR2 (Golden Rice 2).” Aside from expounding on the questions of nutritional viability and genetic stability of Golden Rice, Testbiotech also criticized lack of toxicological studies, exclaiming that “…it is self evident that food products with no history of safe use must be subjected to highest standards of risk assessment before the most vunerable groups of the population are exposed to it…”
Civil society in Australia and New Zealand also challenged the soundness of FSANZ decision and appealed to review its approval'.

Continuing with big money issues, the Guardian (Feb. 27) reports on action in Sumatra concerning oil palm expansion:

'Dramatically carved into the landscape of a Sumatran oil palm plantation that borders one of the world’s most unique rainforests are three ominous letters: SOS.
The message stretches half a kilometre alongside a snaking river; a bird’s-eye view gives the eerie sense the land has been given voice, and is issuing a mayday.
“From the ground, you would not suspect anything more than just another palm oil plantation. The aerial view, however, reveals the SOS distress signal,” says the Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic. For a week Zacharevic has been carefully plotting his concept out tree by tree – or oil palm by oil palm – all 1,100 that were cut down to etch out the message.
The work in Bukit Mas, Sumatra, is intended to convey a pressing distress signal, drawing attention to the ongoing destruction of Indonesia’s rainforests and the critically endangered species, such as the Sumatran orangutan, that reside within it.
...
This year the artist has collaborated with the Sumatran Orangutan Society (SOS), which, together with the cosmetics company Lush, raised the funds to buy the 50-hectare (124-acre) oil palm plantation with the intention of reforesting it entirely.
Before the oil palms are replaced with tens of thousands of native seedlings, Zacharevic was offered the chance to bring his idea to life.SOS’s director, Helen Buckland, was on site as the art project was under way and cheered as the oil palms were felled'.

Interesting to see, that despite all the negatives surrounding palm oil plantations in Southeast Asia, it's hard to convince policy makers that the route taken needs to take a different direction. 

It's very well illustrated in the documentary Green Gold, which I viewed recently. 

Europe's response to the oil crisis has been to advocate oil substitutes such that even these have become big business with the gross misconduct concerned with large players. 

Even on small scale this has it's imitators. 

Mongabay (Mar. 1) describes how on Borneo even local politicians are setting up companies for relatives awarding these with the necessary permits after which the companies are then sold to larger companies, all at the expense of local communities / environment.

What Green Gold perfectly portrays, is how when the bigger companies smell money to be made, there's precious little that can stand between them and their profits. Energycollective (Nov. 20):

'Ghizzardi recounts the case of UPM, the Finnish paper company that discovered biofuels on a hunt for new products to make up for falling paper sales. It started making biodiesel from crude tall oil (CTO), a by-product of pulping pine trees. The result? A furious chemicals sector coming out with guns blazing to protect what it regards as one of its own raw materials'.

Profit seeking behemoths are dictating our future rather than ourselves.

Safety first

To start off this update, we need to move away from Cambodia, away from Asia. It's the U.S.A. where a precedent is being set, which is another nail in the coffin of those banking on consumer power.

Initially it looked like a gain for campaigners, who have been able to force the U.S. government to label food from GMO sources. The bad news: the label doesn't actually have to be readable to the consumer!
Al Jazeera (Aug. 5):

'Food safety organisations in the US have condemned a new law they say will allow food producers to obscure the labeling of genetically modified ingredients in their products, despite widespread health concerns over the effects of GMOs and the pesticides associated with them.
Signed into law on Friday by President Barack Obama, the legislation permits manufacturers to inform consumers of GMO content through the use of Quick Response or QR codes, which require a device - such as a smartphone - to read.
The law was passed despite opposition from environmental and food safety groups, as well as national polls which show that some 90 percent of Americans surveyed favoured clear labeling.
...
Paul said that more than 300 food and pesticide makers spent nearly $400m over the last four years in lobbying efforts to defeat the mandatory labeling of GMOs.
"We failed not because of lack of support from consumers - but because of the enormous amounts of money thrown by the industry," Paul [Katherine Paul, an associate director of the Organic Consumers Association] said, adding that she was disappointed by Obama, who once vowed to enforce clear GMO labeling'.

The law also fails to stipulate penalties if found in breach of the law.  
Let's hope that the most probable outcome will be the opposite: food without GMO sourcing will be labelled clearly GMO-free! 

More or less on the same subject, the Ground Reality blog takes a pot shot at the conclusion arrived by Nobel laureates that we all should swallow the GMO pill. 
From IRRI.org (Jun. 23):

'On the subject of genetically engineered foods, this rings true. After years of debate, the prestigious National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has released its verdict: there is no substantiated evidence that food from genetically engineered (GE) crops were less safe than food from non-GE crops'.

Then the Ground Reallity response (Jul. 17):

'But first let’s look at the usual scientific rhetoric that I find is repeated worldwide ad nauseam: “Opposition based on emotion and dogma contradicted by data must be stopped.” Whose data? The data produced by GM companies or the data produced based on the research funded by biotech giants? 

...

To say that scientific and regulatory agencies around the world, which find GM crops as safe as, if not safer than those derived from any other method of production, is a clever ploy to hoodwink public opinion and thereby push harmful and risky crop production technologies.

...

What has to be accepted is that the food crisis the world witness is not because of any shortfall in production. The problem is because of the absence of food justice, which in other words means access and distribution'.

Gold rush no more
The bigger picture is that like many exporting countries, Cambodia is struggling in it's ambitions to gain more market share as the overall world market gives mostly purchasers the power to bargain.
The Phnom Penh Post (Jul. 8) kicks off the concerns:

'Cambodian rice exports decreased nearly 6 per cent year-on-year during the first semester, reinforcing concerns about the future of the rice industry, the Kingdom’s most important agricultural sector.

...

Rice industry experts say the sector is suffering from a number of issues, including competition from low-cost Vietnamese imports, high production costs, and millers’ lack of finance.

According to CRF president Sok Puthyvuth, who was re-elected for a second term last Saturday, the issues have already resulted in between 10 and 20 per cent of the nation’s rice millers declaring bankruptcy'.

The Khmer Times (Jul. 18) chimes in:

'Cambodia’s rice industry has been advised by the European Union (EU) to seek other markets and not just concentrate its exports to Europe, as it moves from a low-income country in its least developed country (LDC) status to a lower-middle income nation, amid calls to cut its EU tariff-free export quotas.

...

According to Oryza, the daily online markets newsletter, Italy is pushing the EU to cut LDC rice imports from Asia to protect the Italian rice market that seems to be getting bigger'.

One way round trade issues is reported by Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 3). Cambodia has asked China to double it's rice imports which as Cambodia is the only country to support China in the South Chinese Sea. Anyway:

'China will also consider increasing the export quota on Cambodian rice to 200,000 tonnes starting in 2017, as well as continuing to negotiate on the exports of broken rice, banana, mango, longan, cashew nut, pepper, coffee and soybean. The current export quota on rice to China is 100,000 tonnes per year.

Ministry spokesperson Soeng Sophary stressed that while the talks were fruitful, no official decisions were made'.

Future for Cambodia's rice not bright? Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 3):

'An industry analyst has issued a dire forecast for Cambodia’s rice sector, claiming the long-grain “white gold” that has been credited with lifting millions of Cambodia’s farmers out of abject poverty, and which seems a natural fit for the Kingdom’s agrarian workforce, is on a downward trajectory.

Jim Plamondon, a former technical evangelist for Microsoft who is developing new marketing strategies for Cambodian rice varieties, says the Kingdom’s rice industry – the lifeblood of its agricultural economy – is headed for a brutal and imminent consolidation'.

Basically lots of policies on rice import and export are based on the once in a lifetime price spike of 7 years ago, something that will not happen in the near future. With prices sluggish or dropping it's traders and millers who most probably have bought at too expensive terms and are facing losses.

Did I hear niche markets? The Khmer Times (Jul. 14):

'As the demand for organic rice in European and United States markets keeps growing, many local rice millers and exporters are moving quickly and signing contract farming deals to supply them with the premium product'.

There's ongoing confusion concerning branding Cambodia's rice. The Phnom Penh Post (Jul. 21) looks to bring clarity in this, but it seems this will not clear itself.

'The private sector’s campaign to develop a single recognisable umbrella brand for Cambodia’s premium varieties of fragrant rice looks increasingly tenuous after a government body voiced objections to the name selected, and argued instead that the country should market each variety of rice under its own individual brand name.'

Warnings
Well, self-explanatory, not only is Cambodia facing a difficult export market. Vietnam's Thanhniennews (Jul. 19):

'Vietnam has reduced its rice export target for the year since demand is falling as many buyers await cheap supply from Thailand’s stock clearance sale.
The Vietnam Food Association (VFA) said it has reduced the export target from 6.5 million tons to 5.65 million tons, Tien Phong newspaper reported'.

The Bangkok Post (Aug. 4):

Thailand's rice market is expected to face a price war next year as a result of oversupply that will lower prices in both domestic and export markets, while the stronger baht could hurt the competitiveness of rice shipments, exporters warn'. 

So no good news for farmers, though the absence of drought would mean better harvests. But with prices set to drop, it's traders who won't be interested in buying as they might face increased losses. So farmers will get stuck.

How should Thailand compete even better? The Bangkok Post (Jul. 27):

'The government is being urged to exercise the powerful Section 44 of the interim charter to cut red tape and speed up sales of state rice stocks'.

Same recipe everywhere ...

Moving on, the Bangkok Post (Jul. 25) has some wider implications of new trade trends:

In 2014, Thailand imported only 593,000 tonnes of wheat.

The figure rose to 3.46 million tonnes in 2015 and will reach an estimated 5 million tonnes this year.

Higher imports have affected domestic prices of maize and tapioca chips in recent years. Wheat imports come at the behest of animal feed producers which are feeding the chicken boom ...

Scape goat
The Bangkok Post (Aug. 2) notes that the nonpolitical trial of the former democratic government by the current junta revolves around the possible loss of what they now estimate as 26 bn Bhat. Though how this figure is arrived at is unsure as previous attempts to pinpoint the exact losses resulted in data that were much higher. 
It also seems that the timing of this is more significant: just a week before a referendum on a new constitution that no political party favours with the outcome that either a new constitution is voted in thereby guaranteeing the junta constitutional influence. Or if not approved by the electorate the junta will also remain; a win-win situation.

Faced with the formal accusations, the former PM responds (Bangkok Post, Aug 5):

'Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra told the Supreme Court on Friday that her loss-ridden rice-pledging programme really helped debt-ridden farmers and the national economy.
...

Ms Yingluck told the court that pledging prices set at 15,000 to 20,000 baht per tonnes were not too high because they were aimed at enabling rice growers to earn equivalent to 300 baht per day -- the same as the daily minimum wage for labourers -- and resolving their chronic indebtedness, she said'.

Seems fair.

Flood

Vientiane Times (Jul. 28) notes that coffee is becoming an alternative crop in the northern province of Phongsaly:

'Phongsaly, long renowned for its green tea, is set to be the nation's first coffee producer in the north after around 3,000 hectares of coffee trees were planted in the province'. 

Apparently this has been going on for a couple of years under Chinese guidance.

Then again, in Cambodia coffee growing is not so positive. The Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 3):

'Samban [director of the Agricultural ministry’s department of industrial crops] attributed the contraction to the impact of recent droughts and the volatility of global coffee prices, as well as a flood of cheap imported coffee into the market.
The shrinking market for locally produced coffee has not discouraged MK Mondulkiri Company, which has found a niche supplying organic Cambodian coffee to the local and international market.
Orn Chanthy, the company’s CEO, said the competition in the coffee retail market was fierce, but many consumers recognise that cheap products are often of inferior quality.
“It is hard to compete on price as coffee can be imported cheaply, though without any assurance of quality,” she said. “There is a lot of fake coffee in the market and some coffee [deceptively] uses the name of our coffee-growing region.”
Chanthy said exports of MK Mondulkiri coffee increased last year, with shipments going to European and Asian buyers, though she declined to provide figures'.

So with China seeking more and more land for banana's, it's no wonder that Cambodia may well be next in line. The Phnom Penh Post (Aug. 2):

'A Chinese agricultural company has agreed to establish a banana plantation in Cambodia, according to a senior government official'.

Info on Mong Reththy Group. Phnom Penh Post (Jul. 18) notes how it will step into the agrofeed mill business:

'Agro-industrial conglomerate Mong Reththy Group is constructing a new $10 million feed mill to supply its own livestock operations as well as the domestic market, the group’s eponymous president and CEO said yesterday'.

While on Jul. 6 the same source focuses on the companies palm oil operations:

'Export of crude palm oil from Mong Reththy Group, the Kingdom’s only active producer, doubled during the first half of the year despite prices showing no indication of improving, a company executive said yesterday'.

Finally the Bangkok Post has put up two video's which highlight award-winning Eastwest Seed business. There's this (Jun. 12) on the business explaining also why they are not so interested in GMO seeds. And this (Jul. 10) about the way that the company is for instance pushing the marigold business.