GRAIN has an important feature on Golden rice, a genetically modified organism which has great institutional support as a variety of rice that through the provision of vitamin A can reach many of those facing a dietary shortage of said vitamin (Wikipedia).
At the same time it seems claims that this is the golden bullet to vitamin A deficiency seem far-fetched and it can't be discounted that the mass of support received, is tied in with companies seeing that acceptance of Golden rice will open the floodgates to more GMO and hybrids being allowed for consumption.
From GRAIN (Apr. 20):
'Applications for the field testing and direct use of Golden Rice, a genetically modified crop touted as the solution to Vitamin A deficiency, is presently filed and awaiting approval from the Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Plant Industry in the PhilippinesAsian peoples’ organizations coming from India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines express deep concern regarding the imminent commercialization of the Golden Rice and other GM crops and its effect to their country’s food security, farmers’ livelihood and environmental health....A recent study made by scientist in India showed that the derived lines of Golden Rice produced phenotypic abnormality and poor agronomic performance making it unfit for commercial cultivation'.
What follows are statements from the many regional partners of GRAIN all equally opposed.
Vetting
Cambodia's rice market is in the doldrums as exports are not adding up. And the culprit is China, so it seems. The Phnom Penh Post (Apr. 5):
'Amid concerns that the European Union could reject shipments of Cambodian rice, exporters are pushing for more access to China as an alternative market for the Kingdom’s principal agricultural commodity.Hun Lak, vice president of the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF), said just 26 Cambodian millers have satisfied China’s sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards, making them eligible to export rice to the Chinese market.However, another 55 millers “have the quality and capacity to export to China” and have requested an inspection by China’s AQSIQ (General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine) to approve their shipments for export'.
Then the Phnom Penh Post (Apr. 19) drops a hint between the conditions set by China and slowing exports of rice:
'Cambodian rice exports declined dramatically in March, causing the average export growth of the Kingdom’s dominant cash crop to increase by only 3 percent during the first quarter of this year, nearly wiping out the double-digit growth seen in January and February.According to rice export data released by the Ministry of Agriculture yesterday, Cambodia exported a total of 166,678 tonnes in the first quarter this year, up from 162,220 tonnes during the same period last year. While growth in January and February accelerated greatly by 11 percent and 17 percent respectively, the weighted average was bogged down by a 16 percent year-on-year decline for March exports.Hun Lak, vice president of the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF), said yesterday that the March declines can be attributed to stricter sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) standards being imposed on shipments to China, Cambodia’s second largest market after the European Union.He added that only 26 Cambodian millers have been granted official approval to export to China with another 55 waiting to be vetted by China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.“A large amount of the millers that used to export to China in the past are no longer able to export there now,” he said. “If the issue over SPS standards cannot be resolved soon, our export figures will continue to decline and this year will not be good.”According to Lak, despite CRF lobbying Cambodian authorities to fast-track negotiations with China to allow increased market access, the body has yet to produce tangible results for its members....Song Saran, CEO of Amru Rice, one of the country’s biggest exporters, raised similar concerns about Chinese market access but noted that the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) preemptively submitted a list of only 18 millers, instead of the allotted 26, to China for the current harvest season.He added that while Amru used to export 7,000 to 8,000 tonnes of rice to China annually in the past, it has yet to be included by the MoC for Chinese clearance.“Now, we are trying to get into the Chinese market to accelerate our rice exports,” he said, adding that reliance on the EU market had reached a saturation point at about 300,000 tonnes exported annually'.
Cambodia's government's answer from the Cambodia Daily (Apr. 21):
'The Agriculture Ministry is working to have more Cambodian rice exporters permitted to sell in China, as exports to the country have almost doubled in a year, according to government reports.A statement by the ministry’s general department of agriculture said 26 Cambodian rice companies had so far received permission to export to China, but there were eight others seeking permission who had been denied because they did not mill their own rice. The statement, released on Wednesday, said the ministry’s Chinese counterparts had not responded to requests for increased access'.
The Phnom Penh Post (Apr. 21) reports on the same:
'After Cambodian rice exports declined dramatically in March, caused by what millers claimed was a stricter enforcement of sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures by the Chinese government, the Ministry of Agriculture announced yesterday that it would lobby on the sector’s behalf to allow more millers to be eligible for export.According to a Facebook post by Hean Vanhan, undersecretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, officials sent a letter to the Chinese government asking for the country to accept rice imports from more than the current 26 that have already been approved. This is the second such letter sent to Chinese officials, according to the ministry.Vanhan in his post asked millers to understand the difficulties the ministry was facing in reaching an agreement for exports'.
As if this is the only problem faced by rice exports, the other main market for Cambodia's rice, the EU, has also set up a target to be met. The Khmer Times (Apr. 10):
'A senior economist from the Asia Development Bank has warned the EU’s ban of Tricyclazole could damage Cambodia's agriculture sector, as farmers rush to eradicate the use of the fungicide by June.The strict new limits on pesticides will mean rice exported to the EU must not contain more than 0.01 milligram of the chemical per kilogram of the grain'.
Tricyclazole, a fungicide, is
'Toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects'.source
Used to contain rice blast, Cambodia's government is hoping that wishful thinking will contain the residues and will not affect the export of rice to the EU. In all honesty, it has also put some policy in place (Xinhua.net, 28-3) but policy execution remains weak within the Kingdom:
Verge'Cambodia has banned the import of fungicide Tricyclazole after the European Commission required the country's milled rice industry to eradicate the use of the pesticide by June'.
Earlier in the month, the Philippines had been called upon as a potential market. The Cambodia Daily (Apr. 11):
'Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Monday he had urged Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to invest more heavily in Cambodia’s rice sector, while also acknowledging the need to lower rice processing costs and find new export markets to boost the competitiveness of Cambodia’s most important crop...."So I request our farmers to produce good rice seeds and to not use any toxins or poisonous substances that can cause damage and loss of market [access],” Mr. Hun Sen said'.
More from the sidelines. The Phnom Penh Post (Apr. 25):
'Thaneakea Srov (Kampuchea) Plc, the recipient of a low-interest $15 million loan from the state-run Rural Development Bank, inked contracts yesterday with three companies to build and outfit its massive 200,000-tonne capacity silo and warehouse facility in Battambang province.The facility, which will have an attached mill capable of processing 3,000 tonnes of paddy rice a day, signed a construction agreement with the Cambodian company NGY Investment. It will also purchase machinery from Taiwan’s Agrosun Co Ltd, and Thailand’s International Rice Engineering Co Ltd, according to an announcement by the Rural Development Bank (RDB) yesterday.Phou Puy, CEO of Thaneakea Srov, said the construction of the facility would begin shortly, with the silo portion expected to be completed by August while the rice mill should be fully operational for the 2018 harvest season.'
And then to wrap up the Cambodian rice news, the consequences of the failing market conditions. The Phnom Penh Post (May 3):
'Numerous members of the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF), the body tasked with lobbying on the sectors behalf, have stopped paying membership dues and export fees, claiming that they cannot afford to as the industry continues to struggle with high production costs and regional export competition.According to the terms of CRF membership, each miller is required to pay $200 annually and an export fee of $0.50 per tonne on white rice and $1 per tonne on fragrant rice.Chray Son, deputy director of Capital Food Cambodia, said that despite the CRF’s efforts to provide relief to its members, the body had achieved little in lobbying the government and instead praised emergency assistance provided by the state-owned Rural Development Bank.Nevertheless, he added that with monthly losses during the current harvest season amounting to $10,000 to $15,000, CRF fees were exorbitant and exploited millers that were on the verge of bankruptcy'.
Purity
The ongoing discussion of Vietnam's rice export strategy continues. From Vietstock (Apr. 25):
'Vietnam may itself be a major rice producer in the 10-member Asean group but the country also has a taste for the Lao grain.In 2013, the value of rice exported from Laos to Vietnam reached over US$5.8 million and increased to US$15.5 million by last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Commerce....In addition, Laos plans to produce about five million tonnes of rice by 2020 to ensure food security in the country.
However, the country is importing rice from Thailand for trading.The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry this year expects to export about 400,000 tonnes of rice and hopes the figure will climb to one million tonnes by 2020.The focus will be on specialty varieties including black rice, kaynoi rice, and hom rice.
New and improved varieties such as thadokkham, thasano, phonngam and hom are also in demand across the region.
The ministry plans to increase yields so that white rice accounts for about 30 percent of the total rice crop and is certified with the Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) standard for export....This year, Xuanye (Lao) Co., Ltd is targeting the export of 20,000 tonnes of rice to China.
In 2015, Xuanye (Lao) Co., Ltd was approved by China’s National Development and Reform Commission to be as yet the sole exporter of rice from Laos to China with a quota of 8,000 tonnes.Laos was unable to meet the deal and was only able to export some 4,000 tonnes of rice including sticky rice and non-glutinous rice.
The Chinese company also ordered 7,200 tonnes of rice last year but producers were unable to supply this amount.
In 2015 and 2016, the country could supply only 5,000 tonnes of rice to China.
This was because the standard required by the Chinese buyers was really high, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce reported'.
The same, more or less from Vietnamnetbridge (Apr. 2):
'Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, director of the Institute for Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, commented that many Vietnamese now don’t eat Vietnam-made rice, priced at just VND10,000 per kilo. The rice products are just for export, not for domestic consumption...While Vietnam focuses on making high-yield and low-cost rice, more and more Vietnamese only want high-quality products. The choosy consumers accept to pay higher prices to buy delicious rice from Thailand, Japan and Cambodia.An analyst said Vietnamese people’s income has improved, so they have become choosier about rice price.“They don’t need much rice; they need high-quality rice,” he commented'.
It's therefore surprising that Bayer are launching hybrid rice with the export market as it's focus. On their own website they report (Apr. 15) on
'... a special event to celebrate the launch of its revolutionary hybrid rice seed variety - Arize Tej Vang'.
It claims:
'“Vietnam is currently the world’s No.2 country in rice export, and there is a continuing need to sustainably increase the nation’s production capacity with better rice seeds so that the country can maintain and even improve its export position in the market. By using Arize Tej Vang, Vietnamese rice farmers can look to achieve higher yields and better grain quality with 7.1mm grain length, and this is proven especially when compared to open-pollinated varieties. Arize Tej Vang will contribute to better yield security and enhanced productivity, which will in turn help to secure the incomes of smallholder farmers in Vietnam,” added Sakata [Kohei Sakata, Managing Director of Bayer Vietnam].With a grain length of 7.1mm, with a grain of rice when processing fragrant, soft and disease resistance BLB, Arize Tej Vang has the potential to compete with the current high quality purebred rice varieties and to improve the quality of Vietnamese rice exports'.
So the argument is for more quality whereas what Bayer-VN have on offer is more lower quality grain. It's claim that it has better quality than open-pollinated varieties seems shaky; as hybrid rice in the past has often been of much lower quality.
What is very disturbing is the suggestion that exporting hybrid rice is the way forward. With consumers worldwide being sceptic towards hybrid rice the possibility of hybrid rice getting mixed with other rice varieties may well cost Vietnam dear.
Break
Surprisingly the tightening of the rubber market is continuing, partially due to Southeast Asian countries willing to step into the market. From the Bangkok Post (Apr. 23):
'Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia are cooperating to ensure stability of world rubber prices, which continue to fluctuate after signs of recovery....They agreed that rubber prices will continue to rise because of several factors, including lower supply due to heavy rainfall and flooding in the South of Thailand. However, the big players in the natural rubber industry see prices as still volatile'.
Naturally this has also resulted in an upswing for rubber in Cambodia (Phnom Penh Post, Apr. 27)
'Cambodian rubber exports increased 32 percent during the first three months of the year compared with the same period last year, while prices grew 132 percent during the first quarter, an agriculture official said yesterday.The Kingdom exported 32,000 tonnes of rubber in the first quarter of 2017 with average prices reaching $2,032 per tonne, compared to $890 in the first quarter of 2016, according to Pol Sopha, general director of the General Directorate for rubber at the Ministry of Agriculture.“We already surpassed the break-even point for rubber and I think that rubber producers will be able to accumulate profit and increase their yields for the next production cycle,” he said. “We project that rubber prices will continue to increase this year due to the increasing demand from the international market.”...Heng Sreng, director of local rubber firm Long Sreng International, said the industry also faced the challenge of high logistic costs for transportation and electricity costs for production.“We are faced with the high cost of production, and that is our biggest challenge,” he said. “Compared to neighbouring countries, they provide better tax incentives to allow the sector to survive.”'
More good news for farmers in Cambodia, cashew prices are also on the up. The Phnom Penh Post (May 4):
Blooming'International commodity prices for cashew nuts are rapidly increasing due to lower supply from Cambodia and Vietnam which is driving up profits for the Kingdom’s farmers, according to industry stakeholders.The shortfalls of cashew supply into the global market have decreased by around 40 percent this quarter due to lower production in Cambodia and Vietnam, although demand has not diminished....Chhiv Ngy, director of the Cashew Nut Association of Kampong Thom, said that the current market for cashew nuts greatly benefited the country’s farmers, pushing their revenues to $10,000 per hectare.“The cashew nut market is doing great and we have a lot of buyers coming to buy directly from us,” he said, adding that the association was comprised of around 4,000 farmers'.
Wrapping up, two linkages to articles touching on rural development in the region.
In Lao, there's some sound bytes on organics. The Vientiane Times (Apr. 21):
'Expanding clean agriculture production to supply market demands together with improved international market access can serve to catalyse growth in the Lao organic produce sector, an audience including the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry was told yesterday....Mr Vilaysouk [Director General of Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry] noted registration of 39 companies and farmer groups with 2,785 families under the relevant organic agricultural registration scheme.The current area dedicated to growing the organic agricultural is around 7,984 hectares, covering the capital and the provinces of Vientiane, Luang Prabang, Xieng Khuang, Oudomxay, Savannakhet, Champassak and Xayaboury, with yield estimated at 3,375 tonnes per year.Meanwhile, the members of the Lao GAP now number some 15 farmer groups with more than 500 families, and area for GAP is around 1,400 hectares, in the capital and the provinces of Vientiane, Khammuan, Savannakhet and Champassak.Vientiane organic agriculture group has several distribution venues across the city.That Luang village in Xaysettha district hosts organic markets Wednesday and Saturday mornings weekly.A similar range of produce can be found at Fa Ngum Park in Sikhottabong district, every Monday and Thursday afternoons and at Huayhong Market in Chanthabouly district every Saturday morning'.
Phnom Penh Post (Apr. 7):
'Experts from the Institute of Standards of Cambodia (ISC) inspected Chinese-owned Rui Feng sugar company’s factory this week after suspicions that its runoff had caused last month’s mass fish deaths in Preah Vihear.ISC director Chan Borin said yesterday that their team launched an investigation that lasted for two days as the factory was suspected by the local community of releasing waste into the Stung Sen River.The factory, however, was found to have its own reservoir for waste storage, so the team went to the river for further investigation.“We measured and tested the oxygen at the site and we figured that the water lacks oxygen, [so] the fish could not breathe and died . . . The level of oxygen is very low,” Borin said.He added that the sugarcane waste would not have caused oxygen shortage as the “fish in the [waste] reservoir were alive”.He suspected that plant decay had led to algal blooms, which deprive the river of oxygen'.
