Indian rice export prices extended gains this week on robust demand, while those in Vietnam hit more than five-month highs as China’s move to ease coronavirus restrictions is expected to boost shipments from the country.

Top exporter India’s 5% broken parboiled variety was quoted at $375 to $382 per tonne, up from the last week’s $374 to $380 range. Gains were however curbed by rising supplies from new-season crops.

B.V. Krishna Rao, president of the Rice Exporters Association, said export demand for parboiled rice is better than for white rice, adding that Indian prices are very competitive.

Vietnam’s 5% broken rice was offered at $458 per tonne free on board on Thursday, the highest since mid July, from $448-$453 a week ago.

According to traders, Vietnam is likely to benefit from China’s move to ease its coronavirus restrictions, which could boost shipments of the staple to the country.

Rice exports from Vietnam in 2022 are estimated to have risen 15.7% to 7.22 million tonnes, according to government data released on Thursday.

December rice exports from Vietnam are estimated at 550,000 tonnes, valued at $283 million.

Asia rice: More exports, stronger baht send Thai rates to over 6-month high

Meanwhile, Thailand’s 5% broken rice prices were quoted at $452-$465 per tonne on Thursday, a 2022 high, versus last week’s $452-$460 range. The peak in export prices was due to the strong baht, one trader said.

A Bangkok-based trader said however that price movement was muted overall as farmers and mills reduced activity for the holidays, while noting that supply would not be an issue to meet new demand.

He highlighted that when prices are on an upwards trajectory, millers would buy more to stock up in anticipation of higher prices in future.

“Exports next year should be better, the market will do better,” he said, adding that shipments were being made to Indonesia.

The agriculture ministry is promoting a strain that has higher yields and can be harvested over several years without the need for replantingResearchers say perennial rice can be more cost-effective to produce and is potentially better for the environment

The Chinese government is trying to encourage farmers to plant a new rice variety that can be harvested for several years without reseeding.

A list of favoured varieties produced last month by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs included a strain of perennial rice with twice the yield of traditional strains.

The variety is the world’s only commercially viable perennial grain, according to BGI Research, a Shenzhen-based company that took part in a joint venture with Yunnan University to develop the strain.

Compared with most rice crops, which have to be replanted each year, perennial rice is cheaper and less labour intensive to produce, and scientists say it can also be better for the environment.

Liu Huan, the chief scientist at BGI Research, said perennial rice was revolutionary.

“There are many areas where mechanised farming is not available or there are labour shortages, or where much of the land is underused,” he said.

“With this rice variety, we can make good use of abandoned farmland, so the ministry of agriculture is very supportive about promoting the variety.”

Scientists first came up with the concept of a grain that could produce crops for years without the need for replanting in the 1930s. But it was not until the 1980s that researchers started to make progress on the concept, with experimental varieties of wheat, corn and rice being produced around the world.

The strain promoted by the agriculture ministry was developed by Hu Fengyi, a professor at Yunnan University’s Agriculture College.

It was first made available to farmers in the southwestern province in 2018 and it has a yield of about 15 tonnes per hectare – more than twice the average for conventional strains, according to the China Rice Data Centre.

Meanwhile, perennial rice can reduce production input costs by more than 50 per cent, according to Hu’s research, and simplify crop management.

A preprint study published on Research Square found that the cost of producing perennial rice was about the same as that of annual varieties in the first year, but because it does not need seeding, planting and ploughing in subsequent years, farmers can save up to US$1,400 a season.

Laura van der Pol, an ecologist at Colorado State University, said perennial grains could help make food production more sustainable and reduce many of the “disservices” introduced by agriculture.

“Perennials reduce [soil] erosion in a couple of ways,” she said. “They reduce soil disturbances because plants are left in place to grow for multiple years, thus there is less mechanical disturbance by farm equipment.”

Roots growing in the soil year-round also help to maintain and restore soil structure, she said, adding that perennials also reduce weeds after plants are mature, promoting soil biodiversity and the accumulation of organic soil matter.

But van der Pol noted that perennial grains also help crop pests or soil pathogens to accumulate over time, so some sort of rotation or measures such as growing the rice alongside another crop – a process known as intercropping – will still be necessary.

In April, BGI Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Yunnan University, and the two parties established a joint venture focusing on the promotion and industrialisation of perennial rice.

So far, perennial rice has been planted at 117 locations in southern China, covering an area of more than 400 acres. It has also been promoted to 17 Asian and African countries, including Uganda, Ethiopia, Laos, Myanmar and Bangladesh, according to BGI.

“China produces a quarter of the world’s grain with less than 10 per cent of its arable land. When we consider the potential savings, enhanced yields as well as environmental benefits, perennial rice can be truly revolutionary for farmers,” Liu said.

A rice yield of about 1,136 kg per mu (approximately 0.067 hectares) was recorded on demonstration farmland in east China's Anhui Province, a major rice-producing region of the country, according to researchers from the Anhui Agricultural University.

The rice cultivation technique utilized by the research team has been shown to withstand seasonal high temperatures and drought.

The demonstration farmland saw an improvement in both the quantity and quality of rice as a result of the green, efficient, high yield and cost-saving cultivation methods during this year's extreme high-temperature climate conditions, said Zhang Xiufu, a researcher with the China National Rice Research Institute.

The farmland also achieved a 10 percent reduction in nitrogen.

HEFEI, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- A rice yield of about 1,136 kg per mu (approximately 0.067 hectares) was recorded on demonstration farmland in east China's Anhui Province, a major rice-producing region of the country, according to researchers from the Anhui Agricultural University.

The rice cultivation technique utilized by the research team has been shown to withstand seasonal high temperatures and drought.

The demonstration farmland saw an improvement in both the quantity and quality of rice as a result of the green, efficient, high yield and cost-saving cultivation methods during this year's extreme high-temperature climate conditions, said Zhang Xiufu, a researcher with the China National Rice Research Institute.

Aerial photo taken on Oct 13, 2022 shows a harvester working at a paddy field in Xiaozhan Town of Jinnan District in north China's Tianjin. Xiaozhan rice, which is a popular rice variety in China, is originated in Xiaozhan Town of Tianjin. Lately Xiaozhan rice has entered its harvest season. Photo:Xinhua

Aerial photo taken on Oct 13, 2022 shows a harvester working at a paddy field in Xiaozhan Town of Jinnan District in north China's Tianjin. Xiaozhan rice, which is a popular rice variety in China, is originated in Xiaozhan Town of Tianjin. Lately Xiaozhan rice has entered its harvest season. Photo:Xinhua

Photo taken on Oct 13, 2022 shows a harvester working at a paddy field in Xiaozhan Town of Jinnan District in north China's Tianjin. Xiaozhan rice, which is a popular rice variety in China, is originated in Xiaozhan Town of Tianjin. Lately Xiaozhan rice has entered its harvest season. Photo:Xinhua

Newly-harvested rice is loaded onto a truck at Xiaozhan Town of Jinnan District, north China's Tianjin, Oct 13, 2022. Xiaozhan rice, which is a popular rice variety in China, is originated in Xiaozhan Town of Tianjin. Lately Xiaozhan rice has entered its harvest season. Photo:Xinhua

The output of salt-tolerant rice, or better known as "seawater rice" initiated by China's "Father of Hybrid Rice" —the late Yuan Longping reached a new high, with the average yield of the salt tolerant conventional rice surpassing 691.8 kilograms per mu (0.06 hectares).

The Global Times learnt from the Qingdao Saline-Alkali Tolerant Rice Research and Development Center that the Qingdao-based test field of salt tolerant conventional rice variety that survives under 4‰ sodium chloride (NaCl) for the whole growth duration has yield 691.8 kilograms per mu, exceeding its previous average output.

The test planting field was 0.34‰ in salinity, and its pH value was 7.9. The tested rice and the control varieties were irrigated with 4‰ salt water during their whole growth period. Two tested rice plots respectively yielded 608.9 kilograms per mu and 691.8 kilograms per mu, the center said.

Wan Jili, director of the technology R&D department of the center, told the Global Times on Thursday that reaching 691.8 kilograms per mu is quite an achievement for salt tolerant conventional rice variety. Great potential lies ahead.

In 2017, a hybrid saline-alkali tolerant rice that was irrigated with 6‰ salt water yielded 620.95 kilograms per mu. Because the hybrid rice generally yields more than conventional rice, so the newly-tested salt tolerant conventional rice variety that survives under 4‰ NaCl can reach such high output is quite significant, Wan noted.

Developed by China's "Father of Hybrid Rice" — the late Yuan Longping, the"seawater rice" is a major breakthrough in China's efforts to expand rice output. Yuan's goal was to improve 100 million mu of wasted soil by planting saline-alkali tolerant rice.

In recent years, the team continues to make breakthroughs in salt-tolerant rice output, with its yield in 2019 reaching 295.9 kilograms per mu, in 2021 it rose to 590.6 kilograms per mu, and then in 2022 the maximum yield of salt tolerant conventional rice variety that survives under 4‰ NaCl reached 691.8 kilograms per mu.

In the past 10 years, China's saline-alkali tolerant rice has achieved a leap, starting from scratch to reaching the currently large-scale plantation.

By the end of 2021, China's saline-alkali tolerant rice planting area has reached 600,000 mu, distributed in more than 10 provinces such as Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, East China's Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In 2022, China's saline-alkali tolerant rice planting area will exceed 1 million mu, according to the center.

“Heilongjiang is one of the most important contributors to China’s grain production. It is known as China’s grain barn and produces about 11 percent of its food. I was told that one in nine bowls of rice in the country is produced here in Heilongjiang. Agricultural modernization “This year, I was lucky to join the farmers during harvest time, and see for myself how China puts food on millions of people’s tables. It’s a bumper harvest in northeast China, and a busy season for farmers in Tailai County. They’ve already begun harvesting. Rice is the main crop here. Tailai Farm was established in 1948. Through decades of development, it has grown into a modern agricultural base. From sowing, to reaping, to fertilization, the process is done almost entirely by machines. But the secret to producing good quality rice remains unchanged. The key ingredients are fertile soil, suitable temperatures, and river irrigation. And also, a love of the land. SUN TIANYUAN Tailai Farm, Heilongjiang Province “Ensuring that 1.4 billion people have food on their table remains a priority for China. The country has managed to feed one fifth of the world’s population with less than nine percent of the world’s arable land. China’s annual grain yield has reached over 650 million tons for seven years in a row. That means each person in this country has about 480 kilograms of food every year, which is significantly above the world average.” Chinese President Xi Jinping, also General Secretary of the CPC, visited Heilongjiang in 2018. He emphasized that China needs to grow its own grains to secure its rice bowl. That’s exactly what the province has been doing over the decades. It’s certainly playing a significant role in guaranteeing national food security. And it will continue to do so as the bedrock of the country’s food security.

Securing China’s rice bowls is the result of decades of hard work as well as scientific and technological advances. Experts and farmers have worked together to improve the seeds and varieties. Automated machines and satellite navigation have also helped ease farming. To understand rice production from the roots to the shoots, I talked to Yang Shilai, a farmer who started work here back in the 90s. Agricultural modernization,  I asked him how farming has evolved over the years. YANG SHILAI Tailai Farmer “I have been working here for more than 30 years since 1987. The yields of the farm per unit area has increased from around 200 kilograms to over 700 kilograms. Agricultural modernization, The astounding output should be attributed to both the development of technology and high spirits of the farmers. Thanks to the advanced technology, now an average person can farm over 1000 unit areas of land, a sheer increase from the 30 unit areas of land in the past. Now the mechanisation of farming has reached a high level and in the future, fulled automated farming can be realized.” Mr Yang shared with me how his son came back to the farm three years ago, and continues to help him to this day, something he hopes he’ll keep up, long after Mr Yang retires. YANG SHILAI Tailai Farmer “Two generations of farmers have devoted themselves in farming here and I am one of the second generation. I’m attached to this piece of land and so does my son. I think in this vast land, great things can be achieved by my son. I sincerely hope that he can carry on the spirits of the previous two generation of farmers and take the output of grains to new heights.” SUN TIANYUAN Tailai Farm, Heilongjiang Province “For more on China’s grain production and food security, let’s go to my colleague Huang Yue who is also at the farm.”

HUANG YUE Tailai Farm, Heilongjiang Province “Thank you Tianyuan. Mr. Yang’s story is really touching. In fact, as someone who was born and raised in east of China, this is also the first time for me to see such vast paddy fields, and I’m very honored to be joined by Mr. Zhao Zhongchen and Mr. Yin Long, managers of the Tailai Farm. Thank you gentlemen for joining us.” In 2018, Chinese President and General Secretary of the CPC Xi Jinping visited Jiansanjiang, and he said it’s not an easy task for Beidahuang to be built like what we see today. As one of the farms built even before the founding of the People’s Republic of China, what has Tailai experienced over the past decades? YIN LONG General Manager Tailai Farm, Heilongjiang Province “As one of the 115 farming and ranching companies of Beidahuang Group, Tailai Farm has experienced four development periods. The first period is the stage of initial construction, when the farm became one of the first batch of state-owned farms of Beidahuang Group; The second period is a time for continuous development, during which a comprehensive farm encompassing agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishing industry was built; The third period is about reform and opening up, when agricultural modernization was accelerated; The fourth period is to carry out the enterprise reform and to build an organic rice farm in the new era.” HUANG YUE Tailai farm, Heilongjiang Province “During his visit, President Xi said the soil in Beidahuang should be continuously optimized, not degraded. Agricultural development should be sustainable, because we cannot drain the pond to get all the fish. What has Tailai done to promote sustainable agricultural development?” ZHAO ZHONGCHEN Senior Agronomist, Tailai Farm “Tailai Farm closely follows the black soil protection standards issued by Beidahuang Group. We promote no-tillage seeding techniques in dry fields, and a straw returning technique in paddy fields. We use organic fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizer to enhance soil fertility, improve the organic content of the soil, and protect the invaluable black soil.”

Farmers in Lancang County, southwest China's Yunnan Province have embraced an innovative way of cultivate rice paddies, which experts say is significant in promoting food security.

The new cultivation method has seen the farmers realize a bumper harvest. Earlier this week, in the village of Haozhiba, the highest yield reached 788.9 kilograms per mu, equal to some 11,833.5 kilograms per hectare. Meanwhile, the average yield is about 10,417.5 kilograms per hectare, much higher than that cultivated the traditional way.

The program aims to grow rice on non-irrigated dry land and is led by renowned plant pathologist Zhu Youyong, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE).

A farmer harvests rice cultivated on dry land for the first time. Yang Jinghao/CGTN

This year, some 33,000 hectares of rice were grown this way across Yunnan, with 1,800 hectares in Lancang, which shares a border with Myanmar. Rice was even planted on some hillsides.

"In the beginning, I was skeptical about the feasibility of the practice and didn't expect much. But it surprisingly turned out to be a bump​er harvest. Besides self-sufficiency, we can probably sell some of it. I'm really happy," said local villager Liu Shibao.

Liu said that, before this, they would grow some upland rice, but the yield was low, and they needed to buy rice from the market almost every year.

Zhu told CGTN that the method has made rice cultivation a lot easier, as some procedures including seedling raising and transplanting are not needed.

He added that it makes mechanized farming more convenient and efficient, as all work – from sowing, fertilization to harvesting – is conducted on non-irrigated farmland.

"Another advantage is that it's conducive for the development of water-efficient agriculture," said Zhu, who took the experiment in Haozhiba as an example.

"We didn't irrigate the farmland at all and just relied on rainfall. This type of farming is very suitable in areas with insufficient water."

Zhu Youyong (C) talks to Lancang County villagers about the program. Yang Jinghao/CGTN

According to Zhu and his team from Yunnan Agricultural University, two key issues were addressed before their trials finally saw breakthroughs.

First, they took advantage of hybridization to make tillering in dry land as good as in paddy fields.

Another challenge for the team is that there are a lot more weeds in dry land than in paddies, which also grow faster. Zhu said through years of experiments, they have developed a new technology that can eliminate the weeds at the initial stage while not harming the rice seedlings.

In late September, dozens of experts from CAE visited the county and evaluated the program. Many said the innovative cultivation method would play an important role in ensuring food security when implemented on a larger scale. And this is also what Zhu has strived for.

Since 2015, the scientist has been dedicated to helping Lancang, which is mainly inhabited by people of the Lahu ethnic group, to shake off poverty by cultivating special products suitable for local natural conditions. And he has been dubbed a "farmer academician".

"I'll try my best to do more for them. I'll research what the farmers need so that they can live a better life," Zhu told CGTN, stressing that technological innovation will be the biggest driving force for rural development.

As for the rice program, he hopes that local governments can encourage more people to engage in it by providing them with related training and subsidies.

(Li Qiu, Li Wenqiang and Yuan Lan from the Lancang County Multimedia Center contributed to this report.

With the help of smart farming, the traditional rice brand, Xiaozhan Rice, in north China's Tianjin has revived in recent years.

Researchers have explored ways to integrate multiple devices into one platform to help farmers monitor crop growth and make decisions, according to Xu Xingang, principal researcher of a smart farming project and researcher from the National Engineering Research Center for Information Technology in Agriculture (NERCITA).

"We use satellites, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and portable devices to help with this," Xu told CGTN. "A single development of one device is not rare, it is hard to combine multi-devices into one to serve farmers with the lowest cost and the best effectiveness." 

Xu said that with the help of China's Gaofen satellites, remote sensing images with high spatial and temporal resolution have made it possible to monitor the process of crop growth.

Maps of Xiaozhan Rice derived from the Gaofen satellite images from 2019 to 2021. /NERCITA

Flying in the sky, the UAVs helps monitor and assess seedling condition, nutrition status and lodging in rice. "Equipped with high-resolution multispectral cameras and laser radar, the UAV-based technology can help save 5 to 12 percent nitrogen fertilizers," said Xu.

Xu said his team has also developed a portable instrument to help with monitoring for smaller farms. Key crop growth indicators, such as leaf area index, fractional vegetation cover and chlorophyll content, can be measured with the device. It can help recommend the amount of nitrogen fertilizer and predict yield to farmers, Xu said.

The portable instrument for monitoring crop health (the upper three images), its working mode, a prescription map for fertilization and a map to forecast yield (the lower three images). /NERCITA

Using these technologies, two demonstration farms have been established, with a total of 5500 mu (around 367 hectares). They have also offered technical training to 150 personnel to better serve farmers. 

Big data-driven dynamic monitoring system for smart farming. /NERCITA

Traditional rice brand get 'rejuvenated'

Xiaozhan Rice is an old brand. The rice originated from Xiaozhan Town in Jinnan District, Tianjin. The town had been a place of strategic importance and an army was stationed there in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The troop training in the town made the place famous and it was the only Chinese town marked on maps published in Europe and the United States in the late 19th century. It created the country's first new-style army based on a modern military system, with soldiers equipped with modern weapons and equipment, according to a report by Xinhua News Agency.

Xiaozhan Rice was bred based on the original rice and other high-quality rice genes with the rise of troop training in the town. Nowadays, the breeding of Xiaozhan Rice uses a combination of traditional agricultural techniques and new technologies.

Since 2018, Tianjin launched a campaign with methods including exploring digital technology into the planting and injecting funds into rice planting.

In addition, efforts were made to new rice breeds. Several high-yield, high-quality varieties have been cultivated, such as Jinyuan U99, Jindao 919 and Jinchuan No.1, which were marked by features like resilience to diseases and pests, drought and salinization.

Xiaozhan Rice in in north China's Tianjin Municipality. /Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of Tianjin Municipality

Farmers have also used their rice fields to breed crabs, shrimp and fish, with the crabs fertilizing the paddy soil and larvae in the field providing green feed for crabs.

At present, the planting area of the rice has grown from over 300,000 mu (20,000 hectares) in 2016 to more than 1 million mu (around 66,700 hectares) for two consecutive years, according to the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of Tianjin Municipality.

"We've established 100,000 mu (6,670 hectares) standardized demonstration areas for rice seedling raising and cultivation till now," said Wang Haiyuan, an official at the committee's Planting Administration Office.

"Using standardized production technology, the yield per mu of the rice increased by more than 10 percent, the amount of nitrogen fertilizer reduced by more than 20 percent, and the amount of pesticide reduced by more than 30 percent," Wang told CGTN.

Farmers across China are embracing the autumn harvest. In recent years, technological innovation has become a driving force for rural development. In a once impoverished area in southwest China's Yunnan Province, locals are reaping the benefits of some of these advances first hand. Yang Jinghao reports from Yunnan.

Farmers in this town in Lancang County are harvesting paddy rice. It's the first time that they have cultivated the crop in a different way – growing it in dry farmland instead of paddy fields.

Before that, they had mainly bought the major staple food from market.

LIU SHIBAO Farmer, Lancang County "In the beginning, I was skeptical about the feasibility of the practice and didn't expect much. But it surprisingly turns out a bumper harvest. Besides self-sufficiency, we can probably sell some of it. I'm really happy."

This program is led by Zhu Youyong, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

After years of experiments by his team, some 33,000 hectares of paddy rice was grown this way across Yunnan. Some is even planted on hillsides.

Zhu says the method has made cultivation a lot easier, as some procedures like seedling raising are not needed.

ZHU YOUYONG Academic, China Academy of Engineering "Another advantage is that it's conducive for the development of water-efficient agriculture. Take the rice fields here for example, we didn't irrigate them at all and just relied on rainfall. This type of farming is very suitable in areas with insufficient water."

YANG JINGHAO Lancang County, Yunnan "China is both a big producer and consumer of grain. Zhu says this initiative will not only help farmers increase their income; it will also play an active role in ensuring food security."

Initial measurement shows that the yield is about 9,000 kilos per hectare, outweighing that planted in paddy fields.

Zhu says that two key issues were addressed during the process. One is how to make tillering possible in non-irrigated land.

ZHU YOUYONG Academic, China Academy of Engineering "Another problem is that there are a lot more weeds in dry land than in paddy fields, and they also grow faster. With years of experiments, we've developed a new technology that can eliminate the weeds at the beginning."

Zhu is a renowned plant pathologist. Since 2015, he has been dedicated to helping the county bordering Myanmar shake off poverty. He says technological innovation is the key to the sustainable development of the vast rural areas after the elimination of extreme poverty.

The scientist says he hopes his methods can be promoted to more areas and even foreign countries to benefit more people.

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Zhu Xudong)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Zhu Xudong)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Zhu Xudong)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Zhu Xudong)

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 24, 2022 shows paddy fields at a rice planting demonstration zone in Dawang Town of Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area has a long history of rice cultivation. Located near Baiyangdian Lake, the largest wetland ecosystem in northern China, Anxin County has exceptional irrigation advantage in rice planting. In recent years, Anxin County has adopted rice-fish and rice-crab co-culture modes to build a modern eco-agriculture demonstration zone. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

China’s early rice output saw a 0.4-percent increase this year as government support policies paid off, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday. The output reached 28.12 million tonnes, up 106,000 tonnes from the level in 2021, according to the NBS. Since the beginning of this year, the government has taken multiple measures to stabilize double-cropping rice production, including raising the minimum purchase price of rice and increasing incentives for major grain-producing counties, said Wang Guirong, a senior official with the NBS. Due to unfavorable weather conditions from May to June this year, the per unit area yield of early rice decreased 0.1 percent year on year, Wang added. A bumper summer harvest and a stable early rice production have laid a good foundation for grain harvest this year and provided solid support for stabilizing the economic fundamentals, Wang said.

Despite persisting drought, Cao Liming, a 50-year-old farmer in east China’s Jiangxi Province, is still looking forward to a bumper harvest this year.

Cao contracts about 12.7 hectares of farmland in Zhouxi Township of Duchang County, where the irrigation water source relies mainly on Poyang Lake, China’s largest freshwater lake.

However, starting July, a combination of hot weather and low precipitation has swept across south China. Poyang Lake officially entered this year’s dry season on Aug. 6, the earliest date since records started in 1951 and 69 days earlier than the average starting date between 2003 and 2021.

Drought conditions have reduced the water area of the lake by around 75 percent. As of 10 a.m. Thursday, the total water area of the lake registered 737 square km, 2,203 square km less than that of the same period last year, according to the Jiangxi provincial water resources department.

Jiangxi is one of China’s 13 major rice-producing areas, and the area around Poyang Lake is the province’s main grain-producing area. To stabilize grain yields, strengthening water diversion and irrigation has become a priority task.

Standing on the embankment of the Xiaoyang farming area, which is adjacent to Poyang Lake, Yu Guopeng, head of Zhouxi Township, noted that the water surface of the lake had retreated to about 300 meters away, leaving water plants and riverbeds exposed.

“When Poyang Lake has rich waters, we directly pump water to the irrigation pumping station and then to paddy fields,” said Yu. “Now we have to dig canals in the dry riverbeds to divert the lake water first to the canal and then to the station.”

“We spent five days digging the canal and then drew the lake water to it with eight pumps running day and night,” said Yu. “The solution has guaranteed irrigation water for more than 333 hectares of farmland in the Xiaoyang farming area.”

Zhouxi Township is just an epitome of the province’s overall efforts to combat the drought. Weather forecasts show that heatwaves will continue to blaze across Jiangxi in the coming week, while the water level of Poyang Lake is expected to continue its downward trend.

Many areas in Jiangxi stored water in advance to cope with potential drought. “Despite suffering severe drought, we have been working to ensure sufficient irrigation water. We expect a bumper harvest,” said Cao.
Source: Xinhua

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 11, 2022 shows a view of a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Xinhua/Yang Ying)

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 11, 2022 shows reapers harvesting hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Xinhua/Yang Ying)

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 11, 2022 shows reapers harvesting hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province. (Xinhua/Yang Ying)

A reaper harvests hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 11, 2022. (Photo by Yang Yun/Xinhua)

Villagers harvest hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 11, 2022. (Xinhua/Yang Ying)

A villager harvests hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 11, 2022. (Photo by Luo Hui/Xinhua)

A villager dries hybrid rice seeds at a hybrid rice seed production base in Zhouping Village of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Aug. 11, 2022. (Photo by Tang Peng/Xinhua)

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 12, 2022 shows rice fields in Jingzi Township of Shuangfeng County, central China's Hunan Province. (Photo by Li Jianxin/Xinhua)

Aerial photo taken on Aug. 12, 2022 shows a reaper harvesting rice in Tongliang Village of Shuangfeng County, central China's Hunan Province. (Photo by Li Jianxin/Xinhua)

A reaper harvests rice in Tongliang Village of Shuangfeng County, central China's Hunan Province, Aug. 12, 2022. (Photo by Li Jianxin/Xinhua)

A farmer airs reaped grain in Tongliang Village of Shuangfeng County, central China's Hunan Province, Aug. 12, 2022. (Photo by Li Jianxin/Xinhua)

PHNOM PENH, Aug. 3 (Xinhua) -- Cambodia exported 169,766 tons of milled rice to China in the first seven months of 2022, earning 89 million U.S. dollars in revenue, the Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF) said on Wednesday.

China remained the largest buyer of Cambodia's rice, followed by the European Union, the CRF said in a news release, adding that China accounted for 48.3 percent of Cambodia's total rice export volume during the January-July period.

CRF President Song Saran said China is a big market for Cambodian rice and the country hopes to export more rice to China.

"The RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) will further ease trade in goods between Cambodia and China as well as other participating countries," he told Xinhua.

"This mega regional trade pact provides a greater market access for Cambodia's products, and I think it will attract more foreign investors to invest in various sectors, including in the rice industry, in order to export finished products to those RCEP countries, with preferential tariffs," he added.

According to the CRF, Cambodia exported a total of 350,902 tons of milled rice to 56 countries and regions in the first seven months of this year, up 13 percent year-on-year, generating 218 million U.S. dollars in revenue. 

BEIJING: Pakistan’s rice export to China in the first six months of this year is worth around US$345 million, compared with the US$ 258 million in the same period last year, according to the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC).

Pakistan’s rice exports witnessed a 23% growth in the fiscal year 2021-2022 and reached US$2.511 billion compared with the US$2.041 billion in the fiscal year 2020-2021.

As per official statistics, Pakistan exported 4.877 million tonnes of rice in the fiscal year 2021-22 against 3.684 million tonnes in the fiscal year 2020-2021, showing a growth of 32.35%. Over the last couple of years, areas under rice cultivation have been on the rise.

The crop was sown on 3,537 thousand hectares, showing an increase of 6.1% against 3,335 thousand hectares last year.

The record high output of rice stood at 9.323 million tonnes during 2021-2022, higher by 10.7% than the previous year’s production of 8.420 million tonnes, China Economic Net (CEN) reported.

In addition to the increase in acreage, the increase in rice production is another important factor contributing to the surge in Pakistan rice exports.

The renewal of good varieties and the use of advanced technology are essential factors to promote high yields. Hybrid rice from China has replaced some backward local varieties.

Longping South Asia Seed R&D Centre has bred high-yield varieties with strong stress resistance in Pakistan, the yield of which is as high as 150 monz/ac. Shahzad Ali Malik, Chairman of the Pakistan Hi-Tech Hybrid Seed Association (PHHSA) maintained that the regular use of high-tech hybrid seeds in agriculture could contribute a lot to achieving an ambitious US$35 billion export target with a slogan of Grow More- Export More.

Long Chunjiu, Chief Scientist of the R&D Centre said in a recent interview that Pakistan has a great potential for rice export, in which hybrid rice seeds can play a critical role.

High-tech hybrid seeds are producing double yield[s] as compared to other conventional seeds.

In Pakistan, almost 200 hybrids are approved/recommended by the variety evaluation committee. More than 60 hybrids are available on the market. If high-tech hybrid seeds are applied to all major crops, it will help a lot to achieve our ambitious export targets, said Abdul Rasheed, a PHHSA member.

In addition to the increase in Pakistan’s rice exports to China, the cooperation between China and Pakistan in the field of rice seeds has also intensified progressively.

Long believes that China-Pakistan seed industry cooperation is of great significance.
We should make better use of local germplasm resources such as Basmati and give full play to local high-quality meteorological conditions to help locals achieve grain self-sufficiency and export foreign exchange earnings; through the cooperation platform between the two countries, China’s domestic seed companies can cooperate and develop with local enterprises with solid strength to provide high-quality technical services and varieties and improve local farmers passion for planting, he explained.

While continuing to work on breeding high-yield hybrid rice for stress resistance, Long Chunqiu is also working on breeding hybrid Basmati varieties and japonica rice.

Country becomes one of major broken rice suppliers

BEIJING:

Pakistan’s rice export to China crossed $277.56 million in the first five months of FY22, up 9.73% year on year.

Pakistan remained one of the major broken rice suppliers to China, according to the official data from the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC).

Pakistan Embassy in Beijing Commercial Counsellor Badaruz Zaman said that currently broken rice, especially Irri-6, Irri-9 and semi or wholly milled rice are the main varieties exported to China, while traders still need to work hard to capture the Chinese market for Basmati and other top varieties.

“Last year, China imported 973,000 tons of rice worth $437 million from Pakistan. Seven new rice exporters of Pakistan have been added to the approved list, which has risen to 53,” he said.

“China relaxed import restrictions on Pakistani rice, which helped increase export to China.”

He believes that within a few years Pakistan will become the largest rice exporter to China.

THE ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED ON THE CHINA ECONOMIC NET

BEIJING: Pakistan’s export of rice to China crossed $277.56 million in the first five months of Financial Year 2021-2022, up 9.73 percent year-on-year bases. Pakistan remained one of the major broken rice suppliers to China, according to the official data from the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC).

Badar uz Zaman, Commercial Counselor of the Pakistani Embassy in Beijing, said that currently broken rice, especially IRRI-6, IRRI-9, and semi or wholly milled rice were the main varieties of rice exported to China while Basmati and other top varieties still need to work hard to capture the Chinese market.

“Last year, China imported 973,000 tons of rice worth $437 million from Pakistan. Seven new Pakistan rice exporters have been added to the approved list, which has risen to 53 in 2021. China relaxed import restrictions on Pakistani rice which helped rice export to China”, Badar mentioned.

He believes that within a few years Pakistan will become the largest rice exporter to China, CEN reported.

In the first five months, broken rice, commodity code (10064080), crossed about $42 million, an increase of nearly 865.26% as compared with last year, which was $4.32 million. Semi or wholly milled rice, commodity code (10063020), reached $132 million, according to GACC data received by Pakistan.
Badar Uz Zaman said that Pakistan was using traditional and especially social media platforms here to create awareness about Pakistani rice in the Chinese market.

JAKARTA: Indonesia plans to export rice to China, Brunei and Saudi Arabia soon, Agriculture Minister, Syahrul Yasin Limpo, said.

Despite having a high domestic rice production capacity, the government will limit the annual export volume to 100,000 tonnes, reported the Antara news agency.

Syahrul said priority is for the country to secure domestic rice stock and limit the export volume despite huge demands.

China has requested 2.4 million tonnes of rice annually, Brunei seeks 100,000 tonnes and Saudi Arabia has asked for 1,500 tonnes annually, he said and noted Indonesia currently has over 7 million tonnes in stock.

"We also do not want to over-export, and we hope there will be no issue (in the export)," Syahrul said during a working visit to Sukoharjo, Central Java, on Wednesday.

Other countries have also sought other commodities from Indonesia, he said.

"So far, 22 countries have restricted their exports. Recently, the Singaporean authority asked for our eggs and poultry after Malaysia restricted (their exports)," he said.

Syahrul said while the looming global food crisis is pushing countries to restrict food shipments, Indonesia must use the opportunity to export food, such as rice, to other countries.

He noted some export-orientated companies have also offered their products for export.

"Colleagues from high-grade milling companies, particularly from Java, have competed to offer their products for export," he added.

Chinese technology helps Pakistan increase rice yield

BEIJING:

Pakistan’s rice export to China crossed $225.52 million in the first fourth months of current year, while broken rice shipments increased 40.27% as compared with last year in the same period, according to the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China.

Although the Covid-19 pandemic affected the months of April and May, bilateral trade increased significantly during the first four months of 2022.

China imported more than 601,574.052 tons of different verities of rice (worth more than $225.52) from Pakistan, up 12.45% by volume, while last year in the same period it was 534,946.42 tons, sources told the China Economic Net.

Michael (Gao), Sales Manager of Hefei Meyer Optoelectronic Technology International, said that Chinese technology helped Pakistan increase yield in rice processing and maintain high quality.

“At present, nearly 1,000 Meyer colour sorters are in operation in Pakistan. Our sales volume has been rising every year,” Michael added.

He said that almost all main Pakistani rice exporters to China used their sorter machines and showed satisfaction by using the products, adding that this also indicates the export of rice to China is increasing every year.

“We have authorised agents in Pakistan; they have a professional service team. Meanwhile, the machine can be connected by WiFi, and we offer remote service, we can even check problems on computers in China,” Michael mentioned.

Pakistani enterprises also said that they are getting the best quality raw rice and installing the latest milling machines to get the best output, adding that Chinese technologies help them get the upright results.

It is worth mentioning that 53 Pakistani rice enterprises are on the approval list of China’s General Administration of Customs.

The article originally appeared on the China Economic Net

With global rice supplies plentiful, rice prices have escaped the volatility besetting most other grains. While rice futures are up nearly 6% so far this year, wheat, for example, has gained more than 40%, and corn is up 33%.

The price differentials are boosting demand for rice as a substitute for other grains, including in animal feed. China’s rice imports are currently forecasted to be at their highest levels since 2018. Much of China’s imports are of broken rice, which is cheaper than whole grain rice. 

China’s increased rice imports could in turn reduce its need to import higher-priced corn. So far this season China’s corn imports are down year over year. China has recently turned to the US for corn imports as shipments from Ukraine, its second-largest supplier of corn imports, are halted. 

China is the world’s largest producer of rice, but domestic rice prices don’t usually favor its use in animal feed because the rice first needs to be dehulled, which can add some 30% to its final cost. 

Rice is the primary staple for more than half the world's population. Strong production in major exporting countries, including India, Thailand, and Vietnam, has bolstered global rice inventories. Rice stocks-to-use ratio, a key measure of supply availability, is at 27% for the major exporters, the highest in recent history. By contrast, wheat stocks-to-use are at their lowest level since 2013.  

India had a bumper rice harvest last year, boosting exports to record levels in 2021/22, especially to Africa and neighboring countries in Asia. India’s next rice crop will be planted in June-July and production prospects will depend to a great extent on the monsoon rains. 

Since the monsoon’s impact can vary across the country, the Gro Climate Risk Navigator for Agriculture provides growing conditions at the state level, including this display showing West Bengal, India’s largest rice-growing state, and this one showing Odisha, another big rice-producing state.

Rice planting in Thailand starts in May, the beginning of the rainy season. Thailand is currently seeing above average rains, which is necessary for planting, and soil moisture remains high.  Cumulative precipitation is the highest in at least 20 years, according to Gro's Climate Risk Navigator.

While commercial feed demand in recent years has been dominated by corn and wheat, Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24 led to price spikes for both products. It has also led to increasing concern about global exportable supplies, with the Black Sea region one of the major origins for these products. However, demand from feed buyers is not new. According to Shirley Mustafa of the UN's Food and Agricultural Organization, this has been emerging for some time. "Use of rice for feed has been rising since 2020-21, after reaching a seven-year low the year prior," Mustafa told S&P Global Commodity Insights. "Rice use for animal feed [aside from bran] is usually limited and confined to backyard operations since the commercial feed sector usually has more economically viable alternatives than rice. However, gains in wheat and maize prices over the past year-and-a-half or so, driven by these commodities' own domestic and international market dynamics, have tended to narrow price differentials with rice [especially broken rice]." In China, for example, these shifting dynamics were directly linked to 2021 rice imports rising by 69% year on year to 4.96 million mt, according to data from Chinese customs, with the world's largest exporter -- India -- emerging to satisfy this huge volume of broken rice demand.

Rice markets react

But the demand from feed buyers has spiked in both India and other Asian rice markets since the Ukraine conflict began. In India, for example, sources have reported instances of defaulting and low supplies, with one Kakinada-based exporter going so far as to describe the local broken rice market as a "disaster" due to the sudden influx of demand. In rice export origins which are also destination markets for corn and/or wheat, such as Vietnam, many exporters have withdrawn their broken rice offers due to high domestic demand. Vietnamese 100% broken white rice price has increased by $65/mt since the invasion of Ukraine, reaching a high of $370/mt FOB on March 25, according to Platts assessment from S&P Global. However, many sources view broken rice prices from Vietnam as hypothetical, with the country even importing substantial volumes from India to meet demand. In traditional broken rice markets -- notably in West Africa -- the situation is more immediately concerning from a food security perspective. In Senegal, which is a huge market for broken rice for human consumption, a sizable gap is opening up between current retail prices and replacement costs. While in part this is due to Senegal's new retail price cap and high freight rates, the significant rise in Indian broken rice prices in recent weeks has only served to widen this gap. According to one Europe-based trader who buys for the country, this gap has reached $90/mt in recent days, and made it "impossible" to buy for Senegal at present without taking on huge financial risks. However, with sufficient stocks in Dakar for Ramadan and the following weeks, the trader added that it makes no sense to re-enter the market before the religious holiday is over, with hopes that the replacement cost gap will have narrowed in the interim.

Unusual price spreads

Because of the massive influx in demand for Asian broken rice, unusual price spreads between different rice grades have emerged. Pakistani 5% and 100% broken white rice were briefly assessed at par earlier in March while the gap was $70/mt a year prior. The spread between Thai 5% and A1 Super 100% broken white rice has narrowed to only $2/mt in recent days, compared to $51/mt a year prior. One major Singapore-based rice trader said that "some 25% [broken white rice] shipments for feed purposes" was seen from Myanmar to Europe. Sources buying from the Myanmar market have reported that offers of low-quality B234 broken white rice have been largely unavailable in recent weeks due to high feed demand, with higher quality broken rice prices also moving up substantially. Despite sources reporting no obvious reason for why feed buyers could not turn to 25% broken white rice if 100% broken white rice was unavailable, or priced uncompetitively, sales of this product for feed purposes so far remain rare. A second Singapore-based trader said that they were advising their traditional broken rice buyers in Africa to accept 25% broken white rice due to supply and price issues for 100% broken white rice. However, the first Singapore-based trader cautioned that this would ultimately "depend on corn prices." FAO's Shirley Mustafa agreed, saying that "because this trend is influenced by factors outside of rice markets, developments in these external markets will have an important bearing." Mustafa added that "current forecasts suggest record-breaking supply availabilities in the major exporters this season, thanks to bumper harvests expected in India, Pakistan and Thailand. If these are realized, they should be more than sufficient to cater to the higher global needs."

Outside forces

Despite uncertainty surrounding how this situation will play out, it is almost inevitable that feed demand will take up an unusually large portion of international rice sales in 2022. A third Singapore-based trader said that it will "not be a huge chunk ... But it will not be insignificant either." The questions which remain at this point are whether 25% broken white rice sales for feed will become more widespread and how this demand for cheap rice will impact traditional buyers of 25% and 100% broken white rice for human consumption. However, with rice still a minor player in the massive global feed market, the situation will ultimately remain at the mercy of outside forces.

COLOMBO, March 26 (Xinhua) -- China decides to provide 2,000 tons of rice as emergency food aid to Sri Lanka, said the Chinese embassy here in a press release on Friday. The donation, which was valued at about 2.5 million U.S. dollars (including freight cost), was made at the request of the Sri Lankan government upon its current difficulty of food shortage in the island country, according to the embassy. As the continuously raging COVID-19 pandemic and the dramatically changing international situation have further worsened the global food shortage and shipping capacity, the technical teams from both countries will work closely to finalize the production and shipment arrangements, and deliver the aid to Sri Lanka at an early date, said the embassy. Noting that this year marks the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Sri Lanka and the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Rubber-Rice Pact, the Chinese embassy said the two countries have traditionally helped each other and shared weal and woe. China will continue to support Sri Lanka's social and economic development within its capacity, the Chinese embassy added.

Pakistan has asked China to enhance the rice quota to two million tons. Sources told ProPakistani that Pakistan, during the tour of Prime Minister Imran Khan last month, asked China not only to support duty concessions but for quota enhancement in specific sectors including rice. Pakistan has exported rice worth $2.1 million to China in the first seven months of the current fiscal year 2021-22 whereas it exported rice worth $2.29 million to China in the same period the previous year. Sources said that Pakistan has also asked China to abolish the 4 percent duty on the export of cement. Pakistan can get the duty-free concession of exporting cement to China after 3 years under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA-II). Sources further said that this will help offset part of the trade deficit which has surged to $32 billion in the first eight months of the current fiscal year. They said that Pakistan has also asked China to expedite the process of mutual recognition agreements on agriculture and animal products. Apart from this, Pakistan has also asked the tariff liberalization to be done by 10 and 20 years from seven to 15 years under CPFTA-II respectively. Similarly, Pakistan has also asked China for an uninterrupted bilateral opening of the Khunjrab border for trade. Sources said that the Ministry of Commerce is waiting for the response of China on these proposals.  

Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to increase the country’s imports of milled rice from Cambodia and indicated its willingness to purchase other agricultural products from the Kingdom after a free trade agreement (FTA) came into force. He made the commitment during a telephone conference on bilateral, regional and global issues with Prime Minister Hun Sen on March 18. Xi said that, alongside milled rice, China will import other agricultural products such as bananas, mangoes and longans to help alleviate poverty in Cambodia, and urged the Kingdom to offer more of such goods for export. “Cambodia needs to make better use of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership [RCEP] agreement in the region, and the free trade agreement between China and Cambodia, to push bilateral trade to a new level. “The Chinese side will increase the import of high quality Cambodian agricultural products, and establish cooperation that benefits more people in Cambodia,” Xi said. Hun Sen noted in the conference that bilateral trade between the two countries has been growing rapidly and that major construction projects under the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative in Cambodia have been “running smoothly”. He said that such projects have “clearly demonstrated the achievements of the comprehensive strategic partnership between Cambodia and China”, adding that the building of a “common destiny” between the two countries has “made it clear” that they have developed strong ties. The prime minister added that Cambodia is pleased to use the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year as an opportunity to “bolster cooperation” in areas such as cultural exchange, economy, trade and agriculture. He said he anticipated that these exchanges would “serve to deepen and enhance the joint realisation of the Belt and Road Initiative, and raise the comprehensive strategic partnership between Cambodia and China to a new level”. Cambodia Rice Federation (CRF) president Song Saran told The Post that China’s commitment will be an “important tool” in boosting Cambodia's milled rice exports to the Asian giant. “The rice federation is pleased and applauds the positive things that the two leaders have discussed over the phone concerning our rice sector, both now and in the past,” he said. “This shows the strong ties our Cambodian rice sector has to the economic sector at large.” The growth of milled rice exports from Cambodia to China in the first two months increased by more than 56 per cent compared to the same period in 2021, according to Saran. At just over 120,000 tonnes, so far, Cambodia has achieved more than 22 per cent of the 2022 export quota of 400,000 tonnes as stated in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the Chinese government. He said he expected that the MoU “will be achieved by December 2022”. Along with the high number of orders from the Chinese private sector, Saran said that “this [rate of export] indicates that the Chinese side is willing to promote our milled rice to the Chinese market, and that the Chinese people are more aware of the quality and quality standards of Cambodian milled rice”. According to figures from the Ministry of Commerce, the bilateral trade volume between Cambodia and China reached nearly $8 billion in 2021, up 38.36 per cent compared to 2020.

Can Xi continue to promise food security despite increased consumption, aging rural population, rapid urbanisation, and climate changes? In June 2021, President Xi Jinping declared that China had achieved CCP’s first centenary goal to become a ‘moderately prosperous society’ with zero absolute poverty. As the nation moves to attain its second centenary goal, which is to build a ‘modern socialist country’, Xi knows he has to pivot back to the rural hinterlands  to perennially secure his people’s ‘rice bowl’—by increasing grain quality and output. Throughout its civilisational history, China has faced major famines. Ever since the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) took reigns of mainland China in 1949, the country has witnessed major setbacks when it comes to food security. One such major setback was the Great Chinese Famine (1959-61) a man-made disaster during the Great Leap Forward movement which is said to have killed nearly 45 million people. Some of the older generations alive today have horrid memories of the famine.

The Great Chinese Famine (1959-61) a man-made disaster during the Great Leap Forward movement which is said to have killed nearly 45 million people.

The Party has crafted a narrative that credits the nation’s leadership for being able to deal with nation’s challenges. Citizens are expected to place their faith in their party and their leader Xi Jinping. However, China’s food security faces certain perils.

Journey towards food self-sufficiency

China holds the distinction of being the world’s largest importer of food products—grains, meat, and seafood included. It is also the fourth largest buyer of agricultural land abroad. However, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic left an adverse impact on international food supply chains and although China has ample stockpiles of corn, rice, and wheat, it depends on global markets for pork and soybean which are part of the staple Chinese diet. The world continues to view China’s aggressive rise with suspicion, especially as it does little to allay the fears of the international community. Trade frictions, allegations of food hoarding and land grab, belligerent military posturing in Asia-Pacific, and the overall global perception of its handling of the COVID-19 outbreak—these are merely a few reasons for China to accelerate efforts to look inwards and attain self-reliance.

Although China has ample stockpiles of corn, rice, and wheat, it depends on global markets for pork and soybean which are part of the staple Chinese diet.

To further exacerbate food insecurity concerns, there were widespread incidents of panic buying and hoarding in November last year, when a Ministry of Commerce directive to local governments to stabilise food prices for winter months was widely speculated to mean a possible incoming COVID-19 wave or an outbreak of war with Taiwan.

Policy changes over the last few years

Over the years, China has shifted its policy focus towards self-sufficiency in food. In the 1990s, China’s leadership ordered for establishing a National Grain Stockpile to coordinate central and regional food reserves—which today is claimed to be one of the world’s largest stockpiles. In 2006, a ‘red line’ was established, under President Hu Jintao, at 1.8 billion mu of land (120 million hectares) to ensure that urbanisation and industrialisation drives did not encroach into arable lands that was to be utilised for agriculture.

President Xi Jinping through the National Congress enacted a law that banned binge eating and food wastage to instill values of conservation amongst the general public.

An ambitious target of 95 percent self-sufficiency in grains was set, i.e., 95 percent of domestic demand should be met through domestic supplies—which China claims it has ensured till date. To ensure accountability in provinces, political responsibility to prevent food shortages was assigned to provincial governors and local party functionaries. In April 2021, President Xi Jinping through the National Congress enacted a law that banned binge eating and food wastage to instill values of conservation amongst the general public.

Seeds are the new ‘semiconductor microchips’

In 2021, the Chinese central authority issued the year’s first policy document called ‘Document No. 1’, which is seen as an indicator of national policy priorities. For the 18th consecutive year, the document focused on food and agriculture. However, a significantly important policy change was in the promotion of Genetically Modified (GM) technologies in seed industries and commercial usage of GM crops. China’s Agriculture Minister Tang Renjian declared that seeds are the new “semiconductor microchips” in agricultural technology, and they shall be instrumental in securing grain output. Unlike countries like USA where private players are involved in three-quarters of the research in seed technologies that leads to commercial applications, in China, the number stands at 10 to 20 percent. Thus, CCP has instructed the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs to provide the government’s direct support to leading private seed enterprises. Acquisition of multinational corporations has been considered the quickest way for China to acquire seed technology. One of the most high-profile acquisitions has been that of Swiss food-tech giant Syngenta in February 2016 by state-owned ChemChina for US $43 billion.

CCP has instructed the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Affairs to provide the government’s direct support to leading private seed enterprises.

On 24 December 2021, China adopted a revised Seed Law which shall come into effect from 31st March 2022. The revised law increases commercialisation and standardisation of GM technology in the seed industry and brings it in line with international standards. However, Chinese government has been drawing flak for promoting GM foods.

Challenges ahead

Despite China’s leadership’s go-ahead for GM corn and soyabean after passing them through biosafety evaluations in 2020, it has met with resistance from the Chinese public at large. Policymakers in Beijing have been unsuccessful in building trust amongst the citizens that GM foods are safe for consumption. The public has seen its share of food safety scandals in the past. However, this is only part of the problem. Till date, China continues to be an agrarian society but it faces the daunting task of feeding the world’s largest population on just 7 percent of world’s arable land. A survey conducted by the Ministry of Natural Resources stated that China’s arable land area towards the end of 2019 had reduced by 6 percent to 1.28 million square kilometres, as compared to 2009—a majority of it converted into forests, urban areas or industrial hubs. Since 1990s, incessant and inefficient use of chemical fertilisers has polluted and depleted groundwater table and soil quality. China also happens to be the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world since 2006. In 2020, China’s carbon emissions broke records by reaching nearly 14 billion tonnes (GtCO2) contributing to 27 percent of the global emissions, as per reports by the Rhodium Group. Particularly, a major source of carbon emission in China arises from livestock cultivation. As per the ‘Journal of Integrative Agriculture’, net greenhouse gas emissions from the pork industry in China increased 16 million tons (Mt) of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2eq) during the study period 1976-2016, further adding to the national carbon footprint. The greenhouse gas emissions have a direct contribution to loss in crop yields. According to a study by Nature Food, China saw an increase in Ozone pollution resulting in diminishing yields of wheat, rice, and maize at 33 percent, 23 percent and 9 percent, respectively.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has hailed climate change caused due to anthropogenic factors as the main reason for flooding in China and other countries.

In 2021, heavy rainfall led to flooding in many provinces in China. Henan province, for one, experienced loss of 2.4 million acres of crops fields. The province produces one-third of China’s wheat supply and nearly one-tenth of its corn, vegetable, and pork. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has hailed climate change caused due to anthropogenic factors as the main reason for flooding in China and other countries. Thus, the need of the hour for the leadership is to ensure the adoption of sustainable and environmentally safe practices in food production. The socio-economic effects of the ageing population in China, especially in rural areas, have an impact on food production and consumption. Urbanisation rate in China was at 57 percent in 2016, and might go up to 65 percent by 2025, and 80 percent by 2050. These figures raise an important question—who shall be a part of food production in rural areas if society continues to undergo such transitions?

Conclusion

Ever since he came into power 10 years ago, food security has been one of Xi’s prime areas of focus. “Food security is an important foundation for national security. Guaranteeing national food security is an eternal issue, and this string cannot be loosened at any time” claims the President. The ‘string’ which Xi refers to is extremely vital to the longevity of his presidency. In 2013, he had reminded his officials to take heed of USSR’s disintegration in 1991 and to keep in mind the reasons for the same—that the then Russian leadership had permitted the public denigration of Soviet leaders like Lenin and Stalin. In China, excessive rise in food grain prices was one of the factors that led to the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 and Xi will not let public criticism of food security programmes adversely affect his political career. The National Congress, which assembles once in five years, shall convene towards the end of this year and determine who forms part of the future leadership, which Xi aspires to lead. Despite enacting a national anti-food wastage law, Beijing must realise that China has transformed into a relatively more prosperous country. With growing urbanisation and rising income levels in urban and rural areas, dietary consumption is bound to increase in the world’s largest population. The CCP had always promised its people abundance in food and grains. Now that citizens have begun to enjoy the fruits of a ‘moderately prosperous society’, an important question arises—are various components of China’s food policy realistic enough to secure the ‘rice bowl’ or are they mere political gimmicks to secure Xi’s presidency?  

China is fast becoming the 800-pound gorilla in the world’s rice markets. As it has with other crops, including cotton, corn and wheat, China is fast becoming the 800-pound gorilla in the world’s rice markets. Based on what’s happened in recent years, China is now the top producer, top consumer, top stockholder, top importer and a “rising exporter” of rice, according to a USDA Foreign Agriculture Service international economist.

“One thing to note, as was highlighted in the February 2018 Grain World Market and Trade Report, is China has strengthened its importance in global rice trade not only as an importer but now strikingly also as an exporter,” says USDA’s Rachel Trego.

Trego, who is team leader for food grains analysis at USDA-FAS’ Office of Global Analysis, said China’s exports have been relatively limited because of the high domestic rice prices within the country until recent months. Most Chinese exports have tended to be to the nearby regional markets such as South Korea, Mongolia and Hong Kong.

“But we've begun to note some new developments that have been remarkable, which is part of why we noted this in our reports,” said Trego, who was a presenter for a University of Arkansas Systems Division of Agriculture Food and Agribusiness Webinar. (To view the webinar, click on https://youtu.be/ohf8Tt8LR8E.)

Part of that, Trego says, is that China has begun resuming exports to Africa. “These dwindled and virtually were down to nothing by the time of 2012, but, in 2017, approximately two-thirds of Chinese exports were to Africa. “There have been a couple of reasons they have been able to enable these exports. China has begun to have some more available supplies of some of the multi-year-old rice from the stocks. China is beginning to auction off and have increasing amounts of sales from the auctions of some of the 2013 rice from the government temporary reserves.”

Less from Thailand

Meanwhile, the amount of rice Thailand has been exporting, especially to Africa, has dwindled, as Thailand is left with only the no-longer-good-for-human consumption rice within the country’s domestic stocks. “Given Thailand’s ending of exporting especially low-priced rice to Africa, China has been able to see some in roads into Africa, as well as beyond,” said Trego, who is a regular contributor to USDA’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates. “Notably, China’s average export price as reported by China’s custom data developed precipitously in 2017, and this has been quite interesting in that the Chinese customs data also shows that the exports have primarily been of medium-grain rice. Seeing prices in the $500 per range on average for total exports is certainly a shift from where they have been in the past.” With China becoming a top importer of rice, as well, U.S. growers are asking where the U.S. stands on its ability to tap into the Chinese import market, which up to now has been confined primarily to nearby rice-producing countries such as Burma and Cambodia. “USDA has been working actively on a phytosanitary protocol for access of rice to China, and this process has lasted for more than a decade,” Trego said. “On the U.S. side, USDA’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service has been working with the AQSIQ, the comparable agency in China. We had it signed a couple years ago at the technical level, but we were waiting for it to be signed at the political level, which was finally accomplished in 2017. “Although the phytosanitary protocol has been signed, there remain a few steps, including a questionnaire that has been sent to the United States regarding some of the facilities as well as audits,” Trego noted. “While the phytosanitary protocol has been signed, there are still some steps to take before we can begin to see U.S. shipments of rice to China.” Judging from Chinese domestic prices relative to some of the California export prices, U.S. export quotes at times have been lower than Chinese retail prices. “That may suggest some opportunities to be able to ship to China if given the opportunity once the phytosanitary protocol and the necessary arrangements are accomplished,” Trego said.

Types of rice

During the question and answer session of the webinar, Trego was asked what types of U.S. rice would be competitive in China’s markets? “The predominant suppliers right now to the China market have been some of the neighboring countries that are sending long-grain rice,” she said. “As noted from that exporter export quote chart earlier, the Asian prices for long-grain are quite a bit lower than those for the U.S. “So for long-grain it would primarily be focusing on some of the high-end and niche markets. China has been importing, especially because of price, but also because of concerns on food safety, and so really targeting the high end would be helpful for that on long grain.” For the medium- and short-grain, China has a Tariff Rate Quota for medium-grain, and the U.S. is a predominant medium-grain exporter and is relatively competitive. “Given the price chart I shared earlier for Chinese retail versus U.S. prices, given the limited competition from other medium-grain suppliers in that market, there could be some great opportunities.”    

Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 05:45:21|Editor: Mu Xuequan

  China has agreed to increase its import quota for Cambodian rice to 300,000 tonnes by next year, Prime Minister Hun Sen announced yesterday following his return from Beijing where he attended the Belt and Road initiative summit. In a post to his official facebook page, Hun Sen detailed a conversation he had with Chinese president Xi Jinping, who said China would increase its imports of Cambodian rice from the previously agreed limit of 200,000 tonnes a year to 300,000 tonnes in 2018. The message also said Xi expressed hope that bilateral trade between the two countries would reach $6 billion by 2020. Hun Sen added that during his visit earlier this week he sought to promote Cambodian trade and tourism ties with China. He added that Cambodia will seek to open trade centres in several Chinese provinces to exhibit some of the Kingdom’s export products and provide information related to tourism and investment opportunities. He called for Chinese businessmen to further invest in Cambodia, noting the country’s peace and macroeconomic stability. The Cambodian premier said he was impressed by the outcome of the Belt and Road initiative summit due to its potential to increase connectivity between countries in the region and the rest of the world. The prime minister added that 100 Chinese companies were currently looking to invest in a special economic zone near Sihanoukville, symbolising the strong economic relationship between the two countries.

Cambodian milled rice is becoming increasingly popular in China

KT/Chor Sokunthea