By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter
\nTHE feed industry is seeking more government support to get through the expected decline in the domestic supply of feed inputs next year, according to the Philippine Association of Feed Millers, Inc. (PAFMI).
\nPAFMI President Edwin C. Mapanao said that the industry is growing but faces challenges like a lack of competitive inputs, animal disease management, and excessive imports of finished meats.
\nHe added that feed millers are currently facing sourcing challenges.
\n\u201cWe expect local supply (of inputs) to go down due to El Ni\u00f1o, irrigation challenges, and a lack of post-harvest facilities,\u201d Mr. Mapanao told BusinessWorld.
\nThe government weather service said a moderate to strong El Ni\u00f1o is expected until the second quarter of 2024.
\nHe added that global supply is expected to be abundant but access will be subject to disruption by geopolitics.
\nLivestock feed depends on inputs like corn, wheat, and soy. About 40% to 60% of animal feed consists of yellow corn.
\nThe Philippines has a deficit of about 3 to 5 million metric tons (MT) of corn annually.
\nAccording to the US Department of Agriculture, shipments of corn to the Philippines are estimated at 1 million MT during the marketing year 2023-2024.
\nHe said that the government should also help corn producers achieve scale and improve their capacity to conduct direct trade.
\n\u201cThis also reduces the heavy reliance on middlemen, which adds to the cost and diminishes profitability, by enabling farmers to trade directly,\u201d he added.
\nMr. Mapanao said that pushing for crop diversification and building more drying and storage facilities would increase yields.
\n\u201cThere is also a need to address challenges in scaling up production, particularly on land use and access to credit,\u201d he added.
\nHe said that the government should improve its crop forecasting capacity and data gathering.
\n\u201cCrop status reports, planting intentions, forecasts, etc. will go a long way in aiding corn-reliant industries in planning out their purchases,\u201d he added.
\nAgriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., has said that he will support the revival of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics to ensure accurate and complete data for the agriculture sector.
\nThe gathering of agricultural data is currently being handled by the Philippine Statistics Authority, local government units, Department of Agriculture regional offices, and institutional stakeholders.
\n", "content_text": "By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter\nTHE feed industry is seeking more government support to get through the expected decline in the domestic supply of feed inputs next year, according to the Philippine Association of Feed Millers, Inc. (PAFMI).\nPAFMI President Edwin C. Mapanao said that the industry is growing but faces challenges like a lack of competitive inputs, animal disease management, and excessive imports of finished meats.\nHe added that feed millers are currently facing sourcing challenges.\n\u201cWe expect local supply (of inputs) to go down due to El Ni\u00f1o, irrigation challenges, and a lack of post-harvest facilities,\u201d Mr. Mapanao told BusinessWorld.\nThe government weather service said a moderate to strong El Ni\u00f1o is expected until the second quarter of 2024.\nHe added that global supply is expected to be abundant but access will be subject to disruption by geopolitics.\nLivestock feed depends on inputs like corn, wheat, and soy. About 40% to 60% of animal feed consists of yellow corn.\nThe Philippines has a deficit of about 3 to 5 million metric tons (MT) of corn annually.\nAccording to the US Department of Agriculture, shipments of corn to the Philippines are estimated at 1 million MT during the marketing year 2023-2024.\nHe said that the government should also help corn producers achieve scale and improve their capacity to conduct direct trade.\n\u201cThis also reduces the heavy reliance on middlemen, which adds to the cost and diminishes profitability, by enabling farmers to trade directly,\u201d he added.\nMr. Mapanao said that pushing for crop diversification and building more drying and storage facilities would increase yields.\n\u201cThere is also a need to address challenges in scaling up production, particularly on land use and access to credit,\u201d he added.\nHe said that the government should improve its crop forecasting capacity and data gathering.\n\u201cCrop status reports, planting intentions, forecasts, etc. will go a long way in aiding corn-reliant industries in planning out their purchases,\u201d he added.\nAgriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., has said that he will support the revival of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics to ensure accurate and complete data for the agriculture sector.\nThe gathering of agricultural data is currently being handled by the Philippine Statistics Authority, local government units, Department of Agriculture regional offices, and institutional stakeholders.", "date_published": "2023-12-18T00:03:22+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-17T17:39:12+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Corn-1.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ], "summary": "THE feed industry is seeking more government support to get through the expected decline in the domestic supply of feed inputs next year, according to the Philippine Association of Feed Millers, Inc. (PAFMI)." }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=564012", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/18/564012/halal-slaughterhouse-relaunched-in-batangas/", "title": "Halal slaughterhouse relaunched in Batangas", "content_html": "THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said it has relaunched a halal-ready slaughterhouse in Tanauan City, Batangas.
\n\u201cThis relaunching marks a significant leap forward in our goal of reinforcing Halal infrastructure in Calabarzon,\u201d\u00a0Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual said in a statement.
\n\u201cThrough the Philippine Halal Export Development and Promotion Board and the Special Task Force created to grow the industry, we will ensure the development of the Halal industry and enhance the Halal economy within the country,\u201d he added.
\nThe Tanauan slaughterhouse received joint funding from the DTI and the Tanauan Local Government Unit through the Shared Service Facility program.
\nThe department, quoting Tanauan Mayor Nelson P. Collantes, said that the slaughterhouse is significant \u201cin boosting the local government\u2019s business environment and its potential to create employment opportunities within the constituency.\u201d
\nThe DTI also conducted a halal awareness seminar at Tanauan Institute which aims to equip participants with tools needed to champion the halal industry.
\n\u201cThis seminar is a part of the Halal Training and Stakeholders Consultation which seeks to empower micro, small, medium enterprises and cooperatives through workshops, information sessions, and collaborative discussion,\u201d the DTI said.\u00a0
\nThe DTI aims to prepare a comprehensive roadmap for the Halal industry in Calabarzon which includes the establishment of a Regional Halal Coordinating Council.
\n\u201cWe are eyeing a bigger share of the $7-trillion global halal market. The scope is vast, from halal food, pharmaceuticals, halal friendly tourism, and Islamic finance to modest fashion and halal cosmetics. Halal is for everyone, as halal food is healthy and hygienic,\u201d Mr. Pascual said.
\n\u201cI am very optimistic that we can achieve our overarching objective of P230 billion in Halal trade and investment and over 120,000 job opportunities in the next five years,\u201d he added. \u2014 Justine Irish D. Tabile
\n", "content_text": "THE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said it has relaunched a halal-ready slaughterhouse in Tanauan City, Batangas.\n\u201cThis relaunching marks a significant leap forward in our goal of reinforcing Halal infrastructure in Calabarzon,\u201d\u00a0Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual said in a statement.\n\u201cThrough the Philippine Halal Export Development and Promotion Board and the Special Task Force created to grow the industry, we will ensure the development of the Halal industry and enhance the Halal economy within the country,\u201d he added.\nThe Tanauan slaughterhouse received joint funding from the DTI and the Tanauan Local Government Unit through the Shared Service Facility program.\nThe department, quoting Tanauan Mayor Nelson P. Collantes, said that the slaughterhouse is significant \u201cin boosting the local government\u2019s business environment and its potential to create employment opportunities within the constituency.\u201d\nThe DTI also conducted a halal awareness seminar at Tanauan Institute which aims to equip participants with tools needed to champion the halal industry.\n\u201cThis seminar is a part of the Halal Training and Stakeholders Consultation which seeks to empower micro, small, medium enterprises and cooperatives through workshops, information sessions, and collaborative discussion,\u201d the DTI said.\u00a0\nThe DTI aims to prepare a comprehensive roadmap for the Halal industry in Calabarzon which includes the establishment of a Regional Halal Coordinating Council.\n\u201cWe are eyeing a bigger share of the $7-trillion global halal market. The scope is vast, from halal food, pharmaceuticals, halal friendly tourism, and Islamic finance to modest fashion and halal cosmetics. Halal is for everyone, as halal food is healthy and hygienic,\u201d Mr. Pascual said.\n\u201cI am very optimistic that we can achieve our overarching objective of P230 billion in Halal trade and investment and over 120,000 job opportunities in the next five years,\u201d he added. \u2014 Justine Irish D. Tabile", "date_published": "2023-12-18T00:02:21+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-17T17:38:54+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Halal.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Justine Irish D. Tabile", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=563952", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/18/563952/palm-oil-watchdog-adds-new-targets-climate-emissions-small-farms/", "title": "Palm oil watchdog adds new targets: climate emissions, small farms", "content_html": "JAKARTA \u2014 When the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was set up two decades ago, as the palm oil industry struggled in the wake of major Southeast Asian forest fires that provoked global outrage, reining in tropical forest losses was a top priority.
\nBut today, critics question the palm oil watchdog\u2019s continued relevance as it struggles to manage other fast-rising concerns, from the industry\u2019s climate change impact to its limited benefits for small-scale farmers \u2014 and whether price-sensitive Asian buyers can be persuaded to buy greener oil.
\nOctogenarian MR Chandran \u2014 the head of Malaysia\u2019s palm oil growers\u2019 association when he helped create the global standard for sustainability \u2014 said reducing emissions and tackling climate change will be crucial in the coming decades.
\n\u201cAddressing climate change (is something) we have to do,\u201d Mr. Chandran, now an advisor to the watchdog, said at the organization\u2019s 20th anniversary meeting last month. \u201cOur carbon footprint has to be addressed.\u201d
\nPalm oil is the world\u2019s most widely used edible oil, found in everything from margarine to soap, but it has faced scrutiny from green activists and consumers, who say its production has provoked rainforest and peatland loss, fires and worker exploitation.
\nSince its start in 2004, the RSPO has grown to more than 5,500 member growers, traders, retailers and advocacy groups.
\nIt has gradually tightened standards to include a ban on felling forests and converting peatlands for plantations, as well as greater protection for labor and land rights.
\nCutting down forests has major implications for global goals to curb climate change, as trees absorb about a third of the planet-warming emissions produced worldwide, but release carbon back into the air when they rot or are burned.
\nThe Kuala Lumpur-based RSPO recently completed a five-year review of standards and expects to roll out changes by mid-2024. No-deforestation rules \u2014 which founding father Mr. Chandran called the RSPO\u2019s greatest achievement \u2014 will not be watered down, said chief executive officer Joseph D\u2019Cruz, better known as JD.
\nBut he also stressed that the industry should look to reduce emissions and tackle climate change. \u201cWe certainly have a lot of work being done to understand and minimize those GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions,\u201d Mr. JD told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
\n\u201cBut there is a qualitative shift from there to really looking rigorously at carbon through our entire lifestyle and supply chain, and demonstrating that we are really optimizing that \u2014 there is a lot more that we can do as an industry,\u201d he added.
\nMr. JD, who was appointed in March last year, said improving soil carbon and cutting methane releases from palm oil mills are some of what\u2019s needed.
\nOver the last two decades, pressure from environmentalists and consumers has pushed big companies that produce, trade or buy palm oil to tackle labor abuses on plantations and commit to ending deforestation \u2014 with some success.
\nDeforestation rates in both Malaysia and Indonesia \u2014 the world\u2019s top two palm oil producers \u2014 have fallen in recent years, according to nonprofit World Resources Institute.
\nBut smallholders, who account for about 40% of palm oil plantation areas in Indonesia and Malaysia, have largely been left behind, say industry analysts.
\nGlobally, there are more than 7 million small-scale palm oil growers and only about 170,000 are RSPO-certified.
\n\u201cThe greatest difficulty for RSPO is to be relevant to independent smallholder palm producers,\u201d said Matthew Spencer, global director for landscapes at sustainable trade foundation IDH.
\n\u201cAs the gold standard for palm, it struggles to be simple and cheap enough to attract big numbers of smallholders.\u201d
\nJoko Prasetyo is head of the Association of Independent Oil Palm Smallholders, a collective of RSPO-certified farmers on Sumatra island that is backed by Indonesian producer Musim Mas.
\nMr. Prasetyo, who has a 10-hectare farm, has seen his yields rise 60% to 75% by adopting better farming practices through RSPO certification. But he does not receive a better income for the ethical oil he produces.
\n\u201cI really want to have a premium price but, for now, with the benefits of increased yields we can offset it,\u201d the 49-year-old said on the sidelines of conference.
\nBecoming RSPO-certified involved organizing a collective, planning fertilizer use, and carrying out tracking and accounting, all of which would not have been possible without the help from a major palm oil company, Mr. Prasetyo said.
\n\u201cSmall farmers really get very little benefit flowing back down to them,\u201d said Grant Rosoman, a forest advisor at Greenpeace International.
\nMr. Prasetyo is not alone in missing the premium price benefits RSPO certification is supposed to bring. RSPO-backed palm oil represents about 20% \u2014 or 15.4 million tons \u2014 of global production, but just 80% of certified oil is sold at a premium, according to the watchdog.
\nSmaller growers are often reliant on one mill located near their farms, which can impact demand and prices paid for certified fruit bunches, Mr. JD said.
\nWhile the RSPO certification scheme is backed by many major European buyers, boosting demand for sustainable palm oil in India, China and Indonesia \u2014 where buyers are more price-sensitive \u2014 will be important in the years to come.
\nThese Asian markets care about sustainability and are trying to figure out how to build sustainability into their sourcing, said JD.
\nBut without a boost in demand for certified oil from Asian markets, RSPO could lose its relevance, especially as the European Union and the United States increasingly turn to regulation in place of reliance on voluntary standards like RSPO, green groups said.
\nA new European Union law to curb deforestation, agreed last December and due to take effect within two years, will force global suppliers of commodities such as palm oil, soy and cocoa to prove their supply chains are not fuelling forest destruction.
\nThe RSPO must now \u201ccrack the Asian market,\u201d where the majority of palm oil is consumed, said IDH\u2019s Spencer. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation
\n", "content_text": "JAKARTA \u2014 When the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) was set up two decades ago, as the palm oil industry struggled in the wake of major Southeast Asian forest fires that provoked global outrage, reining in tropical forest losses was a top priority.\nBut today, critics question the palm oil watchdog\u2019s continued relevance as it struggles to manage other fast-rising concerns, from the industry\u2019s climate change impact to its limited benefits for small-scale farmers \u2014 and whether price-sensitive Asian buyers can be persuaded to buy greener oil.\nOctogenarian MR Chandran \u2014 the head of Malaysia\u2019s palm oil growers\u2019 association when he helped create the global standard for sustainability \u2014 said reducing emissions and tackling climate change will be crucial in the coming decades.\n\u201cAddressing climate change (is something) we have to do,\u201d Mr. Chandran, now an advisor to the watchdog, said at the organization\u2019s 20th anniversary meeting last month. \u201cOur carbon footprint has to be addressed.\u201d\nPalm oil is the world\u2019s most widely used edible oil, found in everything from margarine to soap, but it has faced scrutiny from green activists and consumers, who say its production has provoked rainforest and peatland loss, fires and worker exploitation.\nSince its start in 2004, the RSPO has grown to more than 5,500 member growers, traders, retailers and advocacy groups.\nIt has gradually tightened standards to include a ban on felling forests and converting peatlands for plantations, as well as greater protection for labor and land rights.\nCutting down forests has major implications for global goals to curb climate change, as trees absorb about a third of the planet-warming emissions produced worldwide, but release carbon back into the air when they rot or are burned.\nThe Kuala Lumpur-based RSPO recently completed a five-year review of standards and expects to roll out changes by mid-2024. No-deforestation rules \u2014 which founding father Mr. Chandran called the RSPO\u2019s greatest achievement \u2014 will not be watered down, said chief executive officer Joseph D\u2019Cruz, better known as JD.\nBut he also stressed that the industry should look to reduce emissions and tackle climate change. \u201cWe certainly have a lot of work being done to understand and minimize those GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions,\u201d Mr. JD told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.\n\u201cBut there is a qualitative shift from there to really looking rigorously at carbon through our entire lifestyle and supply chain, and demonstrating that we are really optimizing that \u2014 there is a lot more that we can do as an industry,\u201d he added.\nMr. JD, who was appointed in March last year, said improving soil carbon and cutting methane releases from palm oil mills are some of what\u2019s needed.\nOver the last two decades, pressure from environmentalists and consumers has pushed big companies that produce, trade or buy palm oil to tackle labor abuses on plantations and commit to ending deforestation \u2014 with some success.\nDeforestation rates in both Malaysia and Indonesia \u2014 the world\u2019s top two palm oil producers \u2014 have fallen in recent years, according to nonprofit World Resources Institute.\nBut smallholders, who account for about 40% of palm oil plantation areas in Indonesia and Malaysia, have largely been left behind, say industry analysts.\nGlobally, there are more than 7 million small-scale palm oil growers and only about 170,000 are RSPO-certified.\n\u201cThe greatest difficulty for RSPO is to be relevant to independent smallholder palm producers,\u201d said Matthew Spencer, global director for landscapes at sustainable trade foundation IDH.\n\u201cAs the gold standard for palm, it struggles to be simple and cheap enough to attract big numbers of smallholders.\u201d\nJoko Prasetyo is head of the Association of Independent Oil Palm Smallholders, a collective of RSPO-certified farmers on Sumatra island that is backed by Indonesian producer Musim Mas.\nMr. Prasetyo, who has a 10-hectare farm, has seen his yields rise 60% to 75% by adopting better farming practices through RSPO certification. But he does not receive a better income for the ethical oil he produces.\n\u201cI really want to have a premium price but, for now, with the benefits of increased yields we can offset it,\u201d the 49-year-old said on the sidelines of conference.\nBecoming RSPO-certified involved organizing a collective, planning fertilizer use, and carrying out tracking and accounting, all of which would not have been possible without the help from a major palm oil company, Mr. Prasetyo said.\n\u201cSmall farmers really get very little benefit flowing back down to them,\u201d said Grant Rosoman, a forest advisor at Greenpeace International.\nMr. Prasetyo is not alone in missing the premium price benefits RSPO certification is supposed to bring. RSPO-backed palm oil represents about 20% \u2014 or 15.4 million tons \u2014 of global production, but just 80% of certified oil is sold at a premium, according to the watchdog.\nSmaller growers are often reliant on one mill located near their farms, which can impact demand and prices paid for certified fruit bunches, Mr. JD said.\nWhile the RSPO certification scheme is backed by many major European buyers, boosting demand for sustainable palm oil in India, China and Indonesia \u2014 where buyers are more price-sensitive \u2014 will be important in the years to come.\nThese Asian markets care about sustainability and are trying to figure out how to build sustainability into their sourcing, said JD.\nBut without a boost in demand for certified oil from Asian markets, RSPO could lose its relevance, especially as the European Union and the United States increasingly turn to regulation in place of reliance on voluntary standards like RSPO, green groups said.\nA new European Union law to curb deforestation, agreed last December and due to take effect within two years, will force global suppliers of commodities such as palm oil, soy and cocoa to prove their supply chains are not fuelling forest destruction.\nThe RSPO must now \u201ccrack the Asian market,\u201d where the majority of palm oil is consumed, said IDH\u2019s Spencer. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation", "date_published": "2023-12-18T00:01:27+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-17T17:38:21+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Malaysia-Workers-palm-oil-fruits.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=562648", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/11/562648/agri-dept-enlists-lgu-support-to-boost-hog-repopulation-drive/", "title": "Agri dep\u2019t enlists LGU support to boost hog repopulation drive", "content_html": "THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it has enlisted the support of local government units (LGUs) in providing qualified farmers with the facilities to revive hog populations after the African Swine Fever outbreak.
\nAccording to memorandum circular (MC) no. 54, signed by Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., LGUs have been tasked to help farmers with project implementation and finding land.
\nIt added that the DA will fund the construction of biosecure facilities and animal housing, as well as feed and biologics and the procurement of piglets under its Integrated National Swine Production Initiative for Recovery and Expansion (INSPIRE) program.
\nQualified beneficiaries without existing facilities can avail of a P10-million funding package for a biosecure facility and 300 piglets, or P5 million for a conventional animal housing and 100 piglets.
\n\u201cThe minimum project package\u2026 can be availed of by organized and active (farmer cooperatives and associations or FCAs), and LGUs who desire to undertake modernized swine raising\u2026 using the community swine clustering model, \u201c the DA said.
\nIt added that LGU recipients should not exceed 20% of the total number of targeted beneficiaries per region.
\nAdditionally, MC 54 also allowed Regions 2, 3, 4-A, and 7 the authority to provide budgetary assistance to qualified FCAs.
\n\u201cConsidering the sizeable decrease in the breeder base population (in the regions) and considering (their) proximity to the National Capital Region, it is imperative to restore the region\u2019s flourishing pork production to ensure adequate pork supply,\u201d it said.
\nThe DA earlier projected a 10-day deficit in pork supply due to the increased demand during the end-of-year holidays It is also considering more imports to add to the domestic supply.
\nThe areas targeted for support are being counted on to establish multiplier and production farms aimed at creating \u201cgenetically superior gilts and finisher animals.\u201d
\nQualified FCAs would need to have vacant farms, a minimum capacity of 300 sows and possess a biosecurity level two rating.
\n\u201cThe recipient shall pay the (DA) the equivalent amount in terms of breeders provided and distributed to other identified FCAs,\u201d it added. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it has enlisted the support of local government units (LGUs) in providing qualified farmers with the facilities to revive hog populations after the African Swine Fever outbreak.\nAccording to memorandum circular (MC) no. 54, signed by Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., LGUs have been tasked to help farmers with project implementation and finding land.\nIt added that the DA will fund the construction of biosecure facilities and animal housing, as well as feed and biologics and the procurement of piglets under its Integrated National Swine Production Initiative for Recovery and Expansion (INSPIRE) program.\nQualified beneficiaries without existing facilities can avail of a P10-million funding package for a biosecure facility and 300 piglets, or P5 million for a conventional animal housing and 100 piglets.\n\u201cThe minimum project package\u2026 can be availed of by organized and active (farmer cooperatives and associations or FCAs), and LGUs who desire to undertake modernized swine raising\u2026 using the community swine clustering model, \u201c the DA said.\nIt added that LGU recipients should not exceed 20% of the total number of targeted beneficiaries per region.\nAdditionally, MC 54 also allowed Regions 2, 3, 4-A, and 7 the authority to provide budgetary assistance to qualified FCAs.\n\u201cConsidering the sizeable decrease in the breeder base population (in the regions) and considering (their) proximity to the National Capital Region, it is imperative to restore the region\u2019s flourishing pork production to ensure adequate pork supply,\u201d it said.\nThe DA earlier projected a 10-day deficit in pork supply due to the increased demand during the end-of-year holidays It is also considering more imports to add to the domestic supply.\nThe areas targeted for support are being counted on to establish multiplier and production farms aimed at creating \u201cgenetically superior gilts and finisher animals.\u201d\nQualified FCAs would need to have vacant farms, a minimum capacity of 300 sows and possess a biosecurity level two rating.\n\u201cThe recipient shall pay the (DA) the equivalent amount in terms of breeders provided and distributed to other identified FCAs,\u201d it added. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-12-11T00:03:59+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-10T19:27:07+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Brazil-meat.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=562647", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/11/562647/commodities-traders-pledge-at-cop28-to-protect-south-american-grasslands/", "title": "Commodities traders pledge at COP28 to protect South American grasslands", "content_html": "DUBAI \u2014 Eight of the world\u2019s top commodities traders have pledged to stop buying soy from farms that ruin South American grasslands, adding to previous commitments to shun growers that clear forests, a sector group said on Saturday on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit.
\nThe move could bolster conservation for Brazil\u2019s Cerrado, the world\u2019s most biodiverse savanna, at least half of which has already been destroyed for agriculture. Farming, forestry and land use account for more than a fifth of planet warming-emissions.
\nThe firms, including Archer Daniels Midland,\u00a0Bunge, Cargill, and Louis Dreyfus Company, agreed that by the end of the decade they will longer buy soy from farms that destroyed any non-forest natural vegetation in the Amazon rainforest, Chaco dry woodlands or the Cerrado, said Petra Tanos of the Tropical Forest Alliance.
\nThe commitment adds to the sector\u2019s pledge last year to eliminate deforestation by 2025.
\nTanos said the move is most consequential for the Cerrado, Brazil\u2019s most rapidly expanding agricultural frontier that includes large stretches of grassland. In 2023, Cerrado destruction hit its highest point in eight years.
\nThe Tropical Forest Alliance is a World Economic Forum initiative that works with commodities firms on environmental commitments.
\nBeyond the United States, the largest soy exporting nations are in South America, where natural vegetation is typically cleared to make way for farms.
\nIn the lead up to United Nations COP28 climate change summit in Dubai, some of the companies announced even more aggressive commitments. Last month, Cargill announced it would eliminate deforestation and land conversion from its supply chains by 2025 in Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay.
\nArcher Daniels Midland committed to eliminating land conversion among its direct suppliers by 2025 and indirect suppliers by 2027 across sensitive South American biomes.
\nBut the industry has a history of failing to meet past commitments. In 2010, hundreds of consumer brands pledged to reach \u201cnet zero\u201d deforestation by 2020, but failed to meet the goal. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "DUBAI \u2014 Eight of the world\u2019s top commodities traders have pledged to stop buying soy from farms that ruin South American grasslands, adding to previous commitments to shun growers that clear forests, a sector group said on Saturday on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit.\nThe move could bolster conservation for Brazil\u2019s Cerrado, the world\u2019s most biodiverse savanna, at least half of which has already been destroyed for agriculture. Farming, forestry and land use account for more than a fifth of planet warming-emissions.\nThe firms, including Archer Daniels Midland,\u00a0Bunge, Cargill, and Louis Dreyfus Company, agreed that by the end of the decade they will longer buy soy from farms that destroyed any non-forest natural vegetation in the Amazon rainforest, Chaco dry woodlands or the Cerrado, said Petra Tanos of the Tropical Forest Alliance.\nThe commitment adds to the sector\u2019s pledge last year to eliminate deforestation by 2025.\nTanos said the move is most consequential for the Cerrado, Brazil\u2019s most rapidly expanding agricultural frontier that includes large stretches of grassland. In 2023, Cerrado destruction hit its highest point in eight years.\nThe Tropical Forest Alliance is a World Economic Forum initiative that works with commodities firms on environmental commitments.\nBeyond the United States, the largest soy exporting nations are in South America, where natural vegetation is typically cleared to make way for farms.\nIn the lead up to United Nations COP28 climate change summit in Dubai, some of the companies announced even more aggressive commitments. Last month, Cargill announced it would eliminate deforestation and land conversion from its supply chains by 2025 in Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay.\nArcher Daniels Midland committed to eliminating land conversion among its direct suppliers by 2025 and indirect suppliers by 2027 across sensitive South American biomes.\nBut the industry has a history of failing to meet past commitments. In 2010, hundreds of consumer brands pledged to reach \u201cnet zero\u201d deforestation by 2020, but failed to meet the goal. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-12-11T00:02:58+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-10T19:26:23+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Argentina-soy-plantation.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=562646", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/11/562646/world-food-prices-hold-steady-in-november/", "title": "World food prices hold steady in November", "content_html": "LONDON \u2014 The United Nations food agency\u2019s world price index held steady in November, with lower international cereal prices offset by higher prices of vegetable oils.
\nThe Food and Agriculture Organization\u2019s (FAO) price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in November, around October\u2019s levels which were the lowest since March 2021.
\nThe November reading marked a 10.7% decline versus last November.
\nThe FAO cereal price index decreased by 3% month on month in November, led by a sharp fall in maize prices, while those of wheat declined by 2.4%.
\nVegetable oil prices, however, rose 3.4% from October.
\n\u201cPalm oil prices rebounded more than 6% in November, chiefly underpinned by more active purchases by leading importing countries and seasonally lower outputs in major producing countries,\u201d the FAO said in a statement.
\nThe agency\u2019s dairy price index rose 2.2% from October, led by high demand for butter and skimmed milk powder in Northeast Asia, and increased pre-holiday demand in Western Europe.
\nSugar prices rose 1.4% month on month in November but averaged 41.1% higher than last November thanks to worsening production prospects in Thailand and India.
\nIn a separate report on cereal supply and demand, the FAO raised its forecast for world cereal production this year to a record 2.823 billion metric tons versus 2.819 billion previously \u2014 representing a 0.9% increase from 2022.
\n\u201cLooking ahead to next season, planting of the 2024 winter wheat crop is ongoing in the northern hemisphere and, reflecting lower crop prices, area growth could be limited,\u201d the FAO said.
\nNevertheless, the agency sees world cereal stocks up 2.7% by the end of the 2024 season, while the cereal stock-to-use ratio is forecast at 30.8% in 2023/2024, \u201cindicating an overall comfortable supply level.\u201d \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "LONDON \u2014 The United Nations food agency\u2019s world price index held steady in November, with lower international cereal prices offset by higher prices of vegetable oils.\nThe Food and Agriculture Organization\u2019s (FAO) price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in November, around October\u2019s levels which were the lowest since March 2021.\nThe November reading marked a 10.7% decline versus last November.\nThe FAO cereal price index decreased by 3% month on month in November, led by a sharp fall in maize prices, while those of wheat declined by 2.4%.\nVegetable oil prices, however, rose 3.4% from October.\n\u201cPalm oil prices rebounded more than 6% in November, chiefly underpinned by more active purchases by leading importing countries and seasonally lower outputs in major producing countries,\u201d the FAO said in a statement.\nThe agency\u2019s dairy price index rose 2.2% from October, led by high demand for butter and skimmed milk powder in Northeast Asia, and increased pre-holiday demand in Western Europe.\nSugar prices rose 1.4% month on month in November but averaged 41.1% higher than last November thanks to worsening production prospects in Thailand and India.\nIn a separate report on cereal supply and demand, the FAO raised its forecast for world cereal production this year to a record 2.823 billion metric tons versus 2.819 billion previously \u2014 representing a 0.9% increase from 2022.\n\u201cLooking ahead to next season, planting of the 2024 winter wheat crop is ongoing in the northern hemisphere and, reflecting lower crop prices, area growth could be limited,\u201d the FAO said.\nNevertheless, the agency sees world cereal stocks up 2.7% by the end of the 2024 season, while the cereal stock-to-use ratio is forecast at 30.8% in 2023/2024, \u201cindicating an overall comfortable supply level.\u201d \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-12-11T00:01:58+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-10T19:25:41+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/FAO-logo-headquarters.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=561175", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/04/561175/farmers-want-nfa-power-to-stockpile-other-commodities/", "title": "Farmers want NFA power to stockpile other commodities", "content_html": "THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER of Agriculture and Food, Inc. (PCAFI) said the authority of the National Food Authority (NFA) to maintain a national rice reserve needs to be expanded to include other commodities.
\n\u201cLahat ng mga basic commodities pati sibuyas, asukal, pakialaman nila basta ang importante (Every basic commodity including onion and sugar, they should have a hand in, as long as) at the time there is a shortage, NFA is ready to come in,\u201d PCAFI President Danilo V. Fausto told reporters last week.
\nUnder the Rice Tariffication Law of 2019 (Republic Act No. 11203), importing rice were removed from the NFA\u2019s functions. Private traders were instead allowed to bring in rice shipments while paying a 35% tariff on Southeast Asian grain.
\nThe law also funded the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, to modernize the rice industry.
\nMr. Fausto said imports of basic goods must be calibrated to meet demand.
\n\u201cWe (should) only import what is needed and at the right time,\u201d he added.
\nThe government has allocated about P9 billion to the NFA for 2023 and 2024.
\n\u201c(The budget) could be double, it could be triple, it could be five times (higher) because there should be 60 days minimum (buffer stock),\u201d he added.
\nThe NFA is authorized purchase domestically grown rice and hold it in reserve in the event of shortages or calamities.
\nHe said that the NFA should also work with the private sector and local government units in procuring adequate stocks of rice. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "THE PHILIPPINE CHAMBER of Agriculture and Food, Inc. (PCAFI) said the authority of the National Food Authority (NFA) to maintain a national rice reserve needs to be expanded to include other commodities.\n\u201cLahat ng mga basic commodities pati sibuyas, asukal, pakialaman nila basta ang importante (Every basic commodity including onion and sugar, they should have a hand in, as long as) at the time there is a shortage, NFA is ready to come in,\u201d PCAFI President Danilo V. Fausto told reporters last week.\nUnder the Rice Tariffication Law of 2019 (Republic Act No. 11203), importing rice were removed from the NFA\u2019s functions. Private traders were instead allowed to bring in rice shipments while paying a 35% tariff on Southeast Asian grain.\nThe law also funded the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, to modernize the rice industry.\nMr. Fausto said imports of basic goods must be calibrated to meet demand.\n\u201cWe (should) only import what is needed and at the right time,\u201d he added.\nThe government has allocated about P9 billion to the NFA for 2023 and 2024.\n\u201c(The budget) could be double, it could be triple, it could be five times (higher) because there should be 60 days minimum (buffer stock),\u201d he added.\nThe NFA is authorized purchase domestically grown rice and hold it in reserve in the event of shortages or calamities.\nHe said that the NFA should also work with the private sector and local government units in procuring adequate stocks of rice. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-12-04T00:03:48+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-03T18:25:25+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/NFA-rice-workers.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=561173", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/04/561173/phl-expected-to-import-more-processed-vegetables-usda/", "title": "PHL expected to import more processed vegetables \u2014 USDA", "content_html": "PHILIPPINE imports of processed vegetables are expected to increase with domestic production unable to meet demand, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
\nAccording to a report by the USDA\u2019s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), the Philippine annual vegetable deficit is about 1.4 million metric tons (MT) in wet weight through at least 2030.
\nIt attributed the deficit to the lack of post-harvest facilities and a decline in available farmland.
\n\u201cAdditionally, the country faces the challenge of approximately 20 typhoons annually, which pose a significant threat to the supply of vegetables,\u201d the USDA said.
\nThe report added that to address the deficit in vegetable supply, imports of processed vegetables \u201cpresents a viable solution.\u201d
\nIt said that stakeholders must also focus on reducing the cost of inter-island shipping and enhance the cold chain network.
\n\u201cThese measures will ensure efficient transportation and proper storage of intermediate and prepared processed vegetable products across the Philippine islands,\u201d it said.
\nCiting government data, the USDA said that Philippines imported 160,000 metric tons (MT) of fresh vegetables and 405,000 MT of processed vegetables in 2022. Such imports have grown 17% and 6%, respectively, over the past 10 years.
\n\u201cEven if this growth were to be sustained, it would still be inadequate to meet the demand of a rapidly growing population and the government\u2019s goal of promoting greater vegetable consumption,\u201d it added.
\nAdditionally, the USDA said that there is a significant opportunity for the US processed vegetable industry to increase its exports to the Philippines.
\n\u201c(Processed) vegetables that have the best prospects are the vegetables varieties that are not extensively produced locally\u2026cooking staples like garlic and onions, which are susceptible to price shocks, and those that offer convenience and wellness present excellent opportunities,\u201d it said.
\nThe FAS added that the food service, retail, and processing sectors in the Philippines also show potential for increased take-up of processed vegetables.
\nUS exports to the Philippines include frozen potatoes, potato chips, onion powder, garlic powder, canned pulses, peppers, pickled vegetables, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and prepared mixed vegetables. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "PHILIPPINE imports of processed vegetables are expected to increase with domestic production unable to meet demand, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).\nAccording to a report by the USDA\u2019s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), the Philippine annual vegetable deficit is about 1.4 million metric tons (MT) in wet weight through at least 2030.\nIt attributed the deficit to the lack of post-harvest facilities and a decline in available farmland.\n\u201cAdditionally, the country faces the challenge of approximately 20 typhoons annually, which pose a significant threat to the supply of vegetables,\u201d the USDA said.\nThe report added that to address the deficit in vegetable supply, imports of processed vegetables \u201cpresents a viable solution.\u201d\nIt said that stakeholders must also focus on reducing the cost of inter-island shipping and enhance the cold chain network.\n\u201cThese measures will ensure efficient transportation and proper storage of intermediate and prepared processed vegetable products across the Philippine islands,\u201d it said.\nCiting government data, the USDA said that Philippines imported 160,000 metric tons (MT) of fresh vegetables and 405,000 MT of processed vegetables in 2022. Such imports have grown 17% and 6%, respectively, over the past 10 years.\n\u201cEven if this growth were to be sustained, it would still be inadequate to meet the demand of a rapidly growing population and the government\u2019s goal of promoting greater vegetable consumption,\u201d it added.\nAdditionally, the USDA said that there is a significant opportunity for the US processed vegetable industry to increase its exports to the Philippines.\n\u201c(Processed) vegetables that have the best prospects are the vegetables varieties that are not extensively produced locally\u2026cooking staples like garlic and onions, which are susceptible to price shocks, and those that offer convenience and wellness present excellent opportunities,\u201d it said.\nThe FAS added that the food service, retail, and processing sectors in the Philippines also show potential for increased take-up of processed vegetables.\nUS exports to the Philippines include frozen potatoes, potato chips, onion powder, garlic powder, canned pulses, peppers, pickled vegetables, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and prepared mixed vegetables. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-12-04T00:02:38+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-03T18:25:00+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/sharon-pittaway-KUZnfk-2DSQ-unsplash-scaled.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=561172", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/12/04/561172/brazilian-state-launches-mandatory-tracking-of-cattle-to-stop-deforestation-around-amazon/", "title": "Brazilian state launches mandatory tracking of cattle to stop deforestation around Amazon", "content_html": "SAO PAULO \u2014 Brazil\u2019s Para state, which leads the country for the highest levels of Amazon rainforest destruction, will launch a mandatory program to track cattle in a bid to crack down on related deforestation, a partner in the project said.
\nCattle pasture is the most common initial use for deforested areas in the Amazon and neighboring Cerrado savanna, a practice that faces strict legal limits but continues illegally in Brazil, the world\u2019s biggest beef exporter.
\nThe government of Para state in northern Brazil announced the program at the UN COP28 climate summit, according to The Nature Conservancy, a global conservation advocacy group working on the project.
\nThe state government established the program in a decree published on Monday and sets the target of individual tracking of all 24 million cattle in Para by December 2026.
\nCattle ranching in Brazil is linked to nearly 24% of global annual tropical deforestation and approximately 10% of total global greenhouse gas emissions, the conservancy said.
\nPara has Brazil\u2019s second biggest cattle herd behind the west-central state of Mato Grosso, according to government data. The conservancy said the program will offer incentives for ranchers to join the traceability system to ensure compliance with the new law, without giving details on incentives.
\n\u201cIn a state larger than France, Spain, and Norway combined, with over 24 million cattle on more than 295,000 farms, the program brings a new approach to ensure continued reductions in deforestation and associated greenhouse gas emissions from cattle,\u201d the conservancy said.
\nThe program is part of a drive led by Para Governor Helder Barbalho to bolster the state\u2019s green credentials ahead of hosting the COP30 climate change summit in 2025.
\n\u201cThe Para Cattle Integrity Program, announced at COP28, is a foundational layer for addressing the biggest driver of deforestation and emissions in Brazil,\u201d said Jack Hurd, executive director of the Tropical Forest Alliance, an initiative that works with commodities firms to reduce deforestation.
\n\u201cThe absence of full traceability in Para undermined their ability to attract legitimate investment into this sector.\u201d \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "SAO PAULO \u2014 Brazil\u2019s Para state, which leads the country for the highest levels of Amazon rainforest destruction, will launch a mandatory program to track cattle in a bid to crack down on related deforestation, a partner in the project said.\nCattle pasture is the most common initial use for deforested areas in the Amazon and neighboring Cerrado savanna, a practice that faces strict legal limits but continues illegally in Brazil, the world\u2019s biggest beef exporter.\nThe government of Para state in northern Brazil announced the program at the UN COP28 climate summit, according to The Nature Conservancy, a global conservation advocacy group working on the project.\nThe state government established the program in a decree published on Monday and sets the target of individual tracking of all 24 million cattle in Para by December 2026.\nCattle ranching in Brazil is linked to nearly 24% of global annual tropical deforestation and approximately 10% of total global greenhouse gas emissions, the conservancy said.\nPara has Brazil\u2019s second biggest cattle herd behind the west-central state of Mato Grosso, according to government data. The conservancy said the program will offer incentives for ranchers to join the traceability system to ensure compliance with the new law, without giving details on incentives.\n\u201cIn a state larger than France, Spain, and Norway combined, with over 24 million cattle on more than 295,000 farms, the program brings a new approach to ensure continued reductions in deforestation and associated greenhouse gas emissions from cattle,\u201d the conservancy said.\nThe program is part of a drive led by Para Governor Helder Barbalho to bolster the state\u2019s green credentials ahead of hosting the COP30 climate change summit in 2025.\n\u201cThe Para Cattle Integrity Program, announced at COP28, is a foundational layer for addressing the biggest driver of deforestation and emissions in Brazil,\u201d said Jack Hurd, executive director of the Tropical Forest Alliance, an initiative that works with commodities firms to reduce deforestation.\n\u201cThe absence of full traceability in Para undermined their ability to attract legitimate investment into this sector.\u201d \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-12-04T00:01:20+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-12-03T18:23:50+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Brazil-cattle-ranches.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=560392", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2023/11/29/560392/countries-urged-to-curb-factory-farming-to-meet-climate-goals/", "title": "Countries urged to curb factory farming to meet climate goals", "content_html": "SINGAPORE\u00a0–\u00a0Restricting\u00a0factory\u00a0farming\u00a0should play a key role in efforts to cut\u00a0climate-warming greenhouse gases, an environmental charity said on Wednesday, as emissions from “food systems” emerge as a major focus of COP28\u00a0climate\u00a0talks in Dubai starting Thursday.
\nFactory\u00a0farming\u00a0alone is responsible for at least 11% of global emissions, according to research published on Wednesday by World Animal Protection. The charity said around 70% of the 80 billion animals reared every year for food were held in\u00a0factory\u00a0farm systems, contributing 6.2 billion metric tons of CO2 emissions annually.
\nThe COP28 presidency of the United Arab Emirates has\u00a0urged\u00a0countries\u00a0to sign a “leaders’ declaration” committing them to align food production with broader emissions\u00a0goals. It is also spearheading initiatives to promote agricultural innovation.
\n“What’s very exciting about this COP is that the leaders’ declaration commits\u00a0countries\u00a0that sign it to include food systems in their nationally determined contributions and their national adaptation plans,” said David Garrahy, external affairs manager at World Animal Protection.
\nFood systems as a whole contribute about a third of global greenhouse gas, with animal agriculture responsible for a fifth, he said.
\nAnalyzing more than 400 attribution studies, the charity said\u00a0factory\u00a0farming\u00a0from the global north alone was responsible for around $8 billion in damage caused by recent extreme weather in Asia, Africa and South America.
\nIt called for a 10-year moratorium on new\u00a0factory\u00a0farms and\u00a0urged\u00a0countries\u00a0to redirect subsidies to more sustainable livestock and plant-based food production. It also said big industrial\u00a0farming\u00a0conglomerates must contribute more to\u00a0climate\u00a0loss and damage funds.
\nCOP28 will stage a “Food4Climate” Pavilion as well as a “Food Day” to highlight the role played by food production in global warming, deforestation and habitat destruction.
\nMr. Garrahy said some have branded food as a distraction from the key task of tackling fossil fuels, but food systems account for around 15% of global fossil fuel consumption.
\n“I don’t think you can bring an end to fossil fuels without addressing food systems. We don’t accept that this is a diversion tactic. It is at the heart of the Paris Agreement.” – Reuters
\n", "content_text": "SINGAPORE\u00a0–\u00a0Restricting\u00a0factory\u00a0farming\u00a0should play a key role in efforts to cut\u00a0climate-warming greenhouse gases, an environmental charity said on Wednesday, as emissions from “food systems” emerge as a major focus of COP28\u00a0climate\u00a0talks in Dubai starting Thursday.\nFactory\u00a0farming\u00a0alone is responsible for at least 11% of global emissions, according to research published on Wednesday by World Animal Protection. The charity said around 70% of the 80 billion animals reared every year for food were held in\u00a0factory\u00a0farm systems, contributing 6.2 billion metric tons of CO2 emissions annually.\nThe COP28 presidency of the United Arab Emirates has\u00a0urged\u00a0countries\u00a0to sign a “leaders’ declaration” committing them to align food production with broader emissions\u00a0goals. It is also spearheading initiatives to promote agricultural innovation.\n“What’s very exciting about this COP is that the leaders’ declaration commits\u00a0countries\u00a0that sign it to include food systems in their nationally determined contributions and their national adaptation plans,” said David Garrahy, external affairs manager at World Animal Protection.\nFood systems as a whole contribute about a third of global greenhouse gas, with animal agriculture responsible for a fifth, he said.\nAnalyzing more than 400 attribution studies, the charity said\u00a0factory\u00a0farming\u00a0from the global north alone was responsible for around $8 billion in damage caused by recent extreme weather in Asia, Africa and South America.\nIt called for a 10-year moratorium on new\u00a0factory\u00a0farms and\u00a0urged\u00a0countries\u00a0to redirect subsidies to more sustainable livestock and plant-based food production. It also said big industrial\u00a0farming\u00a0conglomerates must contribute more to\u00a0climate\u00a0loss and damage funds.\nCOP28 will stage a “Food4Climate” Pavilion as well as a “Food Day” to highlight the role played by food production in global warming, deforestation and habitat destruction.\nMr. Garrahy said some have branded food as a distraction from the key task of tackling fossil fuels, but food systems account for around 15% of global fossil fuel consumption.\n“I don’t think you can bring an end to fossil fuels without addressing food systems. We don’t accept that this is a diversion tactic. It is at the heart of the Paris Agreement.” – Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-29T14:29:39+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-29T14:29:39+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/chickens-poultry.jpg", "tags": [ "climate goals", "factory farming", "Agribusiness", "World" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=559857", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/27/559857/rice-imports-seen-exceeding-forecast-to-build-up-reserves-ahead-of-el-nino/", "title": "Rice imports seen exceeding forecast to build up reserves ahead of El Ni\u00f1o", "content_html": "By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter
\nRICE IMPORTS will likely exceed earlier projections in order to build up reserves ahead of the peak of El Ni\u00f1o, analysts said.
\nAgriculture Secretary Francisco T. Laurel Jr. said last week that he gave rice traders 30 days to import rice or risk the cancellation of their permits.
\nEconomists said El Ni\u00f1o, which is expected to run until early 2024, will dampen farm production, resulting in a need for more imports.
\n\u201cIt will be good to act conservatively when it comes to dealing with a possible rice shortage next year, when the lean season starts and a projected \u2018bad\u2019 El Nino is expected to hit food production worldwide,\u201d\u00a0Calixto V. Chikiamco, Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) president,\u00a0said in a Viber message.
\nAs of Nov. 16, rice imports have hit 2.94 million metric tons (MT), according to the Bureau of Plant Industry.
\nThe US Department of Agriculture projected earlier that rice imports this year may hit 3.8 million MT.
\nIn response the Philippine Department of Agriculture DA) said that imports of the grain would com in below the USDA\u2019s estimates.
\nRizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort likewise said that the risk of El Ni\u00f1o on rice production will spur imports up to early 2024.
\n\u201cAs reduced rainfall would reduce rice production and supply, (the gap will be) filled by additional imports,\u201d Mr. Ricafort said in a Viber message.
\nThe DA estimates palay or unmilled rice production of 20 million MT this year, on track to exceed the 19.76 million MT posted in 2022.
\nThe government weather service, known as PAGASA has said that the peak of the dry spell will run until early 2024.
\nMr. Laurel said last week that the additional rice imports will be sufficient to carry the grain supply into the next harvest.
\nMr. Chikiamco said imports are \u201cthe correct policy move. We are seeing rising prices of rice due to lower volumes of imports and the end of the harvest. Secretary Laurel wants an immediate augmentation of supply to arrest the surging prices of rice,\u201d he said.
\nThe price of imported rice was P45 per kilogram for the well-milled variety during the November 20-24 period, according to DA price monitors. The Philippines does not import regular-milled rice.
\nMr. Chikiamco said the problem of rising prices is \u201cdue to lower volume of imports as traders have hesitated to import due to surging global prices.\u201d
\nThe government had imposed a temporary price cap on regular-milled rice of P41 per kg and on well-milled rice of P45 via Executive Order No. 39. The measure was in force between August and October.
\n", "content_text": "By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter\nRICE IMPORTS will likely exceed earlier projections in order to build up reserves ahead of the peak of El Ni\u00f1o, analysts said.\nAgriculture Secretary Francisco T. Laurel Jr. said last week that he gave rice traders 30 days to import rice or risk the cancellation of their permits.\nEconomists said El Ni\u00f1o, which is expected to run until early 2024, will dampen farm production, resulting in a need for more imports.\n\u201cIt will be good to act conservatively when it comes to dealing with a possible rice shortage next year, when the lean season starts and a projected \u2018bad\u2019 El Nino is expected to hit food production worldwide,\u201d\u00a0Calixto V. Chikiamco, Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) president,\u00a0said in a Viber message.\nAs of Nov. 16, rice imports have hit 2.94 million metric tons (MT), according to the Bureau of Plant Industry.\nThe US Department of Agriculture projected earlier that rice imports this year may hit 3.8 million MT.\nIn response the Philippine Department of Agriculture DA) said that imports of the grain would com in below the USDA\u2019s estimates.\nRizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort likewise said that the risk of El Ni\u00f1o on rice production will spur imports up to early 2024.\n\u201cAs reduced rainfall would reduce rice production and supply, (the gap will be) filled by additional imports,\u201d Mr. Ricafort said in a Viber message.\nThe DA estimates palay or unmilled rice production of 20 million MT this year, on track to exceed the 19.76 million MT posted in 2022.\nThe government weather service, known as PAGASA has said that the peak of the dry spell will run until early 2024.\nMr. Laurel said last week that the additional rice imports will be sufficient to carry the grain supply into the next harvest.\nMr. Chikiamco said imports are \u201cthe correct policy move. We are seeing rising prices of rice due to lower volumes of imports and the end of the harvest. Secretary Laurel wants an immediate augmentation of supply to arrest the surging prices of rice,\u201d he said.\nThe price of imported rice was P45 per kilogram for the well-milled variety during the November 20-24 period, according to DA price monitors. The Philippines does not import regular-milled rice.\nMr. Chikiamco said the problem of rising prices is \u201cdue to lower volume of imports as traders have hesitated to import due to surging global prices.\u201d\nThe government had imposed a temporary price cap on regular-milled rice of P41 per kg and on well-milled rice of P45 via Executive Order No. 39. The measure was in force between August and October.", "date_published": "2023-11-27T00:03:03+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-26T19:38:39+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/RICE-IMPORTS-FILEFOTO.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ], "summary": "RICE IMPORTS will likely exceed earlier projections in order to build up reserves ahead of the peak of El Ni\u00f1o, analysts said." }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=559856", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/27/559856/ukraine-farmers-pin-hopes-on-exports-as-war-costs-pile-up/", "title": "Ukraine farmers pin hopes on exports as war costs pile up", "content_html": "KYIV/PARIS \u2014 Ukraine\u2019s efforts to revive sea exports in defiance of Russia\u2019s military blockade have given a glimmer of hope to a teetering farm sector in which loss-making producers are abandoning some land in one of the world\u2019s biggest grain belts.
\nWith no end in sight to the war with Russia, access to the Black Sea is critical if Ukraine is to preserve an agricultural industry that was the fourth-largest grain supplier globally before the conflict and in value terms accounted for half of Ukraine\u2019s total exports last year.
\nWhile makeshift export routes and abundant supply elsewhere have tamed record global\u00a0food prices\u00a0since last year, the strain on Ukrainian agriculture has worsened as a UN-backed export deal collapsed and European Union (EU) neighbors baulked at land shipments.
\nAgriculture has suffered losses of over $25 billion since the war began, Ukrainian grain trader association UGA estimates.
\nUkraine\u2019s grain exports so far in the 2023/24 season that started in July are running 28% below the year-earlier volume, according to agriculture ministry data.
\nThe area planted with corn, its flagship grain export, has shrunk by a quarter since the start of the war and total crop planting could suffer a double-digit decline in 2024, producers say, as cash-strapped farms leave some land idle.
\nA new Black Sea shipping channel may offer a lifeline, like for Ukraine\u2019s depleted\u00a0steel industry.\u201cThe sea corridor is essential for Ukrainian farming to survive,\u201d Jean-Francois Lepy, head of grain trading at French agribusiness group InVivo, said.
\n\u201cWithout a corridor there is going to be a serious problem in 2024/2025,\u201d he said on the sidelines of this month\u2019s Global Grain conference in Geneva.
\nThe \u201chumanitarian corridor\u201d established by Ukraine\u2019s military in late August has expanded steadily, with Kyiv estimating over 3 million tons of grain\u00a0shipped\u00a0so far.
\nIts future remains clouded by military risks, with several vessels struck by\u00a0mines or missiles, but Ukrainian producers are encouraged.
\n\u201cIt gives us breakeven because before the ports opened almost everyone was loss-making,\u201d Dmitry Skornyakov, chief executive officer of farm operator HarvEast.
\nUkrainian producers see scope to reach 2-2.5 million tons of monthly grain exports through the corridor, which combined with volumes through land routes and transhipment via the Danube river could bring overall trade back towards a pre-war rhythm of 5-6 million tons per month.
\nSpike Brokers, which tracks exports in Ukraine, said on Nov. 1-17 Ukraine exported 404,000 tons of agricultural goods via the Danube and 352,000 tons from Black Sea ports. An additional 943,000 tons should leave from Black Sea ports and 464,000 tons from the Danube by the month-end.
\n\u201cThe situation in the coming months will be better than in September and October, as large ships are starting to arrive and the number of\u00a0insurance companies\u00a0that insure risks is growing,\u201d said Denys Marchuk, deputy head of the Agrarian Council, Ukraine\u2019s largest agribusiness group.
\nSome in the market are cautious given the still perilous security situation. A Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa on Nov. 21 added to a\u00a0series of attacks\u00a0on Ukraine\u2019s Black Sea and Danube grain ports.
\nDespite expansion at Romania\u2019s Constanta port, trade via the EU remains dogged by logistical bottlenecks and tensions with Kyiv\u2019s neighbors. Border protests by Polish lorry drivers have slowed food exports this month.
\nThe new growing season could be a tipping point.
\nWinter wheat sowing will be down almost 10% on year, Ukraine\u2019s agriculture ministry estimates, with a dry start to autumn adding to farmers\u2019 problems.
\nHarvEast plans to leave uncultivated more than 10% of the 34,000 hectares it currently operates as it sacrifices less fertile fields seen as generating more losses, Mr. Skornyakov said, forecasting a general trend of 10-20% of unplanted land next year versus 3-5% this year.
\nYuriy Stelmakh, a grower in northern Ukraine, said his farm drilled 30% less area with winter crops due to a lack of funds.
\nUkraine\u2019s agri-food industry is trying to adapt. Farmers have planted more oilseed crops like sunflower that can offer better margins, while high world sugar prices and cheap local grain to feed\u00a0poultry\u00a0have spurred exports of those products.
\nBut as the war drags on, the sector faces a lack of visibility, labour shortages and structurally low prices, said Roman Gorobets, director of FE ASTRA in central Ukraine.
\nA huge wheat surplus in Russia and record corn and soybean harvests in Brazil have helped the world adapt to stop-start Ukrainian exports. A trade gap may be felt next year, though, if weather hits Brazilian crops and the Kremlin intervenes further in Russian exports.
\nUkraine has sharply reduced\u00a0exports\u00a0of farm goods to Asian and African countries this year, according to agricultural business association UCAB.
\nMajor importer Egypt has various supply sources for wheat, but few alternatives to Ukraine for corn and vegetable oil, Hesham Soliman, president of Egyptian merchant Mediterranean Star, said.
\nMuch hangs on the spring planting season and whether Ukrainian growers cut back further on corn, relatively costly to produce.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t think the world can afford for Ukraine\u2019s agriculture to suffer. We do need them, particularly on the corn side,\u201d said Scott Wellcome, director of grains risk management at GoodMills, Europe\u2019s largest miller. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "KYIV/PARIS \u2014 Ukraine\u2019s efforts to revive sea exports in defiance of Russia\u2019s military blockade have given a glimmer of hope to a teetering farm sector in which loss-making producers are abandoning some land in one of the world\u2019s biggest grain belts.\nWith no end in sight to the war with Russia, access to the Black Sea is critical if Ukraine is to preserve an agricultural industry that was the fourth-largest grain supplier globally before the conflict and in value terms accounted for half of Ukraine\u2019s total exports last year.\nWhile makeshift export routes and abundant supply elsewhere have tamed record global\u00a0food prices\u00a0since last year, the strain on Ukrainian agriculture has worsened as a UN-backed export deal collapsed and European Union (EU) neighbors baulked at land shipments.\nAgriculture has suffered losses of over $25 billion since the war began, Ukrainian grain trader association UGA estimates.\nUkraine\u2019s grain exports so far in the 2023/24 season that started in July are running 28% below the year-earlier volume, according to agriculture ministry data.\nThe area planted with corn, its flagship grain export, has shrunk by a quarter since the start of the war and total crop planting could suffer a double-digit decline in 2024, producers say, as cash-strapped farms leave some land idle.\nA new Black Sea shipping channel may offer a lifeline, like for Ukraine\u2019s depleted\u00a0steel industry.\u201cThe sea corridor is essential for Ukrainian farming to survive,\u201d Jean-Francois Lepy, head of grain trading at French agribusiness group InVivo, said.\n\u201cWithout a corridor there is going to be a serious problem in 2024/2025,\u201d he said on the sidelines of this month\u2019s Global Grain conference in Geneva.\nThe \u201chumanitarian corridor\u201d established by Ukraine\u2019s military in late August has expanded steadily, with Kyiv estimating over 3 million tons of grain\u00a0shipped\u00a0so far.\nIts future remains clouded by military risks, with several vessels struck by\u00a0mines or missiles, but Ukrainian producers are encouraged.\n\u201cIt gives us breakeven because before the ports opened almost everyone was loss-making,\u201d Dmitry Skornyakov, chief executive officer of farm operator HarvEast.\nUkrainian producers see scope to reach 2-2.5 million tons of monthly grain exports through the corridor, which combined with volumes through land routes and transhipment via the Danube river could bring overall trade back towards a pre-war rhythm of 5-6 million tons per month.\nSpike Brokers, which tracks exports in Ukraine, said on Nov. 1-17 Ukraine exported 404,000 tons of agricultural goods via the Danube and 352,000 tons from Black Sea ports. An additional 943,000 tons should leave from Black Sea ports and 464,000 tons from the Danube by the month-end.\n\u201cThe situation in the coming months will be better than in September and October, as large ships are starting to arrive and the number of\u00a0insurance companies\u00a0that insure risks is growing,\u201d said Denys Marchuk, deputy head of the Agrarian Council, Ukraine\u2019s largest agribusiness group.\nSome in the market are cautious given the still perilous security situation. A Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa on Nov. 21 added to a\u00a0series of attacks\u00a0on Ukraine\u2019s Black Sea and Danube grain ports.\nDespite expansion at Romania\u2019s Constanta port, trade via the EU remains dogged by logistical bottlenecks and tensions with Kyiv\u2019s neighbors. Border protests by Polish lorry drivers have slowed food exports this month.\nThe new growing season could be a tipping point.\nWinter wheat sowing will be down almost 10% on year, Ukraine\u2019s agriculture ministry estimates, with a dry start to autumn adding to farmers\u2019 problems.\nHarvEast plans to leave uncultivated more than 10% of the 34,000 hectares it currently operates as it sacrifices less fertile fields seen as generating more losses, Mr. Skornyakov said, forecasting a general trend of 10-20% of unplanted land next year versus 3-5% this year.\nYuriy Stelmakh, a grower in northern Ukraine, said his farm drilled 30% less area with winter crops due to a lack of funds. \nUkraine\u2019s agri-food industry is trying to adapt. Farmers have planted more oilseed crops like sunflower that can offer better margins, while high world sugar prices and cheap local grain to feed\u00a0poultry\u00a0have spurred exports of those products.\nBut as the war drags on, the sector faces a lack of visibility, labour shortages and structurally low prices, said Roman Gorobets, director of FE ASTRA in central Ukraine.\nA huge wheat surplus in Russia and record corn and soybean harvests in Brazil have helped the world adapt to stop-start Ukrainian exports. A trade gap may be felt next year, though, if weather hits Brazilian crops and the Kremlin intervenes further in Russian exports.\nUkraine has sharply reduced\u00a0exports\u00a0of farm goods to Asian and African countries this year, according to agricultural business association UCAB.\nMajor importer Egypt has various supply sources for wheat, but few alternatives to Ukraine for corn and vegetable oil, Hesham Soliman, president of Egyptian merchant Mediterranean Star, said.\nMuch hangs on the spring planting season and whether Ukrainian growers cut back further on corn, relatively costly to produce.\n\u201cI don\u2019t think the world can afford for Ukraine\u2019s agriculture to suffer. We do need them, particularly on the corn side,\u201d said Scott Wellcome, director of grains risk management at GoodMills, Europe\u2019s largest miller. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-27T00:02:02+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-26T19:40:20+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Ukraine-grain-terminal.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=559855", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/27/559855/farmers-in-india-wrestle-with-shift-to-eco-friendly-methods/", "title": "Farmers in India wrestle with shift to eco-friendly methods", "content_html": "MUMBAI \u2014 Mumbai chauffeur Nutan Pathak is a farmer at heart. Pathak, 44, migrated from his village in eastern Bihar state over two decades ago to work in the big city on the other side of the country, hoping to supplement his family\u2019s income reliant on wheat and rice from their 1.5-acre (0.6-hectare) farm.
\nHis decision to leave paid off. Pathak\u2019s steady salary from the city job kept his family afloat even as crop yields dropped consistently due to the droughts and floods ravaging his farm.
\n\u201dIt either doesn\u2019t rain or it rains so much that it floods. We get just one yield every year. It wasn\u2019t like this when I was growing up,\u201d Mr. Pathak told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Now he leases his field to villagers who share half of any profit with him.
\nBut he would like to go back to his land if a push towards eco-friendly agriculture helps farmers cope with worsening climate pressures and pays off financially.
\nAgriculture is India\u2019s biggest employer, supporting the livelihoods of 250 million farmers and informal laborers – but their work is getting harder as climate change makes living off farming difficult, pushing up debt, migration and suicides.
\nWorries over falling yields have driven up the use of chemical fertilizers that are stripping the soil of nutrients and fuelling agricultural emissions on a warming planet.
\nIn response, green farming projects have taken root in India, where staple crops include rice, wheat, maize, sugarcane, cotton and groundnut.
\nBut experts say the scale and success hinges on how well the approach protects poor farmers\u2019 incomes.
\n\u201cIf you want to sustain agriculture as the biggest employer, and want to bring in sustainable farming, first bring living income to farmers,\u201d said Devinder Sharma, an independent expert on agricultural policy.
\n\u201cAs a nation, we need to move towards agro-ecology but these (sustainable farming projects) will only bring about cosmetic changes until you provide farmers an assured income,\u201d he added.
\nA government-backed guaranteed price for natural produce, subsidies to cover losses and stronger marketing channels would all help, he said.
\nWorldwide, rice is a staple food for more than 3 billion people while flooded paddy fields account for 12% of humanity\u2019s methane emissions – equivalent to 1.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions – according to the Asian Development Bank.
\nAsia-Pacific accounts for the highest emissions from agriculture, partly because of the region\u2019s rising use of synthetic fertilizers in rice cultivation, the bank says.
\nFarmers\u2019 incomes in India, the second-largest producer of rice globally after China, are wedded to paddy yields. That makes them reluctant to shift away from conventional methods of pumping fertilizers onto fields to raise production.
\nBut farmer Jitendra Singh in northern India has made the switch from high fertilizer use, incentivized by the prospect of extra income from generating carbon credits through lower-emitting methods, which can be traded on international markets.
\nHe no longer transplants paddy seedlings into flooded fields, but directly sows them into the soil. Besides reducing methane emissions, that has cut water use, time needed for sowing and the use of chemical herbicides and fertilizers.
\nOn a rice farm in eastern Odisha state, however, Gurcharan Mahanta seems uninterested in a regional project to promote millet, a long-forgotten crop making a comeback because it is resilient to droughts fuelled by climate change.
\nMr. Mahanta, 54, said his high-yielding hybrid rice variety fetched him a good price, which millet would not with a small consumer base. Growing paddy is also less labor-intensive. \u201cI go by the market demand,\u201d he said.
\nMore than 80% of farmers in India own less than five acres – and many keep spending on fertilizers and pesticides, hoping for good yields even though they face a crushing burden of debt.
\nNearly 11,000 farmers, cultivators and agricultural laborers took their own lives in 2021, averaging about 30 deaths a day, with bankruptcy the leading cause, according to government data.
\nIn a bid to support these smallholders and make farming more climate-friendly, India is promoting organic and natural farming, encouraging diversification to cut dependence on one major crop and incentivizing solar-powered water pumps for irrigation to reduce the use of fossil fuel power.
\nAt a meeting of the Group of 20 (G20) agriculture ministers this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the disproportionate impact of climate change on agriculture in the Global South and said Indian farmers are taking up natural farming to revive the soil.
\n\u201cOur policy is a fusion of back to basics and march to the future. We are promoting natural farming as well as technology-enabled farming,\u201d he said in a speech.
\nYet agricultural scientists estimate that fewer than 5% of Indian farmers have switched to sustainable farming methods, even though many are aware of the threat of global warming and the rising costs of conventional practices.
\n\u201cFarmers understand climate change. They worry about rain and droughts. But they will not understand sustainable agriculture until their problems are first understood,\u201d said Vikram Singh, joint secretary of the All India Agricultural Workers\u2019 Union.
\nDespite the challenges, sustainable farming has brought some success stories, including young people who have given up city careers in tech or pharmaceuticals to return to family farms.
\nBut the wins are patchy \u2014 and, in some cases, the eco-friendly switch has added to farmers\u2019 stress. In the southern Indian state of Telangana, for instance, millers are turning away from genetically modified BT cotton in response to rising global demand for sustainable organic cotton.
\nBut organic seeds are rare in India where BT dominates and cotton-processing infrastructure is designed for large volumes.
\nAddressing issues like these \u2014 and ensuring that sustainable methods boost crop yields and incomes \u2014 will be key to bringing would-be farmers like Mr. Pathak back to the land they love.
\nWrapping up his day driving through the manic Mumbai traffic, Mr. Pathak said he pined for the clean air of his village, his jute bed and the farm-fresh gooseberries he enjoys on his annual vacation back home.
\nHe hopes to return to that traditional rural life if the economics stack up and local markets for naturally grown produce thrive. He suggested farmers could find other income sources too like selling milk to dairies with village networks, helping them earn between harvests and protecting them from climate extremes.
\nShiraz Wajih, president of the nonprofit Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, urged farmers and agricultural scientists to work together to create solutions on the ground.
\nLocal production of inputs for natural farming can cut costs and dependence on outside markets while creating jobs, he said. And fine-tuning farm processes suited to each region\u2019s ecology would boost acceptance of greener methods, he added.
\nWajih said most farmers do not want to leave their land, as seen during COVID-19 lockdowns when migrant factory workers returned to their farms to keep them going in tough times.
\n\u201cPeople are aware of job options that can pay them better. But land is always the permanent address of farmers,\u201d he said. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation
\n", "content_text": "MUMBAI \u2014 Mumbai chauffeur Nutan Pathak is a farmer at heart. Pathak, 44, migrated from his village in eastern Bihar state over two decades ago to work in the big city on the other side of the country, hoping to supplement his family\u2019s income reliant on wheat and rice from their 1.5-acre (0.6-hectare) farm.\nHis decision to leave paid off. Pathak\u2019s steady salary from the city job kept his family afloat even as crop yields dropped consistently due to the droughts and floods ravaging his farm.\n\u201dIt either doesn\u2019t rain or it rains so much that it floods. We get just one yield every year. It wasn\u2019t like this when I was growing up,\u201d Mr. Pathak told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Now he leases his field to villagers who share half of any profit with him.\nBut he would like to go back to his land if a push towards eco-friendly agriculture helps farmers cope with worsening climate pressures and pays off financially.\nAgriculture is India\u2019s biggest employer, supporting the livelihoods of 250 million farmers and informal laborers – but their work is getting harder as climate change makes living off farming difficult, pushing up debt, migration and suicides.\nWorries over falling yields have driven up the use of chemical fertilizers that are stripping the soil of nutrients and fuelling agricultural emissions on a warming planet.\nIn response, green farming projects have taken root in India, where staple crops include rice, wheat, maize, sugarcane, cotton and groundnut.\nBut experts say the scale and success hinges on how well the approach protects poor farmers\u2019 incomes.\n\u201cIf you want to sustain agriculture as the biggest employer, and want to bring in sustainable farming, first bring living income to farmers,\u201d said Devinder Sharma, an independent expert on agricultural policy.\n\u201cAs a nation, we need to move towards agro-ecology but these (sustainable farming projects) will only bring about cosmetic changes until you provide farmers an assured income,\u201d he added.\nA government-backed guaranteed price for natural produce, subsidies to cover losses and stronger marketing channels would all help, he said.\nWorldwide, rice is a staple food for more than 3 billion people while flooded paddy fields account for 12% of humanity\u2019s methane emissions – equivalent to 1.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions – according to the Asian Development Bank.\nAsia-Pacific accounts for the highest emissions from agriculture, partly because of the region\u2019s rising use of synthetic fertilizers in rice cultivation, the bank says.\nFarmers\u2019 incomes in India, the second-largest producer of rice globally after China, are wedded to paddy yields. That makes them reluctant to shift away from conventional methods of pumping fertilizers onto fields to raise production.\nBut farmer Jitendra Singh in northern India has made the switch from high fertilizer use, incentivized by the prospect of extra income from generating carbon credits through lower-emitting methods, which can be traded on international markets.\nHe no longer transplants paddy seedlings into flooded fields, but directly sows them into the soil. Besides reducing methane emissions, that has cut water use, time needed for sowing and the use of chemical herbicides and fertilizers.\nOn a rice farm in eastern Odisha state, however, Gurcharan Mahanta seems uninterested in a regional project to promote millet, a long-forgotten crop making a comeback because it is resilient to droughts fuelled by climate change.\nMr. Mahanta, 54, said his high-yielding hybrid rice variety fetched him a good price, which millet would not with a small consumer base. Growing paddy is also less labor-intensive. \u201cI go by the market demand,\u201d he said.\nMore than 80% of farmers in India own less than five acres – and many keep spending on fertilizers and pesticides, hoping for good yields even though they face a crushing burden of debt.\nNearly 11,000 farmers, cultivators and agricultural laborers took their own lives in 2021, averaging about 30 deaths a day, with bankruptcy the leading cause, according to government data.\nIn a bid to support these smallholders and make farming more climate-friendly, India is promoting organic and natural farming, encouraging diversification to cut dependence on one major crop and incentivizing solar-powered water pumps for irrigation to reduce the use of fossil fuel power.\nAt a meeting of the Group of 20 (G20) agriculture ministers this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the disproportionate impact of climate change on agriculture in the Global South and said Indian farmers are taking up natural farming to revive the soil.\n\u201cOur policy is a fusion of back to basics and march to the future. We are promoting natural farming as well as technology-enabled farming,\u201d he said in a speech.\nYet agricultural scientists estimate that fewer than 5% of Indian farmers have switched to sustainable farming methods, even though many are aware of the threat of global warming and the rising costs of conventional practices.\n\u201cFarmers understand climate change. They worry about rain and droughts. But they will not understand sustainable agriculture until their problems are first understood,\u201d said Vikram Singh, joint secretary of the All India Agricultural Workers\u2019 Union.\nDespite the challenges, sustainable farming has brought some success stories, including young people who have given up city careers in tech or pharmaceuticals to return to family farms.\nBut the wins are patchy \u2014 and, in some cases, the eco-friendly switch has added to farmers\u2019 stress. In the southern Indian state of Telangana, for instance, millers are turning away from genetically modified BT cotton in response to rising global demand for sustainable organic cotton.\nBut organic seeds are rare in India where BT dominates and cotton-processing infrastructure is designed for large volumes.\nAddressing issues like these \u2014 and ensuring that sustainable methods boost crop yields and incomes \u2014 will be key to bringing would-be farmers like Mr. Pathak back to the land they love.\nWrapping up his day driving through the manic Mumbai traffic, Mr. Pathak said he pined for the clean air of his village, his jute bed and the farm-fresh gooseberries he enjoys on his annual vacation back home.\nHe hopes to return to that traditional rural life if the economics stack up and local markets for naturally grown produce thrive. He suggested farmers could find other income sources too like selling milk to dairies with village networks, helping them earn between harvests and protecting them from climate extremes.\nShiraz Wajih, president of the nonprofit Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, urged farmers and agricultural scientists to work together to create solutions on the ground.\nLocal production of inputs for natural farming can cut costs and dependence on outside markets while creating jobs, he said. And fine-tuning farm processes suited to each region\u2019s ecology would boost acceptance of greener methods, he added.\nWajih said most farmers do not want to leave their land, as seen during COVID-19 lockdowns when migrant factory workers returned to their farms to keep them going in tough times.\n\u201cPeople are aware of job options that can pay them better. But land is always the permanent address of farmers,\u201d he said. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation", "date_published": "2023-11-27T00:01:02+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-26T19:36:43+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Rice-farmer.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=558531", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2023/11/20/558531/indias-farmers-wrestle-with-shift-to-eco-friendly-agriculture/", "title": "India\u2019s farmers wrestle with shift to eco-friendly agriculture", "content_html": "MUMBAI (Thomson Reuters Foundation)\u00a0–\u00a0Mumbai chauffeur Nutan Pathak is a farmer at heart.
\nMr. Pathak, 44, migrated from his village in eastern Bihar state over two decades ago to work in the big city on the other side of the country, hoping to supplement his family’s income reliant on wheat and rice from their 1.5-acre (0.6-hectare) farm.
\nHis decision to leave paid off. Pathak’s steady salary from the city job kept his family afloat even as crop yields dropped consistently due to the droughts and floods ravaging his farm.
\n“It either doesn’t rain or it rains so much that it floods. We get just one yield every year. It wasn’t like this when I was growing up,” Mr. Pathak told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
\nNow he leases his field to villagers who share half of any profit with him. But he would like to go back to his land if a push towards\u00a0eco–friendly\u00a0agriculture\u00a0helps\u00a0farmers\u00a0cope with worsening climate pressures and pays off financially.
\nAgriculture\u00a0is\u00a0India’s\u00a0biggest employer, supporting the livelihoods of 250 million\u00a0farmers\u00a0and informal laborers – but their work is getting harder as climate change makes living off farming difficult, pushing up debt, migration and suicides.
\nWorries over falling yields have driven up the use of chemical fertilizers that are stripping the soil of nutrients and fueling agricultural emissions on a warming planet.
\nIn response, green farming projects have taken root in India, where staple crops include rice, wheat, maize, sugarcane, cotton and groundnut. But experts say the scale and success hinges on how well the approach protects poor\u00a0farmers‘ incomes.
\n“If you want to sustain\u00a0agriculture\u00a0as the biggest employer, and want to bring in sustainable farming, first bring living income to\u00a0farmers,” said Devinder Sharma, an independent expert on agricultural policy.
\n“As a nation, we need to move towards agro-ecology but these (sustainable farming projects) will only bring about cosmetic changes until you provide\u00a0farmers\u00a0an assured income,” he added.
\nA government-backed guaranteed price for natural produce, subsidies to cover losses and stronger marketing channels would all help, he said.
\n\n
A TALE OF TWO\u00a0FARMERS
\nWorldwide, rice is a staple food for more than 3 billion people while flooded paddy fields account for 12% of humanity’s methane emissions – equivalent to 1.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions – according to the Asian Development Bank.
\nAsia-Pacific accounts for the highest emissions from\u00a0agriculture, partly because of the region’s rising use of synthetic fertilizers in rice cultivation, the bank says.
\nFarmers‘ incomes in India, the second-largest producer of rice globally after China, are wedded to paddy yields. That makes them reluctant to\u00a0shift\u00a0away from conventional methods of pumping fertilizers onto fields to raise production.
\nBut farmer Jitendra Singh in northern India has made the switch from high fertilizer use, incentivized by the prospect of extra income from generating carbon credits through lower-emitting methods,\u00a0which can be traded on international markets.
\nHe no longer transplants paddy seedlings into flooded fields, but directly sows them into the soil. Besides reducing methane emissions,\u00a0that has cut water use, time needed for sowing and the use of chemical herbicides and fertilizers.
\nOn a rice farm in eastern Odisha state, however, Gurcharan Mahanta seems uninterested in a regional project to promote millet, a long-forgotten crop making a comeback because it is resilient to droughts fueled by climate change.
\nMr. Mahanta, 54, said his high-yielding hybrid rice variety fetched him a good price, which millet would not with a small consumer base. Growing paddy is also less labour-intensive.
\n“I go by the market demand,” he said.
\n\n
FINANCIAL PROBLEMS CURB GREEN\u00a0SHIFT
\nMore than 80% of\u00a0farmers\u00a0in India own less than five acres – and many keep spending on fertilizers and pesticides, hoping for good yields even though they face a crushing burden of debt.
\nNearly 11,000\u00a0farmers, cultivators and agricultural laborers took their own lives in 2021, averaging about 30 deaths a day, with bankruptcy the leading cause, according to government data.
\nIn a bid to support these smallholders and make farming more climate-friendly, India is promoting organic and natural farming, encouraging diversification to cut dependence on one major crop and incentivizing solar-powered water pumps for irrigation to reduce the use of fossil fuel power.
\nAt a meeting of G20\u00a0agriculture\u00a0ministers this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the disproportionate impact of climate change on\u00a0agriculture\u00a0in the Global South and said Indian\u00a0farmers\u00a0are taking up natural farming to revive the soil.
\n“Our policy is a fusion of back to basics and march to the future. We are promoting natural farming as well as technology-enabled farming,” he said in a speech.
\nYet agricultural scientists estimate that fewer than 5% of Indian\u00a0farmers\u00a0have switched to sustainable farming methods, even though many are aware of the threat of global warming and the rising costs of conventional practices.
\n“Farmers\u00a0understand climate change. They worry about rain and droughts. But they will not understand sustainable\u00a0agriculture\u00a0until their problems are first understood,” said Vikram Singh, joint secretary of the All India Agricultural Workers’ Union.
\n\n
TRADITIONAL TIES TO THE LAND
\nDespite the challenges, sustainable farming has brought some success stories, including young people who have given up city careers in tech or pharmaceuticals to return to family farms.
\nBut the wins are patchy – and, in some cases, the\u00a0eco–friendly\u00a0switch has added to\u00a0farmers‘ stress.
\nIn the southern Indian state of Telangana, for instance, millers are turning away from genetically modified BT cotton in response to rising global demand for sustainable organic cotton.
\nBut organic seeds are rare in India where BT dominates and cotton-processing infrastructure is designed for large volumes.
\nAddressing issues like these – and ensuring that sustainable methods boost crop yields and incomes – will be key to bringing would-be\u00a0farmers\u00a0like Pathak back to the land they love.
\nWrapping up his day driving through the manic Mumbai traffic, Pathak said he pined for the clean air of his village, his jute bed and the farm-fresh gooseberries he enjoys on his annual vacation back home.
\nHe hopes to return to that traditional rural life if the\u00a0economics stack up and local markets for naturally grown produce thrive.
\nHe suggested\u00a0farmers\u00a0could find other income sources too like selling milk to dairies with village networks, helping them earn between harvests and protecting them from climate extremes.
\nShiraz Wajih, president of the nonprofit Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, urged\u00a0farmers\u00a0and agricultural scientists to work together to create solutions on the ground.
\nLocal production of inputs for natural farming can cut costs and dependence on outside markets while creating jobs, he said. And fine-tuning farm processes suited to each region’s\u00a0ecology would boost acceptance of greener methods, he added.
\nMr. Wajih said most\u00a0farmers\u00a0do not want to leave their land, as seen during COVID-19 lockdowns when migrant factory workers returned to their farms to keep them going in tough times.
\n“People are aware of job options that can pay them better. But land is always the permanent address of\u00a0farmers,” he said. – Reuters
\n", "content_text": "MUMBAI (Thomson Reuters Foundation)\u00a0–\u00a0Mumbai chauffeur Nutan Pathak is a farmer at heart.\nMr. Pathak, 44, migrated from his village in eastern Bihar state over two decades ago to work in the big city on the other side of the country, hoping to supplement his family’s income reliant on wheat and rice from their 1.5-acre (0.6-hectare) farm.\nHis decision to leave paid off. Pathak’s steady salary from the city job kept his family afloat even as crop yields dropped consistently due to the droughts and floods ravaging his farm.\n“It either doesn’t rain or it rains so much that it floods. We get just one yield every year. It wasn’t like this when I was growing up,” Mr. Pathak told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.\nNow he leases his field to villagers who share half of any profit with him. But he would like to go back to his land if a push towards\u00a0eco–friendly\u00a0agriculture\u00a0helps\u00a0farmers\u00a0cope with worsening climate pressures and pays off financially.\nAgriculture\u00a0is\u00a0India’s\u00a0biggest employer, supporting the livelihoods of 250 million\u00a0farmers\u00a0and informal laborers – but their work is getting harder as climate change makes living off farming difficult, pushing up debt, migration and suicides.\nWorries over falling yields have driven up the use of chemical fertilizers that are stripping the soil of nutrients and fueling agricultural emissions on a warming planet.\nIn response, green farming projects have taken root in India, where staple crops include rice, wheat, maize, sugarcane, cotton and groundnut. But experts say the scale and success hinges on how well the approach protects poor\u00a0farmers‘ incomes.\n“If you want to sustain\u00a0agriculture\u00a0as the biggest employer, and want to bring in sustainable farming, first bring living income to\u00a0farmers,” said Devinder Sharma, an independent expert on agricultural policy.\n“As a nation, we need to move towards agro-ecology but these (sustainable farming projects) will only bring about cosmetic changes until you provide\u00a0farmers\u00a0an assured income,” he added.\nA government-backed guaranteed price for natural produce, subsidies to cover losses and stronger marketing channels would all help, he said.\n \nA TALE OF TWO\u00a0FARMERS\nWorldwide, rice is a staple food for more than 3 billion people while flooded paddy fields account for 12% of humanity’s methane emissions – equivalent to 1.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions – according to the Asian Development Bank.\nAsia-Pacific accounts for the highest emissions from\u00a0agriculture, partly because of the region’s rising use of synthetic fertilizers in rice cultivation, the bank says.\nFarmers‘ incomes in India, the second-largest producer of rice globally after China, are wedded to paddy yields. That makes them reluctant to\u00a0shift\u00a0away from conventional methods of pumping fertilizers onto fields to raise production.\nBut farmer Jitendra Singh in northern India has made the switch from high fertilizer use, incentivized by the prospect of extra income from generating carbon credits through lower-emitting methods,\u00a0which can be traded on international markets.\nHe no longer transplants paddy seedlings into flooded fields, but directly sows them into the soil. Besides reducing methane emissions,\u00a0that has cut water use, time needed for sowing and the use of chemical herbicides and fertilizers.\nOn a rice farm in eastern Odisha state, however, Gurcharan Mahanta seems uninterested in a regional project to promote millet, a long-forgotten crop making a comeback because it is resilient to droughts fueled by climate change.\nMr. Mahanta, 54, said his high-yielding hybrid rice variety fetched him a good price, which millet would not with a small consumer base. Growing paddy is also less labour-intensive.\n“I go by the market demand,” he said.\n \nFINANCIAL PROBLEMS CURB GREEN\u00a0SHIFT\nMore than 80% of\u00a0farmers\u00a0in India own less than five acres – and many keep spending on fertilizers and pesticides, hoping for good yields even though they face a crushing burden of debt.\nNearly 11,000\u00a0farmers, cultivators and agricultural laborers took their own lives in 2021, averaging about 30 deaths a day, with bankruptcy the leading cause, according to government data.\nIn a bid to support these smallholders and make farming more climate-friendly, India is promoting organic and natural farming, encouraging diversification to cut dependence on one major crop and incentivizing solar-powered water pumps for irrigation to reduce the use of fossil fuel power.\nAt a meeting of G20\u00a0agriculture\u00a0ministers this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the disproportionate impact of climate change on\u00a0agriculture\u00a0in the Global South and said Indian\u00a0farmers\u00a0are taking up natural farming to revive the soil.\n“Our policy is a fusion of back to basics and march to the future. We are promoting natural farming as well as technology-enabled farming,” he said in a speech.\nYet agricultural scientists estimate that fewer than 5% of Indian\u00a0farmers\u00a0have switched to sustainable farming methods, even though many are aware of the threat of global warming and the rising costs of conventional practices.\n“Farmers\u00a0understand climate change. They worry about rain and droughts. But they will not understand sustainable\u00a0agriculture\u00a0until their problems are first understood,” said Vikram Singh, joint secretary of the All India Agricultural Workers’ Union.\n \nTRADITIONAL TIES TO THE LAND\nDespite the challenges, sustainable farming has brought some success stories, including young people who have given up city careers in tech or pharmaceuticals to return to family farms.\nBut the wins are patchy – and, in some cases, the\u00a0eco–friendly\u00a0switch has added to\u00a0farmers‘ stress.\nIn the southern Indian state of Telangana, for instance, millers are turning away from genetically modified BT cotton in response to rising global demand for sustainable organic cotton.\nBut organic seeds are rare in India where BT dominates and cotton-processing infrastructure is designed for large volumes.\nAddressing issues like these – and ensuring that sustainable methods boost crop yields and incomes – will be key to bringing would-be\u00a0farmers\u00a0like Pathak back to the land they love.\nWrapping up his day driving through the manic Mumbai traffic, Pathak said he pined for the clean air of his village, his jute bed and the farm-fresh gooseberries he enjoys on his annual vacation back home.\nHe hopes to return to that traditional rural life if the\u00a0economics stack up and local markets for naturally grown produce thrive.\nHe suggested\u00a0farmers\u00a0could find other income sources too like selling milk to dairies with village networks, helping them earn between harvests and protecting them from climate extremes.\nShiraz Wajih, president of the nonprofit Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group, urged\u00a0farmers\u00a0and agricultural scientists to work together to create solutions on the ground.\nLocal production of inputs for natural farming can cut costs and dependence on outside markets while creating jobs, he said. And fine-tuning farm processes suited to each region’s\u00a0ecology would boost acceptance of greener methods, he added.\nMr. Wajih said most\u00a0farmers\u00a0do not want to leave their land, as seen during COVID-19 lockdowns when migrant factory workers returned to their farms to keep them going in tough times.\n“People are aware of job options that can pay them better. But land is always the permanent address of\u00a0farmers,” he said. – Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-20T11:42:42+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-20T11:42:42+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/wheat-fields-762213_1280.jpg", "tags": [ "agriculture", "Eco Friendly", "farmers", "india", "renewable", "Reuters", "struggle", "traditional", "Agribusiness", "World" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=558410", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/20/558410/phl-may-enlist-tiktok-to-train-farmers-in-e-commerce-sales/", "title": "PHL may enlist TikTok to train farmers in e-commerce sales", "content_html": "THE GOVERNMENT is considering including farmers in an e-commerce training program for small businesses using short-form video app TikTok, according to Malaca\u00f1ang.
\nTikTok, developed by Chinese company ByteDance Ltd., will conduct training with the Department of Trade and Industry and \u201cpossibly\u201d the Department of Agriculture \u201cfor small business owners and farmers on how to use TikTok and other platforms to promote their products,\u201d Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil said in a Viber message on Saturday.
\nThe partnership was discussed during President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.\u2019s meeting with TikTok, Inc. CEO Shou Zi Chew at the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in San Francisco.\u00a0
\n\u201cWe want to give more resources and highlight and train the local sellers in the more rural parts of the country because that\u2019s one thing interesting on the platform,\u201d Mr. Chew told Mr. Marcos.
\n\u201cWhat we want to do is highlight local products, especially from smaller (sellers),\u201d he added.
\nMr. Chew said TikTok has provided sellers in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia \u201ca platform to sell around the country and export around the world.\u201d
\n\u201cThat\u2019s the plan (for the Philippines),\u201d he said.
\nAmid growing cybersecurity concerns, many governments have banned TikTok from devices issued to public sector employees.\u00a0
\nIn September, the Philippine National Security Council (NSC) said it was studying the possibility of imposing a ban on TikTok for government employees involved in national security.
\n\u201cWe know for a fact that there are information operations and psychological warfare and other stuff being done,\u201d NSC Assistant Director Jonathan Malaya said at the time. \u201cIf there is a need for banning, it would not be for public school teachers, it would not be for those in the civilian, it would be for the security sector.\u201d
\nTikTok was introduced to the Philippines in May 2017. In April last year, the video platform launched its online market, TikTok Shop, in the Philippines.
\n\u201cTikTok sees Southeast Asia as its biggest emerging market outside the US, with its 325 million monthly active users covering nearly half the region\u2019s population,\u201d the Palace said.
\nTikTok Shop generated gross merchandise value in Southeast Asia of $4.4 billion in 2022. \u2014 Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza
\n", "content_text": "THE GOVERNMENT is considering including farmers in an e-commerce training program for small businesses using short-form video app TikTok, according to Malaca\u00f1ang.\nTikTok, developed by Chinese company ByteDance Ltd., will conduct training with the Department of Trade and Industry and \u201cpossibly\u201d the Department of Agriculture \u201cfor small business owners and farmers on how to use TikTok and other platforms to promote their products,\u201d Presidential Communications Office Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil said in a Viber message on Saturday.\nThe partnership was discussed during President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.\u2019s meeting with TikTok, Inc. CEO Shou Zi Chew at the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in San Francisco.\u00a0\n\u201cWe want to give more resources and highlight and train the local sellers in the more rural parts of the country because that\u2019s one thing interesting on the platform,\u201d Mr. Chew told Mr. Marcos.\n\u201cWhat we want to do is highlight local products, especially from smaller (sellers),\u201d he added.\nMr. Chew said TikTok has provided sellers in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Malaysia \u201ca platform to sell around the country and export around the world.\u201d\n\u201cThat\u2019s the plan (for the Philippines),\u201d he said.\nAmid growing cybersecurity concerns, many governments have banned TikTok from devices issued to public sector employees.\u00a0\nIn September, the Philippine National Security Council (NSC) said it was studying the possibility of imposing a ban on TikTok for government employees involved in national security.\n\u201cWe know for a fact that there are information operations and psychological warfare and other stuff being done,\u201d NSC Assistant Director Jonathan Malaya said at the time. \u201cIf there is a need for banning, it would not be for public school teachers, it would not be for those in the civilian, it would be for the security sector.\u201d\nTikTok was introduced to the Philippines in May 2017. In April last year, the video platform launched its online market, TikTok Shop, in the Philippines.\n\u201cTikTok sees Southeast Asia as its biggest emerging market outside the US, with its 325 million monthly active users covering nearly half the region\u2019s population,\u201d the Palace said.\nTikTok Shop generated gross merchandise value in Southeast Asia of $4.4 billion in 2022. \u2014 Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza", "date_published": "2023-11-20T00:03:04+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-19T18:21:21+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/TikTok-logo.jpg", "tags": [ "Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=558409", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/20/558409/italian-parliament-approves-prohibition-on-food-grown-in-labs/", "title": "Italian parliament approves prohibition on food grown in labs", "content_html": "ROME \u2014 Italy\u2019s lower house of parliament gave final approval for a law banning the use of laboratory-produced food and animal feed as angry farmers confronted a group of centrist lawmakers opposed to the bill.
\nThe proposal, already approved by the Senate, passed by 159 votes in favor to 53 against, prohibiting the use, sale, import and export of food and feed \u201cfrom cell cultures or tissue derived from vertebrate animals.\u201d
\nFactories breaching such rules can be subject to fines of up to 150,000 euros and risk being shut down, while owners may lose their right to obtain public funding for up to three years.
\nThe proposal of Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, a close aide of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, is seen as part of a broader bid by the rightist coalition to safeguard tradition.
\nAs the debate in parliament was under way, tensions erupted between demonstrators from agricultural lobby group Coldiretti and two opposition lawmakers, one of whom claimed the president of the lobby group, Ettore Prandini, had assaulted him.
\n\u201cI believe it is subversive that the president of Coldiretti believes he can assault a lawmaker,\u201d lawmaker Benedetto Della Vedova said, adding he would report Mr. Prandini to police.
\nMr. Della Vedova appeared to have been pushed in the chest in the incident but was not hurt.
\nMr. Prandini told Reuters the lawmakers had provoked the farmers with offensive banners, and played down the confrontation.
\nThe +Europa party and other opposition groups depicted the right-wing\u2019s administration move as an attempt to please farmers and breeders\u2019 lobbies, as lab-grown food is not yet available in the European Union (EU).
\nCritics of the bill say producing meat without breeding animals would limit greenhouse gas emissions and provide an option for consumers who would appreciate eating a product that does not involve slaughter.
\nThe opposition warned the government risked breaching EU single market rules by unilaterally banning the product in case the bloc ever decided to make lab food available.
\nMinister Lollobrigida reiterated the ban was needed to protect the food industry. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "ROME \u2014 Italy\u2019s lower house of parliament gave final approval for a law banning the use of laboratory-produced food and animal feed as angry farmers confronted a group of centrist lawmakers opposed to the bill.\nThe proposal, already approved by the Senate, passed by 159 votes in favor to 53 against, prohibiting the use, sale, import and export of food and feed \u201cfrom cell cultures or tissue derived from vertebrate animals.\u201d\nFactories breaching such rules can be subject to fines of up to 150,000 euros and risk being shut down, while owners may lose their right to obtain public funding for up to three years.\nThe proposal of Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida, a close aide of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, is seen as part of a broader bid by the rightist coalition to safeguard tradition.\nAs the debate in parliament was under way, tensions erupted between demonstrators from agricultural lobby group Coldiretti and two opposition lawmakers, one of whom claimed the president of the lobby group, Ettore Prandini, had assaulted him.\n\u201cI believe it is subversive that the president of Coldiretti believes he can assault a lawmaker,\u201d lawmaker Benedetto Della Vedova said, adding he would report Mr. Prandini to police.\nMr. Della Vedova appeared to have been pushed in the chest in the incident but was not hurt.\nMr. Prandini told Reuters the lawmakers had provoked the farmers with offensive banners, and played down the confrontation.\nThe +Europa party and other opposition groups depicted the right-wing\u2019s administration move as an attempt to please farmers and breeders\u2019 lobbies, as lab-grown food is not yet available in the European Union (EU).\nCritics of the bill say producing meat without breeding animals would limit greenhouse gas emissions and provide an option for consumers who would appreciate eating a product that does not involve slaughter.\nThe opposition warned the government risked breaching EU single market rules by unilaterally banning the product in case the bloc ever decided to make lab food available.\nMinister Lollobrigida reiterated the ban was needed to protect the food industry. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-20T00:02:04+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-19T18:22:29+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/London-first-lab-grown-beef-burger.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=558408", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/20/558408/germany-to-increase-vat-on-food-in-restaurants/", "title": "Germany to increase VAT on food in restaurants", "content_html": "BERLIN \u2014 The German government coalition is likely to raise value-added tax (VAT) on food in restaurants back to 19% from 7%, after reducing it during the energy crisis and COVID-19 pandemic, two sources told Reuters.
\nNegotiations continued over the coalition\u2019s draft budget to be reviewed in the German parliament.
\nThe budget will be passed at the start of December to take effect from the start of 2024.
\nThe newspaper Bild initially reported that the coalition would not extend the reduction in VAT. The coalition government will also row back on planned cuts to parental allowance for higher earners, Social Democrat MP Felix Doring said.
\nThe cabinet had approved a draft budget in July to halve the income limit for couples eligible to receive parental leave compensation to 150,000 euros, from 300,000 euros previously.
\nHowever, in negotiations, the government agreed the limit would instead fall to 200,000 euros from April 1, 2024, and to 175,000 euros from April 1, 2025. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "BERLIN \u2014 The German government coalition is likely to raise value-added tax (VAT) on food in restaurants back to 19% from 7%, after reducing it during the energy crisis and COVID-19 pandemic, two sources told Reuters.\nNegotiations continued over the coalition\u2019s draft budget to be reviewed in the German parliament.\nThe budget will be passed at the start of December to take effect from the start of 2024.\nThe newspaper Bild initially reported that the coalition would not extend the reduction in VAT. The coalition government will also row back on planned cuts to parental allowance for higher earners, Social Democrat MP Felix Doring said.\nThe cabinet had approved a draft budget in July to halve the income limit for couples eligible to receive parental leave compensation to 150,000 euros, from 300,000 euros previously.\nHowever, in negotiations, the government agreed the limit would instead fall to 200,000 euros from April 1, 2024, and to 175,000 euros from April 1, 2025. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-20T00:01:03+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-19T18:27:43+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/german-food-restaurant.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=557393", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2023/11/14/557393/environmental-change-threatens-whats-left-of-japans-cormorant-fishing-legacy/", "title": "Environmental change threatens what\u2019s left of Japan\u2019s cormorant fishing legacy", "content_html": "Cormorants have been a constant presence in Youichiro Adachi’s life, and when he was young, he cried whenever one of his family’s birds died.
\nNow 48, Mr. Adachi still cares deeply for his birds, drawing them out of their baskets each morning and stroking their long necks to confirm their health and maintain a bond.
\n“For me,\u00a0cormorants are my partners,” he said.
\nMr. Adachi is the 18th generation of his family to be a master\u00a0cormorant\u00a0fishermen, and one of about 50 people in Japan carrying on the 1,300-year tradition of using trained birds to dive for fish. It is considered the ideal way to catch the sweet ayu river fish, and his family has a hereditary mandate to supply the delicacy to the Japanese imperial household.
\nThe method, known as ukai, was once common in Japan and a version of it has also been practiced in China. But today it is largely supported by tourists, who watch the fishermen and their birds bringing in the catch.
\nNow,\u00a0environmental\u00a0changes are making the fish ever more scarce and small, endangering the lifeline of the fisherman, known as usho, and their flocks.
\n“I go to the river every day so I can feel the\u00a0changes,” Mr. Adachi said, drawing upon nearly four decades of working on the Nagara River in Oze, a town in central Gifu Prefecture.
\nCome sundown between May and October, he boards a boat along with an assistant, a steersman, and about 10\u00a0cormorants leashed at the neck and body. A basket of flames swings out over the dark river, waking the ayu from resting spots among the stones below. The\u00a0cormorants catch them as they dart away, but the leash keeps the larger fish from going down the birds’ gullets.
\nThe birds are coaxed to release the fish into a bucket. And from a nearby observation boat, tourists take in the spectacle of splashing feathers and dancing fire.
\nAs is common these days, the haul is tiny. Guests at a traditional ryokan inn run by the Adachi family are fed salted, grilled ayu, but it is supplied by a local fish monger.
\nMr. Adachi ascribes the dearth of fish to the weather, which he says has become more unpredictable, with heavier rains and flooding on the once calm river. And construction of flood barriers has led to smaller rocks and sand filling the river bottom, obstructing the larger rocks that form the ayu’s habitat.
\n“In the past, there were only big boulders, but now they’re small,” he said. “The sand and gravel has increased, and along with that the ayu have gotten smaller too.”
\nEnvironmental\u00a0studies have confirmed his concerns. Temperatures in the Nagara River have risen to a high of 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit), delaying the spawning period of the ayu by a month, said Gifu University associate professor Morihiro Harada.
\nThe fish like to eat algae that grow on large stones, Harada said, but those rocks have become less common after repeated anti-flooding works carried out by river management authorities.
\nDown river from Oze, the usho of Gifu City have a larger, more tourism-oriented operation. Fleets of boats allow visitors to eat and drink as they watch the fishermen and birds.
\nThe same\u00a0environmental\u00a0shifts also affect this business, with rough waters sometimes pushing the tourist boats off course or leading to cancellations.
\nTo contend with growing number of lost business days, an economic development body known as ORGAN set up an elevated riverside viewing deck on a trial basis, attempting to recreate the boat experience in evenings hosted by apprentice geishas and other traditional performers.
\n“We wanted to offer a more refined, higher-quality experience,” said ORGAN leader Yusuke Kaba.
\nFacing an uncertain future, Mr. Adachi can only honor the past and tend to the present. In his home, he prays before shrines dedicated to his usho ancestors. And in the yard, he tends to his 16 birds, one by one.
\nHis son Toichiro helps out on the boat and is training to become the next master fisherman.
\nMr. Toichiro wants to carry on the tradition. But for now, the 22-year old spends his days working with a computer at a maker of high-precision machine tools, the type of industry that transformed\u00a0Japan’s\u00a0economy and society in the post-war period.
\n“I want my son to inherit my job, but it’s tough to make a living,” Mr. Adachi said. “If we cannot catch fish anymore, our motivation is gone and there’s no meaning in what we do.” – Reuters
\n", "content_text": "Cormorants have been a constant presence in Youichiro Adachi’s life, and when he was young, he cried whenever one of his family’s birds died.\nNow 48, Mr. Adachi still cares deeply for his birds, drawing them out of their baskets each morning and stroking their long necks to confirm their health and maintain a bond.\n“For me,\u00a0cormorants are my partners,” he said.\nMr. Adachi is the 18th generation of his family to be a master\u00a0cormorant\u00a0fishermen, and one of about 50 people in Japan carrying on the 1,300-year tradition of using trained birds to dive for fish. It is considered the ideal way to catch the sweet ayu river fish, and his family has a hereditary mandate to supply the delicacy to the Japanese imperial household.\nThe method, known as ukai, was once common in Japan and a version of it has also been practiced in China. But today it is largely supported by tourists, who watch the fishermen and their birds bringing in the catch.\nNow,\u00a0environmental\u00a0changes are making the fish ever more scarce and small, endangering the lifeline of the fisherman, known as usho, and their flocks.\n“I go to the river every day so I can feel the\u00a0changes,” Mr. Adachi said, drawing upon nearly four decades of working on the Nagara River in Oze, a town in central Gifu Prefecture.\nCome sundown between May and October, he boards a boat along with an assistant, a steersman, and about 10\u00a0cormorants leashed at the neck and body. A basket of flames swings out over the dark river, waking the ayu from resting spots among the stones below. The\u00a0cormorants catch them as they dart away, but the leash keeps the larger fish from going down the birds’ gullets.\nThe birds are coaxed to release the fish into a bucket. And from a nearby observation boat, tourists take in the spectacle of splashing feathers and dancing fire.\nAs is common these days, the haul is tiny. Guests at a traditional ryokan inn run by the Adachi family are fed salted, grilled ayu, but it is supplied by a local fish monger.\nMr. Adachi ascribes the dearth of fish to the weather, which he says has become more unpredictable, with heavier rains and flooding on the once calm river. And construction of flood barriers has led to smaller rocks and sand filling the river bottom, obstructing the larger rocks that form the ayu’s habitat.\n“In the past, there were only big boulders, but now they’re small,” he said. “The sand and gravel has increased, and along with that the ayu have gotten smaller too.”\nEnvironmental\u00a0studies have confirmed his concerns. Temperatures in the Nagara River have risen to a high of 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit), delaying the spawning period of the ayu by a month, said Gifu University associate professor Morihiro Harada.\nThe fish like to eat algae that grow on large stones, Harada said, but those rocks have become less common after repeated anti-flooding works carried out by river management authorities.\nDown river from Oze, the usho of Gifu City have a larger, more tourism-oriented operation. Fleets of boats allow visitors to eat and drink as they watch the fishermen and birds.\nThe same\u00a0environmental\u00a0shifts also affect this business, with rough waters sometimes pushing the tourist boats off course or leading to cancellations.\nTo contend with growing number of lost business days, an economic development body known as ORGAN set up an elevated riverside viewing deck on a trial basis, attempting to recreate the boat experience in evenings hosted by apprentice geishas and other traditional performers.\n“We wanted to offer a more refined, higher-quality experience,” said ORGAN leader Yusuke Kaba.\nFacing an uncertain future, Mr. Adachi can only honor the past and tend to the present. In his home, he prays before shrines dedicated to his usho ancestors. And in the yard, he tends to his 16 birds, one by one.\nHis son Toichiro helps out on the boat and is training to become the next master fisherman.\nMr. Toichiro wants to carry on the tradition. But for now, the 22-year old spends his days working with a computer at a maker of high-precision machine tools, the type of industry that transformed\u00a0Japan’s\u00a0economy and society in the post-war period.\n“I want my son to inherit my job, but it’s tough to make a living,” Mr. Adachi said. “If we cannot catch fish anymore, our motivation is gone and there’s no meaning in what we do.” – Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-14T11:10:54+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-14T11:10:54+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/cormorant-7175037_1920.jpg", "tags": [ "climate change", "cormorant", "fishing", "Japan", "Reuters", "Agribusiness", "World" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=557061", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/13/557061/jollibee-pursuing-initiative-to-expand-small-farmer-sourcing/", "title": "Jollibee pursuing initiative to expand small-farmer sourcing", "content_html": "By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter
\nJOLLIBEE Foods Corp. (JFC) is pushing to expand sourcing from smallholder farmers via partnership programs, its social responsibility arm said.
\n\u201cRight now, we are planning to reach more smallholder farmers,\u201d Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF) Senior Program Officer Jan Paolo Vicente said over the weekend.
\n\u201cThe company\u2019s directive is to increase the amount of produce that we get from them,\u201d Mr. Vicente added.
\nJGF has signed up 25 farmers\u2019 groups to its Farmer Entrepreneurship Program. The partners have delivered more than 10,000 metric tons of crops to JFC commissaries for processing.
\nHe said that this year, the foundation has partnered with five groups to deliver crops to Jollibee commissaries.
\nThe company seeks out clusters of 10 to 15 farmers to partner with.
\nOne of JGF\u2019s partners in Galimuyod, Ilocos Sur \u2014 Sacred Heart Savings Cooperative (SHSC) \u2014 aims to deliver 160 metric tons of white onions for the 2024 cropping season.
\nBusiness Development Center Head for SHSC Stephanie Labcaen told reporters that the group delivers about seven to 10 tons of onion per week.
\nMs. Labcaen added that onions delivered to the Jollibee commissary in Calamba, Laguna are subjected to quality control tests.
\nThe group\u2019s Consultancy and Marketing Specialist Mario Collado said purchasers have adjusted the farmers\u2019 onion quota to about 2,000 kilos from the 2,500 kilos originally, in anticipation of the effects of El Ni\u00f1o.
\nThe government weather service projects the peak of the El Ni\u00f1o at late 2023 and early 2024.
\n\u201cCropping season (for onions) is usually from October to March,\u201d Mr. Collado added. \u201cBut if farmers want to plant in the off-season, they can sell their product in local markets.\u201d
\nAbout 80% of crops harvested go to company commissaries, while the remaining off-sized produce are sold locally.
\n", "content_text": "By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter\nJOLLIBEE Foods Corp. (JFC) is pushing to expand sourcing from smallholder farmers via partnership programs, its social responsibility arm said.\n\u201cRight now, we are planning to reach more smallholder farmers,\u201d Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF) Senior Program Officer Jan Paolo Vicente said over the weekend.\n\u201cThe company\u2019s directive is to increase the amount of produce that we get from them,\u201d Mr. Vicente added.\nJGF has signed up 25 farmers\u2019 groups to its Farmer Entrepreneurship Program. The partners have delivered more than 10,000 metric tons of crops to JFC commissaries for processing.\nHe said that this year, the foundation has partnered with five groups to deliver crops to Jollibee commissaries.\nThe company seeks out clusters of 10 to 15 farmers to partner with.\nOne of JGF\u2019s partners in Galimuyod, Ilocos Sur \u2014 Sacred Heart Savings Cooperative (SHSC) \u2014 aims to deliver 160 metric tons of white onions for the 2024 cropping season.\nBusiness Development Center Head for SHSC Stephanie Labcaen told reporters that the group delivers about seven to 10 tons of onion per week.\nMs. Labcaen added that onions delivered to the Jollibee commissary in Calamba, Laguna are subjected to quality control tests.\nThe group\u2019s Consultancy and Marketing Specialist Mario Collado said purchasers have adjusted the farmers\u2019 onion quota to about 2,000 kilos from the 2,500 kilos originally, in anticipation of the effects of El Ni\u00f1o.\nThe government weather service projects the peak of the El Ni\u00f1o at late 2023 and early 2024.\n\u201cCropping season (for onions) is usually from October to March,\u201d Mr. Collado added. \u201cBut if farmers want to plant in the off-season, they can sell their product in local markets.\u201d\nAbout 80% of crops harvested go to company commissaries, while the remaining off-sized produce are sold locally.", "date_published": "2023-11-13T00:03:54+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-12T19:36:15+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Jollibee.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ], "summary": "JOLLIBEE Foods Corp. (JFC) is pushing to expand sourcing from smallholder farmers via partnership programs, its social responsibility arm said." }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=557060", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/13/557060/ireland-planning-dairy-export-push-targeting-philippines-malaysia/", "title": "Ireland planning dairy export push targeting Philippines, Malaysia", "content_html": "IRELAND\u2019s Food Board, known as Bord Bia, said it hopes to grow dairy exports by about 15 million euros over a three-year campaign targeting the Philippines and Malaysia.
\n\u201cWe have not posted a specific figure or the numerical value for each market, but given the fact that the Philippines has a greater share of dairy exports than Malaysia, we can see that the majority or the greater part of that (growth) will come from the Philippines,\u201d Jim O\u2019Toole, chief executive officer of Bord Bia, said at a briefing on Thursday.
\nBord Bia is also undertaking a 3.2 million-euro promotional campaign in the two ASEAN markets.
\nIt will also seek to bring in buyers from the two countries as well as Japan, Vietnam and Thailand to visit Irish dairy farms and processors.
\nBord Bia will also host two dairy technical seminars in Malaysia and the Philippines.
\nThe Bord Bia campaign is co-funded by the European Union, which aims to raise awareness of European dairy products and increase dairy exports to Southeast Asia.
\nIn 2022, Ireland\u2019s dairy exports to the Philippines amounted to 72 million euros, up 107%.
\nIrish beef exports grew 91.4% to 49 million euros in 2022, while pork exports rose 71.4% to 24 million euros.
\nIreland\u2019s other exports also grew last year with beverages surging 215% to 1.5 million euros in 2022.
\nMeanwhile, Martin Heydon, Irish Agriculture, Food and the Marine minister, said Ireland can play a role in helping the Philippines achieve food security.
\n\u201cWe have developed our agriculture system really significantly\u2026 over the last 50 or 60 years, and we have done that through research, science and innovation. We have learned a lot from that experience that we believe that we can share,\u201d Mr. Heydon said.
\n\u201cAnd we are going to engage further to see how some of those learnings can be shared for the benefit of the Philippines,\u201d he added.
\nOn Nov. 7, Bord Bia visited the Philippines on a fifth trade mission to Southeast Asia.
\nThe Irish ministerial delegation brought in 12 companies from Ireland, while other Irish companies were represented by traders based in the Philippines.
\nDuring the trade mission, Irish dairy processors Tirlan and Lakeland Diaries signed agreements with distributors in Manila to supply Irish cream and butter. \u2014 Justine Irish D. Tabile
\n", "content_text": "IRELAND\u2019s Food Board, known as Bord Bia, said it hopes to grow dairy exports by about 15 million euros over a three-year campaign targeting the Philippines and Malaysia.\n\u201cWe have not posted a specific figure or the numerical value for each market, but given the fact that the Philippines has a greater share of dairy exports than Malaysia, we can see that the majority or the greater part of that (growth) will come from the Philippines,\u201d Jim O\u2019Toole, chief executive officer of Bord Bia, said at a briefing on Thursday.\nBord Bia is also undertaking a 3.2 million-euro promotional campaign in the two ASEAN markets.\nIt will also seek to bring in buyers from the two countries as well as Japan, Vietnam and Thailand to visit Irish dairy farms and processors.\nBord Bia will also host two dairy technical seminars in Malaysia and the Philippines.\nThe Bord Bia campaign is co-funded by the European Union, which aims to raise awareness of European dairy products and increase dairy exports to Southeast Asia.\nIn 2022, Ireland\u2019s dairy exports to the Philippines amounted to 72 million euros, up 107%.\nIrish beef exports grew 91.4% to 49 million euros in 2022, while pork exports rose 71.4% to 24 million euros.\nIreland\u2019s other exports also grew last year with beverages surging 215% to 1.5 million euros in 2022.\nMeanwhile, Martin Heydon, Irish Agriculture, Food and the Marine minister, said Ireland can play a role in helping the Philippines achieve food security.\n\u201cWe have developed our agriculture system really significantly\u2026 over the last 50 or 60 years, and we have done that through research, science and innovation. We have learned a lot from that experience that we believe that we can share,\u201d Mr. Heydon said.\n\u201cAnd we are going to engage further to see how some of those learnings can be shared for the benefit of the Philippines,\u201d he added.\nOn Nov. 7, Bord Bia visited the Philippines on a fifth trade mission to Southeast Asia.\nThe Irish ministerial delegation brought in 12 companies from Ireland, while other Irish companies were represented by traders based in the Philippines.\nDuring the trade mission, Irish dairy processors Tirlan and Lakeland Diaries signed agreements with distributors in Manila to supply Irish cream and butter. \u2014 Justine Irish D. Tabile", "date_published": "2023-11-13T00:02:53+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-12T19:33:35+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Dairy-farm-Cows.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Justine Irish D. Tabile", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=557059", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/13/557059/heavy-rains-flood-homes-and-crops-in-northern-france/", "title": "Heavy rains flood homes and crops in northern France", "content_html": "SAINT-ETIENNE-AU-MONT, France \u2014 Days of heavy rains in northern France have caused rivers to overflow and flood houses and fields, prompting the evacuation of residents, with some having to be airlifted to safety.
\nMore than 100 towns are on red alert, and some 200 schools in the region have been shut. Rescue workers have also had to evacuate cattle.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s catastrophic,\u201d said 32-year-old farmer Gaetan Guche, whose poultry farm has been flooded, with up to 60 centimeters of water at times over the past five days.
\nSome chickens have been killed by the water, and he is worried about the others, fearing the spread of disease amid the humidity.
\n\u201cWe have to wait for the water to go down before we can see the whole damage. But I\u2019ve had losses in chickens, financial losses in terms of seeds and equipment, and so today, it\u2019s really hard.\u201d
\nNearby, strawberry farmer Jean-Loup Mionnet, whose fields are partly submerged in water, said next spring\u2019s harvest was compromised, fearing he will have few to no strawberries.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve never seen anything like that,\u201d said campsite owner Jean-Marc Joyez in the village of Enquin-sur-Baillons, where many houses are flooded and roads submerged.
\nEnvironment Minister Christophe Bechu said dozens of towns would be considered in a situation of natural disaster, which makes it easier for those whose homes or businesses were flooded to benefit from insurance coverage. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "SAINT-ETIENNE-AU-MONT, France \u2014 Days of heavy rains in northern France have caused rivers to overflow and flood houses and fields, prompting the evacuation of residents, with some having to be airlifted to safety.\nMore than 100 towns are on red alert, and some 200 schools in the region have been shut. Rescue workers have also had to evacuate cattle.\n\u201cIt\u2019s catastrophic,\u201d said 32-year-old farmer Gaetan Guche, whose poultry farm has been flooded, with up to 60 centimeters of water at times over the past five days.\nSome chickens have been killed by the water, and he is worried about the others, fearing the spread of disease amid the humidity.\n\u201cWe have to wait for the water to go down before we can see the whole damage. But I\u2019ve had losses in chickens, financial losses in terms of seeds and equipment, and so today, it\u2019s really hard.\u201d\nNearby, strawberry farmer Jean-Loup Mionnet, whose fields are partly submerged in water, said next spring\u2019s harvest was compromised, fearing he will have few to no strawberries.\n\u201cWe\u2019ve never seen anything like that,\u201d said campsite owner Jean-Marc Joyez in the village of Enquin-sur-Baillons, where many houses are flooded and roads submerged.\nEnvironment Minister Christophe Bechu said dozens of towns would be considered in a situation of natural disaster, which makes it easier for those whose homes or businesses were flooded to benefit from insurance coverage. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-13T00:01:53+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-12T19:33:29+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/France-flood.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=555500", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/06/555500/new-da-chief-expected-to-focus-on-growth-program-execution/", "title": "New DA chief expected to focus on growth, program execution", "content_html": "By Adrian H. Halili and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporters
\nTHE recently appointed Secretary of Agriculture\u2019s industry background indicates that he will be mainly concerned with production growth, but analysts warned that he also needs to keep an eye on farming sustainability.
\n\u201c(His) commercial fishing background grounds him in the private sector which is helpful. Hopefully he can strike balance between growth and sustainability for agriculture and fisheries,\u201d Roehlano M. Briones, a senior research fellow with the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said in a Viber message.
\nOn Friday, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. appointed former Frabelle Fishing Corp. President Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. as the new Secretary of Agriculture.
\nHe had been the president of his family\u2019s fishing company since 1985.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a good move that (Mr. Marcos) finally appointed a full-time agriculture secretary\u2026I don\u2019t believe his background in commercial fishing will be a handicap in performing his duties,\u201d Calixto V. Chikiamco, Foundation for Economic Freedom president, said in a Viber message.
\n\u201cHis group of companies is also into food processing. Besides, he can draw on experts in agriculture to guide him. As a former business executive, he will be focused on execution and performance,\u201d Mr. Chikiamco added.
\nMr. Laurel is expected to prioritize \u201ccorporate\u201d and \u201ccapital intensive\u201d farming, Bienvenido Oplas, Jr., president of Minimal Government Thinkers, said in a Viber message.
\n\u201cWe need more output, more harvest per hectare of agricultural land and aquaculture,\u201d he said. \u201cSmall-scale farming may still be allowed in non-contiguous land separated by hills, residential areas, uplands.\u201d
\nWith regard to food import policy, Geny F. Lapina, an agricultural economist at the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of the Philippines Los Ba\u00f1os, said: \u201cLet us see if this will mean a more liberalized policy that makes use of trade to help boost the overall food supply or a more protectionist stance that favors local production but not necessarily lower prices of food.\u201d
\nMr. Lapina said in an e-mail that most other countries \u201cseem to be moving toward nationalist and protectionist policies.\u201d
\n\u201cHowever, the trade-off is that it will be hard to get lower prices of food in the short term if a more protectionist position is taken,\u201d he said. \u201cNot unless the government subsidizes a lot which our finance and economic managers will try to temper given our government\u2019s fiscal stance right now.\u201d
\nRoy S. Kempis, director of the Center for Business Innovation, said the appointment of a full-time Agriculture Secretary was \u201cadministratively and strategically\u201d long overdue.
\nHe noted \u201cthe enormity of problems within the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the challenges to Philippine agriculture from factors that are in nature, both domestic and international.\u201d
\nIn July 2022, Mr. Marcos assumed the role of Agriculture Secretary, citing the need to boost food security and keep prices under control.
\nMr. Marcos ordered price controls on rice on Sept. 5 which capped regular-milled rice at P41 per kilogram and well-milled rice at P45. The controls were lifted on Oct. 5.
\n\u201cTo tame agriculture and food prices, more production and supply are necessary. The government can enter into marketing agreements with farmers and farm entrepreneurs, ensuring a market for their produce at decent farmgate prices,\u201d Mr. Kempis said.
\nAteneo de Manila economics professor Leonardo A. Lanzona said that although Mr. Laurel has experience in distribution due to his background in commercial fishing, it may not be enough to stem the industry\u2019s problems.
\n\u201cWe badly need someone who can produce output by exploiting scale economies to the extent allowed by technology,\u201d he added.
\nMr. Lanzona said that someone with a solid background in civil society organizations would be better suited for the post.
\n\u201cWe would prefer someone\u2026 who can work out contracts between small landholders and conglomerates without abusing the rights of the small farmers,\u201d he added.
\nPhilippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food, Inc. President Danilo V. Fausto added in a Viber message: \u201cWhile rice is a primordial concern, producing food that comprise a balance diet and proper nutrition at affordable prices should be the primary concern of an agriculture secretary.\u201d
\nMr. Laurel said in a speech at his appointment that one of his main goals was to ensure adequate harvests to ensure affordable food.
\nMr. Laurel previously held roles at Markham Resources Corp., Bacoor Seafront Development Corp., and Diamond Export Corp. as president.
\nHe was also the chairman of Westpac Meat Processing Corp., Bukidnon Hydro Energy Corp., and Diamond Export Corp.
\nHis corporate background led the Palace to issue a statement that Mr. Laurel had resigned from all his private-sector positions.
\n\u201cBy appointing a businessman, in this case a fishing tycoon, business interests will be prioritized over fisherfolk and farmers who have long been neglected,\u201d Maria Ela Atienza, who teaches political science at the University of the Philippines, said in a Viber message.
\n\u201cThe spoils system, patronage politics and big business have triumphed once again in this latest appointment at the expense of the people.\u201d
\n", "content_text": "By Adrian H. Halili and Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza, Reporters\nTHE recently appointed Secretary of Agriculture\u2019s industry background indicates that he will be mainly concerned with production growth, but analysts warned that he also needs to keep an eye on farming sustainability.\n\u201c(His) commercial fishing background grounds him in the private sector which is helpful. Hopefully he can strike balance between growth and sustainability for agriculture and fisheries,\u201d Roehlano M. Briones, a senior research fellow with the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, said in a Viber message.\nOn Friday, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. appointed former Frabelle Fishing Corp. President Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. as the new Secretary of Agriculture.\nHe had been the president of his family\u2019s fishing company since 1985.\n\u201cIt\u2019s a good move that (Mr. Marcos) finally appointed a full-time agriculture secretary\u2026I don\u2019t believe his background in commercial fishing will be a handicap in performing his duties,\u201d Calixto V. Chikiamco, Foundation for Economic Freedom president, said in a Viber message.\n\u201cHis group of companies is also into food processing. Besides, he can draw on experts in agriculture to guide him. As a former business executive, he will be focused on execution and performance,\u201d Mr. Chikiamco added.\nMr. Laurel is expected to prioritize \u201ccorporate\u201d and \u201ccapital intensive\u201d farming, Bienvenido Oplas, Jr., president of Minimal Government Thinkers, said in a Viber message.\n\u201cWe need more output, more harvest per hectare of agricultural land and aquaculture,\u201d he said. \u201cSmall-scale farming may still be allowed in non-contiguous land separated by hills, residential areas, uplands.\u201d\nWith regard to food import policy, Geny F. Lapina, an agricultural economist at the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics at the University of the Philippines Los Ba\u00f1os, said: \u201cLet us see if this will mean a more liberalized policy that makes use of trade to help boost the overall food supply or a more protectionist stance that favors local production but not necessarily lower prices of food.\u201d\nMr. Lapina said in an e-mail that most other countries \u201cseem to be moving toward nationalist and protectionist policies.\u201d\n\u201cHowever, the trade-off is that it will be hard to get lower prices of food in the short term if a more protectionist position is taken,\u201d he said. \u201cNot unless the government subsidizes a lot which our finance and economic managers will try to temper given our government\u2019s fiscal stance right now.\u201d\nRoy S. Kempis, director of the Center for Business Innovation, said the appointment of a full-time Agriculture Secretary was \u201cadministratively and strategically\u201d long overdue.\nHe noted \u201cthe enormity of problems within the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the challenges to Philippine agriculture from factors that are in nature, both domestic and international.\u201d\nIn July 2022, Mr. Marcos assumed the role of Agriculture Secretary, citing the need to boost food security and keep prices under control.\nMr. Marcos ordered price controls on rice on Sept. 5 which capped regular-milled rice at P41 per kilogram and well-milled rice at P45. The controls were lifted on Oct. 5.\n\u201cTo tame agriculture and food prices, more production and supply are necessary. The government can enter into marketing agreements with farmers and farm entrepreneurs, ensuring a market for their produce at decent farmgate prices,\u201d Mr. Kempis said.\nAteneo de Manila economics professor Leonardo A. Lanzona said that although Mr. Laurel has experience in distribution due to his background in commercial fishing, it may not be enough to stem the industry\u2019s problems.\n\u201cWe badly need someone who can produce output by exploiting scale economies to the extent allowed by technology,\u201d he added.\nMr. Lanzona said that someone with a solid background in civil society organizations would be better suited for the post.\n\u201cWe would prefer someone\u2026 who can work out contracts between small landholders and conglomerates without abusing the rights of the small farmers,\u201d he added.\nPhilippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food, Inc. President Danilo V. Fausto added in a Viber message: \u201cWhile rice is a primordial concern, producing food that comprise a balance diet and proper nutrition at affordable prices should be the primary concern of an agriculture secretary.\u201d\nMr. Laurel said in a speech at his appointment that one of his main goals was to ensure adequate harvests to ensure affordable food.\nMr. Laurel previously held roles at Markham Resources Corp., Bacoor Seafront Development Corp., and Diamond Export Corp. as president.\nHe was also the chairman of Westpac Meat Processing Corp., Bukidnon Hydro Energy Corp., and Diamond Export Corp.\nHis corporate background led the Palace to issue a statement that Mr. Laurel had resigned from all his private-sector positions.\n\u201cBy appointing a businessman, in this case a fishing tycoon, business interests will be prioritized over fisherfolk and farmers who have long been neglected,\u201d Maria Ela Atienza, who teaches political science at the University of the Philippines, said in a Viber message.\n\u201cThe spoils system, patronage politics and big business have triumphed once again in this latest appointment at the expense of the people.\u201d", "date_published": "2023-11-06T00:03:39+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-05T18:22:23+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/PBBM-Marcos-Laurel.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ], "summary": "THE recently appointed Secretary of Agriculture\u2019s industry background indicates that he will be mainly concerned with production growth, but analysts warned that he also needs to keep an eye on farming sustainability." }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=555499", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/06/555499/fao-calls-on-phl-to-increase-investment-in-resilient-agriculture/", "title": "FAO calls on PHL to increase investment in resilient agriculture", "content_html": "THE Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said on Sunday that the Philippines should invest more in resilient agriculture.
\n\u201cThere is a need to increase investment to enhance the country\u2019s resilience and promote a more inclusive and sustainable future for agriculture,\u201d FAO Country Representative to the Philippines Lionel Henri Valentin Dabbadie said in a statement, citing the damage inflicted by Super Typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in 2013.
\nThe typhoon on Nov. 8 of that year, affecting 44 provinces across five regions. Total damage was estimated at P95.5 billion.
\nMr. Dabbadie added that the Philippines needs to take an anticipatory action (AA) approach and provide readily available support to poor and vulnerable farmers and fisherfolk \u201cahead of forecast shocks.\u201d
\n\u201cAnticipatory Action means acting ahead of predicted hazards to prevent or reduce acute humanitarian impacts before they fully unfold, with a window of opportunity set between an early warning trigger and when the actual impact of the hazard is felt on lives and livelihoods,\u201d the FAO said.
\nIn a report, the FAO said AA could be cost-effective by mitigating the impact of disasters.
\n\u201cAn estimated $3.8 trillion worth of crops and livestock production has been lost due to disasters over the last three decades, equivalent to an average loss of $123 billion annually, or 5% of annual global agricultural GDP,\u201d it said.
\nIt had reported that about $23 billion in damage had been inflicted by typhoons and other disasters in the past 30 years.
\nThe FAO said it has been working with humanitarian and development partners to pilot the AA approach with local government units.
\nIt added that the organization has been conducting simulations in disaster-prone regions of the Philippines since 2021, most recently operating in low-lying barangays of Gigaquit, Surigao del Norte and Pigcawayan, North Cotabato.
\nThe simulations tested government protocols, communications flow, and coordination in the delivery of flexible interventions such as multipurpose cash assistance.
\n\u201cInterventions such as provision of cash aid are critical in purchasing food and other basic commodities before an evacuation to address food insecurity, while the early evacuation of boats, livestock and other assets protect agricultural livelihoods,\u201d Mr. Dabaddie said.
\nEuropean Union (EU)\u00a0Programme Officer Arlynn Aquino said that the EU has \u201cstepped up its support\u201d to help mitigate the impacts of disasters on at-risk populations.
\n\u201cHaiyan has taught us that partnerships with governments at all levels and local communities are critical, so we can optimize existing social protection programs and systems to reach more vulnerable populations with timely interventions,\u201d Ms. Aquino said. \u201cEspecially in Mindanao which continues to suffer from socio-political hazards and armed conflict.\u201d \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "THE Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations said on Sunday that the Philippines should invest more in resilient agriculture.\n\u201cThere is a need to increase investment to enhance the country\u2019s resilience and promote a more inclusive and sustainable future for agriculture,\u201d FAO Country Representative to the Philippines Lionel Henri Valentin Dabbadie said in a statement, citing the damage inflicted by Super Typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in 2013.\nThe typhoon on Nov. 8 of that year, affecting 44 provinces across five regions. Total damage was estimated at P95.5 billion.\nMr. Dabbadie added that the Philippines needs to take an anticipatory action (AA) approach and provide readily available support to poor and vulnerable farmers and fisherfolk \u201cahead of forecast shocks.\u201d\n\u201cAnticipatory Action means acting ahead of predicted hazards to prevent or reduce acute humanitarian impacts before they fully unfold, with a window of opportunity set between an early warning trigger and when the actual impact of the hazard is felt on lives and livelihoods,\u201d the FAO said.\nIn a report, the FAO said AA could be cost-effective by mitigating the impact of disasters.\n\u201cAn estimated $3.8 trillion worth of crops and livestock production has been lost due to disasters over the last three decades, equivalent to an average loss of $123 billion annually, or 5% of annual global agricultural GDP,\u201d it said.\nIt had reported that about $23 billion in damage had been inflicted by typhoons and other disasters in the past 30 years.\nThe FAO said it has been working with humanitarian and development partners to pilot the AA approach with local government units.\nIt added that the organization has been conducting simulations in disaster-prone regions of the Philippines since 2021, most recently operating in low-lying barangays of Gigaquit, Surigao del Norte and Pigcawayan, North Cotabato.\nThe simulations tested government protocols, communications flow, and coordination in the delivery of flexible interventions such as multipurpose cash assistance.\n\u201cInterventions such as provision of cash aid are critical in purchasing food and other basic commodities before an evacuation to address food insecurity, while the early evacuation of boats, livestock and other assets protect agricultural livelihoods,\u201d Mr. Dabaddie said.\nEuropean Union (EU)\u00a0Programme Officer Arlynn Aquino said that the EU has \u201cstepped up its support\u201d to help mitigate the impacts of disasters on at-risk populations.\n\u201cHaiyan has taught us that partnerships with governments at all levels and local communities are critical, so we can optimize existing social protection programs and systems to reach more vulnerable populations with timely interventions,\u201d Ms. Aquino said. \u201cEspecially in Mindanao which continues to suffer from socio-political hazards and armed conflict.\u201d \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-11-06T00:02:39+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-05T18:22:15+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/FAO-Flag.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=555498", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/11/06/555498/seaweed-touted-as-low-cost-animal-feed/", "title": "Seaweed touted as low-cost animal feed", "content_html": "BAGUIO CITY \u2014 The Department of Agriculture (DA) is proposing the use of seaweed as an alternative source of animal feed, citing its ready availability and low-cost relative to corn.
\nAgriculture Undersecretary for Livestock Deogracias Victor B. Savellano said at a briefing,\u00a0\u201cWe are looking at the use of seaweed as feed for our livestock to relieve animal raisers from the high cost of commercial feed.\u201d
\nMr. Savellano,\u00a0also the DA official overseeing the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), and alternate chairperson\u2013designate to the NTA Governing Board, said seaweed is abundant, low-cost, and protein-rich.
\n\u201cWe are tapping the expertise of Lionel Henri Valentin Dabbadie, the country representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, in exploring the production of seaweed as commercial feed for farm animals.\u201d
\nSeaweed contains antioxidants which can increase animal longevity and may lower the risk of infections. In poultry, it holds the potential to boost immunity and decrease microbial loads in digestive tracts. \u2014 Artemio A. Dumlao
\n", "content_text": "BAGUIO CITY \u2014 The Department of Agriculture (DA) is proposing the use of seaweed as an alternative source of animal feed, citing its ready availability and low-cost relative to corn.\nAgriculture Undersecretary for Livestock Deogracias Victor B. Savellano said at a briefing,\u00a0\u201cWe are looking at the use of seaweed as feed for our livestock to relieve animal raisers from the high cost of commercial feed.\u201d\nMr. Savellano,\u00a0also the DA official overseeing the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), and alternate chairperson\u2013designate to the NTA Governing Board, said seaweed is abundant, low-cost, and protein-rich.\n\u201cWe are tapping the expertise of Lionel Henri Valentin Dabbadie, the country representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, in exploring the production of seaweed as commercial feed for farm animals.\u201d\nSeaweed contains antioxidants which can increase animal longevity and may lower the risk of infections. In poultry, it holds the potential to boost immunity and decrease microbial loads in digestive tracts. \u2014 Artemio A. Dumlao", "date_published": "2023-11-06T00:01:38+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-05T18:21:47+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Canada-Beef-cattle.jpg", "tags": [ "Artemio A. Dumlao", "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=555268", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/top-stories/2023/11/03/555268/marcos-hands-over-agri-secretary-post-to-fishing-magnate/", "title": "Marcos hands over agri secretary post to fishing magnate", "content_html": "By Kyle Aristophere T.\u00a0Atienza, Reporter
\nPresident Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has resigned from his additional role as Agriculture secretary and named a fishing tycoon to take over during a time of high food prices.
\nIn a press conference on Friday, Mr. Marcos announced the appointment of Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., president of Frabelle Fishing Corp., as the new secretary of the Department of Agriculture, with the responsibility to \u201cgain control\u201d of the prices of agricultural goods.
\nMr. Laurel, 56, will also prioritize efforts to make the agriculture sector resilient in the face of climate change and rise of animal diseases such as swine and avian flues, the President said.
\nHe will work on government efforts to reduce production costs and modernize the agriculture sector, Mr. Marcos added.
\nHe said the new Agriculture leadership will study the agricultural practices of the Philippines\u2019 neighbors such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
\nIn 1985, Mr. Laurel, at the age of 28, took on the role of president at Frabelle Fishing Corp., a company established in 1966 that was then a modest-sized trawling enterprise.
\nVARIOUS ROLES
\nMr. Laurel also has important roles in several companies. He is the president of Frabelle Shipyard Corp., chairman of Westpac Meat Processing Corp., director of Frabelle Properties Corp., president of Markham Resources Corp., and both chairman and president of Diamond Export Corp.
\nAt the same time, he is the president of Bacoor Seafront Corp. and chairman of the Bukidnon Hydro Energy Corp.
\nMr. Laurel, a member of Mr. Marcos\u2019 Private Sector Advisory Council, currently chairs the World Tuna Purse Seine Organization.
\nSome stakeholders in the agriculture industry have welcomed the new appointment but warned of the big challenges facing the sector.
\nJayson H. Cainglet, executive director of SINAG, urged Mr. Laurel to prioritize local producers over foreign players.
\n\u201cImportation [should only be the] last resort and not the principal policy,\u201d he said in a statement, asking the new agriculture leadership to \u201creject, much more to support, all proposals to reduce tariffs on all agricultural commodities.\u201d
\n\u201cQualifications or merits are not guarantees of good performance,\u201d he said. \u201cOur judgment will rest on his performance as DA secretary.\u201d
\nFisherfolk group Pamalakaya said Mr. Laurel should also prioritize reforms for the fisheries sector, which it said needs to be strengthened in the face of rising imports.
\n\u201cThe fishers are giving a standing order to the new DA Secretary to strengthen local food production by renouncing liberalization policies of importation of agricultural and fisheries products,\u201d it said, noting that it has monitored more than 200, 000 metric tons of various pelagic fishes imported from other countries like China and Taiwan from from 2018 to 2022.
\n\u201cThis is an insult not only to us being an archipelagic country but also to millions of Filipinos involved in the fishing sector.\u201d
\nThe DA Secretary should know that opening floodgates for imported fishery products poses drastic impacts on the livelihood of local fisherfolk. Cheap and inferior quality imported fish causes further price drop of local fishery products. For instance,
\nEvery time the Philippine government allows the importation of tens of thousands of metric tons of round scad (galunggong), the farm-gate value of the fish product drops to as low as P50 from P70-P80 per kilogram, posing \u201cdrastic threats\u201d to the livelihood of Filipino fishermen.
\n\u201cCheap and inferior quality imported fish causes further price drop of local fishery products.\u201d
\nThe group also urged the new leadership to ensure that Filipino fisherfolk are able to fully utilize the country\u2019s marine and aquatic resources within its territorial and traditional fishing grounds.
\nMr. Laurel should also prohibit \u201call forms of conversion and reclamation of coastal communities and fishing grounds that cause displacement of fisherfolk and irreversible destruction of marine and aquatic resources.\u201d
\nThe Meat Importers and Traders Association said Mr. Laurel brings with him a wealth of \u201cexperience and understanding covering the livestock and fisheries sectors,\u201d as it looks forward to working with the new secretary.
\nGeny F. Lapina, a professor at the University of the Philippines Los Ba\u00f1os’ Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, noted that the President was clear from the start about his intention to eventually appoint a secretary for the DA.
\n“I think it would have been unsustainable for him to continue holding that position. Therefore, it is good he is finally letting someone else take over,” he said in an email.
\nMr. Lapina said that while many sectors, especially those in the private sector,\u00a0\u00a0are expected to throw their support behind the new Agriculture leadership with the expectation that Mr. Laurel might have a better grasp of how to modernize the local agriculture sector and enable it to compete better in the global market, “others would be concerned with conflicts of interest since he may have difficulty balancing the private interests of his company with those of the public interest.”
\n“His company might have an advantage on policies that might be pursued,” he said. “Regardless, the new DA Secretary will be expected to pursue policies that help bring down the prices of food.”
\n\u2018TOUGH ASSIGNMENT\u2019
\nHe said the appointment will be a tough assignment given the local and global challenges hounding the agriculture and food sector.
\n“Let us see if this will mean a more liberalized policy that makes use of trade to help boost the overall food supply or a more protectionist stance that favors local production but not necessarily lower prices of food,” he said.
\nCiting Mr. Laurel’s strong industry experience, agriculture expert Roy S. Kempis said one could surmise that he possesses a set of behaviors “toward more production, productivity, and profitability in an industry ecosystem that demands logistics efficiency and effectivity \u2014 knowing that fish is highly perishable.”
\n“We know that the fishing industry, while important to our food needs, has not received the attention of the degree similar to crops like rice, livestock like pork, poultry like chicken and eggs,” he said in a Viber message. “And yet fish in the countryside serves as an affordable source of protein especially along and nearby coastal areas.”
\nMr. Marcos took charge of the Agriculture department in July last year, promising to boost the country\u2019s food security amid rising prices spurred by Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine.
\nOver a year has passed, and the country is still facing increasing prices, with rice inflation hitting a 14-year high last month.
\nMr. Marcos enforced a rice price ceiling on Sept. 5, limiting the commodity\u2019s price to P41 a kilo for regular milled rice and P45 for well-milled rice.
\nThe ceiling was lifted on Oct. 4, and critics have said it did not help bring down prices.
\nPhilippine inflation rose to 6.1% in September from 5.3% in August amid a double-digit increase in rice prices.
\nSoaring commodity prices have weakened public support for the administration, with Mr. Marcos facing a double-digit decline in his approval and trust ratings in a recent Pulse Asia Research, Inc. survey, according to experts.
\nThe President\u2019s trust rating fell by three points to 73% in the third quarter from a quarter earlier, the Octa Research Group said on Monday. His approval rating also declined by 6 points to 65%.
\n", "content_text": "By Kyle Aristophere T.\u00a0Atienza, Reporter\nPresident Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has resigned from his additional role as Agriculture secretary and named a fishing tycoon to take over during a time of high food prices.\nIn a press conference on Friday, Mr. Marcos announced the appointment of Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., president of Frabelle Fishing Corp., as the new secretary of the Department of Agriculture, with the responsibility to \u201cgain control\u201d of the prices of agricultural goods.\nMr. Laurel, 56, will also prioritize efforts to make the agriculture sector resilient in the face of climate change and rise of animal diseases such as swine and avian flues, the President said.\nHe will work on government efforts to reduce production costs and modernize the agriculture sector, Mr. Marcos added.\nHe said the new Agriculture leadership will study the agricultural practices of the Philippines\u2019 neighbors such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.\nIn 1985, Mr. Laurel, at the age of 28, took on the role of president at Frabelle Fishing Corp., a company established in 1966 that was then a modest-sized trawling enterprise.\nVARIOUS ROLES\nMr. Laurel also has important roles in several companies. He is the president of Frabelle Shipyard Corp., chairman of Westpac Meat Processing Corp., director of Frabelle Properties Corp., president of Markham Resources Corp., and both chairman and president of Diamond Export Corp.\nAt the same time, he is the president of Bacoor Seafront Corp. and chairman of the Bukidnon Hydro Energy Corp.\nMr. Laurel, a member of Mr. Marcos\u2019 Private Sector Advisory Council, currently chairs the World Tuna Purse Seine Organization.\nSome stakeholders in the agriculture industry have welcomed the new appointment but warned of the big challenges facing the sector.\nJayson H. Cainglet, executive director of SINAG, urged Mr. Laurel to prioritize local producers over foreign players.\n\u201cImportation [should only be the] last resort and not the principal policy,\u201d he said in a statement, asking the new agriculture leadership to \u201creject, much more to support, all proposals to reduce tariffs on all agricultural commodities.\u201d\n\u201cQualifications or merits are not guarantees of good performance,\u201d he said. \u201cOur judgment will rest on his performance as DA secretary.\u201d\nFisherfolk group Pamalakaya said Mr. Laurel should also prioritize reforms for the fisheries sector, which it said needs to be strengthened in the face of rising imports.\n\u201cThe fishers are giving a standing order to the new DA Secretary to strengthen local food production by renouncing liberalization policies of importation of agricultural and fisheries products,\u201d it said, noting that it has monitored more than 200, 000 metric tons of various pelagic fishes imported from other countries like China and Taiwan from from 2018 to 2022.\n\u201cThis is an insult not only to us being an archipelagic country but also to millions of Filipinos involved in the fishing sector.\u201d\nThe DA Secretary should know that opening floodgates for imported fishery products poses drastic impacts on the livelihood of local fisherfolk. Cheap and inferior quality imported fish causes further price drop of local fishery products. For instance,\nEvery time the Philippine government allows the importation of tens of thousands of metric tons of round scad (galunggong), the farm-gate value of the fish product drops to as low as P50 from P70-P80 per kilogram, posing \u201cdrastic threats\u201d to the livelihood of Filipino fishermen.\n\u201cCheap and inferior quality imported fish causes further price drop of local fishery products.\u201d\nThe group also urged the new leadership to ensure that Filipino fisherfolk are able to fully utilize the country\u2019s marine and aquatic resources within its territorial and traditional fishing grounds.\nMr. Laurel should also prohibit \u201call forms of conversion and reclamation of coastal communities and fishing grounds that cause displacement of fisherfolk and irreversible destruction of marine and aquatic resources.\u201d\nThe Meat Importers and Traders Association said Mr. Laurel brings with him a wealth of \u201cexperience and understanding covering the livestock and fisheries sectors,\u201d as it looks forward to working with the new secretary.\nGeny F. Lapina, a professor at the University of the Philippines Los Ba\u00f1os’ Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, noted that the President was clear from the start about his intention to eventually appoint a secretary for the DA.\n“I think it would have been unsustainable for him to continue holding that position. Therefore, it is good he is finally letting someone else take over,” he said in an email.\nMr. Lapina said that while many sectors, especially those in the private sector,\u00a0\u00a0are expected to throw their support behind the new Agriculture leadership with the expectation that Mr. Laurel might have a better grasp of how to modernize the local agriculture sector and enable it to compete better in the global market, “others would be concerned with conflicts of interest since he may have difficulty balancing the private interests of his company with those of the public interest.”\n“His company might have an advantage on policies that might be pursued,” he said. “Regardless, the new DA Secretary will be expected to pursue policies that help bring down the prices of food.”\n\u2018TOUGH ASSIGNMENT\u2019\nHe said the appointment will be a tough assignment given the local and global challenges hounding the agriculture and food sector.\n“Let us see if this will mean a more liberalized policy that makes use of trade to help boost the overall food supply or a more protectionist stance that favors local production but not necessarily lower prices of food,” he said.\nCiting Mr. Laurel’s strong industry experience, agriculture expert Roy S. Kempis said one could surmise that he possesses a set of behaviors “toward more production, productivity, and profitability in an industry ecosystem that demands logistics efficiency and effectivity \u2014 knowing that fish is highly perishable.”\n“We know that the fishing industry, while important to our food needs, has not received the attention of the degree similar to crops like rice, livestock like pork, poultry like chicken and eggs,” he said in a Viber message. “And yet fish in the countryside serves as an affordable source of protein especially along and nearby coastal areas.”\nMr. Marcos took charge of the Agriculture department in July last year, promising to boost the country\u2019s food security amid rising prices spurred by Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine.\nOver a year has passed, and the country is still facing increasing prices, with rice inflation hitting a 14-year high last month.\nMr. Marcos enforced a rice price ceiling on Sept. 5, limiting the commodity\u2019s price to P41 a kilo for regular milled rice and P45 for well-milled rice.\nThe ceiling was lifted on Oct. 4, and critics have said it did not help bring down prices.\nPhilippine inflation rose to 6.1% in September from 5.3% in August amid a double-digit increase in rice prices.\nSoaring commodity prices have weakened public support for the administration, with Mr. Marcos facing a double-digit decline in his approval and trust ratings in a recent Pulse Asia Research, Inc. survey, according to experts.\nThe President\u2019s trust rating fell by three points to 73% in the third quarter from a quarter earlier, the Octa Research Group said on Monday. His approval rating also declined by 6 points to 65%.", "date_published": "2023-11-03T12:08:57+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-03T16:32:27+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/IMG-5098bfdbd82b898450320c9786fc3592-V.jpg", "tags": [ "+Jr.", "bbm", "Bongbong Marcos", "Francisco Tiu Laurel", "Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza", "Philippines", "president", "Agribusiness", "The Nation", "Top Stories" ], "summary": "President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has resigned from his additional role as Agriculture secretary and named a fishing tycoon to take over during a time of high food prices." }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=554899", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/world/2023/11/01/554899/india-braces-for-8-sugar-output-dip-as-cane-crop-suffers-trade-body/", "title": "India braces for 8% sugar output dip as cane crop suffers- trade body", "content_html": "MUMBAI\u00a0–\u00a0India’s sugar production is likely to fall 8% to 33.7 million metric tons in the 2023/24 marketing year, which starts on Oct. 1, a leading trade body said on Tuesday, as lower rainfall in key producing states could dent yields.
\nLower sugar production could lead the world’s second-largest producer of sweetener to refrain from allocating export quotas and support global prices\u00a0SBc1,\u00a0LSUc1\u00a0that are trading near multi-year highs.
\n“Sugar production for 2023/24 without considering diversion towards ethanol has been estimated at around 33.7 million tons, against 36.6 tons estimated for 2022/23,” the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) said in a statement.
\nIn August, ISMA had forecast sugar production of\u00a036.2 million tons\u00a0in the current season.
\nThe trade body did not provide an estimate for net sugar production after the diversion of sucrose for ethanol production, but it stated that the output would exceed the country’s annual consumption of 27.85 million tons.
\nThe diversion of sugar towards\u00a0ethanol will be estimated only after the government declares the annual ethanol procurement price, the ISMA said.
\nSugar mills diverted 4.1 million tons of sugar for ethanol production in the last marketing year and the similar allocation could bring down the new season’s output to 29.6 million tons, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trade house.
\n“The impact of the dry weather in\u00a0Maharashtra\u00a0and Karnataka is quite evident now. There won’t be enough surplus for exports, and the government is unlikely to allocate export quotas,” the dealer said.
\nGovernment sources told Reuters in August that the South Asian country would\u00a0ban mills from exporting sugar\u00a0in the season beginning in October, halting shipments for the first time in seven years, as a lack of rain had cut cane yields.
\nIn the last season that ended on Sept. 30, India allowed mills to export only 6.2 million metric tons of sugar, after permitting them to sell a record 11.1 million tonnes in 2021/22. – Reuters
\n", "content_text": "MUMBAI\u00a0–\u00a0India’s sugar production is likely to fall 8% to 33.7 million metric tons in the 2023/24 marketing year, which starts on Oct. 1, a leading trade body said on Tuesday, as lower rainfall in key producing states could dent yields.\nLower sugar production could lead the world’s second-largest producer of sweetener to refrain from allocating export quotas and support global prices\u00a0SBc1,\u00a0LSUc1\u00a0that are trading near multi-year highs.\n“Sugar production for 2023/24 without considering diversion towards ethanol has been estimated at around 33.7 million tons, against 36.6 tons estimated for 2022/23,” the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) said in a statement.\nIn August, ISMA had forecast sugar production of\u00a036.2 million tons\u00a0in the current season.\nThe trade body did not provide an estimate for net sugar production after the diversion of sucrose for ethanol production, but it stated that the output would exceed the country’s annual consumption of 27.85 million tons.\nThe diversion of sugar towards\u00a0ethanol will be estimated only after the government declares the annual ethanol procurement price, the ISMA said.\nSugar mills diverted 4.1 million tons of sugar for ethanol production in the last marketing year and the similar allocation could bring down the new season’s output to 29.6 million tons, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trade house.\n“The impact of the dry weather in\u00a0Maharashtra\u00a0and Karnataka is quite evident now. There won’t be enough surplus for exports, and the government is unlikely to allocate export quotas,” the dealer said.\nGovernment sources told Reuters in August that the South Asian country would\u00a0ban mills from exporting sugar\u00a0in the season beginning in October, halting shipments for the first time in seven years, as a lack of rain had cut cane yields.\nIn the last season that ended on Sept. 30, India allowed mills to export only 6.2 million metric tons of sugar, after permitting them to sell a record 11.1 million tonnes in 2021/22. – Reuters", "date_published": "2023-11-01T11:49:30+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-11-01T11:49:30+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/blexticauldulack/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bb9711778f8535a5c41d2e047686ad3e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/sugar.jpg", "tags": [ "india", "output", "Reuters", "sugar", "Agribusiness", "World" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=554295", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/10/30/554295/climate-smart-rice-irrigation-project-planned-for-nueva-ecija/", "title": "\u2018Climate-smart\u2019 rice irrigation project planned for Nueva Ecija", "content_html": "THE National Irrigation Administration (NIA) said it is planning to roll out a climate-smart irrigation project in Nueva Ecija, a major rice-producing province in Central Luzon.
\nProjects can be made climate-smart \u201cby increasing water productivity in national irrigation systems while reducing carbon emissions in irrigated rice cultivation,\u201d the NIA said in a statement.
\nIt added that the \u201cclimate smart\u201d project is aimed at promoting broad adoption of alternative wetting and drying technologies in irrigated areas.
\nThe projects will offer financial incentives and capacity-building activities to partner farmers.
\nThe NIA said the initiative will be carried out via a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ostrom Climate Solutions, Inc.
\nIt added that the Climate-Smart Rice Project in Upper Pampanga River Integrated Irrigation Systems will be active in the area until 2028.
\nThe project\u2019s goal is to contribute to the achievement of rice security and resiliency, it said.
\nThe company will also manage all project fund releases in accordance with government accounting and auditing rules.
\n\u201cOstrom Climate shall provide funds for the implementation of the project, thus incurring no cost to NIA,\u201d it added.
\n\u201cWith the signing of the MoU between NIA and Ostrom Climate, NIA looks forward to the realization of its vision of making the Philippines a climate-smart and climate change-resilient nation,\u201d it said.
\nOstrom Climate is a Vancouver-based company providing carbon management solutions. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "THE National Irrigation Administration (NIA) said it is planning to roll out a climate-smart irrigation project in Nueva Ecija, a major rice-producing province in Central Luzon.\nProjects can be made climate-smart \u201cby increasing water productivity in national irrigation systems while reducing carbon emissions in irrigated rice cultivation,\u201d the NIA said in a statement.\nIt added that the \u201cclimate smart\u201d project is aimed at promoting broad adoption of alternative wetting and drying technologies in irrigated areas.\nThe projects will offer financial incentives and capacity-building activities to partner farmers.\nThe NIA said the initiative will be carried out via a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Ostrom Climate Solutions, Inc.\nIt added that the Climate-Smart Rice Project in Upper Pampanga River Integrated Irrigation Systems will be active in the area until 2028.\nThe project\u2019s goal is to contribute to the achievement of rice security and resiliency, it said.\nThe company will also manage all project fund releases in accordance with government accounting and auditing rules.\n\u201cOstrom Climate shall provide funds for the implementation of the project, thus incurring no cost to NIA,\u201d it added.\n\u201cWith the signing of the MoU between NIA and Ostrom Climate, NIA looks forward to the realization of its vision of making the Philippines a climate-smart and climate change-resilient nation,\u201d it said.\nOstrom Climate is a Vancouver-based company providing carbon management solutions. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-10-30T00:03:36+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-10-29T18:46:06+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/NIA-irrigation-e1658047865556.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=554294", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/10/30/554294/how-can-sustainable-agriculture-make-the-fashion-industry-greener/", "title": "How can sustainable agriculture make the fashion industry greener?", "content_html": "IZMIR, Turkey \u2014 In between rows of sprouting cotton crops, the dried-out stems of wheat and sugar beet carpet a stretch of farmland near Turkey\u2019s Aegean coast, helping to lock in soil nutrients and moisture \u2014 even in the scorching heat.
\nIn nearby fields, where cotton is being grown without the protective blanket, the plants wilt and wither under the sun.
\n\u201cHealthier soil means healthier cotton,\u201d said Basak Erdem, the farm manager of cotton fields owned and run by cotton manufacturer SOKTAS, which is based in Soke municipality, Aydin province.
\nFour years since SOKTAS first converted one hectare (2.47 acres) of land for regenerative farming \u2014 using nature-based methods to restore the land and improve its carbon storage capacity \u2014 the soil absorbs more than 18 tons of carbon per hectare a year.
\nThat is equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions of about 15 gasoline-powered cars, according to a calculator from the US Environmental Protection Agency.
\n\u201cEvery year, we see the results improve,\u201d Erdem told the Thomson Reuters Foundation during a tour of the company\u2019s fields.
\nSOKTAS was first introduced to regenerative agriculture in 2018 by the Stella McCartney label, which buys from the company, and now has 90 hectares (222 acres) of regenerative land.
\nNotorious for its intense use of natural resources and high waste output, the fashion industry has stepped up efforts in recent years to reduce its environmental impact and carbon footprint, with the UN\u2019s Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action setting an industry-wide target to decarbonize by 2050.
\nWhile efforts have focused on reducing waste, brands and designers are increasingly endorsing projects in regenerative agriculture to help reduce the emissions produced in the manufacture of classic textiles, such as cotton and wool.
\nA pilot regenerative cotton project in Turkey, set up by international conservation group WWF, found that up to 15 times more carbon was stored in the soil compared to carbon sequestration in general.
\n\u201cThe soil becomes more spongy and lively,\u201d said Gokce Okulu, cotton manager at Textile Exchange, a nonprofit working with the fashion and textile industries to help reduce the environmental impact of materials.
\nCarbon-absorbing organic matter is killed in conventional farming by over-plowing the earth, she added.
\nRegenerative farming uses little to no tilling of the soil to help maintain its biological make-up, in addition to growing a cover crop to shield the ground, said Ms. Okulu.
\nThanks to the cover crop of wheat, beans and sugar beet at SOKTAS fields, the soil\u2019s organic matter content has doubled in four years, and each year the cotton needs less fertilizer and water, said Erdem.
\nAccording to the Confederation of British Industry, demand for cotton produced sustainably, which accounted for nearly 20% of the global cotton supply in 2020, is increasing.
\nThe largest sustainable cotton initiatives are Better Cotton, Fairtrade, and Organic, but Jules Lennon, fashion lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, said interest in regenerative cotton is growing, with leading denim producers Bossa and DNM among brands initiating partnerships.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve seen an absolute hub of activity that we\u2019ve never seen before,\u201d Lennon said. \u201cBut first, we really need to prioritize keeping existing products in use,\u201d said Lennon, explaining that to transition to a circular economy, the industry needs to reduce the need for virgin materials by prioritizing recycling and reuse.
\n\u201cWhatever (needs) remain, we want to come from regenerative sources,\u201d said Lennon.
\nThe European Commission wants all planned regulations requiring fashion companies to produce clothes in a more sustainable way to be in place by 2028.
\nThere are currently 16 pieces of legislation in the works, which could set minimum standards of durability and recyclability for any product entering the EU and require fashion companies to collect textile waste.
\n\u201cGiven the significance of the EU as a market, this could mean a big push to change overall sourcing practices,\u201d said Anita Chester, head of fashion at the Laudes Foundation, a philanthropic organization that helps fund the Thomson Reuters Foundation\u2019s coverage of the green transition.
\nLittle action has been taken to legislate on regenerative farming as it is still in the early stages of adoption, but some existing policies, such as the EU\u2019s proposed Soil Health Law would help to support the transition, added Ms. Chester.
\nStandards and certifications are starting to emerge, such as from the Regenerative Organic Alliance or regenagri, but brands and designers must invest in farmers to help them transition to regenerative agriculture, said Ms. Chester.
\n\u201cNothing can be regenerative if it\u2019s not just. You have to build community resilience by rewarding the farmers for their stewardship of nature and the services they provide in helping us combat climate change,\u201d said Ms. Chester.
\nZeynep Kayhan, a board member at SOKTAS, said it is hard to convince some brands to switch to regenerative cotton because it is more expensive.
\nIn addition to the extra costs of soil tests, certification and investing in no-till machinery, regenerative farms initially lose profit on lower yields \u2014 before the soil has improved \u2014 and swapping a secondary farmable crop in the winter for a cover crop that is not harvested, said Kayhan.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s more expensive to do the transition, but in time because you need less inputs, there will come a point when it will level off,\u201d said Kayhan.
\nImproving soil health also helps to stave off the impacts of climate change that are hitting the cotton sector.
\nResearch by WTW insurers shows that half of all cotton-growing regions will be at increased threat from climate risks, such as water stress and extreme weather, by 2040.
\n\u201cWater retention becomes even more important going forward because you need less water if you know the soil can keep its water and nutrients,\u201d said Kayhan.
\nIn the spring, heavy rains damaged cotton seeds at SOKTAS, but the healthier soil in the regenerative plots helped the farmers to replant the seeds quickly, said Erdem.
\n\u201cIf all farmers did regenerative farming, then the climate could change,\u201d said Erdem. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation
\n", "content_text": "IZMIR, Turkey \u2014 In between rows of sprouting cotton crops, the dried-out stems of wheat and sugar beet carpet a stretch of farmland near Turkey\u2019s Aegean coast, helping to lock in soil nutrients and moisture \u2014 even in the scorching heat.\nIn nearby fields, where cotton is being grown without the protective blanket, the plants wilt and wither under the sun.\n\u201cHealthier soil means healthier cotton,\u201d said Basak Erdem, the farm manager of cotton fields owned and run by cotton manufacturer SOKTAS, which is based in Soke municipality, Aydin province.\nFour years since SOKTAS first converted one hectare (2.47 acres) of land for regenerative farming \u2014 using nature-based methods to restore the land and improve its carbon storage capacity \u2014 the soil absorbs more than 18 tons of carbon per hectare a year.\nThat is equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions of about 15 gasoline-powered cars, according to a calculator from the US Environmental Protection Agency.\n\u201cEvery year, we see the results improve,\u201d Erdem told the Thomson Reuters Foundation during a tour of the company\u2019s fields.\nSOKTAS was first introduced to regenerative agriculture in 2018 by the Stella McCartney label, which buys from the company, and now has 90 hectares (222 acres) of regenerative land.\nNotorious for its intense use of natural resources and high waste output, the fashion industry has stepped up efforts in recent years to reduce its environmental impact and carbon footprint, with the UN\u2019s Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action setting an industry-wide target to decarbonize by 2050.\nWhile efforts have focused on reducing waste, brands and designers are increasingly endorsing projects in regenerative agriculture to help reduce the emissions produced in the manufacture of classic textiles, such as cotton and wool.\nA pilot regenerative cotton project in Turkey, set up by international conservation group WWF, found that up to 15 times more carbon was stored in the soil compared to carbon sequestration in general.\n\u201cThe soil becomes more spongy and lively,\u201d said Gokce Okulu, cotton manager at Textile Exchange, a nonprofit working with the fashion and textile industries to help reduce the environmental impact of materials.\nCarbon-absorbing organic matter is killed in conventional farming by over-plowing the earth, she added.\nRegenerative farming uses little to no tilling of the soil to help maintain its biological make-up, in addition to growing a cover crop to shield the ground, said Ms. Okulu.\nThanks to the cover crop of wheat, beans and sugar beet at SOKTAS fields, the soil\u2019s organic matter content has doubled in four years, and each year the cotton needs less fertilizer and water, said Erdem.\nAccording to the Confederation of British Industry, demand for cotton produced sustainably, which accounted for nearly 20% of the global cotton supply in 2020, is increasing.\nThe largest sustainable cotton initiatives are Better Cotton, Fairtrade, and Organic, but Jules Lennon, fashion lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, said interest in regenerative cotton is growing, with leading denim producers Bossa and DNM among brands initiating partnerships.\n\u201cWe\u2019ve seen an absolute hub of activity that we\u2019ve never seen before,\u201d Lennon said. \u201cBut first, we really need to prioritize keeping existing products in use,\u201d said Lennon, explaining that to transition to a circular economy, the industry needs to reduce the need for virgin materials by prioritizing recycling and reuse.\n\u201cWhatever (needs) remain, we want to come from regenerative sources,\u201d said Lennon.\nThe European Commission wants all planned regulations requiring fashion companies to produce clothes in a more sustainable way to be in place by 2028.\nThere are currently 16 pieces of legislation in the works, which could set minimum standards of durability and recyclability for any product entering the EU and require fashion companies to collect textile waste.\n\u201cGiven the significance of the EU as a market, this could mean a big push to change overall sourcing practices,\u201d said Anita Chester, head of fashion at the Laudes Foundation, a philanthropic organization that helps fund the Thomson Reuters Foundation\u2019s coverage of the green transition.\nLittle action has been taken to legislate on regenerative farming as it is still in the early stages of adoption, but some existing policies, such as the EU\u2019s proposed Soil Health Law would help to support the transition, added Ms. Chester.\nStandards and certifications are starting to emerge, such as from the Regenerative Organic Alliance or regenagri, but brands and designers must invest in farmers to help them transition to regenerative agriculture, said Ms. Chester.\n\u201cNothing can be regenerative if it\u2019s not just. You have to build community resilience by rewarding the farmers for their stewardship of nature and the services they provide in helping us combat climate change,\u201d said Ms. Chester.\nZeynep Kayhan, a board member at SOKTAS, said it is hard to convince some brands to switch to regenerative cotton because it is more expensive.\nIn addition to the extra costs of soil tests, certification and investing in no-till machinery, regenerative farms initially lose profit on lower yields \u2014 before the soil has improved \u2014 and swapping a secondary farmable crop in the winter for a cover crop that is not harvested, said Kayhan.\n\u201cIt\u2019s more expensive to do the transition, but in time because you need less inputs, there will come a point when it will level off,\u201d said Kayhan.\nImproving soil health also helps to stave off the impacts of climate change that are hitting the cotton sector.\nResearch by WTW insurers shows that half of all cotton-growing regions will be at increased threat from climate risks, such as water stress and extreme weather, by 2040.\n\u201cWater retention becomes even more important going forward because you need less water if you know the soil can keep its water and nutrients,\u201d said Kayhan.\nIn the spring, heavy rains damaged cotton seeds at SOKTAS, but the healthier soil in the regenerative plots helped the farmers to replant the seeds quickly, said Erdem.\n\u201cIf all farmers did regenerative farming, then the climate could change,\u201d said Erdem. \u2014 Thomson Reuters Foundation", "date_published": "2023-10-30T00:02:35+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-10-29T18:45:54+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Turkey-cotton-field.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=554293", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/10/30/554293/brazil-food-sector-accounts-for-74-of-emissions/", "title": "Brazil food sector accounts for 74% of emissions", "content_html": "SAO PAULO \u2014 Food production in Brazil, the world\u2019s biggest beef and soybean exporter, accounted for 74% of the country\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, according to a study released by environmental group Climate Observatory.
\nMost emissions do not come directly from food production, but deforestation to convert native vegetation into farms and pastures is the main source of carbon released from Brazil into the atmosphere, the group found.
\n\u201cThis report should be read by agribusiness representatives and the government as a wake-up call,\u201d said Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of the Climate Observatory.
\n\u201cIt demonstrates, beyond any doubt, that agribusiness will determine whether Brazil is a climate hero or villain.\u201d
\nOf the 1.8 billion tons of greenhouse gases emitted from Brazil in 2021 to make food, nearly 78% was associated with beef production, including emissions linked with deforestation for livestock farming and pollution from beef packing plants, the study found.\u00a0
\nAbiec, a lobby group of large beef producers in Brazil, did not have an immediate comment.
\nClimate Observatory\u2019s calculations factored in deforestation and changes in land use, methane emissions from cow burps, as well as energy use and waste stemming from agricultural and industrial processes.
\nAs the first study of its type, Climate Observatory did not provide historic figures for comparison.
\nRanked alongside countries, Brazil\u2019s beef industry alone would be the world\u2019s seventh-largest greenhouse gas emitter, ahead of major economies such as Japan. \u2014 Reuters
\n", "content_text": "SAO PAULO \u2014 Food production in Brazil, the world\u2019s biggest beef and soybean exporter, accounted for 74% of the country\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, according to a study released by environmental group Climate Observatory.\nMost emissions do not come directly from food production, but deforestation to convert native vegetation into farms and pastures is the main source of carbon released from Brazil into the atmosphere, the group found.\n\u201cThis report should be read by agribusiness representatives and the government as a wake-up call,\u201d said Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of the Climate Observatory.\n\u201cIt demonstrates, beyond any doubt, that agribusiness will determine whether Brazil is a climate hero or villain.\u201d\n Of the 1.8 billion tons of greenhouse gases emitted from Brazil in 2021 to make food, nearly 78% was associated with beef production, including emissions linked with deforestation for livestock farming and pollution from beef packing plants, the study found.\u00a0\nAbiec, a lobby group of large beef producers in Brazil, did not have an immediate comment.\nClimate Observatory\u2019s calculations factored in deforestation and changes in land use, methane emissions from cow burps, as well as energy use and waste stemming from agricultural and industrial processes.\nAs the first study of its type, Climate Observatory did not provide historic figures for comparison.\nRanked alongside countries, Brazil\u2019s beef industry alone would be the world\u2019s seventh-largest greenhouse gas emitter, ahead of major economies such as Japan. \u2014 Reuters", "date_published": "2023-10-30T00:01:33+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-10-29T18:45:49+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Brazil-cattle-cow.jpg", "tags": [ "Featured2", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] }, { "id": "https://www.bworldonline.com/?p=552988", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/agribusiness/2023/10/23/552988/da-sets-best-case-scenario-for-palay-output-at-20-million-mt/", "title": "DA sets best-case scenario for palay output at 20 million MT", "content_html": "OUTPUT of palay, or unmilled rice, could hit 20 million metric tons (MT) in the best-case scenario put forward by the Department of Agriculture (DA), which cited the increased land area planted to the grain.
\n\u201cWe expect it to be higher than last year\u2026the highest we could reach is about 20 million MT,\u201d Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio S. Sebastian told reporters on the sidelines of the International Rice Congress last week.
\nMr. Sebastian added that during the first half, the harvest was ahead of the year-earlier pace by about 300,000 MT.
\nLast year, palay output fell to 19.76 million MT from 19.96 million MT a year earlier, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
\nMr. Sebastian said that El Ni\u00f1o has yet to affect the current harvest.
\n\u201cThere is no El Ni\u00f1o yet, the effect we are seeing is a lot of rain. We will prepare for it in the dry season,\u201d he added.
\nThe government weather service, known as PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration), has said that El Ni\u00f1o is likely to peak in late 2023 and early 2024.
\nSeparately, International Potato Center Asia Regional Director Samarendu Mohanty said he does not consider rice self-sufficiency to be easy to achieve for the Philippines amid an increasing population.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t think you\u2019ll be self-sufficient, with the population growth you have. You still have to address it through imports. And if you (resort to) imports, then you have this uncertainty (in the form of) exporting countries\u2019 restrictions,\u201d Mr. Mohanty said.
\nIndia\u2019s Director of Foreign Trade announced on last week the easing of its export ban on non-basmati white rice, allocating 250,000 MT to the Philippines.
\nVietnam, the Philippines\u2019 top source for rice, announced plans to reduce rice exports to four million tons a year by 2033.
\nIn a report the PSA said that Philippine\u2019s rice self-sufficiency ratio declined to 77% in 2022 from 81.5% a year earlier.
\nAsked to comment, Mr. Sebastian said rice self-sufficiency can be attained via the government\u2019s Masagana Rice Industry Development Program.
\nThe program aims to stabilize the supply of the staple grain at between 24.99 million MT and 26.86 million MT, in the process keeping the annual growth of rice prices at less than 1%.
\n\u201cWe have to exert a lot of effort, we need to focus on initially irrigating about 1.5 million hectares, maximize the productivity in that area\u2026 (and) we could get higher yields, he said. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili
\n", "content_text": "OUTPUT of palay, or unmilled rice, could hit 20 million metric tons (MT) in the best-case scenario put forward by the Department of Agriculture (DA), which cited the increased land area planted to the grain.\n\u201cWe expect it to be higher than last year\u2026the highest we could reach is about 20 million MT,\u201d Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio S. Sebastian told reporters on the sidelines of the International Rice Congress last week.\nMr. Sebastian added that during the first half, the harvest was ahead of the year-earlier pace by about 300,000 MT.\nLast year, palay output fell to 19.76 million MT from 19.96 million MT a year earlier, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).\nMr. Sebastian said that El Ni\u00f1o has yet to affect the current harvest.\n\u201cThere is no El Ni\u00f1o yet, the effect we are seeing is a lot of rain. We will prepare for it in the dry season,\u201d he added.\nThe government weather service, known as PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration), has said that El Ni\u00f1o is likely to peak in late 2023 and early 2024.\nSeparately, International Potato Center Asia Regional Director Samarendu Mohanty said he does not consider rice self-sufficiency to be easy to achieve for the Philippines amid an increasing population.\n\u201cI don\u2019t think you\u2019ll be self-sufficient, with the population growth you have. You still have to address it through imports. And if you (resort to) imports, then you have this uncertainty (in the form of) exporting countries\u2019 restrictions,\u201d Mr. Mohanty said.\nIndia\u2019s Director of Foreign Trade announced on last week the easing of its export ban on non-basmati white rice, allocating 250,000 MT to the Philippines.\nVietnam, the Philippines\u2019 top source for rice, announced plans to reduce rice exports to four million tons a year by 2033.\nIn a report the PSA said that Philippine\u2019s rice self-sufficiency ratio declined to 77% in 2022 from 81.5% a year earlier.\nAsked to comment, Mr. Sebastian said rice self-sufficiency can be attained via the government\u2019s Masagana Rice Industry Development Program.\nThe program aims to stabilize the supply of the staple grain at between 24.99 million MT and 26.86 million MT, in the process keeping the annual growth of rice prices at less than 1%.\n\u201cWe have to exert a lot of effort, we need to focus on initially irrigating about 1.5 million hectares, maximize the productivity in that area\u2026 (and) we could get higher yields, he said. \u2014 Adrian H. Halili", "date_published": "2023-10-23T00:04:34+08:00", "date_modified": "2023-10-22T20:33:23+08:00", "authors": [ { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "BusinessWorld", "url": "https://www.bworldonline.com/author/cedadiantityclea/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/eda8ffc51ac7ec8b231b61b4c6a0d14e?s=512&d=mm&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.bworldonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/palay-rice-farmer-1.jpg", "tags": [ "Adrian H. Halili", "Agribusiness", "Editors' Picks" ] } ] }