Sri Lanka – Adding rice farmers to the Rio+20 agenda
Source: IPS16/05/2012 – The year 2011 was one of extremes for the small Sri Lankan village of Verugal.
Nigeria – Jonathan now eats locally produced rice from Abakaliki – Maku
Source: Vanguard18/05/2012 – President Goodluck Jonathan now eats locally produced rice and bread made from cassava as part of efforts to encourage indigenous production and stop capital flight, says Minister of Information Labaran Maku.
Rice production grows, but not everywhere
Source: Voice of America14/05/2012 – The United Nations is expecting the world to harvest more rice in twenty twelve than was produced last year. The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization says the world rice harvest should rise almost two percent, mainly because of increased production in Asia. Large gains are expected for Bangladesh, Burma, China,…
Guyana – Rice farmers protest non-payment of monies by Mahaicony Rice Mills
Source: Kaieteur News14/05/2012 – Rice farmers along the Essequibo Coast are calling on Government to intervene in the matter where the Mahaicony Rice Mills (MRL) is yet to pay outstanding sums owed to them.
Japan – Farmers plant ‘reconstruction rice’
Source: The Daily Yomiuri 15/05/2012 – Following the central government’s decision in April to lift the evacuation order for the village of Kawauchi, residents have begun growing rice–even though most of the rice will be discarded.
USA – District court upholds pollution rule to protect wild rice
Source: StarTribune14/05/2012 – A bitterly contested rule established decades ago to protect Minnesota’s wild rice from pollution that comes primarily from mining has been upheld by a Ramsey County District Court.
Guyana – Rice farmers protest non-payment
Source: Kaieteur News12/05/2012 – Rice farmers from across Region Two staged a protest over millions of dollars owed to them for the past two years, by Mahaicony Rice Mills Ltd.
India – India to dethrone Thailand, Vietnam as top rice exporter
Source: Bloomberg09/05/2012 – India, the largest rice grower after China, is poised to rival Vietnam as the world’s biggest shipper, ending Thailand’s 30-year reign, after favorable weather and higher government prices boosted the harvest to a record.
Water harvesting in Nicaragua – a blue revolution
Source: New Agriculturist05/2012 – “Before there was nothing – it was very dry,” farmer Victor Beltran recalls. “Now we have maize, sorghum, beans, as well as pasture.” While his neighbour’s land remains dusty and unproductive, Beltran has transformed his farm after volunteering to be part of a Nicaraguan pilot project to capture and store rainwater for…
Thailand – Exporters guarantee rice quality
Source: Bangkok Post01/07/2013 – The Rice Exporters Association has given a public assurance of the quality of rice exported from Thailand to the United States in a statement issued on Monday.