Rice Today Volume 5 number 3

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Rce trade lberalzatonExamnng a trcky ssue

New envronment sectonCan hgh ood productonand bodversty coexst?

The uture o rce n AsaInspiring youth to stay in the industry

ISSN 1655-5422

www.irri.org

International Rice Research Institute July-September 2006, Vol. 5, No. 3

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contentsVol. 5, No. 3

International Rice Research InstituteDAPO Box 7777, Metro Manila, PhilippinesWeb (IRRI): www.irri.org

Web (Library): http://ricelib.irri.cgiar.orgWeb (Rice Knowledge Bank): www.knowledgebank.irri.org

Rice Todayeditorialtelephone (+63-2) 580-5600 or (+63-2) 844-3351 to 53, ext 2725;fax: (+63-2) 580-5699 or (+63-2) 845-0606; email: [email protected]

cover photo Jose Raymond Panaligan

publisher Duncan MacintosheditorAdam Barclay

art director Juan Lazaro IVdesigner and production supervisor George Reyescontributing editors Gene Hettel, Bill Hardynews editor Juanito Goloyugophoto editorAriel Javellanaphoto researcher Jose Raymond Panaligancirculation Chrisanto Quintanaprinter Primex Printers, Inc.

Rice Todayis published by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the worldsleading international rice research and training center. Based in the Philippines and withofces in 13 other countries, IRRI is an autonomous, nonprot institution focused onimproving the well-being of present and future generations of rice farmers and consumers,particularly those with low incomes, while preserving natural resources. IRRI is one of15 centers funded through the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research(CGIAR), an association of public and private donor agencies. For more information, visitthe CGIAR Web site (www.cgiar.org).

Responsibility for this publication rests with IRRI. Designations used in this publication

should not be construed as expressing IRRI policy or opinion on the legal status of anycountry, territory, city or area, or its authorities, or the delimitation of its frontiers orboundaries.

Rice Todaywelcomes comments and suggestions from readers. Potential contributorsare encouraged to query rst, rather than submit unsolicited materials. Rice Todayassumes no responsibility for loss or damage to unsolicited submissions, which shouldbe accompanied by sufcient return postage.

Copyright International Rice Research Institute 2006

Editorial ................................................................ 4

Fighting climate change

NEws ......................................................................... 5

Climate Change initiative ramps up

Rice Knowledge Bank recognized

OSCAR vs. weeds

Postharvest training goes digital

Bangladeshi ood security

China protects new plant varieties

Archaeological fnds in China and Japan

Reducing grain shattering

Managing sheath blight

Arican rice news

PEoPlE ..................................................................... 9

Rice genetics pioneer passes away

Keeping up with IRRI sta

Achievements

NEws fEaturEs .................................................... 10

Setting the rice agenda

Breeding rice or rained ecosystems

Virtual ChallENgEs .......................................... 12

In the ast-changing world o the digital era, theworlds oremost collection o inormation on riceand rice research is moving with the times

MaPs ....................................................................... 14

False color gives a true impression

KorEa-irri CollaboratioN MultiPliEs

bENEfits ............................................................ 15

The Top Rice Project, launched in 2005, aimsto develop and popularize high-qualityrice in Korea

triCKs of thE tradE ........................................... 16In Asia, the question o whether or not to liberalize

rice trade is a vexing one. I liberalization is tooccur at all, it needs to happen gradually and withan understanding o how peopleespecially thepoorwill be aected

sNaPshot .........................................................20-21

A dierent kind o rice landscape

tradE PErsPECtiVEs ........................................... 22

Opportunities beyond growing ricea armersperspective

Trade liberalizationan agricultural economistsperspective

a riCE futurE for asia ...................................... 25

Thai and Filipino high school students come togetherto help ensure the rice industrys uture in Asia,sparking new riendshipsand riendly rivalriesalong the way

stEiNbECK aNd a CalliNg .................................. 28

Noel Magors ocus on marginal armers in Bangladeshderives rom his childhood on a modest Australianarm, his experience o amine in Ethiopia, and aclassic tale o dust bowl America

PEst by PEst, stEP by stEP ................................. 30

Cambodian researchers are set to increase their

understanding o rice diseases as part o a projectthat could help lit the country o the lower rungso Asias rice yield ladder

diagNosiNg drought ........................................ 32

Improved methods o measuring how rice plantsrespond to drought in the feld are helpingscientists discover how and why some varietiestolerate water shortages better than othersknowledge that will ultimately help armerswithstand the cruel vagaries o the weather

ENViroNMENt ....................................................... 34

Balanced on a wing. Although seemingly at odds, riceproduction and biodiversity conservation can existtogetherthe trick is to fnd the right balance

riCE faCts .............................................................. 37

Do rice prices aect malnutrition in the poor? Cheaperrice can help break the cycle o poverty andmalnutrition

graiN of truth .................................................... 38

Are we at risk rom metal contamination in rice?

On the cover:Leenlada "Oom" Monpo, a

Thai high school student,

learns how to prepare a

riceeld or transplanting

at IRRI headquarters.

See page 25.


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NEWS

Rice TodayJuly-September 2006

New evidence is emerging that climatechange could reduce not only theworlds ability to produce food but also in-ternational efforts to cut poverty. However,the recent sequencing of the rice genome isalready providing researchers with some ofthe tools they need to help poor rice farm-

ers and consumers avoid the worst effectsof the problem.

The new knowledge generated by thesequencing effort is allowing scientists todevelop new rice varieties faster and withthe specic characteristics needed to deal

with climate change, such as tolerance ofhigher temperatures. However, scientistsare calling for more research to fully under-stand the impact of climate changeespe-cially the extreme weather it may causeoninternational efforts to reduce poverty and

ensure food security.AClimate Change and Rice planning

workshop in March 2006 at the Interna-tional Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in thePhilippines was told that climate change isalready affecting Asias ability to producerice, and that this could eventually slow ef-forts to reduce poverty in the region, wheremost of the worlds poor live.

The workshop was informed that, toovercome many of the climate change-re-lated problems facing rice production in

Asiaand continue to meet the demandfor rice in the regionyields will have todouble over the next 50 years. Research has

conrmed that global warming will makerice crops less productive, with increasing

temperatures decreasing yields.Clearly, climate change is going to

have a major impact on our ability to growrice, IRRI Director General Robert Zeiglersaid. We cant afford to sit back and be

complacent about this because rice produc-tion feeds almost half the worlds population

while providing vital employment to mil-lions as well, with most of them being verypoor and vulnerable.

Dr. Zeigler announced at the workshopthat IRRI was ready to put up US$2 millionof its own research funds as part of an effortto raise $25 million for a major ve-yearproject to mitigate the effects of climatechange on rice production. We need to startdeveloping rice varieties that can tolerate

higher temperatures and other aspects ofclimate change right now, he said.

Fortunately, the recent sequencing ofthe rice genome will allow us to do this muchfaster than we could have in the past, Dr.Zeigler added. But, in addition to new rice

varieties, we must develop other technolo-gies that will help poor rice farmers deal

with climate change.The proposal plans include three sites

on at-risk rice lands in the Philippines,southern China, and northern India. Re-searchers will use data from these sites toconstruct models designed to predict theeffects of climate change and help develop

IRRIs digital extension ser-vice, the Rice Knowledge Bank(RKB; www.knowledgebank.irri.org), was selected as a nalistin the 2006 Stockholm Challenge Awards.The awards, in their sixth year, recognizesome of the worlds best information andcommunication technology (ICT) projectsfor social and economic development. Theawards aim to nd examples of ICT projectsthat show clear benets to people and their

communities, wide impact, and sustainablebusiness models. The RKB, entered in theEconomic Development category, was oneof 151 nalists chosen from 1,155 entries.The eventual winner in the RKBs category

was Indias ITC eChoupal, which usesICT to help improve the competitiveness ofsmall-farmer agriculture and enhance ruralprosperity. Information about all nalistsis available at http://event.stockholmchal-lenge.se.

IRRI training staff also took the RKBaboard the Philippine Department of Sci-

research and policy directions and priori-ties.

IRRIs senior climate change re-

searcher, John Sheehy, told the workshopthat poor farmers need help in several chal-lenging new areas. We need to develop rice

varieties tolerant of higher temperaturethat can maintain yield and quality whenextreme temperatures occur, Dr. Sheehysaid. We also need rice varieties that cantake advantage of higher levels of CO2 in the

atmosphere, rice that is vigorous enoughto recover quickly from extreme weatherevents and disasters, and very high-yieldingrice that will provide a supply buffer for poorcommunities during periods of change.

Climate Change initiative ramps up

ence and Technologys (DOST) MobileInformation Technology Classrooma busthat in March and April toured the Philip-pines as part of the K-AgriNet ICT RoadShow. The Road Show is promoting theuse of computers and the Internet to localgovernment ofcials, agricultural extension

workers, and farmers.

Rice Knowledge Bank recognized

Anew technology called OSCAROpen-Source Simple Computer for Agriculturein Rural Areaspromises to help farmersin the Indo-Gangetic Plains identify andeliminate weeds in their elds. The soft

ware, which has a database of 50 different weed species found in the Indo-GangetiPlains, was set to be updated with 250 more

varieties of such unwanted plants found inthe region.

The project builds an open-source

weed identication system for major weedspecies for rice-wheat cropping systems ofIndo-Gangetic Plains covering India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh, Rice-WheatConsortium for the Indo-Gangetic Plains

Head Raj Gupta said. The French Instituteof Pondicherry initiated the project incollaboration with the consortium, Inter-national Centre for Agricultural Researchand Development (CIRAD by its Frenchacronym) of France, and the Netherlands

based Wageningen University.

OSCAR vs. weeds

Ma. angie Maghuyopdmstrts t RKB brd iCT RdSw bs.

GinaZarsadias


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NEWS


No to rice futures tradingThe Japanese agriculture ministry hasdisapproved plans by the Tokyo Grain Ex-change and Kansai Commodities Exchangeto list rice futures contracts for trading onan experimental basis, saying this wouldgravely affect rice production and distribu-tion. Japan initiated rice futures tradingin the 18th century and terminated it in1939.

Highest Cambodian productionPrime Minister Hun Sen announced Cam-

bodias nearly 6 million metric tons of riceharvest in 2005, the best harvest in 27 years,representing a 43% increase over 2004 anda surplus of more than 2 million metrictons above the needed rice for domesticconsumption, Oryza.com reported.

Joint forces in rice exportsOryza.com reported on 18 April 2006 that

Vietnam and Thailand agreed to strengthentheir rice exports to stabilize rice prices inthe international market. Rachane Potjana-

sutom, head of Thailands Foreign TradeDepartment under the Trade Ministry, saidthe bilateral cooperation would includesupport by Thailand to improve the qualityof Vietnamese rice in aspects of harvesting,storing, selling, and transportation. The twonations are creating and applying a generalmarketing strategy on a trial basis, which

could later be applied by the worlds topve exporters, including China, Pakistan,and India.

Emergency riceVietnam has contributed 14,000 tons of riceto the East Asia Emergency Rice Reserve(EAERR), a regional cooperation programamong China, Republic of Korea, and Japan,

which aims to assist member countries copewith difculties caused by natural disastersand disease. Of the 337,000 tons of ricereserved so far, 87,000 tons come fromcountries of the Association of Southeast

Asian Nations and 250,000 tons fromJapan. EAERR is now formulating regula-

tions on rice aid action to quickly respond

to emergency cases occurring in membercountries.

Forbidden seedsThe trading of any strain of geneticallymodied (GM) rice is strictly prohibitedin China until it has passed a safety as-sessment, Director Fang Xiangdong of the

Ministry of Agricultures Biosafety Ofcesaid in reaction to Greenpeace Chinas al-legations of illegal commercialization ofpest-resistant GM rice cultivated and soldin Central Chinas Hubei Province over thepast two years.

Mice, rice enemy number 1Scientists from Vietnam, Australia, andIRRI recently held a meeting to implementa US$556,500 project, funded by the Aus-tralian Centre for International AgriculturalResearch, to control mice in the Cuu Long(Mekong) Delta, Vietnams central-coastalregion, and southern Sulawesi in Indonesia.Mice destroy 15% of the rice produced annu-

ally in the Southeast Asian region. The proj-

Participants were enthusiastic aboutthe computer-based e-learning, which was

part of the overall course on improvingpostharvest management and technologyto increase grain quality and reduce post-harvest losses, hence increasing income.In developing countries, inadequate post-

harvest practices are estimated to result ina 1015% loss in quantity and a 2550%loss in value.

The participants23 in Myanmarand 18 in Laosincluded extension work-ers, researchers, manufacturers, and ricemillers. The course included hands-onexercises on drying and milling systems anddemonstrations of how to set up hermeticstorage. Gummert also trained participantsto analyze rice seed and grain quality withsimple tools such as a weighing scale, a

thermometer, and a low-cost IRRI-designedmoisture meter.

Poverty Elimination Through Rice Re-search Assistance (PETRRA), a five-year project funded by the Department forInternational Development of the UnitedKingdom and managed by IRRI in closepartnership with the Bangladesh Rice Re-search Institute (BRRI), the BangladeshMinistry of Agriculture, and the resource-poor rice farmers of Bangladesh, ended in

August 2004.

In light of PETRRAs success, theEuropean Union is funding the Food Secu-rity for Sustainable Household Livelihoods(FoSHoL) projectcoordinated by IRRI and

key NGOsto deliver PETRRA technologiesacross Bangladesh, where around half thepopulation lives below the poverty line ofUS$1 per day, most of them in rural areas.The project target is to reach at least 50,000food-insecure households. For more infor-mation, visit the recently launched FoSHoLat www.foshol.org.

The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture(MOA) announced in Beijing that Chinatoday ranks fourth in the world in applica-tions for protecting new agricultural plant

varieties as it tightens its regulations againstcounterfeit goods and new plant varieties as

part of the countrys intellectual propertyrights protection strategy. According to areport carried by the Xinhua news agencyon 24 April 2006, China has received 3,207applications for protecting new plant variet-ies, including 114 applications from foreignentities. The MOA said more than 700 ap-

plications have been approved.China signed the International Conven-

tion for the Protection of New Varieties ofPlants in 1999, becoming the 39th memberof the International Union for the Protectionof New Varieties of Plants. China refers toa new plant variety as a cultivated or de-

veloped new plant variety based on a wildplant, which is new, distinct, uniform, andstable, with a designated name. No one isallowed to grow or sell these new varieties

without the owners permission.In the last 7 years, the government has

organized more than 30 training programsto increase the publics knowledge on plant

breeders rights, and issued laws and regula-

tions to ght against illegal cases violatingthose rights. More than 800 violation caseshave been investigated, 460 of which weretaken to court.

Postharvest training goes digital

Bangladeshi food security

For the rst time ever, electronic learn-ing (e-learning) has featured in an IRRIpostharvest training course. Postharvestmanagement for improved quality of ricegrain and seed, conducted by Martin Gum-mert of IRRIs Agricultural EngineeringUnit and Geert Claessens of IRRIs TrainingCenter, was held in Myanmar on 24-26 Apriland Laos on 10-12 May.

China protects new plantvarieties


MartinGuMMe

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ect, to be completed in 2009, will be carriedout jointly by the Australian CommonwealthScientic and Industrial Research Organisa-tion, IRRI, and the Vietnamese Departmentfor Plant Protection, the Vietnam News

Agency said.

Irrigation rehabRestoration work on the Philippines na-tional and communal irrigation systems isin full blast in response to President GloriaMacapagal Arroyos goal of attaining riceself-sufciency by year 2009. The projectis expected to restore the productiveness ofsome 12,475 hectares of agricultural landsand benefit 21,500 farmers nationwide.

Agriculture Secretary Domingo Panganibansaid that the nationwide rehabilitation willresult in the efcient delivery and distribu-tion of irrigation water.

Groundwater for rice productionMahabub Hossain, head of IRRIs Social Sci-ences Division, has advised the Jharkhand

government in India to tap groundwater for

rice production. Speaking at a workshop onscaling up of technologies to improve rurallivelihood organized by the Birsa Agricul-ture University, in collaboration with IRRIand the states agriculture department, Dr.Hossain told The Telegraph: Jharkhandis mainly dependent on rains for irrigationpurposes. Even the Philippines has similar

problems. The farmers depend on rains orcanals that often dry up during summer.Therefore, groundwater becomes impor-

Scientists fromt h e T a m i lNadu Agr icul -tural University,India, are under-taking a study onmanaging sheath

blight disease inrice through ge-netic engineering.The authors of thestudy, Engineer-ing sheath blightresistance in eliteindica rice culti-vars using genesencoding defense

proteins, which appeared in the journaPlant Science, aim to develop rice cultivars

with enhanced resistance to sheath bligh by genetically transforming high-yielding

indica rice cultivars with a rice gene thatencodes a protein. Pathogenesis-relatedproteins can enhance plant resistance topathogens when overexpressed.

The researchers, led by KrishnanKalpana, revealed that the engineered ricehad increased resistance to the rice fungus

Rhizoctonia solani when compared withnontransformed plants. In addition tosheath blight resistance, they found thatthe transgenic lines were also resistant tothe rice sheath rot pathogen,Sarocladiumoryzae.

Scientists from Michigan State Uni-versity led by plant biology associateprofessor Tao Sang, while undertaking

rice domestication research, have identi-ed for the rst time the genetic mutation

that reduces grain shattering, a feat thatcould help improve rice production. Theresearchers pinpointed a mutation inDNA causing an amino acid change in aprotein responsible for the nonshatteringof rice varieties.

According to the electronic publica-tion Science Express, which publishedthe article Rice domestication by re-ducing shattering, the researchers rst

Large quantities of rice said to be morethan 3,000 years old have been un-earthed in Zhongshui town in GuizhouProvince by archaeologists in China. Xin-hua news agency quoted researcher ZhaoZhijun of the Archaeology Institute of theChinese Academy of Social Science saying,

The rice was found in numerous pits andits believed to be upland rice, since the ricegrains are much smaller and rice shoots aremuch shorter than those of paddy rice. Thediscovery, which showed the systematiccultivation of rice in China more than 3,000

years ago, would provide valuable insights

Managing sheath blightArchaeological fnds in China and Japan

into the evolution of rice strains.Meanwhile, archaeologists in Japan

have unearthed an ancient wooden stripat the Shimoda Higashi archaeological re-mains bearing inscriptions of rice growingfrom seed to harvest. The archaeologicalnd, measuring 36.8 centimeters long and

11.1 centimeters wide, dates back to the early9th century and bears characters writtenin Chinese ink. Ancient history professorTakehiko Yoshimura of Meiji Universitysaid the strip indicated the role of womenin growing rice and seedlings, the Yomiuri

Shimbun reported.

Reducing grain shattering

determined rice chromosome 4 as beingresponsible for the reduced shattering.Then, plant biology research associate

Changbao Li invented a process that al-lowed researchers to efciently complete

the screening of 12,000 seedlings. Science Express quoted Rich

Triemer, chairperson of the Departmentof Plant Biology: By tracing the breed-ing of rice and identifying the geneticmutations, the researchers have openednew doors to the science communitythat benet the world through a moreeffective use of the land and water usedto grow rice.

GeneHettel

tant. One can take out the groundwaterand use it for irrigation. Even if the waterdries up, the rain, which comes for a shortperiod, can replenish the groundwater stock

for further use.

Clean boots for good cropsFarmers in the Cordilleras in northern Lu-zon, Philippines, were advised to regularly

wash their boots because their soles andedges could transport pathogens or diseasecausing organisms to their crops. Rhodesia

Celoy-Manzan, an IRRI assistant scientiswho specializes in molecular genetics, explained to farmers gathered at the BenguetState University that rubber boots, whensoiled and muddy, could become potentiallyhazardous in moving potent organisms fromfarm to farm and affect the natural balance

between pathogenic (disease-causing) and

beneficial organisms on farmlands. Headvice also goes to some 300,000 farmersin 13 towns of the province, according to areport from online news agencyINQ7.neon 21 April 2006.



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NEWS


Nutrition revolution for Africa

About 100 leading scientists and poli-cymakers from Africa met in Kenyato discuss new technologies for fighting

malnutrition and improving health. TheForum for Agricultural Research in Africaand HarvestPlus cohosted a workshop on

biofortication on 4-5 May in Mombasa.The workshop discussed the latest

research on biofortification (developingcrops with higher levels of nutrients), andidentied strategies to develop biofortiedcrops, including rice, in Africa and integratethem into national agricultural and healthpolicy agendas.

HarvestPlus Director Howarth Bouis,speaking to reporters in Nairobi, Kenya, saidthat addressing micronutrient malnutri-

tion requires a paradigm shift. Agriculturalresearch needs to move beyond increasingproductivity to improving food quality as

well. In this way, biofortication can play acritical role in improving health.

According to Professor Ruth Oniango,professor of food science and nutrition atthe Jomo Kenyatta University of Agricultureand Technology and IRRI Board of Trusteesmember, Until now, the solution to micro-nutrient deciency among the poor has fo-cused on vitamin and mineral supplements,dietary diversity, and commercial foodfortication. While these approaches have

attained some success, they have not beenable to reach all those in need, particularlypeople in remote rural areas. By targetingstaple food crops grown and consumed bythe rural poor, biofortication can reach

large numbers of people in a cost-effectiveand sustained manner.

Tidal irrigation in The Gambia

ATaiwanese technical mission that spe-cializes in rice cultivation has extendedits operations in the northern part of The

Gambias Central River Divi-sion by building a tidal ir-rigation system in the area toenable farmers to grow rice

and other crops throughoutthe year. About 4,000 farmers

will benet from the project,enabling each to cultivate 24to 26 hectares of land, the

Daily Observer reported on16 February 2006.

Conserving dollarreserves

The governor of NigeriasOsun State, Prince Olagun-soye Oyinlola, has advocateda stop to rice importation to

conserve and harness much-needed foreignreserves during the inauguration of twocommittees on the Presidential Initiative on

Rice Production. Prince Olagunsoye assuredgovernment support for rice processors in

sourcing modern processing equipmentby linking them to areas to obtain credit.Meanwhile, committee chair and deputygovernor Erelu Olusola Obada announcedthe release by the government, through theState Agricultural Development Board, offunds to purchase equipment and 13 tonsof rice seedlings, including upland andlowland seeds.

Low production in Ghana

Ghana is experiencing low levels of do-mestic rice production and the loss ofthousands of jobs due to rice imports. The

extent of Ghanas rice import surge wasdiscussed during a recent workshop on

Agro-import surge study: the case of ricein Ghana. Deputy Minister for Local Gov-ernment and Rural Development AbrahamDwuma Odoom said the government is con-sidering how the promotion of the produc-tion and consumption of locally producedrice could be achieved by incorporating itinto the National School Feeding Program,according to a report at Ghanaian onlinenews service www.myjoyonline.com.

New rice in Uganda and The Gambia

The Japanese government is extendingthe Grant Assistance for Underprivi-

leged Farmers, through the FAO, for thedissemination of the New Rice for Africa(NERICA) and improvement of rice pro-duction systems in the Republic of Uganda.Japanese Ambassador to Italy His Excel-lency Yuji Nakamura and FAO DeputyDirector General David Harcharik signedan implementing agreement in Rome earlythis year.

The project is intended to provide

Ugandan farmers with NERICA seedsand necessary training at a Farmers FieldSchool, an FAO training system to raise thetechnical knowledge of farmers.

A Japanese government statementsaid, In concrete terms, NERICA IV, whoseunit crop yields are 30% higher than localrice and whose growth to harvest is 2030%faster, will be cultivated on a total of 1,000

hectares of elds in the eastern, central,and western parts of the country. Farmersof 6,000 households will be provided withthe seed, fertilizer, and pedal threshers.They will also receive training in sowing andfertilizing for cultivation and postharvesttechniques after threshing. Farmers will alsolearn about self production of seed and thedistribution system.

Meanwhile, NERICA has taken itsroots in The Gambia because of its widerrange of adoption in most Gambian soils,

especially on loamy clay soil, with goodvigorous growth. Its importance is also at-

tributed to increased consumption due torapid population growth and the low levelof production, theDaily Observer reportedon 27 May 2006.

Famara Badjie, an agriculture exten-sion worker in the Kombo North, said thatNERICAts very well with The Gambiaserratic rainfall pattern, adding that the2005-06 NERICA rice harvest in Jambur isthree times more than that in 2004-05.

Agricultural boost for Sierra Leone

The Chinese government donated tractorsand other agricultural implements to thegovernment of Sierra Leone, theAwarenessTimes Newspaper reported on 29 March2006. The equipment was formally handedover by the Ambassador of the PeoplesRepublic of China to Sierra Leone, HisExcellency Cheng Wenju, to Minister of

Agriculture, Forestry, and Food Security,Sama Mondeh.

Chinas assistance to Sierra Leonestarted in 2002 by providing professionaltraining to 50 Sierra Leonean technicians inChina on rice cultivation, sending two expertmissions in 2002 and 2005 to examine thepossibility of establishing a technical hybrid

rice research and production team in thecountry, and sending eight experts to the Bo

Agricultural Station to enhance large-scaleproduction and processing of hybrid rice.

China is also this year providing 18technicians for a food security programunder the South-South Cooperation Schemeof the Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) of the United Nations, and sendingthree senior Chinese scientists to train min-istry ofcials and senior university studentson modern rice production for 6 months.

African rice news

irri


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PEOPLE


Te-Tzu (T.T.) Chang, 79, passed away inTaiwan on 24 March 2006. Dr. Chang,IRRIs principal geneticist for more than30 years and head of the InternationalRice Germplasm Center when he retiredin December 1991, was considered a worldauthority on rice genetics and conservation.His research on the evolution and variationof rice led to major advances in plant breed-ing, productivity, and disease resistance

with a profound impact on agricultural pro-ductivity throughout much of Asia, Africa,and South America.

Dr. Chang introduced Dee-geo-woo-gen, a Chinese dwarf rice, to IRRIs breedingprogram in 1962. That led to the develop-ment of the rst high-yielding semidwarfrice varieties. IR8, the rst such variety to

be widely grown in the tropics, was releasedlate in 1966. It was followed by a successionof improved, early-maturing varieties withgenetic resistance to many of the majorinsect pests and diseases of rice.

Faced with the peril of losing geneticresources that hold the key to the futuredevelopment of newer and better rice crops,Dr. Chang perceived the danger and put

great effort into saving unimproved varietiesand their wild relatives.

He mobilized international and multi-agency resources in 14 Asian nations andseveral African nations to undertake mas-sive eld collections of nearly 40,000 speci-mens, many on the brink of extinction. Thiseffort made IRRIs rice gene bank holdingsthe largest collection in the world for a singlecrop plant. Desirable genes from this invalu-able resource continue to sustain advancesin global rice production.

Rice genetics pioneerpasses away

Keeping up with IRRI staff

Zahirul Islam, international researchfellow, has joined IRRIs Social SciencesDivision (SSD) to coordinate the IRRI-In-ternational Fund for Agricultural Develop-ment project on accelerating technologiesand adoption to improve livelihoods on therainfed Indo-Gangetic Plains at seven sitesin India and Bangladesh. Hari Gurungalso joined SSD as an international researchfellow.

Yuichiro Furukawa, Ruben Lam-payan, and Rachid Serrajjoined the Cropand Environmental Sciences (CES) Division

as a project scientist, postdoctoral fellow, andsenior crop physiologist, respectively.

Inez Slamet-Loedin joined theGolden Rice Network as a shuttle scientistresponsible for developing the non-event-specic regulatory dossier for Golden RiceSGR2, while Florencia Palis is a newpostdoctoral fellow with the CES Divisionresponsible for coordinating projects underthe Irrigated Rice Research Consortium(IRRC), among others. Trina Mendoza

also joined IRRC as an associate in com-munication and extension.

Adam Barclay,Rice Today editor, wona Gold Award (1st place) in the Writ-ing for Magazines Category for the article,Dreams beyond droughtthat appeared onpages 14-21 of Vol. 4, No. 2 ofRice Today.The award was presented by the Associa-tion for Communications Excellence (ACE)during its annual meeting in Quebec City,Canada, 2-6 June 2006. ACE is an interna-tional organization of communicators and

information technologists that developsthe professional skills of its members toextend knowledge about agriculture, naturalresources and life and human sciences topeople worldwide. The article explored how

Appointed heads of OrganizationaUnits as part of IRRIs new strategic planare David Mackill,Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Biotechnology (PBGB) Divisionincluding current PBGB staff and the plan

pathology research groups of the formerEntomology and Plant Pathology Division(EPPD); T.P. Tuong,CES, including stafof the former Crop, Soil, and Water SciencesDivision and the entomology and ecologyresearch groups of the former EPPD; Mahabub Hossain, SSD, including currenstaff and units of SSD; Ruaraidh Sack ville Hamilton, the T.T. Chang GeneticResources Center (GRC), including currenstaff of GRC; Graham McLaren, theIRRI-CIMMYT Crop Research InformaticsLaboratory (CRIL), including current staffof the former Biometrics and BioinformaticsUnit; and Melissa Fitzgerald,the GrainQuality, Nutrition, and Postharvest Center

including current staff of the former GrainQuality and Nutrition Research Centerand the agricultural engineering and pos

harvest research groups of the former Ag-ricultural Engineering Unit.

Achievements drought in Asia delivers heartbreak and ripscommunities apart among the rural poor

but also how promising new research ihelping rice farmers avoid devastation.

Anthropologist Florencia Palis oIRRIs Social Sciences Division receivedthe Nationally Recruited Staff Award forOutstanding Scientic Achievement at therecent Board of Trustees meeting at theinstitutes Philippine headquarters. DrPalis was chosen for her independent eth

nographic research that encompassed manycommunity settings and IRRI projectsincluding her research for the advancemenof knowledge.

Yuan Longping, director general othe China National Hybrid Rice Researchand Development Center, in April joinedthe elite U.S. National Academy of Sciencesas a foreign associate, one of the higheshonors in American science and engineer-ing. Professor Longping, 76, is known as theFather of Hybrid Rice for his contributionin developing high-yield rice in China.

Over the years, Dr. Chang had sharedhis expertise in genetic conservation withnational agricultural research centers inChina and India as they established gene

banks for other crop species.A native of Shanghai, China, Dr. Chang

completed his undergraduate degree at theUniversity of Nanking and earned mastersand Ph.D. degrees from Cornell University

and the University of Minnesota, respec-tively. He was a fellow of the American Society of Agronomy, the Institute of Biologyof the UK, the Crop Science Society of the

Philippines, and the Crop Science Societyof America. Among his many awards werethe 1988 Rank Prize for Nutrition andthe 1999 Tyler Prize for Environmenta

Achievement.

Jessevictolero


10/40

NEWS FEATURES

10 Rice TodayJuly-September 2006

G

lobal rice productionhit a world-record 628million tons in 2005,after increasing for the

third consecutive season. The all-time high was announced in theApril 2006 issue of theRice MarketMonitor, published by the Food andAgriculture Organization (FAO) ofthe United Nations, ahead of the 21stsession of the International RiceCommission (IRC) on 3-5 May 2006.

Growth reected relativelyfavorable weather conditions inAsia, western Africa, and SouthAmerica, and the positive effects

of high prices in 2004, whichhad fostered a general increase inplantings, according to the report.

However, tight domesticsupplies and rising populationsleft a number of countries facingproduction shortfalls in 2004,leading to a spike in global importsin 2005 of 29 million tonsanotherrecord, but a gure that is expectedto drop slightly in 2006.

The IRC session, held inChiclayo, Peru, brought together

nearly 100 participants, includingofcials from 61 countries, IRCmembers, and partner institutions,to discuss ways and means topromote international action onthe production, preservation,distribution, and consumption of rice.

Organized by the Ministry ofAgriculture of Peru and the FAO, thetheme of the 21st session wasRiceis lifebringing the implementationof the International Year of Rice tofarmers elds. The United Nationsdeclared 2004 as the InternationalYear of Rice to underline the needto coordinate efforts to combatpoverty, improve food security,and achieve the United NationsMillennium Development Goalsin the poor rice-producing areasof the world, which are home toclose to half of all humanity.

Country representativespresented and analyzed theirnational rice research and

development programs, discussingstrategies for sustainable increasesin rice production, reducingrice productions environmentalimpact, and reducing hunger inpoor rice-producing populations.

The IRC holds a session every 4years to review emerging issues andrecent achievements in scientic,technical, and socioeconomicmatters relating to sustainable riceproduction and rice-based farming

What next?

Key recommendations to come out o the 21stsession o the International Rice Commissionincluded

Member countries, und donors, FAO, partnerinstitutions, and all other stakeholders

should increase collaborative eorts and

unding support or a sustainable increase

in rice production.

The pa r tne r sh ip in r i ce r e sea r chand development among national and

international institutions, nongovernmental

organizations, and the private sector should

be strengthened and broadened.

Strategies and policies or sustainable riceproduction should aim to help rice armers

eiciently manage resourcesespecially

waterand reduce the environmental impact

o arming. Support should increase or initiatives to

promote the development, dissemination,

and adoption o rice varieties with high

nutrient content (especially iron, zinc, and

vitamin A).

New rice varieties should combine highyield with increased nutritional value

and improved tolerance o salinity, high

temperature, drought, and ood.

Rice production should be viewed as anintegrated system, rom selection o seed

through to ood on the table, encompassing

the interactions and relationships among

rice plants and other organisms in rice

ecosystems. To increase returns and employment rom

rice production, support should increase or

small and medium enterprises that use rice

and its by-products (such as bran and husks)

to manuacture value-added products.

The IRC Secretariat also recommended a

Global Expert Consultation, to be held beore

the 22nd session in 2010, to review progress

and to identiy strategies or up-scaling the

transer o integrated crop management systems

or increasing yield and proft, and reducing

environmental degradation in rice production.

Settng the rce agenda

systems. The session also helpsmember countries develop theirnational rice programs, and promotesinteraction and collaborationamong national, regional, andinternational institutions.

Rice, the main staple ofaround half the worlds population,constitutes one-fth of the total foodenergy intake of everyone on theplanet. In Asia alone, more than 2billion people obtain around two-thirds of their daily dietary energyfrom rice and its by-products.

But rice is not the preserve ofAsian countries alone. Accordingto FAO, almost a billion householdsin Asia, Africa, and the Americasdepend on rice systems for their mainsource of employment and livelihood,

and rice production in sub-SaharanAfrica is now expanding faster thanany other crop but continues to beoutpaced by consumption. Further,26 countries in Latin Americaand the Caribbean cultivate rice,although the regions productionis only 4.3% of the world total. InPeru itself, rice consumptionabout50 kg of milled rice per personeach yearis higher than in otherLatin American countries.

aileendelrosario-rondilla


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11Rice TodayJuly-September 2006

Asia has made remarkableprogress in boosting riceproduction and productivityover the last 4 decades. Most

of this increase has been achievedthrough the adoption of improvedrice varieties. But the progresshas remained unevencountries

that rely predominantly on rainfedecosystems continue to lag behind.

Rainfed ecosystemsslopingand plateau uplands, medium todeeply ooded monsoon-dependentlowlands, and salt-affected coastalareasstill account for about 45%of total rice lands in Asia. Theseecosystems therefore remaincrucial to sustaining future growthin rice production, especially asimprovements in rice production in

irrigated ecosystems are runningout of steam, with near completeadoption of improved varietiesand narrowing of yield gaps.Compared with this success, foodinsecurity and poverty are extensivein rainfed ecosystems and thedemand for food is growing fast.

Rainfed ecosystemsare characterized bysevere abiotic stressessuch as drought,submergence, problemsoils, and strong winds.These factors mustbe considered, alongwith high yield andpest resistance, in anybreeding strategies forimproved varieties forrainfed systems. To

develop high-yieldingvarieties appropriatefor these ecosystems,rice breeders from thenational agriculturalresearch systems of the rice-producing countries of Asia seek tocombine local traditional varietiesthat possess abiotic stress tolerancewith elite lines obtained frominternational research centers.Such research involves complexbreeding procedures and often hasa low probability of success, and,when a variety is released, farmersand consumers may not accept it.

We have seen promising progressin developing varieties for the rainfedupland ecosystem but many farmerscontinue to grow traditional varieties.The only major success has been inChinas Yunnan Province, where theadoption of improved varieties wasfacilitated by investment in terracingthe sloping uplands and thereby

modifying the growing environment.Substantial efforts have also

been made in improving varietiesfor the ood-prone ecosystem bychanging the rice plants capacity toelongate with rising oodwaters anddeveloping kneeing abilitythe abilityof a plant that has been attened byoodwaters to grow upright againwhen the water recedes. However,farm-level data from Thailandshow limited adoption of improved

by Mahabub HossainHead, Social Sciences Division,

International Rice Research Institute

deepwater rice varieties because theeffect on yield has been marginal.Rather, farmers in the ood-proneecosystem have abandoned deepwaterrice in favor of growing shorter-duration high-yielding rice varieties(often raising two rice crops in thesame year) developed for the irrigated

ecosystem, therebysubstantiallyincreasing riceproduction andincome. Thisdevelopment startedin the Mekong Deltaof South Vietnamand subsequentlyspread to theGanges delta inBangladesh andWest Bengal,

India, where itwas augmentedby pumpinggroundwaterthrough small-

scale irrigation. This approach isnow proceeding rapidly in the ChaoPhraya delta of central Thailand.

Progress in developing varietiesfor rainfed lowlands has beenrelatively slow. In India, for example,18 varieties were released permillion hectares in 1970-2000 forthe irrigated ecosystem, comparedwith only 9 for the rainfed lowlandecosystem. But there has beenconsiderable spillover of varietiesreleased for the irrigated systeminto the rainfed lowland system.However, data on the effect ofadoption show that rice yield hasremained low because farmersare reluctant to invest in adequateinputssuch as fertilizerbecauseof the risks of crop failure from

drought and submergence.Recent efforts in using modern

biotechnology tools to incorporatedrought and submergence toleranceinto popularly grown modernvarieties may help increase riceproduction in the rainfed lowlands.

Adapted from a paper presented at

the 21st Session of the International

Rice Commission, held in Chiclayo,

Peru, 3-5 May 2006.

Progress in breeding

rice for rainfed

ecosystems is essential

if poor farmers are to

improve both their

productivity and

their livelihood

Breedng rceor ranedecosystems


12/40

JoserayMon

dPanaliGan

In 1960, the founding fathers of theInternational Rice Research Insti-tute (IRRI) recognized the need,

especially in the developing world,for accessible knowledge and infor-mation in the eld of rice research.

In his book,An adventure inapplied science: a history of the In-

ternational Rice Research Institute,IRRIs rst director general, RobertChandler, wrote that an essential ele-ment of the institute would be a goodlibrary that would contain the worldcollection of important rice literatureand such other reference materialsas would be needed by a group ofnatural and social scientists engagedin an active research and trainingprogram. Furthermore, the facilityshould be able to make available to

In the fast-changing world of the digital era, the

worlds foremost collection of information on

rice and rice research is moving with the times

scientists in developing countriesany articles that they were unableto get in the libraries of the institu-tions where they were working.

Now, almost 50 years later, theprogress of rice research is availablefor all to see in the worlds largestrepository of rice literatureIRRIsLibrary and Documentation Services

(LDS).The institutes rst chief librarian

was Lina Manalo, who, in the wordsof Dr. Chandler, built the best libraryamong the network of internationalagricultural research centers.

Today, the LDS houses a total bib-liography of more than 230,000 ref-erences, including more than 138,000books and monographs, and over1,400 journals. There are also doc-toral theses, conference proceedings,and comprehensive reference, audio-visual, and map collections. Thesepublications are accessible not only tothe librarys average 70 daily walk-in clients, but also online at http://ricelib.irri.cgiar.org. The libraryalso houses documents in around80 languagesEnglish accounts forjust over half, Japanese almost onefth, and Chinese 6%. The entirebibliography is available in print, onCD, and online, and is updated daily.

The library also offers elec-

tronic alerts, computerized lit-erature searches, and electronicand print document delivery. Justas important, the LDS trains libra-rians from other organizations,and trains IRRI staff on databasecreation and management.

At the helm of the LDS is MilaRamos. A graduate of the Universityof the Philippines, Ramos began atthe library in 1965. Over the ensuing41 years, she has served at the worlds

most comprehensive repository ofinformation on rice, rising to her cur-rent position of chief librarian. Alongwith former LDS Head Ian Wallace(1993-99), Ramos has helped lead thelibrary into the digital era. In 2001,the LDS received the Outstanding Ac-ademic and Research Library Award

from the Philippine Association ofAcademic and Research Librarians.

The LDSs staff of 14smallerthan that of most comparable or-ganizationshandles admirablythe challenges that come withbeing responsible for such an im-portant body of information.

The big challenge, explainsRamos, is being able to provideinstant and easy access to electronicsources of information, journalsespecially. But the costs of e-re-

sources are rising and we can provideonly a fraction of what our scientistswould like. The IRRI librarians needto be persistent and resourceful tobe able to look for needed researcharticles for free or at the least cost.

The emergence of new informa-tion and communication technologies(ICT) poses another big challenge.

With the new ICTs, says Ramos,the role of the library will get biggeras the amount of knowledge availableon the Web increases at an exponen-tial rate. The task of the library is tonavigate this maze, evaluate and se-lect materials that would benet ricescientists, keep users aware of whatsavailable, and ensure quick access.

Meanwhile, assistant chieflibrarian and rice bibliographerCarmelita Austria points out thatprint publications remain as impor-tant as ever. Computers will notreplace books, she says. We donot simply replace old technologies

with new ones. Print and electronicresources have their own strengths.

Making the ever-increasingknowledge available to the peoplewho need it is indeed a great chal-lenge for librarians. Failure meansthat all those print and electronicresources are consigned to gatherdustboth real and virtual in thearchives. With Ramos and her staff incharge, the needs of rice researchersacross the globe are in safe hands.

by Johnny Goloyugo

Virtual challenges


at t lm t iRRiLbrrc lbrr

Ml Rms.


13/40

13


14/40

MAPS


For this issues article on bird diversity andwetland conversion (seeBalanced on a wingon pages 3436),Rice Today needed a land-

cover map of Candaba marsh to compare historicaland current conditions and plan a eld visit. Theonly available maps werent detailed enough andhadnt been updated since the mid-1970s, so theIRRI Geographic Information Systems lab usedfreely available LandSat data from the Global LandCover Facility (http://glcf.umiacs.umd.edu/index.shtml) at the University of Maryland in the USA.

Because of our interest in vegetation cover, satellitedata were reprocessed into false color images that

exploit the high infrared reectance of chlorophyllthegreen pigment in plantsto render vegetation patterns.

The image is termed false color because theimaging process displays the intensities of red,green, and infrared radiation recorded by satellitesensors as shades of, respectively, green, blue, andred instead (see https://zulu.ssc.nasa.gov/mrsid/tutorial/Landsat%20Tutorial-V1.html). In the resultingimage, vegetation is in varying shades of red, wateris blue, and bare or fallow areas are light brown.

Falsecolor gves atrue mpresson

Ater eld visits to several areas shown on the 2002 alse

color map (bottom right), image-processing sotware was

used to characterize the spectral signature o areas under

rice cultivation (green on map below) and sh ponds (blue).

These signatures were then automatically applied to the

rest o the image to approximate the extent o these types

o land cover. While signicant work on the ground would

be needed to ully validate these results, they give a general

impression o the extent o sh ponds and agricultural

elds and illustrate the power o remote-sensing analysis

to acilitate studies o landscape-scale phenomena.

False color images o Candaba marsh on 17 March 1976 and 3 April

2002. While there were small diferences in the inrared data collected

between the two years, this comparison gives an immediate sense o

the magnitude o change that has occurred to the landscape due to

construction o agricultural elds and, to a lesser extent, sh ponds.

by Greg Fanslow

2002

17 March 1976

iMaGeProcessedbyaileenMaunaHan(3)

3 Aprl 2002


15/40

As part of the Top RiceProject of the Republic ofKoreas Rural Development

Administration (RDA), 25 tons ofhigh-quality rice seed were harvestedin February-March at the Philippineheadquarters of the InternationalRice Research Institute (IRRI).The seed was transported in aeet of trucks to the Ninoy AquinoInternational Airport, Manila, on

31 March and has since made itsway to the RDAs National Instituteof Crop Science in Suwon, Korea.

The Top Rice Project, launchedin 2005, aims to develop andpopularize high-quality rice in Korea.As part of this drive, RDA and IRRIinitiated the Large-Scale Korean SeedMultiplication Project in 2005-06.

Through this seed multiplicationproject, newly developed premium-quality varietiesknown asGopumbyeo and Unkwangbyeoarebeing multiplied at IRRI beforetransport to Korea and distributionto Korean rice farmers.

Multiplication of Korean rice seedat the IRRI farm in the Philippineshas been an important part of Koreasrice production for almost fourdecades. The countrys achievement

of rice self-sufciency through theGreen Revolution of the 1970s wasmade possible through similar pastcollaboration between IRRI and RDA.The rst Korean Seed MultiplicationProject, for rapid dissemination ofthe popular Tongil variety, occurredin the 1969-70 dry season.

Multiplication of Korean rice seedin the Philippines has also enabledKorea to accelerate its researchprograms. Since 1970, Korea hassent its rice breeding nurseries andadvanced lines to the Philippinesfor seed multiplication during thewinter, thus cutting years off the time

required to develop new rice varieties.This practice has also helped

Korea protect its farmers againstproduction threats. In 1980-81, forexample, Korean rice breeders used

the Philippine-grown winter cropto gain time in a gene rotationprogram to retain blast resistancein Koreas rice crop. In November1980, 305 kilograms of Korean seedwere multiplied at IRRI into 120.5tons. Once back in Korea, that seedwas further multiplied on 2,544hectares during the Korean summerof 1981. The following year, it wasused to plant 130,000 hectares ofKoreas then 1.2 million hectaresof rice land, so providing a geneticbarrier to the spread of rice blast.

The most recent Korean rice seedmultiplication was performed in a

14-hectare upland eld at IRRI underthe supervision of Hung-Goo Hwang,a senior Korean scientist secondedfrom RDA currently working inIRRIs Plant Breeding, Genetics,and Biotechnology Division, andKyu-Seong Lee, visiting researchfellow and RDA senior rice breeder.

I am very happy that wereached our target productionand we nished our projectsuccessfully, said Dr. Hwang.

Korea-iRRi collaboratonmultples benefts

iRRi Sr Sctst h-g hw (center),Vst Rsrc Fllw K-S L (right), diRRi Drctr grl Rbrt Zlr sct

t sd-ld trcks br ts drtr.

a ft trcks ldd wt 2 ts -qlt rc sd lvs iRRidqrtrs r Mls n aqitrtl arrt 31 Mrc 200rt t Kr.

Rice TodayJuly-September 2006 1

arielJavellana(2)


16/40


Tricks of thIn Asia, the question o whether or not to liberalize rice trade is a vexing one.

I liberalization is to occur at all, it needs to happen gradually and with an

understanding o how peopleespecially the poorwill be afected

by Gene Hettel


17/40


But all countries, says Dr. Dawe,including several rice exporters,complain about these problems.

Although some of these problemsare important, they do not explainwhy the Philippines imports rice.

But then what does explain it?In a word, it is geography. SaysDr. Dawe: The Philippines importsrice because it is a nation of islandswithout any major river deltas

like those in Thailand andVietnam. The major traditionalexportersThailand, Vietnam,

Cambodia, and Myanmarare allon the Southeast Asian mainland,while the countries that have beenconsistently importing rice formore than 100 yearsIndonesia,the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Japan,Korea, and Malaysiaare all islandsor narrow peninsulas. (SeeRiceimports come with the territory onpage 37 ofRice Today Vol. 3, No. 2.)

Although the presence or absenceof river deltas is the overridingfactor in explaining why some Asiancountries import rice and othersexport it, other reasons are also atwork. In the Philippines, geographyis again the culprit. Located off theeastern edge of the Asian continent,the Philippines bears the brunt ofnumerous typhoons, making riceproduction more difcult, risky,and often unpredictable. Thailandand the Mekong and Red Riverdeltas are much less affectedby such recurring disasters. In

addition, the Philippines rice sectorhas high labor costs that must bereducedwithout reducing wagesinorder to increase productivity.

So, what would happen if ricetrade were liberalized? Would it meanthat the Philippines might end upimporting even more rice? To lookat the consequences of such a policydecision in the Philippinesand othercountries for that matter PhilRiceand the International Rice Research

Trade

T

he smattering ofprovocative headlines(atleft), appearing

in recent issues ofvarious Philippine daily

newspapers, mirrors a basic issue onthe minds of many Filipinos: Whydoes the Philippines import rice, andwhy cant the country produce enoughof its staple food to feed its people?

Indeed, in a country wherehalf-full rice bins are a cause forgreat concern in a given household,having a sufcient rice supplyfor all Filipinos consumption isour governments priority, saysLeocadio Sebastian, executivedirector of the Philippine RiceResearch Institute (PhilRice).

To meet this moving target,the Philippines has needed to buyrice from other countries suchas Thailand, Vietnam, and eventhe United States for most of thepast 130 years. Rice is such anintegral part of history and culturein the Philippines that, for someFilipinos, this fact is a source of

national shame, says David Dawe,Bangkok-based economist for theFood and Agriculture Organization(FAO) of the United Nations.

Many reasons are typicallyput forth to explain the failure toachieve rice self-sufciencyfaultygovernment policy, corruption,conversion of rice land to otheruses, backward rice farmers,deteriorating irrigation systems, andlack of farm credit, among others. Jo

serayMondPanaliGan(2)


18/40


Institute (IRRI), with the supportof the Bureau of AgriculturalResearch (BAR) of the Departmentof Agriculture of the Philippines,conducted a 3-year study of the issuesinvolved. BARs support enabledthe research team of Dr. Dawe,who was then still stationed in thePhilippines as an IRRI economist,Piedad Moya, senior associatescientist in IRRIs Social SciencesDivision, and Cheryll Casiwan,economist with the SocioeconomicsDivision of PhilRice, to bring togetheragricultural experts from many otherPhilippine organizations, such as theBureau of Agricultural Statistics,the National Food Authority, andstate colleges and universities.

Trade liberalization, although aterm used widely today, is often notproperly understood. It does notnecessarily mean more imports for

all commodities in all situations,explains Ms. Moya. What it doesmean is that the price for a speciccommodity inside the country(the domestic price) becomes thesame as the price for that samecommodity outside the country (theworld price), after taking accountof the exchange rate and anynecessary transportation costs.

Generally speaking, for anycommodity that is tradable across

international borders, the domesticprice will naturally tend to equal theworld price unless the governmentintervenes with trade restrictions.If domestic prices are higher thanworld prices, private traders willtry to prot by importing fromabroad, buying low, and selling high.This process will continue untilthe additional supply of importslowers domestic prices and erasesthose prots. The reverse willhappen if world prices are higherthan domestic prices: privatetraders will prot by exporting.

For rice in the Philippines,only the government has the legalauthority to arrange imports.Because the government iscurrently limiting the quantity ofimports each year, says Ms. Moya,the law of supply and demandsuggests that domestic prices will

rise, and, in fact, they have.It is not widely known, even

in the Philippines, that Filipinofarmers receive much higher pricesfor theirpalay (rice at harvestbefore the husk is removed) than dofarmers in neighboring developingcountries. Further, farm pricesfor rice have increased during thepast 10 years much faster than forother key agricultural commoditiessuch as corn. Not surprisingly

then, the very high prices receivedby Filipino farmers translate intovery high rice prices paid by poorconsumers. The large gap betweenworld prices and domestic rice pricesnot only harms consumers, it alsocreates opportunities for corruptionthat would disappear if the pricedifferential were much smaller.

During the past few years, thePhilippines has imported about 10%of its consumption requirements.According to May 2006 pressreports, the projected rice importtotal for 2006 will amount to around1.4 million metric tons. Becausepalay and rice prices are higherin the Philippines than on worldmarkets (sometimes nearly doubleworld prices), the researchersanalyses show that rice tradeliberalization would most likelymean more rice imports than this.

Lower palay and rice pricesdue to increased imports would, ofcourse, hurt palay farmers, says Dr.Dawe, especially those with largesurpluses to sell. Many palay farmersare poor, but many are not, and mostof the benets of high prices accrueto the larger, better-off farmersbecause they have the most surplusto sell. However, there is no doubtthat some small, poor palay farmerswould be hurt by trade liberalization.

Rc s trrl rt l, str, d cltr t pls.


19/40


On the other hand, the researchsuggests that lower prices resultingfrom increased imports wouldbenet the many poor consumerswho spend more than 20% oftheir income on rice alone. Theseconsumers consist of shers, landlesslaborers, corn farmers, and theurban poorin fact, most poorpeople in the Philippines are notrice farmers, Dr. Dawe points out.

In a trade liberalization scenariothat results in more rice imports,Filipino farmers would need toeither become more competitivein rice production or explorealternative crops. One promisingway to improve competitiveness isthrough the use of hybrid rice, a newtechnology that could increase yieldsand prots in areas and seasons thatare suitable for its cultivation, saysMs. Casiwan. PhilRice is conducting

considerable hybrid rice researchthat will, we hope, provide farmerswith this additional option.

Progressive rice farmers can andare exploring growing other crops.The choice of alternative crops willvary from province to province andsome of these alternatives are evenmore protable than rice and wouldmake farmers wealthier, says Ms.Casiwan. But these crops are alsooften riskier to plant than rice, and

the government and private sectorwill need to work together to reducethe effects of this risk on farmers.(See Opportunities beyond growingrice on pages 2223, for a farmersperspective on the role of cropdiversication in the Philippines.)

Rice farmers who switch crops

will not lose their household ricesecurity. They can still choose toplant some rice if liberalizationoccurs, says Ms. Casiwan. Only asmall portion of their landabout0.15 hectare of double-cropped landfor a family of veis necessaryto feed their own family.

As the study found, tradeliberalization will have both positiveand negative effects. So, PhilRicesDr. Sebastian and IRRI DirectorGeneral Robert Zeigler urge that any

relaxation of government importrestrictions that does occur in aneffort, for example, to benet poorconsumers should be done gradually,not all at once. In the foreword to thebook that details the results of thisresearch, Why does the Philippinesimport rice?(see box at right), theywrite that Gradual changes makeit easier for all members of societyto adjust their lives to changedcircumstances. Any analyst with adose of humility must admit to beingless than perfect, and a gradualapproach to reform would allowan assessment of changes beforefull reform is implemented.

In thinking about the futureof rice policy in the Philippinesor any country for that matter, itis important to keep a balancedperspective, says Dr. Dawe. Riceis what many farmers grow, but itis also what nearly all consumerseat. In many cases, farmers have

more exibility to switch cropsthan consumersespecially pooronesdo to switch their staple food.

Although self-sufciency can be alaudable goal, it can cause great harmif it is pursued at all costs, withoutregard for the welfare of the poor.Self-sufciency pursued throughimprovements in productivityand competitiveness is much lesslikely to have negative side-effects,and is a target worth pursuing.

Emanating

rom a 3-

year joint

PhilRice-IRRI

study, this book

attempts to answer

the question on

the cover, and

then proceeds to

the even more

difcult issue o

what would happeni rice trade were

liberalized and

the Philippines began to import more rice.

Although written by experts on the rice

economy and some o the countrys young

economists, this book is intended or a

general lay audience. The reader need not be

amiliar with complex concepts and jargon

in economics or mathematics in order to

understand the arguments presented. All

that is necessary is an open mind and a

willingness to think careully.

The primary goal o this book is to be

educational. For example, the Philippines

imports rice because it is an island nation;Filipino armers receive high rice prices; arm

laborers, not rice armers, do the bulk o the

work producing the nations rice; and most

o the poorest people in the Philippines are

not rice armers. I readers retain just some

o these acts about the rice sector in the

Philippines, and discuss them with riends

and colleagues, then the publication will have

been successul.

For more inormation about purchasing

this book, access IRRIs online publications

catalog at www.irri.org.

Why Does the PhilippinesImport Rice? Meetingthe challenge of tradeliberalizationa book edted by Dvd C. Dwe, pedd F.Moy, nd Cheryll B. Cswn nd ublshedby iRRi nd phlRce.

Indeed, in one recent story in thePhilippine press, National FoodAuthority Administrator GregorioTan Jr. is quoted as saying, If wecan be self-sufcient in a competitivemanner, then well and good.

It is important that policymakersreach decisions with as much

information as possible. ThePhilRice-IRRI research teamhas endeavored to provide thatinformation so that decisions canbe made to help the millions ofFilipinos living in povertyriceproducers and consumers alike.

PHotoGraPHy by ariel Javellana, Gene Hettel, and Jose rayMond PanaliGan


20/40

20 Rice TodayJuly-September 2006Rice TodayJuly-September 2006, Vol. 5, No. 3


21/40

21Rice TodayJuly-September 2006A different kind of rice la ndscapehills and valleys of sacks waiting to be unloaded from a ship docked at Manila, Philippin


22/40


If rice trade liberalization wereto occur and result in more riceimports, one potentially viableoption for rice farmers would

be to plant alternative crops. Soils,climate, and the degree of economicdevelopment vary throughout thedifferent provinces of the Philippines.Because of these differences, riceproduction systems are different,and so are the alternative crops that

could be grown if trade liberalizationmade rice less protable for farmers.Here, Florentino M. Santiago, aprogressive Filipino farmer fromCentral Luzon in the Philippines,offers his thoughts on diversication.

Growing up on a farm, Santiago,Jr., 36, has always known thelanguage of agriculture. As a youngboy, he watched his father toil onthe farm so he could send him andhis eight siblings to school. Theonly child who studied agriculturein school, Santiago now works as

a PhilRice farmer-consultant. TheTalavera, Nueva Ecija, native iscommitted to proving that thereis indeed money in farming.

Santiagos ambition has alwaysbeen to become a professionalfarmer and a role model to thefarming community. He felt a need toinuence traditional farmers when herealized their dire need for moderntechnologies. He practices land-use

planning and uses every space on hisfarm to obtain higher income. Sinceincome from rice is not enough tomeet the basic needs of his family,he intercrops gabi(taro), vegetables,and mango trees on his 3.25-hectarefarm and has also ventured into shculture. To minimize his expenseson chemical fertilizers, he usesindigenous materials available on thefarmanimal waste, rice straw, andother organic materials. He attendstraining and seminars conductedby different government and

nongovernment agencies to augmenthis practical experience in farming.

The rice yield on his farmnormally reaches 5.8 tons perhectare. Planting only rice willgive him an annual gross incomeof about 150,000 Philippine pesos(US$2,900). With 300 mango treesplanted along the dikes around hisrice farm, he is earning an additionalincome of $1,750 per year. Annual

prot from gabi is higher at $2,900.Fish harvests give him an extra$580, while his vegetable produceadds $390 to his household income.Thus, adopting an integrated farmingsystem by devoting 2.25 hectares forrice cultivation and allocating smallportions of his land to sh and othercrops more than doubled his annualgross income to at least $6,600.

Diversifying his farm increasedhis family income and reduced therisk in relying solely on rice farming.Moreover, diversication benetsthe environment as it helps improvesoil conditions and forces farmers toreduce their chemical applications onthe farm. However, Diversicationdoes not mean abandoning rice, hesays cautiously, but simply usingprudent land-use planning.

For rice farmers, Santiagosees diversication as one safetynet for rice trade liberalization.Unfortunately, our farmers

have not been prepared wellfor this possibility, he says. Isee capital, or lack of it, as onedeterrent to diversication formost farmers. Usually, it is simplybecause they are not aware ofwhere to get additional money orthey are afraid to take risks.

In Nueva Ecija, where a distinctdry season exists, pumpswhichmay cost a farmer at least $680areneeded to irrigate farms after the

Opportunities beyond growing

ricea farmers perspective

Florentino M. Santiago dssm h c cps hsm C luz, Phpps,d (top opposite) ds hs ps.

PhilRice(2)


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Rice Today:What effects can trade

reforms have on reducing poverty?

Dr. Dawe:The effects of trade reforms on poverty and

food security are complex and will vary depending on

social structure (e.g., the proportion of landlessness

in the rural population, inequality of land ownership),

infrastructure, the specic commodity involved (e.g.,

whether it is preferentially consumed by the poor or well-

to-do, whether it is being imported or exported in any

particular country), and many other factors. This complexity

means that analyses of specic countries and commodities

are highly valuable, although some generic lessons can be

gleaned from the studies described in Trade liberalization,

poverty and food security, a part of the new publicationfrom the FAO Regional Ofce for Asia and the Pacic, The

State of Food and Agriculture in Asia and the Pacic.

Rice Today:If any country decided to import more

rice, in part, to beneft poor consumers, can todays

world market be trusted to provide those supplies?

Dr. Dawe: In the mid-1970s, the answer was uncertain. Today,

however, the world rice market has fundamentally changed.

World rice production is more stable because of more irrigation

and high-yielding varieties with pest and disease resistance.

wet season. Restructuring of landto suit other crops also seems tobe a stumbling block for farmers.Santiago quickly points out, however,that municipal government ofceshave heavy equipment that can be

rented at a minimal fee to restructurelots. Farmers also need to investsome time to learn about the cropssuited for cultivation consideringthe soil type and climate. Becausehis farm soil is mostly heavy clay,Santiago is mindful that he cannotplant onion, so he opted for othervegetables such as sitao (cowpea),talong (eggplant), and gabi. Anotherimportant issue is the high laborrequirement for planting vegetablescompared with planting rice alone.

In cases in which farmers donot diversify, Santiago assertsthat farmers are either indolent orignorant. He stresses the importance

of farmers initiative in increasingtheir household income throughdiversication. I rmly believethat farmers themselves shouldmake the rst move in obtainingtheir inputs and capital needs and

not depend on the government tosupply them with those needs, hesays. The role of the governmentand the extension service shouldbe in making sure technologies andopportunities reach farmers.

His competence as a skilledfarmer manager was rst recognizedin 1998. From then on, Santiago hasconsistently been honored as oneof the outstanding rice farmers inCentral Luzon. Although focused onfarming, he is active in community

affairs and development, servingas chairman of a cooperative andof an agrarian reform council inhis barangay (district). He still

dreams of expanding his farmbecause he sees opportunities infarming that would eventually

make him a peso millionaire.

Adapted from Chapter 16 ofWhy Does

the Philippines Import Rice?

Trade liberalization:an agricultural economists perspective

Rice Today recently discussed the issue of rice trade liberalization with David

Dawe, Bangkok-based economist for the Food and Agriculture Organization of

the United Nations and former International Rice Research Institute economist.


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In addition, more exporting countries are commercially

orientedthe health of their own domestic rice economies

depends on being reliable suppliers to the world market. As

proof, the world market has successfully weathered two recent

events that did not turn into crisesthe massive El Nio of 1998

and Chinas rice imports in 2004 and 2005. Today, although

price uctuations still occur on the world market, rice prices

are more stable than ever before, and they are more stable

than world prices for other cereal grains. So, the world rice

market can be trusted once again, just as it could in the 1950s.

Rice Today:What about price stability

when opening to external markets?

Dr. Dawe: Trade can play an important role in ensuring

price stability, as in the case of Bangladesh during the ood

of the century in 1998 that caused a drop in rice production.

The government eliminated tariffs on rice imports during

the crisis and the increased supplies brought in from India

by private traders kept domestic prices stable. In addition

to trade, government storage also has a role to play in

ensuring price stability, but the costs of food reserves are

often much higher than the benets. Tariffs that vary in

response to changing world prices and domestic harvests

(either according to a predetermined schedule or on an

ad hoc basis) may be a more cost-effective mechanism forstabilizing domestic prices. This is a more feasible option

today than it was in the 1970s, because of the increased

stability in the world rice market mentioned earlier. Such

tariffs should be imposed only for key commodities, conned

to a low level, and used to moderate price uctuations,

not provide protection for an extended length of time.

Rice Today:What is your take on rice

exporters trying to form an organization of

rice-exporting countries that would lead to

a cartel of rice exporters just like in oil?

Dr. Dawe: First of all, rice is very different from oil inthat

production comes from millions of small farmers acting

independently, as opposed to a few oil wells controlled by a

government planner. This makes it difcult to control surplus

production if a cartel is successful in raising prices. Second,

rice is a perishable commodity, unlike oil. Thus, when surpluses

accumulate, and governments try to keep prices high by

holding these surpluses off the market, they will suffer large

nancial losses as the rice deteriorates in storage. Third, rice

exporters have been trying to form this cartel for many years

without success, as the interests of the exporters are very

diverse. While some countries may try to increase world prices

on their own by holding back their rice stocks, other nations

are happy to provide more opportunities for their farmers to

export at any time. In other words, enforcement is a problem,

as with all cartels. Fourth, oil prices are high today because

of recent increases in demand and the prospects of further

increases in demand from India and China, as well as political

instability in the Middle East. In contrast, rice demand is

increasing relatively slowly as wealthy and middle-class Asian

consumers diversify their diets away from staple foods in favor

of meats, dairy products, vegetable oils, and fruits. Because

of all these factors, it will be difcult for a rice exporters

cartel to increase prices by more than a small amount.

For more information on this topic, see Trade

liberalization, poverty and food security in the new

publication from the FAO Regional Ofce for Asia and the

Pacic, The State of Food and Agriculture in Asia and the

Pacic. The publication can be obtained online at

www.fao.org/world/regional/rap/publication.asp

or by sending an email to [email protected].

ARielJAvellAnA(2)


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Rice and agricultureare still fundamentalto the economicdevelopment of most

Asian nations, not to mentiontheir cultural and socialidentities. The rice industryhas been a foundation of theAsian way of life for generations.In much of Asia, rice plays acentral role in politics, society,and culture, and directlyor indirectly employs morepeople than any other sector.

A healthy rice industry,especially in Asias poorercountries, is crucial to thelivelihoods of rice producersand consumers alike.Farmers need to achieve goodyields without harming theenvironment so that they

can make a good living whileproviding the rice-eating publicwith a high-quality, affordablestaple. Underpinning this, a strongrice research sector can help reducecosts, improve production, andensure environmental sustainability.Indeed, rice research has been akey to productivity and livelihoodgains over the last four decades.

But, in recent years, one majorproblem has emerged that threatens

to halt this progress: the youngpeople of Asia dont want to workin the industry. And they havesupportmany existing rice farmers,having experienced for themselvesthe unforgiving life that often denesfarming for a living, are encouragingtheir children to leave the land forcareers in burgeoning urban andindustrial sectors. Even fewer youngAsians are choosing careers in

rice science, despite its vitalimportance to the region.

However, an innovativeproject launched in Aprilin Thailand and thePhilippines marks the startof a major new effort toencourage young Asians toconsider a future in rice.

Its a sad fact of life inmodern Asia that many youngpeople in the region dont thinkof rice as offering an excitingor promising career, so theyfocus on other industries andother careers, says RobertZeigler, director generalof the International RiceResearch Institute (IRRI).

On 2428 April 2006,IRRI, together with theThai Rice Foundation

under Royal Patronage andPhilippine Rice Research

Institute (PhilRice), hosted 19 highschool students, aged 1618, fromThailand and the Philippines ata rice camp, designed to boosttheir interest in rice and science.

The nine Filipinos and tenThaisall from rice-farmingfamilies, they were selected becauseof their interest in, or knowledgeof, ricespent 5 days at IRRIs

A rice fre

for AsiaThai and Filipino high school students come together to help ensure the rice industrysfuture in Asia, sparking new friendshipsand friendly rivalriesalong the way

JoseRAymondPAnAligAn


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Philippine headquarters learningabout the latest rice research and,

more importantly, how rice researchcan provide a brighter future forrice production and, consequently,peoples livelihoods in Asia.

Dr. Zeigler emphasizes that, if therice industry is to continue to developin Asia, the rice industry must attractthe regions best and brightest youngpeople. We want them to understandthat rice research is not some sleepylittle scientic backwater, but is,in fact, right on the cutting edge of

international scientic activity, hesays. The recent sequencing of the

rice genome attracted enormousinternational attention, especiallyamong the scientic community,yet most young Asians still dontknow it even happened, let aloneunderstand its implications forthe food they eat each day.

During their 5 days at IRRI, thestudents, who were accompanied bytheir teachers, tried their hand atseveral laboratory techniques such asextracting DNA from a rice plant and

inserting a gene into the rice genome.It wasnt all air-conditioned labs,

thoughthey also had the chanceto get their hands dirty, preparinga eld for rice transplanting.

One of the camps biggestsuccesses was the camaraderie thatblossomed among the students.Despite sharing little language, theyoung Thais and Filipinos struck upfriendships that look set to last wellbeyond the 5-day camp. IRRI hascreated a Web site where the studentscan communicate and post photos.

hs phs shw h Fp d th suds j cvs hm cd c h c cmp.


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According to IRRI SpokespersonDuncan Macintosh, the chance to mix

with people from different culturesalso provided some comic moments.

At dinner one night, recountsMacintosh, one of the Filipino boysboldly challenged one of the Thaiboys to a chili-eating competition.After gulping down three chilies inthe time it took the Thai lad to eatone, the Filipino proclaimed victoryprematurely, as it turned out. Withina minute or so, the Filipino hadturned red and tears were streaming

down his face as he guzzled water.Meanwhile, the Thai student calmly

ate his second, then third, thenfourth, then fth chili. The rest ofthe students were in stitches.

Macintosh added that theFilipinos got their revenge later,when they challenged the Thaisto eat Filipino balut. While theFilipinos savored the delicacy,the Thais gagged and splutteredon the fertilized duck egg with anearly-developed embryo inside.

Kwanchai Gomez, executive

director of the Thai Rice Foundation,expressed hope that the students

returned home with a new senseof excitement about rice and itspotential both in science and inthe future development of Asia.

Rice has played a vital role inThailands economic development,not to mention its history andculture, says Dr. Gomez. Thechallenge is to try to translate thisinto a sense of excitement andinterest amongst young peoplein Thailand and all over Asia.

the fuure orice in asi

The ollowing students participa

in the rice camp at IRRI:

thilnd

Supawan Fukkearw

Suwassa Semsil

Boontawee Kuhana

Leenlada Monpo

Narumol Nookong

Sasiwimon Saengaawang

Santad Klaithin

Weerasak Megwee

Preeda Lunlee

Anon Chaiyasatr

Philippines

Faye Victoria Casimero

Joana Joyce Gadiano

Evelita Cara

Pamela Cunanan

Jenier Pascual

Romarc Corpuz

Mc Christian Julius Macarana

Michael John Albert Malig

Carlos Miguel Jr.

PhotogRAPhy by Jose RAymond PAnAligAn, lAuRo AtienzA, And chRisAnto quintAnA


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G

rowing up on his fathersalmond and poultryfarm in Australia, NoelMagor knew from early

childhood that he would pursue acareer in agriculture. His father,one of 10 children, had grown up onthe modest 3-hectare farm that hisgrandfather had struggled to keep.Yet, with the conviction that fair playand hard work lead to success, Noelsfather succeeded in expanding thefamily farm to 12 hectares. WhatDr. Magor remembers most clearly

today is how his father repeatedlywon competitions with his chickensand produced beautiful almondsusing green manure and irrigation.

What young Noel probably didnot realize in his early childhoodwas that other inuences wouldset him on a particular career pathleading to distant lands. From hissecondary school days, he felt anawareness of social issues brewingwithin him. John Steinbecks novel

The Grapes of Wrath profoundlyaffected his thinking. Reading atthe age of 16 about indebted farmersin the American Midwest losingtheir land, and of the hardshipssuffered by migrant farm laborers,sparked in him an interest insocial justicean interest thatlater became a commitment.

Proof of that commitmentbegan in 1974. Upon completing abachelors degree in agriculturalscience at Adelaide University, Noelset off to Wollo Province in northern

Ethiopia, where a devastatingfamine had struck the year before.As a volunteer, he assessed howthe famine affected village familiesand sought ways to rehabilitatethe mos

Rice Today Volume 5 number 3

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