Rice exports to Thailand plummeted in the first four months of the year as a result of that country’s surplus, which reached record levels at the end of 2013.
Between January and April, Cambodia exported just 1,550 tonnes of rice to Thailand, down 89 per cent from the 14,250 tonnes shipped in the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture’s monthly reports.
Hun Lak, president of rice export firm Mekong Oryza Trade, said the decline was due to Thailand’s rice stockpiles, which were accumulated under a state purchasing program launched in 2011 and scrapped at the end of last year.
Thailand accumulated rice stockpiles of reportedly more than 12.8 million tonnes at the end of 2013, equal to about a third of the global export market.
“The overstock of rice in Thailand reduced the demand from Thai traders for Cambodian rice,” Lak said.
“Also, rice prices in Thailand are declining as a result, meaning buyers simply cannot make a profit by importing Cambodian rice,” he added.
Thai rice prices sunk from $1,100 per tonne to $950 per tonne in February as the state-run rice pledging scheme came to an end and the Thai government began selling off its stockpiles. Consequently, Cambodian exporters reduced their prices from $950 to $880 per tonne to compete.
Lim Bunheng, president of Loran Company, said Cambodian farmers depend on Thailand and Vietnam for exports largely due to a lack of local facilities to polish and clean rice – the final stage before the product is fit for international standards.
“I hope the situation will get better after June – when more of Thailand’s stockpiled rice is sold off – because it is having an impact on our industry now both in terms export volume and price,” he said.
Sok Puthyvuth, president of the Cambodia Rice Federation, called on rice exporters to seek other markets rather than “sitting and waiting” for the situation to get better.
“We should take this chance to start to diversify markets to potential countries like China, Indonesia as well as countries in the EU for our rice while waiting for Thailand to settle things,” he said.
Thailand imported 23,550 tonnes of Cambodian rice in 2013, making it the Kingdom’s sixth largest destination for rice exports.
Showing posts with label cambodia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cambodia. Show all posts
Thursday, 29 May 2014
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
Cambodia Rice prices continue to fall
As buyers swoop in to purchase Thai rice at garage-sale prices, Cambodian exporters are dealing with lower than usual rates, and the results are being felt all the way down the supply chain to the farmers themselves.
New figures from rice industry publication Oryza show that the cost for Cambodia’s jasmine rice has declined sharply in recent months, in tandem with falling prices in Thailand brought on by that country’s failed rice-pledging scheme.
“This is a concern for everyone in the rice industry now,” said Khan Kunthy, CEO of Battambang Rice Investment Company, adding that sales have also dropped.
Kunthy said that export volume for the first few months of this year was largely based on orders from 2013.
“There is no good sign of orders for this new year yet,” he said.
In 2011, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra vowed to pay farmers above market rates for their rice.
But stockpiles have accumulated to record levels, flooding the global market with new quantities of supply and driving down prices.
Thai officials estimate that there are 15 to 18 million tons of stockpiled rice. Oryza reported that the Thai government planned to offload at least one million tons per month from January to March.
Thai hom mali rice is now at $955 per ton, a decline of 17 per cent compared to the price in December last year, when it stood at $1,163.
The latest figures from Oryza show that, at the end of February, Cambodia’s jasmine rice cost $885 per ton, a 7 per cent decrease from $950 per ton in December.
“We have no other choice besides lowering our rice price, even if we have to put up with the loss if prices went even lower than they are now, or no one will buy from us,” Kunthy, of Battambang Rice Investment Company, said.
Kunthy, who runs a newly established rice milling operation, is also under pressure to repay the bank for a loan he took out to help set up the mill.
Lim Bun Heng, owner of Loran Company, one of the country’s largest rice exporters, said declines in Cambodia’s jasmine variety will squeeze margins for all involved.
“Cheaper prices of milled rice also mean cheaper prices of paddy rice that the miller will buy from farmers too,” Bun Heng said, adding that “we cannot buy expensive paddy rice and sell it at a lower price”.
Export volumes are also decreasing as buyers look for cheap stockpiled product. Bun Heng said his company experienced a 30 per cent decrease in exports over the first two months of this year.
“The Thais are selling their rice very cheap, so the buyers are switching to Thailand,” he said.
Last year was a time of enormous gains for the rice industry, as export volumes doubled. But the rice scheme has upended the global market, setting back not just Thailand, which used to be the world’s largest exporter, but its neighbours, too.
In January of 2012, Cambodia exported 9,700 tons of rice. Exports for the same period in 2013 jumped to 25,700 tons. But in January, the pace slackened, with only 21,500 tons sent out of the country.
Exporters and rice millers should keep their fragrant rice paddy and wait until the supply in the global market declines, advised Srey Chanty, an independent economist who focuses on agriculture issues.
“I think in the next three or four months, the fragrant rice price will bounce back to normal,” he said.
New figures from rice industry publication Oryza show that the cost for Cambodia’s jasmine rice has declined sharply in recent months, in tandem with falling prices in Thailand brought on by that country’s failed rice-pledging scheme.
“This is a concern for everyone in the rice industry now,” said Khan Kunthy, CEO of Battambang Rice Investment Company, adding that sales have also dropped.
Kunthy said that export volume for the first few months of this year was largely based on orders from 2013.
“There is no good sign of orders for this new year yet,” he said.
In 2011, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra vowed to pay farmers above market rates for their rice.
But stockpiles have accumulated to record levels, flooding the global market with new quantities of supply and driving down prices.
Thai officials estimate that there are 15 to 18 million tons of stockpiled rice. Oryza reported that the Thai government planned to offload at least one million tons per month from January to March.
Thai hom mali rice is now at $955 per ton, a decline of 17 per cent compared to the price in December last year, when it stood at $1,163.
The latest figures from Oryza show that, at the end of February, Cambodia’s jasmine rice cost $885 per ton, a 7 per cent decrease from $950 per ton in December.
“We have no other choice besides lowering our rice price, even if we have to put up with the loss if prices went even lower than they are now, or no one will buy from us,” Kunthy, of Battambang Rice Investment Company, said.
Kunthy, who runs a newly established rice milling operation, is also under pressure to repay the bank for a loan he took out to help set up the mill.
Lim Bun Heng, owner of Loran Company, one of the country’s largest rice exporters, said declines in Cambodia’s jasmine variety will squeeze margins for all involved.
“Cheaper prices of milled rice also mean cheaper prices of paddy rice that the miller will buy from farmers too,” Bun Heng said, adding that “we cannot buy expensive paddy rice and sell it at a lower price”.
Export volumes are also decreasing as buyers look for cheap stockpiled product. Bun Heng said his company experienced a 30 per cent decrease in exports over the first two months of this year.
“The Thais are selling their rice very cheap, so the buyers are switching to Thailand,” he said.
Last year was a time of enormous gains for the rice industry, as export volumes doubled. But the rice scheme has upended the global market, setting back not just Thailand, which used to be the world’s largest exporter, but its neighbours, too.
In January of 2012, Cambodia exported 9,700 tons of rice. Exports for the same period in 2013 jumped to 25,700 tons. But in January, the pace slackened, with only 21,500 tons sent out of the country.
Exporters and rice millers should keep their fragrant rice paddy and wait until the supply in the global market declines, advised Srey Chanty, an independent economist who focuses on agriculture issues.
“I think in the next three or four months, the fragrant rice price will bounce back to normal,” he said.
Cambodian rice trade hit by Thai sales
Thailand's rice sales are quickly pushing down world prices, affecting Cambodia's industry and farmers, according to a report.
New figures from rice industry publication Oryza show the price for Cambodia's jasmine rice has declined sharply in recent months, in line with falling prices in Thailand brought on by the failed rice-pledging scheme.
"This is a concern for everyone in the rice industry now," Khan Kunthy, CEO of Battambang Rice Investment Company, told the Phnom Penh Post, adding sales have also dropped.
Mr Kunthy said export volume for the first few months of this year was largely based on orders from 2013. “There is no good sign of orders for this new year yet,” he said.
But stockpiles have accumulated to record levels, flooding the global market with new quantities of supply and driving down prices.
Thai officials estimate there are 15 to 18 million tonnes of stockpiled rice. Oryza reported that the Thai government planned to offload at least one million tonnes per month from January to March.
Thai hom mali rice is now at $955 a tonne, a decline of 17% compared to the price in December last year, when it stood at $1,163.
The latest figures from Oryza show that, at the end of February, Cambodia’s jasmine rice cost $885 per tonne, a 7% decrease from $950 in December.
“We have no other choice besides lowering our rice price, even if we have to put up with the loss if prices went even lower than they are now, or no one will buy from us,” Mr Kunthy of Battambang Rice Investment Company said.
Mr Kunthy, who runs a newly established rice milling operation, is also under pressure to repay the bank for a loan he took out to help set up the mill.
Lim Bun Heng, owner of Loran Company, one of the country’s largest rice exporters, said declines in Cambodia’s jasmine variety will squeeze margins for all involved.
"Cheaper prices of milled rice also mean cheaper prices of paddy rice that the miller will buy from farmers too," Bun Heng said, adding that “we cannot buy expensive paddy rice and sell it at a lower price".
Export volumes are also decreasing as buyers look for cheap stockpiled product. Bun Heng said his company experienced a 30% in exports over the first two months of this year.
"The Thais are selling their rice very cheap, so the buyers are switching to Thailand," he said.
Last year was a time of enormous gains for the rice industry, as export volumes doubled. But the rice scheme has upended the global market, setting back not just Thailand, which used to be the world’s largest exporter, but its neighbours, too.
In January of 2012, Cambodia exported 9,700 tonnes of rice. Exports for the same period in 2013 jumped to 25,700 tonnes. But this January, the pace slackened, with only 21,500 tonnes sent out of the country.
Exporters and rice millers should keep their fragrant rice paddy and wait until the supply in the global market declines, advised Srey Chanty, an independent economist who focuses on agriculture issues.
“I think in the next three or four months, the fragrant rice price will bounce back to normal,” he said.
New figures from rice industry publication Oryza show the price for Cambodia's jasmine rice has declined sharply in recent months, in line with falling prices in Thailand brought on by the failed rice-pledging scheme.
"This is a concern for everyone in the rice industry now," Khan Kunthy, CEO of Battambang Rice Investment Company, told the Phnom Penh Post, adding sales have also dropped.
Mr Kunthy said export volume for the first few months of this year was largely based on orders from 2013. “There is no good sign of orders for this new year yet,” he said.
But stockpiles have accumulated to record levels, flooding the global market with new quantities of supply and driving down prices.
Thai officials estimate there are 15 to 18 million tonnes of stockpiled rice. Oryza reported that the Thai government planned to offload at least one million tonnes per month from January to March.
Thai hom mali rice is now at $955 a tonne, a decline of 17% compared to the price in December last year, when it stood at $1,163.
The latest figures from Oryza show that, at the end of February, Cambodia’s jasmine rice cost $885 per tonne, a 7% decrease from $950 in December.
“We have no other choice besides lowering our rice price, even if we have to put up with the loss if prices went even lower than they are now, or no one will buy from us,” Mr Kunthy of Battambang Rice Investment Company said.
Mr Kunthy, who runs a newly established rice milling operation, is also under pressure to repay the bank for a loan he took out to help set up the mill.
Lim Bun Heng, owner of Loran Company, one of the country’s largest rice exporters, said declines in Cambodia’s jasmine variety will squeeze margins for all involved.
"Cheaper prices of milled rice also mean cheaper prices of paddy rice that the miller will buy from farmers too," Bun Heng said, adding that “we cannot buy expensive paddy rice and sell it at a lower price".
Export volumes are also decreasing as buyers look for cheap stockpiled product. Bun Heng said his company experienced a 30% in exports over the first two months of this year.
"The Thais are selling their rice very cheap, so the buyers are switching to Thailand," he said.
Last year was a time of enormous gains for the rice industry, as export volumes doubled. But the rice scheme has upended the global market, setting back not just Thailand, which used to be the world’s largest exporter, but its neighbours, too.
In January of 2012, Cambodia exported 9,700 tonnes of rice. Exports for the same period in 2013 jumped to 25,700 tonnes. But this January, the pace slackened, with only 21,500 tonnes sent out of the country.
Exporters and rice millers should keep their fragrant rice paddy and wait until the supply in the global market declines, advised Srey Chanty, an independent economist who focuses on agriculture issues.
“I think in the next three or four months, the fragrant rice price will bounce back to normal,” he said.
Sunday, 3 June 2012
Cambodia to ship rice to China
Local rice miller Mega Green said it planned to export about 240 tons of milled rice to the Chinese market by the end of June – a second round of test exports to Cambodia’s northern neighbour.
Renne Outh, owner of Mega Green Imex Cambodia, told the Post yesterday that he signed an agreement with a Chinese company in Shanghai during a business trip there last week.
“I already signed an export agreement with a Chinese company’s Shanghai office. Now, we are working on some paperwork with [the Chinese inspection bureau] to approve us on the certification of the quality of the export to them,” he said.
The shipment would be Mega Green’s first trial to China, and would consists of just 10 containers – a container holds 24 tons of milled rice, said Outh Renne. “We will start to export them by the end of June – it is just a test export, because they want us to eventually export 200 containers per month.”
“Now we are milling our paddy and preparing packaging for them,” he added.
The Post reported last week that China approved local rice miller Golden Rice to export milled rice to China. A trial run the company sent to China earlier this year was refused by the Chinese government upon arrival in the southern port of Shenzhen.
Chan Tong Yves, secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the ministry also has a quality testing laboratory, but it does not comply with the standards for exporting milled rice.
“Now, if we want to export to them [China], we have to get their service on testing and inspect the quality of our products,” he said. “What is important is that we need to get ratified by the Chinese side. If they accept and buy our milled rice, it sounds great.”
Cham Prasidh, Cambodia’s Minister of Commerce, told the Post on Tuesday that China offered $1 million to Cambodia to upgrade its testing laboratory so it complies with Chinese standards.
“We have agreed with China for a long time on the export of milled rice with no duty, but the barrier for us is the quality standards issue,” he said.
Outh Renne said that for the Chinese market, Cambodia can sell medium-grain sized rice at $510 per ton and long-grain at $425 per ton – but the Chinese market prefers medium sized, which differs from the European market, which prefers long-grain rice.
Renne Outh, owner of Mega Green Imex Cambodia, told the Post yesterday that he signed an agreement with a Chinese company in Shanghai during a business trip there last week.
“I already signed an export agreement with a Chinese company’s Shanghai office. Now, we are working on some paperwork with [the Chinese inspection bureau] to approve us on the certification of the quality of the export to them,” he said.
The shipment would be Mega Green’s first trial to China, and would consists of just 10 containers – a container holds 24 tons of milled rice, said Outh Renne. “We will start to export them by the end of June – it is just a test export, because they want us to eventually export 200 containers per month.”
“Now we are milling our paddy and preparing packaging for them,” he added.
The Post reported last week that China approved local rice miller Golden Rice to export milled rice to China. A trial run the company sent to China earlier this year was refused by the Chinese government upon arrival in the southern port of Shenzhen.
Chan Tong Yves, secretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, said the ministry also has a quality testing laboratory, but it does not comply with the standards for exporting milled rice.
“Now, if we want to export to them [China], we have to get their service on testing and inspect the quality of our products,” he said. “What is important is that we need to get ratified by the Chinese side. If they accept and buy our milled rice, it sounds great.”
Cham Prasidh, Cambodia’s Minister of Commerce, told the Post on Tuesday that China offered $1 million to Cambodia to upgrade its testing laboratory so it complies with Chinese standards.
“We have agreed with China for a long time on the export of milled rice with no duty, but the barrier for us is the quality standards issue,” he said.
Outh Renne said that for the Chinese market, Cambodia can sell medium-grain sized rice at $510 per ton and long-grain at $425 per ton – but the Chinese market prefers medium sized, which differs from the European market, which prefers long-grain rice.
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
Vietnam-Cambodia cooperate in rice marketing
The Cambodian Takmoa Agriculture and Industrial Development and the Vietnamese Thai Thinh Company have signed a US$22.4 million contract to plant 20,000ha of rice for export.
The Thai Thinh Company will provide assistance and support for rice cultivation and processing for two Cambodian provinces, Kompong Cham and Kompong Svay.
The two sides will develop a water drainage system in the area and build a rice processing factory capable of producing 500 tonnes of rice a day in January, 2011.
Lim Kimkhun, Chairman of Cambodian Takmoa Agriculture and Industrial Development said that both sides will cooperate to produce 2 harvests a year with an average yield of 7 tonnes per ha and a target to export 200,000 tonnes of rice by 2012.
The contract will also generate works for nearly 280,000 Cambodian farmers.
Monday, 6 September 2010
Heat wave to cut Cambodia rice harvest : FAO
Extreme heat due to lack of rains in the recent past threatens to cut rice harvest in Cambodia to levels unseen since 2006, FAO said.
According to United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, production of rice is likely to fall 22 percent to 5.9 million unmilled tonnes this year compared with 7.8 million tonnes of paddy farmed in 2009.
In a report the FAO said prospects for the season have been marred by drought conditions, which have been affecting the greater Mekong sub-region since late last year.
Cambodian Centre for Study and Development in Agriculture enterprise said drought conditions were affecting only some parts of the country.
The important thing is that farmers choose to grow rice from good seedlings and ensure proper use of fertiliser, it added.
Cambodia’s department of Meteorology said late rains could reverse the drought.
“We expect rain levels to be close to last year from the middle to the end of the rainy season, and rain will still fall until November,” it said in a forecast.
Cambodia planning to sell rice to Philippines
Cambodia will send an informal trade delegation to the Philippines next month to secure deals for rice exports.
The world’s biggest importer has announced that its rice production dropped more than 10 percent in the first six months compared with last year. Sun Kunthor, vice chairman of the Supreme National Economic Council, said the Cambodian delegation would seek to leverage the Philippines’ growing demand for the staple crop.
“We will go to the Philippines soon, and we hope the Philippines will buy rice from Cambodia because the country’s rice demand is big,” he said. Sun Kunthor was among those involved in drafting the Kingdom’s new policies aimed at boosting rice production and exports.
Philippine production of the food staple has fallen 10.2 percent in the first half of the year, compared with a year earlier, Manila announced Tuesday.
Officials from the archipelago said dry weather caused by El Niño resulted in parched crops, and may require imports to make up for the fall in production.
The Philippines is considering plans to boost imports, which have already hit a record 2.47 million metric tonnes this year.
A formal decision would be made by Friday next week, said Philippines Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala.
Production is expected to decrease further. Bureau of Agricultural Statistics Director Romeo Recide said Tuesday that output may fall another 25.6 percent in the third quarter, a dramatic increase from the 3.7 percent slump forecast in May.
However, he said that production could rebound by 30.3 percent in the last three months of the year.
Prime Minister Hun Sen highlighted Cambodia’s plan to increasingly tap the Philippine market when he unveiled the Kingdom’s new rice policy earlier this week.
Government advisor in charge of trade promotion Sok Siphana will lead a delegation to the Philippines for “informal negotiations”, with the intent to later enter into formal discussion over shipments, he said Tuesday.
“The government is adopting policies to turn to overseas markets in order to boost rice exports because in the future, rice exports may become a key sector for the leapfrogging of Cambodia’s economic growth,” Hun Sen said Tuesday.
A source close to the prime minister, who asked not to be named, said the plan included a trade delegation expected to visit the Philippines next month.
The prime minister said informal exploration of the Philippine rice market was necessary to better understand its needs.
“We want to know what kind of rice the markets need so that we are able to provide them supply which meets their requirements,” he said.
Last month, Philippine agribusiness investment officer Pablito Villegas who took part in his country’s first trade mission to Cambodia in July, told Philippine news outlet GMA News TV that domestic buyers were looking to purchase between 200,000 and 300,000 tonnes of Cambodian rice.
According to the Kingdom’s new rice policy, the government is seeking to export at least 1 million tonnes of rice to international markets by 2015.
The news also comes as rice exports from Pakistan, the world’s third-largest exporter, are expected to fall after extensive floods damaged crops in areas accounting for 90 percent of agricultural output.
Pakistan was expected to export 3.8 million tonnes of rice this year, more than 10 percent of the estimated global shipments of 30.4 million tonnes, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation, which made the forecast in July, before the flooding.
Sok Siphana could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
Baitang in rice export deal with Italian firm
BAITANG Kampuchea Plc has signed an agreement to sell 562 tonnes of rice worth nearly US$500,000 to Italy-based PHAM Distribution SAL.
“Under this agreement, we hope that the company will gain more experience in supplying rice to foreign partners,” Ny Lyheng, deputy director general of Baitang Kampuchea, told the Post Monday.
According to the agreement, signed by senior representatives on both sides Friday, Baitang Kampuchea will start supplying rice in mid-April at $880 per tonne.
Un Buntha, deputy director general of the Domestic Trade Department, said Monday that domestic companies have been selling rice at scales too small for the international market, though that may be changing.
“I think that these Cambodian companies will be able to export tens of thousands of tonnes of rice from next year because they have been preparing production lines for many years in an attempt to support large-scale export,” he said.
Ny Lyheng said his company can only export a small amount because Cambodian rice isn’t well-known internationally.
“We hope that the company will be able to find buyers who can buy rice in larger amounts soon,” he said.
Companies from Australia and France are considering importing rice from Cambodia, but they have not yet reached any formal agreements, he added.
Baitang Kampuchea signed deals in January with 350 local rice mills from 10 rice-producing provinces to band together and export rice in large quantities.
Cambodia’s rice surplus for export is estimated at 3 million tonnes per year, worth about $13 million, with Europe the biggest buyer in recent years.
Thursday, 8 April 2010
Laurent invests $1.6m in rice factory
LAURENT Import Export Company has invested US$1.6 million to build a factory to polish and package rice for export in Battambang Province’s Thma Koul District.
Lim Bun Heng, president of Laurent Import Export Company, said Tuesday that his company plans to build a factory able to process 300 tonnes of rice per day.
Construction will begin in August and be completed in December, Lim Bun Heng said.
“We hope that when the factory is built, the company will be able to export rice in larger amounts into international markets,” Lim Bun Heng said.
Pho Sambo, head of the Industry Office of Battambang’s provincial Department of Industry, Mines and Energy, said Tuesday, that 10 rice-processing factories have been built in the province.
“We support all projects to build such factories in the province, both at present and in the future, because we want our potential fragrant-rice products to be exported in larger quantities in the future,” he said.
Cheam Chan Sophorn, director of the province’s Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, said Battambang remains the country’s leading producer of paddy rice, but it lacks modern processing equipment needed for heavy export.
“I think that if the province has enough modern equipment and factories to process quality rice, rice exports will increase,” he said.
Battambang farmers harvested a total of 760,000 tonnes of paddy in 2009 and 2010 — 730,000 tonnes of rainy-season paddy and 30,000 tonnes of dry-season paddy — according to the provincial Agriculture Department.
Lim Bun Heng said his company processed and sold 14,000 tonnes of rice in 2009, 4,000 tonnes for export. The company plans to process about 25,000 tonnes of rice in 2010, he said, with 10,000 tonnes slated for export.
Tuesday, 6 April 2010
Cambodia Rice exports set to rise to Europe and Russia
THE Small and Medium Industry Association of Cambodia has agreed to sell 1,348 tonnes of rice worth more than US$500,000 to four European countries and Russia over the next two weeks, the group said Monday.
The association has been contracted to sell 48 tonnes to Germany, 120 tonnes to Latvia, 340 tonnes to Lithuania, 360 tonnes to Poland and 480 tonnes of rice to Russia in a deal worth $567,840, Outh Renne, secretary general of the association, told the Post Monday.
The rice will be supplied from March 27 to April 7 via Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, he added.
“We hope that the association will be able to sign more new contracts, which will open the way for it to export more rice to European markets in the future,” Outh Renne said.
The association hopes this year to export between 7,000 and 10,000 tonnes of rice worth $3.1 million to $4.5 million to European markets, according to an association report. The association exported 144 tonnes of rice to European markets in January and 480 tonnes of rice in February.
Mao Thaura, a secretary of state for the Ministry of Commerce, told the Post Monday that an increasing amount of Cambodian rice has been exported to European markets because local producers are now more capable of processing rice and receive tariff deals from the European Union. The EU began allowing rice imports from Cambodia in August 2009, granting a zero-percent tariff rate.
The tariff break “is a good chance for Cambodian rice to compete with that which is imported into Europe from other countries”, Mao Thaura said.
The Small and Medium Industry Association will hold a meeting in May between European buyers and local rice producers and will continue to raise local rice productivity, Outh Renne said.
Friday, 29 January 2010
Intl buyers to talk rice with Cambodia producers
Rice buyers from Poland, Russia, Belgium and Pakistan plan to meet with Cambodian rice exporters in Phnom Penh on January 14 to discuss the possibility of exporting Cambodian rice to international markets.
Uth Rein, secretary general of the Cambodian Small and Medium Industries Association said the meeting was an introductory one to discuss the feasibility of Cambodian rice exports.
“We hope that the parties will reach an agreement in bringing Cambodian rice to European and global markets,” he said.
The discussion will be attended by around 30 representatives of local rice millers and exporters. Ny Lyheng, deputy general manager of Baitang Kampuchea Plc, one of the country’s biggest rice exporters, said it was a key opportunity for local producers to better understand the requirements of international buyers.
Cambodia has around 3 million tonnes of rice left over from its annual harvest for export, according to government figures. However, export channels have not been well-developed and the quality of milled rice is often deficient by international standards.
Uth Rein said Cambodian exporters were granted duty free access to European markets last August for between 5,000 tonnes and 7,000 tonnes of milled rice per month. Opening up the export channel required exporters to boost rice quality and streamline export processes, he said.
Two of the four companies set to attend the meeting – Schepens & Co from Poland and Belgium’s Agrotrade Melkumian & Gasior – have already successfully sourced rice from Cambodia.
Uth Rein, secretary general of the Cambodian Small and Medium Industries Association said the meeting was an introductory one to discuss the feasibility of Cambodian rice exports.
“We hope that the parties will reach an agreement in bringing Cambodian rice to European and global markets,” he said.
The discussion will be attended by around 30 representatives of local rice millers and exporters. Ny Lyheng, deputy general manager of Baitang Kampuchea Plc, one of the country’s biggest rice exporters, said it was a key opportunity for local producers to better understand the requirements of international buyers.
Cambodia has around 3 million tonnes of rice left over from its annual harvest for export, according to government figures. However, export channels have not been well-developed and the quality of milled rice is often deficient by international standards.
Uth Rein said Cambodian exporters were granted duty free access to European markets last August for between 5,000 tonnes and 7,000 tonnes of milled rice per month. Opening up the export channel required exporters to boost rice quality and streamline export processes, he said.
Two of the four companies set to attend the meeting – Schepens & Co from Poland and Belgium’s Agrotrade Melkumian & Gasior – have already successfully sourced rice from Cambodia.
Friday, 22 January 2010
Cambodia Aims for 700,000 Tonnes 2010 Rice Exports
Cambodia could export as much as 700,000 tonnes of rice this year, exporters and government officials said on Wednesday, as the country steps up its efforts to become a leading shipper of the grain.
"I think we have the ability. We can do it," Chan Tong Yves, a secretary of state at the Agriculture Ministry, told Reuters, referring to the capacity to ship that volume of milled rice.
After decades of upheaval, the Southeast Asian country enjoyed a decade of relative stability and strong economic growth until the global crisis caused an economic contraction last year.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cambodia exported 500,000 tonnes of rice in 2008. No figures are yet available for 2009.
Demand for Southeast Asian rice is growing from the Middle East and big importers such as the Philippines. Thailand is the world's biggest exporter, followed by Vietnam since India enforced a ban on rice exports in late 2007.
Ny Lyheng, deputy general manager of Cambodian rice export firm Baitang (Kampuchea) PLC, said efforts were being made to improve the quality of local rice in order to sell more, seeing potential in the European Union, United States, Canada, Australia, the Philippines and Russia.
He said the European market had been duty-free for Cambodian rice since last September, under the EU's "Everything But Arms" initiative aimed at supporting exports from poor countries.
"The world is paying attention to us because Cambodia is becoming an emerging rice market," Lyheng said.
He estimated that his Baitang company could contribute about 300,000 tonnes of the 700,000 tonnes Cambodia was forecast to export this year.
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