Rwanda: Modern Agriculture to Help Trade Imbalance

Rwamagana — Rwanda must reduce import-dependency by increasing exports through modern agricultural productivity, according to Minister for Cabinet Affairs Protais Musoni.

Speaking at a one-day meeting on agricultural transformation in the Eastern Province, the Minister said that the country's exports were far less than the imports, which he said has a big implication on the economy.

The meeting attracted lawmakers, Agriculture Ministry officials and the Governor of Eastern Province among others.

Musoni challenged local leaders to devise tangible means to increase production of crops for export.

"We have high demand of greens and vegetables from Qatar and Dubai that we can't satisfy for example...agricultural products in general have big market," Musoni added.

The Minister further advised local leaders to streamline procurement procedures, adding that implementation programmes should be decentralized.

"We import five times more than what we export...this is a very bad trend that tends to keep us dependent. Let unnecessary procedures not deter economic development."

One of the easiest ways of increasing production as highlighted in the meeting was through increased use of fertilizers and planting high yielding varieties that respond positively to fertilizer application.

The Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Dr. Agnes Kalibata, however, blamed the low levels of agricultural production on farmers' attitude towards modern agriculture.

Kalibata blamed the Mayors on poor mobilization of farmers to use artificial fertilizers.

She said that chemical fertilizers should be regularly used and promoted in all districts of the country, noting that using chemical fertilizers was a great investment to increase agricultural production.

"We have issues in usage of fertilizers...farmers don't use fertilizers and hence produce less. This comes down to local leaders' reluctance to help farmers understand the importance of suing them," she said.

The Rwandan government has promoted mechanized farming as a way to increase productivity of its farmers throughout the country.

Original Article Here

Zimbabwe: Will Govt Deliver On Agricultural Plan?

LAST week cabinet added yet another measure to its growing list of high-sounding policies gathering dust in its offices by approving a new agriculture plan aimed at providing much-needed cheap lines of credit for farmers and ensuring suppliers distribute inputs countrywide well ahead of the farming season.

Farmers are currently being charged steep interest rates ranging from 11 to 28% per annum, which the policy seeks to tackle through the provision of cheap credit. Zimbabwe's new black farmers, who took over formerly white-owned land courtesy of the controversial and often-violent land reform programme beginning in 2000, perennially complain about unsustainable production costs caused mainly by high costs of fertilisers, chemicals, labour, water and fuel.

Finance minister Tendai Biti said under the new policy farmers would buy inputs directly from suppliers instead of waiting for government to buy on their behalf as this disturbed their plans due to late delivery of supplies. He said he is negotiating with donors to ensure vulnerable farming communities get necessary assistance to ensure improved production and food security.

Biti's assurances came against the backdrop of widespread complaints from farmers' unions over delays in payment for produce delivered to the state-run Grain Marketing Board.

But farmers -- in the past promised assistance only for government to fail to deliver leaving them hopelessly stranded -- will at best welcome the policy with guarded optimism. Government has a long record of policy formulation only matched by its inaction when it comes to implementation.

The three-year old coalition government has not fared any better, drafting and launching several ambitious policy frameworks which have been hardly implemented.

The Industrial Development Policy, Short-Term Emergency Recovery Programme and the Medium-Term Economic Development Plan are among the major policies drafted and adopted by the unity government, over and above numerous other policy blueprints crafted by the previous Zanu PF regime.

This has created the belief that some of the policies are only produced to give the false impression government is doing something to address multifaceted socio-economic problems facing the nation.

Critics thus say it is highly unlikely government would deliver on its agricultural promise and it would be folly for farmers to base their preparations on government promises. This is despite the fact that agriculture contributes between 15-18% to the Gross Domestic Product as well as 40% of national export earnings and 60% of raw materials to the agro-industry.

More than 70% of the country's population relies on agriculture for survival, but lack of a comprehensive enabling policy has adversely affected general productivity, resulting in the country importing grains it used to be self-sufficient in prior to the disastrous land reform programme. Zimbabwe Farmers' Union spokesman Tinashe Kairiza said while the new policy framework was progressive, farmers were anxiously waiting for government to implement the measures to boost productivity.

"Government is facing a serious liquidity crisis, so provision of cheap lines of credit and subsidised inputs is highly unlikely although it would boost agricultural output," he said.

Economist John Robertson said farmers' demands would not be addressed by the new policy because government was well known for failing to deliver on its promises. He also said government had repeatedly promised to pay farmers on time but has consistently failed to do so.

Robertson further pointed out government was cash-strapped and it would be almost impossible for it to fund farming from its resources, unless it relied on borrowed money despite its onerous debt. Zimbabwe's total debt is about US$10,7 billion.

However, Zimbabwe appears set to secure US$100 million in budgetary support from neighbouring South Africa, part of which would be used to finance agriculture and boost productivity. South Africa has previously helped Zimbabwe with funds for inputs.

"The new government scheme to assist farmers is difficult to implement because government owes a lot of money to seed producers and fertiliser manufacturers," said Robertson. "Government has promised farmers money before but they failed to access the funds. The fact is government simply doesn't have the money. Even if it borrows from South Africa, the money has to be paid back and that will depend on how local farmers service the loans."

Robertson said only a handful of farmers with collateral were likely to secure lines of credit. Most new farmers do not have title deeds for collateral against bank loans.

Since most of the new farmers got farms through political connections and by virtue of being war veterans, they did not have title deeds and hence could not borrow money from banks, he said.

However, economic analyst Eric Bloch said although government's coffers are empty, it could divert funds from other sectors to boost agriculture since the majority of Zimbabweans rely on farming. He said the new agriculture policy was likely to be implemented fast given forthcoming elections next year.

"Politicians are aware agriculture is an important sector of the economy hence they will seek mileage by approving and implementing relevant policies," said Bloch.

While farming preparations have often been scuttled by an acute shortage of farming inputs resulting in poor harvests, Biti said the new policy would resuscitate the virtually dead agricultural sector -- the economic mainstay -- and restore Zimbabwe's breadbasket status in the region.

Biti said the new policy is meant to help farmers end the unproductive dependence syndrome, while security of tenure on land would assist them to borrow.

AgriExpert economist and consultant Peter Gambara wrote in the Zimbabwe Independent recently that government should invest in input schemes targeted at the small-scale farmers and provide more resources to extension agents.

Agriculture financing has always favoured large-scale commercial farmers who can use title deeds to access funding from banks, while communal farmers with user rights struggle to get funding.

Erratic power supplies and high tariffs have also contributed to poor production, with farmers calling for subsidised electricity supplies. Farmers say government should revert to the preferential rate of 55% of the electricity tariffs in place before 2009.

While farmers and stakeholders are justifiably sceptical government's new policy will be fully implemented, politicians are likely to pull out all stops to deliver, given the looming crucial elections.

Original Article Here

Ghana Must Learn From Burkina Faso To Boost Agriculture - Bawumia

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the 2012 vice presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, has noted that... 

...it would be important for Ghana to learn significant lessons from neighboring Burkina Faso on transforming and boosting our agriculture, particularly in Northern Ghana, and pledged that the Nana Akufo-Addo administration would aggressively focus on agriculture in the North, with the ultimate aim of making Northern Ghana the bread basket for Ghana and the sub-region.

Dr. Bawumia made the comments while touring the Saboba constituency on Thursday. Speaking in Sambule, Dr. Bawumia said, “There is no reason why the North as a whole should not become the bread basket of west Africa as whole. 

Irrigation facilities, making sure that fertilizers are available, making sure that tractors are available and seeing to it that our roads are in very good shape would be critical in realizing this vision and a Nana Akufo-Addo administration is committed to implementing policies that would transform agriculture holistically.”

The NPP vice presidential candidate said that constructing the necessary irrigation facilities for farmers through the development of dams, boreholes and harnessing our rivers in that direction would be a very key component of the agriculture agenda under the NPP.

He bemoaned the continuous reliance on rainfall for agriculture, adding that it was about time that Ghana ended its over reliance on rain-fed agriculture as it affects production and makes agricultural production too unpredictable.

Dr. Bawumia also promised that the NPP would take practical steps to ensure that farmers access fertilizers affordably so as to boast their production and was disappointed that the current NDC administration had not found a solution to the continuous and sharp rises in fertilizer prices.

At Saboba, Dr. Bawumia also assured the people that the NPP government would focus on the real work to be done and would not engage in propaganda with the livelihoods of the people of the North, a clear departure from the current situation. He cited the case of the sheanut factory in Buipe which was commissioned amidst great fanfare and propaganda by the NDC administration, as a SADA project, but has not produced an ounce of shea butter due to various challenges it has.

“We will not do propaganda when we have not done the work. Why do I say this, you would remember that some time ago, the Produce Buying Company decided to set up a sheanut factory in Buipe. The NDC quickly claimed this factory as a SADA project and commissioned it as such. What people do not know is that till date, this factory has not produced an ounce of shea butter. We will not do propaganda with the lives of people. We will do the right thing”, he stated.

Dr. Bawumia’s Northern Regional tour has already seen him touring six (6) constituencies in the North. In all, it is planned that he would tour the region for sixteen (16) days.

Green Agriculture Gets a Boost from the Harper Government

Canadian farmers will have the opportunity to increase their profits while improving their environmental impact with the support of the Harper Government. The Honourable Lynne Yelich, Minister of State (Western Economic Diversification), on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, announced today an investment for the Canadian Fertilizer Institute to study greenhouse gas mitigation in fertilizer application.

"Our Government's top priority remains the economy, and investments in research play an important role in keeping our economy strong," said Minister Yelich. "This investment will help provide farmers with the tools and knowledge needed to preserve their land and surrounding environment, ensuring they remain profitable well into the future."

The Canadian Fertilizer Institute will use this $700,000 investment to study greenhouse gas mitigation in fertilizer application using the 4R Nutrient Stewardship system-Right Source, Right Rate, Right Time, Right Place-a set of beneficial management practices (BMPs) created by the fertilizer industry to achieve cropping system goals. This will help farmers use fertilizer more efficiently, which will help to protect the environment, leave more money in the pockets of farmers and increase yield potential on the farm.

"There are many advantages for farmers to adopt the 4Rs into their cropping systems," said Mr. Norm Beug, Chair of the Canadian Fertilizer Institute. "The 4Rs offer a framework to farmers as they implement BMPs to optimize fertilizer efficiency, which minimizes nutrient loss and leakage into the air and water. The 4R approach maximizes farmer returns for every tonne of fertilizer used and allows farmers to quantify their practices to receive credits for ecological goods and services."

This project is supported through the Agricultural Greenhouse Gases Program (AGGP), a five-year, $27-million initiative that focuses on the development of on-farm greenhouse gas mitigation technologies. The AGGP will provide funding to various partners across Canada to investigate innovative mechanisms, tools, and approaches that provide real solutions for the agriculture sector.

The AGGP is Canada's initial contribution to the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases, an international network of more than 30 member countries that coordinates and increases agricultural research on greenhouse gas mitigation and makes new mitigation technologies and beneficial management practices available to farmers. In June 2012, Canada was officially named Council Chair of the Alliance for 2012-13. For more information on the Global Research Alliance, visit www.globalresearchalliance.org.

Media Relations

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Ottawa, Ontario

613-773-7972

1-866-345-7972

Jeff English

Press Secretary

The Office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz

613-773-1059

Agriculture sector roundup: UR Associates

UR Associates has come out with its report on agri sector. According to the research firm, Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF) will invest Rs 40 billion in next three years to ramp up its urea capacity at Thal plant near Mumbai. The selection process for lumpsum turnkey contractors (LSTK) for main plants has been completed. The project cost is expected to be Rs 40 billion and will be completed in 36 months period from the zero date.

Pulses sowing picking up

For the first time during this monsoon season, the rainfall was 6% above normal for the week August 23rd-29th. The strong rainfall has improved the deficiency situation further and has brought down the overall deficiency for the monsoon season to 12% below normal. Hence, the rainfall deficiency has come down from 19% at the beginning of the month to 12% at the month end. The deficiency in the Northwest region is the highest at 15% followed by East & NorthEast India (14%), South Peninsula (13%) and Central India (10%)

The pulses sowing has picked up quite significantly during the last one week with the gap between normal pulses acreage and pulses acreage this season coming down to 0.36 million hectares compared to 1.11 million hectares at the beginning of the week.

While rice, sugarcane and cotton are ahead in terms of acreage, coarse cereals are still lagging behind by 2.89 million hectares compared to normal sowing.

RCF to invest Rs 40 billion to ramp up urea capacity

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF) will invest Rs 40 billion in next three years to ramp up its urea capacity at Thal plant near Mumbai. In a communique to the BSE, RCF said: "The Company has plans to expand the capacity of urea at Thal by setting up one single stream ammonia plant of capacity 2,200 TPD (tonnes per day) and one single stream urea plant of capacity 3,850 TPD at the existing site." "The selection process for lumpsum turnkey contractors (LSTK) for main plants has been completed. The project cost is expected to be Rs 40 billion and will be completed in 36 months period from the zero date," it said.

Maharashtra to begin 2012-13 sugarcane crushing season from November 1

Top sugar producer Maharashtra will begin its sugarcane crushing season from November 1. The state government was thinking to advance the crushing season by a month as a measure to make more cane available for crushing, which is being diverted every day for use as fodder in drought areas in the state.

Contingency plan to Tackle Drought like Situation

Ministry of Agriculture has prepared Contingency plans for 353 districts across the country for implementing location specific interventions to sustain agriculture production. Subsidy on seeds has been enhanced to partially recompense the farmers for the expenditure in re-sowing and/or purchasing drought tolerant variety of seeds. In view of deficient rainfall, states such as Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh have been allocated with additional power from Central Pool. In so far as fertilizer prices are concerned, Urea is provided at a fixed Maximum Retail Price (MRP) of Rs. 5310 per metric ton since 01.04.2010. Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) Policy is being implemented on Phosphatic and Potassic (P&K) fertilizers under which a fixed subsidy is provided based on its nutrient content. MRP is fixed by fertilizer companies. The prices of P&K fertilizers have increased mainly due to increase in international prices of fertilizers and due to depreciation of Indian rupee. However, Government provides subsidy to the extent of 50% to 67% of the delivered cost on these fertilizers.

Deepak fertilisers not to develop $350 mn plant in Australia

Indian fertilisers and petrochem firm DFPCL has abandoned plan to build a $350 million plant at Port Bonython, South Australian Mining minister Tom Koutsantonis has said. Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd has informed the state government of its intention not to go ahead with a proposed technical ammonium nitrate plant near Whyalla, said Koutsantonis, who also holds the Manufacturing, Innovation and Trade portfolio.

Dhanuka Agritech launches new products

Dhanuka Agritech Limited, a provider of crop protection solution, has launched three agrochemical products in Tamil Nadu. According to Abhishek Dhanuka, Director South Zone, one of the new products is an insecticide that can tackle sucking insects in cotton, vegetable, fruits, cashew and tea. The other, Fluid, is to fight larval insecticide in major crops, while the third one, Fuzi Super, is a herbicide for paddy. The Rs 6.5 billion company has tied up with global firms such as Dupont, Syngenta and Dow Agro Sciences to introduce international proven products in the Indian market, according to R.G. Agarwal, Group Chairman.

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Original Article  Here

Unfair gas distribution policy has crippled fertiliser sector: FMPAC

Unjustifiable distribution policy of natural gas has crippled fertiliser sector in the last couple of years, reducing production of urea to bare minimum if compared with installed capacity and turning SNGPL based plants in to loss-making entities from profitable units within a span of only one year.

Fertiliser Manufacturers Pakistan Advisory Council (FMPAC) Executive Director Shahab Khawaja claimed this while interacting with members of Agriculture Journalists Association (AJA) the other day. He was accompanied by Fatima Fertiliser's Director Marketing Muhammad Zahir, Dawood Hercules Limited (DHL) Fertiliser's Senior General Manager Nadeem Tariq and Agritech's Faisal Muzzamil.

Representatives of fertiliser companies claimed that three fertiliser units were already on the brink of default while the sector had four times renegotiated its loan with the banks. The workers of these plants have to bear the brunt of government policies in the shape of lay offs.

Agritech, one of the oldest fertiliser plants, has already filed petition in labour court to lay off their workforce of 3,000 and other plants will also be forced if situation does not improve. Shahab Khawaja discussed in detail issues relating to fertiliser sector on behalf of newly established representative body of fertiliser plants in Pakistan.

He said fertiliser sector had become the biggest victim of flawed gas distribution policy, saying discriminatory policy of gas distribution to various sectors of economy caused a severe blow to urea manufacturing plants besides rendering thousands workers jobless.

He said that farmers also had to pay heavy price of unwarranted closure of fertiliser plants. In the last 18 months, he revealed, farming community braved additional burden of Rs 53 billion on account of only one input ie urea fertiliser. The fertiliser industry that had been set up several years back were facing dismal future as manufacturing process came to standstill due to natural gas, he said, adding that current installed capacity of 6.9 million tons per annum was sufficient to meet domestic demand of urea.

He said presently, Pakistan was ranked seventh in the world in urea manufacturing capacity. However, he lamented, a significant portion of this capacity was laying idle because of non-availability of natural gas, which was a raw material for manufacturing urea. Against installed capacity of 6.9 million tons, urea production has been faltered to just 4.4 million tons in 2012. Fertiliser plants located on SNGPL network were provided gas for only two months this year so far, he said. 

Copyright Business Recorder, 2012

Spain: Ministry of Agriculture focusing on fruit orchard conversions

The Region of Murcia's Agriculture and Water Council considers that the fruit orchard conversions carried out during the 2006-2011 period in various towns of the province were "a key initiative to remain competitive within a very dynamic sector, subject to changing consumer demand."

These conversion plans, funded by the Council and the Ministry with 4,844,000 Euro, have led, as the CEO of Agricultural Industry and Training puts it, to "an improvement in production quality, as less profitable varieties have been replaced by new ones oriented towards the fresh market, without neglecting the canning industry, and have also been used to modernise irrigation facilities and optimise the use of water and fertilizers."

The conversions included a total of 1,163.8 hectares, mainly affecting fruit species such as peaches and nectarines, and to a lesser extent plums, apples, pears and cherries. The main reconverted areas are in the towns of Cieza and Jumilla, but also in Abarán, Blanca, Calasparra, Caravaca de la Cruz, Cehegín, Fortuna, Lorca, Molina de Segura, Mula and Yecla.

1,254 hectares of fruit trees have been removed, mainly stone fruit varieties. 72% of them corresponded to peach for processing and of the yellow flesh variety. In return, 647 hectares of new varieties of early and extra early peaches, 470 hectares of nectarines, 17 hectares of plums, 6.8 hectares of cherries and 23 hectares of pears have been planted. The new varieties, in general, present larger sizes, better colours and flavours, and are more productive.

The regional representative also stressed that "we have opted for earlier varieties better suited for Murcia's soil and climatological conditions in order to avoid competition with other Spanish regions and third countries. This way the market will not saturate and we can get better prices."

Adapatation to remain competitive

The Council had previously executed other reconversion plans for citrus and apricots to introduce new, more productive varieties better suited to market demands.
García Lidón concluded that "the stone fruit sector is subject to frequent changes in consumer demand and it is essential to adapt. If we are to remain competitive, we need to be better, more exclusive and different."

In this regard, he added that the key to achieving these goals is "research tailored to our needs." Therefore the Council, through the Murcia Institute for Research and Agricultural and Food Development (IMIDA), is carrying out various projects to obtain new stone fruit varieties as a more suitable and better adapted alternative to the soil and climatological characteristics of the Region.

Source: Eleconomista.es

Original Article here

Study identifies reasons for low agriculture production

‘Strategies are being worked out to boost productivity’

The Department of Agriculture is analysing the constraints leading to productivity gap in different major crops in the district as part of several measures recommended in its action plan 2012-13.

Studies identified the major constraints that are affecting the crop productivity are poor soil health, lack of efficient irrigation facility and water reach to tail-end areas, and low degree of farm mechanisation and inadequate extension.

In paddy cultivation, non-adoption of green manuring and grain legumes preceding rice in kharif and indiscriminate use of nitrogenous fertilizers and top dressing of complex fertilizers containing phosphorous apart from improper nursery management, low plant population, over aged seedlings, etc., are contributing to low paddy production. Another reason for low production is micro-nutrients, including zinc deficiency.

In the pulses crop, non-adoption of seed rate, and location specific high yielding varieties and non adoption of seed treatment and proper plant protection management were the reasons for poor production levels. Failure in application of phosphorous fertilizers and micro-irrigation systems are also the reasons for poor crop performance.

Poor mechanisation and management of stem and bud necrosis, non adoption of micro-irrigation systems and non-usage of quality seed, seed treatment and low usage of gypsum, were reasons for low productivity in oil seed cultivation.

Pest management

The agriculture officers as part of measures to boost productivity levels suggested interventions at village and mandal levels using of green manure, reclamation of problematic soils and soil correction of micro-nutrient deficiencies. Some of the strategies recommended, including capacity enhancement for farmers on specific nutrient requirement for paddy, training farmers on over-aged seedlings management, supplying of paddy transplanting machines on subsidy, imparting training on weed and integrated pest management.

Joint Director of Agriculture K. Venugopala Rao told The Hindu that the constraints had been identified for low agriculture production and strategies were being worked out to tackle them and farmers were being educated on the steps that should be taken in this regard.

Original Article Here

USDA: US farmers planting most corn since 1937

By DAVID PITT

The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa —

Farmers nationwide are anticipating more profit from corn than other crops this year and planted 96.4 million acres of it this spring, the most in nearly eight decades, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Friday.

The new acreage number, based on farm surveys from early June, reflects a 5 percent increase from last year and is the largest amount of planted acres since 1937, when the nation's farmers planted 97 million acres of the crop.

The push is coming from higher corn prices and the expectation that corn demand will remain high thanks to exports, livestock feed and ethanol production, said Garry Niemeyer, president of the National Corn Growers board.

Farmers each fall review the prices of fertilizer, seed and other chemicals, and the price they're projected to receive from selling the grain. Many concluded that corn would be a better bet than other crops, such as soybeans, he said.

"They felt like they would probably make more money on corn," said Niemeyer, a corn and soybean farmer in Auburn, Ill.

And if the heat and lack of rain continue in corn-growing states, the increased planting could help offset losses due to the weather. A significant drought would drive up prices since demand for corn would remain strong despite a diminished supply.

However, higher corn prices mean livestock farmers have to pay more to feed their hogs and cattle, which means meat prices could climb at the grocery store. Higher prices also could impact the cost of other food that contains corn products, such as breakfast cereal, bread, salad dressing and chips.

"The good news is we did plant a lot more corn acreage this year. Because of the dry and the heat, we're losing yield by the day," said Paul Bertels, an agricultural economist with the National Corn Growers in St. Louis. "I don't think the corn supply is going to grow tremendously this year and there is potential for it to get smaller."

According to the USDA, the nation has 3.15 billion bushels of corn in storage, down 14 percent from last year's June estimate.

Iowa — the nation's top corn producer — has the most acreage devoted to corn at 14 million, compared to 14.1 million in June 2011. Illinois increased to 13 million this month from 12.6 million last year, while Nebraska inched up to 9.9 million from 9.85 million, according to the USDA.

Record amounts of planted acreage are expected in Idaho, Minnesota, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon and South Dakota.

The benchmark that analysts use is the price for corn that gets delivered by farmers in December, following the year's harvest. On Friday, corn for December delivery rose 1 cent to $6.33 a bushel, which is where corn has been trading this week and is significantly better than $5 to $5.50 price range the market has seen since April.

Copyright The Associated Press

Centre debates contingency if monsoon fails

NEW DELHI: Worried over the slow progress of the monsoon, food minister KV Thomas held a meeting on Thursday on the likelihood of less rains and subsequent drought-like situation this year. The meeting, attended by food secretary Sudhir Kumar, agriculture secretary Ashish Bahuguna and IMD chief LS Rathore, reviewed the progress of the monsoon and discussed the contingency plan.

Rathore said rains were slightly delayed but not too late to raise an alarm. "The behaviour of the monsoon differs every year. It is slightly behind the schedule but such delays are normal. There is no cause of concern for farm activities," he said.

Meanwhile, after a brief pause for two days, monsoon advanced gently and covered parts of Bihar, Jharkhand, parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh and eastern Madhya Pradesh. "In the next two days, there will be heavy rainfall in the north-eastern and eastern parts of the country. We expect fast advancement in the next 48 hours," said Dr M Mohapatra, spokesman and scientist at IMD.

IMD is likely to come out with an updated forecast on Friday, giving a detailed account of monsoon-influencing phenomena like El Nino and IOD. It will also provide a region-wise breakup of rainfall besides predicting the behaviour of the monsoon in July and August which are crucial for farm output.

The rain deficit in the first 20 days since the delayed start of the monsoon stands at 26%. The deficit has narrowed down from 50% till the second week of the month after a brief spurt of good rains over the southern peninsula and parts of Maharashtra.

The deficit is highest in northwest India comprising fertile fields of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab. In Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, the rainfall is short by around 25% giving jitters to the government as well as agro and fertiliser companies.

"The way the monsoon is behaving, we are suspecting a major demand destruction. Our main markets like Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab are yet to get their first shower. It will affect agriculture output and fertiliser offtake in a big way. Fertiliser consumption may break down by 50% this year," said US Awasthi, managing director, Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative, the country's largest fertiliser marketing company. 

Original Article Here

Stress on branding agriculture products

PATNA: Principal secretary, agriculture, Anjani Kumar Singh, on Wednesday stressed on branding of the agriculture products of the state for establishing their identity at national level.

Addressing a high-level meeting with the secretary, agriculture, N Vijaylakshmi, director, agriculture, Arvinder Singh, and other senior officials of the department, Anjani said the second agriculture road map for development is well planned and documented and has to be implemented in toto. He said the people of other states know the agriculture produce of Bihar are exported to their states but branding of Bihar's agriculture produce would help get better return of their value.

Expressing satisfaction over an increase in production of vermicompost in the state and its greater use in farming, he said vermicompost should be used for enhancing the agriculture yield to improve the lot of the farmers. It would reduce the use of chemical fertilizer, Anjani said. He stressed on maintaining transparency in providing new techniques and modern farming equipment to the farmers. He said the standard would be set to assess the performance of department officials and the method of their posting to enable them work fearlessly. He directed the agriculture officials to maintain their monthly work plan and communicate to him through email.

Original Article Here

More cases of 'wilful' default on bank loans by farmers

SUPALI: Two years ago, Vilas Yelmar took out a 200,000 rupee ($3,610) bank loan to develop a small grape orchard in a dusty hamlet southeast of Mumbai. The bank has repeatedly asked for the loan to be repaid, but Yelmar, whose annual income has risen to 2 million rupees, has spent the money on a new sport utility vehicle and a lavish family wedding.

He is one of an increasing number of 'wilful' defaulters in Asia's third-largest economy, where banks are under government pressure to lend to farmers. Two-thirds of the population depend on agriculture for their livelihood and, to boost productivity - annual agricultural growth is just 3 per cent - India has this year raised the farm lending target for banks by a fifth to more than $100 billion.

"My brother was the village head so it had to be a big wedding. That's where the money went," said Yelmar, speaking the local Marathi language, and proudly showing off his new SUV which he uses to ferry barrels of diesel and fertilisers.

"Paying off the bank loan is not really my priority," said the 39-year-old, who lives in a simple, yet spacious, house next to his 4-acre orchard near the main irrigation channel.

Banks and government officials do not have data on just how many subprime farmers are abusing the cheap loan system, but they are giving banks a multi-billion-dollar headache.

MORAL HAZARD State Bank of India, which accounts for about a quarter of India's total loans, including the one to Yelmar, said about $1.4 billion, or 9 per cent of its farm loans, turned bad in the year to end-March. Bankers bemoan the rise in 'wilful' defaults among those taking agricultural loans - and using them to marry off their daughters, build extensions for their farmhouses, or become lenders themselves.

Defaults also tend to increase when elections loom as farmers hope the government, desperate for their votes, will bail them out. The government bailed out farmers in 2008 with a $12.5 billion loan waiver, but a struggling economy and swollen fiscal deficit make another rescue unlikely.

"Agriculture loans are more retractable, depending on what type of whispers go around. If the whispers are about elections and debt waivers then interest payments drop," said SBI Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri, noting the rise in defaults is a big concern for the bank.

Under the government's targets, banks have to go out of their way to lend to poor and marginal farmers who may not be able to repay the loans. If banks fail to meet the targets, the central bank locks up the shortfall for five years in a fund that returns just 4-5 per cent a year.

Bad farm loans contributed nearly 44 per cent of new non-performing loans (NPLs) in fiscal year 2011, and have jumped 150 per cent in the past two years. In the year to March 2011, sour agriculture loans almost doubled to 3.5 per cent of total loans by s tate-run banks, which account for about 70 per cent of India's total loans and deposits.

"The pace at which agri-NPLs have increased has been worrisome," said Suresh Ganapathy, an analyst with Macquarie Research. "The willingness to repay has been affected by debt waivers ... and that has created a moral hazard."

Yelmar, who said he doesn't want his children to have to resort to farming, got a heavy interest rate discount of 3 per cent on his SBI loan, thanks to government handouts, compared to the 14-15 per cent interest corporate borrowers are asked to pay. Some lenders even offer zero interest on farm loans.

But, for the banks, getting any money back can be an issue. "The cost of servicing an agriculture loan is very high. During every harvest, you need an army of people to go out there and collect dues from each farmer," said Michael Andrade, senior vice-president for agri-lending at HDFC Bank. "This increases your costs, and hurts profitability, bottom lines."

Oiginal Article Here

Kano to supply hybrid groundnut seeds to farmers

The Kano State Government has engaged the services of five companies to supply the state with hybrid groundnut seeds as part of measures to revamp groundnut production in the state.

The Permanent Secretary in the state’s Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mohammed Dankade, disclosed this on Wednesday in Kano, adding that the seeds would be distributed to the groundnut farmers during this year’s cropping season.

He said that the gesture was part of the efforts by the state government to encourage more participation of farmers in groundnut cultivation.

The permanent secretary said that measures had also been taken to train the famers on modern farming methods and to educate them on inputs application.

“The state government is also doing crop mapping and trying to advise the farmers on the right and appropriate seedlings to plant.”

He said that the state government had also established a farmers’ radio programme to educate and enlighten the farmers in the state.

“The radio programme is being used to interact with service providers, researchers and farmers’ processors, to disseminate information on modern agricultural production technologies and the agricultural value chain approach in the most cost effective and efficient manner.’’

Dankade said that the state government had also renovated the six agricultural training centres in Gwarzo, Rano, Danbatta and Kadawa.

This, he said, was to facilitate training and re-training of unemployed youths to embrace farming as a business.

“After the training, the youths would be given ploughs and work bulls to fast track the take off of the agricultural mechanization programme in the state.

According to him, the state government has also revived its Agricultural Supply Company (KASCO) to facilitate the supply of improved agricultural inputs like seeds, agrochemical, equipment and fertiliser.

Dankade said the state government had also earmarked N800 million in the

2012 state’s budget for the procurement of raw materials for fertiliser production in the state as part of efforts to ensure adequate supply of the commodity to farmers in the state.

According to him, one of the two lines of the state’s fertiliser blending plant has been reactivated.

“This line has the capacity for producing 150 tonnes of compound fertiliser per day," he said. “The plant is registered as a service provider under the Growth Enhancement Support Services Scheme of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda.”

He assured that the state government had put in place measures to ensure the distribution of the commodity directly to the genuine farmers.

Original Article here

G8 pledges to lift 50 million Africans out of poverty

AFP

CAMP DAVID — G8 leaders on Saturday pledged to lift millions of Africans out of poverty by promoting investments in sustainable agriculture.

"Today we commit to launch a New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition to accelerate the flow of private capital to African agriculture, take to scale new technologies and other innovations that can increase sustainable agricultural productivity, and reduce the risk borne by vulnerable economies and communities," the Group of Eight major industrial nations said.

"This New Alliance will lift 50 million people out of poverty over the next decade."

The ambitious announcement, contained in a final communique released after a high-profile gathering on a range of topics, came a day after President Barack Obama reached out to the private sector for financial support for the cause.

The initiative also comes as pledges expire from 2009 in L'Aquila, Italy, where the G8 promised more than $20 billion over three years to improve food access to Africans and others hit by the high prices and a global slowdown.

Civil society observers appeared skeptical about the endeavor's success.

"The G8 have offered warm words on food security but have failed to make a specific pledge to simply maintain L'Aquila level financial commitments going forward," said Katie Campbell, senior policy analyst for ActionAid USA. "In failing to deliver this, they have turned their backs on the women smallholder farmers who are so vital to food security in Africa."

Oxfam claimed that input from those directly concerned had not been taken into consideration.

"Poor countries have presented the G8 country-led, sustainable, and coordinated plans for food security and agricultural development, but today the G8 gave them the cold shoulder," Lamine Ndiaye, the group's Pan Africa Head of Economic Justice, said in a statement.

According to the G8 communique, the initiative would, among other things, be guided by "a collective commitment to invest in credible, comprehensive and country-owned plans."

The Norwegian global firm Yara has said it would build Africa's first major fertilizer production facility as part of the initiative. Companies including Pepsi and Dupont have also pledged to invest in Africa's small-scale farmers.

Copyright © 2012 AFP.

US agriculture companies to invest $150m in Africa

REUTERS: A group of U.S. seed, chemical and equipment companies will invest at least $150 million over the next few years into African agricultural projects and products, the companies said on Friday.

The investments pledged by DuPont, Monsanto, Cargill and others are part of an overall $3 billion effort by companies around the world announced by President Barack Obama.

Along with companies from India, Israel, Switzerland, Norway and the United Kingdom, and 20 companies from Africa, the corporations have committed some $3 billion for projects to help farmers in the developing world build local markets and improve productivity. The United Nations has said that by 2030, the world will need at least 50 percent more food, 45 percent more energy and 30 percent more water.

Absent these resources, it said, up to 3 billion people would probably be condemned into poverty. Capitalizing on food demand in Africa also holds strong profit potential, corporate leaders said. "It has been a bit chaotic. There are all sorts of issues around the countries in Africa. But the population, the economic growth, the quality of many of the soils is there," DuPont Executive Vice President Jim Borel told Reuters in an interview.

"The need is there, the potential is there." "We're convinced we can take the base we have now, and accelerate that progress," said Borel, who oversees DuPont's food and nutrition businesses. Among DuPont's units is its Pioneer Hi-Bred International seed company, which has operated in Africa for decades. India and China are more stable and growing faster, but Africa is "not far behind," according to Borel.

DuPont said it will spend more than $3 million over the next three years focused on Ethiopia, where the company is investing in seed production and storage facilities. It is also developing weed control for wheat farmers there, and creating a soil information system to address soil limitations and boost crop yields.

DuPont's growth plans on the continent are aimed at growing revenue from African business to more than $1 billion within 10 years. DuPont is also sponsoring development of a food security index, a ranking of 105 countries that analyzes the food security status of each. That index will be rolled out in mid-July.

Monsanto, the world's largest seed company, said it also was committing millions to Africa. Monsanto will invest about $50 million over the next 10 years in several countries to support African agricultural development and growth, officials said. Monsanto's plans include work in Tanzania on development of corn that uses water more efficiently, and support for development of a network of agro-dealers.

Cargill is investing in two projects in Mozambique focused on increasing grain yields for small farmers and on training and education in farm communities. AGCO, a U.S.-based farm equipment company, plans to invest $100 million over the next three years to improve farm operations in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya and other African countries.

Among the international players, Norway's Yara International is planning a $2 billion fertilizer production facility in Africa and is spending $20 million to build a port in Tanzania that will help expand its fertilizer delivery network throughout southern Africa. The Swiss company Syngenta AG said it would invest more than $500 million in Africa. Over the next 10 years, Syngenta expects to build a $1 billion business in Africa.

The push by global corporations to spend more money and develop new markets across Africa comes as an expanding world population and growing demand for quality food threaten to exceed existing limits of agricultural production. Investors have been buying up farmland in Africa, hoping to make it more productive using modern agricultural technologies.

That, combined with the rising interest of international agricultural corporations, has brought criticism. Advocates for African farmers fear they will lose control over their food supply and markets. They say African farmers are being displaced and unsustainable farm practices are being introduced. "The problem is all this is based on large-scale commercial agriculture," said Anuradha Mittal, executive director of the Oakland Institute, a policy think tank.

"Who does it benefit? All of these things are supporting the formation of large-scale commercial agriculture, which will hurt small farmers. They could spend far less but focus on providing credit facilities, ensuring open markets and ensuring the rights of small holder farmers."

Original Article Here

Urban agriculture idea brings farms to high-rises

By: Radheshyam Jadhav,

PUNE: Multi-storied buildings, apart from providing residential and commercial space, can also take care of the city's basic food needs.

Pune has grown to encompass large tracts of agricultural land in its backyard which provided supplies of vegetables and fruits. Now, it gets them from the corners of Pune district and far-off places in South Maharashtra.

This is why experts are keen on vertical urban agriculture where, as the city grows height-wise, multi-storied buildings with vertical farms can take care of these needs.

The city is set to have more high rises as the steering committee on urbanisation has backed several measures including higher Floor Space Index (FSI) for high-density growth. This would directly impact food needs as more agriculture land will be converted into residential zones.

Pune has its share of terrace kitchen gardens, hot houses inside flats, use of empty parking space and vertical gardens. But, the future is in vertical urban agriculture where high-rises provide a temperature-controlled environment to grow fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

They can be grown hydroponically (nutrient-enriched water) or aeroponically (nutrient-enriched air), without the need for soil or compost. Experts said some floors can be dedicated to growing rice and others to growing fruits.

Vertical farms on the periphery of the city can process their own garbage and use gray water, acting as a water-purification method for the surrounding city and providing clean drinking water, experts said.

Tillable land in the city's fringes is shrinking. Moreover, 20 fringe villages are set for a merger with the Pune Municipal Corporation, throwing open thousands of acres of farmland for development. A consensus-building exercise urging corporators to approve the merger proposal is currently underway.

A few years ago, 938 acres of agricultural land in Mundhwa was converted to residential use. Mundhwa, largely agrarian till the conversion of land use, grew sugarcane on vast tracts. The civic body also approved another proposal to convert agricultural tracts in Lohegaon, Pashan and Sangamwadi for residential use.

Pune is among five districts in the country with the 'most significantly degraded' land. A report, 'Impact of climate change on land degradation over India', compiled by researchers of the National Climate Centre (NCC) of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) last year stated that rapid urbanization and industrialization are among the factors responsible for the quality of land changing for the worse and if the degradation continued, large tracts could become useless for farming.

The Pune Experiment

The Pune Municipal Corporation had initiated a city farming project in 2008 where citizens were encouraged to grow vegetables and crops on allocated land. The civic body started the process of acquiring a three-acre plot in Salisbury Park and announced a plan to provide land, seeds, fertilisers and water free to interested persons and help them market the produce.

"The project was not a profit-making venture, but a step towards an eco-friendly initiative. It was to allow people to experience the joy of farming and provide quality produce. However, the top officials never showed any interest in the project and the garden department was not encouraged enough to go ahead with it. No political party supported the experiment. As the result, the idea died," a former PMC official, who part of the team that initiated the project, said.

Some groups like Abhinav Farmers' Club have introduced a 'kitchen garden' concept to over 350 flat owners in the city and are working with another 300 orders.

"We offer help at a price to those who want to grow brinjal, cauliflower, garlic or other vegetables at home. The customer gets a set of pots with vegetable plants, a chart of instructions for watering and harvesting of the produce, a pair of scissors, a pesticide spray pump and a box with earthworm cultured soil which can convert kitchen waste into fertilizer. If the person spends 15 minutes daily for the kitchen garden, he can get two kg vegetables every week," Dnyaneshwar Bodke, founder and chairman of the club, said.

But the concept is not growing as fast as expected. "People pay attention to plans till we provide the service for a year. They then begin to neglect it," he said. Urban agriculture is the only way to sustain flow of agri products to growing population, he said.

"Getting vacant plots for agriculture in the city is impossible. Peri-agriculture seems a distant dream with farmers inclined to develop their farmland for constructions which yields more money," said Ramchandra Gohad, former town planner and a member of the Pune Metropolitan Regional Development Authority land acquisition committee.

FAO Concept

Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has envisaged urban agriculture in small areas like vacant plots, gardens, verges, balconies and containers within the city to grow crops and raise small livestock or milk cows for self-consumption or sale in neighbourhood markets. Peri-urban agriculture refers to farm units close to cities which operate intensive semi-or fully commercial farms to grow vegetables and fruits, raise chickens and other livestock, and produce milk and eggs.

Urban and peri-urban agriculture occurs within and surrounding areas of cities and includes products from crop and livestock agriculture, fisheries and forestry. It also includes non-wood forest products, ecological services provided by agriculture, fisheries and forestry. Often multiple farming and gardening systems exist in and near a single city.

Growing Vertical

"We must look for more innovative urban agriculture than growing plants in balconies. Vertical farming includes technology to use city space for growing plants and vegetables in high-rises buildings. When we construct buildings in urban areas, the facade is developed as a greenhouse to grow vegetables," Hans Hassle, CEO of Stockholm-based Plantagon Company, said.

Systems and technologies for urban agriculture should be developed with minimal use of ground area for buildings, multiplying the building footprint vertically in several levels, he added. "It will also be important to integrate the building on site and adapt it to site specific light conditions since it will be placed within the existing urban fabric in cities. The verticality will be important in cites to optimize the production of food and the functionality of buildings." Hassle told TOI.

According to Plantagon, growing crops in a controlled environment has benefits -- no animals to transfer diseases to plants through untreated waste; no massive crop failures as a result of weather-related disasters; less likelihood of genetically modified "rogue" strains entering nature. And, without herbicides, pesticides, or fertilizers agricultural runoff is not a big a big problem.

Eating into agriculture land

In 1997, 36 villages were included in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits. As a result, the PMC limits increased from 146 sq km to 450.69 sq.km. After a few villages were delinked, the PMC's area was reduced to 243.96 sq.km.

The state government's relaxation of restrictions on conversion of agricultural lands to non-agricultural uses has led to agricultural land in the fringes of the city like Hadapsar, Mundhwa and Kondhwa, Sinhagad Road and Wadgaon Dhayari becoming residential.

The government ordinance in 1994, which stated that permission for non-agricultural use of agricultural land is not required in areas where the Regional Town Planning Act, 1966 is in operation or a legally declared industrial zones exists or is finally accepted or proposed also boosted such growth.

Moreover, in November 1996, the government threw open hilltops, slopes and forest areas in the state for development as hill stations, tourist and holiday homes. This brought private players to the scene.

Plantagon cultivation system

The idea is to grow vegetables in pots put into trays transported around the growing helix where the cultivation takes place.

The trays are equipped with a light sealed nutrient solution reservoir, and the pots are irrigated about three times per day using an ebb-and-flow technique. A capillary mat at the bottom of each tray protects the individual plants from drought. Excess nutrient solution is collected and reused after disinfestation.

The different system designs have the same production flow and location of equipment. The machinery is located in the basement on one or two floors and the trays are transported to the top of the helix by a special tray elevator.

The crops grow during the slow transport down the helix and are ready for harvesting when they reach the end of the helix at the basement level. Food is harvested in batches using an automatic harvesting machine. After harvest, the trays and pots are disinfected, and the pots are separated and replanted with another seed for the next round in the cultivation loop.

After germination, the pots are recombined with the trays and elevated to the top of the growing helix to repeat the process.

(Source - Plantagon, Stockholm)