USA Rice's Ward (r) shares a light moment with USITC's Bonarriva

LAKE TAHOE, NV - Earlier this week, the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) announced that it has started a major assessment of competitive factors impacting the U.S. rice industry.  This morning, ITC Lead International Trade Analyst Joanna Bonarriva gave attendees at the USA Rice Millers' Association (RMA) Convention an overview of the assessment process, including a timeline of events.

Bonarriva explained that the USITC is an independent, non-partisan, quasi-judicial agency that provides the President and Congress with research and analysis on international trade but does not make policy or negotiate trade agreements.  She said USITC assessments follow a strict procedure starting with a review of relevant literature, followed by a public hearing in Washington, DC, and then, depending on the data collected, use of economic modeling or other statistical methods.  The USITC also does outreach, visiting domestic and international industries, and conducting interviews with both U.S. and foreign government sources as well as industry representatives, including individual firms, trade associations, marketers, exporters, and importers.  For the rice industry assessment, Bonarriva said USITC plans to visit production facilities in Arkansas, attend the Outlook Conference in December, and travel to India, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia to complete the international fieldwork.

The final report, due to the House Ways & Means Committee on April 14, 2015, will be a comparison of the competitive strengths and weaknesses of rice production and exports in the United States and other major exporting countries.  Committee members will get a comprehensive look at factors such as producer revenue and costs of production, industry structure, input prices and availability, processing technology, product innovation, exchange rates, pricing, and marketing regimes, as well as government policies and programs that directly or indirectly affect rice production and exporting.

"Subsidies to foreign producers by their governments are behind substantial competition in traditional U.S. markets," said Mark Denman, chairman of the USA Rice Federation.  "Ms. Bonarriva's presentation today couldn't have been timelier, getting our members up-to-speed on all the details of the assessment process.  We look forward to the USITC investigation to provide information that the rice industry can use to educate the administration and Congress."

"I'm pleased this investigation is finally getting underway, and must acknowledge the support we received from leaders in Congress such as Representative Charles Boustany (R-LA)," said Betsy Ward, USA Rice's president and CEO.  "It should be noted that during the course of this investigation, the USITC will contact USA Rice members for information.  I can't urge strongly enough - if they ask for your input, please provide it in a timely manner." 

Ward added that the industry plans on hosting USITC representatives at rice field days this summer as another means of showing investigators  how the U.S. industry works.  

Rice and Ducks Take Center Stage at RMA Convention

Duck and Rice Advocates Al Montna (l) and Betsy Ward

Ward explained the partnership was formed in 2013 so the groups could pool energy and resources and work collaboratively to conserve three critical natural and economic resources that are common to both groups: working rice lands, water, and waterfowl.

Montna, who also chairs the USA Rice-Ducks Unlimited Conservation Stewardship Task Group, spoke of the many successes the partnership has achieved in a relatively short time.

"We commissioned a major study to scientifically demonstrate the very real and positive link between rice and ducks and other waterfowl," he said. "A DU research team, led by Dr. Mark Petrie, showed the overlap of rice lands and waterfowl habitat in the California Central Valley, the Mississippi Alluvial Valley,

May 2014 Press Conference on Rice and Ducks

and the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast and put a price tag on how important working rice lands are for the birds."

Montna added that the study is so important, and was so well done, the Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Jason Weller, asked to be a part of the study's unveiling at a press conference at USDA headquarters earlier this year.

"Our partnership with Ducks Unlimited is vitally important as all segments of our industry work together to ensure working rice lands remain working rice lands," said Ward.

House Agriculture Subcommittee Calls New NRCS Interpretive Rule into Question

Representative Rick Crawford

WASHINGTON, DC - The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Energy, and Forestry Chairman Glenn "GT" Thompson (R-PA) held a hearing yesterday on the interpretive rule on the Clean Water Act introduced by USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS).

Subcommittee Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) opened the hearing with remarks about the need for more certainty for farmers and the need to incentivize conservation.

Among the witnesses called to testify was USDA Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment Robert Bonnie who maintained that compliance with the 56 conservation practices would remain voluntary.

Representative Rick Crawford (R-AR) said, "The NRCS has been seen for many years as a body of technical knowledge and now it seems to be more of a regulatory body. It's very disappointing."

The subcommittee also heard testimony from Don Parrish of the American Farm Bureau Federation, Chip Bowling of the National Corn Growers Association, Andy Fabin a producer from Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Scott Kovarovics of the Izaac Walton League of America. All expressed concern for whether conservation practices would even be possible for farmers and ranchers under this rule.

The comment period is open for EPA's "Waters of the U.S." rule until October 20, 2014 and the comment period for the interpretive rule has been extended until July 07, 2014.

Nominations Open for 2014 Rice Awards 

MEMPHIS, TN -  Rice Farming magazine is now accepting nominations for the 2014 Rice Awards. The three categories are Rice Farmer of the Year, Rice Industry Award, and Rice Lifetime Achievement Award.

To access the nomination form, please click here.

It also is helpful to send letters of recommendation for the nominee from other individuals in the rice industry who are familiar with his/her accomplishments.

A panel of judges from across the Rice Belt will select the recipients of the 2014 Rice Awards. The deadline for submitting nominations is July 25, 2014 and the award recipients will be honored at the December 2014 USA Rice Outlook Conference in Little Rock, Arkansas.  

The Rice Awards are sponsored by Rice Farming, Horizon Ag, and the USA Rice Federation.

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