USA Rice Daily
Up-to-the-Minute News on Issues and Activities
Monday, September 14, 2015
Update:  U.S./China Phytosanitary Agreement
 
Final pieces in place? 
ARLINGTON, VA -- The phytosanitary protocol that promises to pave the way for export trade with China appears to be tracking toward a successful resolution, maybe as soon as next week when China's President Xi Jinping is scheduled to visit the United States. However, USDA's Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) said this afternoon they are awaiting agreement on the language of the protocol from AQSIQ, their counterpart in China, before the deal can be finalized.
 
USA Rice President & CEO Betsy Ward said, "USA Rice has been at the forefront of this process for a very long time.  And while everyone is anxious to complete this deal, it's imperative that the operational details are in place that are in the best interest of the U.S. rice industry.  We will continue to work with APHIS as they finalize this deal and with our members on implementation of this unique protocol."

Contact:  Jim Guinn (703) 236-1474
National Rice Month Issue of Whole Grain Going to Press
Throwback cover celebrates NRM 
ARLINGTON, VA -- The September issue of USA Rice's award-winning publication, Whole Grain, is in production and should be in subscribers' mailboxes soon.
 
The special National Rice Month (NRM) edition features a cover story about the many facets of USA Rice's NRM activities that are designed to raise awareness, and encourage use, of U.S.-grown rice.
 
Readers will also enjoy a preview of the 2015 USA Rice Outlook Conference coming to New Orleans this December; a behind-the-scenes look at why Tariff Rate Quotas - though nobody's first choice when it comes to fair trade - do often bring great benefits to industry when implemented thoughtfully; as well as updates on Iraq, and a look at the surprise number one milled rice market for the U.S., Colombia.
 
All that and more, coming soon.
 
If you do not receive Whole Grain, would like to order a complimentary subscription for someone you know, or are interested in advertising in the newspaper, contact Colleen Klemczewski at (703) 236-1446 or cklem@usarice.com
 
Contact:  Michael Klein (703) 236-1458
Promote National Rice Month and Earn Scholarship Money
 
Get busy! 
ARLINGTON, VA -- During the month of September, students across the U.S. will be conducting rice promotional programs for entry in the annual National Rice Month (NRM) scholarship contest, sponsored by Dow AgroSciences.  Be on the lookout for promotions going on in your state to support scholarship applicants.  Encourage high school seniors to review the contest application and plan a promotion.   There is still time to compete!
 
Three scholarship prizes totaling $8,500 will be awarded.  The grand prize is a $4,000 scholarship and a trip to the scholarship presentation in December at the USA Rice Outlook Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Second place is a $3,000 scholarship and the third-place winner will receive $1,500.  Entries will be judged on their creativity and impact in promoting U.S.-grown rice, NRM, and the importance of rice in their state. For more details and the official contest entry form, visit the scholarship web page.
 
High school graduating students from rice-growing states -- Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Texas -- are eligible.  Entry forms are due October 15. 
 
Contact:  Amy Doane (703) 236-1454

Crop Progress:   2015 Crop 44 Percent Harvested   

WASHINGTON, DC -- Forty-four percent of the nation's 2015 rice acreage is harvested, according to today's U.S. Department of Agriculture's Crop Progress Report.

Rice Headed, Selected States 
Week Ending
State
 Sept 13, 2014  
Sept 6, 2015 
Sept 13, 2015
2010-2014 average
Percent
Arkansas
28
30
41
42
California
5
1
10
3
Louisiana
85
90
94
89
Mississippi
29
34
45
49
Missouri
12
2
24
Texas
89
76
93
95
Six States
35
35
44
44
CME Group/Closing Rough Rice Futures   
CME Group (Preliminary):  Closing Rough Rice Futures for September 14

Month
Price
Net Change
September 2015
$12.785
+ $0.185
November 2015
$12.995
+ $0.165
January 2016
$13.275
+ $0.165
March 2016
$13.490
+ $0.175
May 2016
$13.645
+ $0.200
July 2016
$13.735
+ $0.140
September 2016
$12.885
+ $0.075
November 2016
$12.885
UNCH

In the News
Science and Technology
The solutions to some of these problems, like drought and disease, lie in the genes of wild relatives of food crops. Botanists can screen them for valuable traits, and use the genes to breed new domestic varieties

For years, rice cereal has been the standby first food, likely because it's easily digestible. Yet what may surprise you is that babies at this age don't need rice cereal- or grains for that matter. They need complex carbohydrates like those found in sweet potatoes, which are an excellent source of energy, said Sara Peternell, a master nutrition therapist in Denver, Colo. and co-author of "Little Foodie: Baby Food Recipes for Babies and Toddlers with Taste."

The idea that prehistoric people didn't eat grain "is just wrong. It's misinformed," says Huw Barton of Britain's University of Leicester, who studies ancient starch grains. "People ate what they could get their hands on. Eating is surviving."
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