MSP (minimum support price) is a major demand from farmers for their produce across the country. This ensures a decent and minimum price for agriculture produce regardless of market forces controlled by middlemen.

India’s agricultural and processed food exports have grown at a steady pace in the last decade notwithstanding several logistical challenges faced in the global trade of the commodities, according to a year-ender released by Ministry of Commerce & Industry recently.

The Centre has conceded the demand of the Telangana government to purchase more rice from the state during the ongoing kharif season. It enhanced the procurement target by 6 lakh metric tonnes (LMT), from 40 LMT to 46 LMT.

The Civil Supplies-Criminal Investigation Department sleuths seized 23 tonnes of ration rice, meant for supply under the public distribution system and arrested six persons in this connection on December 26 night. They were identified as M. Ranjith, S. Velmurugan, U. Purushothaman, G. Perumal, M. Ramachandiran and M. Ramalingam.

Minister for municipal administration and urban development Botsa Satyanarayana on Thursday said that rice millers would be blacklisted if they failed to give bank guarantee for procurement of paddy from farmers by this Saturday.

Two Haryana government agencies involvement in the procurement of fortified rice kernels (FRK) have raised a red flag citing delays by five companies empanelled by the Haryana food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department in supplying the fortified rice kernels

On the issue of Parboiled rice, Goyal said that the Food Corporation of India had enough stocks to meet the demand for four years and the MoU with the State clearly says that the Food Corporation of India’s purchase of rice for the central pool will depend on the demand in the rest of the country.

Suryapet district police on Saturday busted adulterated rice bran racket that is being used as feed for fish farming. On a tip off, Suryapet, Kodad and Chivemla police in joint operation with officials of fisheries department officials conducted simultaneous joint raids at Sri Sai Traders at Amma Garden in Suryapet town, at Devarashetti Shankar’s warehouse located at New Agricultural Market in Suryapet town, Rice bran godowns located at Huzur Nagar Road in Kodad town and also at Palakurti Someshwara Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy trader located at Bibi Gudem in Chivemla mandal in the district

China has started importing Indian rice for the first time in at least three decades due to tightening supplies and an offer from India of sharply discounted prices, Indian industry officials told Reuters.

Egypt is a prominent rice market in the North African region with the country’s rice supply being tabulated at 60.9 kg paddy/capita/year. The demand is higher than production which makes the region dependent on rice imports. The government in the country imports rice from China, India, Thailand, and Russia.