New scientific knowledge is allowing rice researchers to develop better quality rice varieties that could fetch a higher price from consumers, especially increasingly affluent rice consumers in Asia. A major international initiative is being launched to try to boost the income of the world's millions of poor rice farmers and at the same time provide consumers with more nutritious, better tasting food. The main aim of the new International Network for Quality Rice is to help rice breeders...

The way the program works, the more commodity crops like rice, corn or wheat a farmer grows, the more subsidy money he or she receives. And rice is one of a number of "commodity" crops that the federal government supports each year with subsidies. Butte and Glenn counties rank so high in subsidies because the north valley has some of the nation's best land for growing rice. Farm commodity support consists of direct payments to farmers who grow commodity crops, which in California are...

Although inflation has fallen below six per cent since the last three weeks, food and commodity prices are still high and the rupee is now overvalued by more than 15 per cent, hurting sectors like textile exports. Agriculture is slowing down and farm growth has crashed from six per cent during FY05, FY06 to a low 2.7 per cent now with crops like wheat, pulses and rice continuing to stagnate. Besides, as Indians get richer, they're traveling a lot more, boosting growth in sectors like...

Venezuela regulates exports of farming products Venezuela is implementing a so-called certificate of fulfillment of domestic demand intended to regulate exports of domestic inputs, goods and produces. This certificate will be required for exports of beef and pork -fresh, refrigerated or frozen- poultry and edible poultry offal. Any agreements Venezuela has entered into before enactment of this resolution shall prevail, and in transit exports will be given a 21-day term before...

In fact, the large delegation that participated in these talks expressed great interest in increasing trade which is limited to the agricultural sector and is one-way, according to the dictates of the U. These transactions, taking place under restricted conditions, represented a significant increase in financing costs for the island, estimated at some $21. IF travel and trade between the United States and Cuba were to be normalized, the first five years of those relations would yield an...