NEW DELHI: A reduction in exports from India and possible imports to the tune of two million tonnes plus is unlikely to spark another global food crisis.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organizationn (FAO) has said that drought in India may slash rice output in the world’s second-largest grower by about 18 %t this year, cutting global supplies available for importers.
India’s absence in the export market may curb supplies at a time when global stockpiles are forecast by the FAO to drop 3 % to 117.4 million MT by the end of the 2009-2010 season.
However, a news report on Oryza,the global online rice network, quoted Concepcion Calpe, senior economist at the UN Food and Agriculture Organization said that a reduction in exports from India, which already has a ban on shipments of non-basmati rice, is unlikely to spark another food crisis.Currently, Thailand and Viet Nam, two of the world's biggest rice exporters, are locked in a tug of war to clinch crucial rice markets.
More worrying than India's rice imports next year will be that of Philippines, the world's biggest importer, which has hit by dual natural disasters that devastated a significant part of the country's paddy crop of the new season. The quantum of imports is expected to be announced this week. But the combined effect of the two big rice shoppers next March/April, experts surmise, could push up prices much higher than the discounted prices offered by Thailand and Viet Nam this year.
Protests broke out last year after export curbs by major producers including India, Vietnam and China raised fears of a food crisis. Global rice prices soared to a record as inventories declined, prompting governments around the world to secure domestic supplies as importers scrambled for shipments.
Source : The Economic Times