RICE farmers have started to benefit from the rice export deal with Venezuela with farmers from Region Two recently receiving $136M in payments. This represents about 90% for their first two shipments which amounted to 2,000 tonnes.
The very lucrative Venezuelan market is paying higher prices than the current world market and this would be most helpful for farmers who should make optimum use of an excellent opportunity to get some extra cash.
The Ministry of Agriculture and the associated agencies must be congratulated for negotiating such a fine deal for the rice farmers who, for a number of years, were faced with uphill challenges because of adverse weather, high costs of inputs and low paddy prices.
A unique aspect of this deal is that farmers have the opportunity to sell their produce directly to the Venezuelan market thereby eliminating the middle men who normally would make more money than the farmers who are the producers of the commodity.
This was highlighted by Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud who noted that fewer middle men are involved, resulting in more disposable income for farmers and he contended that the Venezuela sales are important to move the rice sector forward.
However, he acknowledged that payment to farmers for their grains has been a perennial bugbear and urged the Region Two group to honour, in a timely way, their obligations to those who made the export a reality.
He also explained that involvement in the export was never about making huge profits but was rather an effort to stabilise paddy prices and ensure that planters get the best price possible. This was accomplished.
“As long as the market is there, we will continue with this arrangement”, he said.
According to him, farmers in Region Two receive G$3,300 for ‘Extra Grade A’ paddy, G$3,200 for ‘Grade A’, G$3,100 for ‘Grade B’ and G$3,000 for ‘Grade C’.
General Manager of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), Mr. Jagnarine Singh, made a most pertinent observation when he said the decision of the Region Two Farmers group, to take a leadership role in the export, has sent a strong signal across the rice sector.
He added that, by getting involved in exporting, the farmers, themselves, are given a further opportunity to improve their livelihood while still allowing the millers to make a tidy profit.
GRDB is responsible for ensuring equitable allocation to those who expressed interest in filling the quota stated in the Venezuela agreement.
To date, since the shipping started last week, Mr. Singh said just more than 5,000 tonnes of paddy and 4,800 tonnes of white rice have been shipped and the full quota is expected to be delivered by January.
Once again, the ‘doubting Thomases’ have been proven wrong as many of them were throwing a ‘wet blanket’ and predicting that the deal will not fructify.
One cynic even went so far as to charge that farmers will not benefit from increased income because the deal is a barter arrangement.
Rice farmers should consolidate their gains from the good conditions they are now enjoying and make allowances for when the hard times come which often happen within the agriculture sector because high prices are not always guaranteed.
Agricultural products and commodities are always subject to market forces and therefore there are constant fluctuations in production, demand and prices.
In addition, the hazards of adverse weather patterns always hover over the heads of farmers and with the climate change phenomenon biting deeper, the frequency and intensity of adverse weather is likely to increase.
But for now, rice farmers are enjoying a fair degree of comfort and assurance with the lucrative Venezuelan market.