IT is yet another record-breaking year for the local rice industry as the latest figures show that production stands at well over 514,000 tonnes with six percent of lands still to be harvested, which means annual production could touch the 540,000-tonne mark

This is not surprising, as it was predicted that production would have surpassed the 500-tonne mark following a record-breaking trend over the previous two years when the 400-tonne mark was surpassed. That was considered remarkable and therefore this year’s production is even more remarkable.
So the highest commendations are in order for all the players in the industry, particularly our hard-working and resilient rice farmers who, over the years, have stood up to the challenges and obstacles in a most resolute manner.
The trend over the last few years has been one of increasing rice production, but in 2011 for the first time we passed the 400-tonne mark and this was repeated in 2012. Now, for this year, a new barrier has been broken with the passing of the 500-tonne mark. This is a huge increase over 2012 and if this trend continues at the current rate, in a few years we could even reach the 1,000,000 tonne mark, which would bring us in line with the world’s largest producers of rice such as China, India, Thailand, Vietnam, etc.
Our task ahead, therefore, is to explore new and emerging global markets because our local market is a small one. This is a crucial and critical issue because if we cannot get markets to facilitate increasing production it will result in putting the rice industry in a tailspin, which we would not want because of the dire economic consequences.
The latest release from the Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) indicated that global rice consumption in 2013 is forecast to touch around 409 million tonnes, up about 2% from last year. This could mean a bigger market for rice and perhaps we could explore the possibility of tapping into such a market.
Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy noted that the rice industry is producing extremely well, and would continue to set new records. He added that “each crop seems to be breaking a new record”, and related that, given where the industry started out this year — with many challenges, including an upsurge of paddy bugs, particularly in the first crop, its performance shows that the industry keeps responding to its challenges.
“So whilst paddy bug was expected to be a major problem this year, the actions taken have resulted in the paddy bug impact being far less than we expected; and that shows that, if one acts early, you could really find answers to the problem,” he said.
A high population of paddy bugs had caused some damage to the rice in the first crop, and there was a resurgence of this infestation in the second crop. However, owing to Government’s programmes and interventions of the Guyana Rice Development Board(GRDB) and the Rice Producers Association(RPA), the situation was brought under control.
But what has been responsible for the remarkable increase in rice production? This achievement did not come about through an accident or a miracle; rather, it was because the government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, formulated, implemented and sustained sound and visionary agricultural policies and programmes, especially when one considers that when this government took office the rice industry was on its knees in a virtual state of collapse.
Production was at its lowest ebb as the number of rice-growing families had declined from 45,000 in 1964 to about 23,000 by the late 1980s. This unfortunate situation came about because of neglect of the industry which saw a lack of sound agricultural policies and programmes and little or no investment in agricultural infrastructure and research and training.
Today, there are greater investments in agricultural infrastructure, education and training of farmers, research and more guaranteed markets as well.
So our rice industry has taken off to unprecedented heights and every effort should be made to maintain this trend of continuous increases in production, as this will not benefit only the rice industry, but will also benefit our national economy and help improve the well-being of all our people.