Capita Consumption Of Rice Research Articles

Changing food consumption patterns in rural and urban Vietnam: Implications for a future food supply system

Rapid income growth and urbanisation could significantly change the composition of the food basket in many emerging economies. This study estimates a demand system, including 15 major food items in Vietnam, with multiyear household survey data. We find a large variation in the estimated price elasticities (–0.05 to –0.88) and expenditure elasticities (–0.16 to 2.56). Food types, urban status and income groups can explain this variation. We also find that the staple food, rice, is already an inferior good for rich urban households in Vietnam. Moreover, food preferences are evolving away from rice but towards animal proteins (fish, pork, chicken, eggs and milk), fruits and vegetables, irrespective of urban status and income groups. As the Vietnam economy continues to grow with a doubling of gross domestic product (GDP) in the next decade, per capita rice consumption in both urban and rural areas and across different income groups will continue to decline, whereas demand for other high‐value products will rise. Thus, government policy should focus on encouraging demand‐oriented food production. In addition, crop diversification at the farm level needs to improve substantially to meet the rising demand for these food products due to income growth and urbanisation.

Arsenic, cadmium, and lead contents of rice imported into Qatar-impact on intake

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine arsenic, cadmium and lead contents of rice imports and to estimate their impact on these heavy metal intakes in Qatar.Design/methodology/approachIn total, 30 rice samples imported from various countries (Vietnam, Thailand, India, Pakistan, the USA, Australia, the UK and Lebanon) were analyzed for arsenic, cadmium and lead contents with plasma optical spectrometer. These heavy metal intakes from rice were estimated for Qatar population based on the per capita consumption of rice as per 2018 rice consumption data.FindingsIn all rice samples, mean concentrations of arsenic, cadmium and lead were 1.11 mg/kg, 19.7 µg/kg and 131.3 µg/kg, respectively. Average arsenic, cadmium and lead contents were the highest in rice imported from Thailand (1.25 mg/kg), Vietnam (30 µg/kg) and India (178.3 µg/kg), respectively. Estimated arsenic, cadmium and lead intakes through rice consumption by Qatari population were 225.7, 4 and 26.7 µg/day, respectively.Originality/valueIn all rice imports, arsenic content is approximately 5.5 times higher than the maximum allowable concentration (MAC), whereas the cadmium and lead levels are within the MAC. Because these heavy metals are linked to health, all Middle Eastern countries that import rice from Thailand, Vietnam and India should monitor the metal contents in their food supply on a regular basis.

Consumption of rice, acceptability and sensory qualities of fortified rice amongst consumers of social safety net rice in Nepal.

IntroductionMicronutrient deficiencies are prevalent in Nepal where starchy foods constitute a large proportion of diets and consumption of micronutrient-rich foods is inadequate. We conducted a study to determine whether rice would be an appropriate vehicle for micronutrient fortification in Nepal.Materials and methodsIn Bajura in remote rural Nepal, we conducted a household survey to characterize rice intakes in 195 households, and a double-blinded acceptability test with 177 social safety net rice consumers ≥18 years of age. Of these, 168 tasted fortified and unfortified rice to assess whether respondents could differentiate between fortified and non-fortified rice and their sensory properties. Rice was fortified by blending hot extruded kernels containing 6 micronutrients together with non-fortified rice at a 1:99 ratio. We used binomial tests to assess whether participants could correctly differentiate fortified rice, from non-fortified rice and paired t-tests to compare scores for sensory qualities of cooked fortified and non-fortified rice. We used multiple regression to test associations between per capita consumption and age, gender, wealth and food security.ResultsPer capita consumption of rice (median 216g/day, IQR 144.0, 288.0) did not vary by wealth but was +52.08g, (95% CI 10.43, 93.72) higher amongst moderately to severely food insecure households compared with food secure / mildly food insecure. Most respondents could not differentiate fortified rice from non-fortified rice: 37.5% identified uncooked fortified rice and 39.3% cooked rice, which was not different from the 33% expected by chance (p = 0.22 and p = 0.09 respectively). The sensory qualities of fortified rice were acceptable (scoring 3.9 out of 5) and did not differ from non-fortified rice (p>0.05).ConclusionA rice fortification programme implemented through the Nepal Food Corporation’s social safety nets has potential because purchase and consumption of rice is high and fortified rice is acceptable among consumers in remote food insecure areas of Nepal.

Permintaan Pangan Sumber Karbohidrat di Indonesia

<p>Rice is the main staple food for Indonesian population. At the same time, per capita consumption of wheat products has increased annually. One of main government policies related to food consumption is to accelerate food and nutrition diversification based on local food sources. Objective of this study was to understand demand for various carbohydrate food sources at household level by introducing socio-economic variables such as household size, wife working status, and characteristics of household head. This research used Susenas 2017 data at national level. Demand for food was estimated by the AIDS model. Rice was still as the most favorable carbohydrate source for Indonesian people. Bread and processed food were categorized as luxurious; while rice, wheat flour, cereals, and roots were as normal goods. Own-price demand elasticity for rice, wheat flour, cereals, and roots were elastic, meanwhile for bread and prepared foods were inelastic. Reducing per capita rice consumption, among others, should be conducted by increasing knowledge and awareness of household members of the importance of food consumption diversification. The government should be aware of the continuing increase in wheat flour imports in line with national economic growth due to high income elasticity for bread and processed food.</p><p> </p><p>Abstrak</p><p>Pangan sumber karbohidrat yang merupakan pemasok utama energi untuk menjalankan aktivitas sehari-hari penduduk Indonesia masih didominasi oleh beras. Bersamaan dengan itu, konsumsi pangan/kapita berasal dari gandum meningkat setiap tahunnya. Di fihak lain, Indonesia memiliki beragam pangan lokal sumber karbohidrat. Salah satu kebijakan utama pemerintah terkait konsumsi pangan adalah mempercepat diversifikasi pangan dan gizi berbasis pangan lokal. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui permintaan pangan berbagai komoditas sumber karbohidrat di tingkat rumah tangga dengan memasukkan variabel sosial ekonomi yaitu jumlah anggota rumah tangga, status istri bekerja, dan karakterestik kepala keluarga. Penelitian ini menggunakan data Susenas tahun 2017 untuk tingkat nasional dari BPS. Permintaan pangan dianalisis dengan menggunakan model AIDS. Hasil analisis mengkonfirmasi bahwa beras masih menjadi komoditas sumber karbohidrat yang paling diminati masyarakat. Roti dan makanan jadi merupakan golongan pangan mewah sedangkan beras, terigu, padi-padian, serta umbi merupakan barang normal. Elastisitas harga sendiri untuk permintaan komoditas beras, terigu, padi-padian, dan umbi bersifat inelastis sedangkan roti dan makanan jadi tergolong elastis. Dari hasil penelitian ini disarankan upaya pengurangan konsumsi beras/kapita diantaranya dilakukan melalui peningkatan pengetahuan dan kesadaran anggota rumah tangga mengenai manfaat diversifikasi pangan dan gizi untuk memelihara hidup sehat dan produktif. Pemerintah perlu mewaspadai berlanjutnya peningkatan impor terigu sejalan dengan pertembuhan ekonomi nasional karena roti dan makanan jadi memiliki elastisitas pendapatan yang tinggi.</p>

An international comparison of rice consumption behaviours and greenhouse gas emissions from rice production

Rice is a staple food for over half the global population and is mostly produced by smallholders. Rice cultivation at global level is responsible for over 10% of global agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and about 1.3%–1.8% of the anthropogenic GHG emissions. Taking time series data from the World Bank, Food and Agriculture Organisation, International Rice Research Institute and United States Department of Agriculture, this study aims to compare the trends and magnitudes of rice yield, per capita rice consumption and its relationships with per capita income and life expectancy, as well as CH4 and N2O emissions from rice farming among the eight different countries (China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Indonesia) which, collectively, account for about 82.05% of the global rice production and 78.23% of the global rice consumption. Moreover, agricultural practices as a whole in these eight countries is responsible for 35% of global agricultural emissions. Over the 54 year period of study from 1961 to 2014, rice yield increased significantly in all countries; however, the current pace is not sufficient to meet the increasing demands. Similarly, results suggest that the generalisation of rice consumption behaviour—as normal or inferior goods—is misleading and is largely influenced by the culture, norms, values and beliefs of a given country. Although the absolute amounts of GHG emissions from rice cultivation has increased in all countries during the study period, the corresponding emission intensities have declined sharply, mainly due to the rapid increase in yield. Among the eight countries, China and Vietnam's performance was better in terms of their increased yield, decreasing rates of emissions intensity and a lower water footprint whilst Thailand's performance was poorest. The differences between the different countries and practices which enable more rice to be produced with less water, energy and land are also discussed.

Perkembangan Konsumsi dan Proyeksi Permintaan Beras di Indonesia

This paper describes some analysis results of Susenas data on rice consumption in Indonesia during 1990-1993 and its projection in the future. The results show that participating rate of rice consumption in some provinces is increasing . Based on the participating rate, demand for local rice tended to increase during the period of 1990-1993. However, in rice-producing provinces demand for rice of improved varieties were greater than that for local rice. For the period of 1990-1993 per capita rice consumption decreased in most of the provinces, except in provinces where rice consumption was low, such as provinces of Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, East Nusa Tenggara, North Sulawesi, South-east Sulawesi and Irian Jaya. Demand function analysis showes that income elasticity of rice was still positive but its elasticity values tend to decline. On the other hand, income elasticities on per capita rice consumption in regions of low per capita rice consumption were greater relatively than those in region of high per capita rice consumption. Projection of rice consumption and production for the period of 1993-2003 show that domestic rice production (in the normal climate) was still higher than rice consumption demand. It meant that rice self-sufficiency could be maintained. Increase of rice import volume, especially in 1995 which was more than 2 million tons was more affected by domestic rice production decline due to drought. Furthemore, rice import policy is an important part of national rice stock management to stabilise rice price, including to fulfill rice package for civil servants/military.

Rice Grain Quality and Consumer Preferences: A Case Study of Two Rural Towns in the Philippines.

Hedonic pricing analysis is conducted to determine the implicit values of various attributes in the market value of a good. In this study, hedonic pricing analysis was applied to measure the contribution of grain quality search and experience attributes to the price of rice in two rural towns in the Philippines. Rice samples from respondents underwent quantitative routine assessments of grain quality. In particular, gelatinization temperature and chalkiness, two parameters that are normally assessed through visual scores, were evaluated by purely quantitative means (differential scanning calorimetry and by digital image analysis). Results indicate that rice consumed by respondents had mainly similar physical and chemical grain quality attributes. The respondents’ revealed preferences were typical of what has been previously reported for Filipino rice consumers. Hedonic regression analyses showed that grain quality characteristics that affected price varied by income class. Some of the traits or socioeconomic factors that affected price were percent broken grains, gel consistency, and household per capita rice consumption. There is an income effect on rice price and the characteristics that affect price vary between income classes.

Essential and non-essential/toxic elements in rice available in the Portuguese and Spanish markets

Eighty-six rice samples, representing the most common rice brands sold in Portuguese and Spanish markets (either locally produced or imported), were analyzed for their content of 35 essential and non-essential/toxic elements using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The mean content of essential elements was: 1189mg/kg (P), 746mg/kg (K), 294mg/kg (Mg), 84.7mg/kg (Ca), 13.3mg/kg (Zn), 8.8mg/kg (Na), 8.3mg/kg (Mn), 7.5mg/kg (Fe), 1.9mg/kg (Cu), 0.55mg/kg (Mo), 0.18mg/kg (Se) and 0.12mg/kg (Co). However, significant differences exist between the different types of rice, with brown rice showing the highest content of most essential elements. The daily intake of essential elements resulting from the average Iberian (Portugal and Spain) per capita consumption of rice was calculated and its contribution to the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) or Adequate Intake (AI) was estimated. Data showed that rice can be an important dietary source of P, Zn, Mn, Cu, Mo and Se but does not significantly contribute to the daily dietary intake of Ca, Na and Fe. The content of toxic elements was very low, indicating that rice can be regarded as a very safe food.

Estimates of Per Capita Consumption of Food Grains in Bangladesh

It is generally argued that the estimates of per capita consumption of food grains in Bangladesh are grossly underestimated due to the failure of comprehensively taking into account the consumption of food items made of rice and wheat at home and outside. To give some insight into this debate, this study revisited the per capita consumption of food grains through a primary survey of a nationally representative sample in 2012 by considering a comprehensive list of 36 food grains items that are consumed at both home and outside. The findings of this study show that the per capita consumption of food grains estimated from the BIDS survey, 2012 is higher than that reported by the BBS estimates based on the HIES 2010. Using the LA/AIDS model, the projection shows that the demand for both rice and wheat will decrease in both rural and urban areas, albeit marginally. The estimated per capita consumption of rice and wheat, the price and income elasticities thereof, and the consequent projections can be used as instruments for the integrated and effective planning on food grains distribution and management in Bangladesh. Moreover, BBS and other organisations involved in foodgrain consumption estimates may consider the methodologies applied in this study in their future surveys and research studies.

Where Pakistan Stands Among Top Rice Exporting Countries, an Analysis of Competitiveness

AbstractUnder the umbrella of WTO, the reduction in trade barriers has forced the policy makers to focus on the export competitiveness. Rice is an important source for foreign exchange earnings for the economy of Pakistan, keeping in mind of this fact, the competitiveness of Pakistan's rice with other major exporters was examined by applying revealed competitive advantage. The domestic consumption trends of rice among the major rice exporting countries were also analyzed in the current study. The results revealed that as compare to other major exporters of rice in the world, Pakistan had high competitive and comparative advantage in the production of rice. The comparison of the movements in comparative advantage indices for Pakistan with the major world rice competitors/exporters showed that Pakistan possessed relatively high comparative and competitive advantages in rice production. The declining domestic per capita consumption of rice and increasing trends in competitiveness for Pakistan clearly revealed the expected potential of higher growth which meant that rice exports from Pakistan could continue to play an important role for the earnings of foreign exchange. In order to exploit the potential benefits of rice exports, we need to strengthen the competitiveness in rice sector of Pakistan.

Presence of arsenic in Sri Lankan rice

Arsenic and heavy metals are implicated in causation of CKDu among farmers in dry zone of Sri Lanka. Rice has been identified as a major source of arsenic in research carried out in other countries. We analyzed 120 samples of new improved varieties (NIVs) and 50 samples of traditional varieties (TV) of rice for total arsenic content. Rice cultivated in Sri Lanka is contaminated with arsenic. Agrochemical dependent NIVs contain considerable amount (20.6 -540.4 μg/Kg) of arsenic. There is no difference between the arsenic content in NIV rice samples from areas where there is high or low prevalence of CKDu. TVs that are cultivated without using agrochemicals contain significantly less arsenic (11.6 - 64.2 μg/Kg). However, it is evident that the TVs also contain toxic metals if they are grown with fertilizers and pesticides. A high proportion of arsenic in rice exists in the inorganic form. Sri Lanka is a nation with high per capita consumption of rice. Codex Alimentarius recommends the maximum allowable limit for inorganic arsenic in rice as 200 μg/kg. Assuming that 70% of the total arsenic content exists in the inorganic form, this corresponds to a level of about 286 μg/kg of total arsenic. As such, 11.6% of the samples of NIVs exceeded this maximum recommended level in polished rice. Inorganic arsenic is a non-threshold carcinogen. Research should be focused on developing rice varieties that do not retain arsenic within the rice grain.

Application of multi-level model in study of relationship between soil cadmium contamination and people's urinary cadmium level

Based on the characteristics of hierarchical data, a multilevel model was used to analysis possible influencing factors of urinary cadmium levels in one county population, and to discuss the advantages of multilevel model for processing hierarchical data in practical problems. In May 2013, 1 460 participants aged 20 and above in 12 administrative villages in one county in central China were recruited by cluster sampling. Urinary cadmium level and its possible influencing factors were investigated, and cadmium level in farmland soil of survey area was also tested. A total of 1 410 participants completed the survey and met the inclusion criterion. 318 farmland samples in survey area were detected. According to the data, individuals were set as the level one unit, and the village was set as level two unit. the data were analyzed by MIXED procedure for hierarchical data of SAS 9.3 software. In the case of not considering the hierarchy of data, the general linear model was fitted by SAS 9.3 software, and the fitting results of the two models were compared. A total of 1 410 participants were included finally, the age was (55.2 ± 11.1) years. 645 (45.74%) were males and 765 (54.26%) were females. The amount of household per capita consumption of rice was (100.9 ± 40.3) kg/y. All 18.65% (262/1 410) of the participants had mining and mineral separation work experience. The urinary cadmium level was (9.39 ± 2.16) µg/g Cr. Most of the soil cadmium levels in villages were greater than tolerance value. The fitting results of general linear model suggested that whether doing mining and mineral separation work does not have significant difference (χ(2) = 1.05, P = 0.305). There was significant difference in the village soil cadmium levels, age, the amount of household per capita consumption of rice, and gender (χ(2) = 401.39, 34.9, 4.16 and 86.15, respectively, P < 0.01, <0.01, 0.041, <0.01, respectively). The fitting result of empty model showed the ICC was 0.435 5, the urinary cadmium had clustering at village level. The results of multilevel model showed that the explanatory variables of the village soil cadmium levels, age, the amount of household per capita consumption of rice and gender had significant difference (Wald χ(2) values 2.55, 6.34, 2.37 and 10.32, respectively, P = 0.029, <0.01, = 0.018 and <0.01), while whether doing mining and mineral separation work had no significant difference (χ(2) = 0.78, P = 0.438). To the fitting optimization index using for the comparison of models, the results of multilevel model were less than that of general linear model. The regression coefficient of level-2 explanatory variable (the village soil cadmium levels) was 0.84, which could explain the 35.26% of the total variance. Multilevel model could analyze hierarchical data more reasonably than general linear model. Urinary cadmium levels is highly influenced by the village soil cadmium levels.

Impacts of climate change on rice market and production capacity in the Lower Mekong Basin

The supply of water is affected by climate changes. In addition, high economic growth in the lower Mekong River countries including two large rice exporters is expected to reduce the per capita consumption of rice as incomes grow. Consequently, the need exist to investigate changes in supply and demand using econometric models of rice markets in the countries, where water supplies are expected to change. The objective of this research is to clarify impacts of water supply changes on rice producers and consumers using supply and demand models of rice considering changes in the water supply to aid in producing agricultural policies and plans. The following two simulations were conducted in this assessment: (a) baseline and (b) CC_B2. The simulation of the baseline includes the assumption that the evapotranspiration (ET) of each province after 2000 is the average quantity of ET from 1995 to 1999. The simulation of the CC_B2 includes the assumptions that ET of each province after 2010 accords with the IPCC socioeconomic scenario B2. The simulation results suggest that climate change will depress wet season rice production in Cambodia and Mekong River Delta (MRD) region in Vietnam, and that of dry season rice in the MRD region in Vietnam and northeastern region (Isan) Thailand. The simulation results also indicate that climate change will increase farm prices of rice in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Thailand. The results suggest that climate changes will weigh on the livelihood of rice consumers, especially those of poor rural populations.

Iron Biofortification of Myanmar Rice

Iron (Fe) deficiency elevates human mortality rates, especially in developing countries. In Myanmar, the prevalence of Fe-deficient anemia in children and pregnant women are 75 and 71%, respectively. Myanmar people have one of the highest per capita rice consumption rates globally. Consequently, production of Fe-biofortified rice would likely contribute to solving the Fe-deficiency problem in this human population. To produce Fe-biofortified Myanmar rice by transgenic methods, we first analyzed callus induction and regeneration efficiencies in 15 varieties that are presently popular because of their high-yields or high-qualities. Callus formation and regeneration efficiency in each variety was strongly influenced by types of culture media containing a range of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid concentrations. The Paw San Yin variety, which has a high-Fe content in polished seeds, performed well in callus induction and regeneration trials. Thus, we transformed this variety using a gene expression cassette that enhanced Fe transport within rice plants through overexpression of the nicotianamine synthase gene HvNAS1, Fe flow to the endosperm through the Fe(II)-nicotianamine transporter gene OsYSL2, and Fe accumulation in endosperm by the Fe storage protein gene SoyferH2. A line with a transgene insertion was successfully obtained. Enhanced expressions of the introduced genes OsYSL2, HvNAS1, and SoyferH2 occurred in immature T2 seeds. The transformants accumulated 3.4-fold higher Fe concentrations, and also 1.3-fold higher zinc concentrations in T2 polished seeds compared to levels in non-transgenic rice. This Fe-biofortified rice has the potential to reduce Fe-deficiency anemia in millions of Myanmar people without changing food habits and without introducing additional costs.

Crops that feed the world 7: Rice

Fears about global food security led to a spike in food prices in 2008, social unrest and pushed a further 100 million people into poverty. Prices remain high and volatile. In this paper we take a closer look at rice, a crop that feeds billions of people in the world, and focus in particular on Asia and Africa. On both continents, rice is grown in a wide range of climatic conditions, from river deltas to mountainous regions. Irrigated systems dominate in Asia and rainfed systems in Africa. Predicted demands for rice remain strong. An additional 116 million tons of rice will be needed by 2035 to feed growing populations. In Africa, where rice is the most rapidly growing food source, about 30 million tons more rice will be needed by 2035, representing an increase of 130% in rice consumption from 2010. About one-third of this extra rice will be needed in Nigeria alone. In Asia, per capita consumption of rice may go down in some mid- and high-income countries. Rice farming will need to produce about 8–10 million tons more paddy per year over the next decade. Without area expansion this will require an annual yield increase of about 1.2–1.5%, equivalent to an average yield increase of 0.6 t ha−1 world-wide. Improving global food security will, therefore, necessitate concerted efforts to increase the productivity of rice per unit of land, water and/or labor in Asia and Africa, and the development of new land and water resources in a responsible and equitable manner to counteract losses due to urbanization and industrialization. During 2007–2011, productivity increases in Africa have been leading the way, with paddy rice production levels increasing by 9.5% per year, compared to 1.6% in Asia. Priorities for rice sector development include (i) continued and increased research efforts to close yield gaps and raise yield ceilings across rice growing environments through varietal development and improved rice production methods, and coping with climate change in both continents and (ii) strengthened and equitable public-private sector partnerships and conducive policy environments in Africa, with special emphasis on mechanization of rice farming from land preparation to harvest and rice processing practices.

Effect of Grain Shape and Pre-soaking on Cooking Time and Cooking Energy

Rice is the staple food of Sri Lankans with a per capita rice consumption of approximately 114 kg/year in 2010. Parboiled rice is gaining more popularity among Sri Lankans as it is healthier than raw rice. Households spend much of their energy on cooking, and parboiled rice consumes more energy than raw rice. A slender (Bg 94-1) and a medium (Bg 360) shaped rice varieties were selected and the optimum soaking duration was calculated using the Peleg's model. The optimum rice to water ratio was determined by cooking rice samples in a rice cooker till no opaque core was observed when pressed between two glass plates. A two factor factorial experiment was carried out to determine the cooking time and energy required for cooking considering the grain type and the precook condition (soaked, and un-soaked) using an electric rice cooker and a digital watt meter. The optimum soaking duration was found to be 150 min for Bg 94-1 and 44 min for Bg 360. The optimum rice: water ratio for cooking both rice varieties was 1:2.5. The main effect of both factors was significant (p&lt;0.05) while the interaction was not significant (p&ge;0.05) for both cooking energy and cooking time. Medium shaped rice variety required 18% less cooking time compared to slender rice variety. Moreover, the energy spent for cooking of medium variety was 19% less than that of the slender variety. Further, pre-soaking of grains up to 86% saturation was found to reduce cooking energy and time by 17 and 18%, respectively. <br /><br /><strong>Key words:</strong> Energy; Grains; Peleg's model; Pre-cook; Rice. <br /><br />DOI: 10.4038/tar.v22i2.2828<br /><br /><em>Tropical Agricultural Research</em> Vol. 22 (2): 194-203 (2011)

Effects of food consumption patterns on paddy field use in Taiwan

Societal metabolism and land use are significant and interrelated issues, and play a role in sustainable development. How a society's metabolism relates to local land use is typically affected by the particular context of the society under study, which is usually shaped by many factors, including economic, ecological, cultural, technological, and political factors. This study examines the effects of changes in food consumption patterns – decreasing per capita consumption of rice and increasing per capita consumption of wheat flour and meat – on the use of paddy fields in Taiwan. Although rice is grown domestically, wheat, which is a substitute for rice, is mainly imported. Moreover, the domestic livestock industry depends heavily on imported crops for low-cost feed. Accordingly, dietary changes have significantly decreased the demand for local paddy fields to grow crops. Additionally, the diversion of paddy fields to grow forage crops, which has been promoted by the Taiwanese government by guaranteeing prices for feed maize for 14 years, was discouraged when Taiwan joined the World Trade Organization in 2002, as Taiwan was required at that time to reduce by 20% its aggregate measure of support. The presented Taiwan case provides an empirical example of how a change in input characteristics (supply sources in a spatial dimension) of societal metabolism can, together with other factors, significantly affect local paddy fields, and discusses the underlying implications for sustainable development.

CONSUMER SENSORY TEST OF SEVEN VARIETIES OF RICE IN OSH (PILAF) AT FOUR DIFFERENT LOCATIONS IN UZBEKISTAN

ABSTRACT This study was done to determine if consumers in Uzbekistan would accept the Long Grain and Bengal rice varieties that are grown in South East Missouri for preparation of Osh. Three hundred and fifty eight consumers from Tashkent, Fergana, Namangan and Andijan participated in a consumer hedonic test involving overall acceptability of the rice varieties Avangard, Bengal, Chinese, Calrose, Devzira, Long Grain and RiceTec in Osh. A nine‐point hedonic scale was used to record acceptance of the participants. Analysis of variance and internal preference mapping were performed on the consumer data. Overall, it was seen that Devzira was the most accepted rice variety probably because of its popularity among the local Uzbeks. The mean acceptance score for Long Grain and Bengal (6.1 and 6.0, respectively) showed that the two rice samples were also acceptable to the majority of the consumers, which proved its potential to be exported to Uzbekistan from the U.S.A.PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSThe Central Asian countries that were part of the former Soviet Union import rice from countries such as Turkey and Thailand to supplement the needs of their general population. The per capita consumption of rice in Uzbekistan (∼12.0 kg/person/year) exceeds the production of rice there. Uzbekistan is an arid region that is not suitable for crops such as rice because it requires a lot of water. Other staple crops like cotton and wheat require less water, and hence fare better in this region. The U.S.A. has become a major player in the rice export industry, and is looking at these Central Asian countries to import rice while encouraging the governments there to grow other staple crops such as cotton and wheat.

Food security and government interventions: A study of Indian grain markets

This study examines the future of Indian food security in light of possible liberalization of its agriculture sector. Demand for major food grains such as wheat and rice is projected after taking into account possible dietary changes due to income growth, urbanization and other demographic changes. Policy Analysis Matrix (PAM) indicators are constructed to predict changes in supply patterns in the case of reduced government intervention. The projected demand growth suggests faster increases in per capita wheat consumption due to strong income growth and urbanization whereas per capita rice consumption is projected to level off in the next few years and then will likely decline steadily for the remainder of the projection period. This indicates that Indian wheat production may need to grow at a much faster rate than rice production in order to remain self-sufficient in the future. Based on the PAM ranking, this may be possible under reduced or no government interventions because of the comparative advantage of wheat over rice in the major growing regions.

Influence of Ripening Stages on the Quality of Whole Crop Silage and Grain Silage of Fodder Rice

In high-income Asian countries like Korea and Japan, per capita rice consumption has declined because of the change in consumer's favorite foods from rice to high-cost quality foods. This has forced farmers to reduce rice production. Although fodder rice could be another option to be cultured by farmers, available information concerning rice grain silage has been limited. In the present study, therefore, the difference in the quality of fodder rice silage prepared from either whole crop or grain at different ripening stages was compared. Various supplements were also added into whole crop and grain silages of fodder rice before ensiling, and thereafter, the palatability of prepared silages was determined by beef cattle. At ear emergence stage, the pH values for both grain and whole crop silages were approximately 4.5. In both grain and whole crop silages, the pH values were significantly increased by progressing ripening stages from milk-ripe stage to yellow-ripe stages, and the increase in pH value for grain silage was faster than that for whole crop silage. In the grain silage, the higher lactic acid (LA) content in grain silage seemed to be, the lower pH value was. Both in grain and whole crop silages, pH was significantly decreased by supplementation with LA bacteria. There were no significant differences in feed intake among any treatment groups. (Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci. 2005. Vol 18, No. 3 : 340-344)