In This Issue:
USRPA Board Member Mark Pousson traveled to Washington D.C. this week, where he had the opportunity to visit and discuss all things rice with Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy. Senator Cassidy serves on the Senate Committee on Finance and Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, among others.
House Agriculture Committee holds hearing to consider producer perspectives on the 2023 farm bill
On Wednesday, the House Agriculture Committee Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Risk Management, and Credit held a hearing to receive input from producers across the agricultural sector on how farm bill commodity programs have worked for them. Representing rice was Mississippi farmer Kirk Satterfield. Of note in his testimony were commented on how Indian subsidization of rice negatively impacts U.S. rice producers. In response to questions from the Committee Satterfield suggested that an updated PLC reference price of $17 to $18 would more accurately reflect the cost of production of rice and that a PLC reference price for California medium grain rice should be a good bit higher. A recording of the hearing can be found here.
Resolutions introduced to repeal H-2A AEWR Rule
On Thursday, Congressional Review Act resolutions were introduced in both the House and Senate to prevent the implementation of the Department of Labor’s March 2023 Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) Rule. The AEWR determines pay for workers participating in the H-2A visa program. The resolution recognizes that the Department of Labor’s rule increases complexity and costs for farmers who use H-2A labor. In the House, the resolution was introduced by House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) and Reps. David Rouzer (R-NC) and Ralph Norman (R-SC). The House resolution has an additional 54 cosponsors. In the Senate, the effort is being led by Sens. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Ted Budd (R-NC) and has an additional 26 cosponsors.
| Planting continues to race forward where possible, with Arkansas significantly ahead of the 5-year average. The largest rice state is at 51/21% planted/emerged, compared to the 5-year average of 32/10%. Louisiana is at 86/81%, Mississippi at 39/11%, Missouri 63/12%, and Texas at 74/58%. All in all, both planting and emergence are ahead of schedule. Farmers in NE Arkansas and SE Missouri are expected to plant until June 1st. One Arkansas farmer commented that “Where I buy my seed, I was told last week I need to take the rest of mine because we’re selling so much rice seed, they couldn’t police it in their warehouse.” Tractors are running full steam over medium grain acreage in California, with some of the earliest seed planned to be flown this week. The market is largely on auto-pilot right now with growers so focused on sowing new crops with almost no supplies of old crops. The last tranche of Iraq business was a godsend to keep thruput up at the mills, as is the return of more steady purchases from Haiti. Everyone is excited about a larger crop to get export markets back, but competing exporters in South America are eying a similar rebound. A recent GAIN report on Argentina was released, and their story sounds like a direct parallel to that of the US. Short crops in recent years have increased prices, and with the drop in input costs compared to last year, favorable rains should result in a positive outcome for farmers and millers alike. While the drought resulting in the smallest soybean crop in the country has been stealing headlines, rice acres are expected to rebound in MY 2023/24. Production is forecast to increase by 845,000 MT milled basis, which is a jump of 24% over last year up to 470,000 acres. Exports are forecast to return to normal, up to 400,000 MT milled basis. The current crop year registered a record low for exports in the last 20 years (similar to the US). Per capita rice consumption hovers at approximately 20 lbs, which is lower than in many other South American countries. The harvest is approaching 80% complete at this point, and warm weather has resulted in more broken rice at mills than in normal years. A separate GAIN report on Paraguay was also published, which makes sense given that these two regions border one another through a key shared water source, the Rio Parana. The 2023/24 rice production is expected to crest a record, getting as high as 1.3 MMMT of rough production, or as many as 487,000 acres. Continued investment in the region is bolstering rice acreage, and it is expected that their production will continue to increase with each passing year. Just like Argentina, drought reduced acres last year, resulting in prices 26% higher than the year before and a very low carry-out. This low carryout, when coupled with the larger production this year results in exports that are expected to match last year at 711,000 MT milled basis. Paraguay is growing in its prominence as a reliable and quality supplier, having registered exports to 31 countries last year comprised of 42% milled, 32% brown rice, 16% paddy, and 10% brokens. As the USRPA looks to expand the sales of US rice into South America, Argentina and Paraguay can’t be overlooked as viable competitors. In Asia, prices held steady/firm, particularly in Vietnam where they didn’t move from last week at $480 pmt. In Thai prices have firmed at $485 pmt and are hinting at $490 pmt. The story is the same in India with record loadings and prices below $445pmt. The weekly USDA export sales report shows a bit of good news this time with net sales of 51,500 MT, up noticeably from the previous week and up 25% from the prior 4-week average. Exports of 80,400 MT were up noticeably the previous week and from the prior 4-week average as well.  |
US Rice Producers Association is excited to reconnect the U.S. rice industry again during the 2023 Rice Market and Technology Convention (RMTC). We can’t wait to reunite our industry from May 30th - June 1st in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Over the years, attendees have counted on the RMTC to stay ahead of emerging trends, see the latest industry solutions, and connect with friends and colleagues.
We are proud to bring together some of your favorite speakers as well as some new and exciting ones.
In This Issue:
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| All this and so much more Hard Rock Hotel Vallarta can offer while you stay. Book your extra treat in the Hard Rock Hotel link below or by email. Make sure to register and reserve your room for a special group rate. |
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| USRPA would like to welcome and introduce our newest member, Wildfong Enterprises. "There are many costs on a farm, and custom concaves from Wildfong Enterprises are an investment that returns on every acre with more grain in the bin. Whatever your crop or combine, they will have a concave solution to meet your needs." Contact and Learn More |
| House Fails to Overturn WOTUS VetoOn Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted to override President Biden’s veto on H.J. Res 27, which would have overturned the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule. Members voted 227-196 to override the veto, which falls short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the presidential veto. EPA Proposes Registration for New Pesticide Use on Rice (Pyraclonil)On Monday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released for public comment its proposed registration decision for granular pesticide products containing the new active ingredient pyraclonil to control weeds in water-seeded rice in California. EPA’s proposed registration decision includes measures to protect non-target organisms, including federally endangered and threatened (listed) species and their designated critical habitats. In addition to its proposed registration decision, EPA has also released its draft biological evaluation (BE) for this pesticide under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). After considering public comments on the proposed registration and the draft BE, EPA will determine whether the registration action meets the FIFRA standard and ESA obligations. If EPA determines that the registration action can be granted, EPA will finalize the BE. If a final BE continues to find that pyraclonil is likely to adversely affect listed species and/or their critical habitats, then EPA will initiate formal consultation and share its findings with the Services, as appropriate. EPA is accepting public comments on this proposal and its supporting documents via docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0004 at www.regulations.gov for the next 30 days. Agriculture Committee Hearings This Week with links to the hearings and summaries: House Committee on Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock Dairy, and Poultry “A Review of USDA Animal Disease Prevention and Response Efforts”(summary memo) House Committee on Agriculture “For the purpose of receiving testimony from The Honorable Michael Regan, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency” Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Subcommittee on Conservation, Climate, Forestry, and Natural Resources “Conservation in the Farm Bill: Making Conservation Programs Work for Farmers and Ranchers” Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Subcommittee on Food and Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Organics, and Research"SNAP and Other Nutrition Assistance in the Farm Bill” (summary memo) |
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