Thursday, 05 July 2012
By Rann Reuy
Phnom Penh Post
Pou
Puy, president of the Cambodian Rice Millers Association, said that the
export of Cambodia’s white rice faces challenges in terms of both
quantity and competitive pricing, as exports of milled rice dropped
about 35 per cent for the first half of 2012 compared to the same period
in 2011.
He said it is difficult to compete with Vietnam. “Our
quantity cannot compete. It is a challenge we think will take a long
time to beat.”
Lim Bun Heng, president of Cambodian Milled Rice
Exporters, said that although Cambodia’s white rice exports dropped in
the first half of the year, the export of fragrant milled rice rose over
50 per cent compared to the same period last year.
Milled rice
exports decreased by around 40,000 tonnes for the first six months of
this year which amounts to exports of about 78,000 tonnes, compared to
120,000 tonnes for the same period last year, according to data from the
Ministry of Agriculture yesterday.
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Chan Sarun said in yesterday’s meeting that the drop in exporting
milled rice to international markets may cause difficulties in meeting
Prime Minister Hun Sen’s milled rice exports plan for 2012. “I am
concerned about when we reach the end of the year as our export volume
may be lower than expected.”
He added that Cambodia has a rice
surplus of about 4.87 million tonnes this year, and the paddy rice
surplus would reach 5 million tonnes next year, if there were no natural
disasters. However most of the paddy rice would be absorbed by
neighbouring countries’ markets.
Most big exporters experienced
some obstacles in exporting milled rice from the Kingdom including the
price of the rice compared to neighbouring countries, the ability to
provide a product when supply is limited, and the lack of capital to
purchase rice.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rann Reuy at reuy.rann@phnompenhpost.com
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