Potatoes as rice alternative

International rice prices have hit past $1,000/ton already yesterday, a historic high, and the trend is towards even higher price in the next few months. The Philippines – now the world’s biggest rice importer – is particularly at a disadvantage. With this situation, there are 2 major choices: bear the higher price and scrimp or save on viands and other household expenses, or shift to other rice alternatives – like potatoes.

Potatoes are more versatile than rice because they can be grown at any climate, from the hot tropics to the cold temperate continents, and at any elevation. Unlike rice, potatoes require very little water and they can mature in less than 2 months, whereas the short-duration rice varieties will mature in 3 months.

In addition, average yield for potatoes is at least twice that of rice. Potato farmers do not need threshers and millers; the product can be cooked and consumed without any laborious and complicated processing. And potatoes are rich in certain healthy substances like complex carbohydrates.

A number of the indigenous people in the Philippines like the Aetas eat sweet potato (locally known as ‘kamote’) more than rice. Well, they don’t have threshers and rice milling (facilities) in the mountains, so manual threshing and milling to extract rice from palay (unhusked rice) is another labor-intensive work, on top of rice planting, growing and harvesting work.

There are a number of problems and disadvantages in potatoes though, compared to rice. One is transportation: potatoes are heavy and may rot during transit. Second, raw potatoes cannot be stored for long in warehouses or stockrooms that are not refrigerated, unlike rice that can be stored for several months in one’s kitchen at normal temperature.

Commercial potato traders can take care of the storage problem. The never-ending spikes in rice prices will surely push some people to slowly shift to potatoes, where there are several hundreds if not thousands, of different varieties.

When people do this, especially the poor, governments need not create new bodies like a ‘Potato Development Authority’ because this might distort the incentive system between producers and consumers. The latter will always look for food products that can satisfy their hunger and nutritional needs at affordable prices, whether these are rice or cassava, bananas or potatoes. And producers and traders respond to the changing taste and preferences of consumers.

At no other time in modern agricultural history, more people now should be in productive food production, trading and processing work, and less on unproductive regulatory work. That’s the only way if we are to expand food production, avoid hunger and the social ills associated with it.

High rice prices, why

The cheap rice that the Philippines usually imports from Thailand, Vietnam, other Asian countries, to my understanding, is the Thai rice 25% broken. About 4 years ago, its price was only around $165/ton. This week, it's $604/ton. The rise in rice prices became very pronounced in the first quarter of this year, and it looks to be continuing into the second quarter.

A friend from Jordan, Sufian, asked me what are the problems that affect high rice prices.

I have discussed that in my previous posting here. But quickly, high rice prices in the world today is caused by a combination of high demand (more people are shifting to rice, high population growth, etc.) and low supply (some rice lands were planted with corn or other bio-fuel crops, there were pest attack elsewhere, low rainfall and irrigation, etc.).

The role of some opportunist traders who manipulate rice prices by hoarding and hiding some rice supply is also a factor.

There are many other factors, both macro and micro. But the above will greatly explain the current phenomenon.

The rains of summer

While the Philippines (and other tropical countries) experienced prolonged dry season last year – regular rains came last August, instead of June – the country also has prolonged rainy season this year. Regular rains normally stop by end-November, but we still had rains until February. The “cold front” brought about by winds from Siberia and China lasted until the second week of March this year. By mid-March, it was obviously summer as the cold wind was gone and we had less cloud in the sky.

Almost coinciding with the formal onset of summer, was the rapid spike in rice and other food prices here and abroad. Stories about rice importation, inspection of some rice traders, corruption charges of “missing rice” from the government’s National Food Authority (NFA), even reference to “rice crisis”, are in media everyday.

So when thick clouds form in the sky, it is a big respite for us. And when it rains, even briefly, it’s a bonus. Because the rains cool not only our hot roads, hot environment, hot temper, but the rains also help irrigate the few rice farms. The “La Nina” phenomenon should be responsible for those brief but much needed rain showers.

At this time of the year, especially in the northern provinces of the country, majority of rice fields are on fallow and they become pasture areas for the cattle which cannot find young grasses around. Other rice fields are planted with corn as the price of this crop has also risen recently. I have noticed an increase in corn plantation this year compared to last year and the previousa years, at least in the province of Pangasinan.

The dry season of summer should be an opportunity for people and farmers to improve and repair old irrigation canals and dams, and/or build new ones. In our farm for instance, if we can raise the water level in our short irrigation canal by about 1 meter, nearly 1 hectare of additional, relatively flat land on the other side of the creek can be planted with rice or other crops. We use hoses to transport the impounded water on one side of the creek to the other side.

If people will become more self-reliant and depend less on government hand-outs and projects, say in repairing and/or building new irrigation canals and small water impounding structures, they should be able to improve their rice harvest (or other crops) in the next planting season just a few months away from now.

Rice prices and soil conservation

Food prices in both global and domestic markets have been rising steeply lately. In 2007, world food prices have risen by almost 40%. Here in the Philippines, rice import value has increased from $474/ton in January to $708/ton this month, an increase of almost 50% in just 2 months! And these are rice imported from our neighbors in the region, mainly Thailand and Vietnam.

The volume of rice importation has also been increasing. In other years, average importation was around 1 million MT a year. In 2007, rice import was 1.8 million MT, and this year, projected imports will be around 2.2 million MT, about ¾ of which to be sourced from Vietnam.

High domestic demand for rice is largely a result of the country’s high population growth. If each of the 1.8 million new people every year (net of death and migration) is consuming 0.2 kilo of rice a day (roughly 4 cups equivalent), then consumption in one year is around 73 kilos per person, or 131,400 MT a year – this will be the annual increase in rice consumption on top of the previous year’s total demand.

There is big pressure to increase rice supply to stabilize prices. And there are three important steps to achieve this: One, increase hectarage by converting more forest land or land planted with other crops to rice land. Two, use more science and modern technology to expand rice yield on the same rice land area. And three, do both.

Expanding rice land hectarage (currently around 4.2 million hectares nationwide) is a bit difficult as many rice lands are actually being converted to residential or commercial land, while forest land continues to shrink. The demand for land for other crops, from vegetables to fruits to cash crops, even for biofuels, is also expanding. So, only option #2 is the least costly and the most appropriate.

The adoption of modern - often genetically-modified (GM) - rice varieties is one of the most practical things to do. Average rice yield must rise from the current 3.7 MT/ha to 4 MT/ha and up. And since the price of many commercial fertilizers is also rising, as they are petroleum-based, the use of organic fertilizers will be relied upon more and more.

Using short-duration rice varieties – harvestable in 90 days, unlike most varieties that need 120 days or more – is another option. It is possible to have up to 3 harvests in one year for some farms (with good irrigation) and still have at least 2 months of either a fallow period to allow the soil to rest, or produce some short-duration vegetables like legumes, to allow the soil to recuperate.

The importance of soil conservation to produce more yield per hectare or more harvests per year on fixed agricultural land is thus becoming more pronounced, both nationally and internationally.

Hydroponics and urban farming

One of my friends here in Manila, Jules Calagui, plunged into the hydroponics (or soil-less farming) business. Hydroponics, by the way, is from greek words "hydro" (water) and "ponic" (working); ie, water working, no need for soil for the roots to hold on. He put up a hydroponics system on the 2nd floor of the apartment that he is renting in Marikina, one of the outskirt cities in Metro Manila. On the ground floor is his restaurant for fresh and organic food. So just imagine -- you harvest lettuce, eggplant, cherry tomato, other vegetables on the 2nd floor, and serve them fresh or half-cooked to customers on the ground floor.

Jules is very happy with his new system -- no tilling of soil, no pests from the soil (hence no pesticides), very little water needed for the roots, and he's using his own organic compost including worm cast, for the organic fertilizer that he mixes in the water for the roots. Unlike planting on soil, a big portion of the irrigated water either seeps under the soil or spills to other areas that cannot be used by the crops' roots, or simply evaporate. In hydroponics, almost all the water are used up by the roots, very little goes to evaporation, and this allows the crops to grow vigorously.

A number of his neighbors and clients were impressed by his system, they' started inviting him to develop their areas too, something like 250 sq. meters each. He dreams he can beat other hydroponics farmers from the nearby provinces because he's within the city already, so in terms of freshness, he can beat all of them.

With continued expansion of the population – the Philippines for instance, is growing by 1.8 million every year, net of death and migration – demand for agricultural land, along with demand for residential, commercial, industrial lands, will increase. Usually it’s the forest land that will ultimately be sacrificed and converted to other non-forest uses. By putting farms above some houses and buildings, and right in the center of urban areas, hydroponics farming will indeed be the one of the major solutions to lack of agricultural lands, and for soil and water conservation.

By producing pesticides-free vegetables and fruits, pollution of topsoil and water will also be eradicated, and giving people healthy food. By producing right in the middle of the cities, transportation of such products from the provinces will be minimized, resulting in less traffic and air pollution.

Other people have also turned to hydroponics farming but did not prosper. One reason is the absence of ready and regular market for the produce. Another is the relatively high cost of setting up one if the entrepreneur did not design or study the basic engineering aspect of a hydroponics system. By integrating production with household consumers, and putting one’s heart and mind into the design and construction of a hydroponics farm, said problems will be addressed.

Seeds of the world in Norway

A news report yesterday in IHT said that the global vault seed has been opened in Norway. And not just in Oslo or its surrounding areas, but somewhere up, just 1,000 kms. from the north pole. And despite the thick ice there, the Norwegian government even put a big air-con to keep the temperature at least -18 C always, so that the seeds should be preserved for up to 1,000 years or more. Wow!

I am glad that the Norwegian government thought of this and actually did it. Within the next century or more, many of those crops and plants whose seeds are deposited in that vault would be gone or extinct and replaced by hybrid varieties which are more likely to be genetically-modified.

Although I am in favor of genetic modification and application of modern science to crops to produce food products that are more high-yielding and more tolerant against certain pests, insects and fungi (hence, little or no need for chemical pesticides, insecticides, fungicides), I also believe that preserving the seeds of many of those "traditional" crops will be very important.
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http://www.iht. com/articles/ ap/2008/02/ 26/europe/ EU-GEN-Norway- Doomsday- Vault.php

Global seed vault opens in Norway
The Associated Press
Published: February 26, 2008


LONGYEARBYEN, Norway: Norway's "doomsday" seed vault, built to protect millions of food crops from being wiped out in wars or natural disasters, had European leaders thinking biblically.

"This is a frozen Garden of Eden," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said at the opening ceremony Tuesday, as guests carried the first seed deposits into the icy vault, deep within an Arctic mountain in the remote Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard.

"It is the Noah's Ark for securing biological diversity for future generations, " said Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg. Svalbard Global Seed Vault, just 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the North Pole, is designed to house as many as 4.5 million crop seeds from all over the world. It is built to withstand global warning, earthquakes and even nuclear strikes....

Mountain resorts and soil erosion control

Mountain resorts are among the best places to introduce or highlight the importance and fragility of the forest ecosystem and freshwater springs to ordinary people, especially those living in big cities. These resorts are generally developed, and there are clear delineation between play/recreation/cottages areas and forest protection or agro-forest production areas. People enjoy the ‘communion with nature’ while taking pleasure with the comfort and amenities of modern hotels.

I have visited a number of mountain resorts in my country. Many of them are either at the foot of tall mountains (say at 2,000+ feet of those mountains that are more than 9,000 feet above the sea level) or at the top of medium-height mountain ranges (between 3,000 to 6,000 feet).

Having well-protected forest and fruit trees, new soil creation through natural decomposition of agri- and forest wastes is much quicker and highly observable if one will look closely. The cool wind and occasional rain showers help the fast multiplication of earthworms and soil microorganisms that quicken this natural decomposition. However, being hilly or mountainous, plus clearing of some trees for areas to be used for play and recreation, the newly-created soil is also prone to rapid erosion especially during the rainy season. Clearly, a big challenge for those mountain resorts is how to preserve the rich new soil that is created annually, or at least minimize their erosion downhill and downstream.

For most if not all of the mountain resorts that I have seen and visited, they have succeeded in controlling the erosion or collapse of steep and hilly areas that were terraced or protected since several years ago, but they have not instituted an evolving and continuously rising terraces and embankments that will catch and retain the new rich soil being created annually. I say this because the height and elevation of contours and terraces that I had seen from 4 to 6 years ago have remained the same today.

To illustrate: a terraced hill or embankment was 5 feet high about 5 years ago. If the trees are big and tall, or they may be young but densely planted, new soil creation from litter fall should be at least 2 inches a year if there is no soil erosion. This is my estimate from observing in our agro-forest farm. Then, after 5 or more years, the level of that terraced hill should have been much higher, if soil erosion is controlled and additional soil from litter fall etc. is retained. But, as I said before, the level of most terraces remains practically the same.

Most if not all mountain resorts are designed to attract visitors and tourists who want to experience cool air in high elevation area, see big trees that are densely planted or grown, see some animals or experience upland fishing or swimming and hiking. Somehow the resort developers have helped the environment and raised the ecological consciousness of their visitors to certain extent, but they rarely prioritize the control of erosion of newly created soil.

Nonetheless, those mountain resorts are better compared to average upland agricultural plantations that have been cleared of forest trees. The preservation of biodiversity of trees (forest and fruit species), endemic and introduced flowers and edible crops, help those parts of the mountains approximate a state where human intrusion was absent. As well, in the process those mountain resorts help improve the rainwater retention capacity of the soil, although a bit lower than its potential if new soil created annually has been retained and preserved.

Note: This article was inspired by the author’s past and recent visits to various mountain resorts in Baguio, Banawe, Sagada, Tagaytay, Laguna, Bukidnon and Davao.

The rains of December

In the Philippines and other tropical Asian climate, the rainy or wet season is from June to October. Before the current climate change, until about 15 years ago or earlier, the wet season would start by May. This year, considered as among the hottest, if not the hottest year over the last few decades, regular rains came only in August, rather late. With delayed rains, regular planting of rice and other food staples was also delayed. So last August, I had wished that the rains would last until December, to “compensate” for the delayed onset of regular rainy season.

Last month and until the first half of this month, rains would come regularly, either induced by some typhoons or a cold front or the clouds just converged by themselves and they became heavy and they fell as rains. And it was a good thing. Many rice farmers who were hesitant to plant for the second cropping were encouraged by those rains and they did plant as the rivers and streams were still regularly replenished by regular rains.

Some sectors or industries of the economy like tourism, were of course a bit unhappy with those rains in an otherwise “cold but dry” months of November-December, until February. Typhoons and heavy rains would naturally result in cancellation of some flights or boat trips, and beaches are not so enjoyable if the waves are big. There were actually fewer typhoons this year, only about 13 so far, compared with the 19 to 20 that the country would normally get annually.

In our farm, I have noticed last week that some light moss or tiny green flora have appeared on the bark of some of our trees there. Those things that one can find in trees on high elevation and colder areas. I did not notice them last year or earlier years, only this year. Does this mean that our farm is getting colder while most parts of the world are getting hotter? Or those flora have evolved and they begin to appear on trees even in lower elevation or in less cold areas as a result of global warming?

I do not know the answer, but I suspect that the rains of the past few months and the colder season of December, have conspired with our now bigger and taller trees which provide refuge and “natural umbrella” from the hot rays of the sun. This is a good development even at the micro or farm level, at a time when the world is getting more pessimistic or alarmist about climate change.