Text October 09

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE

UNITED NATIONS

REGIONAL OFFICE FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

OCTOBER 2009

New international platform to
promote food and nutrition security

The Committee for World Food
Security (CFS) of FAO – the top UN
forum for food security – has been
revamped to allow for a more
focused, coordinated and inclusive
approach to addressing hunger
and malnutrition, inter alia through
enhanced participation by a range
of inter-governmental, international,
civil society and private sector
organizations. The new CFS includes
the International Fund for Agricultural
Development (IFAD), the World Food
Programme (WFP), inter national
agricultural research institutions,
the World Bank, the International
Monetary Fund (IMF), regional
development banks, the World Trade
Organization (WTO), as well as civil
society organizations representing

small far mers, fisher folk, herders,
landless, urban poor, women, youth
and indigenous people. In addition,
a high level expert panel will advise
the CFS in promoting policy con-
vergence through international
strategies and voluntary guidelines
on food security and nutrition based
on best practices and lessons
learned in reducing hunger.

World hunger at unprecedented
high level

The global economic crisis has made
an additional 105 million people
food-insecure in 2009, latest FAO
hunger estimates show. More than
1 billion people cannot meet their
minimum dietary need, highlighting
the need for urgent reform of the
world food system, according to The
State of Food Insecurity in the World

Source: FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Figure 1: Selected international cereal prices

200

400

600

800

1 000

t-07

v-07

ec-07

Jan-08

eb-08

ar-08

Apr-08

y-08

Jun-08

Jul-08

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y-09

Jun-09

Jul-09

ug-09

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t-09

Wheat (US No. 2 Hard Red Winter)

Maize (US No. 2 Yellow)

Rice (Thai 100% B)

Rice (Thai A1 Super)

USD / tonne

Table of contents

New international platform

to promote food and

nutrition security

World hunger at

unprecedented high level

International rice prices

remain weak

Agricultural statistics in

support of pro-small farmer

policies amidst high

food prices

List of figures

1: Selected international

cereal prices

2: Trends in domestic prices

for key commodities in

selected countries

3: Farm size and

fragmentation by region

(1995-2005)

4: Holdings (%) in Asia

under 1 ha

5: Holdings (%) in Asia

under 2 ha

6: Percentage area

under 1 ha holdings

7: Percentage area

under 2 ha holdings

OCTOBER 2009

ASIA PACIFIC FOOD SITUATION UPDATE

FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Figure 2: Trends in domestic prices for key commodities in selected countries

Source: FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

Maize

Rice (5% brokens)

Thailand domestic wholesale prices, Bangkok

Bah

t
/ k

Afghanistan domestic retail prices, Kabul

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

S
ep-09

f
s / k

Wheat

Wheat (flour)

Bangladesh domestic wholesale prices, national average

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
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Jan-09

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a
y-09

Jul-09

S
ep-09

Rice (coarse)

Wheat

China domestic wholesale rice prices

1.5

3.0

4.5

ar-08

Apr-08

a
y-08

Jun-08

Jul-08

ug-08

S
ep-08

c
t-08

v-08

ec-08

Jan-09

F
eb-09

ar-09

Apr-09

a
y-09

Jun-09

Jul-09

ug-09

S
ep-09

uan / k

Hubei, Rice (Indica first quality)

Hunan, Rice (Indica first quality)

Heilongjiang, Rice (Japonica second quality)

India domestic wholesale prices, Delhi

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

S
ep-09

Rupee / k

Rice

Wheat

Pakistan domestic prices, national average

Jul-08

ug-08

S
ep-08

c
t-08

v-08

ec-08

Jan-09

F
eb-09

ar-09

Apr-09

a
y-09

Jun-09

Jul-09

ug-09

S
ep-09

c
t-09

Rupee / k

Wheat (retail)

Wheat (wholesale)

Rice (IRRI-6, retail)

Rice (IRRI-6, wholesale)

Myanmar domestic retail rice price, national average

200

400

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

t
/ k

Philippines domestic wholesale prices, national average

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

S
ep-09

eso / k

Maize (white)

Maize (yellow)

Regular Milled Rice

Sri Lanka domestic retail price, Colombo

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

S
ep-09

Rupee / k

Viet Nam domestic retail price, Hanoi

4 000

8 000

12 000

Jan-07

ar-07

a
y-07

Jul-07

S
ep-07

v-07

Jan-08

ar-08

a
y-08

Jul-08

S
ep-08

v-08

Jan-09

ar-09

a
y-09

Jul-09

Dong / k

ASIA PACIFIC FOOD SITUATION UPDATE

OCTOBER 2009

FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

(SOFI) 2009 (http://www.fao.org/
docrep/012/i0876e/i0876e00.htm).
These include an estimated 642
million people in Asia and the
Pacific, 251.5 million of them
in

India

, 127.4 million in

China

40.2 million in

Bangladesh

and

36.5 million in

Pakistan

Twenty

five percent of

Cambodia

’s 14

million people, 29 percent of the
2.6 million people in

Mongolia

and

32 percent of the 23.6 million
people in the

Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea (DPRK)

are

undernourished. FAO has urged
world leaders to reach a “broad
consensus on the total and rapid
elimination of hunger” during the
World Summit on Food Security of
Heads of State and Government
to be held in Rome, Italy from 16
to 18 November 2009.

International rice prices remain
weak

Benchmark Thai rice prices have
continued to weaken in recent
months with 100% B trading at an
average of US$541 per tonne in
the first three weeks of October,
against US$560 per tonne in
September. Thai A1 Super was
US$306 per tonne, US$1 cheaper
than in September (see Figure 1).
The government of

Thailand

recently announced a decision to
purchase another 2 million tonnes
from paddy farmers under the rice
pledge scheme that was originally
scheduled to end mid-October.
The extended rice pledge will
run parallel with the new price
guarantee scheme that pays
farmers the difference between
market prices and the govern-
ment’s “guaranteed price” in
case the for mer is lower, with

a limit of 25 tonnes of white rice,
14 tonnes of jasmine rice and
16 tonnes of glutinous rice per
farm household.

Traders and market analysts note
that thin overseas demand and
the 6 million tonnes rice in Thai
government stocks are keeping
prices down despite the anti-
cipated increase in imports early
next year from the

Philippines

and, possibly,

India

, following

natural disasters in both countries.
The Thai Commerce Minister has
said that nearly 1 million tonnes
from government stocks will be
sold through bilateral deals
in November and December
2009 and another 1.77 million
tonnes early next year.

Viet Nam

’s

cheaper white rice exports have
reduced Thailand’s market share
this year as has the banking crisis
in

Nigeria

– a major Thai rice

importer. The continuing decline in
international wheat prices is
expected to push world rice prices
down.

The

Philippines

is reportedly

seeking a government-to-govern-
ment purchase of about 200 000
tonnes rice from Thailand. More
than 185 000 ha of the Philippines’
paddy crop were estimated
damaged by typhoon Ketsana in
late September and 74 343 ha
paddy crop were affected by
typhoon Parma in early October.
Senior government officials in the
country said more imports are
likely early next year. Recognising
that regional food security is highly
vulnerable to natural disasters,
leaders of Southeast and East Asia
agreed at the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Plus 3 Summit in Thailand in
October 2009 to set up a perma-
nent emergency regional rice
reserve aid mechanism.

Southeast Asian nations are also
preparing for the free trade
regime that comes into effect
early 2010 with the Philippines and
Thailand discussing a compromise
over rice import tariffs. Meanwhile,

China

has reportedly maintained

the quota of 5.32 million tonnes
for low-tariff rice imports in 2010,
as part of its WTO joining com-
mitment.

Increasing demand from natural
disaster-affected Philippines has
pushed up rice prices in

Viet Nam

where 25% broken rice traded at
US$360 per tonne f.o.b. against
US$340 per tonne in September.
Strong demand from Africa and
the Middle East has taken Viet
Nam’s rice exports to a record
high of 6 million tonnes so far this
year although typhoon Ketsana
damaged about 70 000 ha of
paddy in the country’s central
region in late September. Viet
Nam is also assisting

Cambodia

through a joint venture to boost
Cambodia’s rice exports.

India

has allowed duty-free rice

imports until September 2010
in view of the severe impact
of drought and floods on the
upcoming paddy harvest in one
of the country’s main rice growing
region. FAO estimates a 23 million
tonne reduction in the country’s
paddy harvest compared to last
year. The state of Andhra Pradesh
which bore the brunt of the
drought and subsequent flooding
is India’s third largest rice pro-
ducer. Reduced reservoir levels
have limited the potential for
making up for the loss during the

The State of Food Insecurity in the

World 2009. FAO

Rice Market Monitor, September 2009,

FAO. http://

www.fao.org/es/esc/en/15/

70/highlight_71.html

OCTOBER 2009

ASIA PACIFIC FOOD SITUATION UPDATE

FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

forthcoming winter crop. Although
India’s bumper cereal harvests in
preceding years have boosted
buffer stocks to record levels, the
government is reportedly planning
first-time large-scale rice imports
early next year as production falls
short of consumption estimates.
To keep food prices in check, the
government is to sell 500 000
tonnes of rice and 1.5 million
tonnes of wheat under the Open
Market Sale Scheme over the next
three months. Despite abundant
supply, cereal prices remain high
in India with rice retailing at nearly
50 percent over the January 2007
level (see Figure 2). Pulse prices in
the country have touched record
peaks in recent months and the
government is planning to add 1.5
million hectares of pulse farms to
reduce reliance on imports.

Bangladesh

, FAO has joined

government rehabilitation efforts
in cyclone Aila affected areas in
the country’s southwest and is
distributing farm inputs including
salt-tolerant rice, maize, cow pea
and water melon varieties.

The price of wheat in

Afghanistan

increased marginally to a national
average of 16.8 Afs per kg in the
first half of October but this is
considered consistent with the
price stability of the cereal since
early July 2009. In

Pakistan

, wheat

flour prices decreased slightly in
Sukkur and Sargodha in the third
week of October due to better
supply from flour mills but in-
creased in Quetta because of
reduced supply from Punjab.
Prices of IRRI-6 rice decreased in
most markets as the new crop
arrived.

In ten Asian countries, while staple
cereal prices remain largely sta-

ble, in most cases the prices are
significantly higher than one or
two years ago (see Figure 2).

FAO supports post-tsunami
rehabilitation in Samoa

FAO is working with partner
agencies to support agricultural
recovery in

Samoa

where a

tsunami following an earthquake
measuring 8.3 on the Richter scale
in early October killed more than
140 people and devastated the
subsistence agriculture and live-
stock dependent local livelihoods.
Home gardens which play a key
role in providing a nutritious diet to
the local people were totally
destroyed by the direct impact of
the waves and salt infusion in the
soil. Severe damage was also
caused to livestock and fisheries.

Agricultural statistics in support
of pro-small farmer policies
amidst high food prices

Small farmers need policy support in
the context of high food prices and
trade liberalization

Persisting high food prices over the
past two years have had a severe
impact on small and marginal
farmers who comprise the bulk of

agricultural producers as well as
food-insecure people in Asia and
the Pacific. Small farmers have
also been adversely affected by
the liberalization of agricultural
trade and opening of domestic
agricultural markets to inter-
national competition.

Yet, national policy-makers often
lack adequate data to devise
effective policies to strengthen the
role of small farmers in agricultural
production and promote their
food and livelihood security in an
economic environment of glob-
alising markets and soaring food
prices while addressing the chal-
lenges of sustainable natural re-
source management and climate
change. An FAO assessment of
national agricultural statistical
systems has highlighted the need
for priority attention to improving
national statistical capacities in
view of the changing nature of
agriculture in the 21

century.

Agricultural statistics experts at the
Asia and Pacific Commission on
Agricultural Statistics (APCAS) in
June 2008 in Kuching, Malaysia,
emphasized the need to review
data collection methods and
types of information collected to

Figure 3: Farm size and fragmentation by region (1995-2005)

Source: FAO

100

120

America, North

& Central

Hec

tar

America,

South

Europe

Africa

Asia

100

China

hailand

iet Nam

Nepal

r
g

yz Rep

India

Lao PDR

Philippines

istan

anmar

sia

(12 c

ountries)

r
c
en

100

China

iet Nam

r
g

yz Rep

Nepal

India

Philippines

istan

Lao PDR

Sri Lank

anmar

hailand

sia

(12 c

ountries)

r
c
en

ASIA PACIFIC FOOD SITUATION UPDATE

OCTOBER 2009

FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

attune information systems to data
needs for early warning signals of
price and market fluctuations, in
order to put in place mitigating
measures against negative im-
pacts of rising prices. At a follow-
up Expert Consultation organised
by the FAO Regional Office for
Asia and the Pacific in Bangkok in
September 2009, statistics experts
from Australia, Bhutan, India,
Indonesia, the Philippines, Republic

World Census of Agriculture, FAO, http://

www.fao.org/economic/ess/world-census-
of-agriculture/it/

of Korea and Thailand reviewed
approaches to agricultural data
collection and types of infor-
mation better suited to current
data needs of policy-makers in the
context of the changing world
economy. A key issue before the
Expert Consultation was classifi-
cation of small farmers to assist
policy-makers address key issues
and priorities concerning small
and marginal farmers.

Asia has world’s smallest farm size

The World Programme of Census
of Agriculture (WCA) 2000, covering
114 FAO member countries

estimated the average farm size in
Asia to be about 1 ha compared
to the world average of 5.5 ha.

Moreover, Asian farm holdings are
fragmented, on average, into
3.2 parcels (see Figures 3, 4 & 5).
The average size of a farm holding
in the Pacific ranges from 0.6 ha in
Cook Islands to about 3.6 ha in
Samoa.

Smallholders play a vital role in
agriculture

An FAO assessment shows that in
the 12 Asian countries surveyed,
farm holdings under 1 ha cover
9.44 percent of cropped land
while holdings of up to 2 ha
account for nearly 20 percent of
farmed land (see Figures 6 & 7).
In Nepal, far m holdings below
1 ha cover about 40 percent of
cultivated land while in India more
than 80 percent of holdings are
under 2 ha and account for nearly
40 percent of cropped area. In
contrast, in the Pacific Island
countries of American Samoa,
Cook Islands, Guam, Marina Island
(north) and Samoa, 63.7 percent
of all holdings are less than 2 ha
but account for only 18.3 percent
of agricultural land.

With access to irrigation, smal-
lholders optimize land use to
boost their farm productivity and
incomes but their food and liveli-
hood security is highly vulnerable
to weather aberrations, pest
attacks and natural disasters. They

Figure 4: Holdings (%) in Asia under 1 ha

Figure 5: Holdings (%) in Asia under 2 ha

Source: FAO

OCTOBER 2009

ASIA PACIFIC FOOD SITUATION UPDATE

FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

also often lack access to credit,
technology and insurance, high-
lighting the need for focused
policy attention, particularly
regarding their access to agri-
cultural inputs, technologies, and
marketing and credit facilities.

Effective policies need adequate
information and data on small
farmers

Varying criteria used by countries
for classification of agricultural
holdings and coverage make
international comparisons difficult.
The characterization, definition
and measurement of the activities
of small farmers are prerequisites
to effective policy support for
small farmers. The Expert Con-
sultation advised countries to
adopt the FAO farm size classi-
fication and consider sub-cate-
gorization in defining small farmers
taking into account factors such
as productivity, cropping intensity
and irrigation. Given the vastly
heterogeneous agricultural prac-
tices in the region, it was desirable
to use subregional definitions for
small farmers instead of an overall
regional definition. Recognizing
that in some countries, farmers
were not aware of the actual cul-
tivated area, the experts recom-
mended using equipment such
as compass, tape and GPS for
objective crop area measurement.

Figure 6: Percentage area under 1 ha holdings

Figure 7: Percentage area under 2 ha holdings

Source: FAO

Nepal

Sri Lank

India

Lao PDR

Philippines

istan

anmar

r
g

yz Rep

sia

(12 c

ountries)

r
c
en

Nepal

Lao PDR

India

Philippines

anmar

istan

r
g

yz Rep

sia

(12 c

ountries)

r
c
en

Economic and Social Department Group (RAPE)
FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
39 Phra Atit Road, Bangkok 10200, THAILAND

Phone:

+66-2-697-4250

E-mail:

FoodAsia@fao.org

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