Agricultural policy and administration

A Thai sugar company with major shares in Cambodian sugar cane is being investigated for human rights violations in operations along the border between the two countries. The National Human Rights Commission of Thailand recently investigated allegations that villagers were forced from their homes to make ...

The Chinese government-run China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation (COFCO) will today formally agree to import 100,000 tonnes of rice from Cambodia, local officials say. Representatives from COFCO and Green Trade Co, a Cambodian government-owned agriculture firm, today met in Beijing to sign the agreement, ...

The Council of Ministers has granted farmers in Kompong Thom province permission to start farming on the floodplains of the Tonle Sap lake in an area previously off limits and home to flooded forests that provide a critical fish breeding habitat. The Council of Ministers’ notice, ...

ANZ is facing calls for compensation over its funding of a Cambodian sugar mill linked to child labour, forced evictions and land grabs. Media reports on Monday said hundreds of Cambodian farmers had called on the bank to provide compensation for the land they lost due ...

Cassava farmers are calling on the government to standardise prices and help stabilise demand as the market for the root crop continues to prove risky for growers. Cassava exports totalled 226,000 tonnes in the first six months of the year, down 21 per cent from a ...

Cambodian rice exporters are keen on winning the Philippines government’s latest rice import tender for 500,000 tons of 25% broken white rice slated for August 27, 2014, according to local sources. ...

Cambodia will join the bidding for the Philippine government’s latest rice import offer, a senior rice industry official says. The Philippine government’s National Food Authority (NFA) last week authorised the import of 500,000 tonnes of rice to the country. The bidding process, which is looking for the ...

Rainfall over the weekend, which caused flooding in 13 provinces, could improve crop yields for rice growers, provincial authorities say. Agricultural departments in Preah Vihear, Stung Treng, Kampong Thom and Battambang provinces – some of the worst hit on the weekend – all said water was ...

The Ministry of Agriculture on Tuesday released a draft policy to strengthen the agriculture sector by educating farmers on how to gain greater access to markets and increase their productivity by using sustainable farming methods. The Agriculture Extension Policy, drafted in cooperation with USAID, aims to ...

For as long as Cambodian rice farmers can remember, their product has had an unsavory reputation. Tough, dirty and unmilled, it was impossible to cook evenly, and even farmers traded it as pig feed in exchange for cash or better-quality rice from Vietnam or Thailand. Even ...

Cambodia has seen a 91 percent rise in dry rubber exports in the first half of 2014 as revenue from the exports increased only 3 percent due to global decline of rubber prices. During the January-June period this year, the country exported 42,190 tons of dry ...

A Chinese company is preparing a memorandum of understanding with Ministry of Commerce (MOC) pledging to buy 100,000 tons of rice from Cambodia, according to Sun Chanthol, Minister of Commerce. The intention was made clear during a meeting between the Minister of Commerce and Song Xiaoguo, ...

Corn farmers and dealers in the country’s northwestern provinces fear a decline in sales this season as local storage facilities become increasingly scarce and demand from Thai importers declines. Khun Thorn, president of Ta Sdar Samky Farmer Community in Battambang province, told the Post yesterday that ...

Early this month, in what looks like a failed attempt to save its reputation, Australia‘s ANZ Bank severed its ties with Phnom Penh Sugar, a company accused of a range of human rights abuses linked to its plantations in Kampong Speu province, Cambodia. The move ...

When authorities in Kampong Chhnang province on Friday encountered and pursued the boat of alleged illegal fisherman Chieb Ou, they couldn’t have expected to find themselves being chased instead. But that’s precisely what happened when, rather than surrendering, the 42-year-old suspect turned his boat towards the ...

Italy has demanded that the European Union restrict Cambodia’s duty-free import status, as concerns over the survival of that country’s rice sector appear to be reaching a fever pitch. According to rice industry website Oryza, the Italian government has officially submitted a request to the EU ...

Cambodian farmers are looking toward a new organization to help them get the best prices for their rice, but many are skeptical disparities between farmers and traders can be overcome. The Cambodian Rice Federation was started in May, bringing together disparate companies, associations and farmers in ...

Cambodia has accelerated its agricultural growth dramatically over the last several years, but agricultural sector in this developing country still depends on its neighboring countries. What are the reasons behind this dependence? During these past years, many businessmen, both foreign and local, are investing a large ...

Village representatives in Ratanakkiri yesterday shared their land grievances with the European Union ambassador, requesting he relay to the government their appeal that no further 99-year land concessions be granted to private companies. Although the Post was not permitted to attend the full two-hour meeting, NGOs present at ...

Cambodia duty-free rice exports to the European Union have this week come under fresh attack from producers in Italy, who say the beneficial treatment is restricting the potential of Italian rice exports. An Italian agriculture collective of farmers, which includes representatives from the Italian Association of ...

Khan Thea, a subsistence fisherman who lives and works along this sprawling, 7,000-hectare lake fed by the Mekong River, was not having a good day on the water. Struggling to net even a single fish, he finally resorted to a dangerous—and illegal—technique: fishing with electric current. ...

More than one year after its fish products were banned from Europe, the industry and government has done little to ensure it will be lifted. The ban, instituted in early 2013, has hurt potential fish exports to a potentially lucrative trade partner. But EU officials say Cambodia ...

Provincial government officials in Stung Treng have warned companies granted economic land concessions (ELCs) in the province to fulfil their promised development plans or face losing their rights to the land. Touch Thea, director of the Stung Treng provincial department of agriculture, said the call for ...

The pace of Cambodia’s rice exports are expected to slow this year. Unable to maintain the steady rate of previous years, the export volume for the first half of 2014 is much the same as it was this time last year. At the end of June, ...