ASEAN plus three to establish rice reserve

VIENTAINE, Mar 2 (Commodity Online): Anticipating another food crisis in the region, ASEAN nations plus China, Japan and South Korea have decided to establish a rice reserve. The decision in this regard was taken at the end of two day's ASEAN trade ministers meeting here. The meeting also took decision to help each other build a rice reserve and stabilize the rice prices without making sudden and demonstrative procurements that can trigger panic among trade members. ASEAN governments have agreed to sign the ASEAN-plus-three rice reserve agreement in early October. ASEAN and the three East Asian giants have earmarked 787,000 metric tonnes for the rice reserve, with all ASEAN members contributing a total of 87,000 metric tonnes, Japan 250,000 metric tonnes, China 300,000 metric tonnes and South Korea 150,000 metric tonnes. Indonesia will contribute 25,000 metric tonnes to the reserve. The latest U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) food price index averaged 231 points in January, up 3.4 per cent from December and its highest level since it started in 1990. Another measure, the World Bank's food price index, rose by 15 per cent between October 2010 and January 2011 and is now only 3 per cent below its 2008 peak. Whichever measure is used, the result is the same 44 million more people thrown into extreme poverty.