Land grab fallout

Blog Intro:  Scramble to buy land in foreign countries to grow more food leaves more people hungry Scramble to buy land in foreign countries to grow more food leaves more people hungry

Curious case of seaweed

Pesticide makers file plea for exporting endosulfan formulations

The Pesticides Manufacturers and Formulators Association of India (PMFAI) have filed an interim application in the Supreme Court, seeking permission to export the existing stocks of endosulfan formulations in their possession. The respondents said they have 2,698.56 kilo litres of formulations and wanted to export it after making it into exportable form and repackaging it for exporters.

Nepal needs SEZ booster for its floundering economy

It is eight years now since the Nepal government mooted the idea of introducing special economic zones (SEZs) in the country to boost its sagging exports and attract foreign investment. To this end, the SEZ Bill was tabled in Parliament two years ago, but it is yet to be approved. As a result, SEZs remain a concept on paper.

Rush for rare earths

IN SEPTEMBER last year, China halted shipments of rare earth metals, crucial for the manufacture of everything from guided missiles and hybrid cars to flat-screen televisions and BlackBerry phones, to Japan over a territorial dispute. It also cut down its export quota for rare earth by 72 per cent for the second half of 2010. In 2011, the quota was reduced by 35 per cent for the first half.

Can endosulfan be exported?

AFTER imposing a ban on endosulfan, the Supreme Court is now examining the possibility of allowing export of the pesticide. On August 5, the court-appointed joint committee was given a three-week deadline to submit an interim report on the possibility of exporting and disposing of the endosulfan stocks with the manufacturers.

FCI speculates on futures trading

the Food Corporation of India (fci) may soon trade its surplus wheat and rice in the domestic commodity exchanges through futures transactions, say fci sources. Even as Asia's largest food-procurement agency toys with the idea, the trader community, brokers and exchanges are apprehensive.

New tentacles

in a development that threatens to plunge the Rs 6600-crore Indian seafood exports industry into crisis, the us has decided to introduce strict curbs on antibiotic content in imported marine products. The new protocol, being formulated by the us Food and Drug Administration, is meant to regulate antibiotic residues in frozen shrimp consignments entering the country.

Butchers up in arms

The Jamiatul Quresh Meat Welfare Association (JQMWA) in Pakistan has threatened a countrywide strike by butchers unless the government does something soon about the acute scarcity of meat and livestock in the country. Large amounts of meat are exported to West Asia and other Islamic countries at the cost of domestic needs, the butchers allege, often leaving them without any employment opportunities.

The small big polluter

Statistics are easy to window-dress: showing everything but concealing vital facts. It is true in case of the small-scale industries (SSIs) also.