India’s vital monsoon rains revived in the soybean-growing central region on Thursday, after a two-week lag that reduced June rainfall to 16% below normal, the second lowest in 15 years. Heavy showers in the central Madhya Pradesh state would accelerate soybean planting in the world’s top importer of edible oils and ease growing nervousness about monsoon rains. The weather office reaffirmed its prediction of a normal monsoon this year, in line with...

Over 11,000 acres of land has been brought under organic farming in Punjab and Haryana under a scheme sponsored by the Union Government. While 6,050 acres has so far come under organic farming in Punjab, Haryana too is not lagging behind as 5,000 acre has been brought under organic farming. To promote organic farming in Punjab and Haryana, farmers are being provided technological inputs including training and farm-level advisory services according...

India's annual monsoon rains, vital to the trillion-dollar economy's farm output and economic growth, were 11.1 percent below normal for June 1-23, sources at the weather office said on Thursday. "We are still hopeful of an improvement in rainfall by June end," a senior official at the India Meteorological Department, who could not be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media, said. On Wednesday, the Met...

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have warned that farm commodity prices, especially foodgrains, may rise by as much as 40 per cent by the end of this decade. This warning must be taken seriously given its implications for food insecurity. FAO’s Agricultural Outlook 2010-2019 projects prices of wheat, coarse grains and dairy products rising by 15 to 40 per cent...

India should be able to lift the ban on non-basmati rice imports this year as a bumper crop is expected due to a positive outlook on monsoon rain, traders said on Tuesday. India, the world’s second largest exporter of rice after Thailand banned exports of non-basmati rice in 2008, as high prices of the grain put pressure on domestic supply. “India should come online this year as the harvest is expected to...