World Rice Shortage - is our Gov prepared ?
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Regardless, the fact is tat the density of rice is very high and u just need the space equivalent of 100 containers
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im going to put a sack of rice in my mailbox now
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Originally posted by TCH05:
For weight cargo like rice, you will have to ship them in 20ft FCL and the weight limit is about 27,000kg per FCL, depending on the tare weight of the container.
For 40ft FCL, the weight will be lesser because the tare weight is higher.
Pple talking about stockpiling rice => related to thread title of World Rice Shortage.
How is your post on shipping facts related to World Rice Shortage?
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Originally posted by Gensis:
Pple talking about stockpiling rice => related to thread title of World Rice Shortage.
How is your post on shipping facts related to World Rice Shortage?
So that you know how 'possible' is it to do as suggested.....Lets face it.... suggestion is one thing, how possible to do it is another.....
*Where are we going to stack 100 container
*100 container store under S'pore's weather.... how long will the rice last
*Are we also going to stack 100 container for - Wheat, Corn, Flour, Sugar... etc - since there is a shortage World Wide on all foodstuff
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Warehouse lor...
warehouse is sheltered and the rice inside the vacuum bag last pretty long
we don't need to stack on all food but on necessary selected food.
And world shortage just means higher price which the consumers have to bear
Lets just think about it as a buffer. They r not storing the food and not selling them and let them rot. They r storing the food and selling them away once the buffer reach its safe limit. It is like a flow process.
I give an example. I sell TV from France. Every month I sell 100 +- 20 TV. If I import from France, it is cheaper if I import at batches of 500 and above. So wat I do ? I have a buffer. I stockpile 500 TV then sell them for about some months before importing another batch of 500 when my buffer is low like 150 TV. Storing in a warehouse at ulu area like tuas is not impossible or tat expensive.
Lets say now the 500 TV need time to be manufacture in france and the time difference when I started my order to receiveing the order is 3 months. So wat I do ? I just store a bigger buffer. Previously if my TV is lesser than 120 or 200, I order a new batch of 500 TV. Now when the TV I have is lower than 400, I order another 500 TV. Voila ! I always stockpile at least 1 months of TV at any time ! If I want stockpile for 3 months, I just increased my buffer to 700 TV before placing a new order.
Now just imagine the above example for food, replacing the TV as tons of rice. Tis is not economically infeasible or difficult.
U think stockpiling things r difficult ? Almost all consumer goods u see around have stockpiled materials one way or another.
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There is a difference between perishable and white goods. For perishable products, there is shelf life, while white goods can last you for years.
Suppose if you have 1 million kg of rice in stock which you need to consumer them in 6 months time, how are you going to dispose them? give them out for free? or sell it at firesale price?
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it is a buffer. It is not keeping them forever and not selling them. Lets say I have 1 million kg of rice in which I have to consume in 6 months. Lets say singapore eat 1/3 million a month if he keep a buffer of 3 months which make it about 1000 kg a day.
Lets say update rate is once a day. i have 1 million kg of rice, I import 1000 kg of rice and people consume 1000 kg of the older rice. I left 1 million kg. 3 months buffer. How stale is the rice ? At worst 3 months old. How much I lost ? 0.
Do I have to make a firesale ? Throw them away ? Give out for free ? No. I just keep them as buffer. I am NOT making any loss at all. I am NOT making the food go bad and stale. I just keep a bigger buffer. Is buffer such a hard word to understand ?
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they don't keep it for 6 months in some storage facility.....first in first out....it's under ntuc, so the rice goes to its outlets while they replenish the stockpile, so you don't get to eat 6 months stored rice...
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Originally posted by stupidissmart:
it is a buffer. It is not keeping them forever and not selling them. Lets say I have 1 million kg of rice in which I have to consume in 6 months. Lets say singapore eat 1/3 million a month if he keep a buffer of 3 months which make it about 1000 kg a day.
Lets say update rate is once a day. i have 1 million kg of rice, I import 1000 kg of rice and people consume 1000 kg of the older rice. I left 1 million kg. 3 months buffer. How stale is the rice ? At worst 3 months old. How much I lost ? 0.
Do I have to make a firesale ? Throw them away ? Give out for free ? No. I just keep them as buffer. I am NOT making any loss at all. I am NOT making the food go bad and stale. I just keep a bigger buffer. Is buffer such a hard word to understand ?
Not everyone understand the concept of buffer, although it is something widely used in programming, supply chain management, etc.
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do you know how to grow potatoes at home?
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Originally posted by eagle:
Not everyone understand the concept of buffer, although it is something widely used in programming, supply chain management, etc.
Some just persist in not understanding even after you explain to them.
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how do u cook buffers?
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Dear All,
Please note that the present situation has resulted in the present 'rice exporting' countries cutting their export volumes to maintain their domestic price stability in the face of global rice shortages.
These countries - such as Vietnam, Thailand and China - were nett rice exporters, and as the global supply situation worsen, they may not even export at all.
Our 3 or 6 months rice stockpile will simply dwindle away into zero level without any further supplies forthcoming in the face of a global crunch.
Countries like Indonesia, India, Philippines, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia have their own rice output; but even during the better times, they do not produce enough for their own consumption, and supplement their local rice production with imports from the region.
As matters stand, the Singapore Government may not be able to do much directly - in the face of this global rice shortage, and with alternative food products such as wheat and soya also affected by shortages and wild price hikes- the Singapore Government could begin to take a longer strategic view to safeguard Singaporeans' food supply.
At the macro level, they could energise the Regional Governments into action, mobilising Governments to pool R+D funds to help boost production, assist the rice growing countries to be more efficient with the application of bio-engineering technologies, improve the infrastructures for the longer term storage and preservation of the rice harvested - all for the common good.
At the micro level, the population could be forwarned and dietary habits modified before the crunch hit home, as had happened in the 1970s - when the population was stunned by the events that overtook them so suddenly.
The Singapore Government is structured with Ministries organised to manage an urbanised ''industrial'' country, and there is no single Ministry to look into the strategic security of Singaporeans' food supply.
Countries with an economy leaning heavily towards agriculture will have a Ministry of Agriculture to manage this strategic sector of the country - regardless if such a strategic agricultural field is a revenue generator or critical to the domestic needs.
Singapore has a Ministry of Home Affairs that is structured towards the management of internal security, while the Ministry of Defense handles national defense and security, and even with the Total Defense concept being propagated - it does not look into food supply.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry is about the only ministry able to handle this matter, as it is concerned with the following critical areas :
- Regional Trade and Investment - dealing mainly with trade policies and development
- GATT and WTO Policies - affecting domestic trade
- Competition Law - concerning Consumer Protection, Commercial and Industrial land and facilities
- Human Capital - development of Science and Technology, intellectual Property
- Manufacturing and Services - Tourism, International and Regional Economic Relations
- International Business Development - Economic Planning and Expansion
- Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Development - R&D Policies, Productivity
- Energy Security - Gas and Electricity Markets, Economic Defense and Emergency Planning
- Economic Monitoring and Reporting - Economic Modelling, Statistics
Source: http://www.sgdi.gov.sg/
This Ministry of Trade & Industry could give more attention to the strategic needs of Singaporeans; as it does not seem to give any high profile attention to this portion of the ministry's wide portfolio.
Recently there has been concerns raised that several European countries, and major agricultural regions in the USA are converting their food production resources into products to provide bio-fuels - which are seen to be more profitable.
This will take a large portion of their agriculture resources away from food production to feed the millions in this World.
The Singapore Government could take some pro-active action on the world stage to take stock of the World food supply situation, much as Singapore did in taking the lead role to draft the Law of the Sea Agreement that was accepted by nearly every country on this globe.
It is about time that the highest paid Ministers on this Globe take on a higher profile to prove their worth beyond the shores of Singapore, to protect Singapore's interest - much like Israelis Ministers and Politicians playing the Global Card to protect Israel's survival.
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For you all uninformed ones....
you people are 10 years too late to ask this question...
remember the singapore malaysia water agreedment which entitles us to draw water from JOHOR river?
guess wat.... we have similar agreedment with THAILAND... except that this time its RICE!
this agreedment is tailor made to meet singapore need for rice during global food shortages or famine.
of course... some of you already noted singapore actually have a rice stockpile to handle unforseen short term disruption to rice supply.... but i am sure you are now able to rest better knowing our thai brothers will share with us their rice in emergencies...
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Still, high dependency is a rather dangerous thing
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oh dear.
err, why is there a shortage in rice suddenly. is it because of a sudden boom in world population?
ha... last time it was sterotypical that poor people can only afford to eat plain rice.. now i think rice also cannot afford liao.
govt solution for the bread problem is to eat cheap bread. i wonder what's their solution now. eat rotten rice?
end of the world lo...
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For the informed ones - a piece of paper is worth only the face value of the paper, unless the spirit of the letters is respected.
Despite the Water Agreement between Malaysia and Singapore was signed and lodged with the United Nations, Malaysia was putting up every effort to abrogate the entire agreement - as seen from the events in Year 2002:
Singapore has rebuffed Malaysia's latest salvo. Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Dr Rais' remarks are 'not in accord' with the repeated assurances from the Malaysian government that the 1961 and 1962 water agreements would be honoured.
Singapore's stance is correct. Malaysia cannot scrap the two agreements unilaterally as the documents were lodged with the United Nations. As noted by Singapore's Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew in his memoirs, Singapore would go to the United Nations Security Council if the agreements were breached.
While Singapore's position is crystal clear, it's unclear if Malaysia could find a way to enact a new law that would bypass the water agreements. Under the water deals, Malaysia is legally obliged to sell water to Singapore at 3 sen per thousand gallons until 2061. What's less certain is whether Malaysia has the right to determine the amount of water to be sold to Singapore.
As the eventual sale quantum depends on available supply, Malaysia may argue that it has a prima facie right to take care of its domestic water needs first before supplying to any 'offshore party'. In other words, all Malaysian states must be self-sufficient in water before Johor could be allowed by the federal government to sell water to Singapore.
Malaysia is probably hoping to dilute the water agreements, without directly breaching the agreements.
The new proposal, if implemented, to bypass the two water agreements is similar to its action to end the trading of Malaysian stocks on Clob International, Singapore's over-the-counter market four years ago.
For nearly a decade, Malaysia could not stem the flow of domestic money to Malaysian equities on Clob International. Instead of rescinding the Malaysian stocks on Clob International, Malaysia unilaterally declared Clob International an unrecognised market as part of its regime of capital controls.
Malaysia then ordered all its brokers to deal in Malaysian securities only through the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) or through an exchange recognised by the KLSE. The move effectively put an end to the trading of Malaysian stocks on Clob International although it is a legitimate market.
Like the move to keep the trading of Malaysian equities in the country, Malaysia will probably attempt to ensure minimal leakage of its water reserves to Singapore, unless the new selling price is acceptable.
But the water issue is a lot more complicated. Although Malaysia has a right to enact new laws, any attempt to breach the spirit of the water agreements will only strain bilateral relations further.
Source: http://www.singapore-window.org/sw02/021028bt.htm
The problems that Singapore had over the water issue encountered with Malaysia clearly should give us notice that we cannot count on paper agreement.
When the crunch come, Thailand will have to look after its own before it can help others - it is matter of political survival for any sitting Thai Political Party that form the Government.
Agreement or not, can Thailand help to feed Singapore when they cannot even feed their own ?
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Originally posted by Atobe:
For the informed ones - a piece of paper is worth only the face value of the paper, unless the spirit of the letters is respected.
Despite the Water Agreement between Malaysia and Singapore was signed and lodged with the United Nations, Malaysia was putting up every effort to abrogate the entire agreement - as seen from the events in Year 2002:
Source: http://www.singapore-window.org/sw02/021028bt.htm
The problems that Singapore had over the water issue encountered with Malaysia clearly should give us notice that we cannot count on paper agreement.
When the crunch come, Thailand will have to look after its own before it can help others - it is matter of political survival for any sitting Thai Political Party that form the Government.
Agreement or not, can Thailand help to feed Singapore when they cannot even feed their own ?
Agree, if I can't feed my own family, don't expect me to feed your family.
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the agreedment with thailand would go a long way in giving us a fallback in times of urgencies.. its better then wait to die.
if there is a sudden global famine of pandemic maginitude across the entire world, it no longer matters which country you are in or from.... those with food reserves would pray hard their country population is small... and their stockpile is sky high.
and should the worst come to be... as global power structures crumbles under the waves of hunger, and countries goes to war to secure food... those bullets stored in our underground UAC... could very well determine if your family gets to feed or starve. -
Originally posted by tripwire:
the agreedment with thailand would go a long way in giving us a fallback in times of urgencies.. its better then wait to die.
if there is a sudden global famine of pandemic maginitude across the entire world, it no longer matters which country you are in or from.... those with food reserves would pray hard their country population is small... and their stockpile is sky high.
and should the worst come to be... as global power structures crumbles under the waves of hunger, and countries goes to war to secure food... those bullets stored in our underground UAC... could very well determine if your family gets to feed or starve.Originally posted by tripwire
the agreedment with thailand would go a long way in giving us a fallback in times of urgencies.. its better then wait to die.
Unfortunately, ''in times of urgencies'' that befall on every country - not only Singapore - that agreement with Thailand will not save Singapore, when Thailand cannot even have enough rice to feed their own Thai nationals.
if there is a sudden global famine of pandemic maginitude across the entire world, it no longer matters which country you are in or from.... those with food reserves would pray hard their country population is small... and their stockpile is sky high.
You are right to this extent that if famine is on a global basis, it does not matter which country one is in unless you are in a country with food reserves.
Then again, the food reserves will also have its own shelf life, and unless renewed before the expiry date or the entire reserve stock is consumed, the final outcome remains bleak.
and should the worst come to be... as global power structures crumbles under the waves of hunger, and countries goes to war to secure food... those bullets stored in our underground UAC... could very well determine if your family gets to feed or starve.Is there any left that is worth fighting for when famine is on a global scale ?
Can a hungry army have the capacity, energy and stamina to fight, and for how many days ?
Will it not be better for Governments to take consolidated efforts to address the present critical situation before it becomes a worse crisis ?
For a small country, whose ruling politicians had formed the government for the last 45 over years, and had made a deliberately determined decision to be totally dependent on food import, it remains the moral responsibility of this same Politicians to be more pro-active in ensuring the continued stable supply of the staple food of all Singaporeans.