The Essequibo Paddy Farmers Association plans a protest today to highlight the plight of rice farmers in their county, who say their livelihoods are under threat by the low prices being paid by millers for their produce.
Chairman of the Essequibo Paddy Farmers Association Naith Ram told an AFC press conference yesterday in George-town that until their concerns are addressed by either President Donald Ramotar or Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy, the paddy farmers at Essequibo
will continue their protest action on a regular basis.
Today’s protest will be held at Anna Regina High Bridge Square and the association is calling on paddy farmers across the country to support it in its fight.
Ram explained that currently the rice farmers are toiling without reward as the current price paid for their paddy by millers in the county leaves them without any profit. “Last year farmers were receiving about $4,000 for a bag of paddy. This year, the highest price being offered is $3,100 for a bag of paddy. This is way below the cost of production and at this rate the paddy farmers cannot sustain their crops and maintain their families,” Ram lamented, before opining that if the present conditions continue, their livelihoods would be threatened.
He explained that at the end of the 2013 rice crop, some 120,000 tonnes of paddy was still in the system and had not been marketed. This, he stressed, has contributed to a glut in the market and was being used to keep the price being offered the farmers down.
Ram also pointed out that Essequibo paddy farmers were promised retroactive payment for paddy lost to a bug infestation last year but to date some farmers have not seen a cent of it.
“During 2013 when there was infestation of bugs, the millers took 180 to 200 lbs per bag instead of the usual 140 to 150 lbs, depending on moisture and dockage. At a meeting with the Minister, it was promised that the millers would make retroactive payments to the farmers to cover the additional weight. This has not materialised and the farmers have heard nothing further either from the Minister or the millers,” he stated.
Another area of concern was that millers still owe monies on crops bought last season and when farmers are owed they should be given a stipulated interest on the initial sum as stipulated by the Rice Factory Act of Guyana. The outstanding monies from millers he said is about $60M.
