In two days, the European Union should reintroduce duties on rice imports from Cambodia and Myanmar. According to Italian farmers’ association Coldiretti, the start of the approval procedure by the EU Commission is expected to be completed on 16 January. A period of reintroduction of duties will be established only on milled Indica rice, for no more than three years, with a scalar value of the same amount from €175 euros per tonne in 2019, to €150 in 2020 to €125 in 2021. “The mobilization of Coldiretti has led the EU Commission to recognize the economic damage due to the volumes of imports” said the President of Coldiretti Ettore Prandini.
THE RECORDS OF ITALIAN RICE
In the last years, Indica rice has been arriving on the EU market from Cambodia and Myanmar in such volumes and price levels as to cause serious difficulties for European operators. The crisis in the sector is putting at risk the Italian leadership in Europe. Italy is indeed the first producer with 1.40 million tons on a territory of 219,300 hectares cultivated by about 4 thousand companies. This is equivalent to 50% of total EU production.