Georgetown : Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy announced that the overall rice production for 2012 has amounted to a historic 422,058 tonnes and of that amount, exports accounted for 334,000 tonnes.
Region Five produced 37 percent of the total quantity of rice and Region 6 with 108,000 tonnes.
The rice production target for 2012 was 412,000 tonnes
Minister Ramsammy also disclosed that on January 11there will be a special meeting among the Ministries of Agriculture and Foreign Affairs and the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) to consider rice exports.
“Presently, more than 60 percent of the exported rice goes to Venezuela… Venezuela is the preferred market for farmers and millers,” he said.
Additionally, there was a reduction in exports to Europe in 2012, not because the demand for Guyana’s rice in Europe has reduced.
“We are hoping that in 2013 with greater production that we will be able to meet the demand in Venezuela, the Caribbean and Europe… the possibility of 500,000 tonnes of rice by 2015 now is real,” the Minister emphasised.
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