Even though China is the world’s largest producer of rice, it is also the world’s biggest consumer as well and rice imports to the country are set to reach a record 3.4 million tons – six times greater than the country’s rice imports of 2011 according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and American rice growers are working to gain access to that market. But the two countries must first agree to a phytosanitary protocol to be followed by U.S. rice growers. China’s market has gained so much strength that exporters are finding that they need to accommodate such requirements or be blocked from the world’s largest market which can pick and choose its sources. Beginning in 2012 China began importing rice in earnest from Vietnam, Pakistan, and India but before U.S. growers can export to China, Beijing is requiring the U.S. industry to expand its use of insect traps along the supply chain and keep records of the results. The USA Rice Federation has called the requirements ‘unrealistic and onerous’. Chinese demand for all food products is growing at such an accelerated pace (American agricultural exports to China increased from $5 billion a decade ago to $25.8 billion in 2013) that other U.S. industries are adapting to China’s demands in order to gain access to the market. China could consume the entire annual U.S. production of rice within 17 days, therefore the U.S. industry is looking to position itself as a high-end niche provider of high quality, safe rice to a country that has suffered multiple food contamination scandals. To read further:
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