Millers read the Rice Act
Stabroek News
February 10, 2004
Millers will soon be required to pay rice farmers in line with the laws of the 1998 Rice Factory Act.
At the Guyana Rice Development Board's (GRDB) fifth seminar held on Friday to sensitise millers and farmers about the requirements of the legislation, it was noted that that millers needed to abide by Schedule Six of the Act, which governs the timely payment of rice farmers.
Schedule Six of the Act is a record of sale, of paddy by producer to manufacturer, which the manufacturer and the producer sign to show that they have agreed to a timeframe for payment. The majority of millers do not enter into these contracts and the farmers themselves are not insisting on this.
"By implementing this Act it will help farmers to be paid," said Leekha Rambrich, the Rice Producers Association (RPA) president in his address, adding that to date the Act has never been implemented while many farmers have gone bankrupt. "This is killing the industry."
Senior Counsel and Parliamentary Speaker Ralph Ramkarran said: "It is very traumatic to see farmers being subjected to these things particularly small farmers."
But the main purpose of the seminar was to enquire of the farmers and the millers what they would like to see amended to make the legislation more practical and precise.
They focused on how the Act might improve the present payment situation and issues of weight per bag of paddy.
Peter deGroot, CEO of Fairfield Rice Inc, cautioned that the GRDB could not dictate or ask for penalties to be placed on millers who do not pay on time but they could advise as to whether the agreement being entered into was safe. deGroot made these comments after one farmer asked that the Act be amended to include a $10 million fine or five years imprisonment for millers who did not pay their debts within four weeks.
deGroot said farmers must demand that millers sign contracts for their rice stating the agreed price and a date for payment. He said they should stay with millers they knew to be reliable and not flock to those who might pay $5 or $10 more but had no track record.
Dharamkumar Seeraj, the general secretary of the RPA although in favour of ensuring timely payments through the Act did not expect it to be enforced 100 per cent. More immediately he wants key elements implemented for the coming crop including regulations on accurate weights and grading.
Agriculture Minister Satyadeow Sawh indicated that a mobile unit would be visiting the mills to ensure compliance with the Act while checking equipment.