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Food and agriculture

Food and agriculture
Latest news, in-depth features and opinion on food and agriculture, with a focus on Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
Singapore chicken rice in Maxwell Food Centre. Rice is a staple in Southeast Asia. Photo: Shutterstock
India-Pakistan tensions

Could India-Pakistan conflict mean empty rice bowls around Asia?

India is the world’s biggest and Pakistan the fourth-largest exporters of rice to import-reliant Southeast Asian nations.

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Science

Chinese scientists unlock gene secret at root of drought-tolerant rice

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Art

How this artist uses rice to connect to her community – and ancestors

China food security

China cuts need for feed seed as food security campaign ramps up

As global trade becomes less certain, China plans to reduce the proportion of grain in its animal feed – particularly imported soybeans.

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China has unveiled a plan to reduce the proportion of grain in its animal feed, part of efforts to enhance the security of its domestic supply. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

Opinion | Thanks to Trump, China has the cards it needs to win the trade war

Trump’s actions have left nations feeling betrayed while accelerating China’s self-sufficiency. These, plus Beijing’s rare earth dominance, could spell victory.

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Indonesia

Indonesian clove farmers’ hopes wither as climate change hits hard

Erratic rainfall is affecting yields as flowers can be harvested only in a small window that depends heavily on the weather.

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Food and Drinks

Watered but not grown in water, a rice strain for a drier, hotter world

A strain of rice developed in Chile doesn’t need a flooded field to grow, just an irrigated one – a boon to farmers as water scarcity rises.

Scientist Karla Cordero inspects experimental rice seedlings grown in Chile. A new, less water-intensive rice strain is thriving in the country’s dry climate, offering hope for sustainable agriculture at a time of increased water scarcity. Photo: AFP
Indonesia

Indonesia’s food estate push targets self-sufficiency, but Papua concerns grow

Indonesia’s food self-sufficiency drive, spearheaded by President Prabowo Subianto, has raised environmental and Indigenous rights concerns.

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US-China trade war

How are tariff increases affecting restaurants in US and China?

American steaks off the menu in Beijing, as prices of Chinese ingredients in US rise ‘across the board’.

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Australia

Australian triple-murder suspect accused of killing with ‘special’ mushroom meal

She is accused of three murders – including her parents-in-law – and one attempted murder, all with death cap mushrooms in 2023.

Erin Patterson, 50, has pleaded not guilty to all three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Photo: via AP
Indonesia

Indonesia’s free meal scheme faces calls for stronger food safety standards

Several food poisoning incidents have led to calls for food suppliers involved in the free meals programme to undergo proper training.

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A free meal provided at a school in Depok, West Java under the Indonesian government’s free nutritious meal programme. Photo: EPA-EFE
The Philippines

Philippines to slash rice prices in half amid election season

The programme will cost the Marcos government about US$178 million to help the poor, but critics say it is a tool to support government candidates in midterm polls.

United States

US Treasury chief not worried about shops running out of items ‘at present’

‘I think we’ll see replacements,’ Scott Bessent said referring to Trump trade tariffs, particularly a 145 per cent levy on goods from China.

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US-China trade war

China’s food, energy supplies secure without US imports, official says

Beijing says it has self-sufficiency in staple crops and energy, and enough alternative import sources to offset even a total loss of US goods.

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The US has long been one of China’s top suppliers of soybeans, but China has been diversifying its supply base in recent years. Photo: Xinhua
China trade

US farmers’ loss is Brazil’s gain as China diversifies soybean imports

With tariffs on US soybeans, most of China’s summer imports will come from Brazil, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s April outlook report.

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A worker handles soybeans in Campos Lindos, Brazil, during a February soy harvest. More of China’s soybean imports are coming from Brazil amid a tariff war with the United States. Photo: Reuters
China technology

Opinion | How China’s agricultural modernisation is reshaping global food systems

As sufficiency improves for China and the countries it shares its agriculture+AI strategy with, regional and global trade could be reshaped.

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China economy

Chinese tea hub Puer branches into coffee as tastes change

Officials have rolled out policies to improve production, attract investment, boost exports and encourage coffee tourism.

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Asean

Asian Angle | How Asean can turn short-term tariff pain into long-term gain

Intra-bloc trade and diversified supply sources can help reduce dependency on Donald Trump’s United States and expand export options.

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Asean finance ministers and bank governors at the bloc’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur on April 10. Malaysia, as this year’s Asean chair, has called for a coordinated regional response to the US tariffs. Photo: AFP
US-China trade war

China cancels largest US pork order in 5 years, dealing blow to American farmers

American farmers likely to face dire consequences in trade war as the mainland rolls out high tariffs, cancels orders: analysts.

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Food and Drinks

The best souvenir from Korea? It’s rice for some Japanese visitors

Amid a rice shortage in Japan that has seen prices rise 92 per cent in a year, Japanese visitors to Korea are buying the grain to take home.

Malaysia

AI-generated image of durian farm in Malaysia raises stink over land dispute

Image fuels speculation about more illegal planters in Pahang’s forests, while analysts also warn of lack of safeguards against manipulated content.

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A worker harvesting a durian that has been secured with rope at a farm in Raub in Malaysia’s Pahang state. Photo: AFP
Beauty

How truffles went from ancient culinary delicacy to modern skincare solution

Brands like d’Alba, Fresh and Neogen are incorporating the feisty fungus into their products, with the promise of enhancing skin tone and creating a radiant and youthful complexion.

For centuries, truffles have been prized as a culinary delicacy. Now, their skincare properties are also being appreciated. Photo: Shutterstock
Thailand

‘We won’t survive’: Trump’s tariffs leave Thai rice farmers in flux

‘If the US imposes the tariff, our jasmine rice will be too expensive to compete,’ an industry executive says.

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Food and Drinks

From Rome, Hong Kong and Canada, chefs share the art of the artichoke

Don’t be intimidated by its appearance: find out what top chefs at Ama Ristorante and Amber in Hong Kong, and Published on Main in Vancouver, love about artichokes, and their favourite ways to cook them.

US-China trade war

China is weaning itself off US soybeans as decade-long outlook comes into view

The days of China relying on America for soybeans could be numbered as agricultural ministry outlook report for next decade puts onus on self-sufficiency.

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The trade of soybeans is among the most contentious battlefields in the US-China tariff war. Photo: Reuters
Wealth management

Smell of success: fresh Malaysian durians are taking bite out of China’s market

While Thailand dominates durian sales in China, sales of the Malaysian fruit have grown tenfold from last year, industry insiders say.

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Fresh durians from Malaysia displayed at a supermarket in Zhengzhou on August 25, 2024. Photo: Xinhua
Durians in China

China’s durian determination yields golden home-grown bounty in Hainan

Tropical Hainan province has defied sceptics and rewarded investors with China-grown durian, but it ‘simply cannot compete’ with booming imports from Southeast Asia.

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Donald Trump

Trump says he wants to give money, plane tickets to migrants who ‘self-deport’

The US president also said he wants to work to get ‘good’ immigrants back in the United States.

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