For week ending August 13, 2009

       To date, six teams have registered for the tournament: Chemrez Technologies, Minola, Pilipinas Kao, United Coconut Planters Bank, Mixed Oils (Cargill Philippines, Stolt-Nielsen Philippines), Mixed Nuts (Igual Commodities, Intertek Testing Services, Cosay & Co., Iligan Bay Milling and Trading).

       Edgardo D. Santos, CIIF Oil Mills Group vice president for marketing, trading and operations, said the CIIF spent P2 million to refurbish the Arimbay plant which has a capacity of 400 tons per day. With the re-commissioning of the plant, the CIIF Group?s current operating copra crushing capacity will increase by 25 percent. Santos said the Arimbay plant would initially process 300 to 330 tons of copra per day until it reaches its rated capacity. CIIF exports mainly to the United States.

       The festival coincides with the celebration of the 23rd National Coconut Week pursuant to Presidential Proclamation No. 142, Series of 1987. A ?Coconut Photo Exhibit?, another feature of the twin events, will be opened on August 14, 2009 and graced by Batangas province Governor Vilma Santos-Recto who will lead the ribbon cutting ceremonies. There will also be free lectures on the latest coconut technologies, business opportunities and food processing demonstrations.

       In May, the regulator also approved Cargill Philippines? absorption of affiliate Metrovet, Inc. to simplify operations and cut costs. Cargill Philippines said the merger would be beneficial to the surviving corporation because of synergies between its business of manufacturing agricultural products and animal feeds and Metrovet?s importation and selling of veterinary products. Cargill Philippines, maker of animal feed Purina, will also issue 727,133 of its shares worth P367.9 each to Agri Holdings, Inc., Metrovet?s parent and another unit of Cargill, Inc. Cargill Philippines also owns one of the country?s biggest coconut oil mills with installed capacity of 600 MT copra per day.

       At a dinner in Casablanca, Morocco, Malaysia?s Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Bernard Dompok said his country will increase export of palm oil to Morocco. As of the first semester of this year, export of palm oil and products to the country already totaled 6,986 MT valued at M$22.4 million. During the dinner, Dompok highlighted the benefits of Malaysia?s ?golden oil? and took a swipe at palm oil detractors saying criticism was ?unfounded?.

       In a related development, the Malaysian Palm Oil Council has set up an office in Ankara, Turkey. Apart from the country?s potential as market for palm oil products, Turkey will serve as springboard into Middle Eastern and European markets, Malaysian Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Bernard Dompok said at the Palm Oil Trade Fair and Seminar in Istanbul. He claimed that using crude palm oil in the production of biodiesel would benefit Turkey in the context of making available sustainable and renewable forms of energy. ?This, along with Turkey?s geographical and political advantage with other countries in the Middle East and Europe, provides opportunity for the export of value-added processed palm-based products?, he added.

       US Senators Maria Cantwell and Charles Grassley has introduced a new legislation, the Biodiesel Tax Incentive Reform and Extension Act, which is expected to provide stability and reliability to the biodiesel industry by extending the tax incentive for five years. The bill proposes to change the tax incentive from a blenders excise tax credit to a production excise tax credit. This change will focus the incentive on the domestic biodiesel industry, improve administration of the nation?s tax laws and protect the integrity of the credit, according to the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), the trade association for the US biodiesel industry.

       After record purchases earlier this year that consequently boosted local stocks, India has slowed importation of edible oil in July. Govindlal Patel, director of Dipak Enterprise, said imports declined by 8% to 490,000 MT from 532,546 MT in the same month last year. Of the total, palm oil was 400,000 MT and soybean oil 50,000 MT. Despite the drop, imports for the period January-July had advanced 38% year-on-year. He predicted that India?s edible oil purchases may total at least 1.86 million MT in the next three months, as demand rises and below average rains forced oilseed growers to plant fewer acres.

       Since July 1 this year, a law mandated the blending of 4% biodiesel in mineral diesel. The government forecasts this will boost biodiesel production in the country to 1.8 billion liters in 2009 from 1.2 billion liters a year earlier. According to the Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy, the expansion of production and use of biodiesel in the country contributes to add value to oilseeds of domestic origin, with a focus on the inclusion of family farming. Furthermore, it reduces the use of imported diesel and cuts greenhouse gas emissions

       At present, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can only request companies to recall their products; the bill would give it the power to order recalls. It would also give FDA authority to set science-based standards for food manufacture and handling and require manufacturers to show how they meet them, or strong penalties. Additionally, the bill mandates more frequent FDA inspections once a year for high-risk facilities and once every three years for others, to be partly funded through $500 fees payable by each manufacturing or processing facility. Currently manufacturing sites are only inspected about once a decade. However, the bill does not aim to consolidate the splintered food safety system, which is split between federal authorities as well as state and local health departments. The FDA is responsible for about 80 percent of US food supply.

       With food manufacturers increasingly interested in alternatives to increase the fry life of oils used for fried snack foods, the research supports the potential of the company?s ingredient to enhance the shelf life of the stored food. Matthew Gehring, CEO of Elvisem noted the move in the food industry towards using healthier oils like high oleic acid soybean which are less stable. Adding the citric acid-based antioxidant, a company could use these healthier oils, without concerns over the stability, he said. He added that the company is already working with several large potato chip and corn chip manufacturers in the U.S.