Miller Magazine Issue: 117 September 2019

58 COVER STORY MILLER / SEPTEMBER 2019 and requirements, all the food chain is moving to integrate new technologies and to communicate better to the consumer. The session on how climate change and new technologies would reshape the grains and oil- seeds sector highlighted the need for greater co- operation between operators in the value chain and the importance of investing in new technol- ogies and integrated data systems to improve practices along the food chain. Rice is a staple food in many of the world’s fastest growing regions, with global trade pro- jected to play an increasing role in world food security over the coming years. Demand growth will likely stem from sub-Saharan African mar- kets, where gains in domestic output are expect- ed to be surpassed by higher food requirements from larger populations and dietary changes as the region continues to urbanise. Asia will re- main the dominant supplier, with international markets potentially exerting a growing influence over the economic wellbeing of the continent’s rural economies. Heavy government involvement in the sector can, in part, be attributed to some unique aspects of rice trading. Rice markets lack transparency, partly due to a significant level of fragmentation amid myriad traded grades and varieties. There