Myanmar needs to export rice  to China before October as quickly as possible as Myanmar has got an additional rice export quota of 100,000 tons from China, said Aung Htoo, Deputy Minister for Commerce, at a coordination meeting on the export of rice to China via  sea, at the ministry of commerce in Nay Pyi Taw on June 10.

Both sides have agreed to export rice to China under a government-to-government agreement.

“We have a plan to change the rice export quota in coming October.

According to the MoU signed between the two countries which will take effect till 2020, only rice produced by 11 private rice mills which got inspected by China will be shipped to China. According to our experience, we have to take up to two years to meet the rice export first batch quota of 100,000 tons. As we have an excess supply, we are planning to export an additional rice quota of 100,000 tons, he added.

In April, 2019, China allowed Myanmar to ship an additional rice export quota of 100,000 tons. Efforts are being made to increase the number of rice mills which will get the green-light, he continued.

Ye Min Aung, the President of Myanmar Rice Federation said: “We will export 100,000 tons of rice to China as quickly as possible. We will continue to export an additional 400,000 to 500,000 tons of rice. We will sign a rice export contract with China in June. We will export rice to China in July, August and September. The government will make efforts to get additional rice export quotas from other countries in addition to China in order to control the price decline in the harvest season.”