Cadmium Scare Boosts Appeal of North China Rice, Thai Imports

Consumers in China are turning to well-known brands from northern provinces and Thai imports after high traces of cadmium were found in some long-grain rice in the country’s south, a commodities analyst said.

Demand for Thai rice, which can cost as much as nine times local grain, is rising, said Wang Shutong, an analyst at commodity information provider Sublime China Information Co. The price of rice from northeast Heilongjiang province, which produces the short-grain japonica variety, has risen as much as