http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article3878749.ece

“Th cyclone that has devastated Burma is not only set to push world rice prices higher but may have jeopardised the country’s long-term ability to feed its own population, Asian food experts say.”
The Cyclone Nargis appears to have been the fiercest in Burma’s main rice-growing region. Full details of the damage are not clear, but millions of tons of salt water have flooded onto the rice paddies, making them unfit for planting for some time.
“The price of rice has trebled across Asia this year, hitting a record $25.07 per 100 pounds on April 24. Some local market prices have risen tenfold in the past year and several governments have responded by imposing export bans. Rice is currently trading around $20.96 per 100 pounds.”
If several harvests are missed as a result of the calamity, Burma would need to import rice in.
“Becoming an importer is not a position anyone would wish for under current market conditions: yesterday the Philippines was forced to cancel a huge tender for rice imports because only one bidder emerged with an impossible price for the goods.”