The South American country is one of the largest rice producers in the Caribbean, and now countries ranging from Panama to Senegal want to buy more.

Government officials are meeting early next week to talk about limiting exports to ensure that enough rice is available for human consumption and animal feed, said Jagnarine Singh, general manager of Guyana's rice development board.

"The first law of nature is self-preservation," he said yesterday. "We have had requests to export everything we have."

Guyana exported 269 000 tons (244 000 metric tons) of rice last year, a third of it to Jamaica and most of the rest to the European Union. Consumption there accounts for about 360 000 tons (327 000 metric tons) a year.