Hybrid rice has been the dominant form of rice seed in China for a while. It has also been spreading to Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, the Philippines and other places. As you know, seed companies like hybrids because farmers who use them need to buy new seed every year. Farmers like the higher yields. It seems that multinational seed companies are increasing their investments in rice hybrids for Asia. Bayer just announced that is has opened up shop in Suphanburi, a rice growing region north of Bangkok. Thailand is a country hitherto better known for rice quality and exports, than for the use of high yielding varieties. Photo credit: Bayer
In Bangladesh, hybrid rice gaining ground very rapidly. We are now looking forward for developing hybrid rice varieties with slender grain, high amylose contain accompanied by yield potential more than 9 tons/ha. Seed production technology should be rapidly expanded among farmers. We are trying to dessiminate self sustaining hybrid rice seed production technology for farmers.
@Md. Jamil Hasan, Senior Scientific Officer, Hybrid rice, BRRI (Bangladesh Rice Research Institute) – Readers of this blog would find it very interesting to know more about your “self-sustaining hybrid rice seed production technology”.