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China urges farmers to consider new variety of perennial rice
- The agriculture ministry is promoting a strain that has higher yields and can be harvested over several years without the need for replanting
- Researchers say perennial rice can be more cost-effective to produce and is potentially better for the environment
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The Chinese government is trying to encourage farmers to plant a new rice variety that can be harvested for several years without reseeding.
A list of favoured varieties produced last month by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs included a strain of perennial rice with twice the yield of traditional strains.
The variety is the world’s only commercially viable perennial grain, according to BGI Research, a Shenzhen-based company that took part in a joint venture with Yunnan University to develop the strain.
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Compared with most rice crops, which have to be replanted each year, perennial rice is cheaper and less labour intensive to produce, and scientists say it can also be better for the environment.
Liu Huan, the chief scientist at BGI Research, said perennial rice was revolutionary.
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“There are many areas where mechanised farming is not available or there are labour shortages, or where much of the land is underused,” he said.
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