BANGLADESH has tapped a local agricultural firm to develop a new variety of hybrid rice that can spur hybrid rice production and exportation in the South Asian country.
Bangladesh Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury said in a statement that she is “interested in potential expansion of a collaboration with SL Agritech Corp. (SLAC) after the Filipino-developed SL-8H made a mark in Bangladesh’s hybrid rice sector, accounting for 20% of the seed supply.”
SL-8H — the brainchild of Henry Lim Bon Liong — is the only Indica and Japonica hybrid rice produced in the Philippines since 2006.
“Their minister said they’re looking for a business on hybrid rice that they can plant and export. They want high-amylose rice for export,” Weijun Xu, SLAC officer-in-charge for international business, explained.
Mr. Xu added that Bangladesh is looking into a fancy hybrid rice variety, similar to the Jasmine rice of Thailand.
Two weeks ago, Ms. Chowdhury visited SLAC’s research center in Sta. Cruz, Laguna and the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna to expand the partnership.
The mission included representatives from Bangladesh-based group StressTolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia, as well as officials from different areas of Bangladesh like Tangail, Barisal and Rangpur.
The possible agreement is seen to strengthen ties between the two countries, which are both aiming for rice self-sufficiency, even as SLAC and Bangladesh have yet to agree on any commitments.
In April last year, Bangladesh lifted a ban on the export of aromatic rice after it produced 33.2 million metric tons (MT) of rice in 2011.
The government allowed the production of hybrid rice seed in Bangladeshi farms under SLAC’s technical assistance, as opposed to those of India and China.
“Bangladeshi farmers found SLAC’s SL-8H seeds to be surpassing the performance of other imported seeds,” Bangladesh Agriculture Additional Secretary Anwar Faruque said.
Bangladesh, a developing country, has been dependent on rice imports, purchasing around 500,000 MT of rice annually. It peaked to 1.48 million MT in 2011, based on data from the US Department of Agriculture. — K. T. de Villa
Source: Business World Online
