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Rice Production in Asia
 Rice
is the most important source of calories for nearly half of the
world’s population. Within Asia, rice provides more than 30
percent of the total calorie supply; poor populations are especially
reliant on rice as a source for nutrition. Not surprisingly then,
Asia accounts for 90 percent of the world’s rice production
and consumption. With increasing global populations, demand for
rice in the region is expected to increase about 70 percent over
the next three decades, implying a need to raise yields and grain
quality to meet future nutritional demands.
One approach to improving rice production in Asia
is through biotechnology. That is, rice varieties are genetically
modified by splicing in new genes that provide new and improved
traits. However, there is not a single one-size-fits-all solution
to increasing rice quantity and quality in the region -- the environments
in which rice is grown in Asia are as diverse as the people who
live there.
With unique growing conditions come local environmental challenges,
requiring specific and diverse technologies to overcome them.
Generally speaking, Asian rice is produced in environments that
are viewed as being either favorable or unfavorable.
Favorable environments are those areas in which water
is available for irrigation. About 75 percent of the world’s
rice is produced on irrigated lands, which accounts for a little
more than half of the cultivated rice area in Asia.
The remainder of the world’s rice supply is
grown in fragile, unfavorable conditions: rain-fed lowlands, rain-fed
uplands, and flood prone areas, all of which can experience uneven
water supplies and a host of environmental challenges. More than
half of Asia’s poor obtain at least 50 percent of their calories
from rice grown in these fragile environments.
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