Chinese-grown rice tastes and looks better than it did 16 years ago, according to the China National Rice Research Institute. The organisation set out to prove that climate change hadn’t degraded the country’s rice quality, according to a report in the South China Morning Post.
Last month, researchers from the institute published a note in the scientific journal Nature saying that improved genetics and monitoring in planting environments had contributed to the advancements, which “occurred alongside a marked increase in the efficiency of rice production as measured by total factor productivity.”
The remarks were in response to an article, also published by Nature, that claimed hot nights brought about by global warming were leading to quality declines in both Chinese and Japanese rice crops.
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However, Chinese researchers stated that tests on the nation’s rice showed an improved “taste score” – jumping from 74.9 points in 2009 to 80.3 points in 2022. The score is based on a sample’s appearance, aroma, palatability, taste and texture when cooked and when cold.
The note’s coauthor, associate researcher Lu Lin, said that her team’s findings indicated that “rice yield and quality can be developed in parallel.” She also said quantity used to be China’s biggest concern around the staple, but in these days of ample supply “whether rice tastes good or not became the quality indicator of most concern.”
China is the world’s biggest rice producer.
