Special TV Interview of Dr. Hossieni Director General of Rice Research Institute of Iran with Royesh (emerge) program of Education channel of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcaster

 Dr. Hossieni Director General of Rice Research Institute of Iran: The main research objectives of the Rice Research Institute of Iran, and more broadly the Ministry of Jahad Agriculture focus on increasing the rice grain yield as well as enhancing the cooking and eating quality of rice by introducing new improved varieties.

General of Rice Research Institute of Iran attended on Royesh (emerge) program of Education channel of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcaster on Sunday, July 25, 2021. In answering to TV host about the rice sector challenges, introduced the RRII’s past, present, and future plans to increase rice production in the rice-growing area of the country.

In response to a question about the importance of rice in the food basket of the Iranian people, she said: Rice is the world’s second most important cereal crop. Next to wheat, rice is a staple food for Iranian people (particularly, rice-growing area of the North)  and plays a vital role in food security at the national level. So we look at this crop very strategically. To respond to the country call,  the RRII coordinates the development of a rice strategy for the region. This call was made in the backdrop of the food demand and increased attention being paid to the development of the rice sector by national governments and research agencies. We hope these effective steps cause less reliance on imported rice and produce higher self-sufficiency. Therefore, the main research objectives of the Rice Research Institute of Iran, and more broadly the Ministry of Jahad Agriculture focus on increasing the rice grain yield as well as enhancing the cooking and eating quality of rice by introducing new improved varieties.

In response to a question about the RRII’s program to improve and increase the cooking and eating quality of rice, Dr. Hosseini, General of Rice Research Institute of Iran, added: The RRII as a national research institute is a trusted source of rice knowledge for the country’s rice industry. Facing global challenges, we need continuous access to new varieties and their growing requirement packages to maintain the rice sectors. Therefore, we try to take effective steps to issue the last research findings’ to rice farmers. The RRII’s aims and programs are categorized into two important categories: Breeding and Agronomic activities.

Breeding programs focus on introducing new varieties of rice that are tailored to the farmers’ needs and consumer tastes and preferences. To cope with this challenge we tried to provide new varieties to farmers more quickly. In this regard, during the last 3 years, 6 new rice cultivars have been introduced to the paddy community by the RRII. The new rice varietal introducing are classified into three groups:

Group 1: Good to high-quality varieties with reasonable grain yield. These varieties were released and introduced to replace some local cultivars to increase the average yield per unit area because they have higher yields than local cultivars.  Gilar and Anam are the most important cultivars of this group.

Group 2: High-potential cultivars with high yield and suitable cooking quality. These varieties were released and introduced to replace previously introduced high yield improved rice cultivars. During the last three years, three cultivars of high-potential categories have been introduced by the Rice Research Institute of Iran. Rash, Tisa, and Tolou cultivars which were earlier mature than the previous high potential cultivars consumed less irrigation water and better cooking and eating quality than group 1.

Group 3: Cultivars are tolerant to abiotic stresses such as drought and water shortage crisis, and the latest cultivar introduced in this field is called Kian, which was produced in collaboration with the Nuclear Agricultural Research Institute. The last 30 days of the growing season do not require irrigation water.

The combination of these six cultivars and the rest of the cultivars, which has reached 55 cultivars so far, has been introduced by the Rice Research Institute of Iran, together with purified native cultivars, they can contribute to increase grain yield production and also can introduce for cultivation in various climatic regions.

He also said that locally produced rice has healthy rice standards, and in fact, Iranian rice is one of the highest quality and healthiest rice produced in the world. It is based on the fact that in all breeding and agricultural programs, attention to taste and aroma, and healthy food are seriously considered.

Dr. Hossieni, General of Rice Research Institute of Iran in response to research-extension relationships and research findings transfer to said that with the close relationship between the National Rice Research Institute and the Agricultural Education and Extension Department of Jahad-Agriculture Organization, efforts have been made to provide the latest research findings in the shortest time and with the best quality pass to the farmers.

The Rice Research Institute Iran has organized various training courses, and workshops (In-person and online), publishing extension booklet and bulletins, technical reports, posters, and infographic design, and also the formation of a group of specific researchers to monitoring rice paddy fields, research and extension projects, and on-farm and etc., play a vital role to increase rice grain yield. In this regard, we must use capabilities, opportunities, and abilities in all media.

Dr. Hossieni stated that my request to everyone in the rice industry is to support farmers and local rice production, especially improved cultivars, due to the reduction of production costs and also the reduction of prices for the consumer.

In the end, he expressed hope that the efforts of the RRII could increase self-reliance and bring rice production to the border of self-sufficiency.