China partners with Barbados in growing upland rice

By Anesta Henry

A pilot project between Barbados and China has yielded its first successful harvest of upland rice, using the staple in the drive towards food security, according to a Chinese farm expert.

In recent months, Hunan Linshi Agricultural Services, in collaboration with the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (BADMC) at Fairy Valley, Christ Church, has been cultivating upland rice, a crop suited for dry soil conditions.

During a project tour, Allan Wng from Hunan Linshi Agricultural Services said that it took 110 days from planting to harvest the rice. He noted that valuable lessons were learned during the initial yield, and plans were underway to expedite the second harvest with reduced labour requirements.

Wng expressed confidence that once Barbados masters large-scale rice cultivation, the need for rice imports will diminish.

He said: “I think this project is good for Barbados and good for food security, and we hope that after three or four years, Barbados can harvest rice, and there will be no need to import.”
Wng explained that China’s expertise in food cultivation, especially traditional practices for crops like corn, rice, and wheat, played a pivotal role in their success.

He credited Yuan Longping, a significant figure in Chinese agriculture, for pioneering hybrid rice and improved planting techniques.

These innovations, supported by the Chinese government, were swiftly adopted and successfully promoted. Wng emphasized that the success of hybrid rice technology in China had also been shared with other countries in Asia and Africa struggling with food security.

Wng highlighted the importance of their cooperation with Barbados, stating that the climate and needs of the island aligned well with their agricultural technology. He detailed their experiments with hybrid upland rice, which proved highly suitable for Barbados, yielding 58.62 kilograms from 79 square meters, equivalent to 3.03 tons per acre in 112 days.

The agricultural specialist said through the success of hybrid rice technology in China, the technique was spread to other countries in Asia and Africa, struggling with food security.

“We still have friends in Africa keeping up the good work,” he said.

“This time, we are here in Barbados because of the agricultural technology cooperation between Hunan Province and Barbados. Barbados is a very beautiful country. When I saw the climate of this place and the needs of the Barbados Government, we tried to share vegetable technology.”

According to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, each person requires 350 grams of grain per day. Wng noted that planting one acre of upland rice could sustain 15.4 people for a year, suggesting a major contribution to Barbadian food security.

Given Barbados’ limited water resources, they chose to plant upland rice during the rainy season, efficiently utilising rainwater for irrigation without wasting local water supplies. Upland rice does not depend on flooded fields, known as rice paddies, to grow.

Wng said: “As we all know, the water in Barbados is not enough to supply rice production, so we choose to plant upland rice in the rainy season. In this way, we use the rainwater to irrigate the upland rice, which will not waste the water in Barbados and can also produce food for Barbados.”

Wng expressed satisfaction with the quality of the first upland rice harvest and focused on nurturing the upcoming yield, which showed promising signs of another successful crop.

He also showcased the cultivation of sweet corn and other produce in a greenhouse as part of the ongoing Barbados-Hunan Linshi Agricultural Project.

anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb