Rice｜A Sticky Climate Challenge

Over half of the world’s population eats rice as its staple food. But did you know that rice production also contributes to about 10% of the world's methane emissions? And that methane is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in warming the planet? Reining in rice methane is a sticky problem. Different rice types and growing strategies to limit methane often create other problems like lower farming yields. An innovative SRI method developed in Madagascar in the 1960s increases yields and has the promise of reducing greenhouse gas emissions And if that’s not good enough news…scientists in China, the world's largest rice producer, are collaborating with US researchers to cultivate a hybrid rice that will be a game changer for our ever-warming planet.