Egypt leads global rice production with climate-resilient and water-efficient varieties
CAIRO - 12 March 2025: Rice remains one of the world's most essential food crops, feeding billions of people. Over time, rice farming has evolved from traditional manual methods to modern, technology-driven agriculture. Egypt has emerged as a leader in global rice production, thanks to groundbreaking research by the Agricultural Research Center (ARC).
Dr. Hamdy El-Mowafi, Head of the National Hybrid Rice Development Project, highlighted Egypt's achievements in rice farming, attributing them to scientific advancements. New rice varieties developed by Egyptian researchers now require significantly less water—between 5,000 to 6,000 cubic meters per season, compared to the traditional 8,000 to 9,000 cubic meters.
These high-yield varieties also have shorter growth cycles, such as Giza 175, which matures in just 120 days, enhancing efficiency while conserving resources. While older varieties produced 2.4 tons per feddan, the new hybrids yield up to 4 tons per feddan.
Egypt's Field Crops Research Institute, a division of the ARC, plays a vital role in rice farming advancements. Its key objectives include:
Developing short-lifespan, high-yield, and water-efficient rice hybrids
Enhancing resistance to diseases and environmental stress
Providing scientific recommendations to farmers based on regional conditions
Ensuring food security while conserving natural resources
Rice farming in Egypt dates back to 1812, when Mohamed Ali Pasha introduced the crop on 4,500 feddans, yielding 600 kg per feddan. Research on rice improvement began in 1917, but the real breakthrough came in 1987 with the establishment of the Rice Research Center in Sakha, Kafr El-Sheikh. This center brought together experts in crop protection, pest control, and agricultural innovation, paving the way for Egypt's dominance in rice production.
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, rice cultivation in Egypt expanded to over 2 million feddans, but yields remained at 2.4 tons per feddan. However, from the mid-1990s, new research-driven approaches introduced short-season, high-yield rice varieties, reducing growth cycles from 160 days to just 115-120 days while boosting yields to 4 tons per feddan.
Beyond boosting productivity, Egypt's rice farming innovations align with national water conservation goals. Thanks to the new hybrid varieties and optimized farming techniques, water consumption has dropped from 8,500 cubic meters to 5,000 cubic meters per season. Rice farming also plays a vital environmental role, protecting northern agricultural lands from seawater intrusion and preserving soil fertility.
Egypt's commitment to agricultural research continues to drive rice production forward. The development of high-yield, climate-resilient varieties, such as Giza 177 (Japanese) and Giza 178 (Indo-Japanese), has paved the way for 16-17 new commercial rice strains. With ongoing advancements, Egypt is strengthening its position as a global leader in sustainable rice production, ensuring food security while adapting to climate challenges.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
See - Sada Elbalad
19 hours ago
- See - Sada Elbalad
Private Japanese Spacecraft to Attempt Landing on Lunar 'Sea of Cold'
Rana Atef The Japanese private space company ispace is set to make a historic moon landing this week. The company's Reslience lunar lander will attempt to land in Mare Frigoris ("Sea of Cold") on Thursday. The company will stream the landing attempt online via a live webcast on ispace's YouTube page, beginning about one hour before landing. Resilience is ispace's second lunar lander. The first reached lunar orbit but failed during its touchdown try in April 2023. If Resilience succeeds on June 5, the lander will deploy a small rover called Tenacious and also operate a suite of scientific instruments on the lunar surface. read more UAE's Lunar Mission Delayed to Tomorrow Twitter Lifts Trump's Account Ban Scientists Find Evidence Of 10،000 Black Holes Surrounding The Center Of The Milky Way Galaxy Greenhouse In Antarctica Able To Grow Vegetables Without Soil Or Sunlight Moving Over China: U.S. Is Again Home to World's Speediest Supercomputer Technology The 10 most expensive cars in the world Technology Top 10 fastest cars in the world Technology Lasers Could Make Computers 1 Million Times Faster Technology Smart technology taking control of our lives News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple Business Fear & Greed Index Plummets to Lowest Level Ever Recorded amid Global Trade War Arts & Culture Zahi Hawass: Claims of Columns Beneath the Pyramid of Khafre Are Lies News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks News Shell Unveils Cost-Cutting, LNG Growth Plan
Egypt Today
a day ago
- Egypt Today
et guide: Is Egypt vulnerable to a major earthquake?
Earthquake - file CAIRO - 3 June 2025: Egypt among other countries felt an earthquake that struck earlier Tuesday, and its measuring recorded at a magnitude of 5.8 on the Richter scale. No injuries or damages were reported as a result. The Egyptian Red Crescent announced that its operations room detected an earthquake measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale, at a depth of 62 km, in the Dodecanese Islands border area with Turkey, 129 km south-southeast of Aydın, Turkey, at 11:17 a.m. The earthquake was felt by residents of Greater Cairo, the Delta, Alexandria, and Marsa Matrouh. The current situation is stable, and no reports of human or property damage have been received so far. Egypt has felt at least three strong earthquakes in less than a month. Is Egypt safe from destructive earthquakes? Sherif El-Hadi, head of the Seismology Department at the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, explained in previous statements that Egypt is relatively safe from destructive earthquakes compared to other areas directly located on seismic belts. Although history indicates that the region may experience significant seismic activity in the long term, the timing of this event cannot be determined based on recent seismic activity. Although Egyptians have felt some recent tremors, these were mostly caused by earthquakes centered outside Egypt in seismically active areas. Egypt itself is not directly located on a seismic belt, and there is no indication that an unusually large earthquake is imminent in the near future based on these earthquakes. Recent Earthquakes and Their Feelings in Egypt Recently, some Egyptians have felt several earthquakes, all of which had their epicenters outside Egypt. This includes the earthquake that occurred at 2:00 AM Cairo local time on Tuesday, centered in Turkey. Another earthquake recently felt by Egyptians was centered south of the island of Crete in the Mediterranean Sea. This region is known for its seismic activity, and earthquakes that occur in the Mediterranean are usually non-destructive to Egypt and do not pose any immediate threat to Egyptian territory. The Possibility of Predicting Earthquakes The National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics confirmed that earthquakes cannot be predicted, and that the frequency of earthquakes in the eastern Mediterranean region is normal, and the National Seismic Network monitors them in real-time.
Al-Ahram Weekly
6 days ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Tremors rattle Egypt - Egypt - Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt recently suffered two successive tremors. Reem Leila tries to find out if the country is becoming an earthquake zone. In the past couple of weeks, Egypt experienced two earthquakes. The first, of a magnitude 6.4 on the Richter scale, took place on 14 May. Eight days later, residents woke up to a 6.2 earthquake. They were felt by wide segments of the population across various governorates — from Greater Cairo and the Delta to the northern coast. Although the epicentres of both quakes were located south of the Greek island of Crete, hundreds of kilometres away from Egyptian territory, their strength, exceeding six according to the Richter scale, was enough to concern Egyptians. Citizens reacted strongly. Social media was filled with testimonies and questions about the nature and causes of the earthquakes, and an increased search for information regarding safety. According to the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG), Egypt is not located within major seismic belts and earthquakes occurring deep in the Mediterranean Sea do not pose a direct threat to the country. According to Sherif Al-Hadi, head of the Earthquake Department at the NRIAG, Egypt is not sitting on any seismic belts and is not threatened by earthquakes. 'The term seismic belt means that we would be constantly alert day and night due to consecutive earthquakes,' Al-Hadi said, explaining that what is currently happening is that Egypt is affected by several seismic belts outside its borders. Among these seismic belts are those passing through the Mediterranean Sea south of the islands of Cyprus and Crete. One of those is a low-activity seismic belt 390 km away from Cairo. The other is more than 700 km away from Cairo and has almost no effect on Upper Egypt. Al-Hadi confirmed that Egypt 'is at a safe distance, and what is happening is only the sensation of tremors, especially on the upper floors, without any damage to infrastructure or any losses of lives or property.' Abbas Sharaki, a Cairo University geology professor, told Al-Ahram Weekly that most of the earthquakes felt in Egypt originate from the Mediterranean Sea, particularly from the regions near Greece and Turkey. Sharaki said that some of the zones prone to feeling earthquakes include the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the area extending from the Dead Sea up to Turkey. Greece is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, he added. However, he added that although thousands of earthquakes are recorded there each year, severe damage or fatalities are rare. He described the region as a very active and systematic seismic zone that has experienced stronger earthquakes in the past, but none have seriously impacted Egypt. Sharaki also noted that the NRIAG is closely monitoring the aftershocks, which so far have been mild. Over the long-term there are expectations of an earthquake occurring in the seismic belt area with a magnitude 6.5. Such events, according to Al-Hadi, happen from time to time but unlike weather, earthquakes cannot be predicted because the nature of the earth is completely different from the nature of the weather. 'What we do is estimate the likelihood of earthquakes based on seismic zones, which may become dormant at times and active at others,' he said. Al-Hadi advised the public, when feeling any tremors, to avoid elevators and use the stairs, and to remain calm, as panic can lead to chaos and stampedes, which in turn cause injuries. * A version of this article appears in print in the 29 May, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
