Quality is a powerful engine in rice value chain upgrading. However, there is no consensus on how “rice quality” should be defined and measured in the rice sector. We adopt a Lancasterian definition of rice quality as a bundle of intrinsic and extrinsic attributes. We then review how rice quality is (i) perceived and defined by consumers and industry stakeholders in rice value chains in Southeast and South Asia; (ii) measured and defined by food technologists; and (iii) predicted through genetics. Consumers are heterogeneous with respect to their perceived differentiation of rice quality among regions, countries, cities, and urbanization levels. Premium quality is defined by nutritional benefits, softness and aroma in Southeast Asia, and by the physical appearance of the grains (uniformity, whiteness, slenderness), satiety, and aroma in South Asia. These trends are found to be consistent with industry perceptions and have important implications for regional and national breeding programs in terms of tailoring germplasm to regions and rice varieties to specific local market segments. Because rice is traded internationally, there is a need to standardize definitions of rice quality. However, food technologists have not reached unanimity on quality classes and measurement; routine indicators need to be complemented by descriptive profiles elicited through sensory evaluation panels. Finally, because rice quality is controlled by multiple interacting genes expressed through environmental conditions, predicting grain quality requires associating genetic information with grain quality phenotypes in different environments.

With an expected 9 billion people by 2050 and average income on the rise in the developing world, meeting future food demand will be a challenge. Climate change, urbanisation and land degradation are putting further pressure on the food supply. The multifaceted and self-reinforcing nature of these challenges calls for a fundamental transformation of the food system. In the past, crop improvement through breeding has been the major tool to lift people out of poverty and increase global food supply. To adequately address these food security challenges, new improved crop varieties need to be developed and reach farmers sooner as a partial solution. In this review, we focus on various proven conventional and biotechnological accelerating plant breeding methods that do not require genetic engineering or gene editing. We pay specific attention to the feasibility for implementation by national agricultural research systems in developing countries in the short term. We argue that postponing technologies that can accelerate breeding makes no economic sense and justify immediate adoption of accelerated breeding practices in the public sector. Considering a wide range of factors including the economics of accelerated breeding, we advocate the use of a method called rapid generation advance (RGA) as the most feasible method for accelerating breeding in the public sector.

Parasitic weeds pose increasing threats to rain-fed rice production in Africa. Most important species are Striga asiatica, S. aspera and S. hermonthica in rain-fed uplands, and Rhamphicarpa fistulosa in rain-fed lowlands. Information on the regional spread and economic importance of parasitic weeds in cereal production systems is scant. This article presents the first multi-species, multi-country, single-crop impact assessment of parasitic weeds in Africa. A systematic search of public international and national herbaria and the scientific literature was conducted to collect all available data on the regional distribution, incidences and related yield losses of the most important parasitic weeds in rice. Herbaria specimens were geo-referenced and these coordinates were overlapped with rain-fed rice areas. Probabilistic diffusion waves of parasitic weeds were generated to derive most likely incidence values. Estimates from this spatial analysis were then combined with secondary data from the literature into a stochastic impact assessment model to generate a confidence interval of the likely economic impact per country and for sub-Saharan Africa as a whole. Rhamphicarpa fistulosa occurs in at least 36 African countries, 28 of which produce rice in rain-fed lowlands where this species thrives. Striga hermonthica is found in at least 32 countries, Striga asiatica in at least 44 and S. aspera in at least 17. A total of 50 countries have at least one of these three species of Striga, 31 of which produce rice in the rain-fed uplands where these species can be encountered. An estimated 1.34 million ha of rain-fed rice is infested with at least one species of a parasitic weed in Africa. Our stochastic model estimates that annual economic losses inflicted by all parasitic weeds exceeds, with 95% certainty, a minimum value of US $111 million and most likely reaches roughly US $200 million and increases by US $30 million annually. To reverse this trend and support small-holder rice farmers in Africa with effective, sustainable and affordable solutions for control, targeted investments in research, development and capacity building are required. The top-10 priority countries where such investments would probably have the highest return are Nigeria, Guinea, Mali, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Tanzania, Madagascar, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso

Rice production needs to increase in the future in order to meet increasing demands. The development of new improved and higher yielding varieties more quickly will be needed to meet this demand. However, most rice breeding programmes in the world have not changed in several decades. In this article, we revisit the evidence in favour of using rapid generation advance (RGA) as a routine breeding method. We describe preliminary activities at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to re-establish RGA on a large scale as the main breeding method for irrigated rice breeding. We also describe experiences from the early adoption at the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute. Evaluation of RGA breeding lines at IRRI for yield, flowering time and plant height indicated transgressive segregation for all traits. Some RGA lines were also higher yielding than the check varieties. The cost advantages of using RGA compared to the pedigree method were also empirically determined by performing an economic analysis. This indicated that RGA is several times more cost effective and advantages will be realized after 1 year even if facilities need to be built. Based on our experience, and previous independent research empirically testing the RGA method in rice, we recommend that this method should be implemented for routine rice breeding in order to improve breeding efficiency.