Super Rice Crop Failure Total: Allegations of Concealed Defects; Longping High-Tech Responds, Says Abnormal Weather Was the Cause

According to a report by Southern Weekly, Yuan Longping High-Tech Agriculture Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Longping High-Tech, 000998, SZ)'s super rice “Liangyou 0293”, affected by rice blast, suffered total crop failure over a large area in Anhui, and affected farmers questioned whether the seed-producing company Longping High-Tech was suspected of false advertising and concealing the variety's defects.

Yesterday (April 9), a reporter from National Business Daily telephoned Longping High-Tech executive president Peng Guangjian, who said that this time “Liangyou 0293” suffered yield reduction and total crop failure in Anhui, mainly caused by natural disasters, and that “varieties across Anhui generally showed rice blast conditions, not only our variety.”

The reporter also found that “Liangyou 0293” is highly susceptible to rice blast and moderately susceptible to bacterial leaf blight, and that yield-reduction phenomena similar to those in Anhui are not isolated cases.

“Liangyou 0293” has suffered total crop failure many times

According to a report by Southern Weekly, affected by rice blast, last October, “Liangyou 0293” rice planted in six cities in Anhui - Bengbu, Anqing, Hefei, Chuzhou, Ma'anshan and Huainan - suffered large-scale yield reduction and total crop failure, with the parts below the panicle gradually turning gray and even black, cutting off the channel for transporting nutrients, “a yield of 500 kg became 50 kg, or even no harvest at all”, with the affected area exceeding 10,000 mu.

Local farmers found that the inner and outer packaging of “Liangyou 0293” were inconsistent: the outer packaging showed resistance level 5.6, meaning an incidence rate of less than 25%, while the inner packaging stated resistance as high as level 9, meaning the incidence rate could exceed 50%, or even reach 100%, which was suspected of false advertising and deliberately concealing the variety's defects, causing major losses.

Yesterday, a reporter from National Business Daily contacted Peng Guangjian by telephone, and he said that judging from the appraisal opinions of experts organized twice last year, the yield reduction and total crop failure were mainly due to sudden abnormal weather in the region, and that “according to our understanding, varieties across Anhui generally showed rice blast conditions, not only our variety.”

The reporter reviewed media reports and found that, apart from Anhui, “Liangyou 0293” had suffered total crop failure many times in Jiangsu. Public information shows that at the end of 2014, “Liangyou 0293” caused more than 100 local households to suffer yield reduction or total crop failure on 800 mu of rice. Information from Nongbo.com shows that in 2012, “Liangyou 0293” rice in Pizhou, Jiangsu, suddenly suffered large-scale death from panicle neck rot within just half a month, with a dead area of more than 600 mu, also triggered by rice blast.

According to a report by Southern Weekly, “in fact, although the research team represented by Yuan Longping has raised the per-mu yield of super rice in experimental fields from 800 kg to more than 1,000 kg, China's actual per-mu rice yield is far below this level. Calculated according to the China Statistical Yearbook released by the National Bureau of Statistics in 2014, in 2013 China's actual average per-mu rice yield was only 447.8 kg.”

Super rice “highly susceptible to rice blast”

Since March 2015, affected farmers and Longping High-Tech have again come into dispute over the amount of compensation.

Regarding the handling of compensation for the affected farmers in Anhui this time, Peng Guangjian told a reporter from National Business Daily that, under the coordination of the local seed management department, the company is negotiating with the affected farmers, and that “because this is a situation caused by natural disasters, the local government has already given farmers a certain amount of compensation through insurance, but because the current quota of national agricultural insurance is relatively low, we are also doing what the company should do.”

The reporter checked the Ministry of Agriculture announcement (No. 706) and found that “Liangyou 0293” was approved in 2006 as a nationally approved rice variety (number: 2006405), and the announcement stated that “this variety has a moderate maturity period, high yield, moderate susceptibility to bacterial leaf blight, high susceptibility to rice blast, and average rice quality”.

The reporter found that in the resistance column, its rice blast resistance is level 5.6, with a maximum of level 9 (the higher the level, the worse the disease resistance, and level 9 is already the highest level), with a resistance frequency of 80%, suitable for planting as a single-season middle rice in areas where rice blast occurs lightly.

Ministry of Agriculture announcement (No. 706) also shows that “Liangyou 0293” is suitable for planting as a single-season middle rice in the rice areas of the Yangtze River basin in Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, Zhejiang and Jiangsu (excluding the Wuling Mountain area) as well as in areas where rice blast occurs lightly in the southern rice area of Henan.

Southern Weekly reported that after this rice blast incident occurred, the Seed Management Station under the Anhui Provincial Agricultural Committee issued a “notice to leave” to the star super rice variety, repeatedly submitting petitions to the National Ministry of Agriculture, requesting re-approval of the planting area for the super rice “Liangyou 0293”, hoping that it would “no longer include our province”.