National Taiwan University develops Taiwan-version Koshihikari Lu-ming rice, learning the spirit of altruism from a single grain of rice
After 4 months of cultivation, professors and students from the College of Agriculture at National Taiwan University harvested on the 7th of last month Tainan No. 16, known as the "Taiwanese version of Koshihikari rice," and at the same time launched their own brand, "Luming Rice," hoping that all NTU graduates will be happy to embody a spirit of sharing and altruism. Lin Yanrong, an associate professor devoted to rice breeding, said that at present the university is cooperating with Shoumiwu in Erlin, Changhua, on about 5 hectares of rice cultivation, using organic materials throughout, and that in the future product channels will continue to be opened up through the university's sales department, department stores and so on.
NTU President Yang Panshih harvests "Luming Rice," expecting NTU graduates to have a spirit of altruism
The Ricefull team, made up of students from the College of Agriculture, visited the production area to learn about the production process of "Luming Rice," hoping to open up channels for farmers by creating a brand. (Photo / Pan Ziqi)
In fact, besides the on-campus trial planting this time, Lin Yanrong also chose to carry out industry-academia cooperation with Shoumiwu in Erlin Township, Changhua, on nearly 5 hectares of Tainan No. 16 rice, as the supply source for "Luming Rice." Although there is not yet organic certification, the cultivation method uses organic materials throughout and comes with SGS testing and TGAP traceability. "After all, it is meant for consumers to eat, so safety and peace of mind are necessary," Lin Yanrong said.
"We sent a team to Erlin for a visit to understand the rice cultivation process," said Lin Jiaxing, head of the Ricefull team. Team members once went together to the production site to observe the cultivation and fertilizing process, and also observed that the outflow of population from local rural areas is serious, hoping that through industry-academia cooperation and brand marketing local farmers can have better incomes.
At present, Tainan No. 16 in Erlin Township has been fully harvested. After being fully packaged into Luming Rice, it can be sold at the NTU Farm sales department, department stores, retail outlets and online; in the future, NTU will also continue to cooperate with Shoumiwu, steadily providing a safe rice source as the genuine "NTU Luming Rice." Although the student team will change members, it may be taken over by the department student association to continue assisting with the marketing work for Luming Rice.
(This article is funded by the Jianzhen Environmental Education Foundation for personnel expenses under a special project, but it does not interfere at all with news topic selection or interview writing, ensuring news independence.)