On March 2nd, a training session on two major projects of Hongshan Laboratory, Rice-Duck-Crayfish Farming industrialization and the production technology training of Huamoxiang black rice (a cooking and steaming type of rice), was held in Jiangling County, Hubei Province. At the meeting, Hubei Shuangshui Shuanglv Biotechnology Co., Ltd ( a company affiliated with HZAU) signed an agreement with planting cooperatives (major grain growers) from counties in Hubei, such as Jiangling, Gong'an and Shishou, planning to expand the planting area of Huamoxiang black rice to 1,333.4 hectares (20,000 mu) this year, which is expected to increase the production value of crop-planting and livestock-raising to 200 million yuan.
Group Photo of Awarding Ceremony
Gu Zemao, chairman of Shuangshui Shuanglv cooperation, briefed the major grain growers about the Rice-Duck-Crayfish Farming Mode ---- breeding young crayfish in March, planting rice and breeding young ducks in June and July. The ducks help control pests and weeds in the rice fields, while the rice provides shade and food for the ducks, as well as food and straw for the crayfish. Also the ducks and crayfish fertilize the fields for the rice. The mode permits the three harvests in a season without the use of pesticides or fish drugs and facilitates environmental-friendly cultivation of rice and aquaculture with precise fertilization and feeding.
In two years, from the laboratory to the filed, the black rice developed by the team from HZAU has seen a steady increase in planting area in Hubei Province. In 2022, it was trialed on 66.7 hectares (1,000 mu) of land, then ten times more in 2023, and will be expanded to 1,333.4 hectares (20,000 mu) in 2024. Yang Zhengwu, a major grower from Shishou, planted all his 66.7 hectares (1,000 mu)of rice fields with black rice last year, and this year he has increased it to 233.3 hectares (3,500 mu). He explained that the cultivation of Huamoxiang black rice is supported by the Company: it provides seeds free of charge and technical services, and purchase s all harvested rice. And the farmers just need to buy the technical services and plant the rice under the guidance. To ensure the quality, the company strictly controls the production as to be around 800-1000 jin (500-625 kg) per mu. However, with the milling rate of black rice reaching 80%, the actual rice yield is not lower than that of ordinary rice. He continued, “it efficiently helps us double the income with no need to worry about seeds, yields and sales. As you can see, the planting of Huamoxiang costs less but the sales price (2.68 yuan for half kg) is 1.68 yuan higher than that of regular white rice.”
The cultivation region of Huamoxiang black rice has expanded, from Hubei to Hunan and Guangdong provinces. According to the Lab’s plan, its cultivation area is expected to reach 66,666.7 hectares (1,000,000 mu) within 10 years.
Source: http://news.hzau.edu.cn/2024/0304/69098.shtml
Translated by: Jin Yuxuan
Proofread by: Xie Tianwei
Supervised by: Wang Xiaoyan
