The 2024 upland rice harvesting ceremony was held in Barbados on the morning of July 26, local time. According to on-site testing results, the yield of upland rice in this cropping season came to 500 kg per mu (about 0.067 hectares) in the 1,120-sqm test fields, marking the fact that Hunan's hybrid rice achieved a bumper harvest in Barbados for the first time. Sandra Prunella Mason, president of Barbados; Indar Weir, minister of Agriculture, Food and Nutritional Security of Barbados; and, Yan Xiusheng, Chinese ambassador to Barbados, attended the harvesting ceremony.

At the harvesting ceremony on July 26, Barbados' President Sandra Prunella Mason (2nd, L) listens to a work report from a Hunan expert who provides foreign aid in Barbados. 

Upland rice is an ecotype of rice that grows in dryland areas. As a water-scarce country, Barbados has been working closely with China on upland rice cultivation since April 2023. Under the guidance of Hunan agricultural experts, Barbados has carried out experiments and exploration on double-cropping upland rice.

The upland rice variety LS001 was selected by the Hunan Linshi agricultural technical team based on Barbados's climate and environmental conditions. LS001 is a two-line hybrid rice of the temperature-sensitive indica family. The seeds were sown on April 1, and a bumper harvest was achieved after 116 days of careful management.

The hybrid rice test fields in Barbados.

"This experiment further demonstrates the feasibility of large-scale upland rice planting in the dry season, and provides a scientific reference for the promotion of upland rice planting in a larger area." According to Wang Jian, the leader of the Barbados project team of Hunan Linshi Agriculture Services. Wang and his team planted 78.2 square meters of upland rice in Barbados for the first time in 2023, achieving a yield of 500 kg per mu. This year, the test fields have been expanded by more than 14 times, and the target of 500 kg per mu has been once again achieved.

"Barbados has a population of 290,000. The local government has announced its 'achieving sustainable import substitution plan by 2025', which aims to cut the country's food import bill by 25% by 2025. The promotion of large-scale upland rice cultivation will facilitate the realization of this goal,” Wang Jian said. In the next step, the Hunan agricultural expert team plans to expand the upland rice experimental area in Barbados to 40,000 square meters, Wang added.

"This trial has provided us with valuable data and experience, and Barbados enjoys great prospects in upland rice cultivation." Indar Weir said. "The success of the trial is attributed to the Chinese team's technical support as well as the hard work of the local farmers,” the minister noted.