Rice

Where does Rice grow?

Found in: Africa, Angola, Asia, Australia, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bougainville, Brazil, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, CAR, Central America, Central Asia, Chad, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo DR, Congo R, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Dominican Republic, East Africa, East Timor, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial-Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Europe, Fiji, French Guiana, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guam, Guianas, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Iraq, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Laos, Liberia, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, PNG, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Rwanda, SE Asia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Sikkim, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Uganda, Uruguay, United States, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, West Africa, West Indies, West Timor, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Notes: There are about 20 Oryza species. The B Vitamins are in the outer layers of brown rice.

Status: Although rice is a very popular food, rice is only grown on a small scale in several coastal areas of Papua New Guinea. About 500 million tons of rice are grown worldwide each year. About 5% enters world trade.

Growing Rice

Cultivation: Plants are grown from seed. Seed can be sown direct or in a nursery and transplanted. For dryland crops - 5 to 10 seeds in holes 20 to 25 cm apart. For transplanting 2 or 3 plants as a 20 x 20 cm spacing is suitable. Weed control is a problem in the early stages. Flooding can be used for weed control.

Edible Uses: The grains are boiled and eaten after the husks are removed by pounding and winnowing. It is also made into flour, pasta, cakes, puddings, starch and noodles. Rice paper can be made from the flour. Rice bran mixed with flour can be used for cakes, biscuits, muffins and pancakes. Rice bran is used for pickling vegetables. An oil can be extracted from the husks. The sprouted seeds are eaten in salads. Young seedlings can be used as a vegetable. Rice can be used to make alcohol and milk like drinks. Caution: Alcohol is a cause of cancer.

Production: The glumes are removed to produce husked rice. Polishing removes the integument giving polished rice. Rice development takes 90 to 200 days depending on variety.

Nutrition Info

Rice Photos

References

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