New Rice for Africa

Beginning in 1992 and receiving extra impetus after the 2007–2008 world food price crisis, NERICA is available in three main varieties: upland, lowland, and irrigated.

Despite these developments, in 2008 the yields were projected to fall short of meeting the growing demand for rice as a food staple.

Because the different species do not naturally interbreed, a plant tissue culture technique called embryo-rescue was used to assure that crosses between the two varieties survive and grow to maturity.

Key features of the new varieties include: Some NERICA lines show[4] high growth with low uptake of water and seem to be appropriate for long periods of cultivation in drought condition.

A study published in 2012 found that half of the farmers who started growing NERICA in 2004 were no longer growing it in 2006; this high dropout rate was thought to be caused by factors including a lack of credit and agency support for farmers, the newness of rice as a crop in the country, and a lack of good seeds.