Crop failure due to planting BC15 rice variety?
(Baonghean)While many places are beginning their harvest, hundreds of households in Hoa Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district, are witnessing their BC15 rice fields with empty, shriveled ears of grain, resulting in a total crop failure.
Mr. Le Thanh Binh, Chairman of the Hoa Thanh Commune People's Committee, said: "This spring, Hoa Thanh planted over 200 hectares of rice, of which over 150 hectares were planted with BC15 rice variety (supplied by Thai Binh Seed Company). The commune followed the district's planting schedule and implemented good rice care procedures. The rice plants developed normally from the beginning of the season, were disease-free, and produced large panicles. However, unexpectedly, the panicles did not produce grains, only empty grains from the beginning to the end of the panicle. According to initial surveys, this variety previously yielded nearly 7 tons/ha, but now it only yields less than 2 tons/ha. This means that 150 hectares of rice lost about 750 tons. If we calculate the price of rice seeds at 7,800 VND/kg, the entire Hoa Thanh commune will lose about 5,850 million VND. Who will bear such a large amount of money for the farmers? But the important thing is that Hoa Thanh is a purely agricultural commune, and the lives of the people are very difficult. A complete crop failure also means facing the risk of food shortages." hungry.
At this point, the cause of the crop failure has not been determined. On May 7th, the Provincial and District Plant Protection Sub-departments came to inspect the situation but determined that the crop failure was not due to pests or diseases. We earnestly hope that the relevant agencies will investigate and clarify the cause of the crop failure. If the failure is due to the seeds, then Thai Binh Seed Company must be held responsible to the farmers.”
Mr. Nguyen Si Hung, Vice Chairman of the Yen Thanh District People's Committee, said: Yen Thanh planted about 250 hectares of BC15 rice variety, mainly in Hoa Thanh and Van Thanh communes. Initially, it was determined that the area lost due to empty grains was nearly 200 hectares, with 150 hectares in Hoa Thanh commune and the remainder in Van Thanh commune. The Yen Thanh District People's Committee has directed the Department of Agriculture, the Agricultural Extension Station, plant protection officers, and commune officials to conduct inspections. Initially, only empty grains and yield losses were identified; the cause of the crop failure has not yet been determined. The district is forming a team, including representatives from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the district, the affected communes, and Thai Binh Seed Company, to investigate and determine the cause of the crop failure, and only then will responsibility be assigned. Meanwhile, a representative from Thai Binh Seed Company offered a simple explanation: After the phenomenon of shriveled grains occurred, the company sent technical staff to inspect and determined that the cause of the BC15 variety's shriveled grains was due to acid rain affecting yield.
Mr. Tu Trong Kim, Head of the Crop Production Department of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said: The entire province has over 1000 hectares of BC15 rice variety (approximately over 400 tons of seed rice), planted in Yen Thanh, Quynh Luu, and Dien Chau districts… Initially, the phenomenon of empty grains was only discovered in Yen Thanh district. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development will coordinate with localities to investigate the specific phenomenon of empty grains, determining whether the crop failure was due to weather or the variety. If the crop failure is due to the variety, the seed supplier will be responsible for supporting the farmers.
According to the explanation from the representative of Thai Binh Seed Company, the acid rain caused the rice grains to be shriveled. However, according to farmers' reports, why did other rice varieties planted next to the BC15 rice field, which flowered at the same time, not suffer crop failure? Is this just a way for Thai Binh Seed Company to evade responsibility? We urge the relevant authorities to quickly investigate the cause of the crop failure of the BC15 rice variety in Hoa Thanh.
Van Truong