IFPRI- CSISA organized a one day high level policy roundtable on Sustainable Intensification in India’s Risk-Prone Ecologies: Investment strategies for productivity growth, resource conservation, and climate risk management” on May 19, 2014 in New Delhi. This roundtable, brings together a high-level small group of individuals from the corporate, government, and research sectors to address one of India’s most urgent challenges to food security and economic growth—how to encourage private sector investment in accelerating productivity growth in India’s risk-prone ecologies while simultaneously conserving the environment. There are solutions already in farmers’ fields and rural markets that respond to these challenges, and this Roundtable will highlight recent advances, for example: innovative financial products and information services for small-scale farmers; diagnostic tools for managing water and soil nutrient scarcity; custom-hired resource-conserving machinery for small farms; crop diversification and high-value marketing strategies; and stress-resistant wheat and rice varieties. But the search for solutions is far from complete. This Roundtable is meant to engage participants in a rapid-fire discussion of recent technical solutions in Indian agriculture, the prospects for policy change, and corporate outlooks for the next five years. The purpose is to help public and private sector players to identify common investment strategies, forge partnerships, and chalk out collaborative efforts to effect technological, market, and policy improvements in India’s risk prone ecologies.

1. 19May14
Innovative Technologies for Rice
Productivity & Sustainability
May19, 2014
Ramanathan Vairamani

2. What am I covering today?
Mega Trends
Opportunity – Rice Hybrids & Value proposition
DuPont Pioneer Footprint in Rice R&D
Novel Hybrid Creation Technology
The need for Herbicide Tolerance Technology
Technology Pipeline & the need for clear Policy

3. Food Security – A Big challenge for the Country
6/10/2014 3
1.2 bn 1.6 bn
2050Current Population
235
mn MT
390
mn MT
Food Need
1988-89 2008-09 2010-11
185.1 182.4 182
Agriculture land is shrinking

4. Rice: Largest Indian Food crop with potential Demand –
Supply gap of 5MM Mt by 2026
6/10/2014 4
90
109 115
96
106 110
-30
20
70
120
2007 2017 2026
Demand Projections Supply Projections
Ref - http://www.indiastat.com/article/40/rajesh/fulltext.pdf
Solution: Produce more from each acre
Solution: Produce more from each acre
Food Security – Rice

5. Hybrid Rice – A Technology to improve Productivity
6/10/2014 5
0.88
1.16
1.48
1.28
1.6
1.76
2
2.5
0.00
0.50
1.00
1.50
2.00
2.50
Millions
Hybrid Rice Area (MM Hectares)
• 6% Rice acreage under hybrids
• Central / Eastern India with major
hybrid acreages
• Other Geographies yet to take off
Good growth but still a long way to go!
• Consistent yield increase of
+1MT/ha
• Protection from disease and pests
• Higher milling recovery
What is needed to drive hybridization
across India?

6. 6/10/2014 6
DuPont – Pioneer Efforts to Deliver Solutions for Rice
Farmers DKC – Driving ag growth by
developing science solutions tailored
to Indian market
 Biggest network of Rice Breeding & Testing locations to deliver hybrids
suitable for local conditions
 > 200 Scientists working on Rice – Breeding and Biotech
Rice Breeding
Footprints
Focus on bringing novel technologies to deliver products with high yield, disease/
pest resistance & high milling quality

7. Hybrid Rice Creation Systems
3-line CMS
•Germplasm Utilization limitation
•Stable Seed Production system – independent of
environment
2-line EGMS
•No Germplasm Utilization Limits
•Seed Production system – dependent on environment

8. What is Seed Production Technology?
• Innovative solution for hybrid rice seed production
• Uses naturally-occurring recessive nuclear gene required for pollen formation
• Produces parent lines
that do not shed pollen
• Efficient process for
bulk-producing female
parent seeds

9. SPT Maintainer
With transgene
(pink)
Without transgene
(white)
Seed Color MarkerFertility Restorer
Non-Functional
Pollen
Contains construct of three linked recombinant genes
1:1

10. The Solution to Better Hybrid Rice
 Expands rice germplasm pool available to
breeders
 Improves yield potential and product quality
Requires breeding investments
 Uses a transgenic process (Maintainer with
SPT cassette) only to produce female
parental seed
 Need for an appropriate regulatory
policy/process

11. Water-Efficiency in Rice Cultivation
System of Rice Intensification-AWD, Madagascar
Aerobic Rice – Rainfed
Direct Seeding
Wet
Dry
•Rice/Wheat Zero tillage

12. Slides from IRC, Vietnam
2010 on SRI

13. Why Very Low Adoption Rates?
Weeds
Labour
Technology
Herbicide Tolerance
Seeders
Suitable varieties
Issues Solutions

14. STAGE-A
Product
concept
STAGE-B STAGE-C STAGE-D STAGE-E
STAGE-F
Pre launch
Discovery
Trait characterization & development
Regulatory Science
Breeding & Testing
Wide testing & Agronomy refinement
New product
for customers
Conventional
hybrids
Biotech traits
Farmer field testing
Research Development Application
Responding to market realities
Increase Value Proposition
Decrease Execution Risk
8 year
Complexity of seed innovations and commercial pipeline
Seed
movement
Hybrid
registration
Biotech
Regulatory
IP & PVP Exports
Clarity? Harmony? Predictability?
Implementation
& Monitoring?
Single window
process?

15. Summary
Mega Trends
Opportunity – Rice Hybrids & Value proposition
Novel Hybrid Creation Technology
The need for Herbicide Tolerance Technology –
Sustainability of Rice Production - Water/Labor
Technology Pipeline & the need for clear Policy