PR89716

BEIJING, May 25, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

A news report by China.org.cn on Yuan Longping:

On May 22, Yuan Longping, the renowned Chinese scientist who helped lift

countless people out of hunger, passed away, setting off an outpouring of grief

among the Chinese public. His passing was reported by numerous foreign media

outlets.

https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1517770/video.mp4

Dubbed the "father of hybrid rice," Yuan Longping cultivated the world's first

high-yielding hybrid rice strain in 1973. Ever since, the yield of hybrid rice

has continued to set new world records, from 300 kg to 500 kg and then 700 kg

per mu (about 0.07 hectares). Now, the per-mu yield of the super hybrid rice

Chaoyou 1000 developed by Yuan's team has exceeded 1,000 kg. Before Yuan, the

world's scientific community believed that rice could not be crossbred.

This ordinary but great man not only helped China, a country with a population

of 1.4 billion, solve the problem of achieving food self-sufficiency, but also

made important contributions to global food security.

At present, the hybrid rice developed by Yuan's team has been introduced for

wide application and trial planting in dozens of countries and regions around

the world. In Madagascar, the yields from hybrid rice were up to 300% higher

than those of native varieties. In Indonesia, they produced more than double

that of local strains. In 2018, trials for growing rice in the deserts of Dubai

were, for the first time in history, successfully carried out by Yuan's team.

In many people's eyes, he was a scientist who relentlessly pursued his dreams

despite loneliness and hardship. Hybrid breeding experiments are no easy tasks.

In the early days of his research, Yuan personally examined more than 14,000

rice ears before he found six natural male sterile plants. At the age of 90, he

was still out conducting research, visiting the fields almost every day to

observe the growth of hybrid rice.

Yuan was also a benevolent gentleman with an unwavering commitment to the

well-being of humanity. Though born into a well-educated family, he witnessed

starvation when he was young, which made him determined to devote himself to

agricultural research. He spent more than 10 years helping African countries

grow hybrid rice and worked tirelessly to tap the yield potential of rice for

decades. During the last few years of his life, Yuan was dedicated to the

research and development of sea rice. He made every effort to fulfill his

lifelong wish — people all over the world having enough to eat.

Yuan Longping has left behind a precious legacy of the little rice seed to the

world. "Everyone is like a seed — we should try to grow into good people," Yuan

once said. This ordinary but great man is worth remembering.

China Mosaic

http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm

Yuan Longping: Committed to benevolence and humanity's well-being

http://www.china.org.cn/video/2021-05/25/content_77524871.htm

SOURCE: china.org.cn