Rice experts from multiple countries gather in Yunnan to discuss breeding new varieties to ensure food security

From September 1 to 4, the 2026 Seminar of the South Asia and Southeast Asia Upland Rice Collaborative Network and the South Asia and Southeast Asia Rice Molecular Design Breeding Collaborative Network was held in Kunming, Yunnan Province. Rice research experts and scholars from China, Bangladesh, Thailand, Iran, Ethiopia, Nepal, Myanmar, and other countries attended the meeting and exchanged views on developing new rice varieties that are more climateadaptive. The participating experts focused on practical difficulties faced in the production of upland rice in mountainous areas and rainfed rice, innovation in local germplasm resources, distant hybridization and molecular design breeding technologies, crossborder joint research, and talent training. As issues such as global warming, water scarcity, and limited arable land intensify, the crossborder sharing of germplasm resources and collaborative breeding have become a focus of attention for all parties. During the meeting, the parties reached multiple consensuses, including expanding the mutual exchange of highquality rice germplasm resources, promoting joint multilocation identification, strengthening cooperation in visiting scholar programs and handson training, and exploring friendly sharing mechanisms for germplasm resources, experimental data, and intellectual property rights. The Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences stated that in recent years it has supplied several improved upland rice new lines to the region, and some varieties have already been approved in Vietnam and Myanmar.