By
Rashid Mbugri, GNA,
Botanga N/R, Dec 06,
GNA – The Savannah Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) in collaboration with
the Crops Research Institute (CRI) both of the Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research (CSIR) on Thursday introduced to farmers, three improved rice
varieties at Botanga in the Northern Region.
The new rice
varieties comprising CRI-Mpuntuo, CRI-Dartey and CRI-Kantinka are among six
varieties developed by CSIR-Crops Research Institute (CSIR-CRI) and its
partners in 2017.Â
These varieties have
qualities such as early maturing, high yielding, good grain quality, aroma and
tolerant to diseases and pest encountered by rice farmers in the country.
Dr Maxwell Asante, a
rice breeder at CSIR-CRI, who led a team to realise these varieties
collaborated with Dr Samuel Oppong Abebrese of the CSIR-SARI to introduce the
varieties to farmers and extension officers in the north.
The field day was to
showcase to the farmers the qualities of the varieties alongside the good
agronomic practices to be adopted by farmers such as good leveling, nutrient
and water management among others to obtain higher yields.
It was also to
enable the farmers observe, share their views and make their preferred choice
among the three improved rice varieties.
This work is part of
a project led by the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI),
University of Ghana and Crops Research Institute with funding from African
Union and the European Union.
Dr Samuel Oppong
Abebrese, a Rice Breeder with the CSIR-SARI addressing farmers on the field,
said the field trip was to help farmers compare and make their preferred choice
of rice varieties in order to enable the CSIR-SARI make the seeds readily
available to the farmers for cultivation.
He elaborated that,
the varieties were planted alongside AGRA Rice, a rice variety farmers have
been cultivating over the years and said it is used as a bench mark for the
farmers to compare with the three new varieties.
Dr Abebrese said
CRI-Dartey had a potential yield of about 9.0 tons per hectare, matures within
125-130 days and is tolerant to diseases, whereas CRI-Mpuntuo had a yield
potential of about 8.0 tonnes per
hectare, aromatic and matures within 120 days.
He added that
CRI-Kantinka has a yield potential of about 8.5 tons per hectare, aromatic and
matures within 115-120 days.
He advised the
farmers that cultivating the varieties goes with adopting good agronomic
practices such as leveling of fields before cultivation, nursing and
transplanting the single seedling within a spacing of 20 cm by 20 cm instead of
broadcasting, as well as ensure proper irrigation and appropriate fertilizer
application among others.
He called for
conscious efforts between government and other stakeholders as well as the
citizenry to help encourage patronage and consumption of locally produced rice
through improved marketing and branding.
Majority of the
famers, after examining the varieties, showed high interest in the qualities
contained in CRI-Dartey compared to the other two varieties introduced.
Mr Mohammed Issahaku
Alhassan, a farmer in Botanga, said though the three varieties were doing well
in terms of yield, he preferred the CRI-Dartey Rice variety since it had higher
yielding potential of about 9 tons per hectare and could compete with the AGRA
rice if introduced onto the market.
“Some of us are
seed growers and we have been using AGRA and Jasmine rice to farm but now with
the introduction of the CRI-Dartey and the other two, I have realised that
there is a potential of high yield and can compete with AGRA rice especially
the CRI-Dartey rice ” he said.
Mrs Salima Abdullai,
said she started farming for three years now but comparing the AGRA rice and
the other three rice varieties, she preferred CRI-Dartey Rice because it had
brighter and healthier grains as compared to the other varieties.
She, however, said
women farmers in the community were faced with the lack of finance, which
affected their engagement in larger rice farm production and appealed for
support.
Mr Adam Mahama, also
a farmer, however, said he preferred the CRI-Kantinka to the other two
varieties considering its aromatic content, high yielding and grain quality.
He said most rice
consumers in the country preferred rice varieties containing good aroma and the
CRI-Kantinka is likely to compete with AGRA Rice when introduced into the
market
GNA
