Nutritional imbalances such as potassium and zinc deficiency and iron and aluminum toxicity are widespread in most rice production areas in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Genetic donors for tolerance of these soil problems are being identified and used in breeding.
Iron toxicity is a widespread growth constraint in lowland rice in Africa. IRRI has identified highly tolerant varieties or lines such as Suakoko 8 (O. sativa) and CG 14 (O. glaberrima). The Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice), IRRI’s partner in the region, has facilitated the release of some improved varieties that are tolerant of iron toxicity.
At AfricaRice, breeding is under way to validate tolerance to iron toxicity and to identify new regions of the rice genome that also provide the plant with greater tolerance.