It has been estimated by the WHO that nearly 3.7
billion people were iron-deficient and the problem was
severe enough to cause anemia in 2 billion people. In this
data, 40% were non-pregnant women and 50% were
pregnant women. It has also been estimated that 31% of
children under 5 years were anemic, with mostly iron
deficiency anemia [1]. Furthermore, according to the
WHO and FAO, these micronutrient deficiencies appear
to increase in prevalence, and the diet diversity declines
as population pressure influences patterns of land use.
Rice (Oryza sativa) cultivation areas have increased due
to the productivity, reliability, and profitability [2]. Rice
is the staple food for half of the world’s population, and
provides 35–59% of the energy consumed by the 3
billion people in Asia. Rice also contributes to 69% of
proteins consumed in South Asia, 51% in South East
Asia [1,3]. A nutritional survey conducted in the
Philippines suggested that about 50% of iron intake,
even among high-income families, comes from cereals,
rice and corn [1].
Since IRRI began to examine the effect of certain soil
characteristics on the iron content in crop in 1992,
research on the iron content of rice has been one of the
global research hot issues. With the introduction of
biotechnology, especially the great breakthrough of
research concerning the rice gene-map, studies on
improving iron content and bioavailability have entered
the molecular level, offering an effective method to
improve the iron nutrition.