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Rice

• A Cradle to Grave Analysis
• Erick Mendoza
• MW 1010-1150
• Race, Poverty, and the Environment
• Professor Raquel R. Pinderhughes, Urban Studies
  Program, SFSU
• Public has permission to use the material herein,
  but only if Erick Mendoza, Urban Studies 515,
  SFSU, and Professor Pinderhughes are credited.

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This presentation focuses on Rice. It is
designed to describe the cradle to grave
lifecycle of Rice, paying particular attention to
the social, environmental, and public health
impacts of the process associated with the
production of Rice. Rice has been promoted as
the cure to hunger in these regions, this
analysis explores the impacts of such claims to
the farmer, consumer, and environment.
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Why Rice?

• Four-fifths of rice produced is consumed by
  small-scale farmers in most developing countries.
• Alone it supplies over seventy percent of their
  daily calories/protein intake.
• Along with grains such as wheat and maize it is
  consumed by 5.6 billion people world wide. That
  is four-fifths of the world population.
• Unlike wheat and maize 80 percent of rice is
  consumed by people.
• It contains large amounts of calories, high
  protein content, it has high utilization process
  (vitamin digestion and absorption).
• It contains vitamin A, zinc and iron.

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Other uses for Rice

• Waxy rice are used for desserts and as salad
  dressings.
• As baby food, breakfast cereals, rice breads,
  beer, wines.
• As rice paper.

Juliano 198514
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• The hulls and excess tillers (stems) are used as
  feed, compost for the fields, for fuel. Juliano
  198514

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Rice Cultivation

• Rice is cultivated and eaten mostly in the rice
  bowl region, which consists of Asia and
  middle/near east countries. Juliano 198515

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• Rice has been cultivated in these regions for
  over nine thousand years, which means that it is
  highly variable and adaptable. Its been grown in
  the lowlands of India to as high as three
  thousand meters in Nepal. Lang 19965

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• It just needs enough water and solar energy to be
  cultivated in most places. Lang 19965

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• Rice has been cultivated mostly in tropical areas
  because it lives in water.
• Every stage of its growth, it is immersed in
  water.
• Most rice are cultivated and consumed by
  small-scale farmers and local communities.
• Their planting season begin in a month before the
  monsoon season, usually in May.
• They plant the seedlings in irrigated paddies,
  lowland marshes, or near river beds.
• After one month or so the seeds germinate and
  begin to grow, they then transplant them to
  larger fields, where they are matured.
• The process lasts about 100-120 days.
• Mutters 19981

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The Green Revolution

• Leading scientists postulated in the 1950s that
  the world population will grow exponentially and
  feeding them will be one of the main issues that
  will entail the population boom.
• The International Rice Research Institute was
  subsequently founded by the Rockefeller
  Foundation along with the Ford Foundation. And
  with their success other research organizations
  had been spawned The International Rice
  Commission, Food and Agricultural Organization,
  United Nation Development Program to name a few.
  
• Lang 1996xiv

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• Researchers proposed that in order to increase
  yields as well as the quality of the rice, they
  needed to
• Cultivate rice that has shorter tillers (stems)
  to combat the torrential downpour common in these
  regions.
• Be resistant to pests.
• Robust enough to handle cultivation.
• Have an earlier maturation stage, achieve better
  irrigation methods. Lang 1996xi, Juliano 198511

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• For the most part they were successful in their
  goals
• They increased the yields annually from 203
  million tons to 479 millions tons by the
  nineties. Lang 19969
• They produced rice that has higher nutrient
  contents such as IR6884 and IR72, which contains
  higher zinc and iron. IRRI 2003a4
• They also have been able to introduce direct
  seeding methods that help reduce the cultivation
  time from 190-220 days to 100-120 days. Lang
  19963

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• They were able to produce hybrid rice that could
  withstand the monsoon season, have shorter
  tillers, and be able to yield more grain.
  Juliano 198511

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The Aftermath environmental and social effects

• With all their accomplishments there have been
  set backs.
• Mono-culturing was emphasized thus depleting the
  nutrients in the soil. FAO 20035
• The crops became very susceptible to pests such
  as insects, weeds, and fungus. Rola and Pingali
  199317
• The overuse of pesticides, herbicides to combat
  these pests. And the misuse of fertilizers.
  Rola and Pingali 199323
• The stagnation of rice production today, along
  with the marginalization of the local farming
  community. Mutters 19981

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• The most important environmental issue that
  concern rice production today is the improper use
  of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers to
  help increase yields. IRRI 2003a4
• The pesticides used in combating rice pests are
  some of the most toxic in agrochemicals most are
  banned in the U.S. Rola and Pingali199338

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• Insecticides such as Methyl parathion are
  commonly used because they are cheaper but are
  classified as one of the most toxic by the WHO.
• It interferes with the normal functioning of the
  brain and nerve cells.
• Exposure to very high levels of methyl parathion
  for a short period in air or water may cause
  death, loss of consciousness, dizziness,
  confusion, headaches, difficult breathing, chest
  tightness, wheezing, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps,
  tremors, blurred vision, and sweating.

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• Farmers are commonly unaware of the effects of
  these chemicals on themselves as well as others
  they come into contact with.
• They normally wear minimal protective gear when
  spraying.
• They lack the knowledge of proper interval time
  before reentering the sprayed areas. Rola and
  Pingali 199338
• They store the chemicals improperly in their
  homes near food, areas where anyone has access to
  them, and they dispose the containers in piles
  near their farms where they leach into the ground
  and affect the water base. FAO 20033,4, Maranan
  and Rapusas 20002,3

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• Further the overuse of pesticides, herbicides,
  and artificial fertilizers leaches into the
  ground water effectively contaminating it.
• High levels of nitrates in drinking water can
  cause health problems such as stomach pains,
  cholera, and hepatitis.
• High nutrient content in water are toxic to
  aquatic life by encouraging rapid growth of
  algae, which depletes the oxygen in the water
  thus suffocating fish and other aquatic life.
  FAO 20032,3
• The arability of the land is also affected.
• Soil salinity is affected by mono-cropping and
  depletes the soil fertility
• Makes the soil too acidic for crops.
• The soil structures are altered and are
  susceptible to erosion. FAO 20035,6

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Contemporary Issues

• Development in production methods to help curtail
  the stagnation on current yields
• The re-introduction of crop rotation in order to
  increase yields.
• Methods in reducing the lost of yields in the
  post production process. FAO 20021
• Research in genetic development of rice to
  increase yields as well as their nutrient
  contents. ISS 20032

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• Data today shows that mono-culturing of rice has
  stagnated the production of rice. Further, along
  with pesticide use, it has increased rices
  susceptibility to insects due growing resistance
  against the pesticides by the insects through
  mutation and the survival of the fittest of the
  insects. Rola and Pingali 199317
• Researchers are now trying to incorporate crop
  rotation in order to decrease these effects,
  which were overlooked at the genesis of the
  green revolution. Maranan and Rapusas 20006,
  FAO 20021

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• Although the possible losses are tremendous in
  the cultivation of rice due to the unpredictable
  impact of nature, the majority of losses are
  actually at the postproduction level process.
• The losses are about 30 percent and are
  attributed to operational, technical,
  socioeconomic, cultural, political and
  environmental factors. Maranan and Rapusas
  20005
• Dealing with these issues are now part of the
  discourse in improving the yields of rice for the
  future.

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• The most volatile issue that concern rice
  production and research today is the genetic
  alteration of the composition of rice in order to
  add nutrients and resistance to pests.
• Instead of hybridizing different kinds of rice,
  researchers now are attempting to genetically
  alter their composition, which has had its
  success but ultimately have been mired in
  problems with such rice. ISSI 20032
• It is also very costly financially as well as
  environmentally.
• The concentration of research and development by
  bio tech industries. ISS 20031

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• Bio tech firms are funding these research
  projects and are monopolizing the outcomes.
• They patent the seeds, making them inaccessible
  to those who really need them.
• By the time they are at the finished stage they
  are very costly, billions of dollars are funded
  into their research. FAO 20021,2
• The potential environmental effects are grave
  according to data on the research so far.
• They contaminate other crops.
• Have been proven to be toxic in humans.
• High contents of vitamin A can cause abdominal
  pains, nausea, vomiting, hair loss, weight loss.
• Herbicides infused with rice are harmful
  glufosinate was added to rice and was found that
  it caused birth defects, behavioral changes,
  cleft lips and skeletal defects, and
  miscarriages.
• Jack 2003a3

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• Rice is the most important crop cultivated in the
  rice belt region. For that reason, I feel that
  current research on developing and altering the
  composition of rice by genetic modification be
  hindered and the development and improvements in
  traditional ways of integrated farming be put at
  the forefront of discussion. Because there are
  evidence that the current methods and
  applications are not surpassing the advancements
  achieved during the green revolution. Further,
  the mishaps of the revolution should be
  addressed.
• I also want to add that there are aspects of the
  production process that I did not cover in detail
  because of the magnitude of the research.

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Work Cited

• Annotated Bibliography
•  
• Food and Agricultural Organizational of the UN
• 2002. Concern about rice production practices.
  Electronic Document, http//www.fao.org/english
  /newsroom/news/2002, accessed February 14, 2003.
• 2003. Environmental Impact Assessment of
  Irrigation and Drainage Projects. Electronic
  Document, http//www.dfid-kar-water.net/w5outputs,
  accessed March 1, 2003.
•  
• Institute of Science in Society
• 2003. The Golden rice an Exercise in How
  Not to Do Science. Electronic Document,
  http//www.i-sis.org.uk/, accessed February 18,
  2003.
•  
• Jack, Alex
• 2003a. GE Rice Update Organic Rice Surges
  While GE Rice Falters. Amberwaves. Fall Issue
  2001.
•  
• 2003b. Protecting the Staff of Life
  Gene-Altered Rice Coming. Electronic Document,
  http//www.cybermacro/rice-production/html,
  accessed February 18, 2003.
•  
• International Research Rice Institute.
• 2003a Revolutionary Rice More Nutrition for
  Women and Children. Electronic Document,
  http//www.irri.org/Hunger/Nutrition.htm,
  accessed March 4, 2003.
• 2003b The Politics of Rice. Electronic
  Document, http//www.irri.org/Hunger/Politics,
  accessed March 4, 2003.

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• Juliano, Bienvedio O., ed.
• 1985. Rice Chemistry and Technology.
  Minnesota. The American Association of Cereal
  Chemists, Inc.
•  
• Lang, James 1996. Feeding a Hungry Planet.
  North Carolina. The University of North Carolina
  Press.
•  
• Maranan, C.L., R.R. Paz and R.S. Rapusas
• 2000. National Postproduction Loss Assessment for
  Rice and Maize. ACIAR Proceedings 100.
•  
• Mutters, R.G.
• 1998. Planting and Production. Electronic
  Document. http//www.ucdavis.edu/jayoung.ftp,
  accessed January 29, 2003.
•  
• Rola, Agnes C. with Prabhu L. Pingali.
• 1993. Pesticides, rice productivity, and
  farmers health An economic assessment.
  Philippines. International Rice Research
  Institute.
•  
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
• 2001. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
  Registry. Atlanta, GA.