A new report by the Sustainable Rural Development, a Vietnamese non-profit development NGO, points to hybrid rice being unstable and unsustainable compared with traditional and farmer developed rice varieties (also called purebred varieties in Vietnam). Among other conclusions, the report, which draws its analysis from a research survey conducted in Bac Can Province, points to:
- The cultivation of hybrid rice having negative effects on the water, soil and air environments compared to purebred rice varieties. The latter, especially Bao Thai variety, was found to have higher sustainability than other hybrid rice varieties.
- Productivity of purebred rice being lower but more stable than that of hybrid rice
- Decline in yields of hybrid rice being mainly due to its susceptibility to pests while in the case of purebred, it is mainly shortage of irrigation water.
The full report can be downloaded here.