World rices: April 2012

RICE IN IRAN TODAY

Iranian rice farmers

Introduction

Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, is a country in Southwest Asia. The name "Iran", comes from the earlier Airy-Ana or Air-an, which in Persian means "Land of the Aryans", has been in use natively since the Sassanian era.

Both "Persia" and "Iran" are used interchangeably in cultural contexts; however, "Iran" is the name used officially in political contexts.

Iran is a country of mountains and deserts. Eastern Iran is dominated by a high plateau, with large salt flats and vast sand deserts. The plateau is surrounded by even higher mountains, including the Zagros to the west and the Elburz to the north. Its neighbors are Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Armenia on the north, Afghanistan and Pakistan on the east, and Turkey and Iraq on the west.

Iran consists of the Iranian Plateau with the exception of the coasts of the Caspian Sea and Khuzestan Province. It is one of the world's most mountainous countries, its landscape dominated by rugged mountain ranges that separate various basins or plateaux from one another.

The center of Iran consists of several closed basins that collectively are referred to as the Central Plateau. The average elevation of this plateau is about 900 meters (2,953 ft), but several of the mountains that tower over the plateau exceed 3,000 meters (9,843 ft). The eastern part of the plateau is covered by two salt deserts, the Dasht-e Kavir (Great Salt Desert) and the Dasht-e Lut. Except for some scattered oases, these deserts are uninhabited.

The northern part of Iran is covered by dense rain forests called Shomal or the Jungles of Iran.

The eastern part consists mostly of desert basins such as the Dasht-e Kavir, Iran's largest desert, in the north-central portion of the country, and the Dasht-e Lut, in the east, as well as some salt lakes.

The southeast is a vast expanse of sand, like a Saharan erg, with dunes 300 m (1000 ft) high, among the tallest in the world.

The eastern part of Dasht-e Lut is a low plateau covered with salt flats.

Current Population of Iran

-2011 census =74,700,000

-2012 estimate =78,868,711 (18th).

-Density: 48/km² (162rd) -124/sq mi.

Land use in Iran

The land use in Iran consist of:

+Total area: 1,648,195 km² ~ 164,819,500 ha. (100%)

-Land area: 1,628,550 km2 ~ 162,855,000 ha. (98.8%)

-Water surface: 19,645 km2 ~ 1,964.5 ha. (1.2%)

-Agricutural land: 480,730 km2 ~ 48,073,000 ha. (29.5% of land area)

-Arable land: 168,690 km2 ~ 16,869,000 ha. (35.1% of agri. land).

- Permanent crops: 16,800 km2 ~ 1,680,000 ha. (3.5% of agri. land)

- Permanent meadows and pastures: 295,240 km2 ~ 29,524,000 ha. (61.4% of ag.)

- Forest area: 110,750 km2 ~ 11,075,000 ha. (6.8% of land area)

- Other land: 1,037,070 km2 ~ 103,707,000 ha. (63.7% of land area)

The land use in Iran is showed in the following table:

Kinds of land	Year	Total	Units
Total area	2011	1 648 195	km²
Density of population	2011	47.3	persons per km²
Total area per 1000 population	2011	21.2	km² per 1000 pop.
Land area	2011	1 628 550	km²
Land area per 1000 population	2011	20.9	km² per 1000 pop.
Land area (percentage of total area)	2011	98.8	% of total area
Water surface	2011	19 645	km²
Water surface per 1000 population	2011	0.3	km² per 1000 pop.
Water surface (percentage of total area)	2011	1.2	% of total area
Agricultural land	2007	480 730	km²
Agricultural land per 1000 population	2007	6.2	km² per 1000 pop.
Agricultural land (percentage of total area)	2007	29.2	% of total area
Agricultural land (percentage of land area)	2007	29.5	% of land area
Arable land	2007	168 690	km²
Arable land per 1000 population	2007	2.2	km² per 1000 pop.
Arable land (percentage of total area)	2007	10.2	% of total area
Arable land (percentage of land area)	2007	10.4	% of land area
Arable land (percentage of agricultural land)	2007	35.1	% of agricultural area
Permanent crops	2007	16 800	km²
Permanent crops per 1000 population	2007	0.2	km² per 1000 pop.
Permanent crops (percentage of total area)	2007	1.0	% of total area
Permanent crops (percentage of land area)	2007	1.0	% of land area
Permanent crops (percentage of agricultural land)	2007	3.5	% of agricultural area
Permanent meadows and pastures	2007	295 240	km²
Permanent meadows and pastures per 1000 population	2007	3.8	km² per 1000 pop.
Permanent meadows and pastures (percentage of total area)	2007	17.9	% of total area
Permanent meadows and pastures (percentage of land area)	2007	18.1	% of land area
Permanent meadows and pastures (percentage of agriculturalland)	2007	61.4	% of agricultural area
Forest area	2007	110 750	km²
Forest area per 1000 population	2007	1.4	km² per 1000 pop.
Forest area (percentage of total area)	2007	6.7	% of total area
Forest area (percentage of land area)	2007	6.8	% of land area
Other land	2007	1 037 070	km²
Other land per 1000 population	2007	13.3	km² per 1000 pop.
Other land (percentage of total area)	2007	62.9	% of total area
Other land (percentage of land area)	2007	63.7	% of land area

Source: FAOSTAT 2012

Climate in Iran

Iran Climate Guide to the Average Weather & Temperatures with Graphs Elucidating Sunshine and Rainfall Data & Information about Wind Speeds& Humidity:

-Tehran, Iran latitude & longitude; 35°41'N 51°21'E.Altitude; 1191 m (3907 ft).

-The average temperature in Iran is 16.7 °C (62 °F).

-The range of average monthly temperatures is 26 °C.

-The warmest average max/ high temperature is 36 °C (97 °F) in July.

-The coolest average min/ low temperature is -1 °C (30 °F) in January.

-Iran receives on average 213 mm (8.4 in) of precipitation annually or 18 mm (0.7 in) each month.

-On balance there are 35 days annually on which greater than 0.1 mm (0.004 in) of precipitation (rain, sleet, snow or hail) occurrs or 3 days on an average month.

-The month with the driest weather is July, August & September when on balance 0 mm (0.0 in) of rainfall (precipitation) occurrs.

-The month with the wettest weather is January when on balance 39 mm (1.5 in) of rain, sleet, hail or snow falls across 5 days.

-Mean relative humidity for an average year is recorded as 40.6% and on a monthly basis it ranges from 24% in August to 67% in January.

-On balance there are 54 days annually registering frost in Iran and in January there are on average 20 days with frost.

	Temperature C		Temperature F		Humidity %		Rain
	Max	Min	Max	Min	am	pm	mm
January	8	-1	40	30	77	75	46
February	10	0	50	32	73	59	38
March	15	4	59	39	61	39	46
April	21	9	69	48	54	40	36
May	28	14	82	57	55	47	13
June	34	19	93	66	50	49	3
July	36	23	96	73	51	41	3
August	36	22	96	71	47	46	3
September	32	18	89	64	49	49	3
October	24	12	75	53	53	54	8
November	17	6	62	42	62	66	20
December	11	1	51	33	76	75	31

Source: http://www.irantour.org/Iran/Climate.html

Climate in Tehran

Source: http://www.climatetemp.info/iran/

The rice situation in Iran

The limit area of rice

Iran is a vast country, covering 1,648,000 km² and located between latitudes 25°and 40°Nand longitudes 44°and 63°E. The country is dominated by two mountain ranges - Elburg and Zagros - while two great deserts extend over much of the central region, leaving about 20 million ha for crop production.

On account of the highly diverse climatic and soil conditions, only 12.5 million ha are cultivated annually with a wide range of food crops. Wheat, rice and barley are the most important cereals cultivated.

Rice is the staple food in Iran, with the quality of cooked rice outweighing all other considerations for Iranian consumers. The total area under rice is more than 600,000 ha and rice is grown in 15 provinces. However, more than 80% of rice area is distributed in the two northern provinces of Mazandaran and Gilan. It is estimated that 265,000 ha those in Mazandaran (including areas in Gorgan) and 230 000 ha in Gilan are under rice cultivation. The monthly temperatures and rainfall of Gilan - which are similar to those of Mazandaran - during the rice-growing season vary from 19° to 25°C and 25 to 125 mm, respectively.

From 1.8 million tonnes in the late 1980s, rice production in Iran increased to 2.36 million tonnes in 1991 and 2.931 million tonnes in 2003, with the average yield being 4,764 kg/ha (rough rice). The per caput consumption of rice is around 28 kg per caput/year. As the demand and supply of rice in Iran are still not evenly balanced, the country imports around 400 000 to 500 000 tonnes of rice for domestic consumption.

Almost all rice is grown under irrigated conditions in normal soils (pH 7.0-7.5) and yields are high, at 3 to 3.5 tonnes/ha for local and 5 to 7 tonnes/ha for improved varieties. Normally one crop of rice is taken from April/May to August/September with 100- to 130-day varieties, with the appropriate duration being 110 to 125 days. Some areas in Gilan and Mazandaran Provinces are suitable for producing a second crop, but careful thought needs to be given to whether a short-duration rice crop or a ratoon crop is better or, alternatively, whether another cropping pattern might be more profitable for farmers.

Drought is a problem in specific areas of certain southern provinces, while 200 000 to 300 000 ha in Mazandaran and Khuzistan are affected by salinity. The government at present is making determined efforts to bring in land consolidation at the rate of 1,000 ha per year in order to introduce farm mechanization.

The most important research priorities in Iran are breeding for high-yielding, quality rices and stabilizing yields through the incorporation of genes for resistance to blast, which is the major disease - bakanae disease, sheath blight and sheath rot are of minor importance. Research on stem borer is focused on biological control, and has shown so far that 80% control can be achieved in farmers' fields with the release of Trichogramma in floodwater.

The Rice Research Institute of Iran (RRII), located at Rasht in Gilan Province, together with its affiliate in Amol in Mazandaran, is making a concerted effort to increase productivity per unit area so as to attain self-sufficiency. There is further scope for increasing area under rice in the southern provinces, which would raise rice production overall of Iran.

Local rice varieties in Iran

Despite the low yields of local varieties (averaging 2.5 to 3.5 tonnes/ha), because of their excellent quality traits, more than 70% of the total rice area in Iran is still under these varieties, which are similar to basmati types and are characterized by tall stature (125 to 135 cm), a weak culm and droopy leaves. They have a long slender grain and a head rice recovery (HRR) of 60 to 63 %, an intermediate amylose content (AC), aroma and elongation qualities. They are prone to lodging and are also susceptible to blast and stem borer. The most popularly grown local varieties are planted in:

-Province Gilan: Champa, Hasani, Domsefid, Gharib, Domzard, Shahpasand, Binam, Domsiah, Domsorkh, Dylamani, Hasan sarai, Mosa tarom…

-Province Mazandaran: Ramzanali tarom, Dylamani tarom, Tarom mahali, Sang tarom.

-Province Isfahan: Zayandesh rood, Sazandegy.

-Province Fars: Ghasraldashti (P), Rahmatabadi (P), Kotsiah(P).

-Province Azarbyjan: Gardeh mianeh, Dane deraz mahali.

-Province Cheharmahal Bakhteari: Champa lordegan.

Salari and Basmati varieties are planted in many provinces.

Quality characteristics of traditional local cultivars of Iran

The primary classification of Iranian rices is based on physical grain shape and market value. They are broadly classified into three categories by grain and shape:

1-Sadri: very long slender grain; >7 mm kernel length; superior cooking and eating qualities; aromatic; high grain elongation; susceptibility to blast and stem borer; average yield about 5 tonnes/ha. These rices sell in the market at a very high price of 400 tomans or more than US$1/kg.

2-Champa: medium grain; smaller kernel and lower market value than the Sadri category but more resistant to environmental stresses, diseases and insects; higher yield than the Sadri group.

3-Gerdeh: short and round grain; much lower market value but more resistant and higher yielding than the first two categories.

Other local high quality rice varieties in Iran are: Hasan sarai, Domsiah, Binam, Hasani, Salari, Ambarboo and Sang tarom.

Improment rice (IR) or high-yielding varieties (HYVs)

Hybridization breeding programmes have been aimed at improving the yield of local varieties and developing high-yielding varieties (HYVs) with desirable cooking and eating quality traits.

At Rasht and Amol in the 1980s, several HYVs were developed with a high yield potential, ranging from 5 to 7 tonnes/ha, and a high degree of resistance to blast.

About 60,000 ha in Mazandaran Province, which has about 1/3 of the total rice land in Iran, were planted to Amol 2 and Amol 3. Gradually they are being replaced by Khazar and Sepeed rood. In Gilan, Gil 1 and Gil 3 were the major varieties planted but Khazar, Sepeed rood and Bejar now occupy most of the area under HYVs. Except for Khazar and Gil 3, however, all these varieties lack aroma and have a high amylose content.

As the Iranian market is dominated by aromatic rices that are flaky and soft when cooked, in spite of their high yield advantage, these varieties fetch a lower price than the traditional local types.

Nemat, a newly released variety with high yield potential (>7 tonnes/ha) with a mild aroma and good grain quality, coupled with resistance to blast and tolerance to stem borer, is believed to have been planted to 13 000 ha in 1996 and may replace some of the traditional local types. Neda, another promising culture, also compares well with Nemat and covers 20,000 ha in Mazandaran Province. Dasht is another variety, with a yield of 6.5 to 7 tonnes/ha and resistance to blast, which occupied about 10,000 ha in 1996.

Two IRRI basmati lines, IR62871-264-3-4 and IR62871-75-1-10, have been extensively tested over the last three years. They may be suitable and are likely to be released on account of their high yield (6.5 to 7.5 tonnes/ha) and desirable quality characters.

Mutation breeding and hybrid rice technology have yet to produce findings that can be applied at the field level, while the collaborative studies under the IRRI-IRAN project on marker-assisted selection for quality traits is in the process of development, so the application of such innovative techniques will take a few more years.

Although development of HYVs that have superior grain quality and are of early and medium maturity groups is the main objective, the parental materials used in crossing are not altogether the best quality donors. The parentage of Gil 1, Gil 3, Khazar, Sepeed rood, Bejar, Dasht and a few others as well as IR5, IR8, IR28, IR29, IR498 and the sister line of IR36, which do not possess desirable quality traits, have been used as one of the parents, although the other parents are quality rices of Iran.

All the IR varieties used have a high amylose content (AC) and IR29 is waxy as well. Varieties with a high amylose content cook dry, are less tender and become hard on cooling. Waxy rices, which have almost no amylose, become sticky and glossy on cooking. When the preference in Iran is for a long grain, intermediate amylose types with aroma and direct single crosses may not be the answer.

Although most Iranian rices are endowed with the best mix of quality traits, quality dwarf and tall rices from countries such as India, Thailand, Pakistan, the Philippines, INGER nurseries and IRRI basmati lines should be evaluated and utilized. Sterility problems, which are normally encountered when aromatic types are crossed with other groups of rice types, may not be a barrier with the availability of the wide compatibility (WC) gene in different genetic backgrounds. Convergent breeding, which aims at converging genes from diverse sources into a single hybrid, would be more useful. Three-way, double- and backcrosses and intermating between two F₂ populations of single crosses to increase the frequency of useful recom-binants should also be attempted.

In the history of planting rice in Iran, the highest of area, average yield and total production of paddy rice are:

-Highest area: on 2006 with 630,562 ha.

-Highest yield: on 2003 with 4,763.9 kg/ha.

-Highest production: on 2003 with 2,931,140 tonnes.

The following table shows area harvested (ha), yield (kg/ha) and total paddy rice production in Iran from 1961 to 2010:

	Area Harvested (Ha)		Yield (Kg/Ha)		Production (tonnes)
1961	280,000	F	2,142.9	Fc	600,000
1965	360,000	F	2,838.9	Fc	1,022,000
1970	378,000		2,793.7	Fc	1,056,000
1975	461,000		3,102.0	Fc	1,430,000
1980	462,180		2,835.6	Fc	1,310,550
1985	478,592		3,711.1	Fc	1,776,090
1990	524,266		3,778.7	Fc	1,981,020
1995	565,575		4,068.2	Fc	2,300,900
2000	534,331		3,689.6	Fc	1,971,460
2001	514,791		3,866.1	Fc	1,990,220
2002	611,000		4,726.7	Fc	2,888,000
2003	615,283		4,763.9	Fc	2,931,140
2004	611,453		4,158.0	Fc	2,542,440
2005	628,105		4,357.3	Fc	2,736,840
2006	630,562		4,142.6	Fc	2,612,180
2007	615,910		4,325.7	Fc	2,664,240
2008	526,921		4,144.8	Fc	2,183,960
2009	535,813		4,205.6	Fc	2,253,420
2010	563,517		4,060.5	Fc	2,288,150