Bacterial Rice Blight The worldwide rice industry accounts for approximately $145 billion per year. Rice is the second leading cereal produced in the world (518.5 million metric tons in 1990) and in most countries it is the principal source of total caloric intake. Bacterial Rice Blight is one of the leading causes for rice crop loss and can account for crop losses in excess of 20%. This disease can be so devastating that it periodically accounts for total crop failures in large producing regions of the world, as for example in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh States of India in 1979 and 1980. Since India accounts for 22% of world production, this dramatically affected rice prices worldwide. There is no cost effective chemical control, and quarantine efforts are ineffective in many production areas. The disease has been controlled for short periods of time by genetic resistance, but resistance against this pathogen has proven to be highly unstable. For general inquiries, please send e-mail to info@ipgenetics.com. For web site errors or content issues, please e-mail webmaster@ipgenetics.com. Copyright © October 2001 Integrated Plant Genetics, Inc. -- All Rights Reserved