The hidden link between rice and climate change
These tiny grains come with giant carbon footprints. Calls are growing to make rice more sustainable
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SOFT, fluffy grains of rice mask a bitter reality: the staple crop is a major contributor to climate change.
Rice cultivation accounts for 1.5 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions – almost on par with the aviation industry, by some estimates. It is responsible for about 10 per cent of global emissions of methane, which traps more heat than carbon dioxide. Rice also uses 34 per cent to 43 per cent of global irrigation water, based on a 2021 paper.
The reason for such a heavy toll is that rice is grown in flooded paddy fields. This not only uses gallons of water, but also allows methane-releasing bacteria to thrive on decomposing rice straw residue.
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