Sustainability

ThinkRice / Discover U.S. Rice / Sustainability

The U.S. Rice Story

All segments of the U.S. rice industry are invested in sustainable production and processing practices. Their stewardship is deliberate, ensuring a healthy and safe food supply while improving the environment.

American rice farmers are committed to protecting and preserving natural resources while working continuously to significantly improve the quality and cleanliness of water leaving their farms. In the past 36 years, these farmers have increased rice yields by 53% while decreasing land use by 39%, energy use by 34%, and water use by 52% – and all achieved without the use of GMOs. Additionally, USA Rice is an active participant in Field to Market, an alliance for sustainability across the agriculture and food value chain.

A History of Resource Stewardship

For more information, view the industry’s Sustainability Report and 2030 Sustainability Goals, which show how the U.S. rice industry continues to make strides towards a more sustainable future. View and download the report below.

Sustainability Report

2030 Sustainability Goals

U.S. Rice Fields Provide Essential Wildlife Habitat

Many wildlife species rely on the wetland habitat created by American rice farmers. Working rice land across all rice-producing states provide millions of acres of life-sustaining resources for migrating waterbirds along with countless other animals that call the fields their home. This makes rice a unique working-lands crop.

Winter-flooded rice fields improve and enhance vital wildlife habitats by providing food and foraging for migratory and wintering fowl. These fowl return the favour by helping to increase soil nutrients and straw decomposition, reduce weed and insect pressure, and provide other important agronomic advantages.

What’s good for rice is good for ducks! Eating U.S.-grown rice actually helps the ducks.

More than half of North America’s dabbling ducks winter in one of the following regions, which overlap with virtually all of the rice lands in America.

In the regions where rice is grown in the U.S., rice agriculture provides 35%of the food resources available to migrating and wintering waterfowl. The cost of replacing existing rice habitat with managed natural wetlands is more than $3.5 billion USD!

More than 50 percent of North America's ducks winter in regions that overlap with all rice lands.

“Rice farmers and millers must comply with thousands of pages of federal and state regulations that are strictly enforced. This, paired with the industry’s commitment to conservation, makes U.S.-grown rice the most sustainably produced in the world.”

– Betsy Ward, President and CEO, USA Rice