Could seawater rice determine the future of food security?

Only 14% of China’s vast territory is arable land.

China is home to 100 million hectares of wasteland – that’s an area the size of Egypt – where crops cannot grow due to high soil salinity or alkalinity. For decades, the Chinese government and scientists have made great efforts to improve soil quality, and now, hope is on the horizon.

A hybrid crop called “saltwater rice” is able to grow and yield in various saline-alkali soils, including tundra and desert.

Source: CGTN Rediscovering China, 19 Jan 2020.

This video explains how China’s scientists have made this is possible.