Photo: Screenshot from a report by CCTV News

A major breakthrough has been achieved in China's hybrid rice seed production, as a large-scale demonstration plot recorded a yield of 530.4 kilograms per mu (7,956 kilograms per hectare), surpassing 1,000 jin for the first time.

The milestone was reached during an on-site yield measurement campaign conducted on Monday in Suining county of Central China's Hunan Province. 

An expert team, organized by the Hunan Association of Agricultural Science Societies in collaboration with the China National Rice Research Institute, Wuhan University, and several other leading universities and research institutions, carried out the assessment on a 200-mu contiguous demonstration plot of the super hybrid rice in Wuyang town, Suining county, according to CCTV News on Monday. 

China's hybrid rice planting area has long remained stable at more than 200 million mu, and in 2025, the cumulative promotion area exceeded 10 billion mu nationwide. However, the sustainable development of the hybrid rice industry has been constrained by two persistent issues: relatively high seed costs and stagnant seed production yields, which have lingered at about 160 kilogram per mu for years.

To tackle these bottlenecks, the Hunan Hybrid Rice Research Center launched a systematic research program more than 20 years ago, focusing on the development of germplasm resources specifically suited for super-high-yield seed production. The effort has yielded major innovative outcomes.

The report said the researchers developed a novel breeding method known as "same-generation dual-selection and dual-fixation." This approach led to the successful development of the sterile line Shuang 1S, characterized by its "all-weather" high outcrossing seed-setting rate and strong combining ability — a critical breakthrough in germplasm innovation for super-high-yield seed production.

Also, the team integrated and established a comprehensive cultivation technology system for large-scale super-high-yield hybrid rice seed production, providing a practical and replicable technical framework for seed producers.

Global Times