Many are unaware that the Conservancy is required to produce a rice crop on 50 percent of the mitigation land it is responsible for. Scientists have long known that the giant garter snake, one of the primary species covered under the NBHCP, thrives in a rice production environment. When rice is no longer produced in an area, populations of giant garter snakes quickly disappear.
The United States has long been known for producing high quality rice. For domestic markets, rice is found in sushi, table rice, baby food, breakfast cereal and in many other markets and uses. About one-half of the world’s population regularly consumes rice, and it is a major source of dietary sustenance for hundreds of millions of people who desperately need it.
Many contend California produces the highest quality rice in the world. Even some of the world’s most discerning consumers prefer California rice. True organic rice is produced in California as nowhere else. But even conventionally-grown California rice meets the most exacting standards for purity, quality and nutrition. The U.S. South, by far the largest producer of domestic rice, has lately seen a very substantial decline in the price its traditional customers are willing to pay for the rice it produces. The reason is said to be the perceived decline in quality. In a recent publication, “U.S. Long-Grain Rice Industry: at a Crucial Crossoads,” author Karen Ott Mayer states that the reason for the perceived decline in Southern U.S. rice is hybridization efforts that have taken place in recent years.
This is fascinating work, and offers a telling lesson. If the NBHCP’s rice production operations are to remain viable and sustainable, we need to heed the lesson learned in the South’s rice producing states. If California rice quality were to similarly decline and customers go elsewhere as they have in the South, the state’s industry as a whole will suffer. Maybe the Conservancy needs to get more involved in California’s industry-wide rice varietal development efforts. Or at least keep an eye on it. California rice has got to remain a viable and vibrant industry with quality farms, products, processing, marketing and customers. Ironically, the giant garter snake depends on it.