So Long Jasmine, Hello Jazzman

Farmer Women by Carl Parkes

The Bangkok Post has an opinion piece about the introduction of a new American strain of rice called Jazzman which threatens the traditional jasmine rice industry of Thailand. For the few Americans who regularly buy jasmine rice (such as myself), this marks the end of jasmine rice as a Thai monopoly, to be replaced by a far less expensive yet similar product. Be sure to read the comments for some amusing remarks from readers.

The aromatic Thai Jasmine rice, or Hom Mali as it is locally known, has for decades been recognised as the world's premium grade rice and the gem of Thai exports, with its long grain, unique aroma and gummy white texture after cooking. Dominating the world's premium-grade rice market for many years running, the famous Thai rice may be bracing for competition in the United States from a potentially serious rival.

Named commercially as "Jazzman", which might easily be confused with the Thai Jasmine rice, the US-bred aromatic variety is the latest product of 12 years of painstaking research and development by the rice research station of Louisiana State University's (LSU) Agriculture Centre. It was developed through cross and pedigree selection from a cross made in 1996 between the Arkansas variety Ahrent and the unreleased Chinese aromatic rice line 96a-8. The US grain has qualities similar to Thai Jasmine, but its real advantage is that it has a high yield potential, about 1.26 tonnes per rai compared to 400 kg per rai for the Thai Hom Mali.

Jazzman rice was approved by LSU AgCentre in January this year and has been grown in test plots with the produce already available in limited amounts in some grocery stores. The new rice variety has been touted as an alternative to the Thai Jasmine rice in the US market, which consumes between 350,000-400,000 tonnes of the Thai variety each year.

The Thai trade commissioner in Chicago, Samornrat Snidvongs na Ayutthaya, was the first to sound the alarm. She said Jazzman rice was expected to be available on supermarket shelves around next year and the US variety could snatch away the market share of Thai premium rice in the US with its similar taste and quality. Her concern was echoed by the honorary president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, Vichai Sriprasert.

But the official view has been rather disappointing and unconvincing.

Rice Department chief Prasert Goslvitra sounded unperturbed when he said Jazzman rice would never match the Thai Hom Mali, citing the failed efforts of both China and Vietnam to breed their own aromatic rice varieties even with Thai seeds, because of the unique weather and soil conditions. He also denied that the low productivity of Hom Mali was due to a lack of research and development.

It may be true that for the time being Jazzman rice does not pose an immediate threat to the Thai Jasmine rice market in the US because the new rice strain is not as yet widely cultivated there. However, once it has been tasted and accepted by the market, American farmers will most likely jump on the bandwagon to wrestle a share of the profits away from Thai rice. With proven high productivity, the Jazzman's advantage will be a relatively lower price, which would be more competitive and attractive than Thai Jasmine.

Certainly there is real cause for concern here, if not alarm. The first group of people to be hit hard if Jazzman rice proves a success will be our farmers, who will see revenues from their premium-grade produce slashed. The next will be the rice exporters, whose market share in the US as well as other countries might steadily shrink. Indulging in complacency or in the notion that Jazz-man rice will never match the special quality of Thai Hom Mali will not do. Thai authorities concerned must plan a comprehensive marketing and production strategy to deal with the threat posed by this new US aromatic strain, and to save our own variety which for decades has been not only a staple, but also a source of national pride.