Premium fragrant rice developed for Australian conditions

A new premium rice variety has been developed for Australia.

Called Topaz, the premium fragrant rice variety has been developed by the NSW DPI in partnership with RIRDC, SunRice and Rice Research Australia.

Fragrant rice is one of the fastest-growing rice markets globally and is the largest segment of the Australian rice market. Marketed as a premium rice variety, Topaz is set to create new opportunities in the higher value markets both domestically and overseas.

In market testing in Hong Kong, Topaz outperformed other fragrant rice varieties for taste, appearance and flavour.

Through years of R&D and on-farm trials Topaz has been bred specifically for Australia’s temperate rice-growing conditions. The new variety will be available to Australia’s rice growers in October 2014 and should be appearing on supermarket shelves from mid-2015.