1.   His job was to distribute seeds of improved rice varieties and teach farmers how to double and triple their rice yields.

2.   Also the Japanese team is decoding the japonica variety of rice and the Chinese team has sequenced indica, the rice variety eaten in China and India.

3.   But to create golden rice varieties farmers can use, the experimental strain needs to be crossbred with the kinds of rice that flourish in regional climates.

4.   Experts in China and Thailand are already planning to bring to the United States samples of rice varieties grown in different regions of their countries, Toenniessen said.

5.   In Yunnan province, farmers harvested rice grains by hand, making it simple to gather and sell the two rice varieties separately.

6.   Now that the gene has been isolated, it can be put into many rice varieties, Dr. Ronald said.

7.   The genes must then be put into commercial rice varieties either by genetic engineering or through conventional breeding.

8.   The researchers tested a rice variety grown in tropical climates and one grown in more temperate areas.

9.   Basmati is a long-grained rice variety known for its distinct aroma and is unique to the Indian sub-continent.