Guyana stands alone in the world in terms of the proportion of rice that they export – 65%! Rice is the highest agricultural foreign exchange earner for Guyana. In order to maximize rice yields, rice growers in Guyana rely on herbicides to control weeds.

“Guyana’s rice industry for 2008 has exported US$118M, which represents the highest earnings ever for the sector. … Rice continues to make significant strides as a socioeconomic crop in Guyana. From a very small and quite subsistence beginning, it has grown today to one of the pillars of Guyana’s economy.”

“Weed control continued to play a major role in maximizing rice yields during 2008. … Despite the use of preventative measures and cultural practices that normally reduce weed infestation, surviving populations of the major rice weeds were significant enough to warrant the use of chemical control measures in order to maximize grain yield.”

Authors: Jagnanne Singh and Dindyal Permaul
Affiliation: Guyana Rice Development Board
Title: Guyana Rice Development Board Annual Report 2008.
Available at: http://grdb.gy/templates/GRDB/images/GRDB%20Annual%20Report%202008.pdf