Yuan Longping

Chinese agronomist who developed first hybrid rice strains preventing mass famines

Yuan Longping (1930-2021) transformed global food security through his breakthrough in hybrid rice cultivation. His "Three-Line System" hybridization technique in 1974 doubled yields compared to conventional varieties. By 2020, hybrid rice covered 16 million hectares in China alone, feeding 80 million more people annually.

Dubbed "Father of Hybrid Rice", Yuan defied genetic dogma that self-pollinating rice couldn't be hybridized. His team discovered wild male-sterile rice strains in Hainan in 1970, enabling cross-breeding. The FAO credits his work with preventing Asian food crises during population booms.

Despite international fame, Yuan maintained fieldwork habits, checking rice paddies personally into his 90s. His saltwater rice project (2016-2021) developed strains growing in saline-alkaline soils, potentially expanding arable land by 20%. The Yuan Longping High-Tech Agriculture Co now trains 14,000 specialists from 100+ countries annually.