Australian Wild Rice Populations: A Key Resource for Global Food Security

Rice (Oryza sativa) is one of the most important food crops contributing to the diet of large numbers of people especially in Asia. Wild rice populations are found around the tropical world. The extensive production of rice in many areas has displaced the wild populations that were the basis of the original domestications by humans. Recent research, reviewed here, has identified wild rice species in northern Australia that have been isolated from the impact of domestication in Asia.