AfricaRice Clarifies Misinformation on Broken Rice and Reaffirms Commitment to Food Security in Africa

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, February 20, 2025 — The Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) wishes to address recent statements aired by Equinoxe TV, a Cameroonian television channel, during its 8:00 PM news broadcast on Monday, January 27, 2025. These statements, which falsely claimed that broken rice is harmful to health and were attributed to AfricaRice, are inaccurate and in no way reflect the position of our institution.

As a pan-African center of excellence for research, development, and capacity-building in the rice sector, AfricaRice reaffirms that broken rice, when properly processed and stored, is entirely safe and nutritious. It poses no health risks.

Clarification on Broken Rice

Broken rice consists of grains fractured during milling or handling. It is widely consumed in Africa and other regions of the world, providing an affordable and nutritious food source for millions. AfricaRice emphasizes that the quality and food safety of broken rice depend primarily on processing, storage, and preservation conditions.

Claims that broken rice is unfit for human consumption are unfounded. AfricaRice has never issued statements asserting that broken rice is dangerous to health. On the contrary, our institution promotes agricultural and post-harvest practices that ensure the quality and food safety of rice products, including broken rice.

Caution Against Low-Quality Rice Imports

AfricaRice reiterates that its previous warnings specifically targeted low-quality rice imports from certain Asian countries. These alerts, notably those issued in 2016, aimed to raise awareness among African governments about the need to strengthen quality controls to prevent unfit rice from entering African markets.

These warnings do not apply to locally produced and processed broken rice under adequate conditions. AfricaRice encourages African countries to promote domestic rice production and adopt stringent standards to ensure the quality of imports.

AfricaRice’s Commitment to Food Security

AfricaRice remains fully committed to advancing food and nutritional security in Africa. Our mission is to improve the livelihoods of farmers and rice value chain actors while ensuring the availability of high-quality rice products for African consumers.

We urge media outlets and the public to verify sources and rely on scientific and factual information before disseminating statements that may sow confusion and harm the reputation of African rice products.

For more information, please contact:

Francine Famey, Head of Communications and Outreach

Email: f.famey@cgiar.orgWebsite: https://www.africarice-fr.org/