SRI Global News ++ March - May 2025 System of Rice Intensification (SRI)

...A few years in, [Ken Lee and Caryl Levine of Lotus Foods] were introduced to a new method of rice farming, the System of Rice Intensification (SRI)—a more sustainable way to grow rice using less water, less seed, and no agrochemicals that results in a double yield for farmers. “Learning about SRI and seeing the benefits for people and the environment is when we realized that growing rice organically wasn’t enough, and that we had to rethink altogether how the world grows rice,” explains Levine. “We have to feed the increasing global population with less water, land, and labor. Especially water, our most precious resource.”

And so that became their mission. Partnering with small-scale farmers in several countries, Lee and Levine worked to emphasize better growing practices by applying SRI methods, while also establishing fair and effective supply chains that would lessen environmental impact and create social and economic justice for farmers.

Lotus Foods received an award for Outstanding Value Chain Engagement for its commitment to the development and implementation of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) production within its supply chain, including supplier training consumer education about SRI’s benefits. By keeping the soil in rice fields moist and fertile but not flooded, SRI production significantly increases crop yields, cuts water needs and reduces methane gas (one of the most potent contributors to climate change) emissions by a whopping 40%!