Agronomic management and rice varieties controlling Cd bioaccumulation in rice

Abstract

Selection of rice varieties and application of amendments are effective measures to ensure food safety. Here we report that in the non-Cd area, the grain quality of all rice varieties met the Chinese National Grain Safety Standards (CNGSS). In the high-Cd area, rice varieties showed significant different bioaccumulation of Cd with lower rice yields than those in non-Cd area with the average decrease of 31.1%. There was a negative correlation between grain Cd content and yields. A total of 19 rice varieties were selected as low Cd accumulating rice varieties and their Cd content met CNGSS in the low-Cd area. Six of them met CNGSS in the high-Cd area. The application of amendments significantly reduced Cd content in rice grains by 1.0–84.7% with an average of 52.6% and 13 of varieties met CNGSS. The amendments reduced available Cd content in soils by 1.1–75.8% but had no significant effects on rice yields. Therefore, the current study implied that proper agronomic management with selection of rice varieties and soil amendments was essential in controlling Cd accumulation in rice grains.