Arkansas rice is the star of Origami Sake brewed in Hot Springs
Oct 30, 2023
LITTLE ROCK, AR – Earlier this month, the Arkansas Department of Agriculture hosted delegations from Thailand and Vietnam for the first stop on a National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) inbound trade mission. The trade mission is the result of funding received by NASDA from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Emerging Markets Program to promote U.S. agricultural product exports to countries that have the potential to be viable commercial markets.
NASDA has identified Southeast Asia as a key focus area, and while NASDA has conducted several trade missions to these countries this year, the recent visit to Arkansas by this group is the first inbound mission.
During the trip, the delegation traveled throughout the state to learn about agriculture, Arkansas’s largest industry, and spent a whole day devoted to rice and how the work of producers and researchers has led to Arkansas contributing more than half of U.S. rice production each year. (It should be noted that Thailand and Vietnam are already large producers and exporters of rice so unlikely to be future export markets for U.S. rice.)
The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture (UADA) Rice Research and Extension Center (RREC) in Stuttgart proved to be a great place to start. The RREC is one of the oldest and most highly regarded rice research centers in the world and focuses on best practices for sustainable rice production for Arkansas producers. Delegates heard from Jarrod Hardke, UADA extension agronomist, and representatives from Riceland Foods and Producers Rice Mill.
Following the RREC tour, the mission visited Isbell Farms, a multi-generational family rice farm that has recently partnered with Origami Saké, Arkansas’s first saké brewery. Delegates toured the rice mill and tasted the Arkansas-grown and made saké. This partnership is an example of the innovation that continues to advance Arkansas as a national leader in agriculture.
“We’ve always been keen to experiment, and our operation was the first place, outside of Japan, to grow Koshihikari in the 90s,” said Whitney Isbell Jones, media manager at Isbell Farms. “That interest in Japanese varieties led us to our current effort growing Yamada Nishiki, the king of saké rice, and that rice is now used to make saké right here in Arkansas. The fact that those experiments in the 90s would eventually lead to the creation of an entirely new industry for the state of Arkansas is a dream come true."
During the three-day tour, delegates had the opportunity to connect with producers and industry stakeholders while learning about one of the driving forces behind Arkansas agriculture’s consistent success – collaboration.