BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN - Brunei held a ceremony on Saturday to celebrate the harvest of a Chinese hybrid rice experimental field, according to the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) of Brunei. The ceremony was held at Lekiun Agricultural Development Area where a variety of rice for non-irrigation paddy farms was harvested. The seedlings of three rice varieties were planted on Dec 14 last year as part of a suitability study to develop the local paddy industry using high-yielding hybrids from China, local daily Borneo Bulletin reported on Sunday. “The harvest today is a good start for the two countries to deepen cooperation on hybrid rice. In the future, China will continue to strengthen cooperation with Brunei in terms of hybrid rice seeds and expert guidance, and provide more support,” said Chinese Ambassador to Brunei Xiao Jianguo. The MPRT, through the Department of Agriculture and Agrifood, is teaming up with Hunan Hybrid Rice Research Center in China to find rice hybrids suitable for the conditions in Brunei, in particular non-irrigated farms, Borneo Bulletin reported.