The scientist of the field

In the "Vietnam Glory 2025" program, directed by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor and themed "Pride and Aspiration," which will take place on June 22nd, Dr. Tran Tan Phuong, a scientist from Soc Trang province specializing in rice cultivation, is a distinguished individual nominated for honor. He is one of the three scientists who bred the ST25 rice variety, which produces the world's best-tasting rice.

Despite being retired, Dr. Tran Tan Phuong - the creator of the ST25 rice variety - still dedicates his time to developing new rice varieties. (Photo: dantri.com.vn)

Patience and effort

When talking about the ST rice varieties (an abbreviation for Soc Trang), from ST3, ST5, ST19, ST20 to ST24, ST25 (twice honored as the world's best rice), everyone knows about Labor Hero and engineer Ho Quang Cua (a son of Soc Trang). Alongside him are his invaluable collaborators and partners who have worked alongside him for decades to create these world-renowned rice varieties: Dr. Tran Tan Phuong and Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Huong.

After 30 years working in agriculture , including over 20 years directly involved in rice breeding research and over 10 years in management, Dr. Tran Tan Phuong, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment, has retired. Born in 1966, he is one of the few people who requested early retirement, nearly four years before the official retirement age. According to him, early retirement allows him more time to dedicate to research and rice breeding.

Dr. Tran Tan Phuong has pursued a career in breeding research since 2003. When he first joined the fragrant rice research group led by engineer Ho Quang Cua, he quickly became a valuable collaborator and made significant contributions to the group's development of dozens of famous, high-quality ST fragrant rice varieties that are popular in both domestic and international markets.

Drawing on practical knowledge in rice breeding combined with in-depth research, in 2011, Mr. Tran Tan Phuong successfully defended his doctoral thesis in Genetics and Breeding, a field in which, more than 60 years earlier, Dr. Luong Dinh Cua (also a native of Soc Trang province) had studied and successfully defended his thesis at Kyushu University (Japan).

According to him, the only way to create rice varieties with differences in yield, quality, and resistance to pests, diseases, drought, and salinity is to apply genetic methods in breeding. Although this method is difficult and time-consuming, it is still necessary and has yielded success. Currently, many international organizations have established research cooperation relationships with his Soc Trang rice research station, such as: the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Kyushu University (Japan), the Institute of Agricultural Genetics of Japan, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)...

Previously, atomic radiation technology for inducing mutations in Vietnam was not widely known. Selecting desirable genes from numerous different rice varieties in various regions and combining them into hybrids with characteristics suitable for the soil conditions of Soc Trang was not easy. Therefore, creating a good rice variety could sometimes take several years, and the research required great patience and effort to achieve results.

Initially, the research team created new rice varieties from simple combinations of 2-3 parents, resulting in varieties like ST11 and ST12; later, each combination included more parents to integrate aroma, softness, pest and disease resistance, and attractive grain shape. Thanks to this, varieties like ST24 and ST25 were subsequently developed.

In 2019, the ST25 rice variety was awarded the title of "World's Best Rice" and was again honored in 2023, a result of the persistent efforts of the research team over many years. To date, the ST24 and ST25 varieties are not only found in the rice paddies of Soc Trang but are also widely grown in many provinces and cities throughout the country.

Expanding and increasing the value of specialty rice.

The research process for breeding high-quality rice varieties by Dr. Phuong's team was divided into two stages. Before 2012, the team focused on researching and developing fragrant rice varieties that could rival those of Thailand.

From 2013 to the present, research has focused on improving the quality of fragrant rice, increasing yield and pest and disease resistance, adapting to climate change, and strengthening international research cooperation. The results have led to the selection of fragrant rice varieties resistant to brown planthopper, rich in iron, and resistant to bacterial leaf blight. These results have contributed to expanding and increasing the value of Soc Trang's specialty rice, with export prices for Soc Trang's ST rice varieties rising sharply, sometimes exceeding US$1,000 per ton.

Sharing her passion, Dr. Phuong stated that the research and development of fragrant rice, a specialty of Soc Trang, aims to meet the growing demand for "delicious food" rather than "filling meals" among consumers, especially for domestic consumption and export, thereby enhancing the value of Vietnamese rice.

For Dr. Tran Tan Phuong, the scientist who breeds rice varieties for farmers to grow and for people to eat, success comes from consumers finding the rice delicious and farmers growing more of his hybrid varieties. For example, the ST24 and ST25 rice varieties, recognized as among the best in the world, elevate the value of Vietnamese rice to a global level. Domestic demand is high, sometimes exceeding supply, demonstrating great success. However, consumer demand doesn't stop there, so he continues to breed and research to create new rice varieties that are resistant to pests, drought, salinity, adaptable to climate change, and offer higher yields and better quality.
Therefore, at Dr. Tran Tan Phuong's Soc Trang Rice Research Station, thousands of rice varieties with valuable genetic resources are being stored, collected domestically and internationally, with approximately 20,000 hybrid combinations that he and his colleagues are nurturing to create new, delicious, fragrant, and sticky rice varieties in the future.

With his early retirement, he said he would have more time for researching and breeding new rice varieties. He wants to successfully breed a long-stemmed rice variety from the Basmati rice, a long-grain rice variety originating from India and Pakistan, so that it can thrive in Soc Trang. With thousands of hybrid combinations created annually during the breeding process, he believes that even with research, evaluation, and processing, he will still have plenty of work to do in the coming years.

With his outstanding achievements and the research team's creation of dozens of high-quality rice varieties that have brought glory to Vietnam's rice industry, Dr. Tran Tan Phuong was honored to receive the First-Class Labor Medal from the President of Vietnam (2019) and the Ho Chi Minh Prize for Science and Technology (2021).

He also received numerous awards from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for his outstanding achievements in applying nuclear technology to create mutant plant varieties. In addition, he received the Golden Rice Award and many Certificates of Merit from various Ministries, sectors, and Soc Trang province for his achievements in rice breeding and his contributions to Vietnamese agriculture…

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/nguoi-tot-viec-tot/vinh-quang-viet-nam-2025-nha-khoa-hoc-cua-dong-ruong-20250620082905929.htm