The varieties developed at IRRI, known as IR varieties, are well accepted in many Asian countries.
IRRI's semi-dwarf varieties, including the famous IR8, saved India from famine in the 1960s. IRRI is well known for its contribution to the "Green Revolution" movement in Asia during the late 1960s and 1970s, which involved the breeding of "semi-dwarf" varieties of rice that were less likely to lodge (fall over). Įntrance to the IRRI Headquarters at Los Baños, Laguna with Mt. It is also the largest non-profit agricultural research center in Asia. IRRI is one of 15 agricultural research centers in the world that form the CGIAR Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers, a global partnership of organizations engaged in research on food security. It advances its mission through collaborative research, partnerships, and the strengthening of the national agricultural research and extension systems of the countries IRRI works in. The Institute, established in 1960 aims to reduce poverty and hunger, improve the health of rice farmers and consumers, and ensure environmental sustainability of rice farming. IRRI is known for its work in developing rice varieties that contributed to the Green Revolution in the 1960s which preempted the famine in Asia. The International Rice Research Institute ( IRRI) is an international agricultural research and training organization with its headquarters in Los Baños, Laguna in the Philippines, and offices in seventeen countries.