Longping to stop selling super-hybrid rice variety

Yuan Longping High-Tech Agriculture Co Ltd said on Monday that it would stop selling its hybrid rice variety "Liangyou 0293", following a massive crop failure in Anhui province in eastern China, where it was largely cultivated.

"Sales of the 'Liangyou 0293' variety fetched about 7 million yuan ($1.1 million) for the company last year. The latest move is certain to hit profit this year," the listed company, known as Longping High-Tech, said in a regulatory filing.

More than 667 hectares of rice fields in six cities in Anhui province suffered low-yields or even outright crop failure last October due to rice blast, a serious disease caused by the imperfect fungus, according to the provincial seed management station.