maogirl
Aug 5th, 2006, 05:41 AM
:shock:
i can't wait for them to start stocking it here in hk!! i think they said that they would start exporting by the end of the month!
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/eastasia/view/223236/1/.html
Colourful Taiwanese rice a feast for the eyes
By Channel NewsAsiaís Taiwan Correspondent Ken Teh | Posted: 05 August 2006 0847 hrs
TAIPEI : In a bid to ward off competition from cheaper foreign imports, Taiwanese rice growers are developing radical new strains of the grain that promise to be a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach.
Beige, bland and boring - that is what critics in Taiwan have been saying about traditional types of rice.
Government researchers in Taiwan have spent four years developing a new strain of psychedelic rice that comes in seven colours: purple, black, green, yellow, red, orange, and white.
Taiwan's rice industry is facing stiff competition from cheaper foreign imports, which are growing at more than 15 percent each year.
Researchers hope their sexier grain will lure consumers back to local rice.
Said Lo Tze-yen, a scientist at Taiwan's Hualien Agricultural Improvement Station, "The colours come only from the natural extracts of fruits and vegetables. These extracts in themselves have lots of nutritional value but we decided to add even more vitamins to the rice."
Each colour has a corresponding nutritional supplement.
Yellow rice contains extract of Canadian ginseng, which is said to reduce stress and boost endurance; green rice contains bittergourd, which experts believe helps to lower blood pressure.
Be careful not to wash the rice, or the colours will run.
The coloured grains are due to hit stores early next year, but other new strains are already in the market.
There are various types of organic rice and even yam-flavoured rice.
There is even one type of rice known as 'rice tea', which you don't eat but actually drink.
Taiwan's rice growers are now hoping to entice the international market with their sexy grains.
As for the taste, the green rice is slightly bitter because of the bittergourd extract, while the yellow one has a hint of ginseng flavour.
What consumers will find harder to swallow is the price - the yellow ginseng rice costs about $6 a kilogramme, more than five times the cost of regular rice.
Still, there is no denying that it makes for a very tempting meal. - CNA /ct
i can't wait for them to start stocking it here in hk!! i think they said that they would start exporting by the end of the month!
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/eastasia/view/223236/1/.html
Colourful Taiwanese rice a feast for the eyes
By Channel NewsAsiaís Taiwan Correspondent Ken Teh | Posted: 05 August 2006 0847 hrs
TAIPEI : In a bid to ward off competition from cheaper foreign imports, Taiwanese rice growers are developing radical new strains of the grain that promise to be a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach.
Beige, bland and boring - that is what critics in Taiwan have been saying about traditional types of rice.
Government researchers in Taiwan have spent four years developing a new strain of psychedelic rice that comes in seven colours: purple, black, green, yellow, red, orange, and white.
Taiwan's rice industry is facing stiff competition from cheaper foreign imports, which are growing at more than 15 percent each year.
Researchers hope their sexier grain will lure consumers back to local rice.
Said Lo Tze-yen, a scientist at Taiwan's Hualien Agricultural Improvement Station, "The colours come only from the natural extracts of fruits and vegetables. These extracts in themselves have lots of nutritional value but we decided to add even more vitamins to the rice."
Each colour has a corresponding nutritional supplement.
Yellow rice contains extract of Canadian ginseng, which is said to reduce stress and boost endurance; green rice contains bittergourd, which experts believe helps to lower blood pressure.
Be careful not to wash the rice, or the colours will run.
The coloured grains are due to hit stores early next year, but other new strains are already in the market.
There are various types of organic rice and even yam-flavoured rice.
There is even one type of rice known as 'rice tea', which you don't eat but actually drink.
Taiwan's rice growers are now hoping to entice the international market with their sexy grains.
As for the taste, the green rice is slightly bitter because of the bittergourd extract, while the yellow one has a hint of ginseng flavour.
What consumers will find harder to swallow is the price - the yellow ginseng rice costs about $6 a kilogramme, more than five times the cost of regular rice.
Still, there is no denying that it makes for a very tempting meal. - CNA /ct