A rice variety developed in the Philippines won at the World’s Best Rice 2025 Awards, second to Vietnam and Cambodia during the World Rice Conference in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on 7 to 9 November 2025.

The PhilRice-bred NSIC Rc 218 SR (Mabango 3) won at the World’s Best Rice 2025 Awards in Cambodia for its soft texture, aromatic quality, and premium grains.

Known as Dinorado, it is favored by Filipino farmers and consumers, with a potential yield of up to eight tons per hectare, maturing in 120 days, and growing to 106 cm.

Bred by Thelma F. Padolina and Emily R. Arocena, the rice variety reflects PhilRice’s 40-year commitment to developing high-yielding, quality, and climate-resilient rice.

Despite this, the Dinorado was bested by Vietnam's ST25 rice and Cambodia's Phka Romdoul rice, which shared the top honor. Vietnam's ST25 variety is marketed as Ong Cua ST25, while Cambodia's Phka Romdoul is marketed as Malys Angkor.

The awarding ceremony is part of the 17th World Rice Conference, organized by The Rice Trader as rice varieties were chosen from over 30 entries from various countries, including Thailand, India, and Australia.

This marks the third time the Vietnamese ST25 rice has won the title, following previous wins in 2019 and 2023, while it is the seventh time a Cambodian variety has claimed the top prize.

The NSIC Rc218 variety gained international recognition by securing the silver award at the 2025 World's Best Rice Awards held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

This was an improvement over its third-place finish in 2024, highlighting the increasing global recognition of Philippine-bred rice varieties. The competition judges rice varieties on aroma, taste, texture, and grain shape.