It's not 100 percent clear why the modified organism produces less greenhouse gas, but the scientists believe it could be because it stores more starch and sugar in its stems and grains than its roots. Regular rice has more starch and sugar in its roots, which tend to leak out and serve as food to microbes that turn them into methane. While this barley-rice organism sounds promising, the scientists still need to turn it into a variety farmers can easily cultivate, and that could take five to ten more years.

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