Rice Virus Studies
During 1966-67, The Crops Division of Biological Sciences at Fort Detrick systematically researched rice and grain viruses and specifically targeted crops from Communist countries.
“Virus Diseases of Rice: A Literature Study,” [12] details the geographic scope of the Biological Warfare Division’s research. The report begins by acknowledging how much of the world relies on rice for daily nutrition and notes that “China, North Korea and Vietnam,” had the greatest increase in rice acreage after WWII. Rice viruses in Latin America, specifically Cuba, Venezuela, Panama, El Salvador, and Colombia, are discussed in detail. South American farmers called the rice virus, “Hoja Blanca,” literally the ‘white sheets.’
In this paper, summaries of rice blight subspecies are discussed in Asia, citing examples from Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Thailand, and the Philippines. Studies on cross-species contamination, or infecting one plant to infect others, and insect infection, getting insects to infect plants, are also examined.
The literature review is written with an ill-fitting humanist tone, as if the authors were committed to ending plant diseases. The far-reaching list of distribution makes one question that stated motive, as this paper seems like an efficient way to brief military commanders on the best ways to kill grain crops in Vietnam.
Fort Detrick researched other highly-specific topics regarding grain viruses throughout 1966-7, Including growing "Puccinia graminis var. tritici race 56" a strain of rust fungus bacteria that causes orange, red-brown spots on grain crops [13]. Using liquid nitrogen to preserve the rust bacteria for travel and deployment [14]. Cause orange, red-brown pustules on wheat grains [15].
The reports also detailed research on plants and insects native to Asian ecosystems. Including a literature review of the bacterial leaf blight of rice species local to Asia and the USSR [16], and how to hatching a species of mosquito native to Asia [17] at industrial scale [18].
The Army base researching biological weapons was also closely researching grain production in Asia and the USSR during the 1950s and 60s. The US Army acknowledges the existence of the Biological Weapons division during this time period, and these weapons would have killed millions of plants when utilized.
Of course, the Army could not have created weapons at this scale without the close collaboration of corporate partnerships with companies like Pfizer. And as we’ll see in the next post, two other American corporations.
Works Cited:
12: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Virus Diseases of Rice: A Literature Study.” NARA, August 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1692.
13: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Survival of Microflora on Stored Uredospores.” NARA, May 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1720.
14: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Cryogenic Storage of Uredospores of Puccinia Graminis Tritici.” NARA, May 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1716.
15: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Epidemiology of Stem Rust of Wheat at Stillwater, Oklahoma; Hays, Kansas; and Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1964.” NARA, November 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1718.
16: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Bacterial Leaf Blight of Rice Caused by Xanthomonas Oryzae: A Review of Literature.” NARA, October 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1723.
17: “Aedes Togoi.” In Wikipedia, n.d. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aedes_togoi.
18: Crops Division, Biological Sciences Laboratory, Department of the Army, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland. “Epidemiology of Stem Rust of Wheat at Stillwater, Oklahoma; Hays, Kansas; and Lincoln, Nebraska, in 1964.” NARA, September 1, 1967. National Archives and Records Administration at College Park. RG 544, Box 6. https://pacificatrocitiesedu.reclaim.hosting/items/show/1718.
