ABSTRACT
Rice is one of the most important staple food crops in the world with a rich genetic diversity. The increased growth of the world population has enhanced the demand for rice. The availability of complete genome sequences of several species including rice varieties such as indica and japonica cultivars has resulted in the discovery of molecular markers and has opened up unprecedented avenues in the quality control of food products. Authentication and traceability of rice cultivars are considered as important issues. The deoxyribonucleic acid molecule (DNA)-based methods were found to be the most effective for food authentication and traceability, particularly the combination of capillary electrophoresis and microsatellite markers such asrestriction fragment length polymorphism, random amplified polymorphic DNA, and amplified fragment length polymorphism. DNA barcoding can be used as a universal tool for food traceability because it is a sensitive, fast, cheap, and reliable method for authentication and traceability. Another powerful technique in food authentication and traceability is isotope analysis.
