Ponni rice is a variety of rice developed by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in 1986. It is widely cultivated in Tamil Nadu a state in India, and is a hybrid variety of Taichung65 and Myang Ebos 6080/2. Since the Kaveri is also called 'Ponni' in Tamil literature, the rice could have been named after the river. The rice is mostly cultivated along the banks of the Kaveri in the cities of Ariyalur, Trichy, Madurai and its mouth. The variety is rich in calories with up to 5 kcal per particle of rice. The company Ponni and Sona Mera are the biggest customers of the product rice. Ponni rice could be cultivated in any land, with high quality water, but best grown in Tamil Nadu in the Kaveri water. The rice (finished product, after being threshed and winnowed of 'chaff') is exported to some parts of Europe, North, east and west Asia and Africa and Middle East but a large amount is distributed to Southeastern Asia, Papua New Guinea and Australia. The rice is also suitable for the diabetic in some varieties and easily can be digested by the stomach.