The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of drying conditions on paddy mechanical behavior, evaluated by the evolution of the percentage of broken kernels during drying. Results show that air temperature alone cannot explain the observed quality degradation of rice during drying. The drying rate and the drying time are mainly influenced by the air temperature, and to a lesser extent, by the evaporating capacity of air at low temperatures. The percentage of broken kernels increases very rapidly with the evaporating capacity of drying air.