More of the earth’s surface is covered by wheat than by any
other food crop. Wheat production is the third largest cereal
production in the world, after maize and rice.
In terms of dietary intake, however, wheat comes second to rice as a main food crop, given the more extensive use of maize as animal feed. Wheat is a hardy crop that can grow in a wide range of environmental conditions and that permits large-scale cultivation and long-term storage, making it key to the emergence of urban societies for millennia. Currently, about 65 percent of the wheat crop is used for food, 17 percent for animal feed, and 12 percent in industrial applications, including bio-fuels.
Wheat is the largest deficit item in the developing country food basket. Between 1970 and 2010, more than half of the increment in wheat consumption was met by increased wheat imports, and several countries became totally dependent on imports for wheat.
In terms of dietary intake, however, wheat comes second to rice as a main food crop, given the more extensive use of maize as animal feed. Wheat is a hardy crop that can grow in a wide range of environmental conditions and that permits large-scale cultivation and long-term storage, making it key to the emergence of urban societies for millennia. Currently, about 65 percent of the wheat crop is used for food, 17 percent for animal feed, and 12 percent in industrial applications, including bio-fuels.
Wheat is the largest deficit item in the developing country food basket. Between 1970 and 2010, more than half of the increment in wheat consumption was met by increased wheat imports, and several countries became totally dependent on imports for wheat.
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