Cereal - Production

Production

The following table shows annual production of cereals, in 1961, 2008, 2009, and 2010 ranked by 2010 production. All but buckwheat and quinoa are true grasses (these two are pseudocereals).

Grain Worldwide production
(millions (106) of metric tons)		 Notes
2010 2009 2008 1961
Maize (corn) 844 820 827 205 A staple food of people in America, Africa, and of livestock worldwide; often called corn or Indian corn in North America, Australia, and New Zealand. A large portion of maize crops are grown for purposes other than human consumption.
Rice 672 685 689 285 The primary cereal of tropical and some temperate regions. Staple food in Japan and China
Wheat 651 687 683 222 The primary cereal of temperate regions. It has a worldwide consumption but it is a staple food of North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
Barley 123 152 155 72 Grown for malting and livestock on land too poor or too cold for wheat
Sorghum 56 56 66 41 Important staple food in Asia and Africa and popular worldwide for livestock
Millet 29 27 35 26 A group of similar but distinct cereals that form an important staple food in Asia and Africa.
Oats 20 23 26 50 Formerly the staple food of Scotland and popular worldwide as a winter breakfast food and livestock feed
Triticale 13 16 14 12 Hybrid of wheat and rye, grown similarly to rye
Rye 12 18 18 35 Important in cold climates
Buckwheat 1.5 1.8 2.2 2.5 A pseudocereal, as it is a Polygonacea and not a Poaceae or Gramineae, used in Eurasia. Major uses include various pancake and groats
Fonio 0.53 0.46 0.50 0.18 Several varieties of which are grown as food crops in Africa
Quinoa 0.07 0.07 0.06 0.03 Pseudocereal, grown in the Andes

Maize, wheat and rice together accounted for 87% of all grain production worldwide, and 43% of all food calories in 2003, while the production of oats and rye have drastically fallen from their 1960s levels. Other grains that are important in some places, but that have little production globally (and are not included in FAO statistics), include:

  • Teff, popular in Ethiopia but scarcely known elsewhere. This ancient grain is a staple in Ethiopia. It is high in fiber and protein. Its flour is often used to make injera. It can also be eaten as a warm breakfast cereal similar to farina with a chocolate or nutty flavor. Its flour and whole grain products can usually be found in natural foods stores.
  • Wild rice, grown in small amounts in North America
  • Amaranth, ancient pseudocereal, formerly a staple crop of the Aztec Empire and now widely grown in Africa
  • Kañiwa, close relative of quinoa

Several other species of wheat have also been domesticated, some very early in the history of agriculture:

  • Spelt, a close relative of common wheat
  • Einkorn, a wheat species with a single grain
  • Emmer, one of the first crops domesticated in the Fertile Crescent
  • Durum, the only tetraploid species of wheat currently cultivated, used to make semolina
  • Kamut, an ancient relative of durum with an unknown history

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