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Grains and Cereals

The foods that fueled civilizations
Food surpluses
Poorer nutrition
Alcohol production
Sedentary communities
Technological innovations
Economic specialization
Social stratification

Neper Egyptian God of Grain

Annapurna - Hindu goddess or
food and grain
Demeter Greek Goddess of
Harvest and Grain
Ceres Roman Goddess of
Agriculture and Grain

Gods of Grain

Neper Egyptian God of Grain

Annapurna - Hindu goddess or food and
grain
Demeter Greek Goddess of Harvest and
Grain
Ceres Roman Goddess of Agriculture and
Grain

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Cereal, Grains and Grasses

70% of farmlands devoted to of grains and

forage grasses
Grains are seeds or seed-like fruit of grasses,
amaranths, and buckwheats
Cereals are grains from the grass family
(poaceae)
Cereal - Ceres the Roman goddess of
agriculture and fertility
9000 species in grass family

35 have been cultivated

6 are widely grown.

Cereal Stem Structure

Tillers or shoots - vertical stems arising from the base

Inflorescence and spikelets
Contain fruit with seeds

Lodging

The bending or matting of the tillers or

stems

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Harvesting grain

Cutting
Threshing

Separating the fruit from the stems and

inflorescence

Winnowing

Cleaning

Separating the wheat seed from the chaff

Combines

Cut

Thresh

Winnow

Clean

Selection in Grains

Artificial selection and domestication

has occurred in the grains that have
enhanced the yield of the grain.
Grain amount/weight of plant mass.

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Selection and Modification of Grains

Erect tillers

Shorter plants and stronger stems

Inhibition of laterally branching

Synchronized tiller formation and fruit maturation

Reduces lodging or matting of the plants

Reduction in shattering

Retention of seeds on inflorescence

Selection and Modification of Grains

Threshing

Increasing ease of fruit separation from

the inflorescence, especially in barley, rye
and oats
Simple genetic trait

Winnowing

Selection for easier removal

Cereal Structure

Endosperm

Starch plus some protein and fat

Gluten in some grains

Germ (embryo)

Bran

Proteins, fats and vitamins

Fiber

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Cereal Structure

Bran

Ovary wall plus fused seed coat

Aleurone layer

Enzymes for seed germination

White Flour versus Whole Flour

White flour
Polishing or pearling

Removal of bran,
aleurone layer and germ

Starchy endosperm with

some protein and oil
Prolongs storage life
Beriberi, anemia, and
nervous system
dysfunction
Enriched with vitamins
and minerals

Whole flour
Contains more nutrients

Carbohydrates, oils,
proteins minerals, and
vitamins

More fiber
Shorter shelf life

Rancid due to oils

Grains
Grain

Production metric
tons (millions) 2010

Regions

Corn

844

Tropical and temperate

Rice

672

Tropical and some temperate

Wheat

651

Temperate and Tropical

Barley

123

Temperate

Sorghum

56

Africa, Asia & U.S.

Millet

29

Africa & Asia

Oats

20

Temperate

Triticale

13

Temperate

Rye

12

Temperate

Buckwheat

1.5

Eurasia

Fornia

.53

East Africa

Quinoa

.07

Andes

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Wheat

Most important source of vegetable

protein worldwide

11-15% protein
Highest amongst grains

Fueled civilizations

Babylonian, Assyrian, Egyptian, and

Roman empires

Wheat
Grows from sea level to 13,000 feet
Temperate and tropical regions
Cultivated on large scale
Grain storage
World trade is greater that all other
crops combined

Wheat Production 2011

(704 million metric tons)

1. EU
2. China
3. India
4. Russia
5. United States
6. France
7. Australia
8. Canada
9. Pakistan
10. Germany

140
117
87
56
54
38
27
25
25
23

11. Kazakhstan
12. Ukraine
13. Turkey
14. Argentina
15. UK
16. Iran
17. Poland
18. Egypt
19. Romania
20. Spain

23
22
21
16
15
15
9
8
7
7

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Wheat

Wheat
Uses
Food for humans

Breads
Pasta
Cakes
Tortillas
Crackers
Alcoholic beverages

Poor quality wheat is used for animal

feed

Gluten

Proteins of gliadin and glutenin

Elastic properties allows for
raised (leavened) bread with
yeast

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Gluten
Gluten free diets
Celiac disease 1% of population

Gluten destroys lining of small intestine

(immune dysfunction)

Gluten sensitivity

Fad

Wheat

Domesticated 10,000 years ago

Einkorn wheat
Triticum monococcum
Diploid plant
Similar to wild wheat
Seeds attached to inflorescences
Heat use to facilitate threshing

Destroys gluten
Unleavened breads

Wheat

Durum wheat - Triticum turgidum

Tetraploid
Free threshing mutation - heat not
needed for threshing
Higher protein content
Gluten not as elastic
Currently used to make pasta noodles

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Wheat - Triticum aestivum

Triticum aestivum
Major wheat grown
Hexaploid
Bread-making (more elastic gluten)
Over 20,000 cultivars of wheat today

Wheat in the US
6 basic classes of wheat
Hard red winter

Bread, all purpose flour

Hard red spring

Soft red winter

Durum

Hard white

Soft white

High protein, bread

Flat bread, crackers, pastries
Pasta
Asian noodles, tortillas
Cakes, cookies, crackers

Wheat in the US

Not successful for colonists

Russian Mennonite settlers

1870s in Kansas and Midwest

Brought hardier wheat

Drought resistant
Sandy soils

Mechanical reaper 1831 Cyrus McCormick

Commercial bread slicer in 1928

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Wheat in the US

Industrial mill with steel rollers

White flour for the general populace

Herbicide resistant and insect resistant

genes

Not grown in U.S.

Farmers complained lose EU market

Wheat Rust
"The greatest pest of crops" Pliny
Stem rust, a fungus that destroys
wheat
Crop losses at least 30 million bushels
before resistant varieties
A single gene resistant to rust

Wheat Rust

Dr. Margaret Newton

1887-1971
Pioneer wheat rust researcher
Canada and U.S.
First Canadian woman to receive a PhD in
agriculture
Single gene for rust resistance
Dealt with female prejudices
Saved millions of bushels

10

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Wheat Rust

Strain ug99 (Uganda 1999)

Major threat to world wheat production
Uganda, Iran, East and South Africa
May spread to Russia, India, China, North
America
Wheat prices skyrocket
Lead to world wide famine
Researches years away from resistant strain
Rust resistance gene named Sr35 found in
einkorn wheat in Turkey

Environmental Impact

Habitat conversion and loss of biodiversity

Monoculture crops
U.S. subsidies make production profitable in
marginal lands
Soil erosion and depletion of nutrients

Water pollution

Fertilizer runoff
Fertilizer and pesticide runoff

Environmental Impact
Positives
Planted in off-season (fall, winter)
Reduces soil erosion
Uses less fertilizer than most grains
Usually not irrigated

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Rye - Secale cereale

Origins

Hardy grain low temperatures

Uses

Turkey, Syria and Iraq

Russia, Poland, Germany
Mix with wheat flour for bread making
Rye whiskey
Forage crop

Rye

Rye

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Triticale Triticosecale sp.

Hexaploid

Cross between diploid rye and tetraploid

wheat
Benefits from high yield of wheat and the
disease resistance and environmental
tolerance of rye.

Higher yields than parents (more protein)

Marginal acid soils
Poland, Germany, France, and China

Triticale

Wheat

Rye

Triticale

Rice - Oryza sativa

China possibly 12,000 years ago

300 B.C. spread across Middle east and
into Egypt
15th century into Southern Europe
Commercially in US

California 1912

13

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Country

1999/2000

2000/2001

2001/2002

2002/2003

China

138,936

131,536

124,320

123,200

India

89,700

84,871

91,600

80,000

Indonesia

33,445

32,548

32,422

32,500

Bangladesh

23,066

25,086

25,500

26,000

Vietnam

20,926

20,473

20,670

20,500

Thailand

16,500

16,901

16,500

16,500

Burma

9,860

10,771

10,440

10,440

Philippines

7,772

8,135

8,450

8,300

Japan

8,350

8,636

8,242

8,200

Brazil

7,768

7,062

7,480

7,600

United States

6,502

5,941

6,764

6,457

Korea, South

5,263

5,291

5,515

5,300

Egypt

3,787

3,965

3,575

3,800

Pakistan

5,156

4,700

3,740

3,500

EU

1,751

1,567

1,620

1,792

Taiwan

1,349

1,342

1,245

1,197

Australia

787

1,259

930

965

Others

28,282

27,270

27,575

28,156

WORLD TOTAL

409,200

397,354

396,588

384,407

Rice Production
Country

Millions of Metric Tons

China

118

India

89

Indonesia

33.3

Bangladesh

26

Vietnam

21

Thailand

17.8

Burma

10.4

Philippines

8.5

Brazil

7.3

Japan

7.1

United States

6.2

World Total

359

Rice - Oryza sativa

14

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Rice - Oryza sativa

Rice - Oryza sativa

95% grown in Asia

Wet or paddy rice

Rainfall or irrigated
Hollow roots for oxygen
Water drowns out weeds
Blue-green algae nutrients to soil

Rice

Upland Rice
2/3 grown in Asia
Planted on dry fields
Marginal soil
Deforestation (2-3 years)
Destroys watershed

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U.S. Rice

California Rice

North of Sacramento
Mechanized

Improved environmental issues

Laser fields
Seeding with planes
Large harvesters
Water use and water pollution
Air pollution
Pesticide use

Habitat for waterfowl

16

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Rice
New varieties

Higher yields (super rice 2x)

Dwarf varieties reduces lodging in wet tropics
Pest resistant
Poorer soil conditions
Golden rice with beta carotene in endosperm

Vitamin A deficiency 400,000,000+ worldwide

Blindness
Anemia

Rice

Long grain - Oryza indica

Tropics
Southern states
Grains do not stick together

more amylose in endosperm

Medium grain - hybrid

Short grain - Oryza sativa or Oryza japonica

California
Subtropics and temperate regions
Grains stick together
California

Rice

Brown rice

Bran present
More nutritious

Oils
Vitamins and minerals
Fiber

White rice

Polished with bran removed

Beriberi nerve inflammation & loss of muscle tone
Enriched with vitamins and minerals
Longer shelf life

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One cup

Brown Rice

Enriched White Rice

Calories

232

223

Protein

4.88 g

4.10 g

Carbohydrate

49.7 g

49.6 g

Fat

1.17 g

0.205 g

Dietary Fiber

3.32 g

0.74 g

Thiamin (B1)

0.176 g

0.223 g

Riboflavin (B2)

0.039 mg

0.021 mg

Niacin (B3)

2.730 mg

2.050 mg

Vitamin B6

0.294 mg

0.103 mg

Folacin

10 mcg

4.1 mcg

Vitamin E

1.4 mg

0.462 mg

Magnesium

72.2 mg

22.6 mg

Phosphorus

142 mg

57.4 mg

Potassium

137 mg

57.4 mg

Selenium

26 mg

19 mg

Zinc

1.05 mg

0.841 mg

Environmental Impact - Rice

Decrease in biodiversity with greater

use of pesticides and fertilizers
Pesticide pollution
Fertilizer pollution
Greenhouse gas production

Methane 10-15% of production

Corn - Zea Mays

Only major domesticated grass in the New

World
Tropical and temperate zones

18

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Corn Production 2013 (est.)

(million tons)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

United States
China
Brazil
EU
Argentina
Ukraine
Mexico
India
Canada
South Africa

354
211
72
66
27
26
23
21
14
13

Corn - Zea Mays

Mexico
5,500 - 7,500 years ago
No known ancestor that looks like corn
Direct product of human selection from
Teosinte

Teosinte

19

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Teosinte to Corn

One stalk
Non-shattering spike
Loss of day length sensitivity
(temperate)
Soft or reduced fruit case
Larger fruit

Protruding kernels

More rows and kernels

Corn - Zea mays

Mexico and the Americas

Maize

Corn boiled with alkaline charcoal

Liberates niacin
Separates grain coat from
endosperm

Europe in 17th century

Hybrid corns in 20th century

Corn - Zea mays

GMO corn
Herbicide resistant

Roundup Ready Monsanto

LibertyLink Bayer

Bt corn corn borer

Rootworm
Enhanced vitamin content

Folic acid 2x, vitamin C 6x, Beta

carotene 100x

20

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Corn - Zea mays

Dent (field) corn

Flint corn
Flour corn
Pod corn
Popcorn
Waxy corn
Sweet (green) corn

Corn - Zea mays

Animal feed

Hogs and cattle

Gasohol or biofuel
Food products
Corn syrup
Starch
Sweeteners
Cereal
Alcoholic beverages

Industrial & pharmaceutical products

Seed corn

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Barley- Hordeum vulgare

Might be the first domesticated grain

Domesticated in the Fertile Crescent

10,000 years ago

Can be grown on marginal soil

Barley- Hordeum vulgare

Ancient uses
Barley pastes
Porridges
Breads
Beer

Current uses
Livestock 50+%
Beer and whiskey
25% (malt)
Human
consumption

Sorghum
Tropical Africa

Drought tolerant

Marginal lands

Major grain in U.S

Uses

Grain food

Beer

Forage

Silage

Syrup

Biofuel

22

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Sorghum

Millet
Africa

Nutrient poor soils

Low rainfall

Grain has long shelf life

Uses

Bread

Porridge

Beer

Millet

23

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Oats - Avena sativa

Northern climates
Europe and North America
Breakfast cereal

Bran lowers cholesterol

High protein content (12 -24%)

Feed for animals

Horses

Quinoa

Amaranth Family
Not a cereal
Bitter saponins

Quinoa

Andes 3 4,000 years ago

Current production in Peru and Bolivia
Spanish colonists

Scorned quinoa as "food for Indians

Suppressed its cultivation since tied to
Inca religious ceremonies
Forbade quinoa cultivation for wheat

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Tef or Teff

8000 years ago

Ethiopia and Eritrea
High protein content with all 8
essential amino acids
Good for people with Celiac disease
(lacks gliadins)

Forage Grasses

Animal feed

Range grasses
Planted

Used green
Dried into hay
Mixed with legumes (alfalfa)

25