Cereal

Cereal crops are grasses belonging to the Poaceae family, grown specifically for their edible seeds. These plants make up the largest category of crops worldwide and form the basis of most human diets. Common examples include rice, wheat, rye, oats, barley, millet, and maize (known as corn in the United States). The word "cereal" comes from Ceres, the Roman goddess who oversaw grain harvests and fertility.

The domestication of cereals began around 8,000 years ago during the Neolithic period. Wheat and barley were first brought under cultivation in the Fertile Crescent. In East Asia, rice and certain millets were domesticated, while sorghum and other millets originated in what is now Sudan. Maize was domesticated by Indigenous peoples in Mexico roughly 9,000 years ago. The Green Revolution of the 20th century dramatically boosted cereal yields, leading to expanded international trade where some nations now produce large shares of the global cereal supply for others.

Cereals are consumed directly as whole grains, typically cooked, or ground into flour for bread, porridge, and similar products. Their high starch content makes them suitable for fermentation into alcoholic beverages like beer. Cereal farming often involves high-intensity monocultures, which can cause significant environmental harm. Sustainable practices such as no-till farming and intercropping can reduce this impact by protecting soil health and supporting biodiversity.

**History**

**Origins**

Evidence from grinding stones found at Cuddie Springs in Australia indicates that humans were collecting and grinding grass seeds for food as early as 30,000 years ago. In the Fertile Crescent during the early Neolithic, people gathered and ate wheat, barley, rye, and oats. Charred remains of wild wheat and barley dating back 19,000 years have been uncovered at the Ohalo II site in Israel. Around the same period, farmers in China began cultivating rice and millet, using controlled flooding and fire as part of their methods. The use of soil conditioners like manure, fish, compost, and ashes started early and developed independently in regions including Mesopotamia, the Nile Valley, and Eastern Asia.

Modern barley and wheat were domesticated roughly 8,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent. Millets and rice were domesticated in East Asia, while sorghum was domesticated in Sudan. Maize resulted from a single domestication event in Mesoamerica about 9,000 years ago. In these agricultural societies, religion often centered on deities associated with grain and harvests. The Mesopotamian creation myth credits the grain goddess Ashnan with inaugurating civilization. The Roman goddess Ceres presided over agriculture, grain crops, fertility, and motherhood, giving rise to the term "cereal" from the Latin *cerealis*, meaning "of grain" or "of Ceres." Several ancient gods combined agriculture with war, including the Hittite Sun goddess of Arinna, the Canaanite Lahmu, and the Roman Janus. Complex civilizations emerged where cereal agriculture produced surpluses, allowing harvests to be taken from farmers and power to concentrate in cities.

**Modern**

From 1964 to 2023, global cereal production rose by 213%, driven mainly by higher yields rather than expanded farmland, which increased by only 10%. The Green Revolution, funded by development organizations, boosted yields of wheat and rice through mechanized tilling, monoculture, nitrogen fertilizers, and new seed strains. These innovations prevented famine and increased output per plant but often neglected nutritional quality. High-yield cereal crops tend to have low-quality proteins lacking essential amino acids, are high in carbohydrates, and are deficient in balanced essential fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. So-called ancient grains and heirloom varieties gained popularity with the early 21st-century organic movement, but they offer lower yields per plant, creating pressure in resource-poor areas where food crops are replaced by cash crops.

Grain-based foods are fundamental dietary staples worldwide, providing primary energy and essential nutrients. As a result, declines in cereal production are the main cause of losses in energy and key micronutrients such as iron, zinc, magnesium, phosphorus, thiamin, and riboflavin.

**Biology**

Cereals are grasses belonging to the Poaceae family that produce edible grains. Botanically, a cereal grain is a caryopsis, a type of fruit where the seed coat is fused with the pericarp. Grass stems are hollow except at the nodes, with narrow, alternate leaves arranged in two ranks. The lower part of each leaf wraps around the stem, forming a leaf-sheath. Leaves grow from the base of the blade, an adaptation that protects the growing meristem from grazing animals. Flowers are usually hermaphroditic, except in maize, and are mainly wind-pollinated, though insects sometimes play a role. The best-known cereals include maize, rice, wheat, barley, sorghum, millet, oat, rye, and triticale. Some other grains are commonly called cereals but are not grasses; these pseudocereals include buckwheat, quinoa, and amaranth.

**Cultivation**

All cereal crops are grown in similar ways. Most are annuals, meaning they are sown and harvested once per planting. Rice is an exception: though usually treated as an annual, it can survive as a perennial, producing a second crop from the same roots.