Rice
History
Rice has been cultivated in China since ancient times and was introduced to India before the time of the Greeks. Records of rice cultivation in China go back 4,000 years. In classical Chinese, the words for agriculture and for rice are synonymous, indicating that rice was already the staple crop at the time the language was taking form. In several East Asian languages the words for rice and food are identical. Many ceremonies have arisen in connection with planting and harvesting rice, and the grain and the plant are traditional motifs in Oriental art. Thousands of rice varieties are now known, both cultivated and diminished; the original form of the plant is unknown.
Rice is typically sold in either a "brown" or "white" form. Brown rice refers to grains which retain their outer brown coating, while white rice refers to grains that have had this coating milled away by peeling. Brown rice has a greater food value than white, as this outer brown coating contains important proteins and minerals; however, white rice can be stored for longer periods than brown.
Healthy Diet
It has been estimated that half the world's population subsists wholly or partially on rice. 96 percent of the world's rice crop is grown and consumed in Asia. It is estimated that Asia's population consumes approximately 200 to 400 lbs. (90-181 kg.) of rice per person annually. Rice is the only major cereal crop that is primarily consumed by humans directly as harvested, and only wheat and corn are produced in comparable quantity. As a food, rice is lower in fat and protein than other cereal grains. In the East, rice is often eaten with foods and sauces made from soybeans, which supply the protein and vitamins that rice is deficient in. Elsewhere, especially in the United States, rice processing techniques have produced many different breakfast and snack foods for retail markets.