Cereals are grasses (members of the monocot family Poaceae, also known as Gramineae) cultivated for the edible components of their grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more food energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple crops.

In their natural form (as in ''whole grain''), they are a rich source of vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, fats, oils, and protein. However, when refined by the removal of the bran and germ, the remaining endosperm is mostly carbohydrate and lacks the majority of the other nutrients. In some developing nations, grain in the form of rice, wheat, millet, or maize constitutes a majority of daily sustenance. In developed nations, cereal consumption is moderate and varied but still substantial.

The word ''cereal'' derives from ''Ceres'', the name of the Roman goddess of harvest and agriculture.

History

The first cereal grains were domesticated about 12,000 years ago by ancient farming communities in the Fertile Crescent region of southwest Asia. Emmer wheat, einkorn wheat, and barley were three of the so-called Neolithic founder crops in the development of agriculture.

Production

The following table shows annual production of cereals, in 1961, 2005, 2006, and 2007 ranked by 2007 production. All but buckwheat and quinoa are true grasses (these two are pseudocereals).

{| valign="top" | class="wikitable" ! rowspan=2 | Grain ! colspan=4 nowrap | Worldwide production (millions (10⁶) of metric tons) ! rowspan=2 | Notes |- ! 2007 !! 2006 !! 2005 !! 1961 |- | Maize | align="center" | 792 | align="center" | 695 | align="center" | 713 | align="center" | 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 | align="center" | 659 | align="center" | 635 | align="center" | 631 | align="center" | 285 | The primary cereal of tropical and some temperate regions |- | Wheat | align="center" | 606 | align="center" | 605 | align="center" | 629 | align="center" | 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 | align="center" | 133 | align="center" | 139 | align="center" | 141 | align="center" | 72 | Grown for malting and livestock on land too poor or too cold for wheat |- | Sorghum | align="center" | 63 | align="center" | 57 | align="center" | 59 | align="center" | 41 | Important staple food in Asia and Africa and popular worldwide for livestock |- | Millet | align="center" | 34 | align="center" | 32 | align="center" | 31 | align="center" | 26 | A group of similar but distinct cereals that form an important staple food in Asia and Africa. |- | Oats | align="center" | 25 | align="center" | 23 | align="center" | 24 | align="center" | 50 | Formerly the staple food of Scotland and popular worldwide as a winter breakfast food and livestock feed |- | Rye | align="center" | 15 | align="center" | 13 | align="center" | 15 | align="center" | 35 | Important in cold climates |- | Triticale | align="center" | 12 | align="center" | 11 | align="center" | 13 | align="center" | 12 | Hybrid of wheat and rye, grown similarly to rye |- | Fonio | align="center" | 0.37 | align="center" | 0.38 | align="center" | 0.36 | align="center" | 0.18 | Several varieties of which are grown as food crops in Africa |- | Buckwheat | align="center" | 2.0 | align="center" | 2.4 | align="center" | 2.1 | align="center" | 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 |- | Quinoa | align="center" | 0.06 | align="center" | 0.06 | align="center" | 0.06 | align="center" | 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

Farming

While each individual species has its own peculiarities, the cultivation of all cereal crops is similar. Most are annual plants; consequently one planting yields one harvest. Wheat, rye, triticale, oats, barley, and spelt are the "cool-season" cereals. These are hardy plants that grow well in moderate weather and cease to grow in hot weather (approximately 30 °C but this varies by species and variety). The "warm-season" cereals are tender and prefer hot weather. Barley and rye are the hardiest cereals, able to overwinter in the subarctic and Siberia. Many cool-season cereals are grown in the tropics. However, some are only grown in cooler highlands, where it may be possible to grow multiple crops in a year. For a few decades, there has also been increasing interest in perennial wheat, rice, ... plants. This, due to advantages in regards to erosion control, reduced need in fertiliser, ... Since then, the Land Institute in Salina, Kansas has been able to create a few cultivars that still manage to produce a fairly good cropyield.

Planting

The warm-season cereals are grown in tropical lowlands year-round and in temperate climates during the frost-free season. Rice is commonly grown in flooded fields, though some strains are grown on dry land. Other warm climate cereals, such as sorghum, are adapted to arid conditions.

Cool-season cereals are well-adapted to temperate climates. Most varieties of a particular species are either winter or spring types. Winter varieties are sown in the autumn, germinate and grow vegetatively, then become dormant during winter. They resume growing in the springtime and mature in late spring or early summer. This cultivation system makes optimal use of water and frees the land for another crop early in the growing season.

Winter varieties do not flower until springtime because they require vernalization: exposure to low temperature for a genetically determined length of time. Where winters are too warm for vernalization or exceed the hardiness of the crop (which varies by species and variety), farmers grow spring varieties. Spring cereals are planted in early springtime and mature later that same summer, without vernalization. Spring cereals typically require more irrigation and yield less than winter cereals.

Period

Once the cereal plants have grown their seeds, they have completed their life cycle. The plants die and become brown and dry. As soon as the parent plants and their seed kernels are reasonably dry, harvest can begin.

In developed countries, cereal crops are universally machine-harvested, typically using a combine harvester, which cuts, threshes, and winnows the grain during a single pass across the field. In developing countries, a variety of harvesting methods are in use, depending on the cost of labor, from combines to hand tools such as the scythe or cradle.

If a crop is harvested during wet weather, the grain may not dry adequately in the field to prevent spoilage during its storage. In this case, the grain is sent to a dehydrating facility, where artificial heat dries it.

In North America, farmers commonly deliver their newly harvested grain to a grain elevator, a large storage facility that consolidates the crops of many farmers. The farmer may sell the grain at the time of delivery or maintain ownership of a share of grain in the pool for later sale. Storage facilities should be protected from small grain pests, rodents and birds.

Nutritional facts

Some grains are deficient in the essential amino acid lysine. That is why a multitude of vegetarian cultures, in order to get a balanced diet, combine their diet of grains with legumes. Many legumes, on the other hand, are deficient in the essential amino acid methionine, which grains contain. Thus a combination of legumes with grains forms a well-balanced diet for vegetarians. Common examples of such combinations are dal (lentils) with rice by South Indians and Bengalis, dal with wheat in Pakistan and North India, and beans with corn tortillas, tofu with rice, and peanut butter with wheat bread (as sandwiches) in several other cultures, including Americans. The amount of crude protein found in grain is measured as Grain Crude Protein Concentration.

Standardization

ISO has published a series of standards regarding cereal products and these standards are covered by ICS 67.060.

See also

Chillcuring, grain ventilating process

Food quality

Food safety

Food price crisis

Pulse

Threshing, process of loosening the edible part of cereal grain

Winnowing, method for separating grain from chaff

Zadoks scale

Push–pull technology

Post-harvest losses

References

External links

Home Grown Cereals Authority website

Cereal Recipes

Cereals by the Vegetarian Society

Lost Crops of Africa : Grains

Category:Crops Category:Vegan cuisine Category:Vegetarian cuisine

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Coordinates	55°45′06″N37°37′04″N
Name	Kendrick Lamar
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Kendrick Lamar
Alias	K. Dot
Birth date	June 17, 1987
Origin	Compton, California, U.S.
Occupation	Rapper
Genre	Hip hop, Conscious hip hop
Years active	2003–present
Label	Top Dawg Entertainment
Associated acts	Black Hippy, Schoolboy Q, Jay Rock, Ab-Soul, J. Cole
Website	Official website }}

Kendrick Lamar (born June 17, 1987) formerly known as K. Dot, is an American rapper from Compton, California. His music is influenced by Tupac Shakur, Nas, Jay-Z, Kanye West and DMX. He is a member of Black Hippy along with Jay Rock, Ab-Soul and Schoolboy Q. In 2009 he released an EP titled ''The Kendrick Lamar EP'', a highly acclaimed mixtape in 2010 titled ''O(verly) D(edicated)'' and released his third solo project ''Section.80'' on July 2, 2011.

In August 2011, Lamar was onstage with Snoop Dogg, Kurupt and Game, the three of them crowned him the "New King of the West Coast"

Biography

Early life and career beginnings

In high school Lamar was a "straight A" student. In 2003 at the age of 16 he released his first mixtape, ''Youngest Head Nigga In Charge'' under the name K. Dot. The mixtape was able to garner enough attention for Lamar to get a record deal with Top Dawg Entertainment. He then released a twenty-six track mixtape two years later titled ''Training Day''. In 2008 Lamar made a cameo appearance on Jay Rock's "All My Life (In the Ghetto)" music video singing when the chorus comes in. After receiving a co-sign from Lil Wayne, he released his third mixtape in 2009 titled ''C4'', heavily themed around ''Tha Carter III'' LP. Soon after he decided to drop his stage name K. Dot and go by his real name. This resulted in him releasing a self-titled EP; ''The Kendrick Lamar EP'' in late 2009.

2010–present: ''O(verly) D(edicated)'' and ''Section.80''

In 2010 he toured with Tech N9ne and Jay Rock on ''The Independent Grind'' tour. On September 23, 2010 he released ''O(verly) D(edicated)'' a highly acclaimed mixtape that included a song titled "Ignorance is Bliss" in which he glorifies gangsta rap and street crime but ends each verse with "ignorance is bliss" giving the message "we know not what we do". It was that song specifically that made legendary hip hop producer Dr. Dre want to work with Lamar. This led to him working with Dre and Snoop Dogg on Dre's ''Detox'' album. He has hinted at signing to Aftermath Entertainment. He and J. Cole plan to release a collaboration mixtape in the future. In January 2011 Lamar said his debut album was 90% finished. He was featured on XXL Magazine's 2011 Freshman cover along with Cyhi Da Prynce, Yelawolf and Big K.R.I.T. among others.

On July 2nd, 2011 Lamar released his third solo project ''Section.80'' to critical acclaim. It included features from GLC, Colin Munroe, Schoolboy Q, Ab-Soul and production from longtime collaborator Sounwave, Wyldfyer, Terrace Martin, J. Cole and more. On the topic of whether ''Section.80'' would be an album or a mixtape Lamar said "I treat every project like it’s an album anyway. It’s not gonna be nothing leftover. I never do nothing like that. These are my leftover songs ya’ll can have ‘em, nah. I’m gonna put my best out. My best effort. I’m tryna look for an album in 2012". The first single for ''Section.80'' was 'the J. Cole produced track "HiiiPower", the concept was to further explain the HiiiPower movement. ''Section.80'' went on to sell over 5000 copies in its first week without any television or radio coverage and received many very positive reviews. In the summer of 2011, Kendrick Lamar appeared on Game's ''The R.E.D. Album'' and Tech N9ne's ''All 6's and 7's'' respectively.

Personal life

Lamar claims he has seen relatives that have died in his dreams for years and on one night in 2010 Tupac Shakur came to him with the message of "Keep doing what you're doing, keep my music alive" this is what he says inspired him to write much of section 80

Discography

Studio albums

''Section.80'' (2011)

EPs

''Kendrick Lamar EP'' (2009)

Mixtapes

''Youngest Head Nigga in Charge(2003)

''Training Day'' (2005)

''C4'' (2009)

''Overly Dedicated'' (2010)

''Untitled'' (with J. Cole) (TBA)

Collaborations

''Black Hippy'' (with Black Hippy)

References

External links

Kendrick Lamar Blog

Category:Living people Category:African American rappers Category:1987 births