wheat

The great wheat-producing countries of the world are China, the United States and Russia. Historians believe that wheat was brought to China from the Middle East during the Neolithic Period, possibly as early as 1500 B.C. In modern China, wheat continues to play an important role. The wheat harvest has now fallen to about 90 million metric tons per year, but China remains the largest producer of wheat in the world. Wheat consumption and production are shifting, though, as China steadily becomes more urbanized and a growing number of people become consumers rather than subsistence farmers. China's 2006/07 wheat crop is forecast to 97.5 million tons, unchanged from last month and slightly higher than last year’s revised crop of 97.45 million tons. Winter wheat comprises about 95 percent of China's total wheat production. Winter wheat production is forecast at 92.0 million tons, unchanged from last year. The most important winter wheat provinces in China are Henan, Shandong, Hebei, Anhui, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, and Sichuan, located on the North China Plain and central China. These seven provinces account for more than 80 percent of China's total winter wheat production.