Abtukam

A
staple food, food staple, or simply a staple, is a food that is eaten often and in such quantities
that it constitutes a dominant portion of a standard diet for an individual or a population group,
supplying a large fraction of energy needs and generally forming a significant proportion of the intake
of other nutrients as well.[1] For humans, a staple food of a specific society may be eaten as often as
every day or every meal, and most people live on a diet based on just a small variety of food staples.
[2]
Specific staples vary from place to place, but typically are inexpensive or readily available foods
that supply one or more of the macronutrients and micronutrients needed for survival and
health: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, and vitamins.[1] Typical examples
include grains (cereals and legumes), seeds, nuts and root vegetables (tubers and roots). Among
them, cereals (rice, wheat, oat, maize, etc.), legumes (lentils and beans) and tubers
(e.g. potato, taro and yam) account for about 90% of the world's food calories intake.[1]
Early agricultural civilizations valued the crop foods that they established as staples because, in
addition to providing necessary nutrition, they generally are suitable for storage over long periods of
time without decay. Such nonperishable foods are the only possible staples during seasons of
shortage, such as dry seasons or cold temperate winters, against which times harvests have been
stored. During seasons of surplus, wider choices of foods may be available.
Type[edit]
Staple foods are derived from either plant or animal products that are digestible by humans and can
be supplied in substantial quantities. Common plant-based staples
include cereals (e.g. rice, wheat, maize, millet, barley, oats, rye, spelt, emmer, triticale and sorghum),
starchy tubers (e.g. potato, sweet potato, yam and taro) or root
vegetables (e.g. cassava, turnip, carrot, rutabagas), and dried legumes (lentils and beans).[3]. Animal-
based staples include various types
of meat (typically livestock and poultry), fish, eggs, milk and dairy products (e.g. cheese).[2] Other
staple foods include sago (derived from the pith of the sago palm tree),[4] and large,
fleshy fruits (e.g. breadfruit, breadnut, grated coconut and plantains). Staple foods may also
include processed food products (depending on the region) such as olive oil, coconut oil,
and sugar (e.g. from plantains).[5][6][7]
Demographics[edit]
Food energy consumption per person, per day, worldwide
Average daily food energy (kcal) per person, 1979–1981

Average daily food energy (kcal) per person, 2001–2003
No data
<1600
1600–1800
1800–2000
2000–2200
2200–2400
2400–2600
2600–2800
2800–3000
3000–3200
3200–3400
3400–3600
>3600
Except for war-torn countries, the people of the world are getting more daily calories, despite a growing
population globally.
The dominant staple foods in different parts of the world are a function of weather patterns, local
terrain, farming constraints, acquired tastes and ecosystems. For example, the main energy source
staples in the average African diet are cereals (46 percent), roots and tubers (20 percent) and animal
products (7 percent). In Western Europe the main staples in the average diet are animal products (33
percent), cereals (26 percent), and roots and tubers (4 percent).
Most of the human population lives on a diet based on one or more of the following staples: cereals
(rice, wheat, maize (corn), millet, and sorghum), roots and tubers
(potatoes, cassava, yams and taro), and animal products such as meat, milk, eggs, cheese and fish.
Regional staples include the plants rye, soybeans, barley, oats, and teff.
Just 15 plant crops provide 90 percent of the world's food energy intake (exclusive of meat),
with rice, maize, and wheat comprising 2/3 of human food consumption. These three are the staples
of about 80 percent of the world population,[8] and rice feeds almost half of humanity.
Roots and tubers, meanwhile, are important staples for over one billion people in the developing
world, accounting for roughly 40 percent of the food eaten by half the population of sub-Saharan
Africa. Roots and tubers are high in carbohydrates, calcium, and vitamin C, but low
in protein. Cassava root, for example, is a major food staple in the developing world, a basic food
source for around 500 million people.
With economic development and free trade, many countries have shifted away from low-nutrient-
density staple foods to higher-nutrient-density staples, as well as towards greater meat consumption.
Despite this trend, there is growing recognition of the importance of traditional staple crops in
nutrition.[citation needed] Agriculture constantly seeks to identify better plant strains with superior nutrition,
disease resistance, and higher yields.[citation needed]
Some foods like quinoa—a pseudocereal grain that originally came from the Andes—were also
staples centuries ago.[9] Oca tubers, ulluku tubers and grain amaranth are other foods claimed to be
historical Andean staples.[10] Pemmican made from dried meat and fat was a staple of the Plains
Indians of North America.[11] In 2010, the global consumption of "speciality grains", such as quinoa,
was very small compared to other staples, such as rice, wheat, and maize.[citation needed] These grains,
once popular, are being reevaluated and reintroduced to certain markets.[citation needed]

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Average daily food energy (kcal) per person, 1979–1981

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