A plant is a plant or animal product that can be widely grown and harvested for profit or subsistence. [1] Crops may refer to parts harvested or to harvest in a more refined state. Most crops are grown in agriculture or aquaculture. A crop may contain macroscopic fungi (e.g. mushrooms) or algae.
Most crops are harvested as food for humans or fodder for livestock. Some crops are harvested from the wild (including intensive harvesting, eg ginseng).
Important non-food products include horticulture, floriculture and industrial products. Horticultural crops include plants used for other crops (for example, fruit trees). Floristry plants include bedding plants, houseplants, flowering garden and pot plants, cut cultivated greens, and cut flowers. Industrial products are produced for clothing ( fiber crops ), biofuel ( energy crops , algae fuel ) or medicine ( medicinal plants )
The importance of a crop varies greatly by region. Globally, the following crops contribute the most to the human food supply (kcal/person/day for 2013 in parentheses): rice (541 kcal), wheat (527 kcal), sugarcane and other sugar crops (200 kcal), corn ( maize) (147 kcal) soybean oil (82 kcal) other vegetables (74 kcal) potatoes (64 kcal) palm oil (52 kcal) cassava (37 kcal) legumes legumes (37 kcal) sunflower oil ( 35 kcal), rapeseed and mustard oil (34 kcal), other fruits (31 kcal), sorghum (28 kcal), millet (27 kcal), peanuts (25 kcal), beans (23 kcal), sweet potato (22 kcal), banana (21 kcal) ), various nuts (16 kcal), soybeans (14 kcal), cottonseed oil (13 kcal), peanut oil (13 kcal), yams (13 kcal). [3] Note that many of the seemingly small crops globally are very important regionally. For example, in Africa roots and tubers dominate at 421 kcal/person/day, and sorghum and millet contribute 135 kcal and 90 kcal, respectively.
