Rice-based agri-food providing energy and basic nutrients and help to abolish poverty and hunger among people and populations. Rice is an excellent source of carbohydrates that is well digested and assimilated even after food poisoning. There are many benefits of eating rice and perhaps that is why it is included in the diet of millions of people around the world.
1. More than 20% of the daily calories consumed by humans comes from rice.
2. Almost 90% of agricultural land in Asia is used for rice production and it is Asia where 90% of all world rice is consumed.
3. According to the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), half of the world’s population depends on rice.
4. China is the largest rice producer in the world. Rice has been a staple food here for almost five thousand years.
5. The total world rice production in 2016 is approximately 470 million tons. China (145 million tons), India (106 million tons), and Indonesia (41 million tons) are considered as the main producers of paddy rice worldwide.
6. Scientists from Zhejiang University in China have found that the secret of the strength and longevity of the Great Wall of China lies in the sticky rice that was used as its mortar.
7. The sticky rice–lime mortar was used not only for the construction of the Great Wall of China but also for the construction of temples and tombs of the Ming Dynasty.
8. Rice flour in China is even used to make mochi ice cream.
9. Rice and its by-products are used for making straw and rope, paper, wine, crackers, beer, cosmetics, packing material, and even toothpaste.
10. There are several thousand different varieties of rice and only about a hundred of them are used in agriculture.
11. The two types that most of us are used to seeing in the grocery store are white and brown rice, but it can be the same type of rice, just it is processed differently. In addition to color, white and brown rice differ in taste, cooking time, and amounts of nutrients.
12. Brown rice t is richer in nutrients, fiber, minerals, and vitamins comparison than white rice.
13. Any type of rice can be classified as healthy food, it does not contain cholesterol and low in fat.
14. Sony’s first product was an electric rice cooker in the late 1940s.
15. Rice is an excellent addition to home food storage because it’s versatile, high caloric value, and long shelf life. When properly sealed and stored, polished white rice will store well for 25 to 30 years.
