All true cereals are members of the grass family.
Gramineae (also called Poaceae) is the largest and
economically most important family in the plant
kingdom. Grasses grow everywhere - from sea level to
high mountains, from the tropics to polar regions and
from wet and humid areas to deserts and arid regions.
About 50 species are cultivated worldwide, although 17
species alone provide 90% of human food and occupy
about 75 % of the total cultivated land on earth.
Domesticated cereals include wheat, rice, corn,
barley, oats, sorghum, rye, Elucine sp. (ragi) and
Setavia. Triticale is a new cereal derived by
crossing wheat with rye, followed by doubling of
chromosomes.
Cereal crops are grown for their edible portion.
Though botanically called caryopis, they are popularly
referred to as grain, kernel or seed. Cereal grains are the
chief source of energy in our diet. They provide
carbohydrate in the form of starch. Cereal grains provide
60% of the proteins consumed. Most cereal grains can be
processed into malt, which can be used in a number of
products and in the brewing process. A wide genetic
variation exists among cereal crops, which offers
considerable scope for future plant improvement through
selection, breeding, bio-genetic engineering and induced
mutation.
