186 FIELD CROP PRODUCTION 



mands within her borders. In China, Japan, and other 

 Oriental countries rice is the chief food of the people, and 

 is supplemented with seeds of millets, sorghums, and 

 soy beans. The dietary for the average citizen of these 

 countries is, therefore, quite different from that of the 

 citizens of our country. When rice is thrashed, the hulls 

 or glumes remain on the kernel, but before it is placed 

 on the market they are removed, and in this country the 

 kernels are polished by special machines to give them the 

 glossy appearance demanded by our trade. In polishing 

 the kernels, much of the food value is lost because in the 

 process the germ, which contains the most of the oil, is 

 removed. The by-products of rice are the hulls, which 

 are of little value, and the bran or rice polish, which is of 

 considerable value as a stock food. The straw is not 

 palatable and is of little use for stock food or for any pur- 

 pose other than for fertilizer. 



PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION 



174. The world's crop. — In the tropical and semi- 

 tropical regions of both hemispheres, rice is a very impor- 

 tant crop, the total annual production for the world being 

 approximately 150 billion pounds. Of this amount Asia 

 produces about 135 billion pounds. The principal rice- 

 producing countries of Asia are India, with an annual 

 production of 80 billion pounds, China, with 40 billion, 

 Japan, 16 billion, and the Philippine Islands producing 

 800 million pounds. Europe produces about 1 billion 

 pounds annually, Italy and Spain producing by far the 

 bulk of this crop. South America, principally Brazil 

 and British Guiana and Peru, have an annual production 

 of approximately 400 million pounds. The United States 

 has an annual production of about 700 million pounds. 



