Wheat Facts

• Wheat is grown in 42 states in the U.S.
• More foods are made with wheat than any other cereal grain.
• Kansas produces enough wheat each year to bake 36 billion loaves of bread and enough to feed everyone in the world, over six billion people, for about 2 weeks. One acre of Kansas wheat produces enough bread to feed nearly 9,000 people for one day.
• On average, Kansas is the largest wheat producing state.
• Nearly one-fifth of all wheat grown in the United States is grown in Kansas. This is why it is called the “Wheat State” and “Breadbasket of the World.”
• Kansas is number two in flour milling in the United States.
• All the wheat grown in Kansas in a single year would fit in a train stretching from western Kansas to the Atlantic Ocean.
• There are about 22,400 wheat farmers in Kansas.
• In 2010, Kansas farmers grew wheat on 8.8 million acres. One acre is the size of a football field.
• Americans spend about 10% of their annual income on food - the lowest rate in the world. (By contrast, Americans spend about 15% of their annual income on income tax).
• There are several classes of wheat: Hard Red Winter(grown in Kansas), which is used to make crackers and pan breads; Hard White (noodles, cakes and cookies); Hard Red Spring (pizza crust, bagels, rolls); Durum (pasta); Soft Red Winter (pan breads, general purpose flour) and Soft White (cakes, pastries and Asian noodles).