Cereals: Types and Composition

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Cereals provide most of the calories and proteins consumed worldwide. The current annual world production is more than 2.5 billion tons. This output is either directly channeled to the food industry or used as animal feed to provide meats, dairy, and poultry products. Among cereals, rice, wheat, and maize yield approximately 89% of the total production and constitute the mainstay of practically all cultures. The other less important cereals are barley, oats, sorghum, rye, triticale, and millets. All cereals are starchy foods and contain protein that does not meet the essential amino acid balance required by growing infants. They are considered a good source of energy, most B vitamins, and dietary fiber when consumed as whole grains.