Wheat (Triticum) is a type of grass that originated originally from the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East. Although originating there, wheat is now a specialized food grain grown and sold worldwide. Wheatsales concentrates on selling Hard Red Wheat as we feel this type I the best for long-term storage.

Wheat is considered to have been important to the earliest development of human civilization. As it evolved into the crop we now have today, wheat made it possible for humans to grow and store large amounts of protein rich food when weather permitted, compensating for those times when crops would otherwise fail and in that event stores of wheat would be used to feed populations. The stable storage capability of wheat was therefore a major factor in developing human civilization as this capability cemented it as a major world food from its developmental outset.

In 2009 world production of wheat was approximately 656 million metric tons, making it the third most-produced cereal grain after corn and rice. Today, wheat is used to make for leavened, flat and steamed breads, biscuits, cookies, cakes, breakfast cereal, pasta, noodles, couscous and for fermentation to make beer, vodka, alcohol and biofuel. Wheat is also used as a forage crop for livestock, as animal feed generally whereas the straw of stalks of wheat is used for animal fodder or as a construction material for thatching roofs.

Wheat is very important globally as an important source of dietary carbohydrate and protein. People who have an adverse immune reaction, called Celiac disease – a disease caused by gluten, one of wheat’s component proteins, cannot eat wheat. Statistics show that as many as 1.0 percent of the population in North America has celiac disease.

History

Wheat has been cultivated domestically at least since 9,000 B.C. and probably earlier. There is some evidence pre-domesticated wheat was consumed as a food as long as 23,000 years ago.

Genetics

Wheat genetics is more complicated than that of most other domesticated species. Hard Red Winter Wheat is a Hexaploid grain, meaning it has six sets of chromosomes. Hexaploid wheat evolved in farmer’s fields through natural selection. Most bread wheat is Hexaploid. As such, Hard Red Winter wheat is not a genetically modified organism produced in an agri-lab like soybeans or corn.

Plant breeding

Modern wheat breeding developed in the first years of the twentieth century and was closely linked to the development of Mendelian Genetics. The standard method of breeding inbred wheat cultivars is by crossing two lines using hand emasculation, then selfing or inbreeding the progeny to yield a uniform seed that displays optimum genetics for food production, resistance to disease and other factors rendering the inbred cultivar superior to undeveloped or primitive grasses. Selections are identified (shown to have the genes responsible for the varietal differences) ten or more generations before release as a variety or cultivar.

The major breeding objectives include high grain yield, good quality, disease and insect resistance and tolerance to abiotic stresses include mineral, moisture and heat tolerance.

Major cultivated species of wheat

• Common Wheat or Bread wheat — (T. aestivum) A hexaploid species that is the most widely cultivated in the world.
• Durum (T. durum) The only tetraploid form of wheat widely used today, and the second most widely cultivated wheat.
• Einkorn (T. monococcum) A diploid species with wild and cultivated variants. Domesticated at the same time as emmer wheat, but never reached the same importance.
• Emmer (T. dicoccum) A tetraploid species, cultivated in ancient times but no longer in widespread use.
• Spelt (T. spelta) A hexaploid species cultivated in limited quantities.

Classes commonly used in North America today are:

• Durum - Very hard, translucent, light colored grain used to make flour for pasta
• Seminola - flour for pasta.

Types:

• Hard Red Spring — Hard, brownish, high-protein wheat used for bread and hard baked goods. Bread Flour and high gluten flours are commonly made from hard red spring wheat.
• Hard Red Winter — Hard, brownish, mellow high-protein wheat used for bread, hard baked goods and as an adjunct in other flours to increase protein in pastry flour for piecrusts. Some brands of unbleached all-purpose flours are commonly made from hard red winter wheat alone. Wheat berries (unprocessed whole wheat kernels with the wheat germ intact) is the best for long-term storage.
• Soft Red Winter — Soft, low protein wheat used for cakes, piecrusts, biscuits, and muffins. Cake flour, pastry flour, and some self-rising flours with baking powder and salt added for example, are made from soft red winter wheat.
• Hard White — Hard, light colored, opaque, chalky, medium protein wheat planted in dry, temperate areas. Used for bread and brewing.
• Soft White — Soft, light colored, very low protein wheat grown in temperate moist areas. Used for piecrusts and pastry. Pastry flour, for example, is sometimes made from soft white winter wheat.

As a food – atypical breakdown

Wheat germ crude (not whole grain)

Raw wheat can be powdered into flour; germinated and dried creating malts; crushed or cut into cracked wheat; parboiled (or steamed), dried, crushed and de-branned into bulgur; or processed into seminola, pasta, or roux. Wheat is a major ingredient in such foods as bread, porridge, crackers, biscuits, Muesli, pancakes, pies, pastries, cakes, cookies, muffins, rolls, doughnuts, gravy and breakfast cereals.

Nutrition

Wheatsales primarily sells Hard Red Spring wheat.

100 grams of hard red winter wheat, of the type sold on Wheatsales.com, contains about 12.6 grams of protein, 1.5 grams of total fat, 71 grams of carbohydrate (by difference), 12.2 grams of dietary fiber, and 3.2 mg of iron. (17% of the daily requirement); the same weight of hard red spring wheat contains about 15.4 grams of protein, 1.9 grams of total fat, 68 grams of carbohydrate (by difference), 12.2 grams of dietary fiber, and 3.6 mg of iron (20% of the daily requirement).

Health concerns – Gluten Sensitivity

Roughly 1% of the population has celiac disease—a condition that is caused by an adverse immune system reaction to a gluten protein found in wheat, which includes other species such as barley and rye. With Celiac disease, upon exposure to gluten the immune system cross-reacts with the bowel tissue, causing an inflammatory reaction that leads to flattening of the lining of the small intestine, which interferes with the absorption of nutrients. The only effective treatment is a lifelong gluten-free diet. Consult your physician if you think you are affected or are potentially allergic to wheat (some people are).

Production and consumption statistics

In 2003, global per capita wheat consumption was 67 kg, with the highest per capita consumption (239 kg) found in Krygyzstan.

Unlike rice, wheat production is more widespread globally - though China's share is almost one-sixth of the world’s total.