Rice is one of the most important crops on earth: it is the staple food for more than half of the world's population. The rice plant belongs to the grass family. Its origins probably lie in the deltas of the Ganges, Yangtze, Euphrates and Tigris rivers. However, the actual wild form of this useful plant has been lost.
About 8000 rice varieties exist today and have been adapted by breeding to a wide range of climates and conditions. Rice plants mostly need the warmth and humidity of the subtropical climate to thrive. Most varieties grow in swampy soil. However, there are also rice varieties that manage with relatively small amounts of water (so-called dry rice). From Africa comes Oryza glaberrima, also known as African rice. The so-called "wild rice" is also popular as a foodstuff, but it does not belong to the well-known Oryza varieties, but to the group of sweet grasses.