The political economy of wheat consumption and production with special reference to Sub-Saharan Africa.
Abstract
Over the past 25 years, one of the most dramatic changes in dietary patterns in developing countries has been the increasing role of wheat as a staple food. Wheat consumption has risen rapidly both in countries where wheat is a traditional staple (e.g., in the Middle East and North Africa) and in countries where wheat is an "introduced" food, especially in the tropical countries lying between 23°S and 23°N latitude . In most cases, increased wheat consumption has been made possible by rapid increases in imports; over 80% of increased wheat consumption over the past two decades in these two groups of countries has been supplied from wheat imports . Only in the large mixed-cereal economies of India, China, and Mexico that experienced the Green Revolution in wheat production has increased wheat consumption been largely supplied from domestic sources.