--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The human diet consists of just nine…" description: "\"The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans, barley, rye and oats.\" — Bill Bryson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png" --- # The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice… ![“The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans, barley, rye and oats.” quote by Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png) > “The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans, barley, rye and oats.” [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human diet is limited to nine staple crops, highlighting agricultural reliance. **In simple terms:** We rely on nine main plants for food. Key Takeaway Diversify food sources for resilience. Themes nutrition agriculture diversity Mood informative concerned Type educational analytical When to use this quote - diet planning - policy making - environmental advocacy - educational programs Key Concepts food security crop genetics Questions to Reflect On - How can we reduce dependence on a few crops? - What alternatives exist for sustainable diets? A Different Perspective Climate change threatens crop yields. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Diet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diet/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plant/) ## Related quotes > [Out of the thirty thousand types of edible plants thought to exist on Earth, just eleven—corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans, barley,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/out-of-the-thirty-thousand-types-of-edible-plants-thought-to-exist-on/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Out of 30,000 edible plants thought to exist on earth, just eleven account for 93% of all that humans eat: oats, corn, rice, wheat,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/out-of-30-000-edible-plants-thought-to-exist-on-earth-just-eleven/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [The ideal human diet looks like this: Consume plant-based foods in forms as close to their natural state as possible (“whole” foods). Eat a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-colin-campbell/the-ideal-human-diet-looks-like-this-consume-plant-based-foods-in/) [T. Colin Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-colin-campbell/) > [Today the Somme is a peaceful but sullen place, unforgetting and unforgiving. ... To wander now over the fields destined to extrude their rusty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-fussell/today-the-somme-is-a-peaceful-but-sullen-place-unforgetting-and/) [Paul Fussell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-fussell/) > [For years now I've kind of operated under an informal shopping cycle. A bit like a farmer's crop rotation system. Except, instead of wheat,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/for-years-now-i-ve-kind-of-operated-under-an-informal-shopping-cycle/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [The ease with which barley may be substituted directly for wheat in human food and its usefulness to replace wheat milling by-products as feed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-f-houston/the-ease-with-which-barley-may-be-substituted-directly-for-wheat-in/) [David F. Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-f-houston/) > [He that lives in sin and looks for happiness hereafter is likehimthat soweth cockleand thinkstofill hisbarnwith wheat or barley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/he-that-lives-in-sin-and-looks-for-happiness-hereafter-is-likehimthat/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [I cook mostly vegetarian vegetable and bean stews. Quinoa salads. I make my mother-in-law's recipe for chicken and barley stew all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-simmons/i-cook-mostly-vegetarian-vegetable-and-bean-stews-quinoa-salads-i/) [Gail Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-simmons/) > [Besides that, when elsewhere the harvest of wheat is most abundant, there it comes up less by one-fourth than what you have sowed. There,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plautus/besides-that-when-elsewhere-the-harvest-of-wheat-is-most-abundant/) [Plautus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plautus/) > [It is a thorough process, this war with the wilderness - breaking nature, taming the soil. feeding it on oats. The civilized man regards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-is-a-thorough-process-this-war-with-the-wilderness-breaking-nature/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I've never been a fan of personality-conflict burgers and identity-crisis omelets with patchouli oil. I function very well on a diet that consists of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-ve-never-been-a-fan-of-personality-conflict-burgers-and-identity/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [My diet consists of a lot of salads - I liberally include a lot of fruits and vegetables in every meal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suhasini-mulay/my-diet-consists-of-a-lot-of-salads-i-liberally-include-a-lot-of/) [Suhasini Mulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suhasini-mulay/) > [My diet consists of low carbs, zero sugar, zero fat, zero dairy product, lots of fish, chicken, red meat, protein shake and lots of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prateik-babbar/my-diet-consists-of-low-carbs-zero-sugar-zero-fat-zero-dairy-product/) [Prateik Babbar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prateik-babbar/) > [My daily diet consists of basically anything I think looks tasty, whether that's pizza, sushi, burgers, quesadillas. I like everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-dallas/my-daily-diet-consists-of-basically-anything-i-think-looks-tasty/) [Cameron Dallas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-dallas/) > [In our world, 80 to 90 percent of women's weight gain comes from overindulging in insulin-stimulating food. And it's not hardcore, straight-up, I-can-see you-in-the-face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-cruise/in-our-world-80-to-90-percent-of-women-s-weight-gain-comes-from/) [Jorge Cruise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-cruise/) ## More by Bill Bryson > [Most big companies don't like you very much, except hotels, airlines and Microsoft, which don't like you at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/most-big-companies-don-t-like-you-very-much-except-hotels-airlines/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“But Welsh spellings are as nothing compared with Irish Gaelic, a language in which spelling and pronunciation give the impression of having been devised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/but-welsh-spellings-are-as-nothing-compared-with-irish-gaelic-a/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“Pantaloons were often worn tight as paint and were not a great deal less revealing, particularly as they were worn without underwear. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/pantaloons-were-often-worn-tight-as-paint-and-were-not-a-great-deal/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If you go out on the Appalachian Trail, you have to bring so much more equipment - a tent, sleeping bag - but if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/if-you-go-out-on-the-appalachian-trail-you-have-to-bring-so-much-more/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“The dining table was a plain board called by that name. It was hung on the wall when not in use, and was perched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-dining-table-was-a-plain-board-called-by-that-name-it-was-hung-on/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“From almost nothing, France in four years built up an aircraft industry that employed nearly 200,000 people and produced some 70,000 planes. Britain built…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/from-almost-nothing-france-in-four-years-built-up-an-aircraft/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“Every twenty minutes on the Appalachian Trail, Katz and I walked farther than the average American walks in a week. For 93 percent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/every-twenty-minutes-on-the-appalachian-trail-katz-and-i-walked/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“A diarist named George Templeton Strong recorded in the winter of 1866 that even with two furnaces alight and all the fireplaces blazing, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/a-diarist-named-george-templeton-strong-recorded-in-the-winter-of/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Tune your television to any channel it doesn't receive and about 1 percent of the dancing static you see is accounted for by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/tune-your-television-to-any-channel-it-doesn-t-receive-and-about-1/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [As a rule of thumb, I would submit that if you need to call your floss provider, for any reason, you are probably not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/as-a-rule-of-thumb-i-would-submit-that-if-you-need-to-call-your-floss/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Nobody gets excited about the future at all, ever. The future is something we find depressing and worrisome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/nobody-gets-excited-about-the-future-at-all-ever-the-future-is/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“What made this particularly interesting is that John Howard is by far the dullest man in Australia. Imagine a very committed funeral home director…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/what-made-this-particularly-interesting-is-that-john-howard-is-by-far/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [I would make a genuinely terrible guide. I can't remember things. I would get half way through telling a story or explaining something and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-would-make-a-genuinely-terrible-guide-i-can-t-remember-things-i/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“In the mystifying world that was Victorian parenthood, obedience took precedence over all considerations of affection and happiness, and that odd, painful conviction remained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/in-the-mystifying-world-that-was-victorian-parenthood-obedience-took/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If this book has a lesson, it is that we are awfully lucky to be here-and by 'we' I mean every living thing. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/if-this-book-has-a-lesson-it-is-that-we-are-awfully-lucky-to-be-here/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) [Explore all 656 Bill Bryson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) ## More Barley quotes > [You'll remember me when the west wind moves. Among the fields of barley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-cassidy/you-ll-remember-me-when-the-west-wind-moves-among-the-fields-of-barley/) [Eva Cassidy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-cassidy/) > [He called her: mother of pearl, barley woman, rice provider, millet basket, corn maid, flax princess, all-maker, weef She called him: fawn, roebuck, stag,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-grahn/he-called-her-mother-of-pearl-barley-woman-rice-provider-millet/) [Judy Grahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-grahn/) > [Only reapers, reaping early In among the bearded barley, Hear a song that echoes cheerly From the river winding clearly, Down to towered Camelot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/only-reapers-reaping-early-in-among-the-bearded-barley-hear-a-song/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [Tabloid discussion of bad children always blames baby-boomer liberals, careerist mothers and fashion-crazed Nathan Barley types who think it's all enormously funny. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-york/tabloid-discussion-of-bad-children-always-blames-baby-boomer-liberals/) [Peter York](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-york/) > [One of the products I swear by is Sante Barley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piolo-pascual/one-of-the-products-i-swear-by-is-sante-barley/) [Piolo Pascual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piolo-pascual/) > [It was understood that nothing of a tender nature could possibly be confided to old Barley, by reason of his being totally unequal to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/it-was-understood-that-nothing-of-a-tender-nature-could-possibly-be/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Everything depends on the value we give to things. We are the ones who make morality and virtue. The cannibal who eats his neighbor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/everything-depends-on-the-value-we-give-to-things-we-are-the-ones-who/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [Barley and mushroom is a soothing combination. It's mainly a textural thing, with the barley both gently breaking and enhancing the mushroomy gloopiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yotam-ottolenghi/barley-and-mushroom-is-a-soothing-combination-it-s-mainly-a-textural/) [Yotam Ottolenghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yotam-ottolenghi/) > [When I’m a Duchess,” she said to herself (not in a very hopeful tone though), “I won’t have any pepper in my kitchen at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-carroll/when-i-m-a-duchess-she-said-to-herself-not-in-a-very-hopeful-tone/) [Lewis Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-carroll/) > [ I was just an infant when \[Fannie Lou\] Hamer spoke - barley even awake in the world. But here she was, pressing the Democratic… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leah-d-daughtry/i-was-just-an-infant-when-fannie-lou-hamer-spoke-barley-even-awake-in/) [Leah D. Daughtry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leah-d-daughtry/) > [Once upon a Lammas Night When corn rigs are bonny, Beneath the Moon's unclouded light, I held awhile to Annie... The time went by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burns/once-upon-a-lammas-night-when-corn-rigs-are-bonny-beneath-the-moon-s/) [Robert Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burns/) > [Cabbage soup and barley. They're Russia's national food. Both excellent in their way, but a shade monotonous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pushkin/cabbage-soup-and-barley-they-re-russia-s-national-food-both-excellent/) [Alexander Pushkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pushkin/) > [“Grains: Barley, corn, durum, fonio, Job’s tears, kamut, millet, oats, rice, rye,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-ballantyne/grains-barley-corn-durum-fonio-job-s-tears-kamut-millet-oats-rice-rye/) [Sarah Ballantyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-ballantyne/) > [Barley, where it succeeds, yields a larger weight of feed per acre than any other small grain crop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-f-houston/barley-where-it-succeeds-yields-a-larger-weight-of-feed-per-acre-than/) [David F. Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-f-houston/) > [I give a lot of credit to Barley. He was aggressive on defense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-paul/i-give-a-lot-of-credit-to-barley-he-was-aggressive-on-defense/) [Chris Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-paul/) Browse all 40 Barley quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans, barley, rye and oats.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill Bryson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-plants-corn-rice-wheat-potatoes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Barley" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-plants-corn-rice-wheat-potatoes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/bill-bryson-340_barley_the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-pla_975704.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The human diet consists of just nine plants: corn, rice, wheat, potatoes, cassava, sorghum, millet, beans…” — Bill Bryson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bill Bryson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The human diet consists of just...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-plants-corn-rice-wheat-potatoes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-human-diet-consists-of-just-nine-plants-corn-rice-wheat-potatoes/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```