New Genetics, Food & Agriculture: Scientific Discoveries - Societal Dilemmas

Table 4.1: Centers of diversity of the world’s major food crops and their wild relatives

Food Crop	Scientific Name	Center of Origin	First Domestication
Corn	Zea mays	México	México
Beans	Phaseolus spp.	Central  and South America	Central America and South America for P. vulgaris and P. lunatus; Central America for P. coccineus and P. acutifolius
Potato	Solanum tuberosum	High plateau of Bolivia-Peru	High plateau of Bolivia-Peru
Sweet Potato	Ipomoea batatas	Western South America, especially Peru and possibly Mexico	Western South America
Cassava	Manihot esculenta	Central and South America	Central and South America
Groundnut	Arachis hypogaea	Peru (earliest archaeological evidence),  Southern Bolivia and Northern Argentina	Southern Bolivia and Northern Argentina
Wheat	Triticum spp.	Mediterranean Region and Southwest Asia	Mediterranean Region and Southwest Asia
Barley	Hordeum vulgare	Southwestern Asia	Southwestern Asia
Sorghum	Sorghum bicolor	Africa	Sudan, Chad
Millets	Eleusine coracana and Pennisetum americanum	Africa	Africa
Rice	Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima	India or China	Large area including NE India, N Bangladesh, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Vietnam and S. China
Soyabean	Glycine max	Eastern part of northern China	Eastern part of northern China
Banana/Plantain	Musa spp	New Guinea, Malay peninsula for Musa acuminata	New Guinea and the Pacific Islands

Source: Platais and Persley (in press)   

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