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The breadbasket of a country or of a region is an area which, because of the richness of the soil and/or advantageous climate, produces large quantities of wheat or other grain. Rice bowl is a similar term used to refer to Southeast Asia; California's Salinas Valley is sometimes referred to as America's salad bowl. Such regions may be the subject of fierce political disputes, which may even escalate into full military conflicts.
For example: Ukraine in 1941–1944 during World War II:
(2010). 9780465002399, Basic Books. ISBN 9780465002399
Breadbaskets have become important within the global food system by concentrating global food-production in a small number of countries and, in countries such as India, in small geographic regions.
Zimbabwe, formerly known as Rhodesia, was known as the breadbasket of Africa until 2000, exporting wheat, tobacco, and maize to the wider world, especially to other African nations. However today, Zimbabwe, is a net importer of foodstuffs from the Western World.
After Morocco's independence, agriculture in Doukkala became geared toward irrigation so less area has been devoted to wheat, whereas Chaouia maintained its status as a major wheat-producing region thanks to its dark soil called tirs and relatively abundant rainfall (avg. 400 mm/year).
| Cambodia | Battambang Province was coined as the rice bowl of Cambodia due to the region's fertile fields. |
| China | Sichuan has historically been known as the "province of abundance" (魚米之鄕) due to its historical agricultural prowess. The regions on the banks of the Yellow River and Yangtze River such as Henan, southern Jiangsu and Zhejiang have also been known for their rich fertility. Northeast China (officially the three provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning), particularly the colder northern region, was once known as the "Great Northern Wilderness" (北大荒) due to its scarcity of population before mass migration of Han Chinese into the region Chuang Guandong. However, during the Japanese occupation and the puppet state Manchukuo, farming proliferated to feed the Japanese military provisions. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, further migration and population growth ensued during the latter half of the 20th century, and industrial farming is practiced extensively over the region's fertile chernozem, turning the Northeast into the "Great Northern Granary" (北大仓) that produce many times the crop yields needed for local consumption. |
| India | Uttar Pradesh and Punjab along with Haryana is considered the breadbasket of India.
West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh along with Telangana are said to be the "rice bowl" of India. |
| Indonesia | The plains of Java are considered the rice bowls of Indonesia. |
| Korea, South | The Honam region, which is most commonly defined by Jeolla Province, has been considered throughout the peninsula's pre-divided history and is considered the breadbasket of the country due to its agricultural significance and geographical fertility. Notably, the region is home to the renowned Bibimbap. |
| Korea, North | The plains defined by Hwanghae Province are considered the breadbasket of the nation due to its geographical significance. |
| Malaysia | Kedah is considered the rice bowl of Malaysia, accounting for about half of Malaysia's total production of rice. In 2008, the government of Kedah banned the conversion of to housing and industrial lots to protect the rice industry. |
| Myanmar | The Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar used to be one of the most important sources of rice in the region until its production declined due to various reasons, including the country's unstable political situation. |
| Pakistan | The Punjab province is considered the breadbasket of Pakistan. |
| Philippines | The province of Nueva Ecija, found on Luzon island, is considered the rice granary of the Philippines because of the vast tracts of land used for rice production. The island of Mindanao is known as the country's food basket. |
| Syria | The Al-Jazira area in northwestern Syria, and its Euphrates basin is considered the country's breadbasket due to its abundance of wheat. |
| Thailand | The Chao Phraya delta is considered the rice bowl of Thailand. |
| Vietnam | The Mekong delta in Vietnam is considered the country's rice bowl. |
| Bulgaria | Southern Dobruja, a fertile plain region in Bulgaria's northeast between the Danube and the Black Sea, is commonly considered the country's breadbasket. |
| Cyprus | The central plain called Mesaoria surrounding the capital Nicosia has long served as the island's granary. |
| Finland | The regions of Southwest Finland and Uusimaa, have the warmest climatic conditions in continental Finland and fertile soil thanks to their southern location, making them the breadbaskets of Finland. |
| France | The Beauce plains are considered the breadbasket of France. |
| Germany | East Prussia was considered as the breadbasket of the German Reich. Einst Deutschlands Kornkammer: Neusiedler haben keine Beziehung zum Land, Ostpreussen-Warte, 1960 |
| Hungary | The Hungarian Plain has produced significant amounts of grain and maize. In the early 20th century, 34% of Europe's total maize production and 11% of the European flour production was grown in Hungary. |
| Ireland | The eastern half of Ireland is the traditional breadbasket of the country, with the western part being used for pasture. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Ireland was itself the breadbasket of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, with Irish grain feeding Britain's industrial cities while Irish peasants subsisted on potatoes. This would lead to the Great Famine of the 1840s. |
| Italy | Both Po Valley and Apulia are considered the breadbasket of Italy. |
| Latvia | Semigallia is considered the breadbasket of Latvia. |
| Portugal | The Alentejo is a flat and fertile region because it is located between the Tagus and Guadiana rivers. Due to this and its proximity to Lisbon, it has been considered “the breadbasket of Portugal” for centuries. Already in a document from 1639, written by Dom Agostinho Manuel de Vasconcelos, the "Province of Alentejo" is described as "the most fertile granary of that Kingdom." In 1833, the writer Don José Muñoz Maldonado published a book about the Peninsular War in which he also described "the fertile province of Alentejo, called the breadbasket of Portugal for its abundance." |
| Romania | In the 19th century, Romania was considered part of Europe's breadbasket.Sheilah Kast and Jim Rosapepe, Dracula Is Dead (2009) p 104 |
| Russia | There is the Central Black Earth Region in Russia proper. |
| Serbia | Vojvodina was considered the breadbasket of Serbia. About 70% of its agricultural products are corn, 20% industrial herbs, and 10% other agricultural cultures. |
| Spain | Historically, the southern region of Andalusia has been considered "the breadbasket of Spain." The conquest of Andalusia not only marked the success of the Reconquista, but also provided the Hispanic Monarchy with the most fertile and productive agricultural region in Iberia: the Guadalquivir.
With the well-deserved nickname of the granero de España, the accession of the great Andalusian valley meant the assurance of cereal supplies, especially wheat, but also olive trees, vineyards, orange trees, sugar cane, etc. Francisco Lara Sánchez (1984). 9788450502510, Servicio de Publicaciones, Diputación Provincial de Málaga. . ISBN 9788450502510 to which corn, strawberries, lemons, rice, etc. would later be added. In 1826, Alexandre de Laborde commented: "Andalusia is so abundant in wheat that it is rightly called 'the breadbasket of Spain,' in terms of harvesting twice as much as its consumption. Andalusia produces many exquisite wines, which is why they are regarded as the most valuable winery in Spain (...) In the kingdoms of Granada and Seville the vines are quite abundant (...) The olive harvest is so rich as prodigious in the four kingdoms of Andalusia."
In irrigated lands, the orchards of Valencia and Murcia also stand out, since it has always been said that in Spain there were only two orchards, that of Valencia and that of Murcia. The autonomous community of Castile and León has also been considered the breadbasket of Spain, since large quantities of cereals are grown on its lands, mainly in addition to vineyards and legumes. Almería, with its sea of plastic, is considered the “garden of Europe”. |
| Slovenia | In the 18th century, there were plans to drain the Ljubljana Marsh and transform it into the breadbasket of Carniola.Melik, Anton. 1959. Slovenija: Geografski Opis, vol. 2, part 3. Ljubljana: Slovenska Matica, p. 187.Vidic, Marko. 1987. "Agrarna revolucija." Enciklopedija Slovenije, vol. 1, pp. 20–21. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga. |
| Sweden | Scania is considered the breadbasket of Sweden. The yield per unit area is higher than in any other region in Sweden and the soil is among the most fertile in the world. The Scanian plains are an important resource for the rest of Sweden since 25–95% of the total production of various types of cereals come from the region. |
| Turkey | Aegean Region, Marmara Region and Central Anatolia are considered the breadbasket of Turkey. Aegean Region and Marmara Region are famous for cultivation of olive trees, fruit cultivation and vegetable cultivations. Central Anatolia is famous for grain cultivation as such as wheat, maize, sunflowers and barley. |
| Ukraine | Ukraine has long been known as the breadbasket of Europe. Ukraine's fraught relationship with Russia: A brief history. The Week. 8 March 2014 When it was part of the Soviet Union, it had been known as the breadbasket of the Soviet Union. |
| United Kingdom | The East Anglia area of the East of England, Southeast England, East Midlands, West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber in England and Scottish Lowlands are sometimes referred to as "Britain’s breadbasket" where a combination of climate, landscape and soils are well suited to growing wheat. The East Anglia area of the East of England in 2010 was sufficient to produce 5,774 million loaves of bread. In mediæval Wales, the Isle of Anglesey was so considered, that alone it can "provide a requisite quantity of cereal for all the inhabitants". |
In the United States, an important region is the Corn Belt, where maize, wheat and soybeans are major crops, which generally extends from the Great Lakes south through Missouri. Further to the west in both the United States and Canada, east of the Rocky Mountains, is the Wheat Belt, where the climate is too severe for maize or soybeans.
The Palouse region of Eastern Washington state is often referred to as the Breadbasket of the Pacific Northwest, due to its high production of cereal wheat and lentils.[3]
During the Civil War, the Shenandoah Valley was known as the Breadbasket of the Confederacy.
Additionally, the San Joaquin Valley in California has also been called the breadbasket of the world. The San Joaquin Valley produces the majority of the 12.8% of the United States' agricultural production (as measured by dollar value) that comes from California. Grapes—table, raisin, and, to a lesser extent, wine—are perhaps the valley's highest-profile product, but equally (if not more) important are cotton, nuts (especially almonds and pistachios), citrus, and vegetables. 70% of the world's and 100% of the U.S. supply of almonds comes from the valley. Oranges, peaches, garlic, tangerines, tomatoes, kiwis, hay, alfalfa and numerous other crops have been harvested with great success. According to the 2002 Census of Agriculture's ranking of market value of agricultural products sold, nine of the nation's top 10, and 12 of the top 20, producing counties are in California.
During the 19th and 20th centuries, Argentina was known as the breadbasket of the world, due to the importance that agriculture had, and still has, in the country. Argentina's cereal cultivation is found in the Pampas region, which encompasses the provinces of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, Córdoba and La Pampa. Within this region, many cities, such as Pergamino, Venado Tuerto and Rosario, are one of the most fertile areas in the continent. Some of the plantations include soybeans, maize, wheat, barley, sunflower and peanut, among others.
In the 19th century, access to the Californian and Australian markets made wheat export a very lucrative activity, leading to the Chilean wheat cycle. La Hacienda (1830–1930). Memoria Chilena. In the mid-19th century, those countries experienced large , which created a large demand for wheat. Chile was at the time the "only wheat producer of some importance in the Pacific". Villalobos, Sergio; Osvaldo Silva; Silva, Fernando and Estelle, Patricio. 1974. Historia De Chile. Editorial Universitaria, Chile. pp. 481–485.
In Western Australia, the Wheatbelt, Great Southern and South West regions are known as a breadbasket. The Eyre Peninsula and Barossa Valley of South Australia are also known as a breadbasket.
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