SOYBEANS
The Chinese have known the medicinal properties of fermented products for thousands of years. They have been using moldy soybean curds to treat skin infections for over 3000 years.
Soybeans were first domesticated in China in about the 11th century BC.
The U.S. produced 84 million metric tons of soybeans in 2005, which was 37.9% of the world production of 222 million tons.
The world's largest producer of soybeans is the U.S. with more than 1.5 million bushels each year. The majority is used for livestock feed.
Soybeans are planted on almost 60 million acres of land in the U.S., and the U.S. grows about 2/3 of the world's soybeans. Almost 98% of the soybeans grown in the U.S. are commercial type, and only 2% are vegetable types.
Soybeans are the largest cash crop in Missouri.
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