China is a country that has an extremely rich culture and heritage. Throughout time, China has been a leader with its military, industry, trade, and traditions. These are the obvious areas in which China has been and currently is a leader, but China is never really given credit for its agriculture and food production. In actuality, Ancient China and its surrounding lowlands were one of the worlds earliest and largest independent centers of agriculture. From China's earliest beginnings, it has been divided into two primary agricultural regions. These regions are divided by an important natural boundary, the Tsinling Mountains. To the north of the mountains, wheat is the primary food product, and to the south, rice is the most common food. This food division was exactly the same during China's early times.

During the times of ancient China, there were many very important foods that were consumed by the Chinese and were also traded to surrounding areas. Soybeans, millet, and corn were important sources of food for the Chinese. Barley, sweet potatoes, and peanuts were also minor foods that the ancient Chinese people consumed in their daily diets. There were several other fruits and vegetables that were very popular in ancient Chinese times, such as kaoliang, which is similar to the grain sorghum. Although each of these crops were important to the Chinese because of the health and nourishment that they provided, no monetary value was ever really reaped from these crops. The real cash crops during the times of ancient China were cotton, tobacco, sugarcane, tea, and silkworms. These crops were readily available to the Chinese and were very popular among people throughout the known world. The Chinese traded these cash crops and made a lot of money off of these trades using the "Silk Route."

Because of its abundant food supply and international relations, ancient China became a world leader in agriculture and trade. This tradition of excellence in food and trade continues today and China remains a world leader in trade and food production.

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