Short answers, pulled from the story.
Sugar cane, maize, wheat, and rice accounted for roughly half of global primary crop production in 2023. Sugar cane led at 20 percent of the total (2.0 billion tonnes), followed by maize at 13 percent (1.2 billion tonnes), with wheat and rice each at 8 percent (0.8 billion tonnes apiece).
Global production of primary crops rose by 61 percent between 2000 and 2023, growing from roughly 6.2 billion tonnes to 9.9 billion tonnes. The increase is attributed to expanded irrigation, greater use of pesticides and fertilizers, more cultivated area, and the adoption of high-yield crop varieties.
A cover crop is planted to protect and improve soil health, reduce erosion, and enhance fertility rather than to be harvested for sale. Unlike a production crop grown for food, fiber, or fuel, a cover crop serves ecological and protective functions within the farming system.
As of 2019, the United States led global GM crop production at 38 percent of the total, followed by Brazil at 28 percent, Argentina at 13 percent, Canada at 7 percent, and India at 6 percent. Genetically modified crops occupied 13 percent of global farmland that year.
Monoculture grows one crop species in a field at a time, while monocropping plants the same crop year after year on the same land. Crop rotation instead grows a series of different crops in the same area across successive growing seasons; studies show rotation produces better yields than continuous monocropping.
Asia dominates both crops: the continent produced 90 percent of global rice and 44 percent of global wheat in 2023. Asia also led in oil palm fruit production at 87 percent and potatoes at 53 percent of world totals.