Short answers, pulled from the story.
Sugar cane, maize, wheat, and rice accounted for half of all primary crop production on Earth in 2023. These four plants formed the invisible backbone of human civilization and represented a staggering concentration of global agricultural output.
There are an estimated 50,000 edible plant species that exist in nature. Only about 300 of these species have ever been domesticated for human use.
The first agricultural revolution began when early societies made the radical decision to stop wandering and start planting. This pivotal moment in history saw the domestication of plants for food and trade, marking the transition from hunter-gatherer lifestyles to settled civilizations.
As of 2019, 13 percent of global farmland was planted with genetically modified crops. Countries with the largest percentage of global GM crop production were the USA, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, and India.
Between 2000 and 2023, global production of primary crops increased by 61 percent, reaching 9.9 billion tonnes. This dramatic increase is mainly due to a combination of factors including an increased use of irrigation, pesticides and fertilizers, and the adoption of high-yield crops.