Wheat

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Wheat is a grain. As such, it can be easily eaten plain, ground into flour and baked into bread or brewed into beer. Wheat is the only common grain which is high enough in gluten to generate large amounts of gas during the baking process, which leads to a risen (fluffy) bread.

Combined with beans, grains can make a complete, although sparse, diet.

Wheat production rates can reach 5 to 10 tonnes per Hectare. This is about half the production rate of rice. However, wheat has a higher energy density. Wheat is not an economical crop for greenhouse production on Earth. However, on Mars it might make sense to grow wheat in grow rooms. Wheat yields can be increased significantly using higher than natural light levels, reducing the required production areas. However the power for the electrical lighting goes up in proportion to the yield, so the main interest here is saving on area and pressurized volumes for production.

Crop		Tonnes/ha	kg/m2	kilocalorie/kg	kilocalorie/m2
Rice	China	17	1.7	1300	2210
Wheat	USA	10	1.0	3400	3400