Amino acid supplementation of cereal grains as related to the world food supply

I T is eStifllate(l at the present time that more than 50 per cent of the population of the world is undernourished. ’ It is often stated that the most acute single deficiency is that of high quality protein. That this may be so is supported by the widespread occurrence of kwashiorkor, a protein deficiency disease prevalent in children of many of the tech-nically underdeveloped countries. A de-tailed analysis of world problenis in protein nutrition has been published.’ The widespread use of animal protein to correct this deficiency is unlikely since produc-tion of such protein is necessarily alow efficiency process. Much thinking and effort has been expended in the direction of correcting the situation by use of vegetable products of high protein content, namely, the legumes and oil seed cakes. However, it is unlikely that legumes can be grown in sufficient quantity without too great a sacrifice of higher energy cereal crops which would be supplanted, and it is certain that seed cakes are in too short supply to go far in solving the problem. In view of the rapidly increasing population it is necessary to take a closer look at any other means which might be available to improve the world’s supply of protein. Without ques-tion the most readily available and least expensive source of energy for human con-sumption are the cereal grains of which rice, wheat, corn, barley and millet are the most important and it is certain that large segment