What Is the Most Popular Dish in the World?

Western foods are low on the most popular list.

Many brand name foods would like to be able to claim they are the most popular in the world, but a statement like this is almost impossible to make definitively. You can only really judge which is the most popular food in the world by looking at the number of people who consume certain items or meals.

Asian Speciality

Rice is the most consumed food item in the world and is an integral part of many different cuisines. The Far East, Southeast Asia, the Asian subcontinent and Africa all use rice in their cooking as it is cheap and easy and quick to grow. The foodstuff has even made an impact on western countries as we consume more and more takeout meals that include rice or cook with it in our homes. In 2008 the per capita consumption of rice was 56.8 kg per year.

Bread For All

Bread is another foodstuff featured in the traditional dishes of many cultures. These can vary from the naan breads found in Indian food to the steamed dough bread cooked in China and the United States' own white sliced loaves. In 2008, 67.4 kg of wheat were consumed by each person as food, however, not all of this went into making bread. Wheat is also used in production of cakes, biscuits and breakfast cereals.

Fish or Meat

Meat is mainly consumed in western nations where it is readily available and people have the extra income to buy it. In most developing parts of the world fish is more commonly available and therefore eaten more than animal flesh. This is highlighted in statistics from 2008, which show that the per capita consumption of meat was 82.4 kg in developed countries but just 0.9 kg in developing countries.

References

• Food Outlook: Wheat
• Food Outlook: Rice
• Food Outlook: Meat