History of the Soybean :: Essays Papers

History of the Soybean Before cultivation, wild soybeans grew abundantly in northeast China and Manchuria. As early as 2700 B.C. they were classified as one of the five principal and sacred crops, having both medicinal and food value. They have been cultivated for at least 4,500 years. However, they were not very popular. (They were said to cause flatulence!) During times of bad harvests in China, soybeans were one of the nine staples on which starving millions in the country depended. In the famine of A.D. 194 when the price of millet soared in relation to the price of soybeans, many people were forced to eat soybeans which they often prepared in a gruel called congee. Buddhist monks experimented with soy cultivation and found that flour, milk, curd, and sauce from the soybean all brought necessary additions of protein to their vegetarian diets. They carried the soybean wherever they went as missionaries. By the sixth century A.D. they introduced it into Japan and Korea. When the soybean mixed with the Shinto religion, it quickly became a staple in the Japanese diet. From Japan, soldiers, merchants, and travelers helped to spread the soybean to Vietnam by 200 B.C., and to Thailand by the tenth century A.D. It reached India by the twelfth century, brought there by traders. The bean was slow to reach beyond Asia, however. Although the Spanish and Portuguese traded in East Asia, the soybean was slow to catch on in Europe; it did not fit into the various cuisines of the continent. In 1765, a sailor aboard an East India Company ship that had visited China brought soybeans to the American colonies. By the mid 1800’s the soybean was quickly being disseminated around the globe. During the Civil War, American farmers became interested in cultivating soybeans as a forage plant. This lowered the cost of feeding livestock by replacing the more expensive grass, hay, and corn. At the beginning of the twentieth century, America was trying to feed a population swelling with immigrants. Perhaps the bean that was so high in protein could feed people as well as animals. Soybean cultivation seemed like one way to meet the demand for more food. Following World War II, soybeans became the world’s most important crop. By the end of the war, the United States had become the biggest exporter, growing more than 75% of the world’s soybeans.