1. Rice feeds more than half the world! Over 3.5 billion people—more than 40% of everyone on Earth—rely on rice as their main daily food. In many languages, the word for "food" or "meal" is actually the same word as "rice."

2. It grows underwater on purpose. Farmers flood rice fields (called paddies) with several inches of water. Rice plants can grow easily in shallow water, but pesky weeds can't survive underwater, making the water a natural shield against unwanted plants!

3. Rice has been grown for over 10,000 years. Scientists discovered that people in China first began farming wild rice around 8000 BC. That makes rice one of the oldest cultivated crops in human history!

4. There are over 40,000 types of rice. Rice comes in many shapes, sizes, and smells! There are long-grain rices like Basmati and Jasmine, short sticky rices used for sushi, and rices that naturally smell like freshly popped popcorn.

5. Rice isn't just white or brown. While white and brown rice are the most common, rice grains can also be bright red, deep purple, or jet black! Ancient Chinese kings used to reserve rare black rice just for themselves, calling it "forbidden rice."

6. Ducks and fish help farm rice. In some traditional rice fields, farmers let ducks and fish swim around the flooded paddies. The animals eat harmful bugs and weeds, and their waste acts as a natural fertilizer to help the rice grow strong.

7. You can make glue, paper, and milk out of rice. Rice isn't just for eating in a bowl. Rice starch can be cooked down into a strong natural craft glue, woven into thin rice paper for art, or blended with water to make delicious plant-based rice milk.