INTRODUCTION
Food is one of the most basic human requirements and there are so many sources that we can get food from. There are plants which provide us vegetables, cereals, fruits, etc. and then there are animals which give us milk, eggs, meat, etc.
Think about all the food items we eat at home. There are so many ingredients used in making the simple dishes. There are vegetables, spices, salt, oil and so much more.
What was the last thing you ate? Do you know about it? Where does it come from? How is it made?
To answer these questions, let us study in detail about the food we eat.
PLANT PARTS AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS AS SOURCES OF FOOD
We now know that plants and animals are the source of our food. Let us see how we get food products from them
- Plant parts
Plants are an important source of food. Almost every part of a plant can be eaten. We eat the leaves, the fruits, the stem, the roots and even the flowers. Yes, that’s right. Plants make up a huge part of the food that we eat.
Sometimes a plant can have two or more edible parts. You’ve eaten the fleshy part of a melon but did you know that the melon seeds can also be eaten? Talk about mustard. The seeds of the mustard plant give us oil and its leaves are used as a vegetable.
- Animal products
Animal products include milk, eggs, meat, etc. Animals like cows, goats and buffaloes usually give us milk which is also used to make other products such as butter, curd,etc
WHAT DO ANIMALS EAT?
What do you think animals eat? Do they eat plants? Do they eat other animals? Or do they eat both?
Well, animals can be classified into three groups:
- Herbivores
The animals that eat only plants are called Herbivores. For e.g.: Rabbit, deer, elephant, etc.
- Carnivores
The animals that eat only other animals are called Carnivores. For e.g.: Tigers, lions, foxes, etc.
- Omnivores
The animals that eat both plants and other animals are called Omnivores. For e.g.: Black bears, squirrels, etc.
In which group do you think humans are? Humans are omnivores. They eat both plants and other animals.