Alan Searsy, age 8, of Emporia, Kan., for his question:

DOES HALF THE WORLD'S WHEAT REALLY GROW IN KANSAS?

An enormous amount of golden wheat is grown in the wide fields of Kansas. In a single year, the total amount is more than 300 million bushels  and each bushel weighs 60 pounds. Actually it is almost half of the wheat grown in the United States  but this is not half the wheat grown in the whole world. The global total is estimated to be almost 12 billion bushels per year.

On the global scene, the wheat record is held by Russia, with about 3 billion bushels. The United States comes second, with about 1.5 billion bushels. Here, though Kansas is at the top of the list, North Dakota is not far behind.  While north of the border, the Canadian province of Saskatchewan is a little ahead of Kansas.