An odd trend in wheat country: not much wheat

An odd thing has happened in wheat country — a lot of farmers aren't planting wheat. Thanks to a global grain glut that has caused prices and profits to plunge, this year farmers planted the fewest acres of wheat since the U.S. Department of Agriculture began keeping records nearly a century ago.Instead of planting the crop that gave the wheat belt its identity, many farmers are opting this year for crops that might be less iconic but are suddenly in demand, such as chickpeas and lentils, used in hummus and healthy snacks."People have gone crazy with chickpeas. It's unbelievable how many acres there are," said Kirk Hansen, who farms 350 acres (142 hectares) south of Spokane in eastern Washington, where wheat's reign as the king crop has been challenged.American farmers still plant wheat over a vast landscape that stretches from the southern Plains of Oklahoma and Texas north through Kansas, Nebraska and the Dakotas as well as dry regions of Washington and Oregon. However, this year's crop of 45.7 million acres (18.49 million hectares) is the smallest since 1919.North Dakota harvested wheat acres are down 15 percent, Montana 11 percent and Nebraska 23 percent, to the state's lowest winter wheat acres on record.