History Main / MultipurposeMonoculturedCrop

* ''Disney/{{Moana}}'': The various real-life uses for the coconut palm in Polynesian culture are described in the song "Where You Are". The death of some of the groves is one of the first signs that something is not right in the world.

** In ''Discworld/TheLightFantastic'', Cohen the Barbarian spends time with a clan of horse nomads, who use horses for transport, meat, horsehair robes, leather, milk, and a thin beer best not inquired about.[[note]]Horse milk can be fermented into [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumis alcohol]].[[/note]]

* George Washington Carver discovered over 300 uses for peanuts, but [[WesternAnimation/AmericanDad did not invent peanut butter.]]

** Nomadic and herder populations worldwide who have "adopted" a particular animal have ended up engaging in similar practices, using the animal in every way possible. The ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' example above about horse nomads is based on historical accounts of the Mongols, who supposedly even drank horse blood as an emergency food. The Maasai of Kenya still mix cow blood with milk as a protein source (along with meat), though less commonly than they used to.

** Notably exploited by none other than General Sherman. He had a personal vendetta against Indian raiders after nearly being a victim of caravan raid. Where previous generals had tried to wipe native Americans out outright, he merely encouraged people to hunt the bison as an industry. The resulting depopulation of bison meant the Plains Indians had to either submit to the laws of the United States Federal Government or starve.

### Or as syrup for sweetening sugary foods.

## Film it: Because fields of it are great settings for [[LostInTheMaize suspenseful movie scenes]].

### Or as starch to thicken your gravy, soup, or whatever.

### As ground corn: In grits and its friends (polenta, pap, nshima, congee...), in cornbread, in fritters, in awful junk foods, as tortillas, as tortilla chips, in your breakfast cereal (cornflakes!), in the delicious batter on your awful corndog...

* ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'' frequently has multipurpose crops that can be brewed into liquor, cooked, eaten raw, milled into flour or sugar or dye or oil-rich paste, and/or processed into thread. Among animals, sheep and goats are prized since they can produce meat, milk, bones, leather, and wool without requiring much grazing area, and poultry are prized for meat, bones, eggs, leather, and [[ExplosiveBreeder truly explosive breeding]]... and at present they don't require food or feeding.
** The crops usually only have a few uses each. Dimple cups can only be turned into dye; all other underground crops can be brewed, and most can be processed. The closest thing to this trope is probably plump helmets, which in-game are simply fast-growing plants that can be brewed into alcohol, cooked, or (uniquely among underground crops) eaten raw, although fanon often attributes it with additional uses.

*** Applewood also burns well; its sweet-smelling smoke can impart a good flavor on many smoked foods (applewood-smoked [[BaconAddiction bacon]] and cheese are particularly famous).

*** Of course, there's a big difference between ''industrial'' hemp and the fun kind, with the industrial variety being cultivated for rope, fuel, etc. and having 90% less THC than the drug type. Again, this is specifically invoked.

** Drink them - as juice (the classic kid's drink),hard cider (when Johnny Appleseed went around giving out apple seeds, that was what he had in mind; hard cider was the most common alcoholic beverage in the US during the Antebellum era), calvados (a French brandy), or applejack (no, not [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic that one]] (although that's probably where her name came from), a traditionally freeze-distilled sort of brandy).

** Drink them - as juice (the classic kid's drink), cider (when Johnny Appleseed went around giving out apple seeds, that was what he had in mind; cider was the most common alcoholic beverage in the US during the Antebellum era), calvados (a French brandy), or applejack (no, not [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic that one]] (although that's probably where her name came from), a traditionally freeze-distilled sort of brandy).

* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse'': Revonnah's Amber Ogia is this taken UpToEleven and ''beyond.'' The Revonnaganders use this fruit for food, drink, cloth, construction and more. Its usefulness has been targeted by villains who want to use it for their own gains. It was the main ingredient in Dr. Psychobos' mind control serum. It can be made into a fuel that could power the villains' entire invasion. Oh, and when we say "food," we mean ''all'' food on Revonnah is Amber Ogia processed, prepared, and seasoned in different ways. Pretty much every aspect of life is fueled by the stuff in ''some'' manner.

*** Cooked - in many different ways: baked apples, apple pie, apple cake, apple crisp, apple strudel, apple cobbler…

** Use the tree for wood.

* Coconut trees to Polynesian cultures. The coconut flesh, the coconut water, the coconut cream made from cooked coconut, the fibres from the husk used for toilet paper or kindling or to make rope or clothing, the leaves to roof shelters, the leaves used as plates, the leaves used as hats, the shells used a bowls, cups, canteens, fishing floats, raft floats, to make small knives, the wood...

### Or as sweetener (corn syrup) in sugary foods.

## Film it: because fields of it are great settings for [[LostInTheMaize suspenseful movie scenes]].
## Piddle on it: if you're a pet whose litter box is filled with shredded corn-cob litter.

** The UnitedStates is often described as having a "corn based economy" given how much corn is produced and how many of the above uses said corn is put to, feeding the population and supplying all sorts of other industries.

* Coconut trees to Polynesian cultures. the coconut flesh, the coconut water, the coconut cream made from cooked coconut, the fibres from the husk used for toilet paper or kindling or to make rope or clothing, the leaves to roof shelters, the leaves used as plates, the leaves used as hats, the shells used a bowls, cups, canteens, fishing floats, raft floats, to make small knives, the wood...

*** Cooked - in many different ways: baked apples, apple pie, apple cake, apple crisp…

** Drink them - either as juice or booze (when Johnny Appleseed went around giving out apple seeds, the latter was what he had in mind; cider was the most common alcoholic beverage in the US during the Antebellum era). And applejack too (No, not [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic that one]] (although that's probably where her name came from), a traditionally freeze-distilled sort of brandy.

** Ram's horns can also be made into bows.

* A short story by VondaNMcIntyre depicts Earth as having exactly two species - humanity and a plant that can be processed into literally ''anything'' imaginable - food, construction, fuel, and everything else. What happened to everything else? Humanity essentially exterminated every other species, ''down to the microflora'', so the plant would never have any competition. We then dutifully recorded every genome and proceeded to sit on them with no intention of ever using the data, leaving humanity alone with the plant.

*** Of course, there's a big difference between ''industrial'' hemp and the regular kind, with the industrial variety being cultivated for rope, fuel, etc. and having 90% less THC than the drug type. Again, this is specifically invoked.

** Drink them - either as juice or booze (when Johnny Appleseed went around giving out apple seeds, the latter was what he had in mind; cider was the most common alcoholic beverage in the US during the Antebellum era).