Carrot

The carrot (Daucus carota subsp. sativus) is a root vegetable in the umbellifer family Apiaceae. Carrots are typically orange in colour due to their beta-carotene content, which makes them a rich source of vitamin A. Heirloom variants may be white, yellow, red, purple, or black. They are biennial plants. The vegetable is a domesticated form of the wild carrot, native to Europe and Southwestern Asia. The domesticated plant probably originated in Iran where it was cultivated for its leaves and seeds. In 2022, world production of carrots (combined with turnips) topped 42 million tonnes, with China producing 44% of the total. During the Second World War, a myth that carrots help people see in the dark was spread as propaganda to explain British pilots' ability to fight in the dark; the real explanation was the introduction of radar.