How do plants make their own food?

Plants are able to make their own food using a process called photosynthesis. In their leaves, a green pigment called chlorophyll captures energy from sunlight, which the plant uses to combine carbon dioxide from the air with water drawn up from the roots. This produces glucose, a sugar that fuels the plant, and releases oxygen as a by-product. This remarkable process is the foundation of nearly all food chains on Earth and the source of most of the oxygen we breathe.