The October Grain of the Month is Corn

  

The Whole Grains Council has chosen corn, including popcorn, as the grain of the month for October.

A corn plant doesn’t look much like grass, but that is the plant family it belongs to. Corn has been domesticated for over 9000 years and has changed drastically from its original shape and size. Native to the Americas, it originally produced no cobs nor did it form ears. Indigenous peoples selectively bred the plant to increase the amount of starch produced in the seeds. The corn plant we are familiar with has separated male parts (the tassels) and female parts (the ears). 

For more on the complex origin of the domesticated corn plant, see Chapter 1.1 “Corn, Strange and Marvelous: But Is a Definitive Origin Known?”.

 

North American tribes planted the Three Sisters—corn, beans and squash—together as companion plants. Together these three crops provided all nine amino acids, creating a full protein meal.

 

Corn has a history of world travel. It is thought that Christopher Columbus introduced corn to Europe, although it did not thrive because it wasn’t understood how to grow it. Native Americans showed corn cultivation techniques to the European colonists. It then became a major crop in Europe by the 17^th century. The Portuguese introduced it to East Africa and Asia, including India and China.

 

In the UK and most of the English-speaking world, the plant called corn in the US is known as maize. The British use the term “corn” to mean various other grains, including wheat, barley and oats. 

Corn is one of the most common grain crops worldwide. It supports about a fifth of human nutrition. Corn is grown for many purposes besides human consumption. In the US, about a third is used for animal feed and another third to create biofuel. In addition to corn on the cob, humans use this grain as a sweetener (corn syrup), and in making cosmetics, fabric, glue, ink, laundry starch and medicines, among other products.

 

There are many varieties of corn. Fresh corn, on the cob or off, is usually thought of as a vegetable rather than a grain. It is often called sweet corn because of its high sugar content.

Field corn has a higher starch content. When dried, field corn kernels become indented, so it is also called dent corn. Most field corn is used for animal feed, or to produce ethanol or sweeteners. Some is also turned into cornmeal or grits.

Flint corn, with its tough outer layer, holds on to its internal moisture when dried. As the kernels are heated, the water inside turns to steam, and the kernels explode from the pressure. This is the type of corn called popcorn!

However you choose to eat corn, it’s a nutritious whole grain, therefore a good source of fiber. It also has greater than 10% of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, selenium and thiamine. Corn is rich in Vitamin A, antioxidants and carotenoids. And it’s a gluten-free grain. So eat some corn today and enjoy the taste of a healthy whole grain food.