Popcorn, cornflakes, corn flour and corn on a cob are just a few ways that human beings enjoy a corn. It is widely grown and an important part of our dietary needs. Some interesting facts about corn are:

• Corn was grown widely in native America and exported to Europe.

• There are over 500 different uses of corn including baby food, fodder for livestock, canned corn and many human foods, filler for plastics, ingredient in adhesives, explosives, insecticides, dyes, soaps etc.

• Different kinds of corn come from different plants. Flint and Dent corn used as livestock fodder, Sweet corn usually used in human foods, flour corn used in baked goods, and all of us are familiar with pop corn.

• Corn stalks can grow from 2 to 2 feet high and have 8 to 48 slim and slender leaves and multiple ears.

• A corn ear is enclosed with an external layer called husk of shuck.

• Corn flour is used to thicken gravies, cakes, pancakes etc.

• A bushel of corn can weigh up to 25 kgs. One ‘œear’ of corn has 16 rows containing an average of 800 kernels. There are no uneven kernels in a row.

• Corn roots can grow up to 6 feet into the ground

• Corn is a good source of Vitamin B and fibre and helps us keep a healthy digestive track. It also has an elevated fat content making it a better source of energy than any other grain.

• It might appear amazing but corn has its deficiencies as well like lack of calcium and usable protein.

• Native Americans used to add ash when cooking corn which helped them as eating too much corn can cause Pellagra. This was also done by ancient Aztecs where they added limestone, wood ash and seashells and this process was called nixtamalization.

• Corn needs the perfect, fertile soil for growth. Soil cannot be too dry or too wet. It also destroys the soil of its nutrients. In fact corn cannot be grown twice on the same stretch of land without extensive use of fertilisers. The process of preparing the land to plant corn is so extensive that although the corn is planted in spring, the preparation of land begins in the November before.

• U.S. which is the largest producer of corn has a region called the ‘œCorn Belt’ which includes Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota and more. In 2011, they made around 63.0 billion dollars from the sales of corn.

• Best way of storing corn is in air tight cool place as it dries out very fast.

• Steamed corn is the healthiest way of eating it.

• Corn kernels can be used as pizza toppings, added in soup and salads or eaten just as is with lime and salt.

• Genetic engineers are working on modified versions of corn which while retaining their nutritional value are able to grow in any sort of climates.

Corn or its botanical name Zea Mays means ‘œthat which sustains life’. Despite the super hero qualities given to corn, too much of it is not good for our health.