Field Corn

Corn (Zea mays L.) or maize, as it is known in Europe and other part of the world originated in the western hemisphere. In the United States, most corn is field corn. A kernel of field corn consists of 66 percent starch 2-4 percent oil and the reminder mainly cellulosic material.

Although it is now grown around the world, production of field corn in the United States exceeds in any other country and is usually about equal to that of the rest of the world put together. Field corn is primarily used for animal feed.

Currently, less than 10 percent of the United States field corn is used for direct domestic human consumption in corn based foods such as corn meal, corn starch and corn flakes, while the remainder is used for animal feed, exports, ethanol production, seeds, and industrial uses.

Field corn is entirely different as a food crop from the sweet corn that is harvested immature in summer and cooked fresh on the cob or cut from the cob in food plants and preserved by canning or freezing later consumer us as a vegetable.

Field corn is allowed to mature before harvest in the fall. It is shelled as a part of the harvesting operation and typically requires drying on the farm before storage or delivery to country elevator, grain terminal, or mill.

There are two basic strains of field corn, Flint and Dent. Flint corn is the hardier and harder of the two and has less starch. Dent corn is softer and is the variety that is usually grown for flour.

A very small part of the field corn crops of white corn varieties are used in foods as the chief ingredient in masa and lye hominy, while corn meal sold at retail, the grits being use as vegetable menu item or hot breakfast cereal, and the meal for making white corn bread and muffin.

Much field corn is used as feed for animals on the farm where it is grown but far larger amounts are manufactured into mixed feeds by formula feed manufacturers, feedlot operators and the like.
Field Corn