Specialty Corn: A Small-Scale Agriculture Alternative
June 1992
United States Department of Agriculture
Cooperative State Research Service
Office for Small-Scale Agriculture
Five hundred years ago, Columbus was one of the first Europeans to set eyes on maize-foundation of most great Western Hemisphere civilizations, including those of the Incas, Mayans, and Aztecs. In the April 1992 Organic Gardening magazine, Shepherd Ogden says, "sweet corn is the most American of vegetables." His article has tips for growers.
In 1540, Coronado noted maize or corn growing under irrigation among Native Americans of the southwestern part of what is now the United States. Corn largely kept the Pilgrims alive during the harsh winter of 1620 on the East Coast. The oldest known remains of corn cobs may be in Tehuacan, Mexico, dating back 7,000 years. Most corn historians consider a wild grass called Teosinte one of modern corn's primary ancestors.
Corn is one of the most diverse grain crops. Nature by itself and man working with it have produced many types of corn. Corn is generally classed as to kernel endosperm characteristics. Endosperm refers to a seed's nutritive tissue, surrounding and absorbed by the embryo. The six most common corn types include flint, flour, dent, pop, waxy, and sweet. A seventh is called pod or tunicate corn, which may have endosperms like the other six. Pod corns differ from the others in that each individual kernel Is enclosed in a glume or husk.
Popcorns are basically small-kerneled flint types. Waxy corn carries a gene which results In the production of 100 percent amylopectin, i.e., starchy pectin.
Sweet Corn
Standard sweet corn at the immature, milky stage contains about 10 percent sucrose, while field corn in the same stage has about 4 percent. After harvest or if left on the stalk too long, sucrose in standard sweet corn is rapidly converted to starch.
Unlike dent corn, sweet corn is not grown for feed or flour, although USDA researchers have developed a technique to produce a high-fiber, no-calorie flour from pericarps that surround kernels, holding them on the cob.
Sweet corn kernels often have a wrinkled, glassy appearance resulting from a sugary gene which retards the normal conversion of sugar to starch during endosperm development. Kernel colors vary, sometimes being mixed both white and yellow.
William "Bill" Watson, president and owner of the Liberty Seed Company (P.O. Box 806, New Philadelphia, Ohio 44663; 1-800-541-6022 or 216-364-1611), is doing a write-up of the many sweetcorn developments of the past decade. He says there has been more change in the past decade than in the preceding 25 years.
To compete and find a nearby niche (like a restaurant or roadside stand) for their sweet corn, entrepreneurs should explore the potentials for moving high-sugar varieties of corn to consumers within a day after harvest. The need for speed is because kernels at room temperature can lose as much as 50 percent of their sucrose by 24 hours after harvest.
Development of sweeter varieties of standard sweet corn was done by selections within homozygous "SU1" genotypes. One selection-SiIver Queen-became the standard against which other standard sweet corn varieties were compared. Later supersweet SH2 varieties, i.e., "sugary enhanced (SE)" or supersweet "shrunken (SH2)," have 2 to 3 times as much sucrose as standard sweet corn at harvest! What's more, sucrose levels stay relatively high 48 hours after harvest.
Growers of the SH2 gene sweet corn must be careful not to plant it within 250 feet or more-depending on prevailing winds-of any other kinds of corn because pollen may be picked up from neighboring corn, which will dilute the sweetness, making kernels undesirably tough and starchy.
One exception to the distant planting rule is Kandy Korn, whose sugar-enhanced SE gene produces a variety for farmers that, like other SE varieties, requires no isolation. (Abbott and Cobb, Inc.; 1-800-345-SEED. Asgrow; 616-323-4000).
Growers for the roadside trade usually sell high-sugar corn of the SE variety because it's easier to grow; those who ship to the more distant markets lean toward the supersweet varieties to meet the competition.
The seed count is about 2,500 to 3,500 a pound for regular sweet corn. The count of the shrunken gene types is considerably higher.
Andy and Tannie Daniels are successful sweet corn growers at Route 4, Box 73, Columbus, NE 68601. Their story is reported in Successful Farming Magazine's publication, ADAPT 3, 1991. (P.O. Box 10652, Des Moines, IA 50309-3023, $12.50. 515-284-2852).
The Daniels note that roadside stand work is hard, the season is not long, and the returns may grow slowly. To pick corn at the peak time, they usually pay high schoolers or others the minimum wage.
Roadside prices for sweet corn vary widely. Discounts for quantity are urged. The freshness increases the value (price) over grocery store pricing. Don't undercut grocery stores. The Daniels also advise adding other vegetables, such as tomatoes and cantaloupe, after establishing a customer base.
They recommend SE varieties over the others for reasons noted above, plus disease control. The sweeter the variety, the more susceptible it is to disease, usually. The Daniels say plant early, with not too many varieties so as to avoid confusing customers.
Growers should check with the county agriculture Extension agent to learn the best planting dates, varieties recommended locally, and disease and pest control methods that reduce or eliminate chemicals.
The supersweets are just as good for freezing as the others. There are many varieties. Every catalog will have some.
Other marketing details have been emphasized in previous factsheets and are in the ADAPT books and not repeated here. It needs repeating, however, that entrepreneurs not wishing to waste money should determine an exact and committed market before they buy or plant any seed.
Popcorn
Popcorns are generally either pearl or rice types. Pearls have smooth, rounded crowns, while rice types are pointed. Color varies. Heating the kernel turns the moisture inside the soft starch in the center into explosive steam that can turn the kernel inside out. The greater the expansion, the higher the quality. Moisture content should be 13.5 to 14 percent for best results. Varieties differ as to quality, which also includes flavor, tenderness, absence of hulls, color, and shape.
Shape can vary from mushroom-spherical to butterfly. The confection industry usually prefers the spherical-easier to coat with flavors or syrups. The butterfly-shaped popcorn has a better "mouth feel" and is preferred for on-premises sales, as in theaters.
For more information, contact the Popcorn Institute, 401 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611. (312-644-6610).
Hi-Lysine Corn
Corn is a major staple in many underdeveloped countries. As dent corn is a relatively poor source of protein, many consumers have to supplement their diets with other protein sources like beans.
Most of the protein in corn is zein, which cannot be efficiently digested by humans and other nonruminant (single stomached) animals like pigs and chickens. Zein exists at the expense of lysine and tryptophan, which tend to be very low in dent corn. Lysine and tryptophan, two of eight essential amino acids that nonruminants can't synthesize on their own, must be obtained from food they eat.
In 1963, scientists at Purdue University found that the corn strains containing opaque-2 (02) genes contained lesser amounts of zein and greater amounts of lysine and tryptophan in their endosperms than dent corn. Opaque-2 kernels, however, appear dull and tend to have soft textures and very little hard endosperm. It makes them difficult to harvest and subject to attack by various pests. Opaque-2 varieties also tend to have lower yields and must be isolated from other corns to retain protein quality. For more information, contact Crow's Hybrid Corn Co., P.O. Box 306, Milford, IL 60953. (815-889-4151).
High-Oil Corn
The highly polyunsaturated and high linoleic acid content of corn oil makes it an excel-lent energy and essential fatty acid source for both humans and livestock. Livestock feeders may be interested in varieties with greater oil contents. Such varieties have more calories, bringing greater gains per feed unit.
Most hybrid dent corns will average between 3.5 and 6.0 percent oil. Varieties with oil contents greater than 6.0 percent and to have lower yields.
Oil quality is dependent on the amounts of unsaturated and saturated fatty acids it contains. Oils high in linoleic acid and low in oleic, palmitic, and stearic acids are preferred for human diets. For information on breeding high-oil corn, contact John Dudley, Agronomy Department, S-112 Turner Hall, 1102 South Goodwin Avenue, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801. (217-333-9640).
Waxy Endosperm Corns
Waxy endosperm hybrids contain 100 percent amylopectin starch; the normal dent corn ratio is 72 percent amylopectin and 28 percent amylose. The waxy (wx) mutant was found in China in 1909 but was not fully developed until 1936 when researchers from Iowa State University noted its unique properties and started developing hybrids.
Steers make better gains when fed waxy endosperm corn rather than dent corn. The stability and clarity of amylopectin starch make It highly suitable as a food thickener. For more information on food processing aspects, contact Edith Munro, Corn Refiners Association, 1100 Connecticut Avenue NW., Suite 1120, Washington, DC 20036. (202-331-1634).
Blue Corn
Atole, tortillas, corn chips, and other corn products have been the backbone of most traditional and present-day Native American and Mexican American cuisines. Blue corn and other flour corns historically represented the major kernel type of corn ground into "harinas" (flour and meals) in the American Southwest. But dent corns, both white and yellow, now dominate the market. However, the blue corns are finding new market outlets.
Although Pueblo tribes have historically grown many different colored corns, blue corn is one of the most important, both as food and for religious purposes.
Unlike most commercial yellow hybrid dent corns that can yield 8,000 to 10,000 pounds of grain per acre, blue corn is open-pollinated and characterized by relatively low yields of 1,000 to 4,000 pounds per acre. It also tends to lodge, making machine harvest somewhat difficult.
Blue corn has a coarser, sweeter, and nuttier taste than other corns grown for flour or meal. Its grainier consistency results in a somewhat denser tortilla than those made from white or yellow corn flour.
Research of the New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service found blue corn, like Opaque-2 corn, higher in lysine than either white or yellow dent corn varieties used in tortillas. Most blue corn varieties were also found to be high in iron and zinc.
Blue corn flours and meals have traditionally been used in making tortillas and corn chips. Native American products less well known include piki or paper bread, chaqueque (similar to corn meal mush), atole (corn meal drink), and nixtamal or lime hominy used in making stews.
Newer products include pancake and muffin mixes and corn flakes. For more information, contact George Dickerson, New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service, address below. (505-275-2576). Seed source: Rose Seed Company, San Jon, NM 88434. (505-576-2241).
Corn Cob Corns
Although most corn grown in the United States is for grain or silage, at least one hybrid variety is grown for making corn cob pipes. Cobs should be at best 1/12 Inches in diameter and long enough to make at least two bowls (2 Inches each). The diameter of the cob should be relatively uniform.
Cobs should be woody and sufficiently hard to keep smoking tobacco from burning through the bowl. For more information, contact Harry Minor, the Agronomy Department, Extension Service, Waters Hall, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211. (314-882-2001)
Prepared by George Dickerson, Extension Horticulture Specialist, New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service, 9301 Indian School Rd. NE, Suite 201, Albuquerque, NM 87112 and George B. Holocomb of the Office of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Agriculture, for USDA's Office for Small-Scale Agriculture (OSSA); Howard W, "Bud" Kerr, Jr., Program Director. OSSA's address: Cooperative State Research Service, USDA, Room 328-A, Aerospace Building, Washington , DC 20250-2200. Telephone: 202-401-1805; Fax: 202-401-1804.
Mention of commercial enterprises or brand names does not constitute endorsement or imply preference by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
June 1992
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