When one thinks of Iowa, corn fields, cows, and wide-open spaces probably come to mind. But when i think of Iowa, I not only think of those three things but a whole slew of others including, but not limited to: summer, humidity, grandparents, cousins, old people, small towns, swimming pools, golf, cigar smoke, and last but definitely not least—succulent sweet corn. Almost every summer of my life has included a trip to Rockwell city, Iowa, whether by air or by land, we have always made it there. And each year I hoped that we would plan our vacation in August when the sweet corn starts to roll around, and there is always plenty on the supper table at my grandma's house.
When I opened the Ominvore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan and read the first section, I was shocked at my ignorance of corn, especially having been to the heart of "corn-land" countless times (and even having visited the Corn Palace in South Dakota). Of course, the corn I consumed on a regular basis in Iowa was not the corn that Michael Pollan specifically talks about, but all the same, it's corn from Iowa. One quote in particular that struck me was: "A case can be made that the corn plant's population explosion in places like Iowa is responsible for pushing out not only other plants but the animals and finally the people, too." (p.38) This quote connected with me because I remember each summer we would return to Iowa my mother and grandmother would remark on how much the town has diminished since my mom was a child there. Maybe five out of the twenty stores that were in business when my mom was young are still there, and the town has downsized to less people than went to my high school (which was about 1500). Nobody moves in anymore, they only move out. Whether or not this has to do specifically with the expansion of corn, I can't really say, but I wouldn't be surprised.
As shocked as I was by my ignorance, I was curious to find out if my grandparents were as ignorant as I on the subject of corn since they are surrounded by it. Of course, they are not farmers themselves so I wasn't surprised when my grandma didn't really know what I was talking about (it was either that or her hearing is getting worse...). But being the avid learner that my grandmother is, she took it upon herself to send me some articles and websites in the mail to help with my research.
The information she sent me was basically everything that Pollan talks about in his corn section. How some form of corn is in just about everything on the supermarket shelves, how the bulk of the American diet comes from corn, and the vicious cycle farmers go through when growing corn. She also sent me some information about renewable fuels, which Pollan doesn’t really cover in-depth. Both she and I find it ridiculous how much the American diet relies on corn, and every time I sink my teeth into a juicy cob of sweet corn, I will be thinking about a lot more than just how delicious it is.
photo credit: http://gliving.tv/new/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/corn.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment