On a recent car trip we had occasion to drive through the sprawling corn fields of Illinois and Wisconsin. It’s really quite a sight. Thousands upon thousands of acres of corn, stretching out literally as far as you can see to the horizon. I couldn’t help wondering how in the world people could eat that much corn.
Turns out, they don’t. The uses for corn have expanded far beyond food. Corn, and its byproducts, are now found in plastic, ethanol fuel, cosmetic and hygiene items including deodorant, cough drops, diapers, baby powder, matches, carpets, dyes, crayons, glue, even vitamin C supplements. The United States is the leading producer of corn, growing more than fifteen billion bushels every year, and looking at these spectacular corn fields in the Midwest, I can certainly believe it.
The world around you is cornier than you think. We should all be as versatile and useful.