“Corn should be knee-high by the Fourth of July.”
When I was a kid, old-timers used to repeat that mantra to farmers growing crops of corn.
But if you’ve taken a drive through a rural area lately, I’m sure you’ve noticed that the corn is much, much taller than knee-high.
For farmers working to get their crops out of the field, that’s great news.
It’s also welcome news for families in need who rely on the St. Louis Area Foodbank for fresh vegetables.
When the corn was ready to be harvested from the field, the Association helped the Foodbank recruit volunteers from the Pattonville School District Future Farmers of America.
On July 14, the FFA volunteers joined Foodbank staff in hand-picking the ears of sweet corn from the field.
When they were done, they had picked five pallets of sweet corn, or 4,386 pounds!
We wanted to get that fresh sweet corn out to families in need as quickly as possible, so most of it has been given out to our agencies.
Everybody loves fresh produce from the field and garden in the summer months. 
So I’m quite sure that the families in need were delighted to receive ears of sweet corn.
A special thanks to the Missouri Corn Growers Association, Todd G. Glosemeyer Farms and our Future Farmers of America volunteers!
By Shannon O’Connor, Foodbank distribution manager
