A TALE OF 2 CORNS When you drive through our region, it quickly becomes apparent that corn is a major economic driver here. In any given year, corn production in SDG takes over 130,000 acres of land, and accounts for 70% of crop receipts and $34 million in revenue for local businesses. Although high, those numbers are tiny compared to the billions of dollars generated by cleaning, transporting, processing, and packaging corn into the countless products consumers around the world need and love. But what if there was even more to the story? Perch asked a local foodie to take to the fields to speak with two local farmers who transformed their farms and in turn, continue to change the definition of what it means to be a corn producer in a world of multinational seed corporations, climate change, and increased consumer awareness. B Y K AT R E N D E K | A R T W O R K B Y O L I V I A B A R T O N
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