Corn buying etiquette

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never peel back to check. No one ever buys those ears afterwards, so it is a huge waste of food. I buy two extra ears, just in case.

how is this any different? if you get a bad ear you wouldn't use it. it's exactly the same as someone discovering in the store the ear is bad and leaving it there. the only difference is that you pay for bad corn.

No, it is not the same. If you are buying corn at the farmers' market - as I do - then the farmer is losing money since no one will purchase the already peeked-at ears. And I believe strongly in nurturing our local farms. I can afford to lose the $.50 for one bad ear. But people reject okay ears all the time. People don't buy those rejects, and the farmer loses several dollars. Entirely different.

[Anonymous]

Don't the grocers pick out the produce for you in Europe so you don't get to squeeze, sniff, peel?

[Anonymous]

Wow. Why am I not surprised that this is taking place?

NP here. Here goes. If it is a Farmer's Market or the like (ie: small establishment), peel back the corn gently and slightly so as to not offend the farmer or staff. You do not shuck the corn entirely, as they would get stuck with what is then likely wasted corn.

UNLESS you are in Giant or a large establishment. PP I know since you are in NE that there is a LOT, LOT, LOT more common sense there than most places I have lived. They place a clean receptacle for corn husks only, so the consumer can leave the husks at the store. One of the large chains from NE purchased Giant (I believe it was then purchased by a Dutch company)? but I digress. That is where Giant learned a little common sense goes a long way in customer service (foreign term here), hence leaving the husks. Among other recent ideas and improvements. NE'ers don't put up with lack of common sense. Zero patience.

Happy husking! Feel free to criticize my writing to divert from the actual topic.

[Anonymous]

I just feel up the ear of corn. I use my fingers and gentle feel to make sure the kernels are plump and they go all the way to the top. I grew up on a farm in Oregon, and this is how we checked the corn. I have never had a bad one. You tell if it is rotten by it being soft and you can also feel worms if you get good at it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a sleep deprived OP so perhaps I wasnt clear. I'm not talking about shucking the corn (that would be quite rude!). But, you know how people peel back the husk a little, or a lot, as the case may be, to see if it's ok? That's what I meant. Is that inappropriate?

Yeah, I find that rude. I was at Giant store tonight and found one with husks pulled down halfway and then thrown back on the pile.

[Anonymous]

I'm literally a cornhusker and I have friends and inlaws that call me to ask corn questions every season. I recieved one call today to ask about the price of corn, a little piece of me wanted to scream, "Didn't you listen to the Ag Market Report on the radio today?" Yes, I'm that country.

1) It's perfectly fine to gently look at the the tip of the corn before buying
2) A worm on or around the tip won't kill you.
3) You break of the soft, moldy, wormy tip and move on.
4) $1.00 per ear is FAR too much to spend on corn (this was today's phone a husker question)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has nothing to do with wondering if it's bad for me. I do it at the store so I don't have to deal with the mess in my house...

Aaaaand this is exactly why it is bad behavior to do it at the store or farmer's market.

Personally I'm sick of picking through the husks of other people's corn to get to mine. I was at the store last weekend and what a mess.

Most stores put a trash can next to the corn.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never peel back to check. No one ever buys those ears afterwards, so it is a huge waste of food. I buy two extra ears, just in case.

how is this any different? if you get a bad ear you wouldn't use it. it's exactly the same as someone discovering in the store the ear is bad and leaving it there. the only difference is that you pay for bad corn.

No, it is not the same. If you are buying corn at the farmers' market - as I do - then the farmer is losing money since no one will purchase the already peeked-at ears. And I believe strongly in nurturing our local farms. I can afford to lose the $.50 for one bad ear. But people reject okay ears all the time. People don't buy those rejects, and the farmer loses several dollars. Entirely different.

He can feed it to his animals. There are really many other uses for corn, not just corn on the cob.

[Anonymous]

Don't do it myself & have never bought a bad one. I think it's obnoxious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never peel back to check. No one ever buys those ears afterwards, so it is a huge waste of food. I buy two extra ears, just in case.

how is this any different? if you get a bad ear you wouldn't use it. it's exactly the same as someone discovering in the store the ear is bad and leaving it there. the only difference is that you pay for bad corn.

No, it is not the same. If you are buying corn at the farmers' market - as I do - then the farmer is losing money since no one will purchase the already peeked-at ears. And I believe strongly in nurturing our local farms. I can afford to lose the $.50 for one bad ear. But people reject okay ears all the time. People don't buy those rejects, and the farmer loses several dollars. Entirely different.

yea, this is some uninformed liberal guilt stuff. good for you, but you don't know what you're talking about. do you have any idea how much that corn cob is subsidized by the government, btw? don't feel bad for the farmer growing corn.

[Anonymous]

This is not a DC thing. I am from a small farming town in upstate NY and we do this. However, I often take cobs that others have previously pulled back and rejected for no apparant reason, so I don't think it is true that these always go to waste. People have different tolerences for what they think is fine. I will take a little bit of damage on the ends and I really don't care. Wormy corn I put aside so that no one else chooses it either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never peel back to check. No one ever buys those ears afterwards, so it is a huge waste of food. I buy two extra ears, just in case.

how is this any different? if you get a bad ear you wouldn't use it. it's exactly the same as someone discovering in the store the ear is bad and leaving it there. the only difference is that you pay for bad corn.

No, it is not the same. If you are buying corn at the farmers' market - as I do - then the farmer is losing money since no one will purchase the already peeked-at ears. And I believe strongly in nurturing our local farms. I can afford to lose the $.50 for one bad ear. But people reject okay ears all the time. People don't buy those rejects, and the farmer loses several dollars. Entirely different.

He can feed it to his animals. There are really many other uses for corn, not just corn on the cob.

Depends on the animals he's raising. Corn makes cows bloat and requires treating them with antibiotics. My grandfather had to kill cows that got into his corn, because of how sick they got.

So, maybe if the farmer has chickens, pigs, etc. But even then, he's probably growing field corn for them, not good sweet corn that fetches a few dollars a dozen at the farmer's market.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm literally a cornhusker and I have friends and inlaws that call me to ask corn questions every season. I recieved one call today to ask about the price of corn, a little piece of me wanted to scream, "Didn't you listen to the Ag Market Report on the radio today?" Yes, I'm that country.

1) It's perfectly fine to gently look at the the tip of the corn before buying
2) A worm on or around the tip won't kill you.
3) You break of the soft, moldy, wormy tip and move on.
4) $1.00 per ear is FAR too much to spend on corn (this was today's phone a husker question)

Yup. In PA you can still get $1/dozen at the end of the summer. Shame how much it goes for in the city, huh?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I never peel back to check. No one ever buys those ears afterwards, so it is a huge waste of food. I buy two extra ears, just in case.

how is this any different? if you get a bad ear you wouldn't use it. it's exactly the same as someone discovering in the store the ear is bad and leaving it there. the only difference is that you pay for bad corn.

No, it is not the same. If you are buying corn at the farmers' market - as I do - then the farmer is losing money since no one will purchase the already peeked-at ears. And I believe strongly in nurturing our local farms. I can afford to lose the $.50 for one bad ear. But people reject okay ears all the time. People don't buy those rejects, and the farmer loses several dollars. Entirely different.

yea, this is some uninformed liberal guilt stuff. good for you, but you don't know what you're talking about. do you have any idea how much that corn cob is subsidized by the government, btw? don't feel bad for the farmer growing corn.

So you think that the small farmer at the farmers' market gets government subsidies? We aren't talking about the agribusinesses here.

[Anonymous]

For what it is worth, husks and silks just slide off cooked corn. They are actually easier to remove when hot.

Farm girl here, I too never saw the husk removal idea until I was here and it still makes me laugh. My DH always says, "are they going to peel the melons too?" Those sure can get messy!! But then again I would never buy my corn from Giant or Safeway. Blech! Take a ride outside the city and you are bound to find a roadside stand. Those are better. Much better.