Corn is wimpy, but here’s how we can make it super swole: We lose a ton of corn every year - up to a quarter of all the corn in the U.S. in 2020, a windstorm destroyed two billion dollars worth of corn over 8.2 million acres. Corn isn’t just food for people and animals, it’s also used for biofuels and industrial products.
So, how can we save this crop and make it stronger? Since about half of the corn stock’s strength comes from the rind, scientists are looking at about 24 genes that might be able to strengthen it. To test how much each gene makes corn stronger, the plan is to push a probe through the plant and measure the force required to puncture the rind of the stock.
Once we know which genes help the most, we can make corn much stronger by using them. This research could save all that corn from breaking, blowing away, and going to waste. Not only does strong corn improve green yield, but it also secures farmers’ livelihoods.