Popcorn is golden to Chicago kids on a combine

“I started this site to promote the virtues of modern agriculture and feature the daily operations of our farm.  Please read, discuss, and enjoy!” This is the last line of my blog’s About page. As a farmer, I know I have the responsibility to talk about my farm.

Earlier this month, I had the privilege of doing both those things up close and personal with a great group of home school kids who came all the way down from the northern suburbs of Chicago.  The kids are participating in the FIRST LEGO League Food Factor Challenge, and they have chosen to study microwave popcorn.  The goal is for them to find a problem in the food production chain and find a way to solve that problem.  I had not heard of this program until the group brought it to my attention via a comment on this site.

Part of that comment reads: This year’s challenge is called Food Factor, and our team has chosen to study microwave popcorn in the pre-packaged bags. We are just beginning our research and were hoping to learn all we can about popcorn. This is where you come in. Would you consider allowing our team, with adult supervision, to visit your farm?

The question asked most frequently by ag people like me on social media is “How can I reach beyond the choir?”  One of our biggest concerns is that we spend too much time talking to people already in the industry and not including the consumer in that dialogue.  With that in mind, it’s hard not to jump at the opportunity to bring these young people out so they can see a real farm in operation.

Since the group consisted completely of home schoolers, their schedule was flexible and they were able to come out to the farm on a day when we were actually harvesting popcorn.  That is easier said than done because the company we grow for needs the grain delivered at a certain moisture content, leaving a small window of opportunity for a group to come out and see the entire process.

The timing worked out great and the weather could not have been better the day they came out to the farm.  The kids arrived just before noon, and to show their appreciation they brought us lunch at the farm.  After lunch we started on their project – this wasn’t just a farm tour.  We spent quite a bit of time in the office answering questions.  These kids were very well prepared and had lots of great questions for us.

Next we took a trip through the shop and equipment shed before going out into the field to look at the popcorn.  This is probably the part I was most excited about because these kids got to see popcorn still on the ear, standing in the field.  What better proof that food doesn’t come from the grocery store? While in the field there were more questions to be answered, and we even found a couple of ears with insect damage which would be relevant to the objective of their project.  One thing to watch for with popcorn is damage to the outer part of the kernel either by insect or mechanical functions.  If popcorn is damaged, it won’t pop!

After inspecting the field we walked over to the combine and covered the basics of how it removes the grain from the plant and distributes the residue in the field.  And, as a kind of grand finale, we gave all of the kids and adults a ride in the combine so they could see that whole process in action.

I had a hunch they would enjoy the combine, but I had no idea how excited they would actually be.  When you do this kind of thing everyday, although it is fun and I love doing it, being around it your whole life makes the workings of a farm a pretty normal thing.  Not so for these kids. In case you don’t know a combine has a window in the back of the cab that allows you to see what it going on in the grain tank as it fills with grain.  Everyone who got their first combine ride that day was at first fixated with the front of the machine pulling in the stalks and knocking the ears off.  They didn’t even realize that window was back there unless they turned around or I pointed it out to them.

The term I’ve been using to describe the reaction of all the kids when they saw entire plants in front of them seconds later somehow turned into clean grain in a window right behind them was that “their brains exploded.” There were lots of shouts of words like cool and awesome, but the quote of they day had to be one kid who looked at the flowing grain and exclaimed, “It’s so golden!” They had been learning eagerly for a couple of hours about how the seeds get in the ground and how long the growing season is, and then in a matter of seconds that plant becomes a form of food they are familiar with. Overall it’s still a pretty neat process for me to see too, but seeing it for the first time was quite a sight for this great group.

Not only did they see popcorn in the field being harvested, on the way back to Chicago they had a tour of the Family Time popcorn facility in Valparaiso, Indiana.  In one day, these kids experience popcorn on the stalk in a field be harvested, trucked away, and then packaged.  What a great experience for them!

Brian is a 31 year old husband, father and 4th generation farmer from Northwest Indiana operating 2300 acres of corn, soybeans, popcorn, and wheat with his father and grandfather. He has a degree in Soil and Crop Management from Purdue University and worked off the farm before returning home.  In addition to family and farm, Brian is an automotive enthusiast and classic rock/metal fan. Find him on Twitter orFacebook, or check out The Farmer’s Life Blog