About 200 sweet corn lovers showed up bright and early on Friday to the Gibson Farm Market for the annual Fresno State sale.
Some community members, like Stephen Webb, 57, were out as early as 4 a.m. with folding chairs waiting for the store to open at 7 a.m.
“I wanted to beat the rush, be the first in line and get some of that delicious corn,” Webb said. “It’s awesome. It’s the best corn there is.”
Have you bought @Fresno_State sweet corn yet? Hundreds have. And here’s why. ”” Read here: https://t.co/l32r4QNfkR via @Hayley_Salazarr pic.twitter.com/jpH3vmFcdM
”” FresnoStateCollegian (@TheCollegian) June 3, 2017
Webb described Fresno as the “breadbasket of the world” and likes that Fresno State allows students to get hands-on experience throughout the entire production process.
“I take pride in being from Fresno, I take pride in Fresno State being as good as they are in their wine, their vegetables, their wheat, their dairy, everything that I buy here is no less than top notch,” Webb said.
Mitchell McCoy, a senior majoring in agricultural education, is one of many students in the Jordan College of Science and Agriculture with such experiences.
“I’ve learned in school working through work than in the classroom for sure,” McCoy said. “I think in ag everyone else gets to be involved and more people when they come here they get to see everything.”
Customers had the choice between purchasing yellow and white kernels of corn.
The goal is to get the corn in the market within 24 hours of being picked, said David Sieperda, manager of the Fresno State farm
“We harvest by hand right at the peak of freshness and bring it into the cooler, try to pull all the field heat out of the product as quickly as possible and then we sell it,” Sieperda said.
Gibson Farm Market Store Manager, Jeremy Lewis, said the sweet corn sales help the college showcase their work.
“We have 1,000-acre working farm in the middle of the city and I think a lot of folks forget that, so it’s great to bring awareness to that and show all the hard work and programs that are offered here to the students of the Jordan College,” Lewis said.
