Maize, Weight : 850 Gm

Maize is an annual cereal crop, belonging to the grass family of 'Gramineae'. It composes of kernels having long ears. These kernels are used in the form of grains as food for both humans and animals and also as a source of oil. Maize is also known by the name of 'corn' in many countries. Maize or corn is a rich source of carbohydrates, Vitamin B, proteins and minerals. Most of commercial maize grows at a maximum height of 2.5 ft. In India, maize is also known as 'bhutta' in Hindi.

Maize is a type of cereal grain. In countries like United states, Australia and Canada, it is known as corn. It has a nutritional value for both animals and humans. The word maize means “ one that sustains life”. Hybrid maize is one the variety of maize which generally have a high  yield level and that is why it is most favored by the farmers. Another varieties of  Maize are Sweet corn, Dent corn, Flint corn, Popcorn, Flour corn, Sweet corn and Pod corn.

Maize has a wide variety of uses that ranges from both human to industrial. Maize is used as a livestock, forage or silage for animals. Humans eat maize or corn in the form of popcorn, porridge, beverage, etc. In terms of industrial usage, the grains of the maize are used in the transformation of plastics and fabrics. Ethanol, produced from maize, is being used as an additive in gas to prevent pollution levels and reduce the use of petroleum.

Maize is a rich source of Vitamin B1, Vitamin B5, Vitamin C, dietary fibers, etc. The presence of thiamin in maize helps in keeping the memory power intact, thereby preventing the dreaded "Alzheimer's" disease. Folate, a good source of Vitamin B helps in preventing birth defects and also helps in lowering the level of Homocysteine that has the potential of damaging the blood vessels. Consumption of corn also prevents the occurrence of lung cancer as it is rich in beta-cryptoxanthin, an orange-red carotenoid found in corn in large proportion.

India’s produces around 10-14 million tons of maize annually. This contributes to about 2% of the total world production. Maize in India is generally produced as ‘kharif’ crop, which means that it is usually produced in the summers. Most of the corn produced in India mainly comes from the southern Corn Belt states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Earlier in 50’s and 60’s, the maize production was improved through crop management techniques and increasing the area under cultivation. Now it is being improved through improvement in yield levels. The Indian states in which maize is produced are: -

Karnataka, AP, Bihar, MP. UP and Rajasthan are the main maize producing areas. It is also produced in Assam, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, HP, Jammu Kashmir, and Orissa. Punjab, West Bengal etc. Expiry rate of maize is fixed according to Nizamabad mandi. Apart from Nizamabad, Karimnagar in AP is also a delivery centre. In Maharashtra, Jalna and Jalgaon are the delivery centres while in Karnataka, Davengere is a delivery centre. Nimbaheda in Rajasthan, Ratlam in MP and Bahraich in UP are the delivery centres which are approved by the NCDEX.

Maize as a crop needs a vast variety of environments for production. India as big and an agriculture-oriented country provide all the basic requirements for it. India produces around 10 million ton of maize. Karnataka is the leading producer of maize in India as it falls under the corn belt of India and produces around 15% of India’s total produce. In India, the area on which maize is cultivated is 7 million hectares in 2004. India consumes almost all the maize that it produces. About 50% of the total Indian produce is consumed as poultry feed and about 8% is consumed by the starch industry. Indian maize exports fluctuates around 5 lakh tons annually. Mostly the southwestern countries import maize from India.

In another words, India can be considered as maize importing country. Government fixes the quantity of maize to be imported each year and the imports are to be done on 15%.