“Hi! How are you today? Would you like to buy some sweet corn?” These were my daughters’ favorite sentences this past summer. Our family farm owns over 1500 acres of grain corn, premium alfalfa, wheat, and sweet corn in eastern Utah. My husband and father-in-law manage most of the farm, but the sweet corn is for the kids.

We started producing sweet corn just for our family and to share with a few friends in the community. We could simply add a couple rows in with our field corn. In our area, sweet corn is hard to come by and highly sought after, so that didn’t last long. Soon enough we were adding several rows to keep up with the community’s demand. After nearly 10 years, our little sweet corn operation has become the heart of our farm.

Currently, our sweet corn patch is right around two acres in size. To some, that may seem like a lot, and to others, not much. But to us, it’s just right. My husband plows, plants, and protects our sweet corn patch each year, but this rest is up to me and my three kids! Though our kids are young, they are more and more help as each year passes. I advertise online when and where we will be selling through social media, and take pre-orders as well. We have built our reputation and stay busy.

On any given August evening, if you were to drive past our farm, you’d see our little red pickup peeking out from behind the corn stalks. As I pick ears of corn while I walk the rows, my son trails behind me, arms open for his next load. He takes as many ears of corn as he can to the truck bed, where my older daughter is ready to stack and count the ears he drops off. Next to her is my younger daughter, singing a song and counting in her own little way. Once the truck bed is full, we load up and head home.

The next morning, the four of us load up and head to town. Our social media advertising has clearly worked because several vehicles are waiting in the parking lot as we pull in. We are easy to spot in our red pickup. Then, the fun begins. My older daughter greets the customers and tends to the cash box. My son counts the ears of corn, fills bags, and aids customers, carrying bags to their vehicles. My younger daughter sings her songs, performing for each customer. I jump in when needed, or someone needs a break. Once we sell out, we find a treat nearby to buy with our hard-earned money and head home. On these nights, my kids and I go to bed feeling extra accomplished.

A couple of years ago, my father-in-law, my husband, and I sat down to discuss the future of our sweet corn business. We had the option to expand and produce way more sweet corn. This would require us to hire others to pick the corn and ship it to stores in our area for sale. Taking our business in this direction would result in higher income and greatly expand our customer range. As tempting as this option was, we didn’t feel it was the right move for us. Our sweet corn is for the kids. Expanding our business would feel like we were taking this adventure away from our kids – away from our special family time.

My goal for this little sweetcorn business is to be fully taken over by my children. All in good time, of course. Each year, they will each take on new tasks and have more responsibility. Engraining in them a sense of accomplishment and entrepreneurship. They will have their own ideas for growing and improving our little business. I honestly cannot wait to see this all unfold and where they decide to take this endeavor. But until then, we are happy to keep selling our delicious sweet corn out of the back of our little red pickup.