More or Less, Are 672 billion pounds of corn eaten in the US every year?

More or Less

Are 672 billion pounds of corn eaten in the US every year?

5 October 2024

Available for over a year

National Geographic magazine recently wrote that “people in the United States eat more than 672 billion pounds of corn per year, which breaks down to more than 2,000 pounds per person annually”.

Is this really true?

Tim Harford investigates all the things that we don’t eat, that are counted in this number.

Presenter: Tim Harford

Producer: Bethan Ashmead Latham

Production co-ordinator: Katie Morrison

Sound mix: Giles Aspen

Editor: Richard Vadon