James Wesley,
I am starting to store food for the future and have some wheat, beans and rice. I would like to store corn to make into cornmeal, however I haven’t seen any available for this purpose. I live in the southeast ands there is lots of corn we use to feed deer. Is this suitable or can I get seed corn from the local feed store? Any help you can provide would be appreciated. I read your site each day and have learned a great deal from you and your readers. Thanks, – Gary M.
JWR Replies: Unfortunately, a substantial portion of the “feed corn” or “deer corn” that is typically sold at grain elevators and at farm co-ops in the U.S. is treated with fungicides, herbicides and pesticides in high concentrations. These often make it unsafe for human consumption. Furthermore, the standards for allowable levels of aflatoxins [1] are much more lax, especially for “deer corn.” (Which is not even approved for livestock feed.)
True food (“human consumption”) grade whole corn is available in sacks or in 6 gallon food grade plastic buckets from a number of reputable vendors including Ready Made Resources [2], Walton Feed [3], and Honeyville Grain [4]. OBTW, if you end up buying any grains in sacks, I describe how to to re-package the grain so that they will be safe from insects and vermin in the Rawles Gets Your Ready Family Preparedness Course. [5] (Currently offered by the publisher at $50 off. This sale ends soon.)