Hundley Farms Produces Sweet Corn and More Using Sustainable Methods
In partnership with: Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Next time you bite into a juicy ear of corn on the cob, odds are you can thank a Florida farmer. With more than 36,000 acres of sweet corn across Florida, the Sunshine State is the No. 1 producer of sweet corn for the fresh market in the U.S.
Palm Beach County also ranks as the largest sweet corn-producing county in Florida.
“I think we’re the only place other than California that can grow sweet corn pretty much year round,” says Cooper Hopkins of Hundley Farms.
Located in Loxahatchee, Hundley Farms has been growing sweet corn, among other crops, since its founding in 1969. The farm started with just 400 acres of sweet corn and radishes and today has a little over 20,000 acres.
Sweet corn and sugarcane are their top products, but they’ve also diversified their offerings with green beans, rice and other crops.
“We produce over 4 million crates of sweet corn per year,” Hopkins says. “It is distributed all throughout the U.S. and even into Canada and Europe. The climate and soil here in Florida are excellent for growing sweet corn.”
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Sweet & Sustainable
Hopkins is the third generation to work on Hundley Farms, which his grandfather started. He says that along with producing quality, non-GMO crops, taking care of the land and preserving it for the next generation is of utmost importance at Hundley Farms.
Throughout the years, they’ve put a lot of emphasis on environmentally friendly techniques and practices.
“The plan is for our farm to stay in the family, so we want to keep it as best as possible for the future,” Hopkins says.
Sustainable practices the farm integrates include crop rotation and cover crops, soil enrichment, natural pest predators and Best Management Practices for water conservation.
“We level our land so it’s flat and then use a unique irrigation system where ditches run parallel to each field. Water can percolate through the soil and go hundreds of feet through the field,” Hopkins says. “We rarely use overhead irrigation, and this method helps save water.”
Additionally, the farm participates in the University of Florida’s barn owl nesting program, which provides natural rodent control for the crops.
Hundley Farms has won several awards for their environmental efforts, such as the 2020 4R Advocate Award from The Nature Conservancy, among others.
“We want consumers to understand what we do and how we take care of our land,” Hopkins says. “One of the biggest things is teaching people about the difference between sweet corn and field corn and the difference in how they’re grown. We offer farm tours and are part of the Sunshine Sweet Corn Farmers of Florida to help our industry through marketing and education.”
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