Corn is a cereal plant of the grass family and its edible grain. The domesticated crop originated in the Americas and is one of the most widely distributed of the world's food crops. Corn is used as livestock feed, as human food, as biofuel, and as a raw material in the industry. In the United States, the colorful variegated strains known as Indian corn are traditionally used in autumn harvest decorations Corn was first domesticated by native peoples in Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Native Americans taught European colonists to grow the indigenous grains, and, since its introduction into Europe by Christopher Columbus and other explorers, corn has spread to all areas of the world suitable to its cultivation. It is grown from 58�° N latitude in Canada and Russia to 40 Slatitude in South America, with a corn crop maturing somewhere in the world nearly every month of the year. It is the most important crop in the United States and is a staple food in many places.
