Senator Kennedy: Make Sweet Corn Official State Vegetable

As debate rages over whether to make sweet corn or the onion New York’s official veggie, WNY Senator launches online petition in support of sweet corn

EDEN, N.Y. – In the debate over whether to make the onion or sweet corn the official vegetable of New York State, Senator Timothy M. Kennedy, D-58th District, is standing up for the hardworking farmers of Western New York and declaring the choice has got to be sweet corn.

“The hardworking farmers of Western New York toil from dawn to dusk doing back-breaking work on our vast corn fields. No matter how harsh the growing season is, their hard work always pays off during the corn harvest. Each year, their diligent labor – through all sorts of weather conditions – produces what I firmly believe to be our state’s premier and most delicious vegetable, sweet corn,” said Senator Kennedy, the ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee. “While the onion is an acquired taste for many, most New Yorkers enjoy sweet corn from the day their first teeth grow in until their teeth start falling out.

“All joking aside, it is for those reasons and more that I’m calling on my colleagues in state government to make sweet corn the official vegetable of New York State. If we make sweet corn our state vegetable, I’m hopeful that it will help increase sales and create new opportunities for Western New York agriculture.”

Senator Kennedy praised the work ethic and skill of corn farmers throughout the state, but he specifically focused on the men and women who tend farms in Western New York communities, like Eden and Hamburg.

“Every year, Western New Yorkers don’t just enjoy our sweet corn, we celebrate it. The Eden Corn Festival is a major summer event in Western New York, and I encourage any of my colleagues who may doubt that sweet corn is our state’s premier vegetable to join me this year at the Eden Corn Festival, which runs from August 4th through the 7th,” Senator Kennedy said.

The senator is calling on all New Yorkers to sign his online petition in support of making sweet corn the official state vegetable. You can sign the petition at kennedy.nysenate.gov.

Senator Kennedy is signing on as co-sponsor of the bill designating sweet corn as the official state vegetable.

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