A traditional summertime job around the Midwest for high school and college students won’t be offered in a section of northwest Iowa for the first time in decades. Siouxland Detasseling isn’t hiring students and teachers this year.
Siouxland Detasseling CEO Ron Foster says seed corn companies that usually plant around 1,500 acres in the area opted not to plant there this year. “I have worked over 35 years in corn detasseling and this is the first year that we haven’t been able to go out in the cornfields,” Foster said.
Normally, the 62-year-old retired school teacher would be hiring 200 seasonal workers. “A lot of kids use this money for their tuition for their private schools and their colleges. We’re really sorry that we can’t supply the work for detasseling for these families that need the money,” Foster said. Siouxland Detasseling crews usually work fields north of Onawa to Salix.