1 All of the following details from the article contribute to the development of its central idea EXCEPT: (A) Today, the United States is the largest producer and consumer of corn — and by a long shot.

(B) In the 1920s and 1930s, scientists discovered a way to boost corn production to a level that was previously unthinkable. They bred new strains that had larger ears and could be grown closer together, which allowed farmers to produce a lot more corn without more land.
(C) Less than 10 percent of the corn used in the United States is directly ingested by humans. The bulk is either turned into ethanol, for use as fuel, or fed to the hundreds of millions of animals we raise.
(D) Flint corn, which has a soft center and harder outer shell, is what most people know as popcorn. It became popular in the 1960s after Jiffy Pop, which cooked the kernels in aluminum foil on the stovetop, was introduced.