I've been wanting to ask shoppers this for years, but I'm not a confrontational person. Why do they stand at the fresh corn display shucking the corn before they buy it?

They're not saving any money by making it lighter—corn is priced by the ear, not by weight.

I don't see them peeling bananas or oranges in the produce section—why corn?

Are they checking for imperfections? Most worms or other problems can be seen by slightly pulling the husk back (not off) at the tip. You're not likely to find anything lower on the ear.

They might be getting a head start on preparing supper, but corn stays fresher if you leave it in the husk until just before you cook it. Besides, I don't see them tearing up lettuce or ripping open packages of ground beef and forming patties before they head for the checkstand.

Is it just because they've seen other people do it? This just started happening a few years ago, and the shuckers made such a mess the stores finally had to start putting out garbage cans for them. But why?