When it comes to the numbers, Thanksgiving is always impressive. The family meal is the core aspect of the holiday and 88 percent of Americans sit down to eat turkey. Back in 1975, per capita turkey consumption during Thanksgiving was just 8.3 pounds – this rose to 16.1 pounds by 2011. Altogether that’s a whopping 736 million pounds every year!
The famous bird is also associated with Christmas all over the world, particularly in the United States. However, Thanksgiving is more important for turkey farmers. Every year, 46 million turkeys are eaten during Thanksgiving in the United States and just 22 million are eaten during Christmas.
254 million turkeys were raised in the United States in 2012. Minnesota is America’s turkey farming champion, raising 46 million birds each year. North Carolina comes second with 36 million and Arkansas is in third place with 29 million.
The price of the average 10-person Thanksgiving dinner increased over the course of the last decade, though it did experience a drop in 2009. However, there was good news for American families in 2013 – the average price dropped by 44 cents in comparison with 2012.
Happy Thanksgiving!
