Talking Turkey

I love me some turkey! And while there's been talk lately about doing something different for Thanksgiving besides Turkey, such as chicken and ham, that great tasting bird is still top of the list when it comes to the main course with 88% of Americans indulging on them. Minnesota is the top producer with 44-46 million raised annually.

46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving, 22 million on Christmas and 19 million turkeys on Easter. California is the #1 state for turkey consumption. Americans eat about 17 lbs every year.

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Turkey facts from Thanksgiving.com

1. When Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin sat down to eat their first meal on the moon, their foil food packets contained roasted turkey and all of the trimmings.
2. While it’s possible the Pilgrims ate wild turkey during their feast, researchers don’t think they were a common food at the time. More likely venison was the main meat, and was accompanied by pheasant, goose and duck — and possibly even some pigeon and swan.
3. The wild turkey is native to northern Mexico and the eastern United States.
4. Turkey feathers were used to stabilize arrows and adorn Native American ceremonial dress, and the spurs on the legs of wild tom turkeys were used as projectiles on arrowheads.
5. Turkey fossils have been unearthed across the southern United States and Mexico, some of them dating from more than 5 million years ago.

Check out other turkey facts at Thanksgiving.com