Even though it’s a few days after Thanksgiving—why not! Let’s still talk turkeys!
How many turkeys are sold for Thanksgiving? Versus the rest of the year?
A domesticated turkey. Photo by Greg Lippert on Unsplash
According to the University of Illinois and the US Poultry and Egg Association, 46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving. That's equal to less than the entire human population of Spain.
The average commercial turkey weighs about 30 pounds, which means Americans are eating nearly 1.4 billion pounds of turkey during the holiday.
Overall in one year, Americans ate approximately 219 million turkeys, at least in 2011. In 2012, the average American ate 16 pounds of turkey. It’s probably more now, with 22 million turkeys consumed on Christmas and 19 million on Easter.
Turkey consumption has increased 104% since 1970 with turkey production increasing nearly 110%.
Not everybody in the US eats turkey on Thanksgiving. Only about 88% of Americans surveyed by the National Turkey Federation said they do.
When was the first turkey pardoned by a US president?
President John F. Kennedy pardoned a turkey on November 19, 1963, stating "Let's Keep him going."-John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum/NARA
It is often stated that President Lincoln's 1863 clemency to a turkey recorded in an 1865 dispatch by White House reporter Noah Brooks was the origin for the pardoning ceremony.
According to WhiteHouseHistory.org, although Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, along with First Ladies Thelma “Pat” Nixon and Rosalynn Carter, pardoned Thanksgiving turkeys, the modern turkey pardon did not become an annual tradition until the George H.W. Bush administration.
Each president since then has been presented with a live domestic turkey by the National Turkey Federation (NTF), usually males of the Broad Breasted White variety. It is a tradition that the turkeys be picked from the chairperson of the NTF's home state, occasionally from the chair's own farm.
When President John F. Kennedy spontaneously spared a turkey on November 19, 1963, it was just three days before his assassination. The turkeys were often sent to petting zoos, and public ceremonies were not always held up until the annual tradition began.
From 2005 to 2009, the pardoned turkeys were sent to either the Disneyland Resort in California or the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, where they served as the honorary grand marshals of Disney's Thanksgiving Day Parade. In 2010, 2011 and 2012, the turkeys were sent to live at Mount Vernon, the estate and home of George Washington.
The birds often have a back-up, in case the chosen turkey falls sick or gets injured before the ceremony. Or has stage fright, I suppose.
The pardoned turkeys have been named Charlie, Woody, Harry, Jerry, Liberty, Freedom, Katie—the first female turkey pardoned—Zach, Stars, Stripes, Biscuits, Gravy, Marshmallow, Yam, Flier and Fryer, May and Flower, Pumpkin and Pecan, Courage, Apple, Cider, Liberty (again), Peace, Cobbler, Gobbler, Popcorn, Caramel, Cheese, Mac, Abe, Honest, Tater, Tot, Drumstick, Wishbone, Peas, Carrots, Butter, Bread, Corn, Cob, Peanut Butter and Jelly.
Though most died of natural causes, very few lived more over two years. A wild turkey—in comparison—generally lives three to five years.
What is the origin of the term “turkey” as a derogatory label?
The turkey was considered a noble bird, and in 19th-century North America the term “turkey” was often used figuratively in colloquial expressions that were generally positive.
For instance, to “talk turkey,” an expression first recorded in 1824, meant to speak openly or frankly. It supposedly comes from an old tale or joke about a Yankee attempting to swindle an Indian in dividing up a turkey and a buzzard as food.
The more negative figurative use of the word turkey could be heard a bit in the late 19th century. The turkey’s slow and ungainly flight made “turkey shoot” a metaphor for a very easily accomplished task or a very lopsided contest, “to walk turkey” meant to strut or swagger, and “gobbledygook,” meaning “pretentious nonsense,” is an imitation of a turkey’s “gobbling” call.
The pejorative use of “turkey” really took hold in the 1920s when “turkey” was used as slang for an inferior theatrical or movie production, a flop. Vanity Fair magazine in 1927 defined “A turkey” as a third-rate production.
The term was then used to describe other things. In James M. Cain’s novel Mildred Pierce (1943), the narrator tells the reader: “The beach … was studded with rocks and was therefore unsuitable to swimming. For all ordinary purposes it was simply a turkey.”
It was in the early 1950s that “turkey” became a slang word for a stupid or inept person.
When you called someone a jive turkey, you were saying they were unreliable, made exaggerations or empty promises, or is dishonest. The phrase is most associated with 1970s culture.
Why is turkey the preferred meat of sandwiches?
According to a worker in the industry on Reddit.com, “Turkey is a lower cost protein to make than chicken (by a small margin...but feed inputs are roughly 70% of the cost of poultry and turkeys are more efficient feed converters. Every little bit counts here). On top of this turkey is incredibly seasonal. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and to a lesser extent Easter are when turkey producers make their money and spend the rest of the year trying not to lose it.” So, the scheme of making turkey a popular lunchmeat works in their favor.
From a consumer point of view, turkey is a leaner meat than pastrami and ham, and it has a mild flavor.
Can a turkey ever be tamed and trained?
A boy and his turkey. Photo by Library of Congress on Unsplash
According to turkey pet owners, domesticated turkeys can make excellent pets. They can create long-lasting social bonds with each other and with humans, following them around. The birds love to be stroked, petted and cuddled. They will remember your face and if they like you, they will come up to you to greet you.
Some say they are capable of a wide range of emotional attachments. Many owners claim that their turkey acts more like a dog than their dogs do.
And you can train a turkey to “come” for food by saying the same thing in the same way every time you greet them and feed them.
Wild turkeys are less likely to be trained and tamed.
Here are a few additional fun turkey facts:
Turkeys can see movement almost 100 yards away, but they do not see well at night.
While male turkeys gobble, hens do not. They make a clicking noise.
Gobbling turkeys can be heard a mile away on a quiet day.
A 16-week-old turkey is called a fryer. A 5 to 7-month-old turkey is called a young roaster and a yearling is a year old. Any turkey 15 months or older is called mature.
The ballroom dance called the "Turkey Trot" was named for the short, jerky steps that turkeys take.
Turkeys do not really have ears like ours, but they have very good hearing.
Turkeys can see in color.
While turkeys can fly up to 55 mph, they can run 20 mph.
Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly, only wild turkeys.
Turkeys will have 3,500 feathers at maturity.
Now, that’s a lot of turkey!
A wild turkey tom. Photo by Meelika Marzzarella on Unsplash
Photo by Oleksandr Koval on Unsplash