 The turkey industry is a vertically integrated industry. That means that a turkey company owns all parts of the business except for the land and buildings on the turkey grower farms. The farmer owns those and provides the labor to grow the turkeys until they are ready to process. So let's talk about the size and scope of this industry from number of farms to dollars and cents. We will focus our conversation on the turkey industry in the United States of America, which is where it all started. Over 240 million turkeys are raised each year. That's a lot of turkeys. So to help you wrap your mind around that number, let's think of how much space that takes up. If each of those turkeys gets 6 square feet each, then that translates to 1 billion 440 million square feet. That means you could fit all the turkeys we raise in the US neatly into the borders of the state of Louisiana. All those turkeys are raised on turkey farms by farming families, of which there are approximately 2,500 in the USA. All those farms not only produce a lot of turkeys, but those turkeys yield a lot of turkey meat. Over 5 billion pounds, in fact. That's equivalent to 24.6 aircraft carriers in weight. That's a lot of tonnage. And one of the reasons why turkey is such a popular food is because it is so nutritious. For a portion size that is 100 grams, or 3 ounces, you will be eating fewer calories than many other sources of animal protein. That means if you are watching your waistline, turkey is there to help you on your way to success. Another interesting fact about turkey meat is that it is very lean. If you took a whole roasted chicken and compared it to a whole roasted turkey, you may be surprised to find that the chicken has more fat. Now, you should find that interesting, especially given the fact that turkeys are so much larger than chickens. But it drives home the point that turkey meat is very healthy for you. The turkey industry is profitable and continues to grow because of you, the consumer. The turkey industry has figured out how to make their product desirable in almost every meal of the day. The average consumer in the United States eats almost twice as much turkey today than they did in 1970. Impressive! The poultry industry is quite the moneymaker. The employees of the different companies in the turkey industry are paid over $24 billion in direct wages. The total economic impact of the turkey industry is over $109 billion. The total economic impact of an industry includes the spending of the industry, the labor income expenditures, and the value added to the economy as a result of the industry's spending. A very large part of the poultry industry has to do with allied industries. There are many different kinds of industries that are allied with the turkey industry and some of them may surprise you. Try these industries on for size. Equipment, pharmaceutical, paper manufacturing, product distributors, accounting and banking, computer science and engineering, nursing and real estate. Those are just a few and there are many, many more. Not every state in the United States has a turkey industry. There are several states that have a growing and thriving turkey industry. The top five turkey producing states are as follows. Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Indiana, and Missouri. The National Thanksgiving Turkey historically represents agriculture's plentiful harvest and the contributions of America's turkey growers to that harvest. The presentation of the National Thanksgiving Turkey has been observed since 1947 when President Harry Truman received a live turkey from the National Turkey Federation. The National Turkey Federation chairman designates a turkey farmer to raise the presidential flock. A lot goes into raising these special turkeys. The presidential flock is raised much like the rest of the turkeys in the turkey industry. They are protected from weather extremes and predators in a barn. They have space to walk around. They have plenty of water and they are fed a balanced diet. Turkeys are accustomed to their farmers coming into the barn several times a day to check on them but the presidential flock is further prepared starting when they are just polts. Farmers get the turkeys used to the sounds of a crowd, bright camera lights and standing comfortably on a table just like they will do during the presentation. When it comes to picking the turkeys that will make their trip to Washington DC farmers look at how calm and pretty the turkeys are so that they make a good impression. The farmer picks one turkey and a second turkey who acts as the alternate. The president pardons the turkey in a traditional presentation ceremony. The two turkeys are then allowed to retire at a gobbler's rest where they will live out their lives in comfort. Virginia Tech University was the first university home for gobblers rest. The turkeys are cared for by poultry students and staff and are under excellent veterinary care. And how fitting that this university was chosen since the mascot for Virginia Tech is a hokey bird otherwise known as a turkey and students at Virginia Tech are known as hokeys.