4th of July
4th of July Cookout Facts
By U.S. Census Bureau
Jun 28, 2004, 13:06 PST

type=text/javascript></SCRIPT> src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js" type=text/javascript> </SCRIPT> <IFRAME name=google_ads_frame marginWidth=0 marginHeight=0 src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/ads?client=ca-pub-7685943808013747&dt=1213133726046&lmt=1213133726&format=468x60_as&output=html&correlator=1213133726015&channel=2248094174&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.classbrain.com%2Fartholiday%2Fpublish%2Fprinter_205.shtml&color_bg=99CCFF&color_text=000000&color_link=CC0000&color_url=000099&color_border=003399&ref=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.classbrain.com%2Fartholiday%2Fpublish%2Farticle_205.shtml&frm=0&cc=1890&ga_vid=3211295323580162000.1213133726&ga_sid=1213133726&ga_hid=492486975&flash=9.0.124.0&u_h=768&u_w=1024&u_ah=738&u_aw=1024&u_cd=32&u_tz=-420&u_his=64&u_java=true" frameBorder=0 width=468 scrolling=no height=60 allowTransparency></IFRAME>

As with many holidays, the 4th of July celebration includes food, drink and the realization of how fortunate we are as a nation. As of 1999, 66 million Americans said they had taken part in a barbeque during the previous year and 32 million in a picnic. It's probably safe to assume a good number of these events took place on the Fourth.

Though we do not have a fixed menu for the celebration of the Fourth, you can almost count on traditional favorites, such as hamburgers and hot dogs, chicken, ribs, garden salads, potato salad, chips and watermelon. Following is a summary of where these foods are produced:

* The beef on your backyard grill could have come from Texas. It was the leading state in the production of cattle and calves, accounting for 7.5 billion lbs. of the nation's total production of 42.8 billion lbs. in 2000.

* Your hot dogs and ribs may have originated in Iowa. The Hawkeye State had a total inventory of 14.9 million hogs and pigs as of March 1, 2002 -- about one-fourth of the nation's total.

* The chicken on your barbecue grill may have come from one of the top six broiler-producing states: Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama, North Carolina, Mississippi and Texas. The value of production in each of these states exceeded $1 billion in 2001. These states combined for well over half of the nation's broiler production.

* The lettuce in your salad or on your hamburger probably was grown in California, which accounted for nearly three-quarters of the value of this product in 2001.

* The fresh tomatoes in your salad or the ketchup on your hamburger or hot dog most likely come from Florida or California, which combined for nearly two-thirds of U.S. tomato production in 2001.

* Your side dish of baked beans or pork and beans may very well come from North Dakota or Nebraska, which, combined, produced nearly half of the dry, edible beans in 2001.

* As to the potatoes in your products such as potato salad or those used in making your potato chips, Idaho and Washington combined for one-half of potato production in 2001.

* For dessert, some mouth-watering watermelon might really hit the spot. Five states -- California, Florida, Georgia, Texas and Arizona -- combined for almost three-quarters of the