By Cindy Shearing, AFBF Communications
Sunday’s big game — the NFL championship — represents the second-highest day of food consumption in the U.S., behind only Thanksgiving. From wings and cheese to chips, salsa and guacamole, farmers and ranchers across the country supply the raw ingredients behind one of the biggest food consumption days of the year.
Let’s kick things off with a blitz through the hottest game day snacks.
Corn tortilla chips are the most consumed chip at big game parties. These crunchy crowd-pleasers and other corn-based snacks start with field (dent) corn — the most widely planted crop in the United States.
Potato chips are a close second in popularity to tortilla chips. Farmers grow nearly $5 billion in potatoes, helping fuel the nation’s love for potato chips. Top-producing states include Idaho, Washington, Wisconsin and North Dakota.
Do you have a craving for chicken wings? You’re in good company. Americans are expected to eat well over a billion wings during this weekend, supplied by poultry farmers concentrated across the Southeast and parts of the Midwest. Top-producing states include Georgia, North Carolina and Arkansas.
Few viewing parties are complete without pizza, queso dip or charcuterie boards, all of which rely on dairy products. U.S. milk production is at record levels, helping keep cheese plentiful and affordable. Top-producing states include California, Wisconsin and Texas.
Pizza crusts, crackers and other baked game day favorites all start with wheat — one of the most widely grown crops in the U.S. Wheat is produced across much of the country, with North Dakota, Kansas and Montana among the top wheat-producing states, each specializing in different types suited for specific food uses.
Tomatoes are a key ingredient in salsa, pizza sauce and condiments that show up on Americans’ tables nationwide. U.S. tomato production is concentrated primarily in California and Florida, though imports, especially from Mexico, now account for about 70% of tomatoes consumed in the U.S.
No matter who you’re cheering for, guacamole is a game day MVP, helping make this one of the highest avocado consumption weeks of the year. While about $537 million of avocados are grown on more than 5,500 farms domestically, primarily in California, with smaller volumes in Florida, Puerto Rico and Hawaii, U.S. production supplies only about 8% of domestic demand.
Hungry for more? Check out a Market Intel from American Farm Bureau Federation economists for a deeper dive into the popular game day snacks we love and the farmers who make them possible every season.
Cyndie Shearing is a director of communications at the American Farm Bureau Federation.