The First Thanksgiving
The first Thanksgiving Day celebration actually lasted for three days! The Pilgrims regularly celebrated ‘Days of Thanksgiving’, praying and giving thanks for the end of a battle or drought, but on this day, The Pilgrims along with the native tribes that taught them how to hunt and grow food, gathered together at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 to take part in a harvest feast to celebrate the successful crops that they had grown throughout the year. They of course prepared the food they had grown, however they also went out and had a large hunt, bringing back many fowl and five large deer. They prepared the food in a combination of the natives traditional way and the pilgrims traditional way, and they invited all the most important tribe leaders to give thanks with them. They celebrated for three days, playing games, eating, drinking, and hunting. They could not communicate with each other very well, but still they had formed a kind of treaty between the two parties. The treaty only lasted however, until King Phillips War in 1675. We would not celebrate Thanksgiving every year if not for Sarah Joshepha Hale. She was the editor of a popular magazine during the civil war, and in order to promote unity, advocated for a National Thanksgiving holiday. She eventually won the support of Abraham Lincoln in 1863, and is now known as the Mother of Thanksgiving. As you gather around the table to give thanks today, remember to also give thanks to the woman who made this day a tradition.
Cranberries
Cranberries are an acidic fruit, mostly grown in the Northern United States and Canada. They grow from short shrubs with long vines, planted in fields that have been dug out into shallow ditches. When cranberries ripen (usually mid-September through early November), they develop tiny air pockets and are able to float, which is why the most efficient method of harvesting cranberries is to flood the field with up to 18 inches of water, creating a cranberry bog. The field is flooded the night before harvesting, and the next day, egg beaters are used to agitate the water and knock the ripe cranberries off of the vines so that they can float to the surface. Once the cranberries have all floated to the top, the farmers gather them up, and use pumps to load them onto trucks.
Now we know how cranberries are harvested, but why are they so strongly associated with Thanksgiving? Cranberries are one of the few fruits that are native to North America, and most certainly appeared on the first Thanksgiving menu in 1621. Native Americans used cranberries as food, coloring, and medicine. That explains the strong relation to Thanksgiving, but what about the rest of the year? Americans consume around 400 million pounds of cranberries per year, 20% of which are consumed during the holiday season. 80% of all cranberries in the US are grown and processed by the Ocean Spray Agricultural Cooperative, so as you enjoy your cranberry sauce this Thanksgiving, be grateful for the over 700 family farms of Ocean Spray that made it possible.
Turkey
The story of the first Thanksgiving suggests that the pilgrims and native Americans probably did enjoy a Turkey at their meal, as they were relatively easy to catch, and a good source of protein. From the late 19th century to modern day, the Turkey industry in the U.S. has evolved significantly. There were 218 million turkeys produced in the US last year. Americans consumed 4.96 billion pounds of Turkey throughout the year in 2023, and it’s estimated that Americans consumed 46 million turkeys last year during Thanksgiving.
In order to meet the demand, the industry has adapted to the use of technology, with environment-regulated barns, automated feeding systems, and the use of Artificial Insemination. These advancements, along with advancements in genetics and herd monitoring software, have allowed turkey producers to maximize efficiency and time production cycles so everyone can have a turkey come Thanksgiving day.
There are almost 400,000 people in the US directly involved in the turkey industry, ensuring that the turkeys are the highest quality for your family’s feast! So no matter how you’re preparing your turkey for the day, remember to give thanks to all the producers that contributed to your table, and the hands that prepared it.
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