Curious at all about the science behind the breeding of the turkey you ate today? (Or, at least, the majority of you, as studies show that the US leads the world in per person turkey consumption, and as 31% of that turkey is eaten around the holidays ...) Take a look at these facts from a recent turkey science article I came across:
Turkey growers have specifically bred turkeys to the demands of the consumer, taking the giant turkeys of pre-World-War-I and slimming them down to fit in the smaller ovens of the smaller families in the 30's. And those bronze feathered turkeys seen so frequently in the first Thanksgiving images were jettisoned in favor of the white feathered ones since the purchaser wasn't fond of pigment splotches that would be left over on the meat.
Then came the 60's and the demand for more white meat -- which led to Tom Turkeys with 62% of their usable meat on the breast. And my favorite factoid, this breeding characteristic was such a dramatic change, that the Toms can no longer breed naturally -- "They're anatomically such that you can't get things to match up!", says the gentleman quoted in the article below. Which, in turn, led to another scientific development -- the Poultry Semen Extender, a solution that allows 1 male to get to 20-30 females, artificially.
By all means -- I hope you enjoyed your meal (I know I did mine -- it didn't top the bacon turkey of a few years back, but this year's rosemary lemon style was sure tasty). But maybe, next year, a little more sympathy for the genetically altered beast on your table who has never experienced the joy of mating might just be in order ...
Oh yeah ... Happy Thanksgiving!
MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY READING IN QUITE SOME TIME:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/2010-11-24-turkeytalk24_ST_N.htm
A SLIGHTLY ANGRIER TAKE ON THE STATE OF THE MODERN TURKEY:
http://motherboard.tv/2011/11/23/despite-their-giant-breasts-messed-up-modern-turkeys-can-t-mate
THE PRESIDENTIAL PARDON OF THE TURKEY THROUGH THE YEARS:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/thanksgiving-turkey-pardon-5-theatrical-moments-for-presidential-birds/2011/11/23/gIQAhgHXoN_blog.html
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