April 01, 2004
Illinois
Beef. Illinois. The two go together like peas in a pod. The State is not one of the largest for cattle production. Nor does it have the most suitable land. But that doesn’t bother Illinois at all. It keeps slapping slabs of meat on our dinner table night after night, by the millions.
Illinois cattle production numbers are indeed impressive: The number of beef cows on Illinois farms on January 1, 2001 totaled 452,000, compared with 118,000 milk cows. The number of cattle and calves marketed during 2000 totaled 700,000 head. (Source: Illinois Agricultural Statistics Service, 2001).
And why wouldn’t production be gigantic here? After all, we have to do our part to feed the nation. Per-capita consumption of beef in the United States averaged 68.1 pounds (retail weight) in 2001. Although not nearly what my opponent and I will individually consume this year (we’ve almost reached that level now), that’s a lot of beef.
And so, given all you’ve done to keep me in beef, I dedicate this steak (11 oz post-cooked) to you, Illinois! Keep up the good work.
