Looking for Thanksgiving turkey? Last year's shortage is over, here's what to know
With Thanksgiving looming over our heads, the need to grab a turkey has probably been lurking inside your mind for a bit now. Turkeys were hard to come by in 2022 due to several factors — but will turkey shortages persist into 2023?
Nope.
Last year was plagued by several factors that all contributed to inflated turkey prices and an overall shortage. High rates of the avian flu, one of the worst in history, according to The Washington Post, wreaked havoc on the turkey population.
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Meanwhile, inflation drove the price of turkeys up about 17%, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
While the avian flu and inflation are always present, they won’t have the same impact on Thanksgiving turkeys this year. Here’s what you should know.
Why do we eat turkey on Thanksgiving?
Eating turkey on Thanksgiving is an American tradition, but one borrowed — like many of our traditions — from another culture. Eating a turkey at banquets was something that originated from Mexico, according to USA Today.
Turkey bones were discovered in what is now southern Puebla between 200 B.C. and 700 A.D., indicating that the ancient Aztec and Mayan civilizations dined on domesticated turkeys well before Europeans came and colonized North America.
These cultures even dedicated some religious festivals to turkeys — and many traditional Mexican recipes, like Puebla-style mole, feature turkey.
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Turkeys were brought back to Spain in the 1600s, which spread to England where they eventually replaced peacocks and swans as the preferred bird for holiday meals.
Then, in the mid-1600s, those new Europeans came full circle when the British imported turkeys to Jamestown. Eating turkey at holiday meals quickly became an American tradition, too, solidified when President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863.
The National Turkey Federation found that at least 88% of Americans now have turkey at their Thanksgiving dinner.
How to safely thaw a turkey?
While there are many ways to thaw a turkey, the U.S. Department of Agriculture only recommends one: refrigerator thawing. Refrigerator thawing is time-consuming and requires a little bit of planning ahead of time, but it will give you the most consistent thaw and will thaw the turkey to a safe temperature.
Thawing a turkey in the refrigerator typically requires one day for each 4-5 pounds of weight. So, if you have a 16-pound turkey, it will take about four days to thaw in the refrigerator. Once thawed, the turkey can safely sit in the refrigerator for up to two days.
Additional ways to thaw a turkey include cold-water thawing and microwave thawing. Both of these methods can be done safely and are quicker than refrigerator thawing. For a rundown on how to use these methods, visit the USDA’s website.
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What size turkey do you need?
Choosing the right turkey size for Thanksgiving is going to depend on how well you know your guests. It’s typically recommended to have between 1.25-2 pounds per guest, with 2 pounds being the absolute maximum.
Where to get a turkey in Pensacola?
Looking to get a Thanksgiving turkey? Here’s a list of popular local shops for turkeys.
Costellos Butcher and Deli
Where: 8190 W. Fairfield Dr.
Contact: 850-741-2823
Apple Market
Where: 1021 Scenic Highway
Contact: 850-433-4381
Butcher Shoppe
Where: 2405 Langley Ave.
Contact: 850-458-8782
Four Winds Fine Foods Market
Where: 6895 N. Ninth Ave.
Contact: 850-477-2808
Shoreline Foods International Market
Where: 1180 W. Main St.
Contact: 850-433-8852
Ever’man Cooperative Grocery Store
Where: 315 W. Garden Street and 1000 E. Nine Mile Road
Contact: 850-438-0402 (West Garden Street) and 850-316-3700
Fantastic Grocery and Meat Market
Where: 2500 N. E St.
Contact: 850-469-8861
How much will turkey cost Thanksgiving 2023?
Retail prices for turkeys, the holiday's main course for many Americans, have been on the decline after costs for the birds soared in 2022 amid rising inflation and a rapidly spreading avian influenza that limited production. What's more, economists predict that prices could fall even further as Thanksgiving approaches and businesses try to lure customers with special deals.
Per-pound prices for turkey rose more than 20% in 2022 over the previous year, according to an annual Thanksgiving report from Wells Fargo.
The price increase was spurred in part by overall inflation, but experts say the main culprit was highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). The outbreak that began in January 2022 infected 7 million turkeys and wiped out commercial livestock, depleting supplies for last year's Thanksgiving, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Overall, average turkey prices reached as high as $1.72 a pound just as Thanksgiving approached, Nelson said. As a result, a Farm Bureau survey in 2022 found that a Thanksgiving feast for 10 cost $64.05, a 20% increase from the previous year’s average of $53.31.
Contributors: Eric Lagatta - USA TODAY
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: The Thanksgiving turkey shortage is over. Here's what to know
