Turkey Production Costs Are Up; Not Good News at Thanksgiving
[MP3]https://server1.vnkienthuc.com/files/3/Media/se-ag-turkeys-11-19-07.mp3[/MP3]
This is the VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT.
This Thursday is Thanksgiving, the most[A] popular holiday[/A] for Americans to eat turkey. But people may have to pay a little more for their holiday bird this year. How much more will [A]depend on[/A] competition between stores.
Production costs are up. Turkeys are fed mainly corn and soybean meal. Corn was an[A] average[/A] of two dollars a bushel last year. This year it was three dollars, and prices topped[A] four dollars[/A] at times. Not only that, soybean production is down from last year's record high.
Many farmers are growing corn to make [A]fuel[/A]. The Department of Agriculture says one-fourth of the record corn crop expected this year could become ethanol. Also, higher oil prices mean higher[A] transportation[/A] costs -- another reason for costlier corn.
Rising food prices might be one thing on the minds of Thanksgiving Day meal planners this year. But some things never [A]change[/A].
A turkey can be a little tricky to [A]cook[/A]. The breast meat cooks faster than the leg meat, so it can get dried out. Countless turkey suggestions are on the Internet. We found a recipe called "The World's Best Turkey." It calls for butter, two apples, a tablespoon of garlic powder, and salt and [A]pepper[/A] to taste.
Oh, and it also calls for two-thirds of a seven hundred fifty milliliter bottle of Champagne. For the turkey. The Champagne is poured over the inside and outside of the bird in a roasting bag.
However the turkey is cooked, someone has to cut it. Advice about carving turkeys like a professional is also available online. The University of Illinois Extension service, for example, [A]suggests[/A] practicing on a chicken during the off-season.
For people who do not eat meat, there are [A]products[/A] like Tofurky made of tofu, which comes from soybeans.
Turkey producers in the United States are expected to raise two hundred seventy-two million birds this year. That estimate is four percent higher than last year. Two-thirds of the[A] turkeys[/A] are expected to come from Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri and California.
The Census Bureau says the United States[A] imported [/A]ten million dollars worth of live turkeys during the first half of the year. Almost all came from Canada. During that period the United States had a[A] five million dollar trade[/A] deficit in live turkeys. But it had a nine million dollar surplus in cranberries. And it had a fifteen million dollar surplus in[A] sweet potatoes[/A], another popular food at Thanksgiving.
And that's the VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.
[MP3]https://server1.vnkienthuc.com/files/3/Media/se-ag-turkeys-11-19-07.mp3[/MP3]
This is the VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT.
This Thursday is Thanksgiving, the most[A] popular holiday[/A] for Americans to eat turkey. But people may have to pay a little more for their holiday bird this year. How much more will [A]depend on[/A] competition between stores.
Production costs are up. Turkeys are fed mainly corn and soybean meal. Corn was an[A] average[/A] of two dollars a bushel last year. This year it was three dollars, and prices topped[A] four dollars[/A] at times. Not only that, soybean production is down from last year's record high.
Many farmers are growing corn to make [A]fuel[/A]. The Department of Agriculture says one-fourth of the record corn crop expected this year could become ethanol. Also, higher oil prices mean higher[A] transportation[/A] costs -- another reason for costlier corn.
Rising food prices might be one thing on the minds of Thanksgiving Day meal planners this year. But some things never [A]change[/A].
A turkey can be a little tricky to [A]cook[/A]. The breast meat cooks faster than the leg meat, so it can get dried out. Countless turkey suggestions are on the Internet. We found a recipe called "The World's Best Turkey." It calls for butter, two apples, a tablespoon of garlic powder, and salt and [A]pepper[/A] to taste.
Oh, and it also calls for two-thirds of a seven hundred fifty milliliter bottle of Champagne. For the turkey. The Champagne is poured over the inside and outside of the bird in a roasting bag.
However the turkey is cooked, someone has to cut it. Advice about carving turkeys like a professional is also available online. The University of Illinois Extension service, for example, [A]suggests[/A] practicing on a chicken during the off-season.
For people who do not eat meat, there are [A]products[/A] like Tofurky made of tofu, which comes from soybeans.
Turkey producers in the United States are expected to raise two hundred seventy-two million birds this year. That estimate is four percent higher than last year. Two-thirds of the[A] turkeys[/A] are expected to come from Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri and California.
The Census Bureau says the United States[A] imported [/A]ten million dollars worth of live turkeys during the first half of the year. Almost all came from Canada. During that period the United States had a[A] five million dollar trade[/A] deficit in live turkeys. But it had a nine million dollar surplus in cranberries. And it had a fifteen million dollar surplus in[A] sweet potatoes[/A], another popular food at Thanksgiving.
And that's the VOA Special English AGRICULTURE REPORT, written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.
