10 Amazing Facts You Didn’t Know About Turkeys in Minnesota

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As we get ready to celebrate Thanksgiving in 2023, here are 10 facts about Minnesota's Thanksgiving star of the show: the turkey.

I'm always a little surprised when I'm reminded that Minnesota is currently ranked first in the country when it comes to turkey production. That's right, no other state raises more turkeys than we do here in the Land of 10,000 Turkeys Lakes. Maybe it's not as top of mind because there aren't a lot of turkey farms directly in our backyards in the Bold North's biggest cities, like Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester or Duluth.

In fact, Minnesota's 7 county metro area, as well as Rochester's Olmsted County aren't even any of the top turkey-raising counties in Minnesota. Those top 10 turkey counties include Kandiyohi, Stearns, Morrison, Lyon, Ottertail, Rice, Meeker, Becker, Redwood and Brown Counties.

READ MORE: 11 Strange Things You'll Only Hear at Thanksgiving in Minnesota

But it's no surprise to the gang over at the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association. They know that Minnesota's number-one ranking is due to the tireless work of the 450 family farmers in Minnesota who raise approximately nearly 46 million turkeys each and every year.

Hoo boy, that's a lot of gobbling! So, keep scrolling to see 10 more amazing Minnesota turkey facts (you probably didn't know.) And, if cooking a turkey and traditional Thanksgiving Day dinner isn't something you're inclined to do, but you'd still like to enjoy a turkey dinner, keep on scrolling to see a list of restaurants here in Minnesota that WILL be open this Thanksgiving Day.

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