National Hot Dog Day: Americans consume 7 billion hot dogs each summer
Today is National Hot Dog Day, a celebration of a classic summertime food. Hot Dogs, aka frankfurters and wieners, has been around in North America since the 1860s, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council.
Chicago dog
Image/National Hot Dog and Sausage Council
How popular are hot dogs in the United States? According to data for the year 2013, more than 1 billion packages of hot dogs were sold at retail stores. That number represents almost $2.5 billion in retail sales.
In addition, weiners have been a staple at baseball games since 1893. The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council says that a 2014 survey shows 21,357,361 hot dogs are expected to sell in MLB stadiums this year. Los Angeles Dodger fans alone are expected to consume a record 3,077,537 in 2014.
Speaking of LA, Los Angelenos consumed 40 million hot dogs in 2013, topping New York and Atlanta.
One last factoid that clearly shows the popularity of the hot dog–During peak hot dog season, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, Americans typically consume 7 billion hot dogs. That’s 818 hot dogs consumed every second during that period.
