Annual:
•Canadians consumed 150.5 million kg (Mkg) of turkey in the year 2008.
•Per capita turkey consumption in 2008 was 4.5 kg.
•An estimated 80.1 Mkg of turkey and turkey products were purchased at retail by Canadians in 2008.
•Of that 80.1 Mkg, 58.6 Mkg of whole turkeys were purchased.
• In 2008, Canadian households consumed a total of 9.6 million whole turkeys.
• There are 548 turkey farmers in Canada.
 

Fall:

Whole bird sales are seasonal:
  • At Thanksgiving 2008, 2.7 million whole turkeys were purchased by Canadians, equal to 28% of all whole turkeys that were sold over the year.
  • Thanksgiving and Christmas account for 71% of annual whole turkey sales.
  • At Thanksgiving 2008, 5 million or 39% of all Canadian households purchased turkey and turkey products.
 
Miscellaneous Facts:
  • Annual sales of turkey parts and processed turkey products increased from 10 Mkg in 1993, to 21.5 Mkg in 2008.
  • Israel has the highest per capita consumption of turkey in the world, at 10.5 kg/capita.
  • Per Capita Consumption in other selected countries:

o   United States  8.0 kg

o   France  5.3 kg

o   United Kingdom  4.0 kg

o   European Union  3.6 kg