No Farms, No Super Bowl

This past Sunday, a little football game called the Super Bowl was played for the 57th time. If it weren’t for farmers and ranchers, millions of people would have to find another way to spend their Sunday evening. So, exactly how did agriculture impact Super Bowl LVII?

Money changes hands, whether in the purchase of game tickets (average price $9,720), food, or the loss of a bet. Did you know 75% of that dollar bill used to tip the pizza delivery guy is made of cotton?

According to the National Retail Federation, 192.9 million adults watched the big game, spending a total of $16.5 billion. While some of those expenditures will go to things like team apparel, decorations, new TVs, and furniture, a whopping 79% will be spent on food and beverages, all of which come from farms. In fact, Americans eat more food on Super Bowl Sunday than any other day of the year, except for Thanksgiving.

Super Bowl Sunday is also one of the biggest days for pizza sales in America. According to The American Pizza Community, a coalition of the nation's largest pizza companies, 12.5 million pizzas were sold on the day of the big game last year. What would pizza be without wheat, dairy, meat, fruit, and vegetables, all grown or raised by farmers?

The National Chicken Council estimated 1.45 billion chicken wings would be eaten Sunday. That's enough wings to go around the Earth three times. 

More people grilled on Super Bowl Sunday than any other day besides the Fourth of July. There were an estimated 14 billion hamburgers served on game day, possibly topped with some of the 12 million pounds of bacon that was eaten.

Don’t forget the potato chips and dip, cheese and crackers, popcorn, meatballs, and other munchies gracing tables across the country. 

The National Restaurant Association says 51.7 million cases of beer are sold every year during Super Bowl weekend. One bushel of barley, grown mostly by farmers across the Northern Plains and Pacific Northwest, will make 565 12-ounce beers. While at-home watchers spent plenty on beer, at least they didn’t have to pay $17.50 for a 25-ounce can of Bud Light like those who attended the game, but they needed it to wash down their $12.75 hot dog.

Agriculture also affects the game itself. The turf in State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, is a hybrid drought-tolerant Bermuda grass, grown on a turf farm near Scottsdale and trucked the 25 miles to the stadium. The grass is housed in a single tray, which is 40 inches deep, 234 feet wide, and 403 feet long. The entire tray is rolled outside when the grass needs sunlight or the stadium is being used for other events.

Leather is also used to make the ball. Even though it's often called a pigskin, footballs are actually made of cowhide. Wilson is the official supplier of footballs for the NFL: 120 of its footballs were used in Sunday's game. One cowhide will make 10 footballs. Not just any cowhide is used; it comes from cattle grown in Iowa, Kansas, or Nebraska.

Whether it’s the stadium, the field, the ball, or the food, one thing is clear: no farms, no Super Bowl!  

EDITOR’S TAKE:

Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs on their well-fought win over another great football team, the Philadelphia Eagles. It was an exciting game to watch. All that said, this article serves to remind us just how integral agriculture is to our everyday life, be it the Super Bowl, Thanksgiving or any other day of the year. Not only does modern agriculture help make big football games possible, but it also allows over 98% of Americans to pursue their dreams and careers without the need to raise their own food, make their own clothing or provide some of the fuel for their vehicles. Thanks to farmers and ranchers across this nation we have an affordable abundance not enjoyed in any other country in the world. You can help us celebrate all their contributions during National Agriculture Day and AgRally (on RFD-TV and the Cowboy Channel) on March 21, 2023. And next year, during Super Bowl LVIII, you can refer to some of these facts to impress your friends with your knowledge of agriculture!