A few turkey facts to ponder as dinner roasts on Thursday. Despite some Internet rumors, turkeys aren't so breast-heavy that they fall over in a stiff wind. Though they are too large-breasted to breed naturally. And it's true: They can't fly.
Indeed, breeding has gotten very technical for modern birds. Tom turkeys (that's boy turkeys to those not raised on farms) have been selected over the years for maximum breast growth, because that's what the public buys, says Sherrie Rosenblatt of the National Turkey Federation in Washington, D.C.
An average tom today weighs 33 pounds, and 62% of its usable meat is on its breast.
The change in turkey size actually began in the 1930s.
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