FACTS

FACT: AMERICANS ARE IN A FIERY, LONG-TERM LOVE AFFAIR WITH THEIR BACKYARD GRILLS!

62 – Percentage of Americans who own a grill. (Whether it is clean or not is another story)

79.1 million – Americans who have grilled out in the past 12 months, according to the U.S. Census from 2010.

8.3 – Percentage who grill two or three times a month.

8.1 – Average number of cookout parties held at grillers’ homes each year. We grillers like to party.

160 degrees – The safe internal temperature for ground beef or pork. It’s 165 degrees for ground chicken or turkey. Buy a grilling thermometer, people!

165 degrees – The safe internal temperature for grilling poultry. One of the ways to tell if the meat is done is when it reaches this temperature. Some meats benefit from resting a few minutes after you remove them from the grill. It cooks a little bit longer after that, too, so factor that in.

86 – USA! USA! Percent of grill owners who plan to grill on the Fourth of July this summer.

84 – Percentage of grillers who cook burgers, the most popular food on a list that also includes steak, hot dogs, and chicken not far behind.

5,700 – Fires of residential grills in the U.S. were reported between 2006 and 2008, causing $37 million in property loss.

14,397,000 – The total number of grill and smoker units shipped in the U.S. in 2012, according to the Hearth, Patio, and Barbecue Association.

7 out of 10 – Home grillers surveyed in 2011 who considered themselves to be “better than average” at grilling.