On Independence Day 2025 Americans will enjoy 150 million hot dogs, according to the National Hot Dog and Sauce Council.  That’s enough hot dogs to stretch from coast to coast more than five times.

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.

That seems unbelievable. Not really, said Steve Garrett, owner of the Troy Piggly Wiggly on U.S. Highway 231 in Troy and the Piggly Wiggly on South Three Notch Street in downtown Troy  

“I don’t doubt that 150 million hot dogs will be sold on Independence Day and even more,” Garrett said. “If I had to put a number on how many ‘hot dogs’ we’ll sell at the Piggly Wiggly store, I would have to say around 50 cases or more. That’s around six thousand pounds of hotdogs and that’s a lot of hotdogs to sell … and people to eat.”

And, it’s not just hot dogs that are consumed on the Fourth of July.

Garrett, laughing, said just behind hot dogs will be too many racks of ribs to count, too many Boston butts to count and too many wings to even begin to count. 

“Chicken wings will be way up there around the top, maybe at the top,” said Garrett. “Wings have gotten to be a big seller especially at sports bars.”
Garrett said, however, that hot dogs and “wings ’n things” are not the only food choices on patriotic holidays. 

“Watermelons are around number one as after-meal treats,” he said. “And, hand-turned freezers of ice cream, especially peach down south, and Blue Bell is right up there, too. There’s no way to know how much food is consumed on the Fourth of July.”

Nor, how much Alka Seltzer.