American hot dog eating record set
By Darren Rovell
ESPN.com

Watch out, Takeru Kobayashi. Here comes Joey Chestnut.

Chestnut, a 22-year-old civil engineering student at San Jose State, ate 50 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes Thursday at the Las Vegas qualifier for a spot at the table at the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest.

The mark sets the American hot dog eating record, beating the 42 hot dogs and buns swallowed by Sonya Thomas last year. In the same competition, Chestnut had only eaten 32.

"I was hoping to do 40," said Chestnut, the champion in pork ribs (5.5 pounds in 12 minutes), waffles (18.5 in 10 minutes) and jalapeno poppers (118 in 10 minutes). "I did 48 at home, but it's always harder to do it in front of a crowd."

Kobayashi, who flies to Coney Island each year from Japan for the hot dog eating championship held July 4, holds the world record of 53½ hot dogs and buns. He has won the last five contests, but in two of those victories he ate less than 50 hot dogs and buns.

"This could be so critical to our sport," said George Shea, chair of the International Federation of Competitive Eating, which sanctions more than 100 eating contests, including the Nathan's event. "It's never good for the same athlete to win so many years in a row. The Fourth of July has been stolen from Americans because of Kobayashi's dominance and now America has someone who they can get excited about."

"I'm going to push harder on our Independence Day to take the title back," said Chestnut, who is 6-foot-1 and 230 pounds. "My brother is in the National Guard in Iraq and there will be a lot of people behind me."

Chestnut estimates he has won $50,000 in cash and prizes in a year on the circuit, including a car and ring after prevailing in the Wing Bowl. In the event, which took place in Philadelphia, he ate 173 buffalo wings in 30 minutes.

Darren Rovell, a senior writer for ESPN.com, can be reached at Darren.rovell@espn3.com.

Hot dogs are sold in large volumes at both retail stores and at foodservice outlets and restaurants. Retail scanner data is tracked by data tracking companies and compiled. Foodservice sales also are tracked to the extent possible. But because hot dogs are sold in so many venues – like corner stands, sporting events, carnivals and other places where data is not tracked, it is difficult to offer a single precise estimate of the exact number of hot dogs sold each year. But one thing is certain - the market is large.

Retail sales
Retail sales in major markets are collected when products are scanned at the checkout counter. Scanners read bar codes on uniform-weight products, like a package of ten to the pound branded wieners. Companies like Information Resources Inc. in Chicago or NPD in Port Washington, N.Y., track these numbers. Please note: the scan data that is collected from major markets, does not represent every market and does not include grocery stores that do not have scanners. According to figures for 2004, 837 million packages of hot dogs were sold at retail stores*.

* This market includes all cities in SC.
Ranking is based on dollar sales for the latest 52 weeks ending Oct. 3, 2004

Trends
In the mid-1990s, low-fat and fat-free formulations hit the market and sales in retail stores were strong. However, in recent years, sales in the "better for you" category have remained consistent. Better for you hot dogs account for 12.4 percent of the total market for hot dogs*. Dollar sales for the category are substantial however, with the top ten markets selling a total of $37,332,066 in 2004*.

The vast majority of hot dogss are of the skinless variety – cooked inside a cellulose casing that is removed prior to packaging. Some hot dogs are produced in natural casings that are not removed. The majority of hot dogs are sold eight to the pound. Approximately, 35 percent of hot dogs sold are offered in 10 to the pound packages.

While a popular entrée across the country, hot dog consumption does vary by region. Residents of the Southeast eat more processed meats in general. Residents of the Big Apple, New York City, spent the most money in retail stores on hot dogs last year - a whopping $112.6 million*. Los Angeles residents, however, purchased the most pounds of hot dogs in retail stores - 42,273,360*. For the second year in a row, the Baltimore/Washington area came in third for dollar sales at $51.4 million*. This is significant considering its relative size and population in comparison to the other cities listed. The current population for Baltimore/Washington area is 3.3 million versus New York City (#1) and Los Angeles (#2) with populations at 8.1 and 3.9 million, respectively.

Hot dog producers estimate that an average of 38 percent of hot dogs is sold annually at retail between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Last year, there were approximately $614 million in retail sales from June through August*. Ten percent of annual retail hot dog sales occur during July, which is designated as National Hot Dog Month.

*Source: Information Resources Inc. 2004.